Campaign Setting

[strega]

I've been working on a campaign setting for a future game over the past week or so and have a first rough draft sorted.

I picked sub-Roman Britain for a period as there is plenty of information available, but it's sufficiently vague as to allow plenty of latitude. I did some research (looked at Wikipedia) and located a suitable area not normally associated with the big name in post-Roman Britain. Snug up against the Welsh border, an area I know well from Chivalry and Sorcery campaigns, in the counties of Herefordshire and Gloucester, the kingdom of Ercing is trying to hold it's own against the Saxons in the later sixth century.

A perusal of the area in Google maps and some archaeology sites gave a number of places that would work as a base for characters. I have a base, several small towns, a big religious site for the non-Christians, iron mines and a thriving iron smelting industry. There are plenty of real life myths and legends from the area that can form the basis of in-game quests and scenarios in addition to the main task of keeping Ercying safe from Saxon expansion.

I've put the draft up in my Google Drive Legend folder so take a look and let me know what you think.

 

[Matt_H]

Nice setting I like it.

But -

Saxons used mostly a spear, shield and long knife
(less than 30cm in length). Swords were a rarity
and much prized. Bows were used but are found in
very few graves so just how wide-spread they were
is unknown.

Bows are synonymous with the Welsh Marches. Even in Celtic times, prior to your setting, southern Wales is known for its archers (Ordovices and Silures).
Consider that from the period of the longbow's greatness (1250 - 1500 AD) not one bow-stave of the tens of thousands that must have been produced survived. Until the Mary Rose was raised there were NO medieval bows at all!
Compare this to the first millennium where 40-50 staves and evidence of many more exist.
Lots of mention of bows in the Battle Of Maldon poem too, but thats a little later (991AD).

So let em have as many bows as they like I say!

ps. sorry as an archer and history buff blah blah blah ... give em bows!

 

[strega]

Matt the comment you quoted was in relation to the Saxons rather than the Britons. I'm certainly willing to conceded the point about the Britons in Wales (although those in west Wales were mostly Irish) having bows. But as far as the Saxons were concerned lack of arrow heads rather than the bows is what is implied in the material I reviewed (good old Wikipedia). As just about everyone except those actually firing bows has a big shield it shouldn't make much difference.

The lack of Saxon bows may be a cultural thing as I don't remember hearing much about A-S bows at Hastings either.

 

[alex_greene]

North Wales had a number of resources - copper from the Great Orme, lead from what is now known as Minera, stone, wood, furs, leather. Even, if they knew how to collect it and transport it without it melting, ice from the tops of mountains in Snowdonia.

 

[Marlow Kurtz]

Design Mechanism is bringing out "Mythic Britain", set in the immediate post-Roman period, for RQ6 this year. It will likely duplicate much of what you are looking to produce yourself, and be pretty much compatible with Legend.

 

[DamonJynx]

Design Mechanism is bringing out "Mythic Britain", set in the immediate post-Roman period, for RQ6 this year. It will likely duplicate much of what you are looking to produce yourself, and be pretty much compatible with Legend.

Is that something similar to the Merrie England supplement for BRP? I'm assuming the same level of detail and finesse will be applied as it was to Pete's, BRP Rome supplement.

 

[DamonJynx]

@Strega,

Sounds like a nice little CS. I'll check it out later.

 

[strega]

Quoting Loz here ".... I've chosen to focus the history on the hundred years from 409 (Roman exodus) to 509 (Saxon advance halted). There's a timeline of events allowing for you to play during Vortigern's reign and the first Saxon influx, although the campaign date will most likely be 490-501, which allows for characters to take part in an Arthurian-era setting. By this time Vortigern is dead, Hengist and Aelle are secure in the east but Cerdic is also making his landing, which sees new threats to the incumbent Celts. "

He's doing something set one hundred years earlier and certainly covering the "Arthurian" period of Ambrosious Aurelianus which has been so done to death in various guises that it has lost any interest for me. AD577 to 584 is more interesting on a local level by comparison with the stale Arthurian sub Roman cavalry thing. With British kingdoms falling to the Saxon westward advance and then the counterattack in 584 that holds off that advance for another half century.

Plus of course I can do something now rather than waiting for something vaguely coming in 2013 which may be 2014.

 

[soltakss]

Design Mechanism is bringing out "Mythic Britain", set in the immediate post-Roman period, for RQ6 this year. It will likely duplicate much of what you are looking to produce yourself, and be pretty much compatible with Legend.

Is that something similar to the Merrie England supplement for BRP? I'm assuming the same level of detail and finesse will be applied as it was to Pete's, BRP Rome supplement.

No, Merrie England was written by me and published by Alephtar Games, not by The Design Mechanism.

I would be surprised if Mythic Britain didn't have a similar level of detail and finesse.

However, The Dark Isles, my version of Post-Roman Britain for Legend, will have the same level of detail and finesse as Merrie England ...