Let's play King of Dragon Pass, just as our ancestors did

I vote for option #3.

Year 1330, part 4

We've decided to attack the bandits in an attempt to drive them off and recover our men kill them dead.



Leading the war party is Farad, the geezer who would have replaced Insterid on the clan ring if he weren't about to kick the bucket. That doesn't mean he can't also kick butt. Because he can.



This time, I'm not taking any chances. I send all of our weaponthanes and any available footmen. (I didn't screenshot it, but I only sent most of them on the rescue mission.)



Farad had something to prove.

Earth 1



This is a good time to explore our land. I send Harran, who you'll remember as the most skilled noble who didn't make it onto the clan ring. Expeditions within your tula return instantly, so there's no reason not to send him with half our weaponthanes and tell him to go slowly. I could probably have sent all of our weaponthanes with no ill effects.

But then



We get a special event while exploring.

As your people explore your tula, you find many unusual features. One of these is a cave. The cave is inhabited by large, armored rodents with huge mouths filled with teeth, each as sharp as a needle. The creatures swarm out of the cave and attack the carls who found the cave, injuring several of them. The people are worried that these creatures will cause more harm.

Yerestia: They won't be easily dealt with. No recommendation.
Harvar: Why risk getting bitten ourselves, when we can find someone to do it for us? Recommends #2.
Insterid: The weaponthanes say this is a matter for the carls to deal with. They are not rat-catchers. Recommends #1.
Iskalli: Only trickster magic can stop this infestation. Recommends #2.
Valensta: These things are called Rubble Runners. They multiply like mad, are very dangerous, and nearly impossible to get rid of. No recommendation.
Arene: The carls say this is a killing matter, and thus the responsibility of the weaponthanes. Recommends #4.
Heortarl: Just let me play my little pipe for them! Please! Please! Recommends #2.
Mogri: Ugh. Like Yerestia and Valensta say, these guys are almost impossible to get rid of, and we'll probably be seeing them again. Heortarl is more than happy to send them to another clan, but we don't get to choose which one, and they're guaranteed eventually to return if we go that route. We can get some outsiders to take care of it, but we'll have to pay them. The other options will upset the carls or the weaponthanes. The weaponthanes are already a little upset for some reason. None of these options will guarantee successs.

If we didn't have a Eurmali on the ring, #2 wouldn't be an option. This is not a great example of why you should put a trickster on the ring, but it's one of many scenarios that are affected this way.

Anyway, while you're deciding how to deal with our rodent problem, I want to point out that the numbers at the bottom of the screen keep changing. People and livestock are born and die, crafters craft, farmers farm. Most of these changes are very gradual.

The game tracks many details very meticulously, often to an extent that it never exposes. Among the finer details is that these story events have the expected effect on your clan. When we resolve this event, we can check our clan status and find that several of our farmers are now injured as a result of these rats.

Rodents of Unusual Size, eh?

If we've got enough money to get rid of them, great. If not, let's try the trickster route until we have more money.

Let the man play his little pipe for them.

Haha never mind forget everything.

Windows Update wiped out a few turns of progress. We lost everything since Fire 1.

We will probably invade the correct flan this time around.

Aww. I hate that. At least it wasn't your fault, unlike what I do where I state save the title screen or forget to save for five bosses in a row and die.

Should've saved after Fire, I guess. There's no way to tell when a special event is going to pop up.

Year 1330, part 4

Fire, for real

We build a watchtower, like the one we built before.



For my next trick, I will attack the clan we're actually feuding with.



The numbers look favorable, but any raid where we don't achieve our objective (in this case, plunder) is counted as a loss on the books.

Just then



It's time for a horse trial.

Glendara, a prosperous carl from your clan, comes before you to complain that her prize stallion, Tempest, has been stolen. Although no one saw the theft, Glendara is certain that it was committed by the sons of Rangarda Dark-Eyes, a well-off carl from the Oak Tree clan. "Many times has she offered to buy that horse, and many times did I refuse her. It is the most beautiful stallion in all of Dragon Pass, and I would not let her have it. So she has ordered her sons to steal it."

You might be wondering why we should care about her horse. So is half of the clan ring.

Yerestia: Of all our neighbors, relations with the Oak Trees are the strongest. We cannot allow a minor matter such as this to mar them. Recommends #3 or #4.
Harvar: Rangarda Dark-Eyes did come here many times to offer to buy the stallion; she may well have ordered her boys to steal it. Recommends #1.
Insterid: We can beat them. Recommends #2.
Iskalli: Without proof, our case is weak. We are not obligated to make this a clan matter. Recommends #5.
Valensta: Tempest was a fine stallion, but he is not worth fighting over. Recommends #3.
Arene: Glendara is an eccentric. She has always valued horses more than cows. Recommends #5.
Heortarl: Although the other carls admire her wealth and success, Glendara's family has always held itself at a remove from the rest of our clan. No recommendation.
Mogri: This is another familiar scenario to me. Glendara will hold a grudge to her dying breath if this is not resolved, but that doesn't mean we have to do anything about it. Once again, Insterid is obligated to offer a military opinion; we can certainly beat the Oak Trees, but there's no advantage in doing so.

The people must be weaned off our teat. Raid the Oak Tree clan and show them what it means to bloat our workload over petty matters. We have important wars to plan. Insterid deserves a raise as well.

