Persuade the Efficient Commissioner

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This page contains details about Fallen London Actions.

From: Debating Matters of Business with the Board


The Bazaar has set her to watch for risks and dangers.

Game Instructions: She is affected by obfuscation. Other branches in this story may help to confuse her.

Unlocked with Board Member: The Efficient Commissioner

Locked with The Efficient Commissioner's Vote


Challenge information

Broad, Persuasive 100

  • 69 - very chancy (41%)
  • 85 - chancy (51%)
  • 102 - modest (61%)
  • 119 - very modest (71%)
  • 135 - low-risk (81%)
  • 152 - straightforward (91%)
  • 167 - straightforward (100%)

This is increased by 20 points per Board Against Infernal Interests, Board against Own Financial Interests, Board against the Status Quo, Board against the Constables, and Board for the Fingerkings, and 40 points per Board against the Bazaar. It is also reduced by 40 per point of Obfuscation of the Board.

QuestionBase Difficulty
1 - Recommending a Route through Occupied Buildings240
2 - Proposing the Demolition of Unused Houses240
3 - Recommending a Route over Marshland100
4 - Recommending a Route through Plainsland100
5 - Route through Hills220
7 - Recommending a Route across a Ravine480
9 - Recommending a Route through Wasteland100
10 - Proposing the Removal of His Amused Lordship300
12 - Proposing the Removal of the Jovial Contrarian300
13 - Proposing the Removal of Sinning Jenny300
14 - Proposing the Removal of Feducci400
15 - Proposing the Removal of Virginia500
16 - Proposing the Removal of Furnace Ancona300
17 - Proposing the Removal of the Dean of Xenotheology300
18 - Proposing the Removal of the Bishop of Saint Fiacre's500
19 - Proposing the Removal of the Bishop of Southwark300
20 - Proposing the Removal of the Tentacled Entrepreneur300
21 - Proposing the Removal of the Gracious Widow300
22 - Proposing the Removal of April300
23 - Proposing the Removal of the Wandering Gondolier400
24 - Proposing the Removal of September300
26 - Proposing the Removal of the Viscountess of the Viric Jungle400
27 - Proposing the Removal of the Rubbery Yes-Man300
28 - Proposing the Removal of the Hell-Scarred Gondolier400
29 - Proposing the Removal of Cornelius, the Bandaged Prehistoricist300
30 - Proposing the Removal of January300
31 - Proposing the Removal of the Wry Functionary300
32 - Proposing the Removal of the Delightful Reverend300
33 - Proposing the Removal of the Drummer500
35 - Proposing the Removal of the Dauntless Temperance Campaigner360
37 - Proposing the Removal of the Implacable Detective400
100 - Proposing a Station Plan100
105 - Proposing a Station Plan more like a Fortress100
115 - Proposing a Station Plan styled in the Manner of Hell100
120 - Proposing a Station Plan that Honours the Bazaar100
130 - Proposing a Station Plan that Speaks to the Glory of London and the Empress100
140 - Proposing a Station Plan Suited to Wasteland100
150 - Proposing a Station Plan Suited to a Surface Summer380
200 - Recommending Better Defences for Each Train200 + (60 × Train Defences)
205 - Recommending More Baggage Accommodations for Each Train420 + (60 × Train Baggage Accommodations)
210 - Recommending More Luxurious Fittings for Each Train100 + (60 × Train Luxuries)
