Tag: loc-mont-prot
Climbers Rest (halfling village; Rhyl)
Posted on May 1, 2026 in Steel-Realms
The two small Halfling villages of Butterpool and Climbers Rest in small hill valleys are within a mile of each other near the enigmatic Elerai’s Spike.
Rulership/Governance: Hetman {Integrity **}
- Recognized Administrative Center/Seat of Power: Unknown
- Primary Settlement Upbringing Experience: Rural
Population: 100% Halfling, Approx. 400
> Note: There is no official census provided.
Chronicle/Facts of the Locale
Knowledge is broken down by ease of discovery/availability & Meticulous Record Keeping may improve usability; Any attempt to know more than what's Pervasive will require a reference, source, knowledge, check, or access to someone who can get or provide either of these. Specific Lores may increase the chance of knowing specific elements.
Trivial Outcome / Very Easy Difficulty & Pervasive Knowledge
Information Sources: Mundane Reference | Associated Phenomenology Only | Specific Lore
For those native to or long-dwelling in the region, ALL Common Knowledge may be Pervasive.
Rumors About the Locale
Rhyl Formative Events
See the Herald's Quarterly for world updates.
Rhyl Formative Events
CY 7007 The area of North Gate Garrison freed & The Red March created; Money, supplies, armaments, and manpower flow into the north to fight the Lich Lords.
CY 6514 The Grand Duchy of Rhyl is created by the High King. In exchange for the resources and organization that can be brought to bear against the now organized undead armies, the lands become part of the High King's domain.
CY 6909 The Fall of the Grand Barony of Altair from a curse by the Lich Lords. The main passage of troops and supplies from the hinterlands and nfar north to the The Grand Duchy of Rhyl is sacked by an undead army led by a ghoul king.
CY 5980 The Kingdoms of old Rhylan united settled as a single Kingdom of Rhyl to fight the Lich Lords drive south. After centuries of warfare between territories and races, the common cause of the threat to the north secures a lasting peace.
> For 3000 years, the Kingdoms of old Rhylan was the primary form of Rulership in the territory of the current Grand Duchy.
CY 5580 Fall of Dundaria in the North - Frostfang spreads, the Lich Lord power rises. Hordes of the undead, fortunately disorganized (at first), sweep south and west from the heart of old Dundaria.
CY 2330's Fall of East / Rise of the Dark Lands (Orrishai Abandoned); Refugees flee - some cross the Tolkisson Mountain Range into the 'Lands of Rhylan' that would become the Kingdoms of old Rhylan and finally.
CY 1000 (Approximately) The Dragon of Rhyl is killed and its influence ends in the area around the Great Forest of Rhyl and the surrounding territories.
Simple Outcome / Easy Difficulty & Common Knowledge
For those native to or long-dwelling in the region, ALL Common Knowledge may be Pervasive.
Butterpool (halfling village; Rhyl)
Posted on May 1, 2026 in Steel-Realms
The two small Halfling villages of Butterpool and Climbers Rest in small hill valleys are within a mile of each other near the enigmatic Elerai’s Spike.
Rulership/Governance: Hetman {Integrity **}
- Recognized Administrative Center/Seat of Power: Unknown
- Primary Settlement Upbringing Experience: Rural
Population: 100% Halflings, Approx. 400
> Note: There is no official census provided.
Chronicle/Facts of the Locale
Knowledge is broken down by ease of discovery/availability & Meticulous Record Keeping may improve usability; Any attempt to know more than what's Pervasive will require a reference, source, knowledge, check, or access to someone who can get or provide either of these. Specific Lores may increase the chance of knowing specific elements.
Trivial Outcome / Very Easy Difficulty & Pervasive Knowledge
Information Sources: Mundane Reference | Associated Phenomenology Only | Specific Lore
For those native to or long-dwelling in the region, ALL Common Knowledge may be Pervasive.
Rumors About the Locale
Rhyl Formative Events
See the Herald's Quarterly for world updates.
Rhyl Formative Events
CY 7007 The area of North Gate Garrison freed & The Red March created; Money, supplies, armaments, and manpower flow into the north to fight the Lich Lords.
CY 6514 The Grand Duchy of Rhyl is created by the High King. In exchange for the resources and organization that can be brought to bear against the now organized undead armies, the lands become part of the High King's domain.
CY 6909 The Fall of the Grand Barony of Altair from a curse by the Lich Lords. The main passage of troops and supplies from the hinterlands and nfar north to the The Grand Duchy of Rhyl is sacked by an undead army led by a ghoul king.
CY 5980 The Kingdoms of old Rhylan united settled as a single Kingdom of Rhyl to fight the Lich Lords drive south. After centuries of warfare between territories and races, the common cause of the threat to the north secures a lasting peace.
