I have a draft saved where I offer to sell him night vision goggles and smoke, flash, and tear grenades in exchange for the Darestim. Is everyone fine with this? I'll post it tomorrow if I get agreement or if no one responds.

I'm not sure about the saltpeter. If we had some on us we could throw it in to sweeten the deal? But he wants us to do something for him now, and I don't want to waste the time going back to the ship to get some. Unless you did bring saltpeter and I just missed it?

Saltpeter is pretty common. It's frequently refined from manure that's been soaked in urine and left under a tarp for at least a year. It's probably already being used in food preservation, as well as a number of minor alchemical pyrotechnics by various charlatans across the planet. That said, I don't think teaching the leader of a thieves guild how to make gunpowder is a good idea.

As for the NVGs and various grenades, I don't think he'd go for those, at least not without knowing how to make more. He seems to be playing a long game here, angling for either a better political climate in which to do business, or knowledge that has a long term impact like the microencapsulation technology. The guy is smart.

I was actually thinking of teaching him to make cigarettes. Saltpeter is the difference between one which goes out all the time (including if you simply stop smoking it) and one which won't go out even if you put it down (which is why they can start fires). Assuming these folks have any toxic smokes, treating the organics involved with saltpeter would make it a lot easier to deliver.

I suppose that begs the question of whether they do refine and use saltpeter around here already, but whether or not, it's almost certainly a new trick to these folks.

I kind of figure the night vision helmets are the most viable long term elements we have on us, so long as we include with it a portable solar panel to recharge it. The nonlethal grenades are just extra gravy.

Is there anything else we might have brought/could teach that he might go for?

I was thinking some of the truth serum Nate made to interrogate Adus. I'm sure a vial or two can be found, along with instructions on how to make more.

Oh, that's a good idea. It's beneficial to their long term and doesn't change too much about their operations to make them any sort of huge threat to us in the future.

A few doses would be valuable enough; teaching them to make more runs the risk that it will eventually be used on a Terran. Besides, we're not asking how to make Darestim.

I suppose we could make the offer for the vials we have and see if he takes it. In order for him to accept it, though, he might ask for the method to make it. Good news, though, it could easily be that the materials to do so would tie him to buying from us.

CCC would have to have final say on that. Nate did mix it up in an afternoon from primarily local materials.

Some of the specific herbs used won't grow in Rendor's climate. However, they are not uncommon in slightly wetter, cooler climates; and someone who knows enough practical chemistry to create an untraceable poison from whatever plants Darestim comes from is almost certainly going to be able to handle cooking up the truth serum, once they know the recipe. And they can certainly get a guy with a horse to go and track down the relevant herbs for them.

So, it's safe to assume that if they have the recipe, they will be able to recreate the serum. It's even vaguely possible that they might have someone who can figure out the recipe from a sample (that's not an easy Science roll, but given that they do have people who create organic poisons already, they've got people with the right sort of skill set...)

I keep forgetting so many things. I think I'm due for a reread of the game to keep track.

I'm thinking we store the Darestim in a small locked box that includes a beacon that lets us track whoever has the box.

Also, I'm wondering how badly not trying to negotiate with Aramsham is going to come back to bite us, later.

CCC, I've been meaning to ask you. I'm supposed to get a bonus language* right? I kind of assumed you would just assign me one and I would eventually come in to contact with someone I understood but no one else did. But I realize that's a weird and very specific assumption so maybe you were just waiting for me to bring it up?

*Due to either Linguist or Gift of Tongues stunt. I can't remember which it was at the moment.

We still could take a side trip to talk to Aramsham, if it comes to that. Though that could just as easily bite us as ignoring him.

I think Linguist gives you a bonus five languages (on top of the four languages you get from having +4 Academics) and Gift of Tongues makes it so you know ALL commonly spoken languages of Earth plus languages you have no business knowing whatsoever in place of the nine languages you'd normally take otherwise.


I say we leave that well enough alone for now. No reason poking an already angry hornet's nest. No point getting waylaid from our main objective and risk losing our Darestim sample.

Our next two orders of business should be waiting for Sir Sparhawk to finish his business/helping Sir Sparhawk finish his business and finding Martel in order to keep him from rocking the boat and allowing the Primate to build further power or otherwise make moves against us.