Advanced Rulebook

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Can we add/change a shop in the settlement our HQ is based in?

Alliances can use their influence (Status) with whichever Organisation they are working with to request a new shop or amend existing shops. Gold is nearly always required to fund any changes, so offering gold first will help to persuade the Organisation to go ahead. See Player Controlled Shops for more detailed information about setting up a shop and shop services.

If our Alliance is not tied to the Settlement Officials of the Settlement that we want to change, can we still affect the shops in the settlement?

All the Organisations can use diplomatic means on each other, so any Organisation can request changes to shops or the setting up of a new shop. Some Organisations are better at this than others, but all of them can do it.

A party has recently arrived on an island or at a settlement, can we claim it for the Organisation we work with or for ourselves?

Please keep in mind that the history of the civilised races stretches back 3000 years. As you can imagine, the areas around the game worlds have been, at the least, roughly explored. If there is a settlement nearby then you cannot just simply claim it. Also keep in mind that all the Alliances initially work for the Organisation, not the other way around. Once Rank 3+ is reached, then an Alliance may be able to make announcements and lay claim to things in the name of an Organisation, because they may be able to call on a contingent of troops to back them up, but even then they should get the rest of the Organisations opinion first. If you want to know who claims a settlement, check the settlement blurb. Do not assume that just because a settlement is some distance from any others, it is there for the taking. Remember that even a village could take an Alliance on and probably win, not that the mechanics of the game let you do this anyway, which is another hint that it cannot be done. What an Alliance can do is build up their status with its Organisation and suggest things to them, and in the long term, actually claim areas, etc.

How do we go about claiming a settlement?

Firstly, make sure an Organisation the Alliance works with is interested in doing this. Trying to persuade the Organisation may help; this would require a SA. Claiming a settlement comes down to the important issue of how many resources the Organisation is willing to use to back the claim, and at the core of the resources that will be required are troops. Generally only Settlement Officials have enough troops to lay claim to something and be able to back the claim up. The other Organisations do have their own troops, plus they also have other abilities, but a settlement normally has access to lots of troops and the resources of the other Organisations in the settlement. So if an Organisation other than the Settlement Officials wanted to claim somewhere they would normally use their influence with the Settlement Officials to get them to back the claim.
A general summary for the different Organisations is:

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  • The Temples will want a settlement to align itself with a settlement in which it already has power, and they will want the majority of inhabitants to declare loyalty to the specific Philosophy or God.
  • Bankers & Merchants Guild and Thieves Guild are not interested in laying claim to a settlement, but may be interested in gaining some influence in it for business gains.
  • Magic Cyrcle are not normally interested in claiming anything, except Magic Sites, as the Cyrcle only needs a sanctum to carry out its research. Magic Sites provide extra magic power and are something that most Magic Cyrcles are interested in.
  • Settlement Officials are always interested in new territory, but as noted above they need to be able to back up their claim.
    • Cities are normally capable of competing with non Settlement-States
    • Towns are capable of claiming most non-Settlement things.
    • Villages are generally not very capable of claiming anything more than Magic Sites.

Capturing and laying claim to a settlement is not a quick task, most of the time it requires a lot of hard work before hand, but the rewards are usually worth the effort.

Our Alliance has gained a lot of Status with the Organisation we work with; can we take the Organisation over?

Once an Alliance has gained Rank 3 with an Organisation they are important members. If the Alliance wants, they can attempt to gain more power in the Organisation via a number of methods; the more blatant and violent the more likely there will be messy consequences. A quick overview of ways to go about doing this are (all involve putting forward a character to leave an adventuring party in the Alliance and join the Organisation proper):

  • Waiting for an opening, and then working from the inside. A character is likely to still have strong ties to the Alliance and thus they will make sure that the Alliance's interests are prioritised within the Organisation.
  • Enemy Organisations may kill important members of the Organisation, and the Organisation the Alliance works with may turn to the Alliance for help. This will likely give the Alliance an immediately more powerful position, but since the Organisation is under attack it may not be the best position to be in.
  • As above, but the Alliance is the one responsible for the deaths! This could result in an enquiry being held into the culprits behind the murders, which may lead back to the Alliance. The Alliance may be forced to use its newfound power to cover up its own involvement, resulting in a waste of resources and time, but then again…

If our Alliance has to nominate a character that must be retired from a party, can we just retire the worst member?

