Trickling Dart
From Crossroads Wiki
| Trickling Dart | |
|---|---|
| |
| The Grey River at Sunset | |
| Region Information | |
| Name | Trickling Dart |
| Duchy | Guardians |
| Barony | Trebachas |
| Based On | Wales/Greece |
| Population | 50,000 |
| Capital | Dunloch |
| Leader | Open |
| Notable For | Goats, Cheese, Leather Goods, Mushrooms |
Lordship of Trickling Dart
History
Trickling Dart is a long-standing field of battle for many of the tribes of Trebachas, although the tribes that had made the river plain their home were long ago driven from it and sent retreating to the hills to the north and the swamps to the south. Its level terrain makes for a perfect sparring ground, and in-fighting has become something of an annual plague come spring as the tribes of Tel Girade and Fen March fight with each other and continue to harass the farmers who settle there.
Geography
Land
Trickling Dart is bordered on the west by the Sea of Veils, on the north by the Trebachas lordship of Tel Girade, on the east by the baronies of Smithfield and Dun Artan, and the south by the Trebachas lordship of Fen March. It is divided by the Grey River, which makes for a highly fertile (for Guardians) stretch of land. Unfortunately, farms established on the flat river plain rarely do well for consecutive years due to the violence that plagues the territory.
While the land closest to the river is fairly flat, there are a number of tall hills just a small distance away from the river. They grow taller as they approach the eastern boundary, continuing into Smithfield and Dun Artan where the hills eventually meet the mountain range.
Climate
Northern Trickling Dart, like Tel Girade, has an intense climate. Due to the winds that come off of the ocean, the river in its center, and its position against the high eastern mountains, it is prone to freezing winters and very hot, humid summers. Snow comes to the hillsides of the east during the coldest months, but then temperatures can climb as high as 104°F (40°C) in the hot months of July and August. As one moves south, however, the climate becomes more temperate and does not vary as wildly.
Politics
Trickling Dart, unlike Tel Girade to the north and Fen March to the south, has a negligible tribal presence. As such, it does not find it necessary to match tribals to non-tribals.
It is currently under Morien control, although the fate of that holding is in jeopardy in the wake of the Morien massacre — a wereshark attack that took the lives of two Morien land-holding noblemen, as well as Siobhan Conway, daughter of Trahearn Conway, a deceased Baron of Trebachas.
Economy
In the small city of Dunloch, currency is the typical form of exchange for goods and services. In the rest of the lordship, however, bartering is the rule.
To the north, there are small olive groves, although they are not of the same quantity or quality of those found in Tel Girade. Mushrooms are harvested in the spring in the south, and sent throughout the barony. Dried mushrooms are sold to the rest of the isle, but it is hardly a cash crop. More money is to be found in raising goats and, even moreso, in producing cheese. The people of Trickling Dart import cattle from the Fields as well, purchasing the most cattle annually out of all of the Trebachan lordships. Some farmers attempt raising cattle, but their herds are very small due to the poor nutrition provided by grazing grasses and the northern intrusion of Fen Wolves. Typically, cows are kept alive just long enough to be slaughtered properly for meat and leather.
Trickling Dart leather artisans in particular are known throughout the barony for their production of sheaths, leather armor, and saddles. Trebachan war saddles are highly coveted — known for their ornate tooling, superior smoothness, and lasting suppleness — and men and women come from all over the isle to apprentice under the master leather workers. There are other very talented saddle-workers in the barony, but they nearly all trained in Trickling Dart.
Culture
The men and women of Trickling Dart are not tribal people, and there is no significant tribal presence there. There is a respect of the Legions, and many are sent to the Legions with the expectation that they return and help defend their families’ property in the lordship from raiding parties from both the north and south.
The semi-annual drive of cattle from the Fields (in the spring and in the autumn) is celebrated in villages across Trickling Dart. From each village four men are chosen, two experienced drivers, to protect the village's cattle interests. The young men of the village – all who have recently participated in the Becoming Festival – then compete for the other two seats in a series of games on horseback and sparring. Beginning in the south, these men stop in each neighboring village to collect that village’s contribution to the drive. By the time they reach the port in the north, the group is upwards of one hundred men. They collect their cattle, and then begin the return home.
Along the way, there are occasionally raiding parties from the tribal peoples of the hills and marshes. More commonly, however, there is an endemic spirit of raiding. It's not intended to be violent, but rather to help Trebachan drivers to keep their skills sharp and ready for battle. Unfortunately, the back and forth nature of the exercises make it difficult to ascertain who really is the victor at the end of the drive.
Each village, upon receiving their count of cattle, greets the men who bring them as men of honor at a huge feast where there is much drinking and dancing. The men from the southernmost village, the village of Yarden, travel the furthest and therefore receive the most honour, as they are looked to as the leaders of the drive. They decide when to begin the journey, set the pace for it, maintain order, and settle disputes. They also bring home the best cattle to their own village as compensation for their work.
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