ELCOME TO the eighth issue of Thonahexus!

This issue

�
W focuses on maritime adventures and campaigns. Our
Editors: Joe Adams · thonahexus@gmail.com
Lucas Magnusson · lucas@designverket.se
Website: www.designverket.se/thonahexus
CO
C ON
NTTE
ENNT
TSS
The Town Cryer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
The Ring of Halgrim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Maritime Campaigns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
And then we hire a pilot… . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Sins of Scenario Writers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Building a Manor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
The Horn of Skargja the Wise . . . . . . . . . . 27
Seldholm (Ambergaun) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
contributors present a wide range of thoughts based on
their experiences starting and running campaigns with a maritime
setting. We also have a manor in Orbaal that can be used as a location
by a gamemaster. Finally, the details of building a manor are presented.
Lots of money but less time than you might think.
It has been an exciting job pulling together the material for this
issue. The contributors deserve a big round of applause for the imagi-
native work they created. The material ebbed and flowed over the last
few months, as fan-driven projects will, but I hope that this work will
motivate others to contribute in the future. This fanzine depends on
people that are willing to create and donate their work to others.
Without that kind of dedication, we will sail quietly into the sunset.
The next issue will come out as soon as there is enough material. I
try to proof and edit articles as they come in, but I wait until there are
between 20 and 30 pages before asking Lucas to layout the material.
The idea of themed issues did not seem to take off, so it is unlikely
that we will try that again. Just send me your ideas or articles.
If you are willing to finish one of the outlines I’ve been given, let
me know. If you have old outlines scattered around your hard drive
that you don’t want to finish, send them in. I can’t promise to finish
them all but I’ll try to find someone who is interested in working on
them.

8
Cheers,
The Dread Editor

© 2006, N. Robin Crossby (www.kelestia.com) and Columbia Games, Inc. (www.columbiagames.com). The articles in Thonahexus are derivative works of copyrighted material published by Columbia Games Inc. and/or
N. Robin Crossby and released for free distribution and personal use with permission by N. Robin Crossby and Columbia Games, Inc. Hârn, HârnWorld, and HârnMaster are Trademarks of Columbia Games Inc. and N. Robin
Crossby. Use of these or other trademarks are not intended as a challenge to the status of said trademarks. The content of Thonahexus is not canon, unless otherwise stated.
T H E T O W N CRYER
∞e
Town
Cryer
Presenting an assortment of stray
thoughts and random ideas for
those interested in a maritime
campaign. By Joe Adams.
Getting the Party
Started
My all time favorite is the “slaves on a
galley” scene but the same idea works
for pressed seamen. The idea revolves
around the player characters, each
from a different walk of life and social
class, being bought, dragged, or blud-
geoned into servitude on a ship. After
an introduction, the ship is wrecked in
a storm or battle and the player char-
acters find themselves on their own.
When I used this theme, I left the
player characters with a lifeboat and
let them climb the ladder of piratical
success. They raided and plundered
before signing on with a larger crew.
Then they had a few adventures on the
larger ship before leading the mutiny
to take over.
Another option is to skip the slav-
ery stuff and just start out with the
player characters as pirates. Thrown
out of civilized society, they have gath-
ered in a sleazy run down port and all
signed on to a ship. The ship can take
2 THONAHEXUS Nº 8
them to the standard pirate adven-
tures or the player characters could
find themselves being hunted as a
powerful non-player character seeks
retribution for something the pirate
captain did in the distant past.
Finally, the player characters could
be minor sons and daughters of land-
holding houses. Their prospects are
few, so they go to sea to find their for-
tunes. They go off to distant lands to
meet interesting people and pillage
them.
Instead of this campaign being
about plunder, it focuses on finding a
place and building a life. Even the
original Vikings and Saxon raiders pre-
ferred trade and settlement to raiding.
Adventure Threads
The crew is contracted to carry a cargo
to a distant port.
● The cargo turns out to be people
running from oppression and the
player characters get caught up in
helping them escape.
● Something in one of the crates
gets loose in the hold and now the
crew cannot find it.
The ship anchors near a deserted is-
land. While ashore filling water casks:
● The crew finds an abandoned set-
tlement. Searching the settlement
uncovers strange runes.
● The crew finds a hermit. This
funny little man claims to know
where treasure is buried.
The player characters encounter an-
other ship while underway. This other
vessel might:
● Be pirates and attack.
● Be another merchant and try to
trade.
● Need help (plague, no supplies).
● Be abandoned.
Unsolicited Advice
A number of posts on HarnForum
(and both participants in the Mari-
time Campaign questionnaire) said
that they prefered to “go light” when
roleplaying sailing. The rules in the
Pilot’s Almanac are detailed, which is
good, but slow down play, which is not
so good.
The key is to strike a balance. If the
adventure requires the party to get
from Point A to Port B, the game-
master should cover this in a pre-game
session or in a descriptive passage. If
the party is supposed to have an en-
counter or something is supposed to
happen while they are en route, use
the rules to emphasize the monotony
of the crew’s daily routine before un-
leashing the adventure on them.
Another common comment was
the difficulty in keeping player char-
acters in one location for the duration
of an adventure. This phenomenon
was caused by player character mobil-
ity a player character group has, which
is good, but it makes preparing for the
next gamin session nightmarish for
the gamemaster.
One suggestion was to make the
player characters passengers on the
vessel. The captain (an non-player
character played by the gamemaster)
decided when the ship would leave
and where it would go. A gamemaster
could ensure the players’ had some in-
put by offering several ships in port,
each with different (already prepared)
destinations.
Another technique was to use
weather, the law, or ship repairs to
keep a vessel in port. The player char-
acters would participate in the adven-
ture while the constraint was in place.
Still another suggestion was to
strike a“Gentleman’s Agreement.” The
player characters agreed to declare
their next port of call at the end of
each session/adventure. This advance
notice allowed the gamemaster to pre-
pare. m
Adventure Seed
∞e Ring of Halgrim
Inspired by a discussion with Tuomo Aimonen on Harn Chat.
By John Daniel II
ALGRIM OF MERETHOS (now Golotha) is the
H
� first recorded owner of the ring that now bears
his name. The ring itself is a heavy gold band,
holding an unusually large black pearl. Some say that the
ring originated in Azeryan and that Halgrim was just the
last of a long line of wielders, but others believe that Hal-
grim himself created the ring using fell magics and
necromantic arts.
Halgrim himself is an enigma. Story-
tellers say that he was a devout Mor-
gathian, with access to the highest
levels of the church hierarchy,
but was not himself a priest.
Despite surviving temple re-
cords that mention his name
over a span of almost ninety
years (470 to 562) there is no
evidence that he was an
amorvrin. His name is almost
unknown to anyone other
than Morgathian priests, but
it can be found by searching
records housed at the Manse of
the Sanguine Saltire, the college
of Heralds in Golotha.
All mention of Halgrim stops in
562, the time of the Balshan jihad. He and
his ring are presumed to have been lost during that
time period. In 696 a clam digger working the beach near
the Trevorman district found the ring buried in the sand.
The man did not survive long after, and the ring eventually
made its way to the temple of Morgath.
The priests studied their records to gain some knowl-
edge of its powers. Satisfied of its authenticity, the ring
was added to the temple artifacts by the Khala-bukrin. In
78, a hidden coven located in Kaldor requested aid from
the temple of Golotha. After some discussion, the temple
THONAHEXUS Nº 8
THE RING OF HALG R I M
sent a small chest of money and artifacts to Kaldor by way
of a mercantyler friendly to the temple. The mercantyler
placed the chest among a number of items being shipped
East on a small caravan.
Fate intervened yet again and the caravan was raided
by barbarians somewhere between Taztos and Trobridge
Inn. Agents of the temple recovered the chest
and some of the hard currency in 79, but
the Ring of Halgrim has not been
found. The temple still has agents
looking for the lost artifact.
Known Powers
The Ring of Halgrim has a num-
ber of powers, none of which will
function when the ring or wearer
is exposed to strong sunlight.
Darkness, deep shadow, thick
clouds, or being underground or
inside a building all allow the
ring to operate at full power. In
addition to those listed below, the
ring may have other powers as yet
undiscovered.
● Allows use of Klyss’ Command on
up to 5 gulmorvrus at a time. (HARN RELI-
GION, Morgath 8.)
● Provides a permanent protection from the Shadow of
Bukrai similar to Cloak of Klyss. (HARN RELIGION,
Morgath 8.)
● Once per month, at the wearer’s option, the ring will
provide 0 Bukrai Points per the Heart of Darkness
ritual. (HARN RELIGION, Morgath 8.)
● Once per month, on a Morgathian holy day, the ring
can be used to Consecrate an area of up to 3 square
yards. (HARN RELIGION 5.) m
3
M A R I T I M E C AMPAIGNS 1
Maritime Campaigns
Two gamemasters’ reflections.
By Joe Adams with input from Grendel and Ratafia.
ARITIME CAMPAIGNS have unique challenges,
�M which may be why so many gamemasters want
to run them but so few actually do. Over the
last few months, a questionnaire circulated to interested
gamemasters about their maritime campaigns. Two game-
masters answered and their replies were remarkably simi-
lar. The following article combines the responses from
Grendel and Ratafia and shines some light on the fun and
the challenges of running a maritime campaign.
In Njehu’s Wake
Grendel’s In Njehu’s Wake campaign centers on Ivinia. The
core characters (i.e. the players and a number of key non-
player characters) are all members of clan Sardosk from
Thursa in Orbaal. Although the game itself started in Jar-
ehm, Jarenmark, and saw the players moved up into the
far north east of Ivinia almost immediately. The first three
chapters in their saga took place in and around Lotenheim
and the sea of Skajek. The last two chapters have seen the
players sail up round the northern coast of Ivae and down
past Menglana and Rogna, inevitably getting them in-
volved in the various conflicts boiling there.
The characters are in exile. Grendel knew he wanted to
play a fairly mobile game with a strong Viking theme and,
as the players already had some experience with feudal
Harn, it made sense to use Orbaal as the bridge between
what they knew already and the pseudo-Norse culture of
Ivinia. Grendel’s idea was to run an episodic game, with a
loose overarching plot to give the campaign some long-
range focus. He loved the idea of the player characters
leaving their clan hold as striplings and returning as great
men after years on the sea! He began by diving into OR-
BAAL and CASTLES OF ORBAAL and hunting for potential
starter hooks. The dynastic (and potentially religious)
conflict in clan Sardosk at Thursa jumped out immedi-
ately. The players had had enough run-ins with Agrikans
in his previous campaign to sink their teeth into that an-
4 THONAHEXUS Nº 8
gle. Of course the first challenge for the player characters
is obtaining a boat. Grendel’s players ‘borrowed’ their ship
‘Ologi’ from Jansar One Leg. Edered was a newly forged
satia mavari and Jansar was his Odivshe viran. As Jansar
was in a coma at the time and the other masters of chantry
wanted something from the Edered, they were able to slip
off with the ship with a minimum of fuss. They do avoid
the seaways around Jarehm though, as they will probably
lose her if they place themselves within the master’s easy
reach.
Ologi is a 48' long ship – somewhere between a mer-
chantman and a war boat in her lines. She was launched in
Lotenheim, where Jansar hails from. The ships gunnels,
head, and tail are intricately carved and covered in power-
ful runes by Jansar. According to Jarenmarker tradition
the mages of the Odivshe chantry of Jarehm are powerful
rune masters from a tradition stretching back to the mas-
ter mariner Skivaal.
The campaign group has six players and typically at
least a dozen further NPC crewmen. In complex combats,
the players will usually adopt an additional character to
manage (and they each have their favorites). They will
also play them when their own character is ‘under the
weather’, so in a collaborative fashion the crew has devel-
oped into quite a colorful bunch.
The group has clung onto Ologi throughout their ad-
ventures despite some desperate weather and risky pilot-
ing. They captured another ship off the east coast of Evo-
lyn, a nivik called ‘The Sea Cow’, which they sold to a local
merchant family in Lotenheim.
The player characters’ current voyage started at the
‘Isle of the Navigators’, the Odivshe chantry at Jarehm in
Jarenmark. They sailed up through the north eastern seas
to Lotenheim in the Sea of Skajek. Over a spring and
summer of campaigning they journeyed extensively up
both coasts of the isle of Evolyn.
In late summer they loaded up Ologi with northern
trade goods and, escorting The Sea Cow, they journeyed