220 - Recommending More Worker Compensation400
230 - Recommending Worker Co-ownership500
240 - Recommending the Strike be Broken100
250 - Requesting Funds to Excavate the Remains of a Prehistoric Creature160 or 220
260 - Suggesting the Union Pave Over a Prehistoric Creature100
270 - Requesting Funds to Route Around an Anomalous Section of London200
280 - Proposing to Drive the Track through the Zone340
300 - Proposing a Vote of Self-congratulation100
310 - Proposing a Charitable Gift280
320 - Proposing a Scientific Charter180
330 - Proposing a Charter declaring an Alliance with Hell120
340 - Proposing a Charter engaging in the Work of the Church320
400 - Proposing to Pay Dividends to Shareholders400 + (20 × In Corporate Debt)
500 - Proposing a Bypass through Parabola700
510 - Proposing the Rental of Hellworms200
520 - Proposing to Venture into the Former Battlefields Around Hell240
521 - Proposing to Venture into the Former Battlefields Around Hell, following Feducci's Guidance520
522 - Proposing to Venture into the Former Battlefields Around Hell, following April's Guidance400
523 - Proposing to Venture into the Former Battlefields Around Hell, following Virginia's Guidance100
525 - Proposing to Venture into the Former Battlefields Around Hell, following the Bishop of Southwark's Guidance380
526 - Proposing to Venture into the Former Battlefields Around Hell, following His Amused Lordship's Guidance100
527 - Proposing to Venture into the Former Battlefields Around Hell, following the Wandering Gondolier's Guidance240
528 - Proposing to Venture into the Former Battlefields Around Hell, following Cornelius' Guidance240
529 - Proposing to Venture into the Former Battlefields Around Hell, following the Viscountess' Guidance100
600 - Proposing that the Board Endorse the Tentacled Entrepreneur for Lord Mayor340
620 - Proposing that the Board Endorse F. F. Gebrandt for Lord Mayor 220
700 - Proposing that the Unyielding Highlander become Castellan of Balmoral100
710 - Proposing that September become Castellan of Balmoral480
720 - Proposing that the Fervent Widow become Castellan of Balmoral200
800 - Proposing a tracklayer aligned with Mr Fires100
850 - Proposing Cornelius to lead700
905 - Proposing the Dean of Xenotheology as Patron of the Burrow Church300
910 - Proposing the Bishop of St Fiacre's as Patron of the Burrow Church500
931 - Resuming Normal Operations with Furnace in Charge740
932 - Supporting Cornelius' Prehistoricist Building Approach420
933 - Supporting a Brightly-Lit Building Approach220
934 - Proposing a Package of Measures to Resume Normal Operations180
940 - Proposing special consideration to certain charitable groups540 or 580
941 - Proposing a dividend be paid out to the poor of the Hinterlands540 or 580
1000 - Proposing an expensive tribute to the Hillchanger Tower900
1010 - Proposing an inhuman tribute to the Hillchanger Tower720
1020 - Proposing a calendrical tribute to the Hillchanger Tower860
1030 - Proposing a legalistic tribute to the Hillchanger Tower740
1100 - Proposing to send your train to war in Parabola
(Cats, FKs, Gent, Visc., Other)
600 (Cats)
640 (FKs, Gent)
700 (Visc.)
740 (Other)
1110 - Proposing to build a spur line into Parabola so that you can send in a war-train700

