Fenhold

[venger]

Fenhold
Size: One 20 mile hex
Loyalty: Barony of Aldagmor
Territory Type: Borderlands
Terrain Types: moors, swamp, some cleared farmland
Population: 600+ (1)
1. 50 human farmers
2. 300 human fowlers/fishers
3. 250 halfling hillmen
Population Gain: 1-2% a month
Resources: two animal and one vegetable
1. herds
2. fish and eels (2)
3. farm produce
Income:
Tax: 4,200 SP/month (3)
Resource: 2800 SP/month (4)
Taxes to Aldagmor: 3,000 SP/month (5)
Tithes to the Church: 1,000 SP/month (6)
(1) In addition to the official tally, there are about 100 individuals, deserters and other low-lifes trying to stay alive in the
swamp.
(2) Pickled eels are a trade item.
(3) Must be collected.
(4) This is less than normal resource income because the fish and eel resource produces less than a standard animal resource would.
(5) May be paid in coin, goods, or by providing troops.
(6) Payable in coin, goods, or foodstuffs.

[venger]

As you walk the last few miles to the manor house, a fog surrounds you. You’re still miles north of the swamp, but you see the gray mass billowing up, then sweeping toward you like a calm, stately, animal. When it swirls over you, the world becomes damp, cold, and strangely silent. Even the sound of your footsteps is muffled. You feel as if the chill came out of the depths of the earth itself. (if you wish to do anything regarding this, say so)

Farmers are working in their fields all along the road, but no one looks up as you pass. They keep close and talk very quietly among themselves. (if you wish to speak to them say so)

At last the manor house looms out of the fog. The pale gray curtain wall, slimy now from the moisture in the air, rises about 20 feet high with square towers at each comer of the rectangular complex. There are two more towers over the main gate, where a rusty portcullis hangs at a sharp angle, allowing just enough room for a rider to pass under. A drawbridge leads to the gates over a now-dry moat. White geese are grubbing about in the moat’s tall grass, but nothing or no one else is in sight.

The inner ward is half cobbles, half mud. There are no out-buildings, only the huge stone manor house. Three stories high, it sports turrets on its gray slate roof. The bottom story serves as a stable, the body heat of the animals helping to heat the house. A young man comes out of the decrepit iron-bound, gates. Tall and blond, he wears a linen tunic, leather trousers, and a cloak. He carries a great sword slung in a baldric.

He bows to you and says, “Sirs, good morrow to you! Are you the new lord and his companions? I’m Niall, the guard captain." He stands there for a moment, unsure what else to say, "Well, my lord, come in to your new home. I’ll have the servants take care of your horses... oh, you walked...? Ahhh, okay. We’ve been planning a feast in your honor... but weren't sure when you were going to arrive...”

When Niall claps his hands, no one answers. He tries again, with no better results. Finally he goes back into the manor house and comes out again chivying some servants, who nod grudgingly at you and pick up as little luggage as they can get away with and carry it into the gates.

[venger]

The manor house is old and sadly in need of repair. There are cracked floorboards, broken windows, worn treads on the stairways, and patches of mildew on the stone walls everywhere. The furnishings are similar; once luxurious, now they are battered and worn. The tapestries are rotting away and the bed hangings are faded. Thanks to its unusual layout, the second floor always smells of horses, but the stables are under the main dwelling for a good reason. The body heat of the animals rises and helps keep the second story warm. Like many old places, the manor is without plumbing. Water is obtained from a well in the courtyard. Along the west walls are a series of outhouses whose cesspools are supposed to be cleaned out every couple of months. This hasn’t been done for several months.

[Wolfgar]

Did Mary bring her book of cantrips?

[Friedrich]

Feb 22, 2012 9:33:54 GMT -5 Wolfgar said:

Did Mary bring her book of cantrips?

Definitely. What did you have in mind?

At this time Friedrich will help carry his stuff in. He will also inquire about the state of Fenhold.

Assuming that the party agreed to give Friedrich 100 GP's he will give each of the servents 10GP to show his appreciation for their efforts and begin to help clean this place up. Friedrich will politely ask that they help. (how many are there?)
Mary will not be asked to do any "grunt" work but she will go with Danekes (assuming he is willing) and survey the area around the run down fort. They won't go far, maybe map out an area 1/2 mile radius around the fort, look in all the rooms, open drawers etc. just to get a feel for the area which will take hopefully less than a few hours. Mary will introduce herself and be cordial to all of the peasants.

OOC: I just want the servants to see that Friedrich is willing to do crap work like clean out latreens and shovel horse sh*t around. Hopefully they will be inclined to put fourth more effort in the future when they see Friedrich is not asking anything of them that he wouldn't do himself. Mary will try to find some functional furniture and clean out a room/study for herself. If she needs help moving things Friedrich/servants/Danakes will assist her.

Danakes is welcome to do the same. If he can find some working furniture and a room that is not too shabby he can set himself up here for now(and in the future). He can basically do whatever he wants(within reason ;D)

I really don't know how much Friedrich can do over the course of an afternoon but I would like to get a feel for how much it would cost to get this place into a condition where it is not an embarrassment. He do his best to clean this place up, fix the draw bridge, doors, floor boards of whatever can be done.

If Mary cast strength on 4 people (Danakes, Niall and 2 servants) would it be possible to work together and fix the draw bridge.

How much could be accomplished over the course of 4-5 days? I just want to make sure I can get back in time to link up with the rest of the party.

[venger]

I will xPost the statistics and relevant details about Fenhold to a thread in the other section.



