Last Preparations
You remember to contact your friends on the wrong side of the law, and they send you a farewell present, so to speak.
The primary route to the Divorak Mountains is through the Sol Woods, named for how the trees tend to bend the light into interesting shapes. The area is devoid of bandits, due to the strategic importance of the mountains - both as a natural defence, and for minerals - and the relative difficulty in selling large amounts of iron and steel without attracting attention. However, the King's Army does patrol the area in small groups. Your friends in the area have sent you a map, showing patrol routes.
You strap the saddle bags onto your horse, making sure the Book is carefully secured, and head into the forest, where your men are waiting.
On the Road Again
You and your column are on the move, scouts sweeping up front, when one makes a signal to halt. You look, and see that they appear to have come to the end of the forest. About one-hundred meters away, you can see a wide slope heading up to the left. It's about fifty meters wide, and heads upwards, looping and turning, contracting at some points, widening at others. It takes your men a while to slog up to the top, and you suspect it could take even longer for someone to fight their way up. The castle walls are about fifty meters away from the top of the slope, and about ten meters tall, covering the whole seventy-five meter length of the slope. You can see three major breaches in the walls, probably from wars long forgotten, along with a general lack of structural integrity. Behind the wall is the keep, fortified as a last stand, a barracks that can hold a garrison of fifty soldiers, and an armory, full of iron weapons that have long rusted away. One of the masons says they can probably fix up the wall if given a few months and about forty peasants for manual labor, and fix up the rest of the castle in a few more months. Meanwhile, the area behind the castle, even though it's empty, deserves a mention. There's a decent area behind the castle, easily large enough for a town of about 1000, let alone a few hundred. The peasants and artisans are pitching tents and building temporary shelters, waiting for directions.
Statuses
Competent Swordsman
Literate
Masterful Web-weaver
Criminal Connections
Traits: None
Basic, Well-Balanced Longsword.
3 Daggers (One in left boot, one in right sleeve, one in hidden holster, tucked under tunic, left shoulder.)
Heater Shield
Pot Helm
Mail Armor
Simple Horse
Tunic and Pants
300 Gold
Crumbling Castle
- Castle Wall : Ten meters tall, three meters thick, seventy-five meters wide, three breaches
- Keep: Crumbling, but fairly structurally sound.
- Barracks: Can hold fifty men.
- Armory: Full of cheap, rusted iron weapons.
Town
- Assorted tents and makeshift shelters.
- A mountain in the Divorak mountains, with a pine forest nearby.
Fact of the Update: RankingCriminals: Criminals are not considered people under kingdom law, allowing people to do almost anything they want to them. Being "tagged" is considered the worst punishment of all, except for Eging, a execution so brutal that the details are withheld from even you.
Serfs: Unskilled laborers, the Serfs work on farms, in mines, and at lumberyards. They can be levied in emergencies, and form the bulk of the kingdom's army.
Artisans: Skilled crafts-workers of all types, often contracted to make items for the king such as swords, or art.
Soldiers: The professional spearhead of the Kingdom's army, soldiers spend most of their lives training, and are equipped with the finest the kingdom can offer. May god have mercy on those who get in their way.
--------------------------------- The King Line
Kingsman: The ruler of a single city, or castle. Anyone at this title or higher is required to have at least basic training in swordsmanship.
Ser: An honorary title, given to unlanded servants of the crown. Considered a higher rank then Kingsman, even though it has less overall power. Is paid a stipend by the King.
Sir: The liege lord of at least one Kingsman.
Crownsman: The liege lord of at least one Sir. Direct vassal of the King. Bound by oath to never betray the King, to never turn their back on his woes.