The Barony of Therund http://rpol.net/display.cgi?

gi=48251&ti=6&date=1316759774

Setting Guide: The Barony of Therund and Brightstone Keep

The Barony of Therund is north of the ruins of Nerath, consisting of fertile cleared land, forest and much riverland.  At the place
where the mighty Nentir river meets the Trollwash rises a majestic bluff, atop of which rests Brightstone Keep.  For a day's ride in all
directions are farms, villages, and homesteads that consist of the baron's holdings.

To the north, following the river upstream eventually leads to the Nentir Vale, and the trading towns of Fallcrest and Hammerfast. 
The start of the Vardar forest has many woodsmen villages and lumber yards.
East lies the thick Ironwood, like a green blanket.  This extensive forest is inhabited by many elven clans as well as goblins and fey
menaces that need to be kept in check.  Further north the Ironwood becomes the Harken Forest.  Further east is Sarthel, a large and
prosperous city state nestled on a high plateau between two highlands.  Sarthel is the largest city still remaining in this part of the
world, and an important trade partner with Therund.  Caravans travel between to the two regularly and guarding them is an
important mercenary activity.  An even greater city once stood, on Lake Sarth, but is now a ruin.
Much of the wealth of the barony is found to the west.  Following the Trollwash upstream leads to rolling hills and sheep pastures,
halfling farm country, human cattle ranches, and dwarf mines.  Dangerous wildlands start beyond a day's ride.  The lesser Trollwash
river forms a natural heartland between the two cities, but across the lesser river begins the the 'Trollhaunt Warrens', a maze of
swampland, thickets, gullies, and forested ridges.  Ruined villages and abandoned outposts dot the land, but a road still cuts across
the warrens to Moonstair, the furthest reach of the barony.  Even in the darkest period after Nerath's fall, Moonstair was not
overrun, and for the last ten years it has been steadily growing, an oasis of humanity in a tangle of hills, bogs and small woodlands. 
Every so often Lord Therund sponsors expeditions into the Warrens and monster hunting and exploring ruins is a constant activity.
The journey south down the Nentir to the Bay of Gathis (also called the Bay of Midnight) can be a swift one, especially in spring
when the river flows swiftly.  There is also the old Imperial Road that that runs down along the Nentir, although the bridge over the
Vardar River was ruined during the war and marks the end of easy foot traffic.  Small villages dot the river, becoming increasingly
less populous and finally totally abandoned except for a few stalwart souls.  At the mouth of the Nentir lies the ruined port city of
Gathis, flanked by a gnoll-infested plain to the north and the cloudscraping Gathis mountains to the south.  These are truly
dangerous and forbidding lands, for just over the mountains lies Nera, the heartland of lost Nerath in which can be found the ruins
of the capitol.  Treasure hunters and scholars sometimes set off for Nera ... few return.

The Limits of Civilisation

If you imagine a circle whose centre is the Keep and whose radius is a day's ride (about 40-50 miles, depending on terrain), then that
is really the limit of the barony.

Roads
The main road is an old imperial stone road (think Roman road) that runs north/south and follows close to the the Nentir, with
impressive bridges.  It is maintained around the keep but becomes broken as well as unsafe too far away from it.  There is a trade
road to Moonstair and also a caravan road to Sarthel that cuts through the heart of the Ironwood.  Riding trials and footpaths
crisscross the barony, but any other major roads are lost to the wilderness.

Hamlets, Villages, Outposts

Every ten miles or so beside a river or road there is a roadside shrine to Avandra and Erathis.  These things are ancient, and form the
basis for spacing out settlements in human lands.  Next to the shrine you'll find a roadhouse tavern (maybe with some rooms to
rent) and a trader.  On the river, add to this a pier or two for the fishmongers and the barge renters.  Close to the keep, this is heart
of a village (a village is defined as hamlet with an able smith, a working priest and a sanctioned reeve (who doubles as the
constable), but no walls - add walls and now you're a town - and there are no towns in Therund).