1. Horse Stalls.
These are made of wood with iron mangers. At the moment the manor owns only three horses, not counting Gereint’s mount, leaving plenty of room for the characters’ mounts. The northeasternmost stall has a ladder leading up to the kitchen area and a trapdoor concealing a ladder leading down to the food storage cellar.
2. Storeroom.
These rooms are piled high with hay and bags of oats. Several cats live very well off the mice in them.
3. Tack Room.
On the north wall are high shelves holding six saddles, three in good repair. Six bridles hang from pegs nearby. On the other walls are more shelves, empty except for dust.
4.Guardrooms.
Each has a bench and a small table.
5. Quarters for the groom.
Although there are three bunks in each room, only one groom currently lives in the manor. He has the eastern room to himself.
6. Servants’ guarters.
Each has four bunks, but only two servants share each room.
7. The Hall of Justice.
This is the most important room in the manor, and the reason for the manor’s existence. Here the Magistrate holds legal court and criminal trials. The furniture is in better repair than elsewhere. On the dais is the Magistrate’s chair, a small throne made of dark oak with dark green cushions. Nearby are two small tables where official scribes sit during proceedings. Any observers of the proceedings stand to the east. On the west wall directly behind the dais hangs the banner of Aldagmor.
8. Holding cell.
An empty room where accused persons are kept directly before their trial. The doors cannot be opened from the inside.
9. Armory.
On shelves and in orderly ranks, are swords, shields, and helms for 20 men.
10. Troop barracks.
The four remaining men of Lord Rolph’s personal guard have bunks here.
11. The Great Hall.
This room is the other center of life in the manor. On the dais are three wooden tables for the Magistrate’s family and guests and a hearth placed so that the honored ones get plenty of heat. On the floor are twelve 10-foot long tables with benches. One has a broken leg and lists at a sharp angle. The floor is inlaid with colored slate in a maze pattern, but some of the tiles are missing and others are cracked.
12. Storeroom.
Barrels of ale and sacks of flour and barley line the walls. Five enormous hams and big nets of turnips and onions hang from the ceiling.
13. The Kitchen.
More food supplies line the walls. In the middle of the room are two long worktables. Next to the hearth is an earthenware bread oven.
14. Ladderway.
This storeroom is currently empty except for the ladder which leads down to the wine cellar and the room for hanging meat.
15. Ser Gereint’s bedchamber.
There is a large bed with heavy hangings, a wooden chest of clothing, and a small table with a water jug on it on the south wall. A table and four plain chairs stand in the middle of the room. On the north wall is another table, heaped up with scrolls and parchments, the records of the dominion’s taxes and incomes for the last year.
16. The Magistrate’s bedchamber.
Just beyond the door is a small reception chamber, cut off from the bedchamber proper by green and silver brocade draperies, faded and torn. There is an enormous bed by the south wall just beyond the curtains, and a table airs in front of the hearth. A wardrobe stands by the north wall, and a set of empty shelves on the west. The wardrobe still has several suits of Lord Rolph’s clothes in it, but all are worn and shoddy. All of his best clothes were distributed to the people of the dominion as a legacy from their departed lord. The room is lit by a Continual light spell on a brass post.
17. The Magistrate’s private office.
The servants have kept this room exactly the way it was the day Lord Rolph died. There is a table in the middle of the room on which sits a quill and an ink-pot, though all the ink has dried. Rolph’s cloak still hangs over the chair at the table, and his pen-knife lies on the floor where he dropped it. Aside from the table and chair, the only furniture is a set of shelves on the west wall containing several treatises on Aldagmor law.
18. Secret stairwell.
This secret way was meant for the Magistrate to reach the first floor without passing any public areas.
19. Chapel.
This place of worship is meant for the use of a cleric of the One God. The priest in the village of Fenhold occasionally holds services in the chapel.
20. Cleric’s quarters.
This is intended to be the living quarters of the resident cleric. Anselm, the priest from Fenhold village, sometimes uses it when he has to stay over at the manor.
21. Guest room.
These rooms are meant for guests. Each has a bed, a table and a chair, and a wardrobe.
22. Sitting Room.
This is the meeting room for a visiting or residing magic-user.
23. Bedchamber.
This is the sleeping room for the magic-user suite.
24. Sitting Room.
This is a large meeting room for a high-ranking visitor.
25. Bedchamber.
This is for whoever uses the high-ranking visitor suite.
26. Troop quarters.
The guard captain and his select guard are supposed to live here. Right now, Niall is the only occupant.
27. Stairwell and storage.
The west wall has many shelves containing linens and other necessities. The room also holds the stairway leading to the Hall of Justice.
28. Wine cellar.
This room can hold several hundred bottles of wine, but the stock has been considerably depleted in the last year and not restocked, thanks to Lord Gereint’s policies.
29. Roots and meat cellar.
This storage area is well stocked.
30. Mustering area for covering retreats.
These underground areas have never been used. The plan is to use them to retreat to if the manor is overrun; the defenders can gather here and arrange for someone to cover their retreat while the rest go out the tunnels to the bolt holes several hundred feet to the north and to the west of the manor.

[venger]

Feb 22, 2012 13:22:21 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Feb 22, 2012 9:33:54 GMT -5 Wolfgar said:

Did Mary bring her book of cantrips?

Definitely. What did you have in mind?

I am 99.9% sure there is no book of cantrips.

Feb 22, 2012 13:22:21 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

At this time Friedrich will help carry his stuff in. He will also inquire about the state of Fenhold.

Niall has much to say:

He tells Friedrich that there is a lot tension between the farmers, the halflings and the Fenfolk, as he'll learn.

He tells Friedrich that Lord Rolph was personally popular with his subjects, though a vocal minority objected to his policies about the swamp. Those who expected to live under his enlightened leadership for many years to come were badly shaken by his untimely death. They will view Friedrich with suspicion and match him against Rolph’s high standards. Lord Rolph had been spending the equivalent of 10000SP a month in the attempt to build his causeway and drain the swamp around it. It's estimated that the causeway would be worth a good 8000SP a month to the dominion, if trade takes off as they expect it would, in tolls and taxes.

Ser Gereint made a good executive officer under Rolph, but is a disaster as an administrator. He refuses to listen to the advice of the village mayors and sheriffs (sometimes with good cause, as you will see) and ignores most of the problems of the dominion in favor of completing the causeway Lord Rolph wanted built. Unfortunately efforts to complete the causeway failed. Workers refused to appear, engineers left the project because of his highhanded treatment, and the swamp constantly eroded what had been built. As he grew more frustrated, Ser Gereint became increasingly abrupt with his subordinates, who generally left his service, and the citizens, who avoided his company.

