Exploring the Wilderlands - Castrum Venterlapis

   

Castrum Venterlapis

 Originally known as Bellystone Keep.  Since the Overlord gifted the Crispa family the lands of Zothay in exchange for giving up their original holdings in Mill Haven (now known as Skandry) the keep has been the chief holding of the Counts of Zothiem.

    They rule from the great hilltop castle brooding over Bellystone Ford, where the Old South Rad crosses the Mageven River, planning on retaking their old holdings and dealing with the usurper Balarnega on the throne of the City State.

    As I've said several times, I'm using the old Chivalry & Sorcery rules for designing the Feudal Nation to put together my Feudal Wilderlands settings.  This includes detailing each castle in the Wilderlands - and Castrum Venterlapis is one of the largest.  In C&S terms it is a Class V: Large castle.  It has two moats, inner and outer curtain walls with their own gatehouse strong points.  The inner wall has no less than six sixty foot towers to strengthen it and the out has ten slightly smaller towers.  The donjon or central keep is 90 feet tall with walls 18 feet thick at the base.  The area of the fortification covers over four acres.

Including the Count, there are twenty knights plus their squires, eighty sergeants and 200 men at arms along with fifty mercenaries available at the castle.  Additionally, the Count can muster another eighty four sergeants out of the yeomanry able to fight on horseback along with an additional 250 yeomen men at arms.

    This is a major upgrade from the Citadel given in the original Wilderlands of High fantasy supplement with 70 fighting men led by a 5th level N Bard.  Rob Conley maintained those numbers in his edition of the supplement also.   However, looking at the map, this castle is in the most strategic location within the bounds of Zothiem, controlling the Old South Road and Bellystone Ford make it extraordinarily defensible against any armies moving down from the north, like the City State itself or the Skandiks from the Pagan Coast.

    

Caius Atius Crispa
Comes Zothia

    The Count of Zothiem, Caius Atius Crispa, is the head of the powerful Crispa family.  They were some of the original settlers from the Empire and have holdings in Skandry and in the demesne of the Invincible Overlord himself as well as multiple holdings in Zothiem.

    As one of the great Virdian families that have ruled the Wilderlands for hundreds of years, he considers the Invincible Overlord a barbarian usurper, albeit a powerful one.  This has led him to seek closer ties to his Viridian heritage, including overtures to the World Emperor.  He has commissioned several projects among his feudal subjects to recover anything related to old Virdian writings and artifacts.  He's searching for a forgotten weapon to use to regain his family's original holdings in Skandry.   His incubating revolution is protected from the hosts of the Overlord by a series of castles guarding the Old South Road as it passes through Queans Waste as well as his great keep on the far bank of Bellystone Ford.

    This ends the subsidiary posts of my notes and background thinking from the first Exploring the Wilderlands post.  Next time another solo play write up to move the adventure along.