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| Common Rumours | Rumour |
|---|---|
| Trading Post | Tell me, are you going to visit the Trading Post any time soon? If you are, please let me know at once. I have some stuff I'd like to sell, and I'd rather do this out of town - better rates there, you see. |
| My brother sent me a letter. Says everything is going well with him, no trouble at all. It's because the prices at their market are very cheap. That's what you get in a country with lots of towns and a market in each. They... eh... there's a clever word for that... oh, yeah, they compete with each other! So the more markets they have, the lower the prices go. Maybe we should also capture a couple more towns, what do you think, your grace? | |
| Trading Post rates are usually 50/100. It's possible to have better rates if you have many marketplaces under your control. | |
| Lighthouse | About 40 years ago, when I was a ship's boy on a merchant ship, I travelled quite a lot. I saw many interesting things and would have seen even more if our captain knew how to use lighthouses. They show the way like guiding stars in the night, and greatly reduce sailing time. |
| Border Guard/Keymaster Tent | Sometimes a seemingly insurmountable obstacle blocks the way to our goal. Some people retreat, but others stubbornly keep looking for a key to open the cherished doors. Take Border Guards, for example: it seems a dead end, no go, no way to proceed at all. But put in a bit of effort and you'll find a Keyholder with a bunch of keys to unlock the gates to the unknown. |
| Crypt | There was a custom in bygone times, to bury fallen warriors together with their treasures, weapons and magical amulets. Their burial grounds were sacred. But it's all different now, alas. Nothing is sacred any more... There are rumours about treasure hunters who are not even afraid of the restless spirits guarding those ancient crypts. |
| Dragon Utopia | Dragons are the oldest creatures in this world, and surely they've hoarded piles of gold during the millennia they've been around! I wonder where they keep their treasure? The brave man who finds his way there certainly won't have to worry about much in his old age... If only I knew where they keep their riches! |
| War Machine Factory | So many ridiculous laws in this world! For example, you can't buy all War Machines at once in our town. And it's the same everywhere: each town specialises in one particular area. But they say you may occasionally find illegal factories where you can buy a First Aid Tent, a Ballista and an Arrow Train, all in one go! Imagine the kind of money those people make, eh? |
| Cartographer | Recently I had a traveller staying in my tavern who had spent a few years wandering in a great forest. He told me he would never have found a way out of the thicket if he didn't stumble upon a cartographer's hut. He had to give the crotchety old miser his last money for a map of the area, but he wasn't complaining - otherwise he'd still be trying to find his way home. |
| Sanctuary | Did you hear the latest about Knight Richard? He was a great fighter, but he ended up surrounded by enemies and had to flee and take refuge in the Sanctuary. The enemy didn't dare to attack him inside those sacred walls, and they finally got tired of the siege and left him alone. Richard was so grateful for his salvation, he became a monk! |
| Skeleton | I had a merchant staying with me recently. In a fit of frankness he told me the secret of his wealth: He never shrank from searching skeletons he happened to find on his way, and occasionally among those time-bleached bones he'd find the powerful artifacts that were the source of his well-being. |
| Whirlpool | If you came just a tiny bit earlier you'd have caught the lame Pew, a well-known pirate. There's a little Imp always running with him, and the funny thing is, it's always a new one. And do you know why? Pew knows how to use whirlpools which make the journey much shorter. The only problem is, those sweeping waves always wash off the weakest member of the crew. Do you get my drift? |
| Roads | You are late today. Probably been riding cross country again, all the way up and down the hills, the woods and the mountains... How many times did I tell you we're a civilised country here, with roads everywhere. It's much quicker and easier riding on the roads, you know. You look like a grown up and I have to tell you such simple things over and over again. |
| Temple | I hear you don't go the Temple very often? Well, not a very wise choice, Sir. Let me offer you a bit of advice: try dropping in the Temple on the last day of the week. You want to know what will happen? Well, just go and see for yourself. I'm sure you'll get double what you expect. |
| Idol of Fortune | A strange man, resident of our town, decided to find out how Idols scattered around the world affect people's luck and morale. The poor man got very confused trying to figure out when one thing starts and the other ends. I guess arithmetic wasn't his strong point: it's not very difficult at all to calculate when Idol is generous with gifts of luck, and when he offers moral support. But I'm sure you know this anyway, don't you? |