There have been rumors of apparitions and ghosts in the swamp, sightings of undead, strange disappearances, blighted crops, and dead animals...

Old Merdith Hornscraper has been one of the hardest hit by the current troubles. His prize bull went mad and had to be killed, someone let the dairy herd into his garden, some of his cows died mysteriously of an uncommon disease, freak storms made his ground so wet that the cows have foot rot, and an incredible monster came out of the ground and ate three of his cows.

Niall is glad someone is finally here to take charge of things...

Feb 22, 2012 13:22:21 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Assuming that the party agreed to give Friedrich 100 GP's he will give each of the servents 10GP to show his appreciation for their efforts and begin to help clean this place up. Friedrich will politely ask that they help. (how many are there?)

Does Friedrich have 100GP? I'm still unclear on the division of treasure... either way, Friedrich wouldn't have enough money for all 15 of the servants.

The household staff consists of:
Ser Gereint, the seneschal
Niall the Younger, guard captain
Father Anselm
4 guardsmen
14 servants (cook, scullery maids, etc.)
1 groom
3 draft horses
2 old hunting dogs

Friedrich gets the following impressions:
Ser Gereint must be 100 years old and twice as crotchety.
Niall is too young for this important post and hates making
decisions. He will gladly follow orders.
Father Anselm has seen many winters. He is very negative, continually carping and moaning about the uselessness of any action in the face of this malevolence. Anselm has seen many winters, and is mystified by the events occurring in the dominion. He spends most of his time trying to evoke the spirit of the “old days, when all the peoples of our fair land lived together in harmony.”
The servants are not serfs. They obey grudgingly, and they resent any attempt at bullying. Most of them would rather be dismissed from the Magistrate’s service and go back to their families than keep their jobs.

Feb 22, 2012 13:22:21 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Mary will not be asked to do any "grunt" work but she will go with Danekes (assuming he is willing) and survey the area around the run down fort. They won't go far, maybe map out an area 1/2 mile radius around the fort

The Farmlands
This relatively flat area between the swamp and the high hills also includes a fringe of rolling hills to the north and east. Here dwell the human farmers, who also raise dairy cattle in the hills. There are two villages, Fenhold, about a mile from the manor house, and East Riding, eight miles away. Although most farmers live in one of these villages and trudge out to their fields every day, there are two isolated dairy farms in the hills to the southwest. The farms have always been prosperous because the soil is rich and well-watered. Thanks to the atmosphere of fear and suspicion, however, some are beginning to decline. Parents no longer send their children out alone to watch the goats and sheep; orchards that are far from the villages have not been pruned this spring; people have started hoarding what little coin comes their way in case they have to leave their holdings and move elsewhere. The farmers who have holdings in the hills resent the halflings, whom they accuse of trying to encroach on their grazing grounds with their flocks. All the farmers resent the swampdwellers, whom they see as being lazy good-for-nothings who probably steal whenever they get the chance.

The Halfling Hills
Aside from the human farmers discussed above, the hills are primarily the domain of the halfling population of the dominion. The halflings maintain small subsistence farms and graze sheep and goats. The human farmers claim the sheep and goats destroy the pasturage for their dairy cattle. There are two halfling villages, Barnaby-Under-Bramble and Hollydown, each containing about 150 people. Like the humans, the halflings leave the village in the morning to tend their flocks, returning in the evening. The halflings used to spend many nights in the hills with their flocks, but of late they make a point of returning to the villages every night. The remaining halflings live in isolated farms elsewhere about the hills. Like the villagefolk, they spend their evenings and nights snug and safe in their burrows. These halflings are all part of the Berrybramble Clan of the Five Shires, and journey over the mountains to, that clan holding for clan functions, another practice which sets them apart from their human co-inhabitants.

The Swamplands
There are two kinds of swamp, the fringes, known as the Fens, and the inner swamp, called the Deep Swamp. As far as anyone knows, the Deep Swamp is a wilderness filled with giant monsters, pits of quicksand, and swarms of insects. The local people rarely enter the Deep Swamp. The Fens, however, are another matter: a vast stretch of territory that is half-land, half-water. Small streams wind between low-lying islands, then peter out into bogs. Here and there are larger streams with enough draft for bigger boats, or shallow lakes dotted with clumps of trees that rise directly out of the water. Some of these trees are islands in the making; debris and soil lie caught around their massive multiple roots, poking out of the water and providing nesting places for birds and otters. Yet, inhospitable as they sound, the Fens have their Fenfolk, human beings who live in isolated families scattered all along the edges of the Great Swamp. No one knows where they came from. Explorers found them already there, speaking a strange dialect of the Common Tongue which was barely comprehensible to others. (By now most Fenfolk speak standard Common as well as their own dialect.) The Fenfolk dismiss all questions about their origins with a shrug; for all they know, the swamp bred them as it did the frogs and birds. The Fenfolk build huts and plant gardens on the larger islands, but they live primarily on their boats, round coracles made of hides lashed over wooden frames. Even the small children can handle a tiny coracle, and all Fenfolk are excellent swimmers. They fish, gather edible plants, and trap the eels who live in great numbers in the Fens. Since smoked eel is a great delicacy in Aldagmor, they pay their taxes to the Magistrate in eels, with fish and fresh waterfowl to make up the balance. They also trade eels to the farmers and halflings for metal tools, cloth, and various other things that they can’t make or gather themselves. In other days the local Magistrates have always tried to civilize the Fenfolk and force them to settle down as farmers (though, of course, continuing to check their eel-pots). Every now and then, someone talks of draining the fens and/or building a causeway to let the trade road run straighter and smoother. Even the generally popular Lord Rolph wanted to build the causeway, though he wanted to allow the Fenfolk to keep as much of their ancient ways as possible.

Feb 22, 2012 13:22:21 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

look in all the rooms, open drawers etc. just to get a feel for the area which will take hopefully less than a few hours.