Success

She is convinced!

"I suppose your plan doesn't pose any immediate threat," she concedes. Once she's made that determination, the conversation is over. She never wastes time defending a position merely for the sake of winning.

Description summary:
The text varies with the Question before the Board. The text above is the generic result[1]; questions with more specific results are listed below.

[Find the rest of the story at https://www.fallenlondon.com]

  1. Used for questions 9 - 24, 26 - 30, 32, 35, 37, 200, 205, 260 - 280
QuestionSuccess Description
1, 2, 4"Within the bounds of our charter, and our mandate to build toward the west, this specific route appears no worse than the alternatives." There is no question she cannot hedge.
3"Some abnormalities are recorded in the Pitiless Bog," she says. "We ought to avoid it if possible. However, I accept that we may have no choice in this case."
5"Very well! Very well! You're fools!" She's lost herself; she's practically raving now. But she has mentioned that she hasn't been getting much sleep lately. Perhaps it's the nightmares bothering her.
7"It is not the bridge I object to," she states precisely. And she makes sure that the Board Secretary has captured her wording.
31"He is more loyal to the Shuttered Palace than to the Bazaar," she says. "There's no telling that he'd take our side, if a choice had to be made."
33"This... this won't require the board member to attend in person?" she says. And she's only willing to vote for when you say that no, any responses from the new Director can be conveyed by other means.
100, 105, 115 - 150The Commissioner asks about zoning regulations and planning permission. […] She cross-compares the diagrams with the guidance documents submitted by the Ministry of Upper River Development. This time, she is convinced – barely.
210"A very practical business recommendation," she says. "We've often observed that Londoners are willing to pay significantly elevated prices for luxury service."
220, 230"Hm," says the Efficient Commissioner. "It is not what I would typically recommend, but it may reduce the risk of a more violent and surprising outcome in the future."
240"One might as well establish the chain of command clearly and early," says the Efficient Commissioner. "Anything else will lead to confusion and later disappointment."
250"I have reviewed the available cartography for the area […] I was certain I'd seen a portion of it marked out for caution, but I haven't been able to rediscover the reference." […] It plainly irks her to remember something that is no longer there.
280[…]cautionary notes, pertaining to places that Are Not[…]Might Be[…]Will Be In the Future ([…]Irem), and[…]Are, But Have Forgotten[…]she can discover nothing that absolutely prohibits what you mean to do. But she really very much wanted to find an impediment.
300"This Charter is in line with the objectives of the Bazaar," says the Efficient Commissioner. "Though I reserve the right to veto particular applications."
310"I will concede that a strong point has been made," says the Commissioner. "We can vote for this plan, but let the minutes show that I objected to any introduction of charitable motives."
320 - 340"I will concede that a strong point has been made," says the Commissioner. "We can vote for this plan, but my concerns are recorded for the future."
400"It is highly admirable for us to make regular payments and meet our commitments," says the Commissioner. "If we are in a position to do so, by all means."
500"I reserve very significant doubts about this course of action […] As a matter of fact, I'm inclined to expect that it will end my career. When the Neath is flooded with snakes and all of you are possessed by Fingerkings, do not come to me […]"
510"Not through Parabola," says the Commissioner. "This is a far more acceptable solution than the alternatives."
520 - 523, 525 - 529"It's too late," the Commissioner says, strained. "I can't stop you […] it was always going to happen. […] The Creditor hungers, it thirsts, and the city is also mad..."

"Er, shall I record that as an aye?" asks the Board Secretary. […]

600"The Tentacled Entrepreneur is unlikely to cause significant disruptions," says the Efficient Commissioner. […] "It is no part of the Commission's work to endorse political candidates, but I will not offer a veto […]"
620"F. F. Gebrandt has a demonstrated disrespect for the Masters. However, it is no part of the Commission's work to endorse political candidates […] I will refrain from the veto […]. I question your judgement, but it is your affair."
700"A solid choice," says the Commissioner. "Friendly to the Bazaar and bound to be reliable. And he doesn't look the type to dig any unnecessary holes or pry into what doesn't concern him."
710"Perhaps," says the Commissioner grudgingly. "It does not sound as though his sphere of interest necessarily extends to the Bazaar or to London."
720"She should be harmless to our most important interests," says the Commissioner. "I will not vote against."
800"He should be harmless to our most important interests," says the Commissioner. "I will not vote against."
850"Oh, well, if he's near a final death," says the Commissioner, as though that were a commendation. "Less likely to get into any very serious trouble."
905"An eccentric choice," the Commissioner says carefully. "But not a terrible thing if the Dean acquires experience elsewhere. The Board may well benefit from the fruits of her wisdom." She gives the Dean a cautious smile, which is not returned.
910"Oh good, yes. Put the Bishop in a position of authority over the Burrow Church. This is a surprisingly sensible decision."
931, 933, 934"I suppose a pragmatic solution to our current impediment is called for." The Efficient Commissioner is scribbling something in the corner of a notebook, distracted.
932"I am continuously alarmed at this Board's determination to court Tragedy with its actions. Nevertheless, I feel we have been funnelled into this course of action."
940 - 941"If it improves the image of the Railway and thus leads to better ticket sales, I suppose the expense could be justified," the Commissioner notes.
1000 - 1030"I cannot believe I am consenting to this," groans the Commissioner. She is slumped forward in her chair. "You are all fools. We will die in fire. Perhaps it was always so destined."
1100, 1110The Commissioner giggles. "Oh why not. To Hell with it." She coughs nervously. "No offence. But if we built a route through Parabola we may as well go the whole hog. No unbuttering the bacon after it's fried, as they say in Nidah."
ConditionSecond paragraph of Success Description
Jovial Contrarian's VoteThe […] Contrarian remarks that he was counting on the Efficient Commissioner to be against, as she was against most things. "If she's for, then perhaps I should have been against after all." There is widespread groaning, […] he subsides this time.

