Rootthorpe

"If we build what we need, if the road holds, if we survive what’s out there, then maybe, just maybe, we’ll have a town worth staying in."
 
Rootthorpe is no thriving village, no prosperous township, not yet. It is a place on the edge of becoming, clinging to survival between the hungry dark of the Moonpine Forest and the cutting winds of Lough Icewind. It is a place of hard men and harder choices, where the road south is still a scar through the wilderness, carved not by city builders but by woodcutters, stone haulers, and men with more scars than teeth. The land fights them at every step. The trees do not yield easily. The cliffs and crags twist their paths, forcing the would-be traders of Everwealth to march a weeks-long detour around Lough Icewind just to move their goods, if they can move them at all. Fresh food? A luxury. By the time it arrives, it's more mold than bread, more rot than fruit, and those who don’t like it learn to eat fast. And yet, they build. The road south is no longer just a dream scrawled on a noble’s map. It is a living thing, creeping forward inch by inch, axe by axe, boot by boot. A road that, if finished, will connect the lost reaches of Everwealth to its heart. If finished. If.

Demographics

Rootthorpe is a town in name, but a village in truth. It counts nearly 700 people, yet only 200 permanently call it home. The rest are scattered through the labor camps south of the settlement, their lives spent wrestling with the forest, cutting the road, and fighting off the things that stalk them from the trees. These camps are Rootthorpe in all but name, outnumbering the village itself nearly seven to one. But they are transient, temporary, rarely seen but who's axes are always heard in the distance on a quiet night. Rootthorpe itself, remains a quiet, unassuming place, its future yet uncertain. The core population consists mostly of:
  • Farmers - Those who tend the soil and graze livestock, providing the town’s only fresh food.
  • Roadbuilders - The real lifeblood of Rootthorpe, though most of them rarely set foot in the village itself.
  • Merchants & Artisans - There is little to trade yet, but some stubborn craftsmen stay, hoping for the day business improves.
  • Fishermen & Traders - Lough Icewind remains too far for efficient trade, but the lake still calls to a handful of hopefuls.
  • Transient Laborers, Wanderers & Outcasts - Those who have come seeking work, seeking a future, or simply running from their past.
Rootthorpe is a place for those willing to gamble on its success, though many have already lost that bet.

Government

The Village Council still calls the shots, at least in name. A collection of landowners and elders, they are the ones who oversee disputes, taxes, and local trade. But they do not control the road. That belongs to the Roadmaster’s Guild, an ambitious, young, and ruthless force of foremen, engineers, and expedition leaders. They dictate who works, who eats, and who earns coin. Their word carries as much weight as the Council’s, if not more. And then there is Governor Promb, a watchful presence and ward of Rootthorpe from Catcher's Rest who has begun keeping a tally on Rootthorpe’s progress… and failures. If the road collapses, the village follows. And many are already betting against it.

Defences

Rootthorpe is not defenseless despite it's humble existence. Wooden watchtowers stand at key points along the lake and the southern road, watching for bandits and beasts. The Shepherd’s Guard, a militia of hunters, farmhands, and road-builders armed with crossbows and spears, protects the village from immediate threats. Additionally, the Lake Wardens, fishermen turned patrolmen, ensure pirates and smugglers do not interfere with the new trade routes.

Industry & Trade

Rootthorpe’s economy is shifting from survival to ambition. Farming and sheep herding remain the village’s primary trade, but mead and wool exports are growing industries, increasingly in demand across Everwealth. Lake trade, once a rarity, is becoming more common, with shipments to Crossing and Catcher’s Rest increasing. The roadwork and logging effort is another developing industry, as the Southern Expansion requires stone, lumber, and labor.

Infrastructure

Rootthorpe has always been modest, but with the road project gaining momentum, new infrastructure is albeit slowly beginning to take shape. Expanded docks are under construction to accommodate larger vessels as lake trade grows. Stone-built storehouses, reinforced to withstand bandit raids and bad seasons, provide greater food security. The Southern Road, still in its early stages, is being cleared and marked, but it remains a dangerous and unfinished project.

Districts

  • The Farmlands - Fields of potatoes, barley, and grazing pastures, sprawling along the foothills.
  • The Lakefront - Rootthorpe’s growing dockyard and trade quarter, where fishermen and merchants gather.
  • The Southward Stretch - The edge of the new road project, a place of wagons, stone markers, and temporary shelters.