The Alliance can, but the character's stats will play an important part of the conversion process to an NPC. If a character has poor stats then so will the NPC, which can create problems for the Alliance since it will be easier to assassinate the character, or manipulate them, and so on.

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An NPC that was one of our Alliance's retired characters is not doing what we want, why is this?

When a character is retired from a party for a career change, the owning player has to fill in a questionnaire regarding the personality traits of the character. The submitted information will then be used as a basis to create the NPC. Once a character is removed from a party in this fashion, he or she will continue to develop and interact with the game world away from the direct influence of players. Whilst an NPC is likely to stay loyal to the Alliance, influences like corruption, blackmail, magical mind control, nepotism or even something like forgetfulness, could make a retired PC act in ways other than what the Alliance wishes.

What incentives are there to retire a character if we lose control of the character and they can be targeted for hostile actions?

Having a close ally in an Organisation can prove useful. If the retired character gains more power, then the Alliance is likely to benefit as well.

A retired character can become a major member of an Organisation; can they rule it though?

Through a process of establishing good (beneficial) relationships with other NPC the retired character can increase their own personal standing, and as situations dictate they can manoeuvre themselves into a stronger position of power. In time they could eventually rule the Organisation, especially with the Alliances help.

Can a player controlled, or X-player controlled character become a God?

A retired character that gains power within a Temple may attract the attention of one of the Gods. It is possible that a character that was not religious could also attract the attention of the Gods, but it is unlikely. They may be elevated to Avatar Status, giving them access to awesome divine power. Many view Avatars as Gods, it is also speculated IC by some characters that someone could take over the role of a God.

Can there be more than one Avatar for a God at a specific moment in time?

Yes, there can be several Avatars of one God at any one time. The different Avatars working for one God are likely involved in events pertaining to a specific sphere-of-interest for the God, but this is not always the case.

What happens if our Rank drops below our current Rank?

If an Alliance drops in Rank, no matter what level it is, it will not lose any positions they have already gained, but due to their diminish political clout they will not be as important as they once were considered to be. If the Alliance drops the Organisation as a goal the retired character can still hold power, but this is little use to the Alliance

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How can we go about completing an investigation Special Quest?

The answer very much depends on the circumstance but here is an example: Investigate a settlement official that is in a different settlement to the Alliance's HQ. The Alliance could investigate this in numerous ways:
Contact an Organisation official in their settlement to do it for them. A potential downside is that the Organisation official may make 'loud' enquiries. Keep in mind that if it you ask the same Officials that asked the Alliance, then obviously they wouldn't have asked you if they could find it out easily themselves.
Go to the settlement and use a Special Action to investigate the official by speaking to XXXX. XXXX could be a member of the same Organisation, it could be general enquiries at the pubs, or another Organisation (Temple, B&M Guild, etc.) Depending on who is asked and where the enquiries are made there can be a wide range of results.
Use a power that allows an Alliance to spy on someone. Varying powers can accomplish this.
Speak to the Organisation official in question - not very subtle but could get fast results!
All of these have a chance of succeeding and failing, the chances of which depends on the circumstance. It is up to the Alliance to decide how they want to approach investigation Quests. This is not a definitive list, so an Alliance should not feel restricted to this list. This example can be changed to a place instead of an official, or a situation. The amount of parties that help with the investigation plays an important part as well. For most Special Quests it is recommended that about 5 parties be sent. Sending more can help improve the chances of success, but could also attract unwanted attention.

How do we go about completing a Delivery Special Quest?

A party needs to be at the designated place before contacting the GM; although Power Scrolls and Message Scrolls may be placed in an Alliance's scroll storeroom if appropriate. Once the GM has been contacted and the party is in place, the item to be delivered is given to the party, plus a message to the Alliance contact that it has been done. The destination for the item will already have been given to the party in the Special Quest, so they can now proceed to the designated place. If a return message is required they need to make sure they end their turn in the settlement. Once the GM has been contacted and a reply message sent to the Alliance contact that it has been done the party can go to the next destination, which is likely to be the settlement the Alliance HQ is in. Then the GM needs to be told that the party is in the settlement.