| Hill Fort | Oh dear, such a sad face! I'm sure you've run out of funds again and cannot hire the best troops in existence. But I'll help you out. During your next journey pay attention to the Forts on the hills. Not only they improve your troops, they greatly reduce the cost of improving them in town. Such a simple but useful secret, isn't it? |
| Redwood Observatory | What was that? Sorry, I'm so distracted today... I was fortunate enough to go up the Red Tree Observatory. The view from up there is so splendid! And you can see much, much farther... |
| Arena | Did you hear? Head of our town council won the Arena competition again! Such a brave man, now he'll have even higher combat skills - defense or attack, whatever he chooses. And the best thing is, now the Arena is ours and in case of war its magical force will support the hero defending our town. |
| Whatever he says, Arenas can't be captured. | |
| Sylanna's Ancients | I can see you're a bit cold, aren't you? My fault, or rather, the fault of those layabout woodcutters. Came back from the forest without any firewood, and just because they found some fancy Sylanna's Ancients there. Allegedly the tree spoke to them and offered to share its experience. And imagine, instead of grabbing such an opportunity those idiots dropped their axes and run away! So here we are now, no firewood and no experience either... |
| Refugee Camp | Oh dear, that war... Kicked everybody out of their warmed-up places, everyone is running around... There are even refugee camps now for those unfortunates who don't have anything to lose anymore. By the way, why don't you try to hire them? You can always use some fresh forces in an expedition, can't you? |
| Witch Hut | Look what a nice thing I got from a witch I've met during the wild days of my youth. A lovely little amulet, don't you think? Pity I'm not a hero, maybe her present would have been much more use to me then... |
| Den of Thieves | I don't even know what to tell you this time... I agree, tavern is a place where people come and tell all sorts of rumours, but can you trust them? Why don't you go to the Brigands' Den instead - if you can find it, of course! That's where you'll find the most full and accurate information about everything happening in this world! |
| Faerie Ring | Gosh, it's dull today... Would you care for a game of dice? Of course you wouldn't, and quite right too - I can see the far-sighted politician in you. You don't want to play with strangers... I did start playing with one scoundrel recently, and what do you know? He had nothing but sixes! Then I found out the crook came over here straight after he visited the Fairy Ring. No wonder he was so lucky! |
| Hut of the Magi | Not long before you there was a Mage here. Complained it was dull here, nothing to do. Quite unlike his hut, he said. So I asked him about it and he told me he installed magical eyes around the hut and now can see everything from the inside. Says it's both safe and very interesting. What those Wizards will think of next, I wonder? |
| Garrison | I hear roads are much safer these days. They build barracks and put soldiers in, to guard the roads. It's great, really - not a fly will go by unnoticed! Nice to know that at least something in the world is changing for the better. |
| Prison | There's sad news from Deepridge - one of their heroes died. Such a tragic fate! He spent some time in prison, but when the lord pardoned him he served honorably for years before the brigands got him. It's true, your Grace, such is the quality of the folk around here that even in prison you can hire trustworthy heroes! |
| Monolith One Way | I'm thinking about renaming my tavern, your grace. I'm going to call it the Bidirectional Monolith. Just think: the entrance here also serves as the exit. Exactly like with the monoliths scattered around the world. And if the entrance was here and the exit somewhere else, I'd have called it the One-way Monolith. Logical, don't you think? |
| Shrine of Magic | I've heard about towns where they built practically no magical towers at all, to save money. But they have lots and lots of magical altars scattered around them. Spend a week travelling, and you can learn all the spells you need without any magical tower. We also have some of those altars, but not many. Ah, they have more of everything across the sea, not just the altars. |
| The hero's power depends on their experience, and experience is gained in combat. I don't know how good that strategy is, but I heard about a Warlock who used to plunge into the most reckless battles caring nothing about his troops. And won, with just a handful of soldiers surviving but getting more and more experienced and powerful after each combat. | |
| The best advice I can offer you, Sir, is this: listen to other people's advice. Not just mine, too: try to get information wherever you can. These days victory is won not by brute force but by knowledge. | |
