Gasi

Glossing over a bit of stuff so we can get to the meat of the next major event, short timeskip here as the Whispers begins to take shape.

XXXX

One week later I was dropped off at the whispers along with a few guardsmen that were to form the nucleus of my forces. The Castle was, frankly, a wreck. It had been a smuggler's stronghold until recently and a hundred years of pillaging of stone from the once mighty stronghold to build the port town in the cove below it had rendered the castle on the bluff somewhat bare. As the people gathered in the Port to hear Stannis' Writ being read and to hear that they had a new Lord, there were a few grumbles. It looked like I would have to win over the people.

Stepping forward onto the raised platform I said, "Good People, hear me! I may be ennobled by Lord Stannis, but I have common blood in my veins just as you, for I was once a bastard and of little account. I fought my way up into prominence through blood and sweat, and if you will allow me, I will bleed and sweat for yo all here, so that you may all prosper. I know food is scarce on the point, and that raids for cattle by other clawmen are common. I have innovations that will help with the food shortages and plans to better defend you against raids. I give you my word that if you stand by me and mine, I will do my utmost to make sure you and yours are fed, warm, and safe."

I motioned forward and a pair of porters brought forward one of the new dutch plows I had commissioned while at dragonstone. "This is a new type of plow, note the triangular steel moldboard, it should allow for plowing of even the craggiest soils here on the point. We have tested it over on dragonstone, and it works! For my first official act as your lord, any farmer who wishes to use the new plow on their farms will receive one on credit. I will not ask for cash or kind in exchange for them, I want my people fed, not paupers. Master Yorick, our Town Smith has just received an upgrade to his forge which will allow him to smith better steel than anyone else in Westeros. I have allowed him the upgrade on credit as well. I hope that this will prove to you all how serious I am about making my people prosperous."

"For my last decree of the day, I say to you this. Any Townsman or farmer on my lands may come to me with a petition should they have a grievance and I will adjudicate. I firmly believe that Just as the Lord is served by his people, then so too must the people be served by their Lord. While I am in residence here I will dedicate the third day of the week to hearing petitions from the people."

"For now, I urge you all to come and drink of my drink. I have purchased several hogsheads of Ale for the Town's Consumption as a token of my generosity."

Several large casks were rolled forth and tapped and soon the people of the Hidden Cove were drinking and toasting their new lord.

XXXX

You have qualified for the Stronghold Management Menu!

Would you like to enter Stronghold Management?

Y/N

I blinked for a second and hit yes.

"No time like the present I suppose."

A Flash of White as the world paused around me and suddenly I was transported into a Room in what I assumed was the Keep of the Whispers with a map of Cracklcaw Point spread out on a table. This map showed the Whispers marked by my House Sigil and the lands surrounding it were blue, including the Hidden Cove, several large swathes of farmland immediately srrounding the Whispers and Hidden Cove, a large stretch of forest, a few smaller bogs, and some hills that were being used both for mining and ranching.

The Neighboring territory to the North was of House Brune was colored Brown and included their seat at Dyre Den, to the West were the minor houses like the Hardy's, Pine's, and Boggs' who were all somewhat independent of any feudal overlord, being more akin to Mountain Clans than proper houses. These Lords had all declared for Rhaegar during the Rebellion and were likely to heed nobody's call in the future unless forced to. They didn't even pay taxes, having been able to ambush and scare off any tax collectors. It was also these Lords that engaged in the majority of the cattle raids and violence. This territory was colored Red. Finally at the very tip of the point lay House Brune of Brownhollow's Lands, a different Shade of Brown.

A Tap on various points of the map would show economic output, major goods, defenses, levies, and other statistics. I tapped on the Whispers.

The Whispers/Hidden Cove

Economic Output: 3,550 Dragons Annually

Economic Expenses: 2,450 Dragons Annually

Profit: 1,100 Dragons Annualy

Current Treasury: 22,321 Dragons

Major Goods: Iron, Wool, Timber, Granite

Garrison: 500 Infantry, 100 Cavalry

Levies: 1,000 Infantry

Castle Status: Poor

Town Status: Booming

Ok, so apparently the castle is shit, but the town is actually doing fairly well. I'd need to mull over my options, but with the extra 21,321 Dragons in my treasury from the Tournament and betting, I had a number of things I could do.

I looked over my options and I picked castle renovations for 5,000 Dragons which should put the castle back into it's more useful shape.

I also picked Mineral Survey for 500 Dragons, Lumber Camp for 200 Dragons, Roadbuilding for 1,000 Dragons, and Docks Upgrade for 3,000 Dragons, these should all be complete in a matter of 2 to 6 weeks.

I also picked some options for my troops, Train Pikemen for 500 Dragons, Train Crossbowmen for 300 Dragons, and train Light Cavalry for 400 Dragons. That should take place over the next 3 weeks and should give me a fighting force of 1,000 Swiss-Style Pikemen, 500 Crossbowmen, and 100 Hussar Style Cavalry.