Assets

Rootthorpe’s most valuable assets are its access to Lough Icewind, its trade in mead and wool, and the promise of the Southern Road project. Lough Icewind provides fish, freshwater, and the foundation of a future lake-trade empire. The village’s meadery produces a sought-after floral honey mead, now reaching Catcher’s Rest in greater quantities. The road project itself, if successful, would be Rootthorpe’s true wealth, a means of expanding trade, migration, and influence southward.

Guilds and Factions

Several factions vie for influence in Rootthorpe. The Village Council represents the old rulers, reluctant to change, yet wise enough to adapt. The Roadmaster’s Guild is young, ambitious, and ruthless, controlling who gets paid, where the road goes, and who works the hardest. Meanwhile, Catcher’s Rest has begun inserting itself into Rootthorpe’s affairs, with its Overseers monitoring trade and taxation, ensuring the Crown gets its due.

History

Rootthorpe has long been a simple village, but in the last decade, it has become something more. In 448 CA, plans began for a road south through the Moonpine to connect Everwealth’s heartland to the southern borderlands. By 451 CA, the first miles were carved, but the first casualties soon followed, killed by beasts, brigands, or simple misfortune. As of 452 CA, Rootthorpe stands at a crossroads, teetering between remaining a village and becoming a city.

Points of interest

Rootthorpe’s most notable locations include the Meadery, the village’s pride, where honey and flowers become Everwealth’s finest mead. The Southward Stretch marks the beginning of the road south, a place where hope and danger go hand in hand. The Fogbank Pier, a newly built dock, represents Rootthorpe’s growing ambitions, serving as a hub for trade across Lough Icewind. There is also another interesting development here, Rootthorpe has no real doctor. At least, not one trained in Everwealth’s halls. But Doc, a mysterious man with a thick Tulanese accent, has become a legend. Tulanese descendants are common, but their accents have faded. Doc’s, however, is untouched, foreign, strange, and entirely out of place. But his hands are steady, his knowledge of medicine eerily precise, and his results border on miraculous. He has taken up shelter in an old, half-buried bunker on the outskirts of town, its origins long forgotten. People travel for miles to seek his aid—some staying, some leaving with their wounds healed and their faith shaken. The locals call him “Doc Miracles.” He hates it. But the name sticks.

Tourism

Rootthorpe does not attract wanderers for its charm. It attracts the desperate, for work, for healing, for escape. Every month, one to three travelers arrive seeking Doc’s aid, some choosing to stay, adding to the town’s labor force. They bring tools, supplies, or knowledge from other regions, bolstering Rootthorpe’s potential, but outpacing its ability to house them. The village swells and shrinks in cycles, a temporary home for many, a permanent one for few.

Architecture

Rootthorpe’s architecture is simple, functional, and evolving. Most buildings are timber-framed with stone foundations, their thatched roofs built to withstand wind and snow. The newer storehouses and docks incorporate sturdier stonework, a sign of Rootthorpe’s shifting priorities. The road’s early structures, supply stations and waypostsare hastily built but will likely be reinforced in time.

Geography

Rootthorpe sits at the northern edge of the Moonpine Forest, nestled against rolling foothills leading toward Lough Icewind. The land is fertile but prone to early frosts due to its proximity to the lake, making it ideal for root crops and grazing animals. The road project cuts through uneven terrain, with parts of the forest already cleared while others remain dense and foreboding.

Climate

The village experiences cold, snowy winters and mild, rainy summers. Lough Icewind’s winds bring a constant chill, and fog often rolls in from the lake, blanketing the settlement in eerie mist. The village’s autumns are its most bountiful, as it prepares for winter with harvests of potatoes, carrots, herbs, and honey. While summers are warmer, they are often damp, with storms rolling in unexpectedly.

Natural Resources

Rootthorpe’s greatest resources are its fertile soil, its mead-making tradition, and its proximity to both Lough Icewind and the vast timber reserves of the Moonpine Forest. Its livestock provides wool and meat, its fields yield hardy crops, and its lakefront location gives it access to freshwater fish. If the road south is completed, Rootthorpe will gain access to the Hungering Marsh’s untapped resources, further increasing its economic potential.
Founding Date
419 CA
Alternative Name(s)
'The Rooted Road', 'South’s Threshold', 'The Icewind’s Foothold'.
Population
202
Inhabitant Demonym
'Roots'.
Owning Organization

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