Redirects to: Debating Matters of Business with the Board


Failure

Unconvinced

[See table below]
QuestionFailure Description
1 - 2, 9"The Terrain is not the primary concern," says the Efficient Commissioner. "But the direction takes us towards local populations that we might do better to leave alone."
3"We ought to avoid the Pitiless Bog if possible […] There are recorded cases […] of entire parties of soldiers disappearing […] it is not clear whether this occurred during the First City or the Second…"

"Fairy tales," grumbles someone else. […]

4"The Terrain is not the primary concern," says the Efficient Commissioner. "But the direction takes us towards local populations that we might do better to leave alone."
5"I remain gravely concerned about this route," she says. But when you ask her to suggest a better one, she draws a line in entirely the wrong direction, one that wouldn't advance your cause at all.
7"We really ought to consider whether this part of the enterprise is wise at all," she protests.
10, 18 - 19, 21 - 22, 24, 27, 29 - 33, 35, 37"Each time the composition of the Board is changed, I am required to file new papers with the Bazaar," says the Commissioner. Her tone suggests that you are making her do this out of spite.
12"The Contrarian wastes a great deal of Board time," she agrees. "Nonetheless, I estimate that removing him would require more time loss in filing paperwork. He should stay, for the moment."
13For once, the Efficient Commissioner does not want Jenny to go, and does not want to explain why. At a guess, her reasons are personal.
14"He was, I have to assume, introduced to the board with a specific purpose in mind," says the Efficient Commissioner. "Even if I am at a loss to see what that might be." Then she demonstrates for you the stack of forms that she would have to fill out […]
15[…] the Commissioner chooses to read you just a few sentences from the red book she keeps at her side. "'In the Event of a Contretemps with an Infernal Power,'" she intones. "There are sixteen chapters devoted to variations of this Tragedy. […]"
16"You brought her on […] I filed all the paperwork to assign a directorship, together with secondary paperwork reporting her likely counter-Bazaar leanings. I had a portrait commissioned […] And now you wish to remove Furnace again."
17The Efficient Commissioner sighs deeply. "Is she truly an obstruction? Occasionally she insists on telling an anecdote about her tentacled goddess. It is misguided but innocuous. Removing her is not worth the bother of the paperwork."
20[…] "The paperwork […] requires me to affix their signature […] I may use the print of their hand or, in extreme circumstances, a drop of their blood. Shall we place a small side wager about what fluids the […] Entrepreneur is even able to supply?"
23, 28"His Guild might take offence," says the Efficient Commissioner. "And they have stewardship of the Sleeper in the Tomb, and cannot be antagonised."
26"Antagonising a Mayor while they are in power would be unnecessary, […] No, no, I'm not saying it would be a Tragedy. […] But if you did not want her on the Board, it would have been better not to ask her in the first place. […]"
100, 105, 115 - 150[…] She inspects the elevations from all sides […] She cross-compares the diagrams […] At the end […] she informs you […] that this plan will never be acceptable, and that you might have known as much had you paid more attention to the forms.
200"I wish to reiterate that we are not authorised to go to war with the population of the western Neath," says the Efficient Commissioner. Evidently the manifests of weaponry have begun to unnerve her.
205"I hope I am not alone in observing that this appears to support illegal activity," says the Efficient Commissioner. She does not intend to help you furnish your trains for this sort of endeavour.
210"These do not strike me as necessary modifications," says the Efficient Commissioner. She has specific notions of what necessity looks like.
220"I do not like us to commit ourselves to a payment per worker, without having a strict inventory by name […] You would be astonished by the trouble arising when one allows careless multiplications to enter into one's contractual arrangements."
230"I suppose they could be owners," she says dubiously. "I know of nothing in law that would prevent it. But it is not what the Masters would like."
240 - 260"We have some obligations to the Union," she says. "We must be certain not to break our given word."
270"Ordinarily, one would file a complaint in the proper quarters," […] "They would then have a period of five years to offer initial redress."