How do we go about completing a sector Investigation Special Quest?

The Special Quest will have given a sector a number of sectors away from a settlement and the number of sectors around that sector. So if it is 1 sector around it, 9 sectors will need to be investigated, a 3 by 3 square. Issuing an I 0 order in the sector performs the investigation. Once the sectors have been investigated you can inform the liaison that the task has been completed. If nothing is found in the sectors, the task is still completed since the Alliance can state that nothing of interest is there

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How do we go about completing a Diplomacy Special Quest?

The Alliance sends a party, or maybe a few extra parties to add to the chances of success, to the designated settlement. Once there, the Alliance needs to issue a Special Action to use the Code of Conduct or Sermon Skill, depending on how they want to go about it.

How do we go about completing a distraction Special Quest in a settlement?

It is best if the Alliance can send several parties to the designated settlement. Once there the Alliance then contacts the GM with a Special Action to perform an action or skill. How the Alliance wants to go about distracting the Officials, or whomever the Alliance has been asked to distract, is up to them. Carrying out Sermons, making a big fuss, contacting the settlement Officials and telling them something to occupy them (code of conduct skill), even trying to attack the settlement can be tried, although any violence is almost guaranteed to get the Alliance banned and may result in casualties for the party. The only major obstacle here is how many Special Actions the Alliance wants to use. The Alliance should keep the Special Action short and simple, as long-winded Special Actions may result in complications due to circumstances the Alliance is not aware of.

If a party has to end its turn in a specified location, can we move from the location after we have contacted the GM, but before we have had an email response or three days have passed?

If the party is not in the specified location when the GM checks the party's current location the action will likely fail and due to the time it takes the GM could penalise the party/Alliance for not following the rules and wasting GM time. The other problem is that the results could show that the party still needs to be in the specified location and thus the party would have to move back.

Can we issue a Special Action, for example, to carry out a Sermon to Fleyshur in the settlement and just state that two other parties will move around the crowd and try to incite them to violence or that whilst the Sermon is going on a few other parties will make nuisances of themselves in the crowd?

It is best to word the SA to be clear, for example: "Parties (xxxx xxxy xxxz) will carry out a sermon to Fleyshur to inspire the citizens to riot against the corrupt and weak settlement rulers." It is clear in this example that the sermon is aimed towards causing violence. As the rules are designed to keep things simple it is strongly recommended that the details of how a party(s) goes about carrying out an action are not included; the GM determines how the action turns out based on numerous pieces of information, information that for the most part players never have since it is not needed to play the game.
If a SA is not short it is likely because the SA is not simple and clear, this can result in the GM being given a different idea of what the player is aiming to achieve and thus could cause problems for the party(s) involved. If any player request for moderation is not short and clear the GM will likely query the action with the player with details as to the problem to try and prevent the party(s) and thus player(s) from making mistakes

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Can we issue a Special Action to damage parts of a settlement?

Yes. An Alliance can attack part of a settlement using anything like, and not limited to, firebombing, random fighting with citizens, causing riots. It is very important to keep in mind that attacking the militia or kidnapping an official should only be attempted if the party(s) is willing to face potentially serious and lethal consequences.

How do we know when a Special Quest from the game news has been completed?

It is the same way whether a SQ has been issued by an Organisation for an Alliance or whether an independent party is working for an Organisation on potentially a one-off SQ.
Taking into account what was explained when the quest was issued and any extra details given out later and also what sort of Quest it was, as there are many different types, a guideline:
Kill Monster: the best indication is to cast Revelation. If the monster group(s) are not listed then you can contact the quest liaison with a quest update.
Acquire Information / Return Item: if the party has acquired information and/or an item that was requested then the party needs to deliver it, which requires the party to contact the quest liaison with a quest update.

The settlement news contains information about events in a settlement. Can we investigate the settlements ourselves, or other similar events?

Yes. An Alliance can go to the settlement and issue a Special Action to use the Investigation skill and explain how they want to use the skill. The information must be gained from official GM sources, such as the official game news or information on your party's turns, any information that is gained in this way can be used in any way the player decides.

Our Alliance is struggling to complete all of our Special Quests; will this be a problem?

