4 Plans 3

Now how to make money when we have ships.

A deal with Ironborn is a must and I have the prefect candidate. Rodrik the Reader from the Harlaw House, if he agrees we will have access to buying shipbuilding thralls. Of course if anyone asks no gold was involved and they were just given to us, as slavery is a crime in Westeros.

Rodrik is possibly the only person who will not kill me at the first sight from the Iron Islands or kidnap me to turn into salt wife. Don't look good in skirts! Hopefully he will hear my proposal of cooperation out.

It must work, otherwise the Ironborn will raid every ship I send.

Fucking White Harbor! Yes! That's my jealousy speaking.

Wait! What if I would use shape changers to speed up the ships? They did say that one House could possess whales and sea lions. Flints if I remember correctly. A short retractable harness under the hull should work miracles! Then just possess a bigger animal or whale and voila! Hell yeah me! But still the deal is necessary.

I can give him some information about the Ironborn rebellion progress, when was it again?

The tourney began in 281 AC so in about one year, Robert rebellion finished in 283 AC, so since it was six years later, then 289 AC.

He will get to keep his wealth and I will get rich, the deal just needs to be kept a secret or the Northern lords will cut my balls off and feed it to Ramsay's dogs... or to him...

Unfortunately if I want to trade with Essos, Braavos and free cities I will have to use White Harbor and transport our goods by land the rest of the way and it still will save me more than a month on the road and if the shape changers idea work's then even more.

Potentially they would not have to care about wind that much and could go in straight line unlike the other ships that have to go the round way following wind.

It will let the House Manderly's earn some from us, but still not that much and we can tighten our relationships...

Or I could just ask them to allow us to rent a dock in their harbor for let's say a hundred years... And it's not said that they will not die out in this dangerous times... I'm bad... Really bad... Will have to ask my mom to go and negotiate with them. She's like a ninja, Chuck Norris, Rambo and My Little Pony magician when it comes to diplomacy and politics.

Now what can I sell? Fish and salt? Inland maybe but not on a larger scale. Well if I make white salt then possibly.

Food will be tough even for us for the near future before we reclaim more land.

Stone and wood? Everyone already does that and I will need both for other things. Furs are sparse and will be needed for my army, meaning I should even start gathering some.

Wait! Clothes! We can start herding sheep for wool and meat and produce better looking clothes with better dye and processed wool, this will earn us some money with scented soap, perfumes, bricks, mattresses, furniture that comes with wood work of course after making them more comfortable like mattresses and then there is normal trade, buy cheap sell expensive and whoever buys the bricks will have to hire us to build for them so additional earnings from labor. To summarize up everything it's a lot but not enough for me to go ahead with all the projects I want to do.

Then what else is there? Alcohol? Sure. But I don't know how to make it!

I already decided I will produce better mattresses with innerspring, wool and hay, I have enough of sleeping on hardwood with a layer of hay. I might work... Perfect! I will need our trusted men on this. Don't want to loose a golden egg goose! But I will have to build a brand so that no one will be able to copy me.

Well, since I'm the one "inventing" them it will be easy. Let's produce the first one for my mother! She will be so happy!

I'm on a roll! Let's think more!

I looked outside the window to see the old mill and then it hit me!

Paper! I can make all types of paper from the wooden scraps used to make the ships and furniture and maybe from wool as well! I remember watching a video about Gutenberg press and paper making so...! Hell yeah! But let's not flood the market with books. Keeping it as a niche product is better.

By the way, my memory is exceptional isn't it? It wasn't like that before. Well, it's useless to think about it. Let's put it into a box with "Don't fucking ask" tag on it and don't open it again.

Alright the press itself is not a problem, the problem is the movable type but since I'm the only son of a lord, finding a skilled jewelry maker to produce them will be easy. Then just working on books will get me a shit load of money.

Summing everything up, plus the regular trade and condition that we will shorten the travel times we should be one of the richest Houses in few years time!

Why? Simple! Normal ship traveling between Essos and Westeros takes more than two months. We can do four trips in the same time! Let me explain.

We don't have to go the round way but can go straight line as we won't need to follow the wind! Our ships will be larger and better!

Normally just a trip from Bear Islands to Lanisport takes more than a month and that's if you don't get raided and introduced to Drowned God by the Ironborn first.

I will have to pray to the Old Gods for the shape changers idea to work.

What else can we do? Husbandry needs to be improved, but when we start growing more crops there shouldn't be a problem. We have sheep, poultry, cattle but they don't the the North very good. Maybe with new buildings later.

And I will try to go outside of the wall when I'm back from my spice run, maybe I can get mammoths and breed them but if the giants see us kill one I and everyone else will die. Maybe Skagos and get some of that goats, they should withstand the winter cold better.

The Old Lord of Dustin said that our family had connection with the Giant King but I don't know how that can help me now. His crypt is in the burrow below the castle. Wort to check it out sometime later.

'Inventing' plow and other farming tools will be the first thing as they already have the horse harness here, will have to check if they use horseshoes too.

Ships. Now I don't know the smaller details of this but we will need a fast ship for trade, with the addition of shape changers it will be great, but we need one for war as well.

Caravel are fast but too small so that leaves carrack. It can't be anything rowed, the place for the cargo would be used for rowers.

On the other hand the best for war would be dromons and quinquerem. The wind here likes to play tricks so I won't risk losing my war fleet by building just masted ships, that would be stupid.

Dromons can take up to 160 men but quinquereme...

Producing one will be too expensive for now and it's what Euron's Silence is... Another small dick psycho but if I go and produced one it can get me about 450 people on board and that's a big plus.

Building 1 ship a year would be great achievement but not fast enough for me. Even if I build ten in a year after making the facilities and headhunting shipbuilders it's too late...

Yes! We can outsource! I will ask some coastal cities with ship building facilities close by to build specific parts, and then just assemble them here!

Yes, I will have to invest in better roads and transportation, buy if we ask my mom family and people from let's say Arbor it should work.

Until then we can buy ships from ex merchants.

I know that it will be expensive, and will look like a motley crew but it's just for the start until we get our own to basic numbers, so about 3 years I think if we start to act now.

I don't have time to take it slow and simply have to start with trade fleet and the deal with Rodrik the Reader, and if everything goes well hopefully he will sell us some competent thralls.

Another thing.

Our fighting force. During Robert's rebellion there will be a lot of small folk running away from Stormlands, Riverlands, Reach and Crownlands and that's my chance to get additional manpower I need so I have two, maybe three years to build enough force of my own to grab some crumbs from the conflict for myself.

My stepfather or in the eyes of everyone else my father is the new lord as the Old Lord Dustin died and after, he went to swear his loyalty to the Paramount of the North while leaving us here I must add.

He is always with the Stark's so he won't be a bother, I just need to convince my mother.