You appear to be training a standing force, do you wish to activate the Standing Army Choice? Warning This will increase your expenses by 1,500 Dragons, do you wish to proceed?

Y/N

I picked yes. With the options I picked I should be getting additional incomes from trade and lumber camps, with the possibility of more mines in the future.

At this I received a Quest, Your Stronghold!

The Objectives were to make the Whispers/Hidden Cove the Most Prosperous Population Center on Crackclaw Point, there was also a hidden objective. I looked at the rewards and found that it was a massive 10,000 XP.

The quest appeared to be mandatory so I clicked on yes.

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6 weeks later and not only were my renovations almost complete, but I had found Coal, Iron, Copper, Silver, Zinc, and Tin reserves in my territory. The Lumber Camp had allowed an extra 250 Dragons in Income, the Roads I had built allowed 150, and the Port Upgrade had allowed 500. With my surplus treasury Golden Dragons, I authorized a Coal and an Iron Mine for 100 Golden Dragons Each, and a Silver Mine for 200 Golden Dragons. Furthermore I authorized the creation of an Armory which would use blast furnaces to create armor and weapons of high quality steel.

The Farmers had also taken to using my New Plows and some had even taken to using four field rotation, over the next four months they would hopefully see an agricultural boom. I had received word from Pylos as well that the first of the new Carracks had come off the Docks at Dragonstone and things had gone better than expected. Stannis was sending me a pair of Carracks to base a fledgling fleet around, seeing as how the Hidden Cove had become a proper port now, instead of the smuggler's quay it had previously been.

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One Month Later and I was rolling in extra money, the Silver Mine Produced 350 Golden dragons in annual Income, the Coal and Iron Mines Produced 150 Dragons and 200 Dragons Respectively, and the Armory was producing 500 Dragons annually, as well as allowing me to fully kit out my troops in Good Quality Partial Plate and Mail, even my light cavalry, which normally would have had to make due with chain armor and shields got scale armor.

I then started phase two of buildup operations, a Coke Manufactory for the coal and armory, a series of watchtowers along my territory to guard from invasion, a Meadery to increase manufactured goods, and a tannery to be built on the edges of Hidden Cove.

I also began construction of a small Navy, perhaps 10 ships in size, but built exclusively of Carracks and Caravels.

I also implemented a new levy system. While my Standing Army was great, highly disciplined and well equipped, a massive war was coming and I would need more than 1,500 troops. I knew from canon that the Point could raise 20,000 men if it needed to, many of those would be from the holdings of the Brunes, which were well developed and established, but I should be capable of getting perhaps 4,000 more troops in a levy to add to my Standing Army if I pushed the issue. For the levy I would take a page out of the English Trained Bands book and supply the equipment for them, as well as mandate a twice monthly training schedule. The First and Last Weekends of Every month would be for drilling the levy. As for who would be in it, I received word that I would be able to levy 2,000 Additional Troops, 3,000 at a push. I had them kitted out with Pikes, Halberds, Crossbows, and Mail from my armory for when they would drill. Owing to the closeness of the outbreak of war, this month I had the levy train for a full week.

All this cost an additional 3,500 Dragons but I knew it would bear fruit eventually.

XXXX

One and a half Months Later and it was Harvest Time, and, I reflected, in another month the War of the Five Kings was due to start in earnest when Cersei finally murdered Robert. Fortunately the Mountain had not been unleashed on the Riverlands this time around, because Tyrion had never gone to the wall and been captured coming back, still things were heading that way if the latest rumors from King's Landing were anything to go by.

As I stood and watched the Harvest come in, it was clear to me that the new agricultural techniques I was using were bearing fruit, more grain, more cattle, more cheese, more vegetables, just more of everything had come through and my people found themselves with something of a surplus. This greatly enthused Lord Celtigar, who had arrived to see my progress, as it meant that he would be capable of levying more tax this year than in any year previous since the Rebellion.

He also introduced me to his Grand-Niece, Lady Amelia Celtigar, a plump, but pleasant girl of 16. Personally I had always enjoyed a curby figure in the past, and talking with the Celtigar Heiress, I found her humor funny and her demeanor pleasant, which were to me very large turn ons. I had to harshly remind myself that even though I was now in Westeros, the girl was still underage by my usual standards, and not only that, but the Heir to my Liege Lord at that. There was no way I could attempt a relationship that wouldn't end in a disaster, though the gods know I wanted too. She seemed almost dissapointed that I did not rise to the occasion when she left.

By the time the Harvest Festival had ended I thought I was about to burst. That night I had spent far longer than usual on the privy. . .

XXX

A Week after the Harvest Festival I recieved a Raven from one of my outposts. The Hardy's, Bogg's, and Pine's had begun to march east in force, they had 5,000 Men, mostly levies in leather or padded jacks, but they had all come for one reason. . .they wanted our food.

Well, I thought to myself. Time to put a stop to that. . .