Post by warwick on May 26, 2023 23:47:35 GMT
Dev-blog 7 - The Rhodoks of Blackstone Fortress
"The Rhodokes have oft' laboured as mercenaries and arms peddlers on behalf of the other kingdoms of Calradia - and indeed, there exist dozens if not hundreds of bands and companies of sellswords of Rhodok extraction across Swadia, Vaegira and the Nordic Kingdom. One which I made acquaintance with was that of the Black Company..."
Hello everyone, this week's faction spotlight is on Fort Blackstone. Blackstone is a settlement built in the Rhodok style, nestled between a hill and a mountain, under which lie the snaking passages of Elain's vast iron mines. Founded by a band of disenfranchised Jelkalan nobles, who have ancestrally worked first as miners and thereafter as mercenaries; the Blacks now return to their roots by labouring underneath the ground in search of the much sought-after minerals found in their mines. Blackstone is, curiously, built upon the ruins of a mysterious settlement; the origin of which is unknown to many. Whether it was an Imperial village, a Swadian one destroyed during the war, or perhaps an even older one is unknown. However, the perils of the long-dead inhabitants of that place now slowly make themselves more and more apparent upon the beleaguered Rhodoks.
History
The Blacks Mining Company began in Jelkala, the capital of the Kingdom of the Rhodok, where they built for themselves a fortune by mining in the caverns beneath the hills of the capital. Despite their renown for mining in Jelkala, they had little in the way of friends and decided to leave Jelkala with haste while they still had the means to do so, giving up their mines and ancestral claim to a life of freedom as travelling mercenaries.
The Blacks gained their name from the soot and mud that would often cover their visage, as the ‘Blacks’ are themselves distant relatives of Clan Barrath, founded by Sir Darrok Barrath, a knight of Yalen. Darrok was a man who was rumoured to be little more than his lord’s mad dog, and as a result, upon his death, his family was revoked of nobility and knighthood at the hands of scheming nobles in the capital. Despite their House’s decline, the Blacks continued, with Drack, Darrok's son, succeeding his father and, along with his brother Dorran, running their mining operations. Despite this, they remained impoverished, owing to the high taxes and tribute demanded of them from the royal tax collectors. They continued to be viewed as outcasts by the common folk, and as potential plotters by the nobility. In the years since the fall of Clan Barath, the Blacks became increasingly desperate and began to, in secret, skim off the top of their findings – gold and ore, whenever they could. Though they knew it was only a matter of time before the paranoid nobles would come down on them.
The Blacks made the choice to transition to a different line of work after the years of arduous labor because it would pay well without requiring them to pay such high tribute to the lords of Jelkala. They adapted to the life of mercenaries and ventured into Swadia by way of Dhirim. They accepted most-all offers of work they found, even those that asked of them unjust and even brutal acts. Yet no bounty could sate their aspirations. They came to the decision to relocate northward to the Kingdom of the Vaegirs so they could make more regular gains. Their travels led them through Elain Valley and the neighbouring regions, where they encountered destruction unlike that they’d witnessed before—a burned and ravaged county. They passed through several settlements, some of which were still inhabited and appeared better than others. During their travels across Elain Valley, they heard tales of one such abandoned settlement nestled into the mountains on the northern side of the valley. They ascended far up the mountains in search of an abandoned settlement that was teeming with treasure in the form of untapped ore and forgotten cargo. There, they made a home for themselves and declared it to be their permanent residence, with no plans to leave anytime soon, this new home for the blacks was justly dubbed Blackstone.
Faction Relics & Economy
• Darrack's Hammer - A deceptively ornate hammer, but one well-worn from war and battle. The hammer was lost to an unidentified person after Darrack's death, but his descendant Dorran eventually recovered the weapon and brought it back into the family's ownership. Drack handed the weapon to Dorran so that he may carry it in his father's honor after learning that Dorran had found the weapon. The Barath family's foundation is this warhammer, therefore losing it would be a great blow to the Barath brothers.
• The Barrath Book - Although it may appear strange, Drack's mother once worked as an architect. She was said to belong to the family's more noble side. A book was left behind by her before she abruptly left. This book included years' worth of knowledge that dated back at least 20 years. This book contains designs for innovative buildings together with instructions on how to reduce their cost and which resources to employ where to enhance the quality of the construction. Drack, the current chief, as it were, of the family, has grown engrossed by the book's content. Already, he has put it to use in building for himself Blackstone Fortress. Only the future will tell what might be gained by the possession of this tome full of designs.
Blackstone depends almost wholeheartedly upon the deep and seemingly unending iron deposits in the ancient mines underneath it. The mines, which are likely of Imperial origin, spread across much of the valley, and in times past were a key source of attracting trade and economic activity to the region. Since the Vaegir Invasion, however, much of the mining infrastructure in Elain was lost until the arrival of the Blacks, and their apparent rivals for the mines, the Band of the Broken Sword - centered out of the village of Helena. The Blacks oft' export their iron via Gasterbitz, and that which they do not ship off out of the Elain Valley they craft into tools, weapons and armour for the rest of the valley - having control of two of the four smitheries in the region. Blackstone's access to the Manud River also means that they can, at times, go out fishing for food - but most of the fish in the river is said to be located further upstream. Blackstone's nearest neighbours are the Nords of Hallvatlar, and the close proximity of the latter's lumberyards is doubtlessly bound to lead to future conflict...