Since everyone is looking at her, she adds, "Matters of this gravity are dangerous to rush."

280"The excision of a city block may not rise to the level of a Tragedy," says the […] Commissioner. "Nonetheless, I doubt it is properly addressed by lay practitioners of..." She trails off before the words 'Red Science'. "...whatever this might be."
300"There is no objection from the perspective of the Bazaar," admits the Efficient Commissioner. "But the statement falls short in both substance and form." She then quotes a passage from the Tragedy Procedures of the Bazaar as inspiration.
310"Charity is a corruption," says the Efficient Commissioner. "The Bazaar does not approve of giving what hasn't been bought."
320"Fully half of our past Incidents have involved excessive curiosity or a conflict between multiple purposes," says the Efficient Commissioner. She rests her hand on […] the Tragedy Procedures as though she expects this input to end the conversation.
330"We should not be embracing Hell," says the Efficient Commissioner. "We should not be offending them either. I recommend a studied middle position."
340The Efficient Commissioner looks pained. "An affiliation with the Church is bound to bring us into needless conflict with the Infernal powers," she says. "And I refuse, absolutely refuse, to open our board meetings with a hymn."
400, 931, 933, 934The Efficient Commissioner makes a short speech in favour of financial conservatism and care for the longevity of the Great Hellbound Railway.
500"Absolutely under no circumstance will we take the train into Parabola," she says savagely. "It is both dangerous and forbidden, and risks waking the Sleeper."
510"We have no previous disasters on record," says the Efficient Commissioner. "But I am inclined to think that only means no previous neighbour of the Infernal Realms was fool enough to request one. Let alone several."
520 - 523, 525 - 529"No, and no, and no and no, and a thousand times no, from here to the end of the earth," she says.
620"F. F. Gebrandt!" says the […] Commissioner. "She has been consistently uncooperative with the Masters. What's worse, she is promising London a series of wild and experimental undertakings, far more dangerous than anything the Viscountess intends."
700"Better him than someone else," she concedes. "But it's a change we need not make. Why disrupt the delicate balance?"
710"He sounds incendiary," sniffs the Commissioner. "Do we want to invite further complications?"
720, 800, 850"I would rather see someone a little more predictable," says the Commissioner.
905"I don't think we should be encouraging unorthodox views at the Burrow Church," says the Commissioner. The Dean makes a face.
910"I don't think we should spirit the Bishop away from London more than is strictly necessary," the Commissioner says. "We must never forget where our true loyalties lies."
932The Commissioner is unmoved. "We are absolutely not going to use company resources to rearrange the Chain willy-nilly in pursuit of this aesthetically confused utopian project."
940"The Railway barely pays for itself as it is," the Commissioner claims. "Giving away space on the trains out of charity would be beyond the pale."
941"Absolutely not," the Commissioner snaps. "The Railway barely pays for itself as it is and now you want to give away money?"
1000 - 1030[…] "No, and no, and no, and a thousand times no, and this is exactly the thing that I was put here to prevent. […] My death would not be enough to silence me […]

[…] The Secretary offers her a glass of water half-way through, as she starts to get hoarse.

1100, 1110The Commissoner gives you a stony look. "Is this the face of someone who approves of sending several screaming tonnes of metal hurtling through a mirror and into the lands of dream, loaded with powder, pistols and bombard sufficient to sink a port?[…]"

Redirects to: Debating Matters of Business with the Board