Any port in a storm

The group of academics leaned back on the bog chairs their hosts had provided. The evening meal, a mixed sea food grill had been delicious. Served on a bed of rice and artfully presented on thick green leaves that also added a subtle flavour to the meal. It had made a pleasant change from the spiced and cured sausage that was the mainstay of many Holberg meals. What was needed now was a few tankards of the city's finest ale, but sadly that was in very short supply way out here in Misericorde."I don't think I've ever been spied on before! Well not by such charming hosts." Gelberg grinned at his colleagues."I hardly think the girl's a spy!" said Heinrich openly laughing at the suggestion. "She's a guide - and a damn good one too. I would have trod in that bog up to my waist if she hadn't been there to point it out.""You haven't spent enough time with her yet. She pestered me with questions all day. All day! How does this work in the Commonwealth. How do you build a cantilevered crane lift? What's the best diameter for a borehole well?""So she's inquisitive! There's nothing wrong with that surely?" protested Heinrich."Inquisitive? I think not. Have you noticed that she occasionally sneaks off? You said she was off playing with the other kids. Well she wasn't - I caught her. She was writing everything I said down... She was making notes! She could be working for the Jarmish!"Gelberg's tone was one of outrage, but Heinrich still couldn't quite tell if his boss was being being serious or whether it was just mock indignation. "You're not... actually worried about her... are you Immy? She's our host's niece, she seems lovely.""Don't be fooled by that!" said Gelberg and spread his hands wide as if to encapsulate some terrible danger before unveiling the punch line. "I know a student searching for extra-credit when I see one!"Heinrich rolled his eyes and groaned at his supervisor's terrible joke. The cost of not having thought to bring any ale with them suddenly seemed a lot higher.

Overview

The idea of building a port in Holberg is not a new one. Long before it was near-universally acknowledged as the greatest city in the world, the merchant-princes of the east dreamed of establishing a port to boost trade. Such dreams were little more than fancies while the Druj held the outlying regions and threatened to take the city. Now that the Empire is pushing east and driving the Druj back, there is a chance to seize the initiative and help make Holberg even more Prosperous.

There was talk of more ports on the Semmerlak when Ossium was conquered. The docks of Korotny were eventually expanded, but ideas to expand Lacre in Dawn and to build a new port in the north of Holberg never emerged. Now, the timing seems apposite - the Sand Fisher orcs are eager to support any investment in the north of the territory and one of the powerful Sarcophan families, the The Lijkkever, have likewise expressed an interest in the prospect of trade with the greatest city in the world. At the Summer Solstice, the Senate instructed the civil service to send Naomi of Virtue's Rest to look into the matter, to see what such plans might cost and what the benefits would be.

To instruct the Prognosticator's Office to send Naomi of Virtue's Rest to appraise constructing a port in Utterlund, in Holberg, as laid out in the suggestion from the Lijkkever families of the Sarcophan Delves. We ask Naomi to negotiate with the Lijkkever and the Sand Fisher Orcs of Misericorde for their assistance in constructing the port and associated necessary infrastructure.Senate motion, Proposed Holberg, Seconded Casinea

A New Port

The Senate could commission a large port in Utterlund to improve trade for Holberg and surrounding territories The port would provide an array of benefits and slowly establish a new town at the location Building the new port will harm trade at Varushkan ports on the Semmerlak Increases purchase prices at Korotny Docks and Kostjyas Respite in Varushka by a tenth

The Senate can't create a new town from nothing, but nobody is in any doubt that if the Empire builds a decent-sized port on Holberg's coast, then it will quickly grow into a thriving conurbation that might one day rival Trivento. With ships bringing in valuable trade goods, there will be a constant need for stevedores to work the docks; there will be a demand for inns and hostelries to entertain landbound sailors and warehouses to hold the goods; and if the port is big enough it will draw people to it like flies to honey, and within two years a new town will have sprung up.

The port will need to be sizable, however. Too small and it will fail - incoming ships will prefer to sail on to Lacre, Korotny, or the Bittershore. Without that trade, there wouldn't be a reason for people to go there. Without enough ships docking there, Holberg merchants will be better served by sending their goods to other markets. There is no middle ground - all the Prognosticators Office's calculations agree that an Ambitious program of works to establish a large set of docks will be a seed that grows into a mighty oak - but if the plan is too parsimonious, it will achieve nothing and end up being little more than a vanity project.