"The Rhodokes have oft' laboured as mercenaries and arms peddlers on behalf of the other kingdoms of Calradia - and indeed, there exist dozens if not hundreds of bands and companies of sellswords of Rhodok extraction across Swadia, Vaegira and the Nordic Kingdom. One which I made acquaintance with was that of the Black Company..."
Hello everyone, this week's faction spotlight is on Fort Blackstone. Blackstone is a settlement built in the Rhodok style, nestled between a hill and a mountain, under which lie the snaking passages of Elain's vast iron mines. Founded by a band of disenfranchised Jelkalan nobles, who have ancestrally worked first as miners and thereafter as mercenaries; the Blacks now return to their roots by labouring underneath the ground in search of the much sought-after minerals found in their mines. Blackstone is, curiously, built upon the ruins of a mysterious settlement; the origin of which is unknown to many. Whether it was an Imperial village, a Swadian one destroyed during the war, or perhaps an even older one is unknown. However, the perils of the long-dead inhabitants of that place now slowly make themselves more and more apparent upon the beleaguered Rhodoks.
History
The Blacks Mining Company began in Jelkala, the capital of the Kingdom of the Rhodok, where they built for themselves a fortune by mining in the caverns beneath the hills of the capital. Despite their renown for mining in Jelkala, they had little in the way of friends and decided to leave Jelkala with haste while they still had the means to do so, giving up their mines and ancestral claim to a life of freedom as travelling mercenaries.
The Blacks gained their name from the soot and mud that would often cover their visage, as the ‘Blacks’ are themselves distant relatives of Clan Barrath, founded by Sir Darrok Barrath, a knight of Yalen. Darrok was a man who was rumoured to be little more than his lord’s mad dog, and as a result, upon his death, his family was revoked of nobility and knighthood at the hands of scheming nobles in the capital. Despite their House’s decline, the Blacks continued, with Drack, Darrok's son, succeeding his father and, along with his brother Dorran, running their mining operations. Despite this, they remained impoverished, owing to the high taxes and tribute demanded of them from the royal tax collectors. They continued to be viewed as outcasts by the common folk, and as potential plotters by the nobility. In the years since the fall of Clan Barath, the Blacks became increasingly desperate and began to, in secret, skim off the top of their findings – gold and ore, whenever they could. Though they knew it was only a matter of time before the paranoid nobles would come down on them.
The Blacks made the choice to transition to a different line of work after the years of arduous labor because it would pay well without requiring them to pay such high tribute to the lords of Jelkala. They adapted to the life of mercenaries and ventured into Swadia by way of Dhirim. They accepted most-all offers of work they found, even those that asked of them unjust and even brutal acts. Yet no bounty could sate their aspirations. They came to the decision to relocate northward to the Kingdom of the Vaegirs so they could make more regular gains. Their travels led them through Elain Valley and the neighbouring regions, where they encountered destruction unlike that they’d witnessed before—a burned and ravaged county. They passed through several settlements, some of which were still inhabited and appeared better than others. During their travels across Elain Valley, they heard tales of one such abandoned settlement nestled into the mountains on the northern side of the valley. They ascended far up the mountains in search of an abandoned settlement that was teeming with treasure in the form of untapped ore and forgotten cargo. There, they made a home for themselves and declared it to be their permanent residence, with no plans to leave anytime soon, this new home for the blacks was justly dubbed Blackstone.
Faction Relics & Economy
• Darrack's Hammer - A deceptively ornate hammer, but one well-worn from war and battle. The hammer was lost to an unidentified person after Darrack's death, but his descendant Dorran eventually recovered the weapon and brought it back into the family's ownership. Drack handed the weapon to Dorran so that he may carry it in his father's honor after learning that Dorran had found the weapon. The Barath family's foundation is this warhammer, therefore losing it would be a great blow to the Barath brothers.
• The Barrath Book - Although it may appear strange, Drack's mother once worked as an architect. She was said to belong to the family's more noble side. A book was left behind by her before she abruptly left. This book included years' worth of knowledge that dated back at least 20 years. This book contains designs for innovative buildings together with instructions on how to reduce their cost and which resources to employ where to enhance the quality of the construction. Drack, the current chief, as it were, of the family, has grown engrossed by the book's content. Already, he has put it to use in building for himself Blackstone Fortress. Only the future will tell what might be gained by the possession of this tome full of designs.
Blackstone depends almost wholeheartedly upon the deep and seemingly unending iron deposits in the ancient mines underneath it. The mines, which are likely of Imperial origin, spread across much of the valley, and in times past were a key source of attracting trade and economic activity to the region. Since the Vaegir Invasion, however, much of the mining infrastructure in Elain was lost until the arrival of the Blacks, and their apparent rivals for the mines, the Band of the Broken Sword - centered out of the village of Helena. The Blacks oft' export their iron via Gasterbitz, and that which they do not ship off out of the Elain Valley they craft into tools, weapons and armour for the rest of the valley - having control of two of the four smitheries in the region. Blackstone's access to the Manud River also means that they can, at times, go out fishing for food - but most of the fish in the river is said to be located further upstream. Blackstone's nearest neighbours are the Nords of Hallvatlar, and the close proximity of the latter's lumberyards is doubtlessly bound to lead to future conflict...