We can't have the Oak Tree clan thinking they can get away with breaking our laws. But this is just a minor incident that doesn't warrant more than launching a legal claim (option 1). Go, go Rabid Attack Lawyers!

We'll see how the Oak Trees react and then decide if we want to throw some more weight around.

Ignore this. Option 5. Anyone who thinks horses are more important than cows is obviously a lunatic not worth dealing with.

This is perfectly true. And we don't have a shred of evidence. This isn't worth a raid.

Man you've got an excuse to raid someone? You raid that someone. Option 2.

Eddie also needs a raise.

You guys are quintessential diplomats. I'd like to take this opportunity to remind you that there is no military/domination victory in KoDP.

Year 1330, part 5



We've decided to let this one slide. This makes the carls upset, but who cares about the carls? Not us.

I'm glad we've heard the last of this.

Incidentally, none of the options will get Tempest back.

Earth 1

This is a good time to explore our land. I send Harran, who you'll remember as the most skilled noble who didn't make it onto the clan ring. Expeditions within your tula return instantly, so there's no reason not to send him with half our weaponthanes and tell him to go slowly. I could probably have sent all of our weaponthanes with no ill effects.



We find ivory in our land, which we will put to good use when we reallocate our mans in a bit. This will boost our crafting output, which will become helpful very soon.

Meanwhile



What a bunch of whiners!

A number of the clan's leading men approach the ring. Their leader, Jorator, has a litany of complaints. "Ever since Yerestia became chief," Jorator says, "this clan has headed downhill. Our friends the Eagles tell jokes about us as part of their holy day ceremonies. The Ogosi send curses that sour our milk and make our bread taste like straw. At home, things are no better. Legal cases start up again a week after Yerestia passes judgment. Yerestia is unlucky in battle. It's time we had a new chief."

Well, I guess the carls have had it. Yerestia is the only one fit to act as chief, and besides, she's only had the position for a few months, so these claims are a bit suspect.

Yerestia: This is not just a challenge against me, it's a challenge to the entire ring. Recommends #5.
Harvar: Perhaps there's something else they really want. Recommends #1 or #5.
Insterid: It's true we lost our last battle. Recommends #2.
Iskalli: If we replaced our chief every time anyone had a complaint, we would be doing nothing but holding elections. Yerestia was made chief according to the laws of our clan, and should remain chief until she breaks them. Recommends #3.
Valensta: Jorator is acting on behalf of someone. Recommends #5.
Arene: The carls are certainly not very happy these days. No recommendation.
Heortarl: We could hold a belching contest, and the winner gets to be chief. Recommends #2.
Mogri: This event can indicate several things. Perhaps our clan is really upset at us, or perhaps there's just one troublemaker stirring the pot. We can't reasonably replace Yerestia, so we'll have to appease the clansmen some other way.

No one on the ring recommends replacing Yerestia. Presumably, Heortarl knows she would win the belching contest.

I don't trust this guy. Let's get to the bottom of this. (#5)

The guy in the back with the beard looks shifty, I bet he's behind it all.

Dudes must be mens' rights activists, trying to get out from under the yoke of female suppression. Let's grill Jorator and get to the bottom of this. Option 5.

It looks like 5 will lead to more entertaining results than the other options, so...yeah. Five.

Dispute their ridiculous allegations!

And invade the Eagles just in case those rumours are true.

I think Eddie was behind it.

#5

No military victory huh? I care not.

I vote we invade Jorator.

Option 5.

Noooooooo! NOOOOOOOO!

Anyway, Jorator, with his unkempt beard and his squinty eyes, is obviously evil. I vote for Option #5.

Year 1330, part 5.5

Jorator doesn't say it directly, but it sounds like Harran is the one stirring up trouble. Remember this guy?



Yeah.



Harran is the most skilled thane not currently on the ring. It'd be a shame to see him go, but the option is on the table, and there's a chance it'd smooth relations. Might just piss everyone off, though.

The options have changed, but the leaders' advice has not. Yerestia recommends outlawing Harran, but no one else who suggested questioning Jorator suggests outlawing Harran now.

I vote to remind the people of their obligation to follow elected leaders.

Can we somehow use stockades in the lesson? Jorator's face pisses me off.

Oh hey, I just realized that this Let's Play exists. I bought this game recently during one of GOG's sales but I can't get the game to work. The installation seemed to go off without a hitch but when I try to run the game the resolution changes but nothing else ever happens. GOG actually has a support page for exactly this issue but the suggested fixes didn't work for me. Since the game doesn't work under Win7 64 bit maybe I should try to set up a Windows XP virtual machine and see if the game works any better.

Meanwhile, I'll just have to enjoy the game vicariously through your LP, Mogri.

It's all about duty. If we didn't follow our clan laws we'd just be a bunch of primitive savages living in huts and feuding with out neighbors.

Do nothing. We're now aware of the dissenting elements in our midst. Let's not provoke them openly; perhaps Harran and Jorator would be well-suited to leading the vanguard in our next several raids?

If this was a Doctor Who episode, it'd be three, and then he'd start a revolution, and then the Doctor would come in and make it stick, and we'd have brand-new leaders!

Yeah, that's an amusing scenario. Option Three.

It's worked without any issues for me in Win 7 32-bit, Win 8 64-bit, and Win XP 32-bit. The problem is almost certainly a 3rd-party program, as the page suggests.

Does the music start? It could be a display issue.

(edit) Here's another thread on the issue

Is this a vote for #4?