[Written] Silverthorne - Duchy of Susspin

Duchy of Susspin
Found in the Old Lore Books on the Final Haven website.

From A Biography of Silverthorne by Sathin Maevers, 1000 P.E.W.

Population: 30,000
Location: North West quarter of Silverthorne, between the Ari’I Forest and the Chaos Mountains
Baronies: Aerinon, Ellinon, Westinon

Susspin is a large city with many people of all kinds. I remember the diversity being an asset for a change, instead of a problem. Everyone there seems to be wanting the same thing: a good time, even though the city has been the center of several conflicts coming from all directions. Partially due to their fair weather, but mostly because of their hard- working people, the city attracts a large variety of people just trying to get away from it all. There is a luxurious inn, The Jolly Neighbor, that has among its benefits a beautiful casino. Most of the activity centers around this area.

On the flip side, the much smaller, seedier section of town is best known for its bar, The Black Fountain, which attracts all the people you never want to meet, assuming you're a respectable man like myself and even more so if you're a respectable woman.

The constable, Harris the Young, does a fine job keeping order...usually. Often, he is off prancing around, trying to find a woman suitable to be his wife. The other counsil members include Trake Francis of House Jakoric, who definitely prefers the Black Fountain as his bar of choice. He's been known to "solve" many of the problems of the town as a "favor" to the constable. Many wonder who is really the one in charge. Rae McVae of House Devri is the local magistrate. Her rash actions and her favoring of death as a suitable punishment to most any crime helps keep crime under control. As a matter of fact that seems to be good sir Francis coming this way. I think I will bid you a good afternoon sir.

-Merchant house member and clothseller,
Gerebald Vintinzi
Susspin was indeed a different type of city to visit. The merchant rightly described it as diverse, though its militant quality was somewhat off-putting to a man of learning and letters. I found little joy in watching the many armed patrols of Duke Kirka Ironheart III walking the streets from dawn until well past sunset. Their jingling armor and fighting trim is well maintained, the more so for Susspin bordering on two semi-hostile lands. Farther to the west is the great plateou of the desert folk and the distant trade city of Carthen. It has long struggled to dominate the western trade routes with Susspin, and raids into the rich farmlands and herds of Susspin’s people were not uncommon in the year I sheltered there. Moreover, the lands to the east are blocked by the great Ari’i forest, where the Ga’Vin dwell in numbers untold. They have warred with Susspin for longer than the Kingdom of Silverthorne has claimed these lands with none to be the victor. The Ga’Vin are quite bitter about the riders of Susspin holding the plains, and never miss the opportunity to make a meal out of a lone traveler.

Duke Kirka, much as his ancestors, rules with a strict adherance to law and a zero tolerance policy. Lawbreakers do not gain the opportunity to break the law again if they are caught. Summary executions are carried out by the various noble members of his staff, Thanes who serve as officers in his armed forces. In addition, House DeVris is encouraged to send it’s most stoic and solid magistrates to Susspin, to deal with matters of the law in a swift and final manner.

Beyond these factors though, Susspin is indeed a pleasant city. It is very clean, with refuse taken care of nightly, and a sophisticated system of sewers to carry much of the refuse away into burn pits, phosphor springs which lay a short distance from the city walls. Susspin’s people are quite respectful, and polite, rarely turning a stranger from a good meal and good company when visiting. The many inns and taverns tend to be clean and well kept, with ever the rushes in the Black Fountain being changed fortnightly.

It is from this bastion of soldiery and military might that Kirka rules his duchy, and when he is away on campaign he leaves the city in the hands of his granite second, Baron Orun Tallshield. The Tallshield family has served as chancellor of the city for at least two generations, and hold a small keep just inside the north wall. There they hold court over the day to day running of the city and meet with various guild heads over trade disbutes and merchant rights.

A stranger should make sure to purchase the headdress of the Susspinese if male or female, to avoid standing out and being overcharged enormously on goods. The people here tend to wear wool overrobes, the aba, along with a piece of cloth draped about the head called a kefiyah. In addition the women often veil part of their faces. It adds to the mistery and romance of the city, but was originally intended to prevent women from seducing other men and vice versa. These traditions have for the most part fallen by the wayside, but many of the older folk still hold by them quite closely. It is believed that this is a long lasting behavior imported from the desert tribes of the far west.

Barony of Aerinon
Found in the Old Lore Books on the Final Haven website.

From A Biography of Silverthorne by Sathin Maevers, 1000 P.E.W.

Location: Susspin plains to the north and east of Ellinon
Population: Approx. 5000
Exports: Trained Cavalry

Aerinon is located on the vast Susspin plains to the north and east of Ellinon. It is a settlement consisting mostly of whitwashed adobe buildings, rising from the surrounding fields and rolling hills. The area is famed for the wonderful horses they raise, which carry the heavy Susspin lancers into battle. The many white domes of Aerinon sparkling in the sun over green fields are said to be one of the most wondrous sights in the kingdom, at least until closer inspection.

