Seneschal

The position of Seneschal is one of several Council positions common at every level throughout The Kingdom of Somercrag. They are responsible for the managing council's finances - presenting financial opportunities to the council, collecting taxes, paying tithes, wages and contracts, establishing trade with neighbours and so on. Due to the nature of the position, it is almost exclusively limited to members of the nobility - few members of the lower classes have the education in literacy or numeracy necessary to carry out the responsibilities of the role. Alternatively, this is one of several roles that, in a smaller household, might fall under the responsibilities of a Spire Advisor. Except for Spire Advisors, a Seneschal is rarely considered to speak for a Lord or Lady. Instead, they are considered to be acting on behalf of them. This distinction means that a Seneschal's failures, or indeed, their successes, are considered to be their own to a greater extent than other council members. For example, if a Seneschal's mismanagement of a council's finances were to lead to a shortage, they would be expected to invest their own funds to make up the loss. Similarly, their investment in a council's projects will often lead to profit for their own pocket as well as the council's. This is another reason that established nobles are preferred for the role.

Council Actions

Each month the Seneschal may be directed to take one of the following actions. Bolded actions require the Seneschal's presence for the month, making them unavailable for any other duties.

Establish Trade Routes - The Seneschal spends the month negotiating trade routes between the council's settlements and their neighbours, using their connections and their knowledge of supply and demand to find particularly profitable deals for the materials the settlements produce. The Seneschal takes a Seneschal skill vs dd check, gaining one Trade Route for each s or aa. Each Trade Route allows one settlement to replace all of its Wealth check(s) next month with a single Food, Production or Trade Development check.

Oversee Tax Collection - The Seneschal spends the month overseeing the collection of taxes throughout the settlement. They take a Seneschal skill check against a chosen number of d. If they succeed they add the chosen number to the Income of the council's Seat next month. If they fail, they immediately add an amount of Crime Income to each of the council's settlements equal to f+hh.
Note: If this action is taken more than once in a single session the difficulty of subsequent checks is in c instead of d. If this action is taken in a session immediately following one in which it was taken, it is upgraded once for each consecutive previous time this action had been taken.

Demand Tithes - The Seneschal spends the month embedded within one of the council's settlements or in the court of one or their vassals. This allows the settlement or vassal to send tithes even if they do not have a Tithe Hall or other suitable infrastructure. In addition, they take a Seneschal skill check against a chosen number of c. Regardless of the outcome, they add the chosen number to the tithes paid by the settlement or Vassal, then if it is a settlement add an amount of Crime Income to the settlement equal to f+hh. If it is a Vassal, effects of failure will be narrative.

Raise Funds - The Seneschal devotes their efforts to raising funds for one specific project. Choose an Action taken by another council member or an Ongoing Project. The Seneschal takes a Seneschal skill check against a number of d equal to the Cost in Revenue of that Action or Project. If they succeed, they add that amount to the council's Coffers.

Create New Settlement - The Seneschal spends the month purchasing land rights and procuring supplies in order to establish a new settlement with the council's lands. They spend 5 Revenue and take a Seneschal skill check with the difficulty and outcomes detailed below, following the rules for split settlement creation if they are creating a new settlement from part of an exisiting one, or the new settlement creation otherwise.
Split Settlement Creation

Choose one settlement that is at least a Town.
Then, choose one Development within that settlement to be the centre of the new settlement. Often this will be a Farm, as those are usually on the outskirts.
Remove that Development from the existing settlement and reduce its Attribute by 1. Then record that Development on the new settlement, along with the same Attribute value.
The new settlement's other Attributes (except derived attributes) begin at 0. Its Location Bonus remains the same as its parent settlement and its Specialisation matches the Attribute of its founding Development.
Then, take a Seneschal vs dd check.
s: increase one Attribute by 1 (maximum of 1/Attribute) ;
a: remove one Development from the parent settlement and add it to the new settlement;
s/aa: change the Location Bonus of the new settlement;
t: Add one new Development to the new settlement;
h: one Development in the parent settlement has its level reduced by 1;
d: the parent settlement has its size reduced by one step (though it will generally still meet the requirements, it will need to succeed at Settlement Progression checks to return to its previous size).
If the check fails, the new settlement is not created (but the development is still removed and the Attribute change is permanent)

New Settlement Creation

Choose a location. Agree with the GM on what the Location Bonus and Specialisation would be for a settlement built there. Perform a Seneschal skill vs cc check, applying any additional bonuses or penalties based on the settlement's Location. On a success a new settlement is created with its Specialisation at 1 and all other Attributes at 0.
s: increase one Attribute by 1 (maximum of 1/Attribute) ;
s/aa: Add one new Development to the new settlement;
t: Change the Location Bonus of the settlement to something not indicated by the map, create a new map feature if relevant;
h: Increase the cost of creating the settlement by 1;
d: reduce one Attribute by 1. If this reduces all Attributes to 0 the settlement creation fails.

Create Roadway - The Seneschal spends the month making deals and purchasing land rights to create a new roadway to connect two settlements in their own lands or a settlement to one in a neighbouring land. When they begin the project it will have a goal equal to the number of days' travel the road will cover (5 per square on the map if taking the most direct route) and a difficulty agreed with the DM. This also begins an ongoing project with a total cost equal to the goal.
Each month that the Seneschal works on this project, they take a Seneschal skill check against the agreed difficulty. For each s and every aa they make a point of progress toward the goal. They cannot make more progress than the amount of Revenue that has been invested into the project so far. Once both totals reach the agreed target the road is completed. Unlike other Ongoing Projects this does not have a fixed cost each month but at least one Revenue must be invested each month or the project will fail.

Attract Courtiers (Economy) - The Seneschal performs a Seneschal skill vs ddd check and attracts a number of individuals to court. This check may be influenced by spending Revenue to upgrade the check. It will also be influenced by recent events (such as recent periods of heavy taxation or increased tithes) as well as the perceived opportunities for expansion or competition. Attracted individuals may include business owners, craftspeople, and farmers to satisfy the NPC requirements for new developments, as well as traders or others with opportunities for financial gain for the council. This may also involve an event, such as hosting a festival or feast other similar activites.

Training (Economic) - The Seneschal spends the month training an individual's economic skills. At the end of the month they take a Seneschal skill vs the target's relevant skill. If they fail nothing happens, if they succeed the chosen skill increases by 1 (to a maximum of 5). For each additional s or every aa they may increase another economic skill that begins lower than the chosen skill, or gain a relevant Knowledge Skill. For every aaa they may add one Revenue to their coffers. For each h they suffer 1 Strain.