I talk a lot about Strongholds in my game – Places where Dragons grow up. Here’s one from one of my earliest games. After I post a few, I might write a move for the one that people seem to like most.
Wickerhome (A Stronghold of HouseTessith)
Many dragons of Tessith made promises to themselves and their families as they emerged from The War. The ancestors of Wickerhome’s inhabitants promised ‘Never Again’. Never again would they be tied to one place which could be besieged, and forced to choose between their lives and their homes. Under the leadership of elder crafters, and the hands of drake and dragon trained nearly from birth in the arts of weaving, Wickerhome wove itself shelter – Shelter that would never be tied to one strip of land.
The treehouse homes of this Tessith enclave resemble massive upside-down teardrops, woven from not reeds or grass but from massive strips of bark and whole saplings, with larger homes housing larger dragons, who seem to barely fit, bird-like, into the round holes of the homes. However, what makes Wickerhome’s dwellings unique is their mobility.
Scouts map out copses of Leviathan Pines ahead of each migration. When the time comes for the nomadic tribe to move on, larger dragons merely unhook the dwellings of their smaller brethren from the branches and carry them to their new homes, hanging them in the boughs of a new, distant Leviathan. Of course, no larger dragons exist to carry the largest dwellings – Most seasons, the tribe’s largest members are content with the canopies for shelter, although a particularly beloved elder may receive a gigantic nest and ‘Honor Flight’ to move these enormous structures.
Drakes are put to work young in the house. A young dragon might be tasked with scouring the forest floor for suitable materials, clambering over dwellings to spot weakness and perform repairs, and of course, every drake in Wickerhome is taught the ins and outs of elaborate weaving, both structural and decorative. In addition to woven art, Wickerhome’s oral traditions are alive with stories woven through with clever and determined dragons, who always know when it is prudent to press onward valiantly, and when to withdraw and gather their friends.
(Next- Rabaton, the Rothscar Supply Depot)
Awesome flavor! I love the idea of mobile birdhouse dragon-homes with seemingly tiny doors. I also like the cultural element of stories and artistic styles woven into these structures and the inter-generational dependency and opportunities for honor during the migrations. There are so many ideas for events and conflicts for a clutch in play from this description, I love it!
Are saplings in such nest structures somehow sustained alive, maybe through magic, or do they just serve the same way as birds use twigs, they just happen to be huge twigs. Thanks Jonathan Perrine, I look forward to more like this.
Adam Minnie, obviously (this is a term I use when something is not obvious, but I want to propose a logical consistency in the fiction) the living saplings thing would be something nature adept drakes or their mentors might have to set their dwellings apart. Alternatively some green – clawed tribes might use the fast growing Leviathan Pine saplings so their homes grow as they do…
I think I’m going to use the concept of Wickerhome as the starting locale of my starting game tomorrow. Thanks for the idea!
So, I have a stock set of questions in my head about strongholds and lead with those
I want to reiterate that All of my Stronghold ideas were things players created with a little nudge.
Wickerhome is a great Tessith ‘Stronghold because I asked Tessith questions – Do you live in some kind of (Rare, storied, recently resettled or rebuilt) Tessith holds, or does your clan travel? where, what kind of homes, portable or camps, etc. I just cue from the House’s traits – What architectural marvels / pieces of knowledge / traditional functions /paths of enlightenment / etc did the place you were raised practice?
Epyllion (IMO) works best when you are just refereeing and piecing together the player’s ideas. Give them a seed of flavor and let them interpret it, then reincorporate their answers. Get them in the habit of choosing their own trouble to keep finding what interests them.