See map & annotation.

Feb 22, 2012 13:22:21 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Mary will introduce herself and be cordial to all of the peasants.

The overwhelming concern of the peasants seems to be that this new dwarf-lord is going to force everyone to work underground, mining dwarf-gold. And their day-to-day concerns...

Mary meets a couple outspoken individuals in the village of Fenhold:

Will DuChamp, mayor of Fenhold village. Duchamp’s major program is to drain the swamp and transform it into farmland. If the Fenfolk can’t see that they’d be better off as farmers, drive them off or kill-them. Anyone who doesn’t see the logic of this program is a fool and not to be bothered with. He knows that all of the right people of Fenhold, the other farmers, support him.

Johannes, a Fenhold farmer, who now spends most of his time in Fenhold at the Plow and Ox tavern, telling all who come nigh that the current troubles are entirely due to the laxity of the government in Aldagmor. If the Baron would just send in a strong leader who would drain the swamp and run out the Fenfolk, invade Elvallie, put slave collars on the halflings, and replace Mayor Duchamp with a real man (named Johannes), everything would be fine.

Feb 22, 2012 13:22:21 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

OOC: I just want the servants to see that Friedrich is willing to do crap work like clean out latreens and shovel horse sh*t around. Hopefully they will be inclined to put fourth more effort in the future when they see Friedrich is not asking anything of them that he wouldn't do himself.

They seem to respect this after a fashion. Though Friedrich gets some horrified looks from Niall.

Feb 22, 2012 13:22:21 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Mary will try to find some functional furniture and clean out a room/study for herself. If she needs help moving things Friedrich/servants/Danakes will assist her.

See previously posted map.

Feb 22, 2012 13:22:21 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

I really don't know how much Friedrich can do over the course of an afternoon but I would like to get a feel for how much it would cost to get this place into a condition where it is not an embarrassment. He do his best to clean this place up, fix the draw bridge, doors, floor boards of whatever can be done.

Does Friedrich have some skill at carpentry I'm unaware of? Renovating the interior, just the walls, floors, draperies, etc, would cost something on the order of 2000GP.

Feb 22, 2012 13:22:21 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

If Mary cast strength on 4 people (Danakes, Niall and 2 servants) would it be possible to work together and fix the draw bridge.

The drawbridge needs to be replaced, the wood is rotting. The rusted portcullis hangs at a 45 degree angle, like a guillotine above the main gate. Neither of these items can be repaired.

400GP for a drawbridge, 500GP for a portcullis. Another 100GP to replace the decrepit iron doors.

Feb 22, 2012 13:22:21 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

How much could be accomplished over the course of 4-5 days? I just want to make sure I can get back in time to link up with the rest of the party.

Friedrich arrives on day 11. 4-5 days puts him at day 15-16. The return trip has him at day 21-22. Potentially late.

[Friedrich]

As nobody has objected to Friedrich taking 100GP I would like to assume that he was able to get that from the party funds. It hardly seems like an unreasonable figure. If anybody thinks it is, PLEASE speak up.

Tax: 4,200 SP/month (3)
Resource: 2800 SP/month (4)
Taxes to Aldagmor: 3,000 SP/month (5)
Tithes to the Church: 1,000 SP/month (6)

If I understand this correctly Fenhold profits 3,000 silver pieces a month. 4,200sp(taxes)+2,800sp(resource)=7,000sp/month revenue

The monthly expenses are 3,000sp(Taxes to Aldagmor) + 1,000sp(tithes)=4,000sp/month expenses

7,000(total revenue)-4,000(taxes and tithes)=3,000SP(profit or surplus)

Lord Rolph was spending 10,000sp/month on the causeway/swamp project. Even if he had taken the entire 3,000sp/month surplus and put it towards this project he would still have been 7,000sp/month short by my calculations. Was the extra 7,000sp/month coming out of his personal wealth? Or Aldagmor? Or am I reading this all wrong?

I looked up the price of a cow in the PHB as 10GP. I will personally go and purchase a cow or bull and give it to Old Merdith Hornscraper. If need be I will compensate him up to 20GP or two cows if he laments about how much better his “prize bull” was than an ordinary cow. OOC: I will give him 20GP’s worth of compensation however he wants it and I will do it in person. I will be sure to tell him that Niall told me of his problem and that the new Lord is always willing to listen to his problems.


*edit: I will ask if Ser Gerein, Naill and Father Anselm advise against these actions before doing them. If they say that anything on my list is BAD idea I will hold off on doing it. Otherwise consider this post and the additional one below to be final.

Day 1:

• Like I said yesterday; Have Mary and Danakes explore and meet local population, while I (with the servants help) clean up the place
  
• I will do my best to assure Father Anselm and Ser Gereint that things will get better and ask them both to try their best to be optimistic and give the new leadership a fair chance to prove themselves.
  
• I will also get Old Merdith Hornscraper his new farm animal on day 1, time permitting. If not, I will do it on day 2.
  

Day 2: This will be the primary day that I spend meeting the people of the land.

• Talk with Will DuChamp, mayor of Fenhold village. I will tell him that I fully intend to continue with the swamp project and invest revenue into the land in order to benefit the people.
  
• I will also go to the local tavern with Mary and Danakes and tell people there and around town that I intend to go through with the project of draining the swamp. However nobody will be killed or violently displaced in doing so. Talks of enslaving halflings (or anybody else) is utterly absurd and will never happened while Friedrich is alive. Anybody whose land is affected by this project will be fairly and justly compensated for their troubles and/or land.
  
• I will also go to the Halfling Hills and meet with some of the folks saying the same basic things.
  

Day 2 Night: I will have Mary write out 5 copies of the following message on something official looking.

Attention Proud People of Fenhold:

This is a message from your new Lord; Friedrich Ironhide of Fenhold: I am honored to lead all you fine people and it was a pleasure to meet with many of Fenhold's inhabitants. Aldagmor has sent me here to govern this land as it is in need of a strong leader. There are several things that I want everybody to know.