This depends on the Special Quests that have been offered. Some Quests are quite clearly explained as urgent when they are issued; these Quests should, therefore, be made priority. If a Special Quest has not been clarified as urgent, some leeway with the length of time to complete it is automatically available. If a few months go by and an Alliance has not completed a Special Quest, the Quest may be declared as failed, but a warning will normally be given before hand. The best way to cope is to make sure the older Quests are given priority even if something cool comes up, unless something urgent arises, and that way the Alliance will be able to catch up with itself. Even an Alliance with only 5 active members has 2 Special Actions per cycle. There are times when the Special Quests for a new cycle may require both SA, but there are also times when the Special Quests will not require any SA.

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Why are extra parties recommended for some Special Actions/Quests but not others?

Extra parties that are sent to carry out a Special Quest or Special Action can add, or hinder in the attempt. This depends on the circumstance, primarily whether it is a subtle or blatant use, and if the use is appropriate. If an Alliance wants to perform an action with a show of force, they should send several parties, which will increase the chances of the show of force being noticed. If an Alliance wants to be stealthy in an investigation, several parties could be sent, with several being instructed to carry out distracting actions.

If extra parties have not been recommended, can we still send more?

Yes. Extra parties can be sent. When the Special Action to perform the task is issued, all the parties must be at the appropriate location and their numbers passed on to the GM. A brief explanation of why the other parties are there should be included as well.

Our Alliance has been asked to carry out a Quest that the Alliance does not want to succeed; can we deliberately mess the Quest up?

An Alliance can deliberately ruin a Quest. The reasons for doing this may vary, as will the consequences. For example, if the Alliance is aware of more information about a target that they have been asked to kill or an item to return, they can choose to not kill the target, keep the item for themselves, and so on. Failing a Quest will reduce an Alliances Status, plus the Organisation may make enquiries into what went wrong, so it is up to an Alliance if and when they want to risk doing this.

If the target for a Special Quest is killed, will the Alliance be told?

Rarely. The Alliance will find out once it reaches the location where the target is meant to be. If the target has a non-moderated identification number then using Revelation will let an Alliance know details about the target. If the GM becomes aware that something has happened to the target, then the GM will try to let the Alliance know. If the Alliance arrives at the designated area and cannot find the target they should contact the GM, but only after double-checking that it has not missed any details or made a mistake.

We have carried out the Special Quest given to us by our liaison, and from the information we have passed on to them they have asked us to do something else. We have already had two Special Quests this cycle, so does this mean the Quest is complete, or that we have to do this extra task until we have completed the Special Quest?

When the Special Quest is issued it will mention that it is multi-stage. For example: "Interrogate the Orcs, tell us the information so we can explain what to do next." If it does not then it is not. This means that if the requirements have been carried out, it is complete. Many Quests follow on from each other; the new conditions will be stated at the time of the new Quest being issued, so ignore the previous conditions of a completed Quest, I.e. if no Gold was offered the second time, but it was the first, then no Gold is on offer. What is on offer is a chance at bonus Status and/or a more tangible reward. This does not count towards the two Special Quests issued each cycle

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The moderation allows a Quest to be incredibly diverse, but are there any limits to it, for example could I hire some Bandits to harass a settlement and distract the Officials whilst we carry out another action?

The moderation allows for almost anything to be attempted. Players can be quite inventive when it comes to carrying out some of the Special Quests. Using the example above, the Alliance could use a Special Action, and a lot of Gold or other payment to hire some Bandits to harass the target settlement and then carry out another Special Action. The Bandits could cause the settlement Officials to be too busy to pay much attention to a few adventuring parties. Alternatively, the settlement Officials might become paranoid that something is very wrong, like the settlement is about to be raided by a hoard of Bandits and, therefore, the Officials will be extra vigilant. Trying to get third parties to carry out an action does have risks. The Bandits may be caught and tell the Officials who hired them, or they may double cross the Alliance. The bandits may fail and therefore the Alliance has to carry out the Quest themselves, if this was the case then it quite likely the Quest will be more difficult due to the Bandits' involvement. Alliances are made up of some of the world's elite, the typical Bandit is not very powerful nor, many would say, clever, so Alliances must decide whether they want to risk not carrying out a Special Action themselves. Trying to get third parties to carry out a Special Quest is strongly not recommended, but using third parties to help complete a Special Quest may be worthwhile as well as cool.

