Route Between Runegate and Clearwine?

[Rob Helm]

I just noticed something odd about the town of Runegate of the Colymar Tribe: There doesn't seem to be any path to travel between it and Clearwine through Colymar territory.

Is that right?

For what it's worth: on page 56 of the _Sartar Companion_:

 Runegate is the conjunction of three trade paths. The Jonstown Path leads east towards Apple Lane and beyond, the Northern Path leads to the Two Sisters ferry and from there into the Dragonewt Wildlands. The Good Ale Path leads south into Lismelder territory, eventually ending up at Quackford.

So if the Colymar king wants to visit Runegate or vice-versa, does he go all the way around through Boldhome and Jonstown? Or through the lands of the Lismelder Tribe?

Curious,

Rob

[metcalph]

He could go through the Wilds or across the Starfire Ridges.  Nobody can make him use the roads.  

[Grievous]

I think down to Quackford and then up to Runegate through the Lismelder lands. Going through the Wilds sounds difficult, esp. for any larger entourage (and maybe entirely impossible if they bring any carts or such). That seems a possible feature of the Colymar lands - that they are quite split by the Wilds into separated northern and southern parts. It would be interesting to hear how you have handled this from any of you who have run Colymar campaigns (?).

Frankly going to Jonstown from Clearwine looks pretty difficult as well, unless you go through Runegate or there is a route over the Thunder Hills into Arfritha Vale (which is pretty much how the Malani originally arrived). The Colymar being rather separated from Jonstown isn't really a problem though as they're not part of the confederation and it's not a market primarily intended for them.

Then again the Thunder Hills aren't really all that high (seems to be mostly 500 feet above their surroundings) so they are probably traversable, even though there is no real road or path for carts and the like. The Starfire Ridges look a bit more daunting.

Edited July 8, 2018 by Grievous

[jajagappa]

8 hours ago, Rob Helm said:

I just noticed something odd about the town of Runegate of the Colymar Tribe: There doesn't seem to be any path to travel between it and Clearwine through Colymar territory.

Is that right?

There are travel paths from Clearwine through Orlmarth land and the gap between the Starfire Ridges and the Colymar Wild to reach the road from Runegate to Jonstown.  See Sartar Companion, Return to Apple Lane, p.170 "Getting to Apple Lane".  

If you go through Quackford, you have to go through Lismelder lands as Grievous notes which means you likely have to pay some gift to pass, but certainly happens, and probably common for those of the Arnoring clan.

[Joerg]

12 hours ago, Rob Helm said:

I just noticed something odd about the town of Runegate of the Colymar Tribe: There doesn't seem to be any path to travel between it and Clearwine through Colymar territory.

Is that right?

There isn't any road through the Colymar Wilds or the Thunder Hills, but there will be paths between Asborn's Stead and the Nymie Vale to the south and Apple Lane to the north.

The original Colymar tribe did not extend north of the Colymar Wilds, although the addition of the Hiording and Karandoli clans early on in the tribal history will have extended Colymar interests beyond the Thunder Hills. Possibly the Jenstali clan, too.

The Karandoli king Venharl dragged the Colymar into the Taral War, apparently against the interests of the original five Colymar clans (the Karandoli were reported "destroyed" under the next king Robasart, from the Arnoring clan, although some reconstituted form of the clan with nobility descended from the Arnoring clan continued until at least 1491, with King Ortossi lured on the Other Side on a hunt), but the addition of the Runegate triaty to the tribe meant a strong presence in the Afritha Vale, and the addition of the Varmandi antagonized the Malani.

The conquest of the Tree Triaty away from the Malani put the main strength of the Colymar into the Arfritha Vale, away from the five original clans plus the Black Spear/Anmagarn (and the more recent addition of the Enjossi on the Stream).

The Colymar Wilds play an important role in the identity of the tribe and its Black Spear heirloom, and building a road there would probably damage that identity and magic.

There will be trails east and west of these woodlands, also used by the herders for the summer pastures atop both the Starfire Ridges and the Thunder Hills.

The area where both the Karandoli and the Jenstali clans used to settle may be regarded as haunted. The Antorlings probably spread into those lands of these clans which remained attractive.

 

Basically, this history of the Colymar shows how two disparate groups were joined under one tribe.  The enmity with the Malani certainly played a role why Venharl found initial support with his activities away from the tribal center, but later on the Arfritha clans became quite dominant in the tribe. It is probably only thanks to the strength of the Clearwine Earth temple that the tribe avoided a split into those two territories, and the custom to install old clan nobility in the new replacement clans (Taraling replacing the Lonisi, Karandoli reformed after their heavy losses in the Zarran War, Antorlings from the third Tree Triaty clan after the Zarran War).

The Lismelder are an offshoot of the Malani, and despite their feud with the Malani, the Colymar never really trusted them, although they stood by them in the Beastman wars and against the undead of the Marsh.

12 hours ago, Rob Helm said:

For what it's worth: on page 56 of the _Sartar Companion_:

 Runegate is the conjunction of three trade paths. The Jonstown Path leads east towards Apple Lane and beyond, the Northern Path leads to the Two Sisters ferry and from there into the Dragonewt Wildlands. The Good Ale Path leads south into Lismelder territory, eventually ending up at Quackford.

So if the Colymar king wants to visit Runegate or vice-versa, does he go all the way around through Boldhome and Jonstown? Or through the lands of the Lismelder Tribe?

I think that the best route for medium to larger parties on horseback would be across the Thunder Hills into Antorling lands, following the cattle drift paths there, and then down the Arfritha valley through Hiording lands. These routes are ok for mule trains, too, but not for wagons.

 

12 hours ago, Rob Helm said:

Curious,

Rob

 

[jajagappa]

26 minutes ago, Joerg said:

The Colymar Wilds play an important role in the identity of the tribe and its Black Spear heirloom, and building a road there would probably damage that identity and magic.

Probably the same reason the Colymar refused to allow Sartar to make a city in their lands - that it would violate the Colymar agreements/oaths with Tarndisi.

[Rob Helm]

Thanks, all. I guess the answer is probably "all of the above". Small groups probably go via Asborn's Stead as described in the Sartar Companion, if they have good relations with the steadholder and the Black Spear Clan. The king might do formal trips to visit the Runegate clans via the Colymar Wilds, with the support of the Black Spear Clan. Other small groups go via the Thunder Hills. But it seems like heavily laden traders would probably have an arrangement with Lismelder to travel on the trade road that starts at Quackford.

Rob

[jajagappa]

On ‎7‎/‎9‎/‎2018 at 11:51 AM, Rob Helm said:

The king might do formal trips to visit the Runegate clans via the Colymar Wilds, with the support of the Black Spear Clan.

Of course, King Kangharl would not have done this as the Black Spear clan opposed him, and likely Tarndisi did as well.  Queen Leika likely will do so.

 

On ‎7‎/‎9‎/‎2018 at 11:51 AM, Rob Helm said:

Other small groups go via the Thunder Hills.

Coming from the Arfritha vale, this is a reasonable route to Apple Lane and on to Runegate.  From the Nymie vale, you'd take the trails past Asborn's stead, or along the Starfire Ridges.