> For 3000 years, the Kingdoms of old Rhylan was the primary form of Rulership in the territory of the current Grand Duchy.
CY 5580 Fall of Dundaria in the North - Frostfang spreads, the Lich Lord power rises. Hordes of the undead, fortunately disorganized (at first), sweep south and west from the heart of old Dundaria.
CY 2330's Fall of East / Rise of the Dark Lands (Orrishai Abandoned); Refugees flee - some cross the Tolkisson Mountain Range into the 'Lands of Rhylan' that would become the Kingdoms of old Rhylan and finally.
CY 1000 (Approximately) The Dragon of Rhyl is killed and its influence ends in the area around the Great Forest of Rhyl and the surrounding territories.
Simple Outcome / Easy Difficulty & Common Knowledge
For those native to or long-dwelling in the region, ALL Common Knowledge may be Pervasive.
The Muredin Stretch (Montwold)
Posted on April 14, 2026 in Steel-Realms
The Muredin Stretch is home to the human dwellers of the low mountainlands. They are referred to as the Altairi and the low mountain hill regions with meadows and valleys they make their sole home in is The Muredin Stretch. They grow tea & a super-sweet barley for export, but are mostly subsistence based rural Settlements.
Rulership/Governance: Halfling Leadership has no centralized government or formal “fiefs” and does not use peerage titles. When they need to, they send a hetman or mayor to any gatherings that affect all in the community. Humans live among the Halflings, but positions of leadership are all of the small-folk. This makes diplomatic relations difficult at best, and thankfully their good nature offsets the confusion and disorganization.
> Administrative Center (“Capital”): While there is no capital, Willfordshire serves as a gathering place – especially when meeting with outsiders is necessary.
Population: Halflings > Note: There is no official census provided.
All villages and hamlets have a ‘Kothera’ – a circular space consecrated by their priests in which magic is said not to function; Their society adds ancestor worship to the normal Faiths of the Steel Realms. They have a deep distrust of magic, hatred of the stench & corruption of ghouls, and some are even said to be resistant to one or both.
Halfling Cultural Experience (Montwold Protectorate)
Posted on April 14, 2026
The _ is one of the Cultural Experiences of the Steel Realms
Halflings of the Montwold Pass Protectorate live slightly less than the normal age range, usually no more than 100 years, and never develop Delayed Decrepitude like some of their ilk.
iCore™Culture, Education, Institutions, & Traditions of Montwold Pass
Posted on April 9, 2026 in Steel-Realms
The Culture, Education, Institutions, & Traditions of Montwold Pass is dominated by Halfling society. The Halfling here lay claim to a stretch of the mountains southern edge where it is forested and deeper forest from east of Balient’s Breach (though not including it) to the open area of Claybottom Meadows beyond the NE spur of North Pines that they call “Crippin’s Thumb“. While the population has never been large or expansionist, it has remained stable. Halfling Leadership is very loose.
The folk here are more suspicious, less whimsical & gregarious (even seemingly worrisome or aggrieved at times) than their kin elsewhere. They are community minded, but more on a local level, not societal. Physically, they are no different than others of their kind, except what seems like a permanent furrow from worry on their foreheads; While no one knows for sure, this is referred to as ‘The Concern of Montwold‘. They follow the normal convention for Halfing Names.
Family vs. Community Culture in Montwold Pass
The society here is not as community minded as other Halfling protectorates – perhaps through its closeness to lands and times of trouble and turmoil. History, accomplishment, pride, and kinship is less about a specific family than it is about Halfling community and society in the north – they are survivors. There is little stress on keeping any family lines “pure” – adoption is common and there are no orphans. Pets, plants, and livestock are even seen as living things that are part of the community with more standing than outsiders!
Culture and Social Perspectives
Death Observance: The death observance custom is to be buried back into the earth; Bodies are buried with ceremonial and symbolic items for their journey through the House of the Dead to wherever their faith takes them. Items of wealth or value to their community are shared with the living.
Rhylian Culture & Influence in the Area
Cultural Overview & References for the Grand Duchy of Rhyl
The two old hill forts of the The ‘Eyes of Weigolar’ that guard the east-west Kroith Passage and watch the Altain Mountain Range for the Lich Lords’ minions and strange things and are tolerated by inhabitants of North Pines and Montwold Pass Protectorate because they do not interfere with their commerce or politics, nor collect taxes.
The Duke of The Grand Duchy of Rhyl is nominally an ally and (according to the High King in Oerdney) enforces its boundaries and protection, but the folk of North Pines are more apt to come to their aid and defend their territory lines. Despite some cantankerous relations at times, the Duke ensures a small delivery of Honeystone Pollen is made every year to aid in their defense.