Go further out and the shrine forms the center of a hamlet, with fewer farms and definitely no official constables.  Piers become
docks, and barges canoes or small skiffs - here speed is more important than cargo space.  Even further out, most homesteads are
abandoned and the people are tough and independent and ready for trouble.  Rowboats can be worth more than horses.

Most folk live within a day's walk (20-30 miles) of the Keep in cleared land,  down the river, it's a bit further, up to 50 miles.  A barge
moves about the same speed as a horse, with the current.  Agains the flow, a backbreaking day of poling might take you 10 or 15
miles.  The Ironwood is really only safe five or so miles in, maybe ten if you're a ranger or traveling with one.  There are woodsmen
outposts and elven clans in that can be visited, these small points of light are not on the main map.

Into the hills, following the Trollwashes you come across small mining camps instead of hamlets, and Moradin's always among the
shrines.  More dwarves are here, and also tough mercenaries with sharp steel to guard and protect.  Halfling and human ranches of
sheep and steer dot the hills, plus there are vinyards and eladrin manor houses (some ruined).
Brightstone Keep

The centre of the Barony of Therund is Brightstone Keep, so named for its walls of white stone that shine when the sun strikes
them.  It is old, of dwarven construction, dating back before the time of Nerath.

A Brief History of Brightstone Keep

There are still a few traces of the keep's earliest residents, but most agree that although dwarves built it, they did not live there. 
Scholars agree that it was constructed in the time of Bael Turath, the great human empire that fell centuries before Nerath arose. 
There are still a few carvings of a scowling, angry visage found here and there in bas relief carvings above some doorways in the
keep, said to be that of Grim Eye, a hobgoblin who ruled the keep after Bael Turath fell.

During Nerath's time, Lord Tomas Therund took the keep and ruled the Barony of Therund for hundreds of years in an unbroken
line.  He settled lands from here to the Witchlight Fens, east to the Sarthese coast and west to the edge of vast dead swamp.

Theodore Therund, the eleventh baron, ruled in the last years of Nerath.  When the last king made an empire-wide call for aid in
defense of the capitol, Theodore marched south with almost the entire garrison as well as great number of militiamen and levies
drawn from the surrounding farms and villages.
A group of rogues called the Six Blades of Fortune and lead by twin elven brothers took advantage of the Lord's absence and claimed
the keep with stealth and guile.  Theodore's wife Maribeth and their infant son Tristan were secured to safety via a secret escape
route by Sinel, an aged elf who had been the advisor of five successive Barons as well as Elessan, an eladrin warlord in service in the
family.  Lord Theodore never returned, and was presumed killed in the last battles of Nerath.

Darkness fell on the land, and for fully a hundred years Brightstone Keep served as the base of operations for the Blades, who looted
local ruins, preyed on what honest farmer folk remained, and even mounted raids on Sarthel caravans.  These were grim times
when the countryside was desolate and whole villages were abandoned as refugees fled to safety in Sarthel and Fallcrest.  Orcs,
gnolls and goblins attacked the keep, which served its ancient purpose well and denied all attackers.

Over time older Blades retired or were slain and new proteges took their place, but the original the elven brothers remained in
charge the entire time.  As the Blades fell more and more into the role of rulership they kept their worst depredations far from
Therund itself.  Brightstone Keep became a small outpost of civilization in the lawless and wild post-Nerath era, and a church to
Avandra grew from a shrine to a proper buidling.  Wanderers, refugees, and other folk in search of a safe harbor settled within the
keep.  The Blades saw a benefit in the growing community within their walls, collecting taxes that paid the mercenaries who
guarded the keep.  The few farms that operated outside grew into more than a few, and several villages were refounded.