| I've heard about a knight who preferred just two kinds of troops among all available to him: Archangels and Paladins. He developed a particular tactic: Paladins attacked while Archangels healed and resurrected the fallen. And maybe he wasn't very wrong there, you can find several kinds of troops in any town which fight most efficiently when they fight together. | |
| They say even walls heal at home. I don't know about walls as such, but an army fights much more efficiently when they have native land under their feet. Elves and Knights feel good on grass, Wizards are quite comfortable on sand, Demons are strong if there are lava rivers boiling around and Warlocks feel right at home in dungeons. Only the Necromancer troops don't care where they fight, but what do you expect -- they're dead! | |
| There was Rabbits' Week a while ago, so they bred in such numbers they devoured the whole crop! But worse can happen -- much worse if we have a week of some vicious monsters. Things get really ugly until heroes clear the area of them. You can't even get outside town walls! | |
| One of the oldest arguments on Ashan is: what's more powerful: sword or magic? Who'll get the better of whom, a warrior inspiring his soldiers with the will to victory or a Mage attacking the enemy ranks with powerful spells? Well, if you want to know my opinion, it depends on the commander. Sometimes a weak Mage can beat a strong warrior, and at other times it's vice versa. The main thing is to develop a good strategy, believe you me! | |
| I'm sorry, Sir, but today my prices are higher than normally. Wood and ore shortages, you see. What's the connection? Why, they're the most important resources, and if there aren't enough of them the town can't develop normally! This is quite worrying, you know, if the town lags behind in its development it becomes easy prey for the enemy. | |
| I don't know if it's true but I heard a story about common peasants getting the better of a Dragon who got into the habit of ravaging their land. Of course quite a lot of them were killed, but if they'd attack all at once the casualties would have been even heavier. However, they divided into groups and took turns attacking the enemy, so it simply didn't have the time to strike them all back. Since then even Dragons give that little hamlet a wide berth. | |
| One's as good as none... And I don't mean that any hero worthy of their salt needs an army, that goes without saying. What I mean is you can beat the enemy much quicker if you have another one, two or even more heroes under your command. They could see to many various tasks - defend towns and mines, bring fresh reinforcements... After all, that's what taverns are for - hiring new heroes! | |
| If I was a hero I'd always go around with a huge army. First, it'd be a nice feeling, and secondly, much more practical: all those brigands, bandits and other scum wouldn't even come close after seeing my troops. So I'd travel without delays and wouldn't lose any soldiers to unexpected battles. | |
| Today, your grace, I wouldn't recommend taking any important steps. It's a bad day: the stars are all in unfavourable positions, the planets misaligned... I always pay attention to things like that, and listen to astrological forecasts every week. Maybe you should, too. That's the way this world works, and nothing can be done about it. | |
| Right, what do you want now, eh? Oops, sorry, your grace, I took you for somebody else. You see, all those yokels who come here these days... They pay the town treasury and then come over to the tavern. What do you mean what yokels? Those millers, of course! They are under the town's protection so they come to pay protection money every day. And make so much noise... | |
| Gossip, advice... I'm sorry, your grace, but don't you think it's time for you to go and fight, and test all your knowledge and skills in combat? Combat is the best teacher, and the battlefield the only place where you can see a hero's real worth. Much better than chatting here with me. Good luck! | |
| Haven Rumours | Rumour |
| Stables | A long time ago a town which happened to be in the way of an enemy army fell only because the messenger sent for help wasn't quick enough. The town folk fell victims to their own avarice, they decided to save on stables! If they had built them, their heroes could have gotten fresh horses and travelled much longer distances during the day. |
| Training Hall | Do you know why Castles are so difficult to take by storm? Because only here you can turn 100 Archers into 100 Paladins - provided, of course, the town has Training Halls. Not bad, eh? Training Halls don't come cheap but in matters of life and death one doesn't want to pinch pennies. And not just any hero can do that either - only Knights have this ability. But we don't really need any other kind of heroes here. |
