RPG Stuff: Mhar Map Project Tolsenmark
So another snippet from the poster map: Tolsenmark. I take it that it got left out of the Gazetteer being only a margravate and not a duchy; it may have been left out because it was once part of Duchy of Salsmark back when it was a kingdom until the later was forced into vassalage to the Empire a century ago during a civil war. Salsmark lost its independence and had the marches of Tolsenmark and Eberval shaved off into semi-independent states while its western territories were liberated into the reformed Nicilan Kingdom of Byakala by the nicilan hero Klen. Much of the territory is covered in salt-marsh due to an ancient deluge that sank miles of the western coast under the sea; the marsh is a source of salt production with peat, marsh rushes, and seaweed burned to cook pans of the brine to make salt used in preserving meats and fish for trade. Herring and Salmon are the main two commodities, followed by seals and whaling. A minor note is the local use of a small bony oily sardine-like fish called a candlefish whose oil is used in lamps and the dried fish can be lit like a candle to burn for an hour (smokey and smelly though).
The arms of the region (and the margrav are silver and blue with a tower and a beacon counter-charged, with a border of black and gold (for any one who is into heraldry). The Margrave, according to the rough draft I have, is in his forties but hides his face behind a mask--some believe him to scared by pox or leprosy, others suggest he might be marked by tainted heritage (perhaps a half-orc or tiefling in your version).
Adventure-wise there is lots of opportunities here if you want to adopt the map for a campaign.
Tolsenburg is a mid-sized town with just under twenty thousand inhabitants; the town is stretched out along the riverbank with the dock district and the Vasser (water) district upriver to the docks. The Vasser is made up of salt and barrel warehouses, workshops, tanneries, etc while the Dock has the shipyards, fisheries, and general warehouses and the city Bondhouse. North of the docks is the Guilden district where hansa shops and homes belonging to merchants of the Leitzburg League are set up; these foreign merchants are swapped out every five years to avoid becoming compromised with local attachments and ensure loyalty to their home towns. The Market lies on the east side of the Guilden district and forms the boundary with the Gate district (the common residential district). West of the Guilden is Abbey District dominated by the Abbey of St Brigga. This is the wealthy district and the Citadel and Palace adjoin it along with the town hall.
Early adventures include being hired to guard warehouses from thieves (made the more difficult by gangs of pixie pests or perhaps a were-weasel) or protect merchant trains from bandits. Later on PCs could be asked to guard a caravan going to Haulbeck through the Mirkmose Marshlands. They might even get hired on a caravan going to Platz many miles to the east, travelling upriver into Salsmark and then crossing the Tolsen near its headwaters onto the Amber Trail. The trail cuts through many miles of pine wilderness filled with beasts, barbarians, and goblins to the distant town. Platz is a mostly pagan town and is also one filled with refugees as well as tradesmen because of crusading knights coming out of Gotzburg to the south (think Tuetonic Knights in Poland).
The arms of the region (and the margrav are silver and blue with a tower and a beacon counter-charged, with a border of black and gold (for any one who is into heraldry). The Margrave, according to the rough draft I have, is in his forties but hides his face behind a mask--some believe him to scared by pox or leprosy, others suggest he might be marked by tainted heritage (perhaps a half-orc or tiefling in your version).
Adventure-wise there is lots of opportunities here if you want to adopt the map for a campaign.
Tolsenburg is a mid-sized town with just under twenty thousand inhabitants; the town is stretched out along the riverbank with the dock district and the Vasser (water) district upriver to the docks. The Vasser is made up of salt and barrel warehouses, workshops, tanneries, etc while the Dock has the shipyards, fisheries, and general warehouses and the city Bondhouse. North of the docks is the Guilden district where hansa shops and homes belonging to merchants of the Leitzburg League are set up; these foreign merchants are swapped out every five years to avoid becoming compromised with local attachments and ensure loyalty to their home towns. The Market lies on the east side of the Guilden district and forms the boundary with the Gate district (the common residential district). West of the Guilden is Abbey District dominated by the Abbey of St Brigga. This is the wealthy district and the Citadel and Palace adjoin it along with the town hall.
Early adventures include being hired to guard warehouses from thieves (made the more difficult by gangs of pixie pests or perhaps a were-weasel) or protect merchant trains from bandits. Later on PCs could be asked to guard a caravan going to Haulbeck through the Mirkmose Marshlands. They might even get hired on a caravan going to Platz many miles to the east, travelling upriver into Salsmark and then crossing the Tolsen near its headwaters onto the Amber Trail. The trail cuts through many miles of pine wilderness filled with beasts, barbarians, and goblins to the distant town. Platz is a mostly pagan town and is also one filled with refugees as well as tradesmen because of crusading knights coming out of Gotzburg to the south (think Tuetonic Knights in Poland).
Category Other / Fantasy
Species Unspecified / Any
Gender Any
Size 556 x 567px
Listed in Folders
Always interesting to see your maps and hear about the local culture/politics of the world. How often do you usually put villages inbetween the cities? Is it possible to sleep in an inn every night while traveling by road, or are there places you need to go for a few days before reaching civilization?
There are some local scale maps Greg has made of some of the kingdoms, namely a poster map we did of Anaeland that is on DrivethroughRPG.com that shows, in addition to the main features, all of the manors and minor abbeys, priories, and features such as barrows, stone circles, and mage chantries etc. The yellow areas on the map represent cropland and pasture so assume at least a dozen major villages and manors around each keep (hollow red circle) and double that around a castle (large red dot) and at least 30+ around a town (red square). Inns would likely be only located along the roads but many major villages will likely have a tavern with the common room also serving as a floproom for travellers (ie sleep on the table for a farthing or two). Where the roads pass through wooded areas their might be an inn but likely the only accommidation is a clearing just off the road where travellers make camp. Inn placement outside of major settlements is generally up to the GM
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