While rogues at heart, the Blades came to see that the safe harbor and profit offered by the keep was worth preserving.  Eventually,
though, their criminal ways caught up with them. After stealing a holy icon of Erathis from Fallcrest, the elven brothers were tracked
to the keep by the Lord Warden Faren Markelhay who brought with him a large force.  One squad was championed by a great knight
whose armour and shield were painted black.
The Black Knight turned out to be none other than the 20-year-old grandson of Tristan Therund, raised in exile in the Nentir Vale,
also named Tristan and come to reclaim his ancestral lands.
Details of the seige vary, but the new Lord Therund reputedly slew four of the six Blades but the elven brothers escaped. There was
much joy at his return, for some families remembered the Therund name and what it meant.  He kept many of the guards and
administrators who ran the Keep under the Blades’ rule in place and re-establised Sinel as the Baron's Advisor.

Long live the twelfth Lord Therund!

Five years later there are signs of that not all is well in the Barony of Therund.

While the battle with the Blades never involved the common folk or even the bulk of the mercenary guards who deserted their posts
at the sight of the large army from the north, the transition to his rule is causing increasing friction.  The Blades were content for the
people of the Keep and nearby villages to self-rule, as long as they kept out of the Blades’ business.  Popular gods were Avandra and
Sehanine, Pelor and Kord.  In the last half-century, no major attacks had occurred and the area around the keep for a day's walk in
every direction was more or less safe.
Being a stout young paladin of Erathis, Tristan has brought back the old ways of rule and also religion.  Many of the freebooters,
adventurers, and merchants who populated the place have left, replaced by soldiers.  Each year, Tristan has launched a major spring
offensive to reclaim some corner of the old Barony.  Each time he stirs up major monster nests but also succeeds in inceasing his
holdings. Young and unmarried, Tristan is focused on his task and people fear that there are many years if not decades of this kind
of life in store for them.  Adventurers eager to help scout the land, explore ruins and slay monsters are welcome by the baron.

Description of the Keep

Brightstone Keep has a classic design, with a thick outer wall with an interior bisected into northern and southern ends by an inner
wall.  The gatehouse leads to the outer bailey, guarded mostly by mercenaries and where the 'village' area of the keep is.  An inner
gatehouse leads to the inner bailey is home to Lord Therund and his professional soldiers and cavalry, personal guard, servants and
trusted advisors.  The inner bailey also has a parade ground and large stables.
The outer bailey is home to the civilian residents, most of whom settled here during the rule of the Six Blades of Fortune. Crowded
with small buildings, this area hosts an inn, a tavern, a bank, and other businesses, along with private apartments for long-term
visitors to the keep. A small marketplace serves the merchants and farmers who visit the keep to sell their wares, though the
overpresent threat of monsters just a day's ride in any direction prevents the keep from becoming a thriving hub of commerce. Still,
the locals make enough profit from adventurers to maintain a healthy living. The folk of the keep are by no means wealthy, but
neither are they destitute.

A Visitor's Guide to the Keep

Visitors to the keep are greeted by Fallek, the corporal of the guard and Syradon the scribe.  Names, ranks and business must be
reported here, weapons tied, and horses stabled.  Fallek also reads the three laws of the keep aloud to all visitors: no public
drunkeness, no brawling and no cursing.  Punishments include fines, removal from the bailey, or a day in the stocks.  Needless to
say, theft and other more serious crimes are dealt with more harshly, in the name of Erathis.

Weary travelers can rest their heads at the aptly-named Traveler's Inn, under new management since the baron's return. The social
center of the outer bailey is definitely the Stumbling Giant Tavern and Inn, run by the indominable Mother Arran, a halfling
matriarch old enough to almost have seen everything.  Outside the Stumbling Giant is Fountain Square, and during holidays and at
harvest time,
farmers and tradesmen from throughout the region gather here to sell their wares. Merchants from distant lands also set up shop
here while they dwell within the keep, offering rare goods. The square is also a popular meeting place for adventurers and bards. 
The fountain is one of the most important landmarks
in the keep. It has never run dry, and as far as anyone can tell, it is a magical source of unlimited water.

Other main businesses include the keep smithy run by Bergen.  It is a large five-forge two-story building that is a constant hub of
activity, churning out horseshoes and other commissioned goods at a good rate, including armour and weapons.  Of course, the Lord
has his own smithy in the inner bailey, but it has a military mandate.  Grelda the provisioner and Bosco the trader offer a wide
selection of common goods.  The city-gnome, Master Spiregleam, buys and sells jewels and objects of art, and if you need some
money to afford a trinket or two, Mister Ronnick the banker can be visited to take a loan or pawn an item.