| Archer/Marksman | A while ago there was an argument between a Marksman and an Archer in our tavern, who is more useful in combat. The Archer boasted his ability to shoot at several targets at once, and the Marksman was stressing the accuracy of his shots at close range. They almost fought with each other, actually. Only the arrival of town guards prevented the bloodshed. Maybe you'll test their abilities in real combat one day, and see for yourself who was right? |
| Squire | What a party we had yesterday! It was in honour of a common Squire who managed to cover a Paladin standing next to him with his shield and saved him from certain death by enemy arrow. They really underestimate those guys! So many warriors owe their lives to them! |
| Cavalier/Paladin | Once upon a time a wise man boasted, "Give me a pivot and I'll turn the world." A Cavalier who heard about that told me another thing: "Give me a running start for my horse and I'll crush any enemy." My point? Just remember, the farther Cavaliers or Paladins are from their target, the harder they will hit it. |
| Imperial Griffin | Many years ago a Griffin king managed to beat the Inferno army because he trained his Griffins to soar in the sky and then drop down on the enemy units like stones. It was a totally unexpected tactic and in just a few minutes the whole enemy army was decimated. Since then they call him "the Victor". And he deserved it too! |
| Inquisitor | What's the difference bewteen a Priest and an Inquisitor? Seems like a trifling thing, just two spells - Benediction and Endurance. But in fact those two are critical -- thanks to these gifts from Elrath, the Griffin Empire troops can become almost invincible. |
| Inferno Rumours | Rumour |
| Sacrificial Pit | Demon Lords often surprise their enemies. Some of them, called up to be heroes seemingly just the other day, quickly turned into experienced commanders. How come? I'll tell you: that's what those Sacrificial Pits in Demon towns are for. Of course, you'd be better off sacrificing other creatures - they're not a lot of use in combat, and it's a shame to lose your own, isn't it? But if the need is really pressing, you can sacrifice your own creatures too. Not a great loss anyway - you can always hire some more! |
| Infernal Loom | A bit dark, you think? Well, we got used to it. Safe, though. The enemy will think twice before attacking an Inferno town with a Hellish Shadow built in it. First, there would be no luck for them in that combat, and second, troops summoned from Demonic Gates will come to help the besieged very, very quickly. Darkness? We like the darkness... |
| Familiar | Some Demon Lords love fighting with armies headed by other heroes. Going into those battles they always take a few Imps with them. An enemy hero who suddenly realises they've run out of magical energy is quite a sight, you know! And where did that energy go? Stolen by the Imps, of course, and transferred to their commander. And then the real fun starts! |
| Horned Overseer | Do you play chess? An excellent game for a true commander. By the way, I'd suggest sacrificing this pawn. Pawns really shouldn't be spared, as a rule. Especially if it's a pawn which would drag a few enemies to hell with it. Oh, and the best candidates for this role in combat are Horned Overseers - just don't forget to use their self-exploding ability. One explosion, another, checkmate. |
| Nightmare | Did you hear the latest? Stupid humans scare their unruly children with Devils and Imps! It must be a long time since they clashed with Demon armies - they forgot who can really panic the enemy troops! Nightmares are the true embodiment of fear and chaos, and they sow it well on the battlefield. But don't worry, we'll remind them about it soon enough... |
| Pit Lord | Great news! Didn't you hear? Infernal Games are starting soon, bets are accepted already. I'm going to back up Pit Lords, no question about it. Who else has such smashing swords? Every strike produces a dead body, and no getting away from it. They say even Devils are sometimes afraid to challenge them directly. |
| Arch Devil | An Archdevil is not one but two trump aces up a Demon Lord's sleeve. All they have to do to use the second ace is sacrifice some sixes - e.g. Imps. Then Archdevils will be able to summon Pit Lords in their place! Nice trade, isn't it? Lots and lots of enemy troops who presumptuously attacked Demon armies suddenly found their weak little foes replaced by Pit Lords! And they also found their graves on the battlefield... |
| Necropolis Rumours | Rumour |
| Necromancy Amplifier | The dead army is invincible because of a very simple reason: as long as this world exists, there will always be wars and more dead people. All the Necromancer has to do is resurrect the fallen quickly enough. And if there's a Necromancy Amplifier installed in town this job will be much easier: the number of dead creatures summoned to the battlefield will be greater. And if you have Amplifiers in all Necromancer towns? Hmm, sounds tempting... |
