The Hands of Baron Marksburg

Marksburg Castle

"Hark Stranger, for the forests do whisper....."

Marksburg

Marksburg Castle glowers above the town of Karstfahld in Darkest Ruthenia, situated hard by the river Nedrah. Karstfaldians make a living by exploiting the mineral resources in the Iron Hills above the valley, where small farms and vinyards have been labourously tended by countless forgotten generations.

The castle is the ancestral home of the Barons Marksburg. The current Baron (Joachim the Third, Seventeenth Baron Marksburg) has been in residence for only a month, having succeeded his cousin, who recently died of consumption.The new Baron is young, and has demonstrated his talents by dealing decisively with some local brigands, and some unruly Gnolls. He has changed the domestic arrangements in the castle by bringing in his own estate staff, but has dealt very generously with those he has dismissed. He has also donated an acceptable sum to both the Temple, and towards refurbishing the Spring and public bath.

The Castle and its' Denizens

Karstfahld

Karstfahld

Karstfahld is a modest town sited between the banks of the Nedrah River, sheltering some 500 souls behind its' meagre defences, and dominated by the foreboding shadows of Castle Marksburg. The town has a freshwater spring, a small Bergerhoff, a number of taverns and a marketplace. Industry includes smelting works and foundries above the town, several smithies and metalworkers, a small boatyard, and a tannery. There are a wide variety of trades and crats practised, all based on locally obtainable resources. These include trades relating to timber, fur, forestry and the river, and a significant number of people work the mines above the town.

Karstfahld and Marksburg form the South

People of Karstfahld

·        Gunther the Master-Smith

·         Ossip Bowmaker

·         Jan Brewster

·         Oskar the Priest

·         Anna the Healer

·         Brynda the Huntress

·         Tarn Fisher

·         Luc Shoeman

·         Frikka Potter

·         Olga the Sage

·         Owein Broadman – Burgermeister

The Country of High Urbrecht

Regions

·        Ruthenia - the most remote region of High Urbrecht, known for its unexplored highlands, impenetrable forests and dangerous rivers, it is not a destination of choice for many, but it does yield great mineral resources, including gold, silver, iron, tin, lead and copper, as well as coal. This wealth attracts many to try to seek their fortunes, although most of these steer clear of the innermost area, Darkest Ruthenia, for it is rumoured that this is where the Gods hid their mistakes.

·         Ostphalia lies to the south east of Kesselland and is a patchwork country of low hills, well managed woodland and little rivers

·         Kesselland - the most northerly and most fertile region of High Urbrecht, a rolling lowland bordering the Gret Divide

·         Solingund - A hilly region to tee north of Ruthenia, famed for its sheep farmers and vinyards

·         Vistwald - a beautuful mountain region of ice coveed peaks and rugged lakelands, which lies to the south of Ostphalia and east of Ruthenia.

Rivers

·        Gombre

·         Nedreh

·         Zevar

Towns

·         Ossenberg

A Ruthenian Town

·         Daggendorf

·         Forzheim

·         Rattingen

·         Hansbach

·         Hoff

·         Karstfhald

·         Dassein

·         Guerttfeldt

·         Esslingburg

·         Regensfurt

·         Luntz 

Utrechtian Institutions

·         Volksmiliz (police – a locally raised gendarmerie)

·         Berghouse – town council

·         Circle of Crowns – the High King’s inner circle of Prices & Barons

     Chapters

1. The Handsome Stranger
2. The Lair of the Sprucehexen
3. Trecherous Travellers
4. The Unfortunate Sage
5. Onwards to the Castle
6. The Moon-Singer
7. Seven Steps to Convergence