The Four Lands - The Colony

[J. Alexander]

The Colony

When the party has finished the spokesman address their questions. "Land will be alloated by the govering council thus your holdings could be increased by either purchase of the land from the council or by going out and acquiring a set piece of land for the colony by staking a claim to it under rules provided by the govering council. For the intial land selection we have propsed that it be done in a lottery format thus everyone has an equal chance."

"The colony shall be in the Light but we have secured special dispensations from the Prelate countersigned by the five primates that non-humans shall have the right of free exercise and shall be allowed both home and up to three public shirnes/churches"

"The land in question has already been claimed and boundary stakes set by the previous expedition that mapped it. Thus the land will be divided intially within those boundaries and those lands not distributed outright to the claimants are reserved for the colonial council to sell, grant or hold in reserve. So as the claim has already been establised and marked in the treaty we are in effect transferring our rights of ownership with the exception of those 100,000 acres to the colnial goverment."

"As to the question of slave labor it has been agreed to by treaty that slaves shall be allowed to be imported into the colony for ten years after it's founding at which time it will be forbidden. Further it has been agreed that any slave brought to the colony shall see it's decendants declared free born on the third generation and that slave may also purchase or be granted their freedom."

"In regards to taxes, is has been established that starting the third year 1/20 of all revenus shall be paid as taxes to the founding counrtries and that portion shall increase every second year by 1/20 until the maximum rate of 5/20th is achieved"

"Should you chose patents of nobility from one of the founding countries then tax rate will be set thru negioation with your chosen soverign or his or her representative."

 

[Lou]

Alton Kanri, Human Cloistered Cleric/Battle Sorcerer of the Light

OOC: Where is East March? Is that a Dwarven land?

I think that before bothering about schools and academies, the most important people in the colony will be the artisans, the farmers and the builders - laughs Ederin.

"Families with children build colonies. No artisan worth having will want to join the Colony without a plan for the children. Unmarried persons are simply adventure-seekers. And unless given a dispensation for marriage, we may well fall within that latter category. Randal, Hennett, Alvar, we can work out an arrangement for an open academy. Just consider the future, friends, how many schools could boast having so much nobility as teachers?

You raise a most thoughtful question, Ederin, how much will the initial ships and supplies that have already been outlined for the Colony cost the Colony? The garrison troops, etc." asks Alton. "We are speaking about gigantic sums when a warship sells for around 3000 gp."

OOC: We are in The Four Lands, where ordinary items cost silver instead of gold, are we not?

However, there is something that I don't really like: the acres given to each of the founding nations is quite big.

"You are correct, Ederin. The 25,000 acres for each of the 5 nations is 125,000 acres, a huge land area, over 195 square miles that we will be responsible for securing and defending." states Alton.

"Which revenues in the Colony will be subject to a 5% surtax in addition to any tax the Colony decides to levy? And did I hear you say the Prelate would pick the Colony's initial leader? Do you know who that will be?" inquires Alton.

 

[J. Alexander]

The Colony

OCC: Eastmarch is the eastern most kingdom of the borderlands......so way up north..
Yes you are talking about large sums.....warships and certain other items have inflated values in regards to the transition so as a rule of them times their silver cost by 15 and you have their cost.


"It is very simple 5 percent of all revunes shall be returned to the founding countries" the man replies and then adds "No the prelate has found someone to represent and administer the church in the colony but the colonial governor is still under consideration"

 

[Nightbreeze]

Sorry, JA, I didn't really get the cost rules for warships and so...could you give (maybe in the wiki, or here and I will post it on the wiki) how much would be the cost (in gp) of a warship, and maybe some other example? (like the cost for a cargo, or the daily wage of a common worker, or the costs for opening a new, medium-sized mine, or the cost of an average house)

Honestly, how do you expect to use efficiently 190 square miles since the beginning? I would at least expect that you are open to lend and lease them for agricultural or mineral extraction use...against a payment, of course. We cannot afford to have 190 square miles of mostly unused land, just because it is someone else' Ederin really doesn't seem to appreciate the complications that jump out as his interlocutors go on revealing benefits for them.