The plans themselves are not Naomi's area of speciality, but the Lijkkever have a great deal of experience with such matters and they are eager to help. In other circumstances, they might demand payment for the work done for the Empire by their skilled architects and engineers, but Naomi adroitly persuades them to provide their assistance as a sign of good faith and support for the project. She also recruits some of the most capable professionals from Holberg to work on the plans by slyly suggesting that they might not want to be outdone by their Sarcophan rivals. Together, the two groups are able to meet the brief - to create an Ambitious set of plans for a set of docks that would draw ships, businesses, and people to the shores of Holberg.

The port would be operational as soon as it was complete, enabling trade to flow to and from Holberg to the port. The recently completed Lakesedge Highway that runs from Holmauer Gate to Misericorde would need to be extended to reach the new port on Utterlunds coast, but that work is small and the costs included in the proposed commission. Once established the port the bustling trade would cause a port town to spring up and would establish an office to oversee operations. The Docks have been provisionally titled the Imperatrix Docks in honour of the most famous scion of Holberg in living memory, the Empress_Lisabetta.

The Merchant-Prince of the Imperatrix Docks would be responsible for the docks and the trade, ensuring that things ran smoothly. They would have the opportunity to purchase some of the wains being sold in the port - and could use their influence with the Sarcophan to set what resources were brought to the port to sell. If they sent a winged messenger to Ambassador Bedelaar Huisbaas Annike at a summit, then they could determine whether it was mithril, white granite or weirwood that arrived at the docks for sale. There would be a significant delay for any changes; manifests take time to be arranged so the type of wains available would change in the trade season after the following summit (that is three to six months later), so it would be prudent for the League to select a far-sighted candidate to the position.

The Merchant-Prince would not be the only one able to benefit from the arrangements. Each Holberg business would be able to purchase a small shipment of wains from the docks, with the type dependent on whatever the Merchant-Prince had ordered. For the first year of operation, it would cost three thrones for a wain or seven for two wains, but prices could vary after that point, driven by demand and circumstance.

The one drawback of the new port is that it would reduce trade to the more northern ports in the Varushka - the Docks at Korotny and Kostjyas Respite. As a result, the Merchant Boyar of the Bittershore and the Harbourmaster of the Semmerlak would see all the prices for their ministries increase by one tenth (rounded down) reflecting the increased prices needed to be paid to attract merchants to these more distant ports.

The Lijkkever Connection

The motion to commission the docks could grant the Lijkkever exclusivity among the Sarcophan to use the docks This would reduce the costs by 20 wains of white granite and 60 crowns It would remove the penalty for building a commission in a marsh in Holberg The increase in taxation for the docks would drop from 15 thrones to 10 thrones

The Lijkkever are eager to embrace the opportunities provided by trade with Holberg and their help could be pivotal. Years ago, a proposal by the Sand Fishers identified Misericorde as the only part of the Holberg coast that might be suitable for a substantial port, but that was based on the assumption that nobody would be mad enough to want to build a port in a marsh. With the creeping waters of the Morass expanding to claim Ennerlund, Utterlund and Rebeshof, it seemed like a safe bet that the only practical choice would be Misericorde.

Normally, any commission that is built in a marsh will see labour costs increase by twenty percent, reflecting the difficulties involved in working in such wet conditions where groundworks easily flood. However, the Lijkkever are experts at such work and whatever happens, they are prepared to lend their expertise to the project for free as a show of their good will. As a result, the normal penalty for constructing a port in a marsh does not apply to the Imperatrix Port.

However, the Lijkkever are seeking something more - they would like a fifteen year contract for exclusive access to the docks. Their ideal is that only Sarcophan vessels registered with the Lijkkever would be allowed to put to port in Holberg during that time. In return they would provide twenty wains of white granite and sixty crowns towards the cost of constructing the docks. In addition, they would establish a small Lijkkever community in the new port who would provide their skills and experience towards any commissions built in Holberg, removing the penalty for any commission built in the marshy regions.

Sadly, there is a downside to granting the Lijkkever such rights. There would still be trade from other nations around the world coming to the port and the Lijkkever are a prosperous and wealthy family, but preventing other Sarcophan from competing with them would mean less overall trade and less wealth generated for Holberg and the surrounding territories. As a result, taxes in adjoining territories would rise by a total of ten thrones a season, rather than fifteen.

Any exclusivity would need the legal agreement of the Imperial Senate, so it would have to be included in the Senate motion or announcement for the commission - it could not be included later, without a separate Senate motion.

The Sandfisher Contribution

The Sandfishers are a little nonplussed that the Empire is now looking at building at port in Utterlund rather than Misericorde as originally proposed by Lia Adelaar van Holberg. The Empire had built a fine road that now runs all the way from Holmauer Gate to the Misericorde coast with the stated intention of building a port at the end of it.