| Plague Zombies | Don't underestimate Zombies. If they get to their target, there will be no mercy. If a zombie hits an enemy they weaken them as well as wound them, and each following blow inflicts even heavier damage. The best thing is, the weakening effects accumulate so you might consider attacking with several units: one, two, three... The enemy will have no chance. |
| Ghost/Spectre | Power over Death has its advantages. Only a Necromancer's army has incorporeal creatures who can avoid damage in melee combat. We're talking about Ghosts. Don't hesitate to send them in the thick of battle - they'll survive because they're already dead! |
| Vampire/Vampire Lord | A while ago a Vampire was celebrating its jubilee in my tavern - their three hundredth resurrection on the battlefield! The main toast was to the commander, a wise Necromancer who was in no hurry to deal with weak enemy units. That Necromancer always remembers that the number of resurrected Vampires depends on the number of enemies Vampires suck the life out of. And it's much easier to suck the life out of weaker opponents! |
| Lich/Archlich | Some of the Necromancers are unbelievably stupid. Just take this example: a Necromancer recruited live creatures into his army, the idiot, and following the old habit ordered Liches to fire at the thick of the enemy -- ignoring the fact that his own soldiers were fighting there too! Of course everybody was killed, including his own troops. Don't ever forget that a Cloud of Death destroys everybody in its way -- everybody who isn't already dead, that is. |
| Wraith | Spirits of War of the Blood Moonriors guarding Necropolis are among the most lethal creatures in this world! All they have to do is touch the enemy, and the unit is dead regardless of what it was - a Peasant or a Dragon. Impressive, don't you think? But that's not all. The Spirits' touch is so vile the attacked unit loses all positive effects of spells the short-sighted enemy hero has already cast on them. |
| Dragon Tombstone | A Dragon Tombstone is the crown of Necropolis development, the ultimate goal to strive for. Bone and Shadow Dragons are the strongest troops in the dead army, if a Necromancer invests in building just one of them, they get one more Dragon every week! So in two weeks you get plus two Dragons, in a month plus four, in a year... Hmm.. How many would that be, eh?! |
| Dungeon Rumours | Rumour |
| Ritual Pit | Sit down and listen. Once upon a time a weak Warlock who couldn't even hope to rely on the power of his spells sacrificed several creatures from his own army, beseeching the Daughters of Malassa to give him magical power. They accepted the sacrifice but they had their own ideas about the reciprocal gift, and gave the Warlock some fighters -- Minotaurs and Blood Witches. Since then it became a custom to sacrifice unneeded troops into the Ritual Pit in order to replenish one's army. And sometimes -- not always -- fortune smiles upon the hopeful. |
| Altar of Elements | Bad business! A Magical Elements Altar was built in one of the towns, and tons of heroes went there. Now they spend their time in my competitor's tavern hoping somebody will hire them. You ask why? It's because a young and inexperienced Warlock can save himself using the secret Elemental Blast. It's not an easy art, and building this structure halves the risk! |
| Not sure what he's talking about, really. | |
| Assassin | Assassins are born killers. The enemy will hardly ever get near them, their arrows are poisoned and keeps hurting long after the arrow hits. During combat they poison as many targets as possible -- some of them will die on their own, others will be helped by their allied units. |
| Grim Raider | You ever see a frontal attack by Grim Raiders, when a few units attack the enemy side by side? A frightening sight. Much more so because it's not just the riders fighting but their Lizards too. They bite the enemy just when an allied unit next to them is hitting them with their swords. Not many can withstand that attack - if, of course, the Grim Raiders are commanded by hero with brains. |
| Shadow Matriarch | A while ago some fool offered a Matriarch's Whip for sale on the black market. The naive idiot was hoping to get a lot of money for it, as if nobody knew the whip can only cast one of the four damning spells when it's used by a Matriarch. |
| Hydra | Hydras are an excellent choice when putting together an army. The main thing in combat is to avoid dire situations and try not to let a single Hydra die. Never mind if they're wounded, Hydras are capable of regeneration and in no time at all they'll be as good as new, straining on the leash. |
| Black Dragon | Why do you think Black Dragons, who are among the most powerful creatures in our world, allow Warlocks to control them? Because Warlocks were the first who managed to get the better of Black Dragons using magic. Black Dragons are immune to any magical impact but an experienced and wise Warlock can cancel that advantage. That's how fear found its way into Black Dragons' hearts for the first time ever. And it's not a long way from fear to submission. |