1. Nobody will be forced to leave their homes and go into any mines. I have no intention of forcing people to live one way or the other. The people of the swamplands will be allowed to maintain their ancient lifestyle if they so choose as will the Halflings and farmers.

2. I fully intend to go through with the project of draining parts of the swamp so that it can be made into farm land although certain sections will remain so that the Fenfolk/fisherman/fowlers can maintain their way of life.

3. I will ask the government of Aldagmor for funds to supplement Fenhold’s revenue for this project. I will also supplement this out of my own personal wealth if need be.

4. Taxes will not be increased and all surplus tax revenue for the foreseeable future will go back into the land in the form of projects, primarly building the causeway and draining the swamp.

Day 3 Morning:

• have Niall post 1 copy in the Village of Fenhold, 1 copy in East Riding, 1 copy in some prominent location in the Halfling Hills(pub or general store) I don’t have a map of Fenhold in front of me so I’m hoping that Niall/Friedrich can use a little common sense here when it comes to placing these.
  
• Danakes, Mary and I, along with somebody familiar with this area, will go and place two copies in/around the swamp area. We will not venture too deep in there (not yet at least).
  
• After that I will come home and try to set up a room for myself and Mary. I know Friedrich’s not a carpenter but I will do my best to clean the place up a little.
  

Day 4: Leave with Mary and Danakes to link up with the party.

[Bolo]

Some comments. Bolo is not in Fenholm, so this is all OOC.

When Bolo learns about the halfling community in the hills, he may be more interested in visiting Fenholm next time. Conveniently, he has a secondary skill as a mason and carpenter.

There seems to be little point in paying a bunch of grumpy servants who would rather go home to their families. Friedrich may want to consider letting most of them go. With the savings, he could hire some additional guardsmen, which would allow Niall to mount occasional patrols around the community to improve security. Perhaps the guards could also be used as trainers for a local volunteer militia to further improve security. Danakes could be asked to help set up the militia and to do some initial "train the trainer" work. Just a thought.

In four days, Mary could cast a lot of Mend spells around the manor house. As she is intelligent and highly literate, it might also be useful to have her spend time going through the scrolls of financial records, trying to work out the situation with respect to taxes, tithes, etc. Are all payments up to date? If not, who owes what to whom? And what balance, if any, is in the lord's treasury?

Announcing immediately that the new lord intends to drain the swamp will not endear Friedrich to the fenfolk, no matter how much he protests that they will be compensated and will be able to maintain their lifestyle. Be prepared for acts of sabotage against the drainage project, perhaps even armed opposition. Perhaps Friedrich should consider a more gradual approach based on persuasion and negotiation? Perhaps on a future visit, a highly charismatic and persuasive friend (Paavo, or someone else using the charisma brush) could be asked to help with such discussions?

I will be astonished if the government of Aldagmor provides any money to Fenholm. I would expect them to be more concerned about extracting money from Fenholm. The causeway project and the needed repairs to the manor house have the potential to be a big money sink. Whatever agreement we come to regarding the party's financial arrangements, capital for Fenholm needs to come out of Friedrich's share, not the general party coffers.

FWIW, Bolo has absolutely no objection to Friedrich withdrawing 100gp from the party kitty, before, during, or after his expedition to Fenholm. But either the rest of us should also get a distribution of 100gp at the same time, or Friedrich's 100gp should be considered a loan and recorded as such. Bolo has no particular preference between these two alternatives. If necessary, Friedrich could try asking Danakes for a short-term loan of 100gp. I happen to know that Danakes has at least that much with him in Fenholm, carried on his character sheet. I should warn you, though, that Gareth is already aware of the concept of compound interest. :-)

[Friedrich]

You make lots of good points. I certainly am not asking nor would I expect to have Fenhold become a party expense. Any money Friedrich puts towards it will come of his portion. I will have to talk to the DM about the finances to see what is and isn't feasible.

I would certainly appreciate Paavo (or any other party member) helping out in any way possible. I have certainly thought about the charisma scores or EACH party member already and how this could be used to help govern. As it stands, Mary has a 14 (with the brush it would be 15) and once int. is maxed all increases will go towards cha. and she will be my "speaker".

I have also thought about having Danakes training a force of archers when time permits. Marcus could also train people in use of the broadsword.

I will add to the list of things to do while on this initial trip:

• have Mary look through scrolls, ledgers and financial records to see what, if anything, interesting turns up.
  
• Have Mary mend broken items. I will inquire as to whether or not the local population is fearful of magic. If the people are not scared of magic, I will look to see if there are any broken items that people may want fixed as I go through the countryside. This hopefully will ingratiate Friedrich to some of the people of Fenhold. If Ser Gerein, Naill and Father Anselm advise against this, Mary will fix broken objects around the manor instead.
  
• Inquire as to who will run things when I am away
  

I know I will not be able to make everybody happy regarding the swamp, but I am hoping to find a middle ground at this point so I will go ahead with my announcement.

[venger]

4 miles per hex.

[Ginger]

You wrote earlier that Fenhold is one 20 mile hex, yet these are 4 mile hexes. Is of this part of Fenhold? Including the Ferry? That seems like a valuable asset.

[venger]

4 miles per hex is the small hexes.
The big hex is 20 miles.

[Bolo]

If Fenhold is just that one 20-mile hex, it seems to include only the northernmost fringes of the Blackmire Fens. Is that right? Is so, where exactly does the causeway go to?

A riverboat service runs between Danton Mills and Misha's Ferry. Would Fenhold's economic development be enhanced more by improving the road to Misha's Ferry than by building a causeway to nowhere?