However, they are not slow to grasp that with the help of the Lijkkever, the Empire won't have to worry about the costs of building in the wet marshes of Utterlund. The orcs are shrewd enough to understand that the Lijkkever have very effectively undercut their offer. If they are disappointed they hide it well. They cheerfully concede that while they won't do half as well from a port built in Utterlund, as Misericorde, they're still much better off than with no port at all. And once the town develops there will be growing demand for the foodstuffs produced by the Sandfishers with a market that is right on their doorstep.

Crucially, it appears that the sept have been painstakingly preparing for something like this project for years. In Winter 383YE, members of the sept asked what they might do to repay the League for the generous gifts they had been given, the lands of Misericorde and so forth. They insisted this was important - that Prosperity demanded that they despise those who take without giving (a phrase that some Sandfishers increasingly use as a reference to the Druj). In response, the League Assembly endorsed a statement of principle by Lia Adelaar van Holberg which suggested one way the sept could help would be to support investments in the wealth of the territory.

Inspired by that goal, the sept acquired the materials to build their own sawmills and have been busy preparing large stocks of timber. Kiln-dried hard wood ready for construction and surprisingly substantial stocks of weirwood have beencarefully hoarded for just this moment.

Their original plan, when they expected the port to be built in Misericorde, was to contribute 20 wains of weirwood to the commission of the new port. However, since the port is now being planned for Utterlund, they have a request to make. They have apparently been speaking with the Sarcophan and have discovered the existence of the The_Alivetti_Enclave in Sarvos. In return for their weirwood and help with the labour building the port, they would like their own enclave.

Their plan is a modest building that will include a small storehouse where they can keep goods to sell to visiting traders. They understand the League might not object to them bringing goods to the port to sell anyway, but the sept believe that having their own enclave would give them some credibility with merchants which will increase the prices they can get for them. Technically it would mean that Sandfisher law was relevant inside the building but the sept don't seem to care about that; they're more concerned about the impression the enclave will give the Sarcophan and other visitors.

There don't seem to be many obvious drawbacks to the plan, but there may be political issues that make it impossible. The lone economic flaw is that if the Empire found a way to sell weirwood through it's ports, they wouldn't be able to sell weirwood at the new port, since the Sandfishers would meet any demand in that regard, from their share of the Flaxen Pillars.

Good Neighbours

A companion appraisal is being performed by Commonwealth Professer Gelberg that may have bearing on the matter of the port

At the same time that Naomi is engaged in her appraisal, the Commonwealth academics lead by Professor Gelberg are also talking to the Sand Fishers. While Naomi's efforts are focussed on what support the sept would be able to provide for the new port, Professor Gelberg is exploring the possibility of the Sandfishers acquiring farms in Utterlund and Rebeshof.

Back At The Office

Graciana is not available to perform an appraisal during the Autumn Equinox Mladen Escovitch continues to enjoy his retirement Eilian Sweetwater is on sabbatical and also missing

While Naomi is busy in Holberg, there are a few developments at the Prognosticators Office that the Imperial Senate should keep in mind during the Autumn Equinox. The number of appraisals remains the same, but there are slightly fewer appraisers to actually perform them.

At the Summer Solstice the Senate instructed the Prognosticators to look into ways to provide new options to some of the Empire's ministries. In the absence of specific guidance from the Senate, the Auditor of the Imperial Treasury, Gerard La Salle, assigned Graciana i Lòpez i Guerra to oversee the matter. This appraisal is quite challenging, and will take another three months to complete - it will not be finished until the Winter Solstice 387YE. As such, Graciana is not available to perform any other appraisals until that time.

The Senate also approved a request by Eilian Sweetwater to take a sabbatical from the Prognosticator's Office to perform a thorough investigation of the Empire's historic lighthouses. Unfortunately, his first such investigation into the destroyed Lighthouse of Nikophoros in [{Redoubt]] coincided with a major offensive by the Grendel. Eilian's whereabouts are currently unknown, although hopefully wherever he is he and his companions are safe and well.

Finally, during the Summer Solstice, there was an opportunity to encourage the retiredMladen Escovitch to return to work at the Prognosticators' Office. After giving the matter due consideration, the Assembly of the Nine and the Senate decided to leave the former general to enjoy his retirement.

As such, there are only two members of the Prognosticator's Office available to perform appraisals at the Autumn Equinox - Naomi, and Lutomysla Niegoslava. They both have particular areas of expertise - Naomi is adept at finding diplomatic solutions to problems, and Lutomysla is an experienced magician with a flair for dealing with magical problems or finding magical answers to thorny questions. As always, if the Senate do not specify which of the Imperial prognosticators will undertake an appraisal that decision will be made by the Auditor of the Imperial Treasury.