into the Sea of Itikir through Zweigen pass. Passing down
through Skivaal’s Bight they past into the waters of Rogna
and Menglana. After brushing with the conflicts brewing
there they sailed on into the Sea of Ivae and the Gulf of
Shorkyne. Somewhere to the south of the island of Tavu
Ologi was separated from The Sea Cow in a violent storm
which saw Ologi stranded on an unknown rocky isle,
which they named the Isle of the Yelgri.
The group finished the last saga of the campaign with
them getting embroiled in the inter clan feuding at Kola-
dis in Chelemby. They plan to pick up their story when
they reach Palithane, as the players are very keen on a
change of scene and there has been much talk of the ‘flesh
pots’ of the Venerian Sea.
The Oceanic Campaign
Taking another approach, Ratafia’s Oceanic Campaign
adopts a mercantile slant. His player characters are mer-
chants sailing between the eastern coast of Harn and
Shorkyne. Their motivation is trade and, although he ad-
mits to never having played the old TRAVELLER role-play-
ing game, the use of a cargo vessel going from port to port
seems very similar.
The group is led by the owner of the boat (a player
character). The other player characters are crewmen
THONAHEXUS Nº 8
MARITIME C AMPAIGN S 2
aboard the vessel. The vessel, a 60' dak, was purchased by
the owner with part of his inheritance when they decided
to leave Melderyn. Interestingly, Ratafia prefers to mini-
mize the roleplaying on the boat, using the dak only as a
means of travel.
When they reach port, the player characters have vis-
ited Thay, Cherafir, small ports (for the adventure),
Shorkyne (Bodara, Sagora, Eshapel) and Chelemby (Ev-
anekin).
In General
Because the player characters are so mobile, both Grendel
and Ratafia relate that their games are very exciting and
varied. If the current situation gets stale, the gamemaster
can always fast forward to the next landfall. This provides
the constant theme to play against the shifting back-
ground as the players move from place to place.
Despite their different approaches to maritime cam-
paigns, both Grendel and Ratafia have had to create a
number of locations, sometimes on the fly. The scarcity of
canon material in Ivinia in particular, has led Grendel to
do a lot of development. The players, being highly mobile,
can visit any number of locations but both gamemasters
agree that they enjoy the challenge.
Both gamemasters stressed the need to improvise. In
commenting on the way that mobility affected their cam-
paign planning, Ratafia said that, “You can never really
direct a group on a boat. They are freer in a boat than on a
horse. Frontiers seem to disappear with the horizon.”
Keeping the players engaged when they find a situa-
tion a little threatening can be difficult when it is very easy
for them to disengage and withdraw into the mists of the
open sea. Grendel amplified this by saying that he is some-
times forced to resort to containment strategies like bad
weather, damage to the ship, or detaining key crew mem-
bers to force the players to engage with a situation. Some-
times this works quite well, other times it can feel a bit
forced.
Another challenge that is unique to a maritime cam-
paign is the management of the vessel itself. Neither
gamemaster was very pleased with the PILOT’S ALMANAC
rules. They commented on the slow pace of the watch-
based rules and the overwhelming amount of detail. They
both discarded most of the dice rolls, preferring to get the
idea of the rhythm of sea life into the players’ heads and
then get on with roleplaying.
Despite these challenges, both Grendel and Ratafia
are happy with their choice to run a maritime campaign.
The changes of scenery and the possibility of linking plots
from various parts of Kethira together keep everyone en-
tertained. m
5
A N D T H E N WE HIRE A PILOT… 1
And then we hire a pilot…
Pilots, merchants and the organization of trade in south-western Harn.
By Ilkka Leskelä.
LAYERS OFTEN ASSUME that every occupation
�
P listed in the Occupation Generation Table
(OGT, given on Character 3 in HÂRNMASTER
) is available in every city, port, and village they visit.
Sometimes finding someone with the skill they need can
be an adventure unto itself.
The following article discusses how the number of
pilots in south-western Harn can be determined and how
this population affects trade.
Part I – Numbers
1. How to utilize the Occupation
Generation Table?
The approximate number of pilots and merchants in
south-western Harn can be derived from the OGT. Using
the OGT for this purpose is supported by the notion (on
Character 2), that “the table generates “authentic” results
based on the structure of medieval societies”. However, it
should be noted that the results are “authentic”, not accu-
rate. Also, the results represent the proportions of parent
occupations. If we think that people in certain occupa-
tions will have generally more offspring than people in
other professions, the OGT wouldn’t represent the profes-
sions present in the society, but the proportions of profes-
sionals that have offspring. However, I find this very un-
likely. I will proceed with the understanding that the OGT
generates results that describe the societies in general, not
just the proportions of professionals that have offspring.
Further problems with the OGT are granulation and
failure margins. The table creates similar numbers of all
the rare occupations, all of which are composed of 0. % of
the total population. It is probable that all rare occupa-
tions are not equally rare. Thus the failure margins for all
rare occupations are considerable. It is possible that the
proportions have been rounded to 0. %, meaning that the
true range of the proportions of the rare occupations
6 THONAHEXUS Nº 8
range between 0.05 % and 0.4 %. Thus numbers for the
rare occupations should be approached with caution, al-
ways bearing in mind the possibilities suggested by the
error margins.
In addition, the OGT lists parent occupations, in most
cases meaning the occupation of the father, ie. the head of
household. But if we take the number of adults (5+ years)
on Harn being 50–60 % of the population (as is typical of
pre-modern population patterns), and bear in mind that
women play a larger role in the society than women in
medieval Europe, we end with a number of professional
adults of about 30 %. This is a markedly larger number
than the number of households, which is approximately
the population number divided by five. However, a sig-
nificant proportion of Harnic professional adults in guild
occupations are apprentices and journeymen, the number
of masters being as low as a third or fourth of the total of
the professional adults in guild occupations.
This means that in addition to the failure margins cre-
ated by the OGT, we have to face failure margins created by
the fact that we don’t know ) how many adult profession-
als there are on Harn, and 2) what is the proportion of
apprentices, journeymen and masters to each other. If we
operate with the number of households, in the case of
guild occupations the result is the number of masters and
journeymen with families, but again, we don’t know the
proportions. However, in the case of the pilots the result
is only the number of masters and apprentices, as the Pi-
lots’ Guild doesn’t have journeymen.
2. The number of pilots and merchants
Bearing in mind the problems of the OGT, the error mar-
gins for the number of pilots is as much as 75 %, and for
the number of merchants as much as 55 %. We might still
present an approximate estimate of the number of pilots
and merchants in south-western Harn, based on the OGT
and the number of households.

REGION PILOTS
Kingdom of Rethem (c. 19,640 households) 20
Kingdom of Kanday (c. 19,840 households) 20
Thardic Republic (c. 20,950 households) 21
Total (rounded): 60
As can be seen, the number of pilots in south-western
Harn ranges from 5 to more than hundred. The number
of merchants is proportionally more accurate, ranging
from about 60 to about 560. But the high and low ends
are less probable, and especially in the case of the pilots
the low end is practically impossible, as we will see.
In the following I will proceed using the number of
pilots as the number of master pilots, and the number of
merchants as the number of master merchants and more
or less settled journeymen with families. In the case of the
pilots, I will study both the low (40), medium (60) and
high (80) approximates of the number of pilots, concen-
trating on the medium number. In the case of merchants,
I will be less elaborate. The reader should make his/her
own decisions on the precise number of each profession,
but I hope the following gives good guidelines for such
decision making.
Part II – Pilots and vessels
1. Pilots, piloting routines and vessels in
south-western Harn
As fishing vessels and vessels with a length of less than 30’
don’t require a pilot, it may be assumed that the pilots in
south-western Harn have jobs as pilots on medium and
large merchant and navy vessels, while some of them take
responsibility of the major ports as harbourmasters.There
are harbourmasters in all major ports (maritime market
size of  or more), meaning all the cities and some larger
towns around castles and keeps. This makes the number
of harbourmaster pilots about 5. The nature of their jobs
is such that they don’t have time to pilot individual ships
on longer voyages. To have pilots on ships, the number of
pilots in south-western Harn must be significantly larger
than the number of harbourmasters.
The number of locally owned medium and large mer-
chant and navy vessels operating from the ports of south-
western Harn cannot be larger than the number of pilots
in this region. If the number of harbourmaster pilots is
subtracted from the total number of pilots, there are at
most some 90 medium and large vessels in south-western
Harn that can be used for other purposes than fishing. If
we use the approximate medium number of pilots, the
THONAHEXUS Nº 8
AND THEN WE HIRE A PILOT … 2
ERROR MARGIN MERCHANTS ERROR MARGIN
±75% 118 ±55%
±75% 119 ±55%
±75% 126 ±55%
±75% 360 ±55%
number is around 45, and can be lower still, because some
small vessels that don’t actually require pilots may still
have them. Because all Harnic vessels can be used for mil-
itary purposes with only superficial additions (wooden
castles), it is probable that in peacetime all the vessels
needing a pilot perform trade missions.
The medium and large merchant vessels of south-
western Harn mainly sail between the more important
ports, leaving local trade for smaller river and coastal craft.
Based on clues in canon, we can assume that very few of
the merchant vessels on River Thard need pilots. Thus we
find three major regions of maritime merchandise in
south-western Harn: ) Lake Benath, centred on Shiran,
2) Western, centred on Golotha, 3) Southern, centred on
Aleath. The vessels operating in the western and southern
waters can mix freely (but usually don’t), while the vessels
on Lake Benath usually sail in this region only. In addi-
tion, some vessels operating in the western and southern
regions at least occasionally head for Cherafir or for other
ports of the Gulf of Ederwyn. Similarly, Aleath and per-
haps even Golotha are visited every year by vessels from
Cherafir – perhaps even beyond.
2. Regional maritime trade
Regional maritime trade is depending on the ability of lo-
cal inland and river trade to provide the major ports with
sufficient quantities of goods. In the context of south-
western Harn, the question is mainly if Golotha or Aleath
serves as the major import and export site. Looking at the
map of Harn, it is apparent that maritime trading con-
tacts with northern Harn (read Orbaal) and Golotha are
minimal, and mainly centred on fish products, salt and
probably ivory. This makes Golotha the western end of
the trading route that connects Golotha and Aleath to
Cherafir and to the Lythian maritime network. The
Lythian economic map shows that the trading route leads
no further than Aleath, meaning that Golotha doesn’t
play an important role in the Lythian trade.
The separation of Golotha from the Lythian trade is
further supported by the Harnic sources: Golotha gener-
ally lacks maritime trade, being a nexus of Peran trade,
local sea-coast trade, River Thard trade and the local fish-
ing industry [GOLOTHA ]. While Golotha has a market
7
A N D T H E N WE HIRE A PILOT… 3
size of 4 and Aleath only 3 [PILOTS’ ALMANAC: Port Al-
manac, Harn region], it is apparent that the market of
Golotha is mostly of local character while the market of
Aleath serves regional and interregional trade. Aleath
probably serves also as the main import and export port
for Thardan goods. Apparently the route via the River
Tharda to Golotha and from there over to Aleath is more
expensive and less secure than the land route to Dyrisa
and from there via River Eryn to Aleath.
The hazards of the Golothan route are a result of its
length, the rough waters of Emaba Strait, but also the po-
litical instability of Rethem. The heyday of the Golothan
importance in regional navigation lies in the late 5th and
early 6th centuries TR. In those days Golotha – then
Merethos – was the centre of the Corani fleets exploring
and conquering the western Harnic coast. Corani fleet
bases in Selvos, Dunir and Hebos were strongly depend-
ing on the supply from and the shipyards of Merethos.
The large pilots’ guildhouse in Golotha probably dates
from those times. Its chambers are nowadays often empty,
its registers and maps looted, its learning diminished.
3. Pilots and trade on Lake Benath
On Lake Benath, trade is mostly local, there being little
demand for medium or large vessels. It is likely that there
are very few medium and no larger merchant vessels.
These vessels are used for larger shipments of salt, iron
8 THONAHEXUS Nº 8
ore, men (slaves, mercenaries, legionaries and pilgrims
heading to Araka-Kalai) and processed fish (that no lon-
ger belongs to the fishermen). All vessels may be used for
all purposes, but there are likely one or two vessels that
have been designed for transporting men/troops. As the
distances are mostly short, the vessels can make numerous
voyages each season, meaning that a large quantity of
goods and men may be transported with few vessels. The
number of vessels needing a pilot is probably at most one
dozen.
4. Pilots and trade along the western coast
The western coastal trade of Harn may be divided into
three categories: ) connecting north-western Rethem
and the southern coastal Peran to the area of Golotha, 2)
serving the local trade around Golotha, 3) connecting Sel-
vos to Golotha and serving as lifeline for the regional trade
to Aleath. The major fishing activity centred in Boka Bay
and the western islands doesn’t require pilots, and even if
some large whaling vessels that sail far on the open seas
might have them, fishing activity in general doesn’t give
work for a significant number of pilots. The same can be
said of the local trade around Golotha, as it is mostly done
in small vessels. These vessels don’t require pilots, and the
local boatmen know their habitual routes to and from
Golotha well enough to sail safely.