[venger]

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Tax: 4,200 SP/month (3)
Resource: 2800 SP/month (4)
Taxes to Aldagmor: 3,000 SP/month (5)
Tithes to the Church: 1,000 SP/month (6)

If I understand this correctly Fenhold profits 3,000 silver pieces a month. 4,200sp(taxes)+2,800sp(resource)=7,000sp/month revenue

The monthly expenses are 3,000sp(Taxes to Aldagmor) + 1,000sp(tithes)=4,000sp/month expenses

7,000(total revenue)-4,000(taxes and tithes)=3,000SP(profit or surplus)

Household expenses/upkeep:
14 servants - 900SP/month
1 groom - 30SP/month
1 guard captain - 200SP/month
1 knight-steward - 400SP/month
= 1530SP
1470SP surplus.

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Lord Rolph was spending 10,000sp/month on the causeway/swamp project. Even if he had taken the entire 3,000sp/month surplus and put it towards this project he would still have been 7,000sp/month short by my calculations. Was the extra 7,000sp/month coming out of his personal wealth? Or Aldagmor? Or am I reading this all wrong?

Lord Rolph borrowed a large sum of money from a merchant house in Threshold and Fenhold is delinquent on their taxes. : )

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

I looked up the price of a cow in the PHB as 10GP. I will personally go and purchase a cow or bull and give it to Old Merdith Hornscraper. If need be I will compensate him up to 20GP or two cows if he laments about how much better his “prize bull” was than an ordinary cow. OOC: I will give him 20GP’s worth of compensation however he wants it and I will do it in person. I will be sure to tell him that Niall told me of his problem and that the new Lord is always willing to listen to his problems.

We'll settle up in session.

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

*edit: I will ask if Ser Gerein, Naill and Father Anselm advise against these actions before doing them. If they say that anything on my list is BAD idea I will hold off on doing it. Otherwise consider this post and the additional one below to be final.

Ser Gereint is 102 years old.
Niall thinks all your ideas are good ideas.
Father Anselm continually carps and moans about the uselessness of any action in the face of such malevolence.

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Day 1:

• Like I said yesterday; Have Mary and Danakes explore and meet local population, while I (with the servants help) clean up the place

Feb 22, 2012 0:10:19 GMT -5 venger said:

The manor house is old and sadly in need of repair. There are cracked floorboards, broken windows, worn treads on the stairways, and patches of mildew on the stone walls everywhere. The furnishings are similar; once luxurious, now they are battered and worn. The tapestries are rotting away and the bed hangings are faded. Thanks to its unusual layout, the second floor always smells of horses, but the stables are under the main dwelling for a good reason. The body heat of the animals rises and helps keep the second story warm. Like many old places, the manor is without plumbing. Water is obtained from a well in the courtyard. Along the west walls are a series of outhouses whose cesspools are supposed to be cleaned out every couple of months. This hasn’t been done for several months.

Friedrich can only clean so much... is he really mucking the outhouses?

Mary meets the local yahoos in Fenhold village.

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Day 1:

• I will do my best to assure Father Anselm and Ser Gereint that things will get better and ask them both to try their best to be optimistic and give the new leadership a fair chance to prove themselves.

Right.

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Day 1:

• I will also get Old Merdith Hornscraper his new farm animal on day 1, time permitting. If not, I will do it on day 2.
  

The old man is appreciative, though he mutters something about baling hay into a burning barn.

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

[Day 2: This will be the primary day that I spend meeting the people of the land.

Friedrich's lack of a shadow is an immediate discussion point. Some feel it's unnatural and retreat into their homes, clutching their children protectively. A few old gaffers joke that Friedrich is too short to cast a shadow. There is speculation as to whether any dwarves cast shadows, as there hasn't been a dwarf in Fenhold in a long time. Some few have heard heroic songs of a dwarf with no shadow. Gradually there is acceptance.

I also need to know if Friedrich mucked out those outhouses...

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

[Day 2:

• Talk with Will DuChamp, mayor of Fenhold village. I will tell him that I fully intend to continue with the swamp project and invest revenue into the land in order to benefit the people.

Will tells Friedrich that "the causeway is a lost cause," which is apparently a joke around Fenhold, and that a focused effort at draining the swamp for more farmland is the only viable option for growth.

Will tells Friedrich that the tax is too high.

Will tells Friedrich that the halflings let their grazing animals wander and it destroys the pasturage for their (human) dairy cattle. Friedrich needs to build a fence or hire guards to stop them.

Will tells Friedrich the elves want to expand their border to the swamp edge and wants to know what Friedrich plans to do to stop them.

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

[Day 2:

• I will also go to the Halfling Hills and meet with some of the folks saying the same basic things.

There are two halfling villages, Barnaby-Under-Bramble and Hollydown,
each containing about 150 people. Like the humans, the halflings leave the village in the morning to tend their flocks, returning in the evening. The halflings used to spend many nights in the hills with their flocks, but of late they make a point of returning to the villages every night.
The remaining halflings live in isolated farms elsewhere about the hills. Like the villagefolk, they spend their evenings and nights snug and safe in their burrows.

Friedrich meets Filibar Bramble, Sherriff of Barnaby-Under-Bramble. Filibar family's is the most prestigious in the village, and he took the job as his duty as a community leader.

Friedrich skips East Riding.

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Day 2 Night: I will have Mary write out 5 copies of the following message on something official looking.

Attention Proud People of Fenhold:

This is a message from your new Lord; Friedrich Ironhide of Fenhold: I am honored to lead all you fine people and it was a pleasure to meet with many of Fenhold's inhabitants. Aldagmor has sent me here to govern this land as it is in need of a strong leader. There are several things that I want everybody to know.

1. Nobody will be forced to leave their homes and go into any mines. I have no intention of forcing people to live one way or the other. The people of the swamplands will be allowed to maintain their ancient lifestyle if they so choose as will the Halflings and farmers.

2. I fully intend to go through with the project of draining parts of the swamp so that it can be made into farm land although certain sections will remain so that the Fenfolk/fisherman/fowlers can maintain their way of life.

3. I will ask the government of Aldagmor for funds to supplement Fenhold’s revenue for this project. I will also supplement this out of my own personal wealth if need be.

4. Taxes will not be increased and all surplus tax revenue for the foreseeable future will go back into the land in the form of projects, primarly building the causeway and draining the swamp.

lol nice.