Religious instruction can be had by High Priestess Chendera at the Chapel of Avandra, which has a shrine to Sehanine as well
overseen by Benwick, a jovial friar who arrived a few years ago on a pilgrimage and decided to stay.  Of course, as a bastion of
civilisation the Keep is a sanctuary for all proper faiths.  The Chapel to Erathis headed by Father Elsin and is found in the inner bailey,
which requires noted admittance.  Those in need of magical advice can call upon the Saruun guildhall, where an audience with
Citrian the Masked Mage can be arranged.
Business Directory of the Outer Baileywick
Bergen's Smithy: Bergen is a slender, slight male human in his 30s who looks more like a scholar than a smith.  He sells simple melee
weapons and some military weapons may be in stock.  He sells metal armour, availability varies.

Grelda's Provisions: this elderly human woman deals in herbs, fresh food, and other perishable goods.  Recently she's started selling
gear too.

The General Store: Bosco Heldam is a fat human and the new owner of the general store.  He sells light armours and missile
weapons along with general gear and boasts he has 'everything in stock'.

Lapidary: Quint Spiregleam is a city gnome.  He buys and sells gems and bejewelled objects.

House of Sehanine: the jovial friar Benwick lives in a residence and operates a small shrine there with two assistants.

Bank and Pawn: Ferd Ronnik is a short, slim, and wiry man with a neatly trimmed goatee and raven black hair.  A retired adventurer,
he still looks fit and in command of his old skills.  He loans money and makes exchanges, at the standard 10% rate.  He also stores
money and items for a fee, and buys items of interest at pawn rates.

The Traveler's Inn and Stables: Now under new management!  Nerrin Silverhand runs this old (and seeminly run-down)
establishment.  He's also in charge of the stables.

The Stumbling Giant Tavern: the most popular spot in the keep, run by Mother Arlan a venerable halfling matriarch.  Good food and
drink to be had here!

Saruun Guild Hall: a new and handsome building is home to the Masked Mage of the keep.  Visits by appointment only.

Chapel of Avandra: Chendera is the half-elven priestess in residence, splitting about half the week in the keep and half outside in the
environs.  He is short for a mixed blood, with striking, long black hair.  There is also a shrine to Pelor here.

The Inner Bailey

Access to the military heart of the keep is by authorised admittance only.  The temple of Erathis is inside, as well as the citizenry
office.  Garrick Blackoak, the sergeant of the guard, deals with all other business.
Beyond Therund

What lies off the map?

Gone are the days of world travel and the Nerathi Expeditionary Guild, where detailed maps could be scribed for few gold.  Still,
there are enough old timers (especially eladrin) who still know a few things about the great wide world and can shed some light on
this dark age.

The most well-known areas lie to the north.  Many people fled the barony during the reign of the Blades and lived in the Nentir
Vale.  Those that returned since Lord Therund's reinstatement carry with them detailed knowledge of those places.

The journey to Sarthel is not for the timid, but the folk there know quite a bit more about the world.  Through its port of Pelarbin,
vessels cross the Midnight Sea into other lands.

Go ever eastwards and you will reach Karkoth, a large land of many kingdoms and a supposedly savage and also magical people. 
Little is known of these places, for there is no contact and trade.

South past Nera are supposedly desert lands, with dark-skinned peoples and great pyramidal temples and almost every kind of
strange creature a bard can sing about.  Kingdoms of dragons, undead, hobgoblins .. you name can be found down there.  Most
scholars do agree, though, that the origins of the ancient empire of Arkhosia is in the far south.

Sarthel does trade with the Free Cities of Zembar, located on an island to the east and south.  Sea captains report a long journey, full
of dangers such as sahuagin and kraken.  From Zembar if one traveled further south and east, you would reach a land of elves and
halflings called Vailin which is spoken of as a land of milk and honey.