REGION AND EXTENT OF TRADE PILOTS
Lake Benath local 15 %
Thard River local 10 %
Western local 20 %
Western regional 15 %
Southern local 10 %
Southern regional 30 %
Total 100 %
This means that almost all pilots in the more impor-
tant ports of Golotha, Tormau and Shostim serve on me-
dium and large merchant vessels sailing the Peran-Tor-
mau-Shostim/Golotha route or the Golotha-Selvos-Sar-
kum-Aleath (and beyond) route. Of these, the first route
is comparable with the trade on Lake Benath, resulting in
about a dozen medium vessels that need a pilot. The rest
of the Golothan pilots, about half a dozen of them, sail
south and west, to Aleath and beyond. Most of the vessels
on this route that require a pilot are medium, but there are
one or two large vessels. While the vessels requiring pilots
on Lake Benath, the River Thard and on the north-west-
ern routes from Golotha, are mainly talbars and niviks,
those that sail from Golotha to Aleath include a couple of
daks. Both the king of Rethem and the earl of Tormau
probably finance one or two sleek vessels that can be
rowed, at best described as dragonships. The pilots oper-
ating these ships are the closest equivalent to admirals in
the western waters of Harn.
5. Pilots and trade along the southern coast
The southern coastal trade of south-western Harn reaches
from the Anfla Island in the west to the Domid Island in
the east. The trade can be divided into two categories: )
local trade with the barbarian Adaenum and Gozyda
(Domid) fishermen, and the local Sarkum-Aleath line, 2)
regional trade from Golotha to Sarkum to Aleath and
from there on to Cherafir and beyond. The local trade
with the barbarian fishermen is handled in small boats,
and at most the Earl of Sarkum sponsors one or two me-
dium niviks or dragonships that need a pilot – to domi-
nate the Anfla Island. Again, the fishing activity in the
waters south of Kanday doesn’t require pilots, if not for
one or two larger whalers that sail far on the open seas.
The pilots operating locally number less than half a
dozen.
This means that most pilots in Sarkum and Aleath
serve on medium and large vessels sailing the Golotha–
THONAHEXUS Nº 8
AND THEN WE HIRE A PILOT … 4
NUMBER OF PILOTS OF WHICH
LOW MEDIUM HIGH HARBOURMASTERS
8 11 14 4
7 9 11 5
8 12 16 3
4 7 10 0
6 8 10 3
7 13 19 0
40 60 80 15
Sarkum–Aleath route and the route to Cherafir and be-
yond. These pilots, about a dozen of them, serve on both
niviks and daks, of which several are quite large. The ves-
sels sailing eastwards from Aleath usually form seasonal
convoys, and similar convoys (or one convoy only) from
Cherafir arrives to Aleath every year.
6. Conclusion
As a conclusion, we might give a regional breakdown of all
the pilots active in south-western Harn. These numbers
include the number of harbourmasters, which should be
subtracted to get the number of practicing pilots. The
number of harbourmasters has been derived from the
PILOTS’ ALMANAC [Port Almanac: Harn Region] assum-
ing that every listed port needs a harbourmaster, while
smaller docks can do without. The total number of prac-
tising pilots is simultaneously the number of medium and
large merchant vessels operating in the given region. The
percentage given for regional pilots includes the practic-
ing pilots only, the number of harbourmaster being added
to this. Again, these numbers are vague, and only show my
interpretation of the state of things. Because of the error
margins, three alternative numbers are given.
This table leads to several conclusions:
. The Harnic sources strongly support the interpreta-
tion that there are less than 50 and probably only
around 30 medium and large merchant vessels operat-
ing on the sea coasts of south-western Harn. Another
dozen medium merchant vessels operate on the Lake
Benath and River Tharda. (If the low end of the num-
ber of pilots is stressed, the whole of south-western
Harn would be served by some 25 medium and large
merchant vessels only!)
2. The number of pilots operating on River Thard is in-
significant. This is very interesting considering the pe-
tition of the Pilots’ Guild that is supposed to pass in
the Thardic Senate. If all vessels over 6 feet of length
on River Thard would require pilots, the importance
9
A N D T H E N WE HIRE A PILOT… 5
VESSEL TYPE MEDIUM
Talbar 12 (30'–40')
Nivik 12 (30'–50')
Dak 8 (50'–70')
Dragon 4 (60'–80')
Total: 36
of the Pilots’ Guild in Tharda would rise immensely. It
is questionable if the Pilots’ Guild can guarantee a pi-
lot for all the river craft that would require a pilot. This
lack might prove fatal for the river traffic, either stop-
ping a substantial part of it or making it mostly ille-
gal.
3. About half of the pilots operating on River Thard and
on Lake Benath are resident harbourmasters, while in
other regions the pilots are mostly navigators on mer-
chant vessels. This emphasizes the administrative role
of the Pilots’ Guild in the Thardic Republic, while in
the kingdoms the guild is concentrated on actual navi-
gation.
7. Excursion: vessel types
More can be said of the medium and large vessels operat-
ing on the waters of south-western Harn. Talbars of me-
dium size (30'–40') are used on Lake Benath, on River
Thard, and on western coastal waters. They number about
one dozen. Different types of medium and large merchant
vessels that can be called niviks are used on Lake Benath
and in all coastal waters. There are about one dozen me-
dium (30'–50') niviks, and half a dozen that can be called
large (50'–60'). In addition to the merchant vessels, me-
dium sized talbars and niviks are used for open sea fishing
and whaling.
Modern vessels with high freeboard and a steering
rudder, termed daks, are found in western and southern
regional trade only. They number about ten. Perhaps two
of the daks are large (70'+), representing the cutting edge
technology available at the Aleathian shipyard. In times of
war, these vessels are also used as navy ships, their high
freeboard and castles giving a marked advantage on lower
ships. The king of Kanday probably finances shares on
some daks, and is able to use them for naval warfare if
needed.
There are also a couple of sleek, oared warships, built
in the manner of Ivinian dragonships. These are owned by
the king of Rethem, the earl of Tormau, and the earl of
Sarkum (the king of Kanday uses hired daks for naval
warfare). Supported by several smaller craft, these ships
0
LARGE (FISHING) BURTHEN
— many 250
6 (50'–60') some 1,100
2 (70'+) — 2,200
1 (80'+) — 350
9 3,900
represent the standing navies of south-western Harn.
Their main function is to make and prevent coastal raids.
It is highly improbable that the shipwrights of south-
western Harn know how to build karunes or galleys
(larun) of the Venarian Sea type. Shipwrights, pilots,
merchants and seamen may have seen such vessels in
Cherafir, and some karunes may have visited Aleath or
even Golotha. However, these ships belong to a different
world. While the pilots of south-western Harn would
certainly find a Venarian rigged mesan mast useful in the
rugged seas around Harn, they handle their traditional
vessels with square sails, and manage well enough.
In a table form, the vessels can be roughly organized as
follows. If you decide to follow the higher or lower num-
ber of pilots, modify the numbers accordingly upwards or
downwards by 40 %. If you prefer to tone the Harnic tech-
nological level up or down, change the proportion of the
vessel types accordingly.
The burthen is the maximum, being lowered by crew
compartments, cabins and provision storages. It doesn’t
represent the maximum burthen available in the shipping
of south-western Harn, because local cargoes are often
transported in ships and boats less than 30' of length. It
should be noted, however, that the tunnage of the me-
dium and large ships is about 4,000, which equals the
tunnage of about 500 small talbars or ,000 large pindas.
Thus it is likely that the 45 or so medium and large vessels
transport an amount of goods equivalent to as much as
half the total goods transported yearly in south-western
Harn. At least they totally dominate the regional and in-
terregional trade.
Part III – Merchants
1. Merchants and mercantile routines in
south-western Harn
As it is normal for Harnic merchants to possess some
skills in arms, it seems that the Harnic merchant generally
resembles the merchant of the early medieval times. He is
less specialized and often travels with the goods himself.
Thus the number of resident merchants is small, while the
THONAHEXUS Nº 8

number of itinerant merchants is large. There are two spe-
cial types of itinerant merchants that deserve special no-
tion: those operating the caravan trade, and those serving
as supercargoes on merchant vessels.
2. Resident merchants
The number of resident merchants in south-western Harn
is perhaps around 0 % of the total merchants, their num-
ber being at the most 50. These merchants are the big men
with large assets. In Tharda they are either members of
the senatorial families or at least entertain tight contacts
with them. In Rethem and Kanday they are somewhat
less connected to the ruling elite, having more indepen-
dent positions as members of the Golothan and Aleathian
city councils and in the Merchants’ Guild.
Many big merchants have invested in shares of ships,
and some operate mainly as ship owners, having close
connections with the Shipwright’s Guild. There are also
other connections between the guilds. In Tharda, many
big merchants operate in salt and ore trade, having close
connections with the Salters’ and Miners’ Guilds, perhaps
being members in these guilds in addition to their mem-
bership in the Merchants’ Guild. Similarly, in Kanday
many big merchants operate in textile trade, having close
connections with the Clothiers’ Guild.
3. Merchants organizing the caravan trade
The next group in importance and wealth are merchants
organizing the caravan trade. They have assets and con-
tacts, and are well travelled. In order to be able to organize
matters between the realms of Rethem, Kanday, Tharda
and Kaldor, they keep a distance to local ruling elites, and
form a kind of community that meets physically in Dyrisa,
Coranan, Moleryn and Tashal. The elites don’t truly trust
them, as they might serve as agents of the enemy realm.
On the other hand, everyone knows that someone has to
do the job, and thus the caravan masters are tolerated. The
number of merchants not only taking part in but operat-
ing the caravan trade is two or three dozen.
4. Supercargoes
The supercargoes, or bonded merchants on merchant ves-
sels, form a group somewhat similar to the merchants op-
erating the caravan trade. They decide what is loaded on
the ships and where the cargo is sold. They are tightly con-
nected to merchants and ship owners in the major ports,
but because of their smaller assets and substantial inde-
pendence they don’t belong to the group of big mer-
chants.
The number of supercargoes on merchant vessels can-
not be higher than the number of the merchant vessels.
The following calculations are based on a medium num-
THONAHEXUS Nº 8
AND THEN WE HIRE A PILOT … 6
ber of pilots, from which the number of resident harbour-
masters has been subtracted. Because some vessels don’t
have bonded merchants, their number on medium and
large merchant vessels is probably smaller than the num-
ber of these vessels, ie. perhaps 30 or 40. On the other
hand, there are numerous small merchant vessels, and
some of them might have bonded master merchants, even
if it is somewhat questionable if ships operating with
small cargoes really can afford for such a luxury. All in all
the number of supercargoes is probably around 40–50.
5. Itinerant merchants
The rest of the merchants in south-western Harn, some
60–70 % or 200–250, operate in local trade, dealing with
local guildsmen, rural producers and bailiffs and nobles.
They travel between the markets of the countryside with
a group of mules or with a wagon, occasionally taking part
in the large seasonal caravans, and sometimes braving
risky routes that can result in high profits. Some own
small vessels and instead of trailing their routes overland,
sail from coastal village to coastal village. Some have con-
nections with the barbarians. A large number navigate the
rivers Thard and Eryn in boats 29' long.
Many small merchants have specialized in one or two
articles, and know the local producers and consumers per-
sonally. Sometimes it is hard to tell them apart from chan-
dlers, and the Chandlers’ Guild occasionally takes action
against too successful local merchants. Many of the small
merchants are happy with their profession, but some vie
for a position among the more successful merchants, gath-
ering more assets and more connections, and playing a
game of high stakes with mutual trust and guild politics.
Part IV – Retrospective
1. Maritime culture in south-western Harn
The small number of pilots and larger merchant vessels
on the south-western waters of Harn is a result of the low
population density of Harn. Small communities cannot
support large scale trade, or the vessels needed for such
trade. However, the small numbers have some interesting
consequences in the maritime culture of south-western
Harn.
First of all, larger ships (ships longer than 29') are spe-
cial. Few shipwrights know how to build them. Their ap-
pearance rouses feelings, and being a captain or a pilot of
such a ship is a great honour. All ships have names, and
the names of the large vessels are well-known in every
port, however small. Some ships, pilots and captains (usu-
ally those on the same ship) have legendary fames. Sea-
men serving on the large vessels sail farther, stay away
from home longer, and make better personal deals in far

A N D T H E N WE HIRE A PILOT… 7
away harbours. Little boys and deck hands on small boats
watch these ships with awe, dreaming of the adventures
the men on such ships experience.
Larger ships are expensive investments, and require
much care. Maritime laws and the whole Pilots’ Guild are
centred on managing such ships. Only a handful of har-
bours have facilities for the daks, so that they especially
are concentrated on regional routes between major ports,
Golotha, Aleath and Cherafir. Because of their expensive-
ness, the owners of the ships consider long before letting
the ships to be used in hazardous waters or in military
affairs. This makes sea battles between major ships ex-
tremely rare. The possibility of losing such a ship with its
pilot and experienced crew is too large a risk for most ship
owners. Of course, the kings and some earls are a special
case, having large, stable incomes.
In the end the small number of medium and large
ships makes it possible to write descriptions of all of them,
giving much colour to a maritime campaign. It is not an
insurmountable task to invent names and personal histo-
ries for the more important owners, captains and pilots.
Their connections with each other and with the mercan-
tile and political elites could lead into several scenarios
that need not necessarily involve actual maritime routines.
In the case of the pilots, creating the whole Pilots’ Guild
for south-western Harn could be possible.
2. Is this realistic?
A central question for texts describing Harnic phenom-
ena is their “realness” – however schizophrenic that might
sound when speaking of a fantasy world. But the principle
in creating Harn has been its “realness”. The Harnic
sources imply a clearly defined socio-economic and tech-
nological level, resembling the situation in medieval Eng-
land and Western Europe in general. Thus we might ask if
it is “realistic” to have only 45 medium and large merchant
vessels operating on the waters of south-western Harn,
and only some 20 of them sailing on regional routes, con-
necting Golotha and Aleath with Cherafir.
First we have to find parallels in medieval Europe. The
civilized population of south-western Harn is about
300,000. If we include the southern Kubora, the Adae-
num, the Gozyda and the western Tulwyn, the total pop-
ulation of the Harnic south-western economic area still
remains under 350,000. Considering the British Isles,
south-western Harn best parallels the position of south-
ern Ireland with ports like Limerick, Cork, Waterford
and Westford. The connections of south-western Harn
with Cherafir and other major Lythian ports can be
2
compared with the medieval connections of southern
Ireland to the major ports in the region of the English
Channel, like Rouen, Boulogne and Brugge. Both the
socio-economic situation and the distances fall reason-
ably close to each other.
But the problem here is the existence of middlemen:
the ports in southern and south-western England, like
Bristol and Southampton, apparently controlled the trade
between Irish and Channel ports. Harn has no equivalent
for such middle ports in the Ederwynic Gulf, meaning that
the goods of south-western Harn are not traded in, say,
Evael, Belna Island or at the mouth of River Ulmerien, but
taken directly to Cherafir. Thus we find out that the me-
dieval British Isles do not resemble Harn in this aspect.
More importantly, we lack statistical data of the number
of Irish ships visiting the English or the Channel ports in
the early or high medieval period. It is probable that Irish
ships didn’t operate much further than the Irish Sea.
Another potential comparative situation can be found
on the 4th and 5th century Baltic Sea. Here, medieval
Finland was a periphery with estimated 300,000 people,
connected to the major Hanseatic ports like Lubeck and
Gdansk. Again, both the socio-economic situation and
the distances fall reasonably close to the situation of
south-western Harn. And – here we can find some data
on the number of ships! Finnish ships visiting Lubeck in
the late 4th century numbered less than ten yearly. A cen-
tury later, Finnish ships visiting Gdansk numbered be-
tween 4 and 38 yearly. We should bear in mind that ships
might have sailed the route more than once per year, as is
attested by several sources. Also, the size of the ships is
not given, meaning that there might have been a number
of smaller ships. Even mere boats made such long trips, as
is attested by other sources.
There were, however, plenty of middlemen between
Finland and the Hanseatic ports: namely the cities and
citizens of Stockholm, Reval and possibly Riga. This
means that goods to and from Finland travelled also in
foreign ships, meaning that actual shiploads passing be-
tween Finland and the Hanseatic cities were larger than
the shiploads transported directly. Thus there are impor-
tant problems also with this parallel case.
But this is as close to a reality check we can get. Over-
all, the magnitude of shipping between Finland and the
Hanseatic ports seems to resemble the shipping between
south-western Harn and Cherafir, the numbers of larger
ships being counted in tens and twenties, the local coastal
and river trade remaining foremost a realm of small ships
and boats. m
THONAHEXUS Nº 8
 AND THEN WE HIRE A PILOT … 8

S O U T H -W E S T E R N H A R N A N D R E G I O NAL TR ADING VOYAGES

The pilots and merchants of south-west-

ern Harn mostly make local or short voy-
ages, very few of them risking longer voy-
ages. This has a profound effect on the use
of maritime trade voyage generation table
on Maritime Trade 2 (PILOTS’ ALMANAC)
– the vessels of south-western Harn gen-
erally do not sail on longer than short voy-
ages, but trade in Cherafir for products of
the larger Lythian trade. The possible ex-
ceptions are voyages to Sea of Ivae (as far
as Chelemby) and the Ederwynic Gulf (to
Emelrene, Palithane and Tarkain). Voy-
ages possible and typical for vessels of
south-western Harn can be summarized
as follows.