In all reality, Aerinon is a quite harsh place to live, and is commonly home to the training of a full legion of heavy horse which consists of over two thousand Susspinese cavalry and all of their necessary retainers and gear. While that makes the Aerinon region relatively safe, it also lowers the productivity of the local peasants, who are continuously suffering from trampled fields, and damaged crops. Also, having a few thousand soldiers on hand who are not fighting actively in a war tends to create havoc in towns among the populace due to rowdy behavior and heavy drinking.

As the region is a training ground, rather than the disciplined forces that are stationed elsewhere in the duchy and Silverthorne at large, the famed Susspinese discepline is somewhat lacking, and fights between units are not unheard of. The Baron, a large man by the name of Lucius Murial is a retired cavalry man himself and understands the thrill of the charge quite well. He is a firm believer in the value of heavy cavalry, and as such lets the military have the run of his barony. He also insures that they pay well for damages, and charges a steep price for the valuable horseflesh raised on his lands.

Barony of Ellinon
Found in the Old Lore Books on the Final Haven website.

From A Biography of Silverthorne by Sathin Maevers, 1000 P.E.W.

Location: Southern shoreline of the Great Bear Lake
Population: Approx. 3000
Exports: Fish, Fine Dyes

Ellinon is located on the southern shoreline of the Great Bear Lake. Both as a source of food production and as a key player in the trade with lands beyond the Kingdom, Ellinon holds a key role for the duchy of Susspin. Her people are a stronge mix of surprisingly down to earth individuals and incredibly gaudy pompous ones. Some find that the bright cloth worn by the men of the region when trading with their neighbors is almost intolerable to the eyes. I am not sure whether this was intended in order to strike a better bargain, or if such clothing was truly in fashion among the men of the region. I felt it better not to ask due to the fast tempers common among the local people.

Here where a large portion of the population takes fish from the lake, it seems that everyone is carrying a razor sharp fileying knife, and that they are just as cheerful to use them on each other as on the fish. In fact, house DeVris has almost no presence here, even with the score of Caveliers and six magistrates who make this barony their home.

Magistrate Cazomar Bonefinger explained it to me in this way.

There is no point sir scholar, in upsetting the local people with the enforcement of laws upon them which they are equally happy and capable of enforcing upon themselves and each other. When sitting at council with the Baron it quickly becomes clear to a member of any house that this is an efficient and well run region, capable of taking care of itself without undue intervention on our behalf.

It is true on occasion that we must step in to end fued before whole family lines are wiped out, but in general it is far better to let the peasantry and gentry settle their disputes in the manner that they have been using since long before the arrival of our good king to this land.

Now the foreign influence on the other hand is a different matter entirely. They bring a distasteful influx of crime and theft to our region which must be closely monitored. It is a well known fact that many of these so called Nomads who live upon the great plateau are no more than rogues and scoundrels. If I could just get another score of Caveliers and their retainers up here along with some of our cavalry support I am quite sure we could wipe them out all the way to Carthen and expand our border to the very edges of the great desert. But what am I saying, I digress. Trust me, the region of Ellinon is in good hands through the guidance of our house in handling their problems in the time honored tradition of the duel. I believe our interview is at an end, I must have a few words with that caravan driver Thomas about some silks he reported stolen.

After having spoken with house DeVris, and seeing them relatively unconcerned with the bloodshed, I too, found that there was little to be worried about. After all as long as I didn’t say anything offensive to the wrong person, I wasn’t too likely to be stabbed over nothing.

Barony of Westinon
Found in the Old Lore Books on the Final Haven website.

From A Biography of Silverthorne by Sathin Maevers, 1000 P.E.W.

Location: The northern reaches of the Chaos Mountains and just south of the great plateau
Population: Approx. 3500
Exports: Ore, Dried Meats

Westinon is located at the base of the Chaos Mountains, along their northern reaches, and just south of the great plateau. It is occupied by both herdsmen and miners, who produce a large portion of Suspin’s wealth. As such the barony is respected for its hardworking individuals and the wealth which they have accrued. This is one of the few baronies in the kingdom where the peasants are relatively well of, and there has not been a peasant uprising recorded in the region at any time within the past century.

This may be due to the fact that Baroness Lisa Vail and her family have insured that the standard of living for the people has always included brick or stone homes, and that most of the people are emploed in skilled trades rather than farming. Indeed, only a very small percentage of the locals have been recorded in the Toevass census as being farmers. Perhaps even as little as twenty percent of the population. This means that a great deal of the food is either imported or supplied through meat products, such as sheep, yaks, and the famous shaggy highland cows.

In addition, families are encouraged to have multiple professions within the family group, so that each can provide a variety of skills and garner wealth based on their own resourcefulness. The settlements of Westinon are closely nit groups consisting of a few hundred peasants and a handful of freemen working in a region. Most of the settlements are located in small mountain valleys and are walled to prevent the intrusion of brigands, who are constantly on the prowl for additional money to supplement their raidings from the caravan routes.

Of the dozen or so settlements located in the highland valleys in this manner, only about four have been named. These have populations greater than five hundred, and have been around more than two generations. In other valleys, the settlements shift every twenty years or so to follow the mineral deposits and find quality pasture land. Land ownership is a relatively limited concept due to the need for mobility, and there are also several abandoned settlements which have become inhabited by various critters, bandits, scoundrels, and even wild dwarves.