I've been messing around with Campaign Cartograher 3 a lot lately, trying to learn the ropes in order to make a bunch of maps for my Age of Sigmar armies to base their background narratives on. It is time to take a look at the first map I've been able to put together!
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| Rivers do not work like that, I know. |
Although famous for its prospering spice trade, the main livelihood of Svedonnia is agriculture. While the peasants and serfs work themselves to early graves on farms and fields, the nobility taxes their production harshly while enjoying long and fulfilling lives in ther castles and mansions. There is also a small social class of craftsmen and merchants in the cities, but even they are heavily taxed by the nobility. The finest warriors in the land should be kept constantly healthy and rested, shouldn't they?
The reason for spices being the only product worth exporting is simple and frankly depressing: nothing else is worth it. Although boasting many fine smiths, armourers, stablekeepers, breeders, masons, tailors and sailors, the heavy taxation and stricts laws of the kingdom bind all of them to their homeland. Even the valiant and actually useful knights of Svedonnia are no stuff to become well-paid mercenaries, being honour-bound to protect the land and serve their liege lords.
Svedonnia's population is almost completely human. Being strongly religious and superstitious (not to mention barely educated at all), the regular people of the land fear even mostly friendly races like duardin and aelves. Only the capital has dedicated several living blocks to other races in order to house emissaries and travelling merchants that stop by in the harbour.
Trolleholm is the Bastion of the North, a heavily fortified stronghold that keeps vigil over the west side of the Kalamari Spine mountain range. The citadel houses immense granaries and an internal well system, allowing it to hold its own for months in the event of a siege. During peacetime the stocks are kept full by a constant stream of supplies from the markets of Norrsköping. Trolleholm has such a vast consumption of firewood due to the size of its garrison that a small village by the name of Trolleby has sprung up nearby, its inhabitants making a living through logging for the fortress. This business is currently thriving and the village expands rapidly as a sea of tents and makeshift shelters has appeared at the foot of the citadel, increasing the demand for firewood. A persistent plague is spreading in the region and hundreds of local peasants are pleading entry into the safety of the fortress, which Duke of Trolleholm has denied for fear of contaminating his soldiers.
Norrvakt is a small holdfast guarding the strands of the Sea of Spices. Together with similar outposts of Morsvakt, Torsvakt and Vättevakt it forms a chain of defenses along the coast, guarding the realm against inside and outside threats.
Morstrand Castle stands in between Norrvakt and Morsvakt, reinforcing these two smaller keeps with its more impressive bulwark and expanded garrison. The Earl of Morstrand is able to send urgent help to both of these outposts on short notice, and is even capable of calling in knights from the surrounding lands should the threat pose too great for peasant militia to handle effectively.
Godwrath Craters is a devastated wasteland. Once the keep of Norrholm stood there, a formidable castle guarding the prospering town and verdant farmlands surrounding its skillfully carved battlements. Centuries ago a subtle corruption took root here, an infection in the society that some claim had its roots dating back to the founding days of Svedonnia. A secretive cult grew beneath the society's surface, tempting oppressed peasants with promises of a better life under the guidance of the Dark Gods. One night the cult sparked an uprising and stormed the lord's keep, spreading anarchy and terror throughout the streets of the town. It was then that the stars began raining down from the skies, striking down on the corrupted settlement with otherwordly wrath. None survived this divine judgement, and now the area is avoided by all right-minded folks. This didn't stop the village of Kraterby from forming on the verge of the largest crater, its population growing stormeels in the pit where the fish seem to flourish.
Långö is a fairly small town in between the south and the north. Surrounded by rivers and forests, this settlement is naturally protected and has no need for heavy defenses. Its populace lives on fishing, hunting and trade, as many travellers and caravans from the east must pass through it either by land or river. While Långö is a well-known marketplace, merchants rarely stay there for long as they can fetch a better price for their wares in Norrsköping, but the town's baron has set a high toll on both bridges and the river to compensate for this loss. Långö is particularly famous for its peasant archers who train with their heirloom longbows from an early age.
Morsvakt is one of the holdfasts guarding the coast along with Norrvakt, Torsvakt and Vättevakt.
Torsvakt is another of the holdfasts guarding the coast along with Norrvakt, Morsvakt and Vättevakt.
Scrubland Keep watches over one of the few convenient passages between the Scrubland plains and the western riverlands: the Drake Pass. This narrow route allows a relatively fast means through the treacherous Drakespine Mountains, giving it great military value. This is why a formidable keep was raised to protect it, and several mounted patrols sweep the way back and forth each day to make sure it stays safe for travellers to use. The nearby village of Buskeby counts on the security this castle's proximity provides to mine ores and herd cattle in the region.
Fredholm Estate is worth a mention despite seeming nothing more than the holdings of one of the kingdom's barons. House Fredholm is known for their excellent skills at breeding first-class warhorses, and the quality of their stables and the vastness of their lands far exceed those of other noble families. Fredholm destriers are greatly valued in the kingdom and their prices rise to soaring heights each summer, as new knights seek the boost to their social stature that owning such a mount provides. Demand for these steeds is immense but breeding and training takes time, not to mention that the royal court usually takes their pick from the stock before anyone else is given a chance.