Can we ban a party or Alliance from our Alliance HQ settlement that hasn't performed a hostile action?

This will almost certainly cost a Special Action, but it can be done. If the settlement is more warlike or at least on bad terms with another Alliance's settlement then this action will be more likely to be successful.

Can we be banned from our own Settlement?

Yes. The Alliance, although powerful and possibly important, is not in charge of the settlement. Settlement attacks are banned in nearly all settlements, so if a party performs one without permission they are likely to be banned.

Can we ban, or be banned from settlements that are allied to one settlement?

Yes. For example, City 1 controls Towns 23, 56 and Villages 79, 109, 132. If the Alliance/Party was banned from City 1, they might also be banned from the Towns and Villages as well. If the originating settlement is a village, the Alliance/Party may still be banned from the other settlements if the Officials in the settlement believe it is warranted. This is a drastic action, and will require a lot of Status to pull off, and/or that the Alliance/Party perform something horrid before some settlements will allow this to happen.

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Our Alliance wants to speak to the Settlement Officials of another settlement, or an Organisation to which we are not aligned - yet we only got to speak to a liaison, why is this?

The rulers/leaders of the various Organisations are busy and powerful people. They will usually not deal with anyone without a prearranged meeting. Just as an Alliance goes through a liaison with their own Organisation, so it is the same with other Organisations. Using a Special Action, a party can try to arrange a meeting via an Organisation liaison with the high-ranking members of an Organisation; the meeting would also require a SA. Also note that as an Alliance's power increases they are more likely to be given better access and time to interact with the hierarchy of an Organisation.

An NPC came out with a comment that is incorrect or that we do not think is correct; is this due to a GM muck-up?

NPCs are individuals; NPCs have their own personalities. It is possible that the NPC has made a mistake, or that they have a particular psychological reason for their actions. A case like this is extremely likely to not be a GM error, but an In Character (IC) error. If the player firmly believes that there has been a GM error then evidence should be sent to the GM explaining the situation, which will be looked at; it is very important that this is left as a last resort as GM time is limited and due to the nature of the game being full of misinformation many players could be convinced that a result has a GM error.

Our Alliance has goals that many consider difficult to combine; does this mean the Organisations we are involved with are going to be funny/wary of our Alliance?

Initially an Alliance that works with, for example, the Thieves Guild and the Bankers & Merchants Guild, may suffer from snide remarks by NPCs, and they may not be offered the best Special Quests, but the situation really does depend on the NPCs themselves. Since the Organisations, in this example, are often at odds with each other, the fact that the Alliance has aligned itself with both gives the NPCs confidence in the fact that the Alliance will try to work for both and try to limit confrontations between the two Organisations. It is in an Alliance's interest not to weaken an Organisation they are working with, since they are weakening themselves. It is important to bear in mind that some NPCs are very set in their ways and may wholeheartedly believe that the Alliance is untrustworthy until they have consistently proven themselves.

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The lead character of our Alliance is an arrogant megalomaniac; will this create problems?

This depends with which Organisation the Alliance is tied. For example, Phyloqure and Baldor will be wary of this type of character, whilst Ythcal or Fleyshur are likely to be impressed. It also depends on whether the leader remembers his place, for example, the Head Priest of a Fleyshur Temple is not someone to annoy. By all means you can make demands, but don't outright dictate to them. A good way of preventing any problematic situations arising is by the Alliance leader nominating a liaison that deals with the Organisation. This has two nice effects: firstly it is a way of showing that the Alliance leader's time is too valuable to deal with an Organisation liaison, and secondly the Organisation Liaison can reword any communications and present them in a more sociable way.

Our Alliance(A) has asked another Alliance(B) to introduce us to one of their Organisations; will this cost both Alliances a Special Action?

Yes. It costs their Alliance(B) a Special Action and Status to introduce your Alliance(A) to their Organisation. It costs Status because they are asking their Organisation for a favour. Once the introduction is arranged it will cost your Alliance(A) a Special Action to interact with the Organisation, which is no different from normal. The benefit of doing this is that the Organisation will be more likely to interact with your Alliance(A) since the other Alliance(B) have said that they should be helpful. It is worth keeping in mind that Alliance(B) may have told their Organisation to be unhelpful and Alliance(B) could issue another Special Action to find out what they told your Alliance(A). If the two Alliances want to share information they still have to use an IC Deal to do so.