FROM GOLOTHA VOYAGE SHIPS NO. OF VOYAGES/YEAR TYPE OF VOYAGES

west to Peran Local all types several single vessels

south to Sarkum Local all types several single vessels

south to Aleath Short niviks and daks one or two small convoys

FROM ALEATH VOYAGE SHIPS NO. OF VOYAGES/YEAR TYPE OF VOYAGES

west to Golotha Short niviks and daks one or two small convoys

west to Sarkum/Anfla Local all types several single vessels

east to Domid I. Local all types several single vessels

east to Cherafir Short niviks and daks one or two large convoys

east to SW Sea of Ivae¹⁾ Medium only daks one or none ³⁾

east to Emelrene Short niviks and daks one ³⁾

east to Palithane/Tarkain Medium only daks one or none ³⁾

south to Hepekeria²⁾ Medium only daks one or none ⁴⁾

¹⁾ Thay/Eshapel/Karemus/Chelemby.
²⁾ Hegovnis/Isynen.
³⁾ The Aleathian convoys reaching Cherafir might sail on to Emelrene and sometimes as far as Sea of Ivae or Palithane and Tarkain. Such
voyages are planned well ahead, and goods meant to be sold in distant harbours may wait for the shipping for a year or even longer.
Trips to Thay may be made by single vessels, departing from the Cherafir convoy, but all other trips involve several ships, mostly daks.
It is also possible for ships to join convoys starting in Cherafir.
⁴⁾ Aleathians probably know that there is land on the southern side of the Gulf of Ederwyn (thinking of why they call it “gulf ”…). To
reach this land is very hazardous, and it is possible that voyages to reach this land have never been made. On the other hand, trading
with the Hepekerian ports without paying the tolls in Cherafir can be lucrative. A direct route to Hepekeria is, however, almost impos-
sible for the shipping technology of south-western Harn. The direct trip to Hepekeria would take about one month, and the risks of
the open ocean are tremendous. However, bypassing Cherafir and sailing to Hepekeria via Plaithane and Tarkain might be an option.

THONAHEXUS Nº 8 3
S C E N A R I O WRITING 1
Sins of Scenario Writers
Views on adventure writing from an alternate reality.
By JemyM and others of Yog-Sothoth discussion forum. Slight editing by Joe Adams.
HIS ARTICLE HAS been compiled from a dis-
T
�
cussion on adventures that have been published
for the CALL OF CTHULHU (CoC) role-playing
game. The thread was written as a conversation directed
at scenario writers. It points out several style issues for
RPG writers and, while not all of the pointers are germane
to every adventure, the tips are worth thinking about.
Despite the differences in settings and tone, there are
many good tips that can be gleaned from these complaints
from CoC Keepers. Although the text has been edited to
reflect the terms used by a Harn or fantasy RPG gamemas-
ter, the ideas are very similar.
An open letter to scenario writers
In my days I have read quite a few scenarios, good and
bad. After spending a lot of time with one in particular I
felt I had to write the following. Maybe it is mostly my
taste, but still:
Do not write a whole scene as a
“read-out-loud” section
Let a gamemaster visualize their own version of the story
with the components you (the scenario writer) give him.
“The Baron will tell them about Cherafir and the Alien-
age” is better than a 0-line quote from the Baron. Beyond
a colorful description of the room, the Baron (if someone
cared to look) or some gathered quotes, you must first as-
sume that the players would not pass through your scene
as you intended it.
Do not assume a gamemaster can memorize
10+ pages of unformatted/novelized text
Do not write scenes like a novel. Instead, write it like you
are writing a For Dummies manual. It should take less than
ten seconds in low light to find important information
when it is needed.
4
Divide text with easy-to-find-when-you-look-for-
●
something headers.
● Avoid excess text and focus on important facts and
content. Gamemasters like concise overviews that
describe the minimum of what they need to know.
● Build a bullet list of “important things” and let the
gamemaster inject those things himself.
● Generally avoid longer blocks of text.
● Highlight important things like locations, full names,
quest items, etc. with bold, underline or italic.
● Provide suggestions for how the scenario could be in-
troduced. Flexibility is important here, for the sake of
gamemasters with long running campaigns (and
thereby an already-determined set of player charac-
ters).
Do not invent custom rules
List important skill rolls, even copy parts from the book
or list the page in the rulebook but let the gamemaster use
the rules they wish.
For example:
● Do not write tables of “roll on this to see what hap-
pens”.
● Do not create sub-games like how to find something
in a ruin or how long it takes to bash down the stone
door with no danger involved.
● Do not speak in rounds if combat is not initiated, like
“after 2d6 rounds the important non-player character
will arrive through the door” or “after 0 rounds of
knocking the neighbour will ask what’s going on”.
● Do not add dice rolls with results that have no signifi-
cance to the story like “roll Spot Check to see that the
house is actually blue” or “rain has fallen and streets are
slippery, roll dex to see if they fall or not”.
Do summarize everything
Spoil the gamemaster with short versions of each impor-
tant parts of the scenario; such as a quick layout of the
THONAHEXUS Nº 8

important house, a timeline, a series of events, a “scenario
map” with key locations, a list of non-player characters
and a short version of the story. Let them know on the
first page how you want the story to be told and what
events will follow throughout the scenario, using just a
few lines.
When I read an area I need:
. First sight description
2. Gamemaster information (out-of-first-sight info like
clues to be found)
For non-player characters I need:
. First sight description
2. Ways to interact with the character, including useful
quotes
3. Gamemaster information
4. Stats
I would also like some kind of overview for locations and
some kind of overview for the relations between non-
player characters.
If I got that I would pretty much be able to play right
out of the book.
Do include Handouts
I love getting things as a player. I am one of those “record-
ers” every group seems to have. I make notes on everything
and I publish recaps in the e-mail for all the other players
before the next game begins. Having something tangible
to go over and over and find the clues in (especially when
it isn’t “my turn”) my character’s downtime is… so… good.
And I love it as a gamemaster. It helps me keep track of
what I’ve done and what I’ve said. It also makes things
easier in knowing what information the players actually
remember. My players, unlike me, don’t take notes, much
to their detriment. So, if I can look through their folder of
handouts at the end of the night they’ve discovered, I
know what can happen next and can tell them to look over
the evidence again, instead of just having to remind them,
bluntly, of what they know and accidentally give some-
thing away, because you used gamemaster-Sight and
didn’t realize the players haven’t put 2+2 together yet, and
ruined that “moment” for them without meaning to.
About Timelines
I love timelines. Especially as a gamemaster. After a book
goes missing, or they talk to someone, or cops get called. It
all helps reflect what’s going on in the world around them.
“Three days after the investigators visit the cultist hide-
out, the place is cleaned out and all evidence of the cultists
THONAHEXUS Nº 8
SCENARIO WRITIN G 2
has been removed, except for one video tape that shows
the investigators walking around the compound, and a
note saying, “We know who you are now. You will not see
us again, except when the stars are right and your death is
at hand.”
I like that added touch of realism. People escape. Evi-
dence gets destroyed. Things go wrong and then the in-
vestigators just can’t figure things out anymore, because
they lost/missed/forgot that one vital clue they can’t go
back and get. Timelines reveal that the world isn’t a vac-
uum that only exists when the players are there.
In terms of discussing twists, many adventures either
do not have enough red herrings or the ones they have are
obvious. An experienced crew will shred a bad red her-
ring, but a few plausible ones will often get even very expe-
rienced investigators bent out of shape trying to piece-it-
all-together. Of course, too many might sidetrack the
adventure in a negative way.
Aside from timelines, action triggered events offer a
flexible, preferably redundant set of methods by which
the player characters could acquire the necessary clues to
proceed with the scenario. These, coupled with broad sug-
gestions for the gamemaster as to what might happen if
the scenario plays out in various likely ways. Say, take the
3 or 4 most obvious approaches that the player characters
might take, and broadly what shape the scenario might be
expected to take under those circumstances.
For brief (essentially one-act) modules this can be
done for the module as a whole. For a module with a lot of
sub-sections, it is helpful to have a write up like this per
scenario. Many gamemasters prefer an “if this then that”
style of plotting. This allows them to adjust when the
player characters move between approaches, as often hap-
pens when clues are event driven.
As with most things in life, read the above and remem-
ber that your mileage may vary. Not every opinion ex-
pressed is necessarily workable in ever adventure module.
m
5
B U I L D I N G A MANOR 1
Building a Manor
A short explanation of how long, it takes to build a manor.
By George Kelln and Joe Adams.
VENTUALLY, EVERY GAMEMASTER is faced with
�E the challenges of building a manor. Whether a
long-term character has collected enough
wealth and power to be rewarded with land or a group of
player characters finds employment as craftsmen or la-
bourers, the task of describing how a manor gets built can
be daunting. This article describes the construction of a
manor from the ground up. While the site described in
the following text is in Kaldor, the process and costs are
similar in any of the other kingdoms on Hârn or the
Lythian continent.
Background
Fortifications have existed on Hârn for hundreds of years.
When the warlike Lythians began to cross the Sea of Ivae
and the Gulf of Ederwyn, they raided settlements along
eastern and southern Hârn. This aggression forced the
Sindarin King, Daelda, to order all coastal settlements
fortified and garrisoned. The Jarin lords built timber and
earth fortifications where they could be safe from the
Lythian raiders.
These fortifications consisted of a motte and bailey.
The bailey was the main enclosure. It contained the do-
mestic buildings for the manor house, including stables,
hall, kitchen, chapel, and workshop for the garrison. A
roughly circular ditch ringed the bailey. The earth that
was removed from the ditch was piled in the center as a
bank to raise the wall of the bailey. A wooden palisade was
constructed on top of the bank with a wall-walk from
which soldiers could stand guard.
The main defence of the fortification was the motte, a
steep mound on which a wooden or stone tower was built.
Mottes could be natural or man-made and were placed off
center of the bailey. The mottes were between 0 and 00
feet tall, with their bases being between 00 and 300 feet in
diameter. A ditch was dug around the bottom of the motte
and provided access to the bailey via a short drawbridge.
6
The primary reason for building a motte and bailey
fort was defence. A lord that raised a tower on a motte
gained a tremendous tactical advantage over a would-be
attacker. There was, however, a secondary reason – that of
making a statement about the lord’s wealth and power.
The writings of an early Shorkyni chronicler pointed out
both of these reasons in his travel diary of Melderyn:
“The richest and noblest men have a practice, in order to pro-
tect themselves from their enemies, and … to subdue those
weaker, of raising … an earthen mound of the greatest pos-
sible height, cutting a wide ditch around it, fortifying its up-
per edge with square timbers tied together as in a wall, creat-
ing towers around it and building inside a house or citadel
that dominates the whole structure.”
There are motte and bailey fortifications in almost every
hundred of Hârn. These relatively inexpensive defences
guard villages and manors from Melderyn to Kaldor to
Rethem. The rest of this article describes the process of
building a motte and bailey style fortification. Starting
with the granting of a crenellation license, our future lord
assembles his work force and begins construction.
The Story of Zhel Manor
Sir Ethyn Stiroc, knight of Kaldor and formerly of the
household of the Earl of Vemion, has received a grant of
,800 acres from the Earl of the Vemionshire. The manor,
which in ancient times was called Zhel, is centered on the
junction of the Silver Way and Nenda Road in the Hun-
dred of Thicesund. In addition to the lands, Sir Ethyn was
also granted a License to Crenellate from the crown.
License to Crenellate …
The License to Crenellate gives a fortification official sta-
tus. Without this document, a tenant-in-chief, in this case
the Earl of Vemion or possibly the Baron of Nenda, could
THONAHEXUS Nº 8