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Day 3 Morning:

• have Niall post 1 copy in the Village of Fenhold, 1 copy in East Riding, 1 copy in some prominent location in the Halfling Hills(pub or general store) I don’t have a map of Fenhold in front of me so I’m hoping that Niall/Friedrich can use a little common sense here when it comes to placing these.

Notices 1, 2 & 3 are posted prominently in both village squares and on a tree along the path between Barnaby-Under-Bramble and Hollydown.

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Day 3

• Danakes, Mary and I, along with somebody familiar with this area, will go and place two copies in/around the swamp area. We will not venture too deep in there (not yet at least).

Niall's your man! Nobody but the Fenfolk venture deep into the swamp. He'll show Friedrich the causeway construction and take him to the edge of the Fens. There are some trees upon which to tack notices 4 & 5.

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Day 3

• After that I will come home and try to set up a room for myself and Mary. I know Friedrich’s not a carpenter but I will do my best to clean the place up a little.

Mary will insist on a separate room.

16. The Magistrate’s bedchamber.
Just beyond the door is a small reception chamber, cut off from the bedchamber proper by green and silver brocade draperies, faded and torn. There is an enormous bed by the south wall just beyond the curtains, and a table airs in front of the hearth. A wardrobe stands by the north wall, and a set of empty shelves on the west. The wardrobe still has several suits of Lord Rolph’s clothes in it, but all are worn and shoddy. All of his best clothes were distributed to the people of the dominion as a legacy from their departed lord. The room is lit by a Continual light spell on a brass post.
...
23. Bedchamber.
This is the sleeping room for the magic-user suite.

Feb 23, 2012 22:28:55 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

Day 4: Leave with Mary and Danakes to link up with the party.

That should work unless you get killed by wraiths on Hallow's Eve.

[venger]

Feb 24, 2012 2:20:58 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

I have also thought about having Danakes training a force of archers when time permits. Marcus could also train people in use of the broadsword.

Are you conscripting peasants? That won't be popular.

Feb 24, 2012 2:20:58 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

• have Mary look through scrolls, ledgers and financial records to see what, if anything, interesting turns up.

Fenhold owes 100,000SP to the Merchant House of Thar & Vulroose.
Fenhold owes 12,000SP in backtaxes to the Barony.
3 horses of quality were recently sold for a total of 16000SP.
There is a 1000SP invoice (paid) for a consultation with someone named Barzan the Water-Mage.
There's an abandoned copper mine in the Halfling Hills that is owned by the dominion, if it were active it would bring additional 3000SP/month in resource.

Feb 24, 2012 2:20:58 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

• Have Mary mend broken items. I will inquire as to whether or not the local population is fearful of magic. If the people are not scared of magic, I will look to see if there are any broken items that people may want fixed as I go through the countryside. This hopefully will ingratiate Friedrich to some of the people of Fenhold. If Ser Gerein, Naill and Father Anselm advise against this, Mary will fix broken objects around the manor instead.

Mary mends a variety of farm implements, wagon wheels, etc. the people of Fenhold having no problem with Church-approved "white" magic.

Feb 24, 2012 2:20:58 GMT -5 Friedrich said:

• Inquire as to who will run things when I am away

Gereint will continue to hold court, resolve disputes and manage the day-to-day of the holding.

[venger]

Feb 24, 2012 16:28:01 GMT -5 Bolo said:

If Fenhold is just that one 20-mile hex, it seems to include only the northernmost fringes of the Blackmire Fens. Is that right? Is so, where exactly does the causeway go to?

The causeway would run 6-7 hexes through unclaimed swampland, connecting Fenhold to the riverboat landing north of Threshold.

Friedrich needs 30 more square miles to qualify for his 9th level Lord status.

Feb 24, 2012 16:28:01 GMT -5 Bolo said:

A riverboat service runs between Danton Mills and Misha's Ferry. Would Fenhold's economic development be enhanced more by improving the road to Misha's Ferry than by building a causeway to nowhere?

Not significantly, the riverboat is slow and cannot transport large volumes. Also nobody has any reason to go to Fenhold.

[Friedrich]

I definitely meant to say that Mary would have her own separate bed chamber, not that Friedrich and her would be sharing ;D. If she wants to use that for her magical studies that's fine. If she wants another place for that, that's fine too. Friedrich definitely aims to keep Mary happy as she is quite important to him. Friedrich will make it clear that anybody on the payroll of the Manor is to do as Mary asks. As my henchwoman Mary is definately an authority figure here and to be treated as such. (she's LG with a 14 charisma so I don't anticipate this being a source of resentment)

And no, Friedrich will not go clean the out houses himself. I was just saying that he will clean up the rooms in the manor that he will be using and places that visitors will see. The servants can clean the outhouses and help with the rest.

And Friedrich has definitely not mentioned or suggested anything regarding conscription. I was just responding OOC to Bolo.

As expected there are lots of problems here and no easy solutions in sight. Clearly Friedrich needs his shadow back and hopefully the Rain Bird quest will fix that. I have to figure out how to solve these problems between the halflings and the humans. A fence is certainly a possibility. Possibly Bolo would be willing to go the Halfling Hills and just ask them to be more proactive in keeping their animals in one place in the interest of keeping everybody happy. Hopefully some compromise can be reached where all parties are content. I would not like to hire guards to patrol herds of cows.

Regarding the elves: The problems never stop do they?? Possibly Finn would be able to meet with the leaders of the elves as an emissary of Fenhold. Friedrich has no intention or desire of allowing this to spiral out of control to the point of violent conflict.

Friedrich will certainly ask Bolo and Finn if they are willing to help mediate these problems once he meets back with them. If nothing else, their very presence would demonstrate the fact that Friedrich is willing and able to work with people of their respective kinds in a positive and mutually beneficial fashion.


* And Friedrich will make sure that Danakes has silver arrows on him. If he doesn't, Friedrich will procure them. There has to be some place in Fenhold to get them, right?

* And the finances are even worse than I initially thought. I will have to look more closely at what was posted and will probably have questions in session tomorrow!!