| Preserve Rumours | Rumour |
| Mystical Pond | You won't find many Elf towns which don't have a Mystical Pond. First, these ponds are pretty, and second, beauty goes hand in hand with practicality -- like it usually does when Elves are involved. Every week a Mystical Pond produces nice little presents for the townsfolk. What presents? You know, it's better you see for yourself rather than hear it from me. |
| Avenger's Guild | I wouldn't wish anybody to become an Elf hero's enemy! All they'd have to do is go to one a towns that has an Avenger's Guild and put their offenders on the special list. Then they'd surely be punished in the very next clash! Vendetta is no joke, you know. |
| War Dancer | I saw Blade Dancers training the other day. Such a wonderful sight! By the way, did you ever think why they are called so? Well, just try sending them in the thick of the enemy ranks so they're surrounded on all sides. And then, attack! Now that will be a dance, that will be a spectacle! |
| Master Hunter | A problem: imagine you need to beat a powerful creature capable of destroying a whole enemy unit in a single blow. What are you going to do? Right, don't allow the enemy come anywhere close to your troops. And to achieve that, a few ranks of Master Hunters would come very handy. Taking turns to shoot magicked arrows at the enemy, they can inflict mortal wounds and seriously slow down their progress. |
| Unicorn | The true heroes of the past war with the Demons were Unicorns. Demons often used a powerful magical fire that would scorch everything alive around them. Unicorns can withstand magic, plus they have a special aura which increases protection from magical strikes for everybody near them. |
| Druid Elder | Sometimes the forthcoming battle isn't particularly dangerous to the army, but you just can't avoid it. The best strategy in those situations is to keep the army and the commander's reserve of magical energy intact. And this is exactly where Druid Elders can help: they can share their magical power with the commander. After the battle they can quickly restore it, and repeat this trick over and over again. |
| Treant/Ancient Treant | Confusing the enemy and disrupting their plans is a favourite tactic of the Elves. There are lots of ways to do so, but I'll tell you about just one. Did you see Treants? Right, so they can entangle enemies with their roots, and so tightly the enemy can't move at all. A lot of rushing attacks have choked crashing into these forest giants. But not a word to anybody! It's a military secret. |
| Academy Rumours | Rumour |
| Wizards' Library | Wizards' Libraries are treasure houses storing knowledge about magical subjects unavailable to others. Build a Library in town, spend some time among the dusty volumes seeking those grains of wisdom inside them, and you'll obtain knowledge unavailable to other people. Who knows, maybe it will save your life one day. |
| Arcane Forge | Only poor Wizards don't strengthen their armies with artifacts that can be manufactured in Arcane Forges! Sometimes one shouldn't try to save time or resources: in this particular case the Wizard can create troops far superior to the opposition's army. |
| Master Gremlin | Take a look at that shorty in the corner, would you? It's a Master Gremlin! Hire it for your army and you'll never have to go without War Machine support. It can repair a machine smashed in combat single-handedly, right on the battlefield. Asks a lot of money? Well, you'll have all your machines repaired for free if you hire it. Beats buying new machines every time, doesn't it? |
| Stone Gargoyle/Obsidian Gargoyle | Gargoyles are the best troops to use against enemy shooters and magic-users. First, they can fly, and quite far too, second, they are extremely tough, and third, they are highly resistant to all sorts of magic. Of course, with abilities like that they would be most efficient behind enemy lines, where the doomed troops try to take cover! |
| Archmage | Wizards have won many a great victory spilling very little blood. The secret of their tactic is in careful selection of warriors, to make sure the commander has a lot of magical energy. What warriors are those? Why, Archmages, of course! Who else can establish an energy canal enabling the commander to attack the enemy with powerful spells without worrying about their costs? |
| Rakshasa Raja | Some fools think a Wizard's army is slow on the battlefield. Ridiculous! They never saw Rakshasas in action -- they can attack at double speed. I'd like to see those idiots meet a few Rakshasas on the battlefield! They wouldn't have time to open their mouths before the Rakshasas made mincemeat out of them! |
| Titan | One of the sights in the Silver Cities is a mound under which hordes of Demons are buried - the ones crushed by the Wizards' army. A headstone rises on the mound, with just four words engraved on it: "They underestimated the Titans." Very simple and very true. |
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