claim the illegal fortification as his own or could require
Sir Ethyn to destroy the manor house, as it poses a threat
to the lawfully recognized overlord.
Miginath, King
To all those whom it may concern, greetings.
Know ye, that, of our special favour, we have for our-
selves and our heirs, granted and given special licence to our
trusty and well-beloved Ethyn Stiroc, knight, that he may be
permitted to fortify and crenellate his Manor House of Zhel
in the Hundred of Thicesund with a wall of timber, in the
defence of the country and in order to resist our enemies.
We further give permission to the said Ethyn, and his
heirs, to occupy the house so fortified and crenellated for ever,
without let or hindrance either from ourselves, our heirs, or
any other whether our bailiffs or other officers whatsoever.
In witness whereof etc. Given by the King at Tashal, 5th
Nuzyael by a brief and under our private seal.
Once Sir Ethyn has the License to Crenellate, he can be-
gin the process of gathering materiel and workers for his
project.
Stage One – Assemble of
work force at Nenda
Hiring and assembling the work force should be done at a
location that is both central to a populated area and in
close proximity to the construction site. Sir Ethyn’s first
and most important act will be to hire a Master Engineer,
THONAHEXUS Nº 8
BUILDING A MANO R 2
the man who will act as the catalyst for the entire opera-
tion. Mostly likely, the Master Engineer will be a Master
Mason with previous castle building experience. In Sir
Ethyn’s case he is fortunate to find Master Korlis Dandril,
a respected engineer from Thay, to lead the project.
Master Korlis will confer with Sir Ethyn on the loca-
tion, design, and cost of the fortification and, once satis-
fied, will start to gather his work force by sending word to
the local guilds for the required tradesmen. Master Korlis’
reputation has a lot of influence in gathering of this work
force. Guilds will want to spread the work among all their
members, but often prefer to send their best tradesmen to
those sites that are managed by more reputed Master En-
gineers. Each Master Craftsmen will bring his own jour-
neymen and apprentices, as well as any tools that they re-
quire.
Master Korlis will also have to hire labourers and mer-
cenaries. Again, his reputation and previous experience
will save time and money by having contacts from previ-
ous construction projects, Master Korlis can call on a
group of labourers and mercenaries who have previously
worked with him and are familiar, if not loyal, to him. All
he has to do then is to word to surrounding towns and
cities to start gathering the help he needs. Workers will
trickle into Nenda throughout the spring. A temporary
tent encampment is to set up along the northern bank of
the Seleme River to house the workers until it is time to
depart. The expedition will consist of over 200 people and
is divided as in Table .
7
B U I L D I N G A MANOR 3
While the work force gathers, Master Korlis works
with the other Masters and Sir Ethyn’s Chamberlain on
the administration and logistics of the project. Provisions,
supplies, and equipment must be purchased well enough
in advance to have everything ready for day the work force
moves to the construction site. Sites for a stone quarry
and stands of trees for construction must be identified. If
necessary, workmen must set up quarries and sawmills to
ensure that raw materials will begin to arriving shortly
after the site at Zhel is established.
Stage Two – Move to crossroads
When the day comes to depart, the assembled work force
will head north to the crossroads – a distance of about 0
leagues and a two-day journey. Each day of the journey
starts before dawn as the teamsters curse and cajole their
beasts into the traces. Despite what seems to be chaos, the
group moves with precision and in an orderly manner.
Several hundred people must walk in the same direction,
at relatively the same speed, all without wandering off or
getting lost. They must bring everything they will need to
get themselves set up and running before any thought of
re-supply can occur.
The Huntsman and his hunters will depart first, leav-
ing shortly after sunrise to scout the road ahead for the
slow moving group. The mercenaries form a screen around
the wagons, as the work force snakes it way through the
wilderness to the construction site. The caravan travels to
the work site, resting regularly on route to ensure that the
men and animals are not exhausted. That night the cara-
van halts in a suitable location identified by the scouts
earlier in the day. The lord will post guards about the pe-
rimeter of the caravan. The second day begins much the
same as the first and, as wagons trudge along the road,
scouts reconnoitre the crossroad and locate a suitable lo-
cation for the temporary encampment. The lord stops the
caravan well short of the crossroads, posts guards, and
moves forward with the Master Engineer to confirm the
site located by the scouts. Once satisfied of the location,
the lord orders the caravan forward and camp is immedi-
ately set up.
Stage Three – Construction of
temporary fortification
Once the work force’s caravan has arrived at the selected
site, the work force is still vulnerable to attack and must be-
gin construction of a temporary fortification as a soon as
possible. This will be a circular palisade that will house the
workmen and offer a degree of protection from wild beasts
and the local tribesmen. The fortification will be laid out by
8
the Master Korlis and constructed under the supervision
of the Master Woodcrafter. He will oversee the construc-
tion of the palisade, interior buildings, barracks, and pens
for animals. This work is arranged in three phases as shown
in Table 2, and will use the entire work force.
While the woodcrafters and the labourers construct
the temporary camp, no one is idle. Mercenaries patrol the
surrounding area. Hunting and foraging parties search for
wild game, edible plants, and sources of wood for fire and
building. Sir Ethyn and Master Korlis reconnoitre the
permanent fortification site. This site will attempt to make
use of pre-existing natural defences, such as watercourses,
hills, and difficult terrain. Master Korlis will begin sur-
veying the site before drawing detailed plans for the manor
house.
Stage Four – Construction of
permanent fortification
Master Korlis wastes no time. As soon as the detailed plan
is drawn, his assistants, the Lexigraphers, mark off the lo-
cations of all the main walls for the motte, bailey, gate-
house, and buildings. This stage of the construction effort
is broken down into two phases, as detailed in Table 4.
Stage Five – Dismantling of
temporary fortification
Once the permanent fortification is complete the tempo-
rary fortification will be dismantled with the material be-
ing used to construct the villagers’ houses.
Stage Six – Construction of
tollhouse
As a major source of income Sir Ethyn Stiroc, Lord of
Zhel, will construct a temporary tollhouse along the Sil-
ver Way and begin charging a toll. Once the manor is bet-
ter established and more funds and workmen become
available, a fortified stone tower will replace the wooden
structure. These are detailed in Table 4.
Stage Seven – Clearing of land
for village
Most of the initial settlers will be farmers from the more
central settled areas of the kingdom. These settlers will
look to acquire large plots of uncultivated lands to clear
and better support their families. While most of these set-
tlers will be freemen, hard times, bad luck, and poor har-
vests will be forced to enter into servile service of the local
lord.
THONAHEXUS Nº 8
 BUILDING A MANO R 4

The village will be sited where the temporary fortifica- Open areas are grassy clearings interspersed in wood-
tion stood with the main buildings remodelled to house land and forests. These areas maybe natural, cleared by
guildsmen, such as the metalsmith, woodcrafter, and wild fire, or the result of human or animal intervention.
miller. Still other buildings will be disassembled and Open areas are most likely to occur within civilized areas
moved to better location or used as materials for new and contain the odd stand of trees, no more than 0% of
buildings. A typical “three-bay peasant cottage” is wood- the area.
framed, wattle and daub construction, with a thatched
roof. The building is interconnected by adding a new bay Land Clearance
and removing an old one. Typically, one bay will be a barn (Length-ft × Width-ft) × Rate
for livestock and tool storage, one a kitchen (and living LAND BEING CLEARED RATE IN MAN DAYS
room), and one a bedroom. The sleeping chamber might
Dense Woods 0.06
be partitioned for privacy, depending on the size and
Forest/Woods 0.04
wealth of the family. The cottage of a serf is property of
Open 0.02
the lord, but the tenant is responsible for its upkeep and
can be fined for failing to maintain the dwelling in good For example, Rolf the Serf has being granted 3 acres of
condition. Woods to farm by Sir Ethyn Stiroc, Lord of Zhel. Rolf
Table 5 shows the time and cost required to build a wants to clear the land so as to plant additional crops.
typical three-bay peasant cottage, by unskilled labourers.
Acres to be cleared =3
Stage Eight – Clearing of land  Acres = 4,700 sq.ft
Total Area = 44,00 sq.ft
for fields Land Clearance = (l × w) × rate
The lord’s gardeners with the assistance of any labourers Type of Ground = Woods (0.04)
that can be spared, will initially do the clearance of land 44,00 × 0.04 = ,764 man-days
for cultivation and then only to plant a small amount of Regrowth = 2% per year (882 sq.ft)
herbs and vegetables for the kitchen. The real clearance of Total time = 2,646 man-days
the crop fields will be done by the peasants.
For land clearance there are three types: Dense Woods, Therefore it would take Rolf 2,646 man-days, or 7 years, 4
Forest/Woods, and Open which is multiplied by the rate months, 6 days to clear the 3 acres of woods in order to
that it would require a man to make it ready for planting plant his crops by himself. This would be highly impracti-
crops. cal and villagers would naturally team together to clear
Dense Woods is considered to be the Mixed Forests on larger portions of land in much faster time. Thus in the
Hârn which contain needleleaf evergreens, needleleaf de- new settlement of Zhel, the 0 families- consisting of 35
ciduous, and summer green deciduous trees. All three villagers of working age- band together to clear 5 acres of
types need not be present but, by definition, at least two Dense forest, 5 acres of woods, and 0 acres of open
will occur. ground.
Forest/Woods are areas where the tree canopy shades at Therefore it would take 826 man-days, or 2 years, 3
least 50% of the ground are considered forest; areas with a months, 6 days to clear the 30 acres of heavily forested
tree canopy between 5% and 50% are considered wood- land¹. This time and effort is why uncultivated lands on
land. the borders is much more difficult to turn into farmland.
m

¹ CALCULATIONS:
Land Clearance + Regrowth = Time in man-days
Dense Woods (22,500 sq.ft x 0.06) + (22,500 sq.ft x .02) = 9,800 man-days
Woods (220,500 sq.ft x 0.04) + (220,500 sq.ft x .02) = 3,230 man-days
Open (47,000 sq.ft x 0.02) + (47,000 sq.ft x .02) = 5,880 man-days
Number of villagers = 35
(Dense Woods + Woods + Open) / # of workers
(9800 + 3230 + 5880) / 35 = 28,90 man-days

THONAHEXUS Nº 8 9
B U I L D I N G A MANOR 5

TA B L E 1
POSITION #-OF SALARY/ TOTAL TRADE MASTER
MONTH
The Lord 1 — — — The Earl of Vemion
Squire 1 — — — The Lord
Master Engineer 1 120d 120d — The Lord
Master Mason 1 96d 96d Mason Master Engineer
Journeyman 3 48d 144d Mason Master Mason
Apprentice 3 10d 30d Mason Master Mason
Master Woodcrafter 1 66d 66d Woodcrafter Master Engineer
Journeyman 3 33d 99d Woodcrafter Master Woodcrafter
Apprentice 3 7d 21d Woodcrafter Master Woodcrafter
Head Teamster 1 72d 72d Teamster Master Engineer
Teamster 12 42d 504d Teamster Head Teamster
Apprentice 12 6d 72d Teamster Head Teamster
Master Timberwright 1 78d 78d Timberwright Master Engineer
Journeyman 3 39d 117d Timberwright Master Timberwright
Apprentice 3 8d 24d Timberwright Master Timberwright
Master Metalsmith 1 60d 60d Metalsmith Master Engineer
Journeyman 3 30d 90d Metalsmith Master Metalsmith
Apprentice 3 6d 18d Metalsmith Master Metalsmith
Head Thatcher 1 48d 48d Thatcher Master Engineer
Journeyman 3 24d 72d Thatcher Head Thatcher
Apprentice 3 6d 18d Thatcher Head Thatcher
Foreman 5 42d 210d General Labour Master Engineer
Labourer 95 36d 3,240d General Labour Foreman
Head Huntsman 1 42d 42d Hunters The Lord
Hunters 9 36d 324d Hunters Head Huntsman
Physician 1 60d 60d Medical Master Engineer
Apprentice 1 6d 6d Medical Physician
Lexigrapher 1 66d 66d Mapping Master Engineer
Apprentice 2 6d 12d Mapping Lexigrapher
MERCENARY COMPANY
Molarin (LF) 1 42d 42d Household Guard The Lord
Melbrin (LF Bowman) 1 72d 72d Household Guard Molarin
Arkalin (LF) 1 30d 30d Household Guard Molarin
Arkalin (LF Bowman) 1 60d 60d Household Guard Molarin
Molak (LF) 12 24d 288d Household Guard Molarin
Molak (LF Bowman) 4 48d 192d Household Guard Molarin
HOUSEHOLD STAFF
Chamberlain 1 66d 66d Household Staff The Lord
Head Cook 1 30d 30d Household Staff Chamberlain
Cooks 5 24d 120d Household Staff Head Cook
Scullery Maids 6 3d 18d Household Staff Head Cook
Alewife 6 30d 180d Household Staff Chamberlain
Baker 6 30d 180d Household Staff Chamberlain
Domestics 6 24d 144d Household Staff Chamberlain
Gardeners 2 30d 60d Household Staff Chamberlain
The work force will total 23 men and women, with a monthly salary of £29 s9 5d (7,9d). In addition to 2 wagons and 48 oxen.