Do the player produced newsletter and Internet Forums matter in the game?

Yes. IC messages, whether sent on the forum or in the newsletter, are IC and, therefore, are considered to count towards what parties and Alliances stand for. Declarations of hostilities, peace or whatever, are often announced by parties/Alliances and these announcements will be used by others to justify their own actions and responses - so they definitely do matter.

So if the messages are IC, will the NPCs in the game read them?

It would make sense that the NPCs in the game could read IC messages but they cannot for ease of game play. The reason is that players use message forums to discuss topics such as Global Plots, if all the NPCs in the game world could access the places where messages are placed it means that players end up creating private message places, which detracts from the newsletters and internet sites.

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If we make an announcement in the Newsletter and/or Forum about our Organisation will this cause any problems?

It depends on what was said. Telling everyone something that is a lie, or an exaggeration can cause problems for the Alliance. If other Alliances issue Special Actions to find out the truth, they can show your Alliance up as liars and untrustworthy. An Alliance only makes announcements for a reason, so it is up to them to decide whether a few lies or exaggerations are in their interests. Announcing moderated information in the Newsletter or on the Forum is not allowed.

What happens if we accidentally send moderated information to the Newsletter and/or Forum about our Organisation?

It means other players can read the information, but they do not know the information IC as per the system that controls moderated information. Players that try to act on information gained from this method are still not following the game rules and are thus cheating, do not do it.

We have a Special Quest that involves a settlement; can we announce details to other parties/Alliances and if so, will this cause problems for us with our liaison?

It depends on what is said and the sensitive nature of the Special Quest. If the SQ is meant to be kept quiet, then the liaison, and thus the Organisation, is likely to be upset/angry with the Alliance. If the SQ has not been specified as 'keep quiet' then it is up to the Alliance to decide whether they want to risk other parties/Alliances specifically doing what was asked of them, or not. An Alliance must gamble with the possibility of parties interfering or just generally making a nuisance of themselves, but sometimes the Alliance can find ways to use this interference to their advantage.
Announcing moderation information costs a SA, as per the system that controls moderated information. Telling other players can be done without giving away moderated information.

For Example: "Party (1111) is arriving in Avaellia in the next game week, please do not carry out any hostile actions against them."

Our Alliance has decided to go to war with another Alliance over messages on the forum/newsletter; will we be penalised by our Organisations for doing this?

It will depend on who the other Alliance is, in what settlement they are based, and what relationship the settlement and Organisations have with your Alliance. Another important part of the equation to determine what moderation affect the war could have depends on what was said, and whether the NPCs believe that a declaration of war is justified. Many Organisations prefer to see attempts at diplomacy carried out first, although totally reasonable debates are unrealistic, an attempt to make some reasonable diplomatic efforts should be tried. The more warlike Organisations obviously lean towards going to war, but even these tend to prefer some diplomacy being tried first. As with all moderation the answer is it mainly comes down to the NPCs involved.

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Our Alliance is a specific warlike religious Alliance; should we declare war on all opposite aligned Alliances and parties?

It would be considered a rather harsh and sweeping move by many - some NPCs will dislike the Alliance for it, whilst others will respect the Alliance for it. Most settlements have a range of religions present and this is one reason why NPCs will not like an Alliance declaring all out war. For this reason, however, very few settlements have directly opposed religions both in positions of power, and those that do tend to be precarious places. Declaring war on all Alliances of opposite, or different, alignments is of course up to the Alliance, but the more enemies an Alliance develops the more likely things will become very difficult for them.

My group has accidentally, due to hostile attitude, been killing lots of neutral parties in the wilderness; will this have any adverse effects on my Alliance?

Most probably. With the ability to set specific attitudes for another Alliance, the killing of neutral parties is argued by many as unnecessary and is rarely accidental, and if the party wants to be so warlike they should suffer the political consequences. As with nearly all-situational aspects of the moderated game, a definite answer cannot be given as it depends on who is involved, where it was, what the NPCs are like and the situation.

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