Torshamn produces the most food in the kingdom in terms of farming and herding. This large town relies on the Torshamn Keep at its centre and the smaller holdfasts around it for safety, while in times of great peril the strength of the capital is near at hand. Crops grow fast and healthy in the region, a quality many attribute to the nearby Lake of the Lady. This holy pond is said to be the home of a powerful magical being that watches over the kingdom and knights of Svedonnia, and the site is the destination of many annual pilgrimages by peasants and nobility both.
Karlenstad is yet another sprawling city relying on outside support in terms of defence. The proximity of Castle Kalmar and Gotteborg garrison are enough for the city to ignore defensive perimeters in favour of rapid expanse. Karlenstad has grown wildly over the recent decades, its Duke's coffers swelling with wealth from bypassing trade via land and water. Everything shipped up from the south goes through Karlenstad, from which supplies are forwarded to the surrounding citadels. The river separates a small part of the city, known as the Oldtown, from the rest of the settlement. Once a rampaging greenskin Waaagh! stormed into the city from the east, laying waste to everything in their path until the defenders burned the bridge connecting the two halves of the city. After the orruks and grots were driven off by an armed force sent from the capital, the bridge was rebuilt but none seemed too keen to re-settle the desolated district. Nowadays the Oldtown is a safe haven for runaway serfs and ne'er-do-wells, as even the armed guards stationed at the bridge rarely cross the river unless threatened to do so by the nobility.
Karleby provides food and wood for Karlenstad so that majority of the goods arriving from the south can be directly sold away to Gotteborg and Castle Kalmar. Wooden palisades give the small town some much-needed protection against outside threats, as the nearest (friendly) armed forces are found across a non-bridged river that can only be crossed at small fords or in rickety peasant-made rafts.
Castle Kalmar stands proudly in the shadow of Mount Kalmar, keeping watch over the green valley in between the Drakespine Mountains and Kalamari Spine. According to local folklore these two mountain ranges are the carcasses of two gigantic realmbeasts: a ferocious fire-breathing drake and a primordial sea monster from the darkest depths. It is said that in the Age of Myth these two beasts of opposite elements battled each other for days before they both succumbed to their wounds, destined to rest beside each other for all eternity. The superstitious men-at-arms patrolling Castle Kalmar's high walls still tremble every time an avalanche rumbles in the distance, fearing that one or both of the monsters might some day wake from their slumber.
Morasten Circle might not seem like much at first, but the place holds a special status in the minds of Svedonnians. A circle of megaliths surrounded by some overgrown earthworks, inside of which stands an even smaller circle of standing stones ingraved with mysterious runes and swirls. In the centre of this installation sits a large flat rock, the face of which has worn smooth. In Svedonnia, royalty is not hereditary, but nobility is. Each time the kingdom is in need of a new leader, the noble Houses of the realm gather at the Morasten Circle to elect a new one. Anyone from the nobility may step forth to stake a claim in front of an Enchantress, a sacred envoy of the Lady of the Lake. Each of the noble Houses, as well as the envoy, has a vote to cast. Once the election is decided, the new king or queen will stand upon the flat stone to be hailed by his or her new subjects.
Vätteby makes good use of the rich soil the local rivers provide, growing crops and cattle that can be sold to surrounding outposts and settlements. Although the village has felt the decline in region's trade, it still maintains a healthy symbiosis with the nearby Bråteby that eagerly offers its lumber and game in return for farm products. In addition, the Torshamn-Karlenstad road that snakes through Vätteby ensures steady a stream of trade that keeps the village on its feet.
Vetehem sits on the edge of the Scrublands, clinging to the road that connects several major cities to each other. This lifeline takes all the crops grown here and distributes them all over the kingdom in miles-long supply caravans, some of which head for the Grand Market in Norrsköping while others hurry to the busy districts of Karlenstad. In either case this farming community reaps good profit and its baron is able to upkeep a garrisoned holdfast that keeps vigil over the brimming granaries.
Sveagrav Barrows is a place most of the locals steer away from out of sheer respect, for it is the final resting place of Svedonnian's earliest kings and noblest knights. A standing stone towers over a sea of burial mounds, its time-worn surface filled with carvings of great victories and grand conquests achieved by those laid to rest here. It is said that the Lady of the Lake protects these departed saints, casting a terrible curse over those who disturb their eternal rest.
Westmarsh is the main reason the southwest part of the kingdom is in decline. Ever since the town of Westberg was found destroyed overnight some years ago, there has been no reason for caravans or any right-minded folk to travel there. This has led to great trouble for Vätteholm, which was largely dependant on the traffic passing through on their way to the peat that Westberg had in plentiful supply. Rumours abound that strange, slumped shapes can sometimes be seen moving in the fog that covers the marsh, and many local accuse these things for the sudden death of an entire settlement.
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