20 THONAHEXUS Nº 8
 BUILDING A MANO R 6

TA B L E 2
TEMPORARY FORTIFICATION TIME IN MAN DAYS COST IN PENCE
Phase 1 – Construction of Perimeter Defences (Table 2A) 213.6 28,950.0
Phase 2 – Construction of Interior Buildings (Table 2B – see p. 21) 117.0 13,092.0
Phase 3 – Construction of Workmen Barracks (Table 2C) 220.0 24,400.0
TOTAL 550.6 66,442.0
Construction Time Based on 33 Skilled workers and 100 Unskilled labours 6 days

TA B L E 2 A – P H A S E 1 : C O N S T R U C T I ON OF PERIMETER DEFENCES
TASK SUB-TASK TIME IN MAN DAYS COST IN PENCE
Wooden Palisade Logs (579'×10') 213.6 28,950.0
TOTAL 213.6 28,950.0

TA B L E 2 C – P H A S E 3 : C O N S T R U C T I ON OF WORKMEN BARR ACKS

TASK SUB-TASK TIME IN MAN DAYS COST IN PENCE
50 man Barracks Site clearing, In Open 10.0 100.0
(50'×20'×10') Foundation & Floor (1000 sq.ft) 20.0 2,000.0
1-ft Wattle & Daub Walls 20.0 3,000.0
Thatched Roof (1000 sq.ft) 5.0 1,000.0
SUB-TOTAL 55.0 6,100.0
TOTAL OF 4 BARRACKS 220.0 24,400.0

TA B L E 3 A
PERMANENT FORTIFICATION TIME IN MAN DAYS COST IN PENCE
Phase 1 – Construction of Bailey 2,349.70 192,719.4
Phase 2 – Construction of Motte 1,732.07 232,157.7
TOTAL 4,081.77 424877.1
Construction Time Based on 33 Skilled workers and 100 Unskilled labours 41 days

TA B L E 3 B – M O T T E
TASK SUB-TASK TIME IN MAN DAYS COST IN PENCE
Site Preparation Motte Site Clearance (2,827 sq.ft) 28.27 282.7
Motte Ditch (188'×10'×10') 376.00 18,800.0
Motte Palisade (157'×15') 94.20 11,775.0
SUB-TOTAL 498.47 30,857.7

Tower Foundation & Floor (400 sq.ft) 24.0 2,400.0

(20'×20'×30') 2-ft Fortified Dressed Walls 960.0 162,000.0
Slate Roof (400 sq.ft) 8.0 2,000.0
(3) Stone Fireplace (3'×30') 36.0 1,350.0
SUB-TOTAL 1,028 167,750.0
Interior Finishing 205.6 33,550.0
TOTAL 1,233.6 201,300.0

Site Preparation 498.47 30,857.7

Tower 1,233.6 201,300.0
TOTAL 1,732.07 232,157.7

THONAHEXUS Nº 8 2
B U I L D I N G A MANOR 7

TA B L E 2 B – P H A S E 2 : C O N S T R U C T I ON OF INTERIOR BUILDINGS
TASK SUB-TASK TIME IN MAN DAYS COST IN PENCE
Lodging for Lord Site clearing, In Open 4.5 45.0
(30'×15'×10') Foundation & Floor (450 sq.ft) 18.0 1,800.0
1-ft Wattle & Daub Walls 9.0 1,350.0
Thatched Roof (450 sq.ft) 2.25 450.0
Stone Fireplace (3'×10') 4.0 450.0
SUB-TOTAL 37.75 4,095.0
Interior Finishing 7.55 819.0
TOTAL 45.3 4,914.0

Lodging for Master Engineer Site clearing, In Open 2.0 20.0

(20'×10'×10') Foundation & Floor (200 sq.ft) 4.0 400.0
1-ft Wattle & Daub Walls 4.0 600.0
Thatched Roof (200 sq.ft) 1.0 200.0
Stone Fireplace (3'×10') 4.0 450.0
SUB-TOTAL 15.0 1,670.0
Interior Finishing 3.0 344.0
TOTAL 18.0 2,004.0

Kitchen Site clearing, In Open 2.2 22.0

(20'×12'×10') Cellar Excavated (10'×10'×7') 14.0 700.0
Foundation & Floor (220 sq.ft) 4.4 440.0
1-ft Wattle & Daub Walls 4.4 660.0
Thatched Roof (220 sq.ft) 1.1 220.0
Stone Fireplace (3'×10') 4.0 450.0
TOTAL 30.1 2,492.0

Forge Site clearing, In Open 0.8 8.0

(10'×8'×10') Foundation & Floor (80 sq.ft) 3.6 360.0
1-ft Wattle & Daub Walls 1.6 240.0
Thatched Roof (80 sq.ft) 0.4 80.0
Stone Fireplace (3'×10') 4.0 450.0
TOTAL 10.4 1,138.0

Barn Site clearing, In Open 2.4 24.0

(20'×12'×15') Foundation & Floor (240 sq.ft) 4.8 480.0
1-ft Wattle & Daub Walls 4.8 720.0
Thatched Roof (240 sq.ft) 1.2 240.0
TOTAL 13.2 2,544.0

Lodging for Lord 45.3 4,914.0

Lodging for Master Engineer 18.0 2,004.0
Kitchen 30.1 2,492.0
Forge 10.4 1,138.0
Barn 13.2 2,544.0
TOTAL 117.0 13,092.0

22 THONAHEXUS Nº 8
 BUILDING A MANO R 8

TA B L E 3 A – B A I L E Y
TASK SUB-TASK TIME IN MAN DAYS COST IN PENCE
Site Preparation Bailey Site Clearance (15,394 sq.ft) 153.94 1,539.4
Bailey Ditch (503'×10'×10') 1,006.00 50,300.0
Bailey Palisade (440'×15') 264.00 33,000.0
Well (5'×5'×100') 50.00 2,500.0
SUB-TOTAL 1,473.9 87,339.4

Gate House Foundation & Floor (100 sq.ft) 2.0 200.0

(10'×10'×15') 1-ft Wood Framed Walls 60.0 7,500.0
SUB-TOTAL 62.0 7,700.0

Stables Foundation & Floor (800 sq.ft) 16.0 1,600

(40'×20'×15') Wood Frame Walls (1-ft thick) 48.0 6,000
Thatched Roof (800 sq.ft) 4.0 800
TOTAL 68.0 8,400.0

Great Hall Cellar Excavation, (40'×25'×8') 160.0 8,000.0

(40'×25'×15') Foundation & Floor (1000 sq.ft) 60.0 6,000.0
2-ft Fortified Dressed Stone Walls 120.0 27,000.0
Slate Roof (1000 sq.ft) 20.0 5,000.0
Stone Fireplace (3'×15') 6.0 675.0
SUB-TOTAL 366.0 46,675.0
Interior finishing 73.2 9,335.0
TOTAL 439.2 56,010.0

Kitchen Cellar Excavation, (20'×20'×7') 56.0 2,800.0

(20'×20'×10') Foundation & Floor (400 sq.ft) 16.0 1,600.0
Wood Frame Walls (1-ft thick) 16.0 2,000.0
Slate Roof (400 sq.ft) 8.0 2,000.0
Stone Fireplace (3'×10') 4.0 450.0
SUB-TOTAL 100.0 8,850.0
Interior finishing 20.0 1,770.0
TOTAL 120.0 10,620.0

Barn Foundation & Floor (600 sq.ft) 12.0 1,200

(30'×20'×15') Wood Frame Walls (1-ft thick) 36.0 4,500
Thatched Roof (600 sq.ft) 3.0 600
TOTAL 57.0 6,360

Chapel Foundation & Floor (600 sq.ft) 36.0 3,600.0

(30'×20'×15') Fieldstone Walls (1-ft thick) 54.0 6,300.0
Slate Roof (600 sq.ft) 12.0 3,000.0
Stone Fireplace (3'×15') 6.0 675.0
SUB-TOTAL 108.0 13,575.0
Interior Finishing 21.6 2,715.0
TOTAL 129.6 16,290.0

Site Preparation 1,473.9 87,339.4

Gate House 62.0 7,700.0
Stables 68.0 8,400.0
Great Hall 439.2 56,010.0
Kitchen 120.0 10,620.0
Barn 57.0 6,360.0
Chapel 129.6 16,290.0
TOTAL 2,349.7 192,719.4

THONAHEXUS Nº 8 23
B U I L D I N G A MANOR 9

TA B L E 4
TASK SUB-TASK TIME IN MAN DAYS COST IN PENCE
Temporary Tollhouse Site Clearing, In Open (100 sq. ft) 1.0 10.0
(10'×10'×15') Foundation & Floor (100 sq. ft) 2.0 200.0
1-ft Wattle Daub Walls 2.0 300.0
Thatched Roof (100 sq.ft) 0.5 100.0
TOTAL 5.5 610.0

Permanente Tower Site Clearing, In Open (100 sq. ft) 1.0 10.0
10'×10'×15' Foundation & Floor (100 sq. ft) 14.0 400.0
1-ft Dressed Stone Walls 12.0 1,350.0
Thatched Roof (100 sq.ft) 2.0 500.0
TOTAL 29.0 2,260.0

TA B L E 5
TASK SUB-TASK TIME IN MAN DAYS COST IN PENCE
Peasant’s Dwelling Site Clearing, In Open (675 sq. ft) 13.50 33.75
(45'×15'×10') Foundation & Floor, Cottage (675 sq. ft) 67.50 1,350.00
1-ft Wattle & Daub Walls 33.75 1,350.00
Thatched Roof (675 sq.ft) 6.75 337.50
Mud & Stick Fireplace (3'×10') 2.00 50.00
SUB-TOTAL 123.50 1,771.25
Interior Finishing 24.70 425.10
TOTAL 148.20 2,196.35

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26 THONAHEXUS Nº 8
Adventure Seed THE HORN OF SK ARGJA THE WIS E 1
∞e Horn of Skargja the Wise
An adventure seed for Ivinian players.
Text: John Daniel II
HE LEGEND OF Skargja the wise is a common
T
� tale among Ivinians. This story tells how Sara-
jin came to accept Skargja as his advisor. There
is also an older version of the tale. It adds a passage that
tells that after Sarajin accepted Skargja as his advisor, he
gifted Skargja with a horn. This horn, purported to have
been taken from some great pradeyalkyri slain by Sarajin
himself, was engraved with runes. The runes constitute
the first written record of the Ljarl, or Ivinian code of laws.
Sarajin knew that someday the ways of the world
would change enough that the Ljarl would need to be
changed to reflect the new realities. He entrusted the horn
to Skargja, decreeing that when the day came that the
Ljarl must be changed, Skargja or one of his descent could
blow the horn three times, and advise Sarajin what changes
needed to be made.
Throughout the history of the pharic peoples in Ivinia,
there have been many recorded sightings of horns carved
THONAHEXUS Nº 8
with the runes of the Ljarl. No one knows which if any of
these were the original. One ancient rune stone describes
the horn Skargja the Wise as being over three feet long,
twisted into a corkscrew, with bright silver fittings that
will not tarnish. None of the rune engraved horns known
to exist match this description.
As the Ivinian peoples have moved from the viking
lifestyle towards a trade-based economy, especially in the
southern reaches of Ivinia, there has been a growing dis-
content with some aspects of the Ljarl. The requirement
for a man to have three wives before he can have a voice in
affairs of state has become problematic. Women them-
selves have long been discontented with their lack of voice
in the Thrangaad.
Few know the tale of the Horn of Skargja the Wise.
Even fewer have much belief in it. Of the believers, how-
ever, there are some that have begun quietly searching for
the true horn.
GM Options
1 The story is true and one of the player characters may
unknowingly be a descendent of Skargja. The Horn
has been hidden in some remote, long forgotten area
for ages. The journey itself is a test, and only one with
both courage and wisdom will succeed.
1 There is a horn that matches the description on the
ancient rune stone, but its only magic is that of popu-
lar belief. It has been lost in an ancient tomb for centu-
ries, but there may be clues to its location.
1 The player characters come across the Horn by acci-
dent, and have to make sense of its origin and purpose.
A generous gamemaster might let one of the player
characters find out that they are one of Skargja’s blood.
Otherwise, they must find one. m
http://pages.sbcglobal.net/harn-religion-team/sarajin/skargja.html
27
SELDHOLM 1
Seldholm (Ambergaun)
Writers: Alan Smithee, Matt Roegner & Joe Adams.
Illustrations: Matt Roegner (Heraldry), Justin Kunz (Eldred Seld)
Editor: Joe Adams
Location: Geldesfjord, Orbaal
Holder: Clan Seld
Tributary: Clan Taareskeld, Geldeheim
Households: Ivinians 9; Jarin 5
Overview
Seldholm is an Ivinian thran located roughly two leagues
west of Geldeheim. Proximity to the markets of Gelde-
heim insures a steady amount of commerce through
the village. The main roads from both Shien
and Fjaga pass through Seldholm. Al-
though most Ivinians prefer to travel by
ship, the local Jarin population has no
other choice but to travel by foot to the
market of Geldeheim.
Four local settlements (Onlar, Re-
lium, Thuris, and Wynian) owe tribute
to the Selds. In turn, the Selds owe tribute
to the Taareskelds of Geldeheim.
History
The village was known as Ambergaun before the Ivinian
conquest. The settlement was similar to the myriad Jarin
fishing villages that reaped the bounty from the waters of
Fjord and provided what they could from the land. The
Jarin worshipped their old gods, lived and died in the
knowledge that while life may be hard there was enough
for all. Life remained relatively peaceful for centuries and
very little changed except the seasons.
This relative calm was shattered in 667, shortly after
the fall of Geldeheim to Ivinian Vikings. Three war boats
carrying a large host of warriors beached on the sand near
the village. The leader of these Ivinians, Taaren Seld, was
a Rognan-born pirate and adventurer in the service of
Hagined Taareskeld.
28
The Jarin tried to defend their homes against the in-
vaders, but the village lacked trained warriors. Resistance
ended quickly. The village was sacked and many captives
were carried off.
Rather than sail away, Taaren decided to stay and took
the village for his own. He renamed Ambergaun to Seld-
holm, and promised fealty to Hagined. Using the superi-
ority of Ivinian martial skills, he took control of the sur-
rounding villages and farmsteads. With calm restored,
Taaren built a large clan house for his family and
relatives.
After the initial shock of conquest, the
Jarin slowly acclimated to their new Ivin-
ian lords. For the next 35 years, life re-
turned to its normal routine. The situa-
tion of guarded peace would have likely
remained if it were not for the Jarin Re-
bellion (70–703). Seldholm was the
scene of one of the most infamous inci-
dents of the rebellion.
The years of relative peace, com-
bined with overconfidence in their mar-
tial skills, and the ease of conquest, coupled
with proximity to Geldeheim, lulled the Selds into com-
placency. The fortifications of the clan house were ne-
glected as the clan spent their money and energy pursuing
economic opportunities.
In 70, Jarin rebels took advantage of the weaknesses
in the clan house defences. The rebels barred the doors of
the clan house from the outside and set fire to the struc-
ture. The entire Seld clan was burned alive in their clan
house. The uprising, while severe and bloody, remained
localised to the village of Seldholm.
When news of the destruction of Seldholm reached
Geldeheim, the king was hard pressed to offer an immedi-
ate response. Ranulff Gundren offered his wealth and re-
sources to outfit a number of warriors. The king agreed
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30 THONAHEXUS Nº 8

