Predictions on Faq

[Daefaroth]

Now that the Faq cat is out of the bag. It seems likely that within the next few turns someone is going to attempt to claim the fallen cities. It appears that cities can only be built on 'city' hexes, which are probably rare and valuable. The question, who is going to make a play for it.

Likely people to try:

Jillian: She's right there and it is rightfully hers. As far as she knows Ansom is gone. She's hurt, she's upset, and she is probably more angry with Stanley then she has ever been. Now may be the time for her to claim her rightful place as ruler of Faq.

Stanley: Possible, but I have the feeling that he has bigger things on his mind right now, like what just happened at GK. I could see him still having interest, but by the time he has a chance to make a move someone else will probably have claimed it.

Wanda: Stanley claimed a capital after atuning to an Arkentool, will Wanda follow his footsteps? She is not under a loyalty spell and she was working with Stanley in order to get an Arkentool. Now that she has one she has no motivation to stay at GK. As a bonus, taking Faq is probably the worst thing she can do to Jillian right now.

Charlescomm: Completely mercenary, and one of the earliest turns on the map. Definate possibility. However, it probably takes a Leadership unit to pop a city, and he may not have one in range.

Transylvito: Somewhat of a wild-card in the equation. They have leadership units in the area, and as one of the closest sides to Faq they would have one of the easiest times holding on to it. However, who knows what their motivation is now that the coalition has crumbled.


Personally I think it is going to come down to Wanda and Jillian. It is just too perfect a story telling opportunity to pass up. However, we will I suspect we won't find out until Book 2 in the fall.

Anyone else have any thoughts?

[Darkside007]

The way Casear was talking about Faq, it seems unlikely that they would permit another side to exist so close to them, friendly or not.

Whoever claims it may have to constantly fight off Translyvito raiders and interceptors.

[Daefaroth]

My bad for forgetting this...

http://www.erfworld.com/book-1-archive/?px=%2F138.jpg

[Bobby Archer]

Yeah, Transylvito's going to have those cities pretty soon, unless Jillian suddenly works up a good head of starting-to-care about them.

[raphfrk]

It is possible to rebuild cities as long as you have the money. If Stanley didn't empty it, maybe the ruins still contain Faq's treasury (or at least some of it).

Jillian may just need to get to the cities 1 turn before Translvito in order to claim them + spend the treasury to upgrade them from ruins to level 5 cities.

The upgrade would happen at the start of her next turn, so she would need to escape and get 1 turn ahead of the Translvito stack. Ofc, she still wouldn't have any defenders.

Maybe she is planning something like:

- wait for night
- break alliance
- they can't attack her during the night
- barbarians move before Capital sides, so she waits at the zone boundary and jumps through just as soon as dawn arrives

Alternatively, she goes for some alone time with Vinnie near the boundary and breaks the alliance moments before dawn. (This wouldn't make Vinnie look very good with the others as Borgata made her Vinnie's responsibility.)

[jioan]

Personally I believe that Wanda will stay loyal to Stanley and GK. Some people said she has no reason to stay, but she does. Like it or not Stanley is a powerful ally and he also has Parson so staying with them gives her more power than if she made her own side at Faq. She may take it for Stanley, but she won't split and make her own side.

[Bobby Archer]

I'd be guessing that when Stanley squished Faq, he looted the treasury. That seems like something he wouldn't miss.

And I agree with jioan about Wanda. She has no real reason to leave GK, and certainly no need to make an enemy of the guy with the Arkenhammer. Especially since, as she is Loyal to Fate, and Fate chose Stanley to become attuned to the Arkenhammer, Stanley is logically her ally.

[Daefaroth]

Especially since, as she is Loyal to Fate, and Fate chose Stanley to become attuned to the Arkenhammer, Stanley is logically her ally.

100% agree with this statement, just came to a different conclusion. Now attuned with the Arkenpliers, Wanda has to be considered Stanley's equal, arguably his superior. She is a master class Croakamancer, and the true loyalties of the decrypted units remain to be seen. Are they Stanley's units or will they follow the Arkenpliers? It is notable that they don't carry Stanley's logo or colors.

It doesn't even matter if Wanda intends to stay loyal to Stanley or not. Right now he is going to be very scared of her and what she can do. Stanley is going to want to be as far away from her as possible. Is there the basis of an anti-royal coalition here? Very possibly. However, I just can't see Wanda remaining subservient to Stanley given the power she wields.

[Bobby Archer]

I just can't see Wanda remaining subservient to Stanley given the power she wields.

In the 4th update, Wanda refers to Stanley more than once as "Lord". If she was going to make a play to get him to see her as an equal, that would have been the time to do it, when he first saw her with the pliers.

Wanda's always had a kind of control over Stanley, a way of getting him to do what she wanted. If she was willing to simply break sides with him, she could have done it long before. Wanda, for whatever reasons, wants someone like Stanley in the throne room, while she pulls strings in the dungeon.

[Cmdr I. Heartly Noah]

As far as Faq goes, it's gonna be Transylvito, likely on the very next turn. Which is great for them, as they lose the least (~3 warlords) and gain the most (3 cities) of all combatants... other than GK, depending on how many units of what quality they decrypted.

Balder has already said Jillian is going to meet Don King, so... if she did try to gank her cities (why?), she would soon lose them.

And there wouldn't be any money in the ruined cities... when you beat a city, you take its treasury. That's hard-wired. Now, if they had been left at level 1, and their Ruler & heir(s?) killed, they would be frozen in time and the money would still be there.

[Maldeus]

Why would Wanda want to hurt Jillian on that level? Keep in mind Jillian actually enjoys the nasty things Wanda does to her. Wanda does not like hurting her emotionally. Also, how would Wanda get there before Traynsylvito? And who in their right mind would want to ditch Parson after what he just did to the Royal Crown Coalition?

[Darkside007]

I just can't see Wanda remaining subservient to Stanley given the power she wields.

In the 4th update, Wanda refers to Stanley more than once as "Lord". If she was going to make a play to get him to see her as an equal, that would have been the time to do it, when he first saw her with the pliers.

More than that, she's disappointed, not angry, when Stanley appears underwhelmed. Not exactly the mindset of a revolutionary, but of a minion.

[Doktor Jones]

More than that, she's disappointed, not angry, when Stanley appears underwhelmed. Not exactly the mindset of a revolutionary, but of a minion.

I don't see her disappointment stemming so much from her mindset, but from her intimate understanding of Stanley's mindset. Perhaps she already sees/senses that Stanley is jealous/unsettled by her attunement, even if he tries to masquerade it by acting underwhelmed (which it seems fairly obvious is just a ruse). He even mentally notes that she seems "better" attuned to the Arkenpliers than he to the Arkenhammer.