Quote from: chirine ba kal;1031539I save the charges and use concrete blocks. More traditional, too.

And even the greatest swordsman can only say "...ma Panache!"
Right, Uncle;)?

Honored Uncles, I have some questions about iron and steel in Tekumel.  It's obvious that they are rare and expensive but seem to be fairly attainable *if* you have significant  funds.  


I recall looking at a list of legions and than many of the 'best' have some portion of their troops equipped with both metal weapons and armour.  Would it be fairly common for wealthy and/or important officers to have steel armor or at least weapons?

Would it be safe to draw a parallel with expensive sports cars?  Everyone knows what they are, almost no one has one, but if you are in the right (ie nice) part of town you will see the odd one;  if you happen by an event populated by 'the good and the great' you might see quite a few!

Do the same clans that make regular weapons and armour also make steel armaments?  I'd imagine the legions with significant metal armor and weapons would need many dedicated people to maintain all that gear.

If a character of decent background and appropriate personal wealth wanted to acquire steel weapons or armour, how would they go about doing it? Would they need to acquire the metal first?  Do some high end 'shops' have an inventory or is this the kind of market where everyone buys bespoke rather than 'off the shelf'??

How common are other metals? Do they get used for much or is chlen hide generally better?  I'd imagine things like braziers and such would be longer lasting if made from metal?

Quote from: Horu hiFa'asu;1031896Honored Uncles, I have some questions about iron and steel in Tekumel.  It's obvious that they are rare and expensive but seem to be fairly attainable *if* you have significant  funds.  


I recall looking at a list of legions and than many of the 'best' have some portion of their troops equipped with both metal weapons and armour.  Would it be fairly common for wealthy and/or important officers to have steel armor or at least weapons?

Would it be safe to draw a parallel with expensive sports cars?  Everyone knows what they are, almost no one has one, but if you are in the right (ie nice) part of town you will see the odd one;  if you happen by an event populated by 'the good and the great' you might see quite a few!

Do the same clans that make regular weapons and armour also make steel armaments?  I'd imagine the legions with significant metal armor and weapons would need many dedicated people to maintain all that gear.

If a character of decent background and appropriate personal wealth wanted to acquire steel weapons or armour, how would they go about doing it? Would they need to acquire the metal first?  Do some high end 'shops' have an inventory or is this the kind of market where everyone buys bespoke rather than 'off the shelf'??

How common are other metals? Do they get used for much or is chlen hide generally better?  I'd imagine things like braziers and such would be longer lasting if made from metal?

Yes to the funds, but you also need connections and 'pull' with the right people. (Unless you loot the stuff out of some Underworld, of course.)

Yes, if the legion was well-funded and the officer in question well-connected. The Glorious General got a lot of benefits when he was decorated and promoted, as he became Somebody Worth Cultivating. I tended to pick up my stuff along the way, in my career as Imperial errand-boy. Poorer and less connected legions have to settle for Chlen, unless they get lucky in a Qadarni or something.

Yes, very much so. The stuff is not worn to parties, but if the hosts have any it will be displayed along with the rest of the 'family heirlooms'. And watched, too.

It's all bespoke, unless you're buying a weapon or something. Showing up with raw metal is very uncommon; this would be handled through one's clan. There's rarely going to be much of anything 'in inventory', as it's just not that common. You get the stuff by knowing somebody who knows somebody and can furnish you with introductions.

Bronze, brass, copper, tin, and lead are reasonably common, and do get used for the kind of durable goods you mention. Chlen is simply just too useful not to be used - it's like plastics are to us. It's lighter, cheaper, and just as durable.

All of this is why major pandemonium broke out when we got back from Blackmoor with a ship full of iron and steel. It 'made my career', as they say. My legion came with it's own heirloom armor, as did my Vriddi, which is why we're such a hot commodity in the swords-for-hire market. My share of the loot paid for a lot of very nice stuff, and the reputation one gets when one's bearers drop the news that their boss is eating out of an iron cookpot does some amazing things with vendors and officials. One has 'arrived', as it were...

Does this help?

Schedule change: The 5e group that I'm playing in / co-GMing will next meet on April 29th, but not at the FLGS where we usually hold forth. Due to a big store event (Tabletop Game Day), it looks like we'll be here at the house. We'll be open for visitors; please contact me for details and updates. Thanks!

Page 250; who would have thought? Happy Easter to everyone, from us over here in Byzantium!

Christ has risen, Uncle:)!

He truly has!

Phooey, stupid forum won't let me say it in Greek.

Anyway, blessed Pascha.

Indeed, gentlemen, and thank you - our best to all of you, as well.

It was a very good weekend; had an out-of-town visitor in to chat, and Fifth Daughter has only one load left to move - she and her fiance have bought a townhouse, so we'll have our house back and all to ourselves for the first time in over a decade. Big changes, hereabouts, and many deeds to be done.

"Many pointless and annoying deeds were done to trouble the councils of the Small and the Silly."

Quote from: Gronan of Simmerya;1033598"Many pointless and annoying deeds were done to trouble the councils of the Small and the Silly."

Oh, agreed! Figures in from Dark Fable, today, for That Braunstein; figures coming up from Forge Of Ice for Barsoom; even more figures coming for more Barsoom and Tekumel' and a heads-up about a forthcoming "Legend of Cleopatra" coming up. Not having a college student living in the house means a tripling of our annual disposable income... :eek:

Holy cow! How much does one college student eat?

Quote from: Willie the Duck;1033647Holy cow! How much does one college student eat?

They eat like a pack of Zrne

Quote from: Big Andy;1033652They eat like a pack of Zrne

Quoted for truth! My wife and I spend in a month what we spent every two weeks when we had college age children at home.

Blaise

I suppose. I took these two comments...

Quote from: chirine ba kal;1033596so we'll have our house back and all to ourselves for the first time in over a decade.

Quote from: chirine ba kal;1033599Not having a college student living in the house means a tripling of our annual disposable income... :eek:

...together to mean it was a returning child coming back for grad school perhaps (otherwise wouldn't it be first time house to selves in at least 22 years?). So after the teenage eat-like-a-horse era. I'm clearly not the right person to ask. Regardless, glad for Chirine (+wife, +daughter and her fiancé, seems like everyone wins here).