and, within a fortnight, Ranulff led a body of troops out
of Geldeheim.
Ranulff quickly put down the uprising. The Jarin that
resisted were slain, those few who surrendered were en-
thralled. After securing the thran, he pursued those re-
sponsible for the massacre. Since it was believed that clan
Seld had been wiped out, the lands were forfeited to clan
Taareskeld. With the uprising crushed, Ranulff set about
administering the land in the name of King, until the
thrangaad made a final decision on the land’s status.
Little is known of Ranulff Gundren before his arrival
in Orbaal. He was clearly a commoner and most likely a
criminal. Ranulff mustered a body of his fellow “clans-
men” and other freemen to journey with Hagined Ta-
areskeld to Jara. He participated directly in the attack on
Geldeheim in 667.
Having no lands in Ivinia, Ranulff, his two brothers
and their “clansmen” chose to stay in Orbaal and from
667–70 Ranulff served clan Taareskeld as household
warriors. During their tenure of service to the Taareskeld
clan, Ranulff participated in attacks on several other Jarin
strongholds as well as several successful viking raids
against targets on mainland Lythia and western Hârn. He
grew wealthy from his exploits and was able to afford the
bride price for a Taareskeld wife. Eventually he retired
from service and, using his considerable wealth, went into
business with both the Aaldaar and Ramaalsen mercan-
tyler/userer clans (See: GELDEHEIM 3, #7 and #8) ex-
panding his wealth and influence even more. In 683 he
purchased the building west of the clothier clan Twenalyn
(See: GELDEHEIM 3 #9) and established his clan house
there.
When rebellion broke out in 70, Ranulff was well into
his late 50s. The threat of widespread rebellion stretched
Ivinian forces thin; however, most of the Taareskeld clans-
men became involved with protecting the direct holdings
of the royal clan from Jarin uprisings.
Unknown to anyone at the time, however, one mem-
ber of the Seld clan had survived. Sovall Seld, the younger
brother of Taaren, was a successful merchant. He had
travelled to Chelemby in 70 en route to Rogna to deliver
bride-prices for his wife’s sister twin daughters. The girls
were to wed Clan Seld retainers and the formalities took
several months to complete. By the time Sovall returned
to Geldeheim in 702 to hear news of his kinsmen’s demise
and his family’s lands in the hands of a retainer of Clan
Taareskeld.
Sovall immediately understood that his clan name was
in immediate danger of becoming extinct. His brothers,
wives, and clansmen all lay dead. Sovall knew Ranulff per-
sonally since they both had many connections in mercan-
tile trade and he knew there was hope for his name.
THONAHEXUS Nº 8
SELDHOL M 4
Sovall travelled to Seldholm and met directly with
Ranulff to asses the situation. Sovall knew that Ranulff
was a man of ambition and honor. He offered to adopt
Ranulff ’s sons into the Seld clan, formalizing the deal
with the marriage of Sovall’s recently arrived nieces to
Ranulff ’s eldest son Eldred.
The king, seeking to stabilize the situation left in the
wake of the uprisings, was worried that the vacuum left by
the destruction of clan Seld might tempt other local clans
to vie for control of the land, further weakening the Ivin-
ians’ hold over their temporarily subjugated Jarin. As it
was, his decision could not have been easier to make.
Ranulff and his clan had been supporters of clan Ta-
areskeld for years. Giving land to his former retainers
would mean they would no longer require financial sup-
port and could be called on to participate in any future
expeditions. Also, while the Selds were Rognans; Ranulff
was a fellow Menglanan.
The king quickly agreed to Sovall’s plan. Eldred mar-
ried to the sisters Ailthytrh and Wullfthryth and the leg-
acy of clan Seld was assured.
Sovall remained the head of Seld clan until 705 when
he died of natural causes. The head of the clan then passed
to Eldred. Ranulff returned to his home in Geldeheim
and lived out his final days there until his death in 76 at
the age of 76.
Economics and Agriculture
On the surface, the economy of Seldholm is similar to the
many of the hybrid Ivinian-Jarin communities through-
out Orbaal. The two populations are highly segregated,
with all of the Ivinians living in a fortified clan house. As
is usual, the Ivinians make up all the craftsmen and hold
all the land. In Seldholm however; there are no serfs; all
3
SELDHOLM 5
Jarin are thralls. This has been the case since the uprising
in 70. Although some thralls do reside in their own resi-
dences, they remain unfree.
The Jarin villagers maintain the thran’s several large
sheep herds. Since the Jarin are all thralls, there is no rev-
enue from tribute. The Jarin residing in the outlying vil-
lages of Onlar, Relium, Thuris and Wynian are also thralls
and provide tribute roughly equivalent to a feudal serf.
Since 705, most of the clan’s wealth is earned through
mercantile activities. The primary focus of the clan is cen-
tred on trade and the production of finished products.
The women of Seldholm produce a high quality woven
cloth that is exported as far away as Chelemby and
Shorkyne. The Clan also has several competent weapon
crafters and armor crafters, a hold over from years of ser-
vice in the royal bodyguard.
Several large herds of sheep provide wool for the spin-
ning wheels and looms of the clan. These herds are the
primary source of income for the thran. In addition, there
are many chickens for eggs as well as goats and swine.
These are looked after communally by the clan.
Agricultural practices in Seldholm are typical of those
found throughout Orbaal. Oats and rye are the primary
cereal crops and are planted in the inner/outer field sys-
tem. In addition, there are several large vegetable plots
that provide beans, onions and cabbages.
Religion
The Ivinians worship Sarajin in their hall. Egther [4] leads
the family in informal devotions. The Selds travel to Gel-
deheim for major festivals. Their Jarin peasants continue
to venerate Ilvir in the privacy of their homes.
Current Events
Since Ranulff ’s death four years ago, Eldred Seld [] has
ruled Seldholm and its tributaries with a light hand. The
thran is peaceful and prosperous. Eldred believes the fu-
ture of his clan is in mercantile activities, not in viking. He
is considering acquiring an ocean-going nivik to allow the
clan to ship its cloth directly and so retain a greater share
of the profits.
The clan wealth is sufficient to have such a ship built,
but it would leave very little left in the privy purse. The
venture would be risky for, if the ship foundered, the fruits
of years of labour would be lost. Eldred knows he needs a
skilled and trustworthy crew for such a ship.
Just before harvest last year Falyne Raldar, an Agrikan
missionary from the Order of Kukshin in Geldeheim,
came to Seldholm to proselytise among the women. Val-
hakar Eldred does not want her in his thran, but he knows
32
that the order has the King’s favour. Falyne is also related
to the Valhakar of Fjorn. She has been quietly preaching
to the women – mostly to deaf ears. She intends to recruit
at least one of Eldred’s daughters into her order. Eldred
opposes this but has kept his own counsel so far.
The Ivinians
1. Valhakar/Clothier/Mercantyler (Eldred of Seld)
Size: 20 Quality: ★★★★★ Prices: High+
Eldred is the current head of clan Seld. He resides here
with his three wives and 3 daughters. In addition, there
are three huscarls in the service of the clan that also reside
in the hall. Eldred spends a great deal of time in Gelde-
heim looking after the clan’s commercial and trade inter-
ests. His only son Igon “heard the call of Sarajin” and is
studying under Suri Sweyrn in Geldeheim to become a
priest.
A) Central hall “The hen house”
This building is sometimes referred to as “the hen house”.
The large number of women in such close proximity to
each other, combined with the peculiarities of the Orbaa-
lese dialect has lead more than one casual observer to
comment on the vague similarities the clan hall has to a
hen house.
The central hall is sturdy stone, wood and turf con-
struction. A large stone hearth is used for food prepara-
tion. Two long wooden tables dominate the center of the
hall. The hall serves as the economic heart of the clan and
location of most activities relating to the production of
cloth. On any given day, nearly all the clan women can be
found in the hall engaged in the manufacturing of cloth
and preparing meals. On clear days however; most choose
to work outside in fresh air. At night the hall is used for
communal meals where all Ivinians in the settlement
dine.
B) Family Bay / Storage
This bay serves as the living quarters for Eldred’s three
wives and infant daughters. Much of the clan’s portable
wealth is stored in this bay.
C) Family Bay / Storage
This bay serves as living quarters for the single women of
the clan and storage of looms and other elements used for
the production of cloth.
D) Attached Barn
Used primarily for the storage of raw wool, and for the
tools used by the thralls. It is usually kept locked from the
outside but there is access from the hall.
THONAHEXUS Nº 8
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THONAHEXUS Nº 8 33
SELDHOLM 7
E) Barn
Used for the storage of winter feed.
F) Sheep Shelter
Used as shelter for new born lambs before they are intro-
duced to the main flocks.
G) Sheep Shelter
Winter shelters for sheep herds. These buildings are three
sided wooden constructions.
H) Swine Pen
I) Skeps
Several large hives of aggressive honey bees are bred here
for their honey.
J) Herb Toft
Katja has been attempting to grow imported plants for
medicinal purposes. So far Orbaal’s harsh climes have
frustrated her attempts to cultivate exotic plants.
2. Weapon Crafter (Torsten of Seld)
Size: 5 Quality: ★★★★ Prices: Average
Torsten is the younger brother of Eldred. He lives with
his wife and three children (two boys – Ulauf and Jorst –
and one girl). Torsten has never shown any interest in ob-
taining more wives, even though his wealth and status
would allow for it. Although he is a weapon crafter, Tor-
sten finds that there is little demand for weapons in Seld-
holm. Since there are no Jarin metalworkers in the sur-
rounding villages Torsten fills his time making mundane
implements. His son Ulauf, though only 3, is already an
accomplished hunter, and he often traipses the nearby
woods with one of the Jarin thralls looking for game. He
and the thrall Deam are friends, which would earn Ulauf
a beating were his father to find out.
A) Forge
Charcoal and pig iron are brought here from Geldeheim.
The pig iron is refined here before being made into fin-
ished goods.
3. Miller / Brewer (Ander of Seld)
Size: 0 Quality: ★★★ Prices: Average
Ander is the youngest of the four brothers. He has two
wives and seven children (four boys and three girls). His
first wife is an accomplished brewer, while his second wife
works mostly in the clan house making cloth.
The mill of Seldholm is ox-driven, as the local water
way is far too shallow to provide power for a watermill.
Ander, being the only miller in the area, is supposed the
34
grain the grain for all the Jarin in the surrounding villages.
In reality, absolute enforcement of such a rule is not only
impossible but also impractical due to the travel distance.
There The Ivinians turn a blind eye to Jarin who grind
their own flour for personal use. Ander’s main concern is
to assure that enough grain arrives to meet the thran’s
tribute requirements.
4. Woodcrafter (Egther of Seld)
Size: 6 Quality: ★ Prices: Low
Egther lives with his wife and four children. Gossips com-
ment that his wife, Gerdrun, must be the very paragon of
patience. To listen to Egther, one would believe he was a
veteran of a hundred wars. That is far from the truth,
however, since other than the assault on Seldholm in 70,
Egther has never seen combat.
Although he is formally the village woodcrafter, in re-
ality he could not care less about his responsibilities.
Egther dislikes his life as craftsmen. He wishes he had
been a Viking like his father. The other members of the
clan feel he has an overly romantic idea of war and fight-
ing. As a woodcrafter, he has very little talent. His skills
are barely enough to maintain structures and to provide
basic necessities but that is it. Any major or immediate
repairs are given to the Jarin woodcrafter (see #0). For
any serious wood crafting needs, the clan members jour-
ney to Geldeheim to fill the order.
Egther is closest equivalent to a Sarajinian priest the
village has, not because of any formal training but because
of his constant pontificating and argument on points of
honor. Eldred looks forward to the day when his son Igon
returns home to fill the role.
5. Shipwright / Pilot (Joren of Gundren)
Size: 9 Quality: ★★★ Prices: High+
Joren is Eldred Seld’s cousin. His skills as a pilot far out-
weigh his abilities as a shipwright, though he can easily
meet local repair needs. Joren has six children by his two
wives, four boys and two girls.
The Seld clan owns two 24' niviks that are used pri-
marily for fishing.
6. Skald / Harper (Hromund of Gundren)
Size:  Quality: ★★★★ Prices: Low
Hromund is talented harper and singer. Although he is
single and technically has the right to dwell in the hall, he
has chosen to live in a residence of his own. His stated
reason for this is so that he may perfect his art in peace
and free from distraction. In truth he is a homosexual.
He is unaware that his ruse is a complete failure. He is
mockingly referred to as the 4th princess of Seld, though
no one calls him this to his face. As long as the façade is
THONAHEXUS Nº 8

