While getting ready to start up my own D&D 4th edition campaign I came across James Wyatt's Dungeoncraft article. I liked it. So, I'm stealing some of his ideas.
Berador
Introduction
Nestled on the western side of the White Mist Mountains just north of the Palantir River, Berador is a small farming village populated mostly by humans. A smattering of all of the common races of the world call Berador home. The people of Berador eke out a meager existence among the shattered ruins of a once great but nigh forgotten kingdom. The farmers live hard, mean lives struggling to feed themselves and hold back a bit each autumn to see themselves through the winter. The lucky few manage to squeeze a bit of surplus out of the land to trade with the brave souls of the Traveling Carnivals that make the rounds every season or so.
Beradorans have little love for change or surprise. It is hard enough to feed a family and survive the winter while dealing with the vagaries of weather and the common pests of the lands. Anything that upsets the natural order of life is at the least regarded as untrustworthy and usually is considered dangerous. Outsiders should not expect a warm welcome or a kind word in Berador.
The Neighborhood
Berador is a clear patch of farmland scraped out of the forested hills of the White Mist Mountains. It lies at the intersection of an ancient road and the Blue Wash. The Blue Wash flows out of the Silverine Forest far to the north and southward into the great Palantir River. The Road, as the villagers call it, runs from the mining town of Dalton some days northeast and goes as far as the great city of Roth to the southwest. Other villages and towns dot the countryside, none closer than several days’ ride along the Road or a similar distance up or down the Blue Wash.
The Village
The village proper consists of a handful of houses and the businesses of the local tradesmen encircled by a crude wooden palisade. A great millhouse straddles the Blue Wash on the north side of town. The southern edge of the village abuts a tiny lake formed by a natural dam in the ‘Wash. The Road bisects the town from east to west. No gates protect the entrances to the village at the Road. In times of need the people roll wagons into the road to close up the openings in their wall.
A tiny temple dedicated to [the locally acknowledged gods] sits in the center of the village. Gerry Woodcote leads local religious services including weddings, funerals, and annual festivals and holidays. The people of Berador are not particularly religious, but they do acknowledge the power of the gods. They make the expected offerings and perform the appropriate rites to avoid any undue wrath of the gods. The people of Berador look to Gerry as a counselor and advisor as well as spiritual leader.
The Maple House serves as a public gathering place and the local watering hole. Tamil Rivers, the proprietor, maintains a handful of rooms for the rare traveler or the local farmer caught in town by the dark. The people of Berador hold Tamil in high regard for his personal wealth, renowned prowess and worldly knowledge. Tamil traveled the lands as a lad, and as he will tell all and sundry given the time and a bit of beer in his belly, he once slew a dragon in the Craggy Pass a way west of Old Oshland. While he holds no official position of authority in the village, Tamil’s opinion is much sought after and his approval is a must for any significant decision.
The Farms
Beyond the pitiful protection of the palisade dozens of farms dot the countryside. The family farms grow over time as weddings and births increase the mouths to feed and the hands available to work. Most households span several generations and include several adult siblings and their spouses and children. The most common wedding gift in the region is the key to a new bedroom added on to the family home. On occasion a very large household will split into two or more nearby dwellings as the logistics of managing more than two dozen or so people in a single house becomes unmanageable. Very rare is the “loner” couple who leaves the family home to start a new farmstead without at least two or more adults or near grown children to help carry the load.
The Goods
The people of Berador survive on their own with little trade necessary between the village and outsiders. The farmsteads of the village provide the necessities of food, clothing and shelter. Trout from the Blue Wash and catfish from Lake Callie supplement the cattle, grains and greens from the farms. Most families provide for their own needs, but some minor crafted and manufactured goods come from the village craftsmen including a blacksmith, cobbler, tailor, miller and baker. The seasonal arrival of the Traveling Carnivals brings limited metal goods and exotic fare to the village in exchange for furs, foodstuffs and forest goods.
The People
Humans comprise the vast majority of the farmers and villagers of Berador. From the grizzled veteran Tamil Rivers and the village priest Gerry Woodcote to the farmers in the farthest outlying homesteads, most of the people in Berador are human. Twenty or so dwarfs, all of the Fireaxe clan, live inside the village proper and fill several craft roles in the village. They own the smith and mill. Another clan, the Stonejaws, holds a large farmstead several miles from the village. The Stonejaws raise goats and sheep. Berador’s tailor is an elf by the name of Gemini Starseer. He and his wife make their residence in town with their children. No other elves live inside the palisade. Three enclaves of elves live in the forests around the village. They trade their woodland wares with the rest of the village and are accepted as integral members of the community. A single halfling troop lives on the south bank of Lake Callie. They live in a chaotic mix of burrows in the higher hills, houses on stilts, mobile wagon homes and raft houses that ply the river north and south of town. For the most part they are fishermen, but some make a living providing travel and cartage services on the river and on the Road. Many more halflings come and go with the Traveling Carnivals.
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