 

[J. Alexander]

The Colony

"We do not expect you to use the land efficently, that is why our factors have been instructed to select land that will not be immediately avaiable or valuable to the colony as the tracts. The plan is long range gentlemen so land that may be valueless or diffictule to expolit now may over the course of ten or twenty years become highly profitable. By agreement the founding countries will select tracts of land that are outside of a five mile radius of the immediate colony."

Costs:
A warship would cost..45,000 silver pieces, the common worker gets about 1 copper a day to work....a mediume size mine would be around 30,000 given the timber and necessary pumps etc as well as tracks and ore carts....but things will be a little higher as they must be imported so unless you can produce them locally you are looking at a 50 to 100 percent mark up in price. The cost of an average home would be like 100 silver pieces.

 

[Scotley]

Alvar

"That tax rate you mention. You are saying that 25% of the revenue collected by the colony will be paid to the founding countries after 10 years?"

 

[J. Alexander]

The colony

"I do belive it works out to about that" the spokesman says then adds "But perhaps we could be a little flexiable on that provided the right motivation"

 

[Neurotic]

Randal Lucius Stormweaver

That is exactly why school needs to be opened as soon as possible. If we allow children of farmers and foresters and loggers to grow into men without any knowledge of their history we will degrade into another border land with harsh men and more then little violent with strength of arms as a rule.

Besides, school may have formal education of farmers and foresters and miners and all other needed craftsmen, it doesn't have to be philosophy, magic and art only.

As it will be unclaimed land, I don't believe it will be problem for colony to handle so much. I repeat the caveat that colony is exempt from taxes for five years. Initial military force should be as small as possible, all men going there should be given some basic training, but we shouldn't consider having large armed forces that would only stand aroung guarding the colony from as yet unknown threats.

For initial housing we can use natural caverns or groves of trees. I believe such would appeal to our dwarves and druids. It will have the advantage of stealth. Also, we shouldn't have military vessels on colony pay roll at least initially. Let merchants take care of their securiry. We need secrecy more then protection from sea attack.

As for marriage, we should take as much couples as we can. But, adventure seekers that want to settle down and simply those hoping to get rich fast as they will explore the land around the colony.

That said, when do we start? And where? Are the ships already given assignement?

 

[Nightbreeze]

For initial housing we can use natural caverns or groves of trees. I believe such would appeal to our dwarves and druids.

Ederin looks startled for a moment, then gives a sudden laugh. Yes...yes...given any forest with big enough tress, I can guarantee suitable homes for anyone. As a matter of fact, even if trees are not big enough, I will simply make the grow, and I will make them grow in such a way that we can build homes on them. I guarantee that none will miss the traditional housing. Actually, I think that this will be an important factor in the future growth of the colony.

Well, I shall say that you got me in for the school project. I will help however I can.


OOC: Hm, JA, pretty low prices. That poses a question: I originally kept 15000 golden coins in cash (and now, I could buy 30 warships with them), and said "9500 for tools, clothes and books". I now realize that 9500 golden coins would probably buy me a whole library, a dozen shops of clothes and enough tools to keep a hundred artisans happy. Shall we say that from those 9500gp 500 were spent on actual books, clothes and tools, and convert the other 9000gp in cash? As an alternative, I can think that with those 9000 I assembled a construction company: builders, materials, artisans and so on. It would be pretty big, given the fact that only 300gp are required to build a medium sized mine.

 

[J. Alexander]

Gold

Nightbreeze
If i rember correctly earlier discussion etc..all the unspent gold converts to silver at the start of the game ...so you looking at 15,000 silver in cash not gold but still a very sizable fortune......sorry for the confusion.. i need to spend some time and work the kinks out of the coinage...so for know just keep asking.....