maintained however all parties involved are content to let
things be as they are. His affair with Huscarl Fridgeir is
not generally known, and Fridgeir dislikes having to make
fun of his lover behind his back.
7. Salter / Fisherman (Geir of Gundren)
Size: 6 Quality: ★★ Prices: Average
Geir spent his youth as a viking. He was quite successful
and chose to retire. Though he has significant wealth, he
chooses to only have one wife. He spent a great deal on the
bride price for an Ivinian wife. He tends to comment that
Orbaalese women tend to lack the knowledge of the “old
ways” though he is not able to define clearly what those
are, and will go on long contradictory and pontificating
tirades on how a proper woman should be. He lives with
his wife and four children (two boys and two girls).
Torgren of Gundren, Geir’s brother, was also a suc-
cessful viking who retired at the same time as his brother.
He works beside his brother as a fisherman. His two wives
and seven children (four boys and three girls) complete
this boisterous household.
8. Hideworker / Innkeeper (Halvdan of Gundren)
Size: 5 Quality: ★★★ Prices: Average
Halvdan has a wife and three children (a boy and two
girls). Recently, Halvdan converted his attached barn into
lodgings for travellers and opened it to Jarin travellers.
Ivinian travellers heading to Geldeheim are usually invited
to stay in the clan house. Allowing strange Jarin inside the
thran walls has caused some concerns about security.
The Jarin
All Jarin in the village are thralls. After the uprising in 70,
many Jarin were put to death by Ranulff. Some have re-
turned from hiding, while others have grown to maturity
under the Selds’ light hand.
10. Woodcrafter / Thrall (Conner of Llyrm)
Size: 6 Quality: ★★★★ Prices: Low
During the 70 uprising, Conner fled the village to stay
with his cousins. He disagreed with the course of action
the rebels took and, although he hates Ivinians in general,
Conner respects their practical nature. He knows that pa-
tience is more likely to win out over direct action. This
attitude has earned him the disdain of some of his neigh-
bours, especially those who lost kin in the Rebellion.
Conner is the primary woodcrafter for the village. His
position of importance and his necessary skills allow him
access to thran. He has become the spokesperson for the
Jarin population of Seldholm. He works hard to maintain
THONAHEXUS Nº 8
SELDHOL M 8
a balance between the Jarin and their Ivinian masters and
avoid serious conflicts.
Conner lives with his wife and four children (two boys
and two girls).
11. Thrall / Herdsman (Yseult of Dwyer)
The widow Yseult lives here with her son Alwyn. During
the turmoil of the rebellion, Yseult was sent away from
the village by her husband. She and her infant son fled to
a nearby hamlet but her husband was slain. She returned
in 703 and scratches out a living as the village herder.
Alwyn has been nicknamed “Mopey” by the Jarin, in
reference to his dour attitude. A story is told that he loved
a girl in another village. She loved him back. They had a
brief affair. Alwyn was too cowardly to ask her father for
her hand in marriage, however. The girl took his coward-
ice as rejection and married another suitor. Now he lives
in regret and refuses to consider other women, choosing
instead to lament his poor choice and cowardice. His
mother is very worried that he will never find a wife and
nags him constantly. This nagging only deepens his feel-
ings of despair.
The Ivinians have picked up the story and find the
whole issue funny as well as pathetic. They view it as a
demonstration of the general insipidness of the Jarin
male’s character. They have even gone so far as to compose
a bawdy saga they call “Alwyn’s Saga” and it has become a
popular late night drinking song among the Ivinian men.
12. Thrall / Herdsman (Griffith of Alda)
Griffith’s eldest son, Liam, regards himself as a rebel wait-
ing for his chance to strike a blow for the cause of Jarin
independence. Over the years, he has stolen several small
knives and a wood axe in anticipation of another uprising.
Liam would love to run away to a life of banditry but lacks
the courage to leave and would not even know where to
begin to look for other rebels.
Griffith and his wife are worried that Liam’s contempt
of the Ivinians will incur the Selds’ wrath. They worry
that after their death there will be no one to control his
behaviour. He is mother is desperate for Liam to marry, as
she hopes it will calm him down.
Griffith’s other son Deam is at pains to keep his friend-
ship with Ulauf Seld a secret. Deam fears his brother’s
reaction more than his father’s should it become known.
13. Thrall / Herdsman (Dylan of Gwynn)
Dylan was only ten years old in 70 and he survived the
Ivinians counterattack on Seldholm. In 76 he was given a
plot of land and was the first Jarin to be granted property
after the uprising. His compliance was a key factor in the
decision to allow other Jarin to be given land. He lives
35
SELDHOLM 9
here with his wife Morgilth, who is years older than he is.
The couple have no children.
14. Thrall / Herdsman (Bran of Cenarth)
Bran lives here with his young wife Gwanwyn, who re-
cently gave birth to a son. With birth of his son, he was
granted permission to construct a cottage and till a plot of
land. Their child is frequently ill and Morgan is worried
that he will die.
15. Thrall compound
This compound houses the thralls of clan Seld. The build-
ings are locked at night from the outside. Due to the in-
creased number of pregnancies among the thralls in re-
cent years, Eldred is planning the construction of a new
Thrall compound for the single males that will be isolated
from the main Thrall residences by a locked gate.
A) Married families
Three married couples live in this building. One couple
recently had a child and will be allowed to construct a
residence in the spring.
B) Single males
These eleven thralls are the younger sons of families from
outlying villages. They entered servitude to clan Seld in
hopes of improving their economic fortunes, find a wife,
and perhaps receive a bit of land. These young men gener-
ally have no specific skills but provide labour to till the
fields.
C) Single females
Seventeen young women work in the main hall and assist
with weaving. They are the daughters of families from the
local villages.
16. The Cairns
Three large cairns and one small barrow stand in the
woods to the east of the thran. These ancient Jarin burials
are avoided by the Ivinians who believe it to be haunted.
Eldred has forbidden the Jarin thralls to go near them, but
they hold Ilviran rites here when they can, usually at
night.
Clan Seld
Eldred Seld, 39
Eldred is a clever and intelligent man. He was fortunate to
inherit father’s sense of commitment and ambition, but it
is tempered by his mother’s intelligence and patience. He
is highly respected for his business acumen and ability to
find compromise. Eldred has officially been leader of clan
36
© J U S T I N K U N Z ( W W W. J U S T I N K U N Z . CO M ) . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D.
ValhakarEldred Seld
Seld for the last 5 years but the true power remained with
his father Ranulff until the old man’s death in 76.
Eldred has not lived in his father’s shadow and has
earned the respect of most of the Ivinian clans in the fjord
on his own merit. Eldred is a realist and a pragmatist. He
understands clearly that the clan’s success owes much to
his mother’s business acumen and is maintained by the
creative, organizational, and industrial talents of his cur-
rent wives. He is also very aware of the fact that he is Val-
hakar of the Seld clan because of his marriages. The result
is a man who is careful not to make enemies.
His neighbours call him “Eldred, King of Byria”, joking
that he rules over a harem. What started as a passing re-
mark has become his accepted form of address among all
local Ivinians, who refer to him simply as “the Byrian”. El-
dred is amused by this reference and, and has wryly re-
marked,“As the years pass, many sons of Orbaal will make
reason to find themselves under my roof.” Privately, he
looks forward to the large number of bride-prices he will
collect.
Katja Eldredwiffe, 37
Katja is technically Eldred’s second wife. Her natural tal-
ents are one of the key factors to the success of the thran.
Katja is a brilliant woman. Her organizational skills are
impressive and she is quick to grasp new concepts. Katja,
in addition to speaking her native Ivinian, is also fluent in
the local Jarinese dialect.
Katja’s Son
Igon Seld, 6
A serious young man, Igon has lived mostly in Geldeheim.
Since he was twelve, he has studied the ways of the Grey
Slayer from Suri Sweyrn, at the temple of Sarajin in Gel-
THONAHEXUS Nº 8

deheim (See: Geldeheim 3 #3). He sees his father during
his frequent trips to the town, but rarely visits Seldholm.
He doesn’t miss the “clucking women”.
Katja’s Daughters
Gutta Eldreddatter, 6
Called “Singer”, Gutta is very artistically inclined. She is
the spitting image of her mother (and aunt). She shares
her mother’s organizational talents and intelligence. Like
her mother, Gutta speaks the local Jarinese dialect and is
an accomplished seamstress.
Wignea Eldreddatter, 3
Wignea is a very obedient girl. She is also an accomplished
archer with a strong penchant for hunting. When not oc-
cupied with her duties in the clan hall, Wignea, along with
Saegret and Lyrra, can often be found with Fridgeir prac-
ticing archery. Katja, while not overly unhappy with her
daughters’ martial leanings, has pressed Fridgeir to no
longer mentor the girls as their duties, as they enter wom-
anhood, will leave little time for such activities.
Wignea dreams of going to Geldeheim and competing
in the spring festival games. It is very unlikely her mother
will approve of this, however.
Saegret Eldreddatter, 2
Nicknamed the Cat, she is quite accident prone but has
yet to suffer any serious injuries. She is also very indepen-
dent and has been known to disobey her mothers’ wishes
on many occasions; a decision she has come to regret each
time. She is an accomplished archer, although not as
skilled as her older sister Wignea.
Theohilde Eldreddatter, 0
Theohilde is the youngest of Katja’s children. She suffered
a high fever as an infant and is partially deaf as a result.
Wulfthyn Eldredwiffe, 37
As the mother of the eldest child, Wulfthyn is consid-
ered to be he first wife by tradition. She tends to follow
Katja’s lead in most matters, as she is not as forceful or self
confident.
Wulfthyn’s Daughters
Nothgara Eldreddatter, 8
Eldred’s eldest daughter is to marry Huscarl Haefnir next
year. Eldred is happy with the match as Haefnir is unre-
lated to any of the local clans and will not involve the Selds
in any troublesome alliances. The marriage may have to
occur sooner than expected as Nothgara is pregnant, a
fact she herself has only recently come to suspect herself.
THONAHEXUS Nº 8
SELDHOLM 10
Heremar Eldreddatter, 6
Heremar is prone to tell fantastic stories and has many
imaginary friends. The family attributes her eccentricities
a freak accident she had three years ago when she was sup-
posedly trampled by a horse. Though severely battered
and bruised, she suffered no broken bones or seemingly
permanent injuries.
She often has one sided conversations when no one is
around, prone to drastic mood swings and shows signs of
mysterious bruises. Most of the family find her quite ec-
centric are very worried that she may be the focus of evil
spirits.
Lyrra Eldreddatter, 2
Lyrra is a very introverted and withdrawn young girl. She
rarely speaks above a whisper and generally does not look
people in the eye when she speaks. She is shy and with-
drawn, her mother’s constant badgering and nit picking
only serves to increase her moodiness.
Cetta Eldreddatter, 0
Cetta talks non-stop. She is inquisitive and loquacious;
bordering on infuriating. Secretly she revels in causing
distress in adults by asking potentially embarrassing ques-
tions about their situations. So far her youth has pro-
tected her from causing real offence but, as she grows
older, her mother worries she will cause embarrassment
to the clan.
Selatja Eldreddatter, 7
Usually found with Aelfhild as the two are constant com-
panions. She is a packrat and many items that are thought
lost are actually found hidden in her bedding. This is not
generally a problem for family members but has been dis-
tressing to several guests.
Garlinge Eldreddatter, 3
Garlinge is a very spoiled precocious young girl. She has
been spoiled by her older sisters.
Hilde Eldredwiffe, 29
Hilde is a half-Jarin, half-Ivinian woman born in Fjaga.
Since her arrival in 7 she has learned much from the two
senior wives and has combined traditional Jarin and Ivin-
ian weaving styles with some interesting results. She gets
along quite well with the other wives despite her mixed
blood.
Hilde’s daughters
Aelfhild Eldreddatter, 7
Aelfhild is a constant companion to her half-sister Sele-
thryth and her accomplice in crime. The two go to great
37
S E L D H O L M 11
lengths to abscond with baubles and find the consterna-
tion of adults amusing.
Burghild Eldreddatter, 5
She can usually be found tailing Selatja and Aelfhild on
their “adventures”. She is usually responsible for inadver-
tent tattling on her sisters’ activities through her youthful
exuberance and naivete.
Beornflaed Eldreddatter, 
Beornflaed was born last spring and is a healthy young
girl.
The Huscarls
Fridgeir and Thorald are men at arms that have served the
Seld for many years. They reside in the great hall. Haefnir
is engaged to Eldred’s eldest daughter and serves his fu-
ture father in law as part of the bridal contract. All three
men are loyal to clan Seld.
Fridgeir Maarenson, 42
A handsome, rugged man and well known swordsmen.
He is close friend to Eldred and trusted men-at-arms. He
has served the clan since he swore allegiance to Ranulff at
38
age 6. He has never married and has never showed inter-
est in finding a wife. It has been suggested in the thran
that he be adopted into the Seld clan and granted land in
Seldholm or, more likely, construct a house in one of the
nearby villages. Eldred is said to be considering this as a
serious option.
Thorald Turven , 29
Thorald is quiet reserved man who has served the clan
loyally for nearly 0 years. He hides a dark secret however.
He is a sexual predator. He raped Heremar several years
ago and has continued to prey on the girl to satisfy his
lust. He relies on her mental condition to discredit any
story she might tell.
His greatest fear is that he will be caught but he can
not control himself. He fears his assaults on the girl are
the cause of her delusional behaviour.
Haefnir Aaldaar, 23
The eldest son of the Valhakar of Ejaheim, Haefnir is set
to marry Nothgara in the coming spring. He intends on
staying in Seldholm after the wedding, preferring Eldred’s
leadership to being badgered by his mother back in Eja-
heim. m
THONAHEXUS Nº 8