See you then. 8-)

[Friedrich]

Before leaving Fenhold Friedrich will ask Old Merdith Hornscraper about this "incredible monster" that he saw eating his cows. I will also inquire as to the nature of the disturbances in the swamp. We can play this out in session. If there is any truth to this it might be worth coming back with the rest of the party and tackling. Right now I don't know if we are dealing with undead or a bulette, giant crocodiles or even a dragon.

Friedrich will promise to the people that any and all malevolent forces will be dealt with once he is able to return with his friends. (if this turns out to be more than a rumor).

[Bolo]

I'm sure Bolo would be willing to liaise with the halflings on another visit to Fenhold. No doubt their side of the story will be rather more favorable to them.

Danakes is carrying 40 silver arrows.

[Bolo]

Feb 25, 2012 19:46:40 GMT -5 venger said:

Fenhold owes 100,000SP to the Merchant House of Thar & Vulroose.

Did she happen to mention what the interest rate is, or when payments are due? (None of us can ask her now, obviously.)

[Friedrich]

Friedrich would like to try to get back to Fenhold just to let them know I'm alive. Now that he's got some coin on him he could put some of it's residents to work. Just paying people to do basic infrastructure improvements would have a a great many bonuses like improved trade, lowering unemployment(LOL!) and thus crime and injecting money into the economy.

Would it be possible to borrow the magic carpet to get to Fenhold? This whole Fenhold plot hook has been something I've really, really wanted to do for a while once I got a chance.

[Wolfgar]

Aug 29, 2013 11:37:31 GMT -5 Ginger said:

Colby has enough spells to not only reduce the characters, but separately reduce the carpet, so the weight shouldn't be an issue for Colby to bring Bolo and Friedrich. He'll then loan Friedrich the carpet.

Let's get the show on the road.

Colby has already lent you the carpet. You just need to explicitly state what Friedrich is doing so the DM can respond to his actions.

[venger]

In my experience, instead of asking if something is OK, just instead say (for example) "my character is taking the magic carpet to Fenhold" and see what happens.

[Ginger]

Sept 3, 2013 15:09:04 GMT -5 venger said:

In my experience, instead of asking if something is OK, just instead say (for example) "my character is taking the magic carpet to Fenhold" and see what happens.

Yes. Friedrich is currently sitting in Devonshire, with a magic carpet, doing nothing. Colby told him that the shadow weaver is not at home, but will be later, so he has free time. Fenhold is a quick trip by magic carpet.

[venger]

Please note that we are not operating in linear time during this phase of the campaign. Once the session starts on Sunday I will recap all the activities in the past 28 days and move time forward.

Regardless of what transpires with the rest of the party, Friedrich is not losing any time due to inactivity or infrequent posting.

The only limitations on his actions during this span is that prior to Day 15 he was in the Desert Kingdom and after Day 15 he is in the Forest Kingdom.

At this point I'm confident of Friedrich's intention to travel to Fenhold. I'll post a description of his travel and the state of affairs in the dominion when he arrives.

[venger]

TRAVEL TO FENHOLD
Mid-July (Day 444)

The sun is shining as Friedrich departs Devonshire on the magic carpet, flying southeast over the 100,000 Oaks. The dense old-growth forest passes quickly beneath him. To the north, he can barely discern the cancerous Blightwood and soon he is passing over the fog-shrouded moors. The moors give way to the Thistlemarsh, a broad trackless marsh, thick with willows and red maple. After several hours of flying Friedrich reaches Fenhold village.

He finds the manor house in the same state of disrepair, except now a wooden barricade has been erected in front of the broken portcullis. To Friedrich's trained eye, the manor appears to be occupied by an armed force of indeterminate size.

Friedrich learns the following things:

A few weeks ago, a mercenary company showed up and took control of the manor house. They tossed everybody out and now they are collecting the tax revenues for some Merchant House in Threshold. At least that's what they're doing when they aren't carousing or pushing around the townsfolk. Work on the causeway remains at a halt.

Several months ago Ser Gereint, the ancient seneschal who administered the dominion, was out riding and was thrown by his horse. He was killed in the fall. If this wasn't tragedy enough, after the burial his body was disinterred and he has been seen wandering the countryside as some sort undead apparition!!

The long winter has raised some concerns among the farm-folk about the harvesting/planting of crops and other farming stuff that is incomprehensible to a warrior like Friedrich. There's already mutterings of lean times to come, food shortages/rationing.

The halflings claim whatever got Merdith Hornscraper's prize bull has gotten into their flock as well, saying a "boomin' great lizard" carried off some of their sheep.

An elven arrow was found embedded in a tree outside of the village - there was a note attached but nobody could read it and they don't want to ask the halflings for help.

[venger]

Oh and there's some goings-on out by the old (haunted) copper mine that nobody really cares much about. Strange lights and such. Not unusual in the swamp-area though.

[Friedrich]

Friedrich will walk into the minor house and demand to see the leader of the company immediately.

[venger]

Friedrich makes it as far as the rotting drawbridge before he finds his progress into the manor is blocked by the wooden barricade erected in front of the portcullis. There are a couple men on duty, armed with long pikes, short swords and crossbows. They project an air of indifference but are clearly sizing up Friedrich as he approaches. He also notes there are crossbowmen in the towers flanking the gate who train their weapons on him as he walks up...

From here, he can see that there are a number of armed men bivouacked in the central courtyard of Fenhold manor. He would guess anywhere from 40-100 based on what he can see of their encampment.

The camp seems disciplined for mercenaries and Friedrich's trained eye recognizes that these men are veterans, some of whom walk with the swagger of accomplished swordsmen. (PHB pg. 22, Fighters Table)

Demanding to "see the leader of the company immediately" won't get Friedrich past the first sergeant, who doesn't seem particularly impressed with the Dwarf-Lord of Fenhold and quips that he was "expecting someone taller."

He tells Friedrich the captain is busy, but if the dwarf has a short message (this elicits some snickers) to relay, he will deliver it.