Ever since the fall of King Baelag the Ninth, the Borough has been the building block of the Valley. It was a conscious turning away from the conqueror Valley of the past towards a focus within, a focus on community, home and faith, rather than on war, strength and conquest. As the power fled from the Kings and Warlords of the Valley, it found a new home in the stone halls of the Borough, in its people and in the strength of shared toil.
The Borough is an all encompassing community. It is the halls in which they live and the stone under which they are buried. It is the smiles of young children being taught the history of their ancestors who stood where they did. It is the snarl of the warrior holding the line to protect those they left behind. It is the Reeve overseeing their hard work being exchanged for cold coin. It is the people of the Borough raising a tankard in celebration of another good season. The Borough is the meeting of social life, work and history.
Boroughs vary widely in size, focus and history given that they make up nearly the entire Valley, but there are a few elements that carry through.
Toil
Every Borough is focused around its work; an industry, cause or trade that everyone in the Borough is either directly involved in or works supporting it. Every member of a Borough should know how their work and role supports the overall work. It is likely that every character's investment is a part of this overall focus. It is also likely that the Borough has an intense rivalry with every other Borough that shares interests with them. Sometimes this is a light competition for quality. Other times it is a centuries long blood feud with iron in its bite.
Legends
Like the larger Valley, Boroughs are guided by the myths and stories of their Ancestors. Every Borough should have a handful of heroic ancestors from across history who exemplify the virtues they hold dear. Retold as children’s tales, bawdy drinking songs and in colourful exclamations.
Vigour
Boroughs are not only places of work, but also of life. Large complexes of workplaces, farms, personal quarters and shared spaces. All part of life is part of the Borough. The footsteps of children patter under the sound of the smithy’s hammer. The mutter of conversation matches the carpenters saw. Boroughs should live together in play, share meals, share tasks and share life.
Ironclad
While their imperial past might have gone with Baelag to the grave, the Iron Valley are still a people of war. Iron beats in their veins as true as blood. Every member of the Borough is expected to be able to defend the Borough when the time comes, be that with blade, magic or supporting hand. Each Borough trains, arms and fights differently, with a warculture handed down from Heroes of the past.
Citadel
Every space in the Valley has been fought for. Has been carved deep. Has had blood and ale spilled upon it. The space that your Borough occupies, its home hall, its workyards, its docks, its muster halls and its homes, is more important to it than the people within. It's their history, their connection to the past. Every member of the Borough should be able to point it out on the map and describe their home. Because it is all they are.
A fleet of longships, their crews and their Jarls, led by a Captain-Reeve both while on the seas and at dock. Those that remain behind ready to repair, resupply and grow. Its legends of the last great Walehunter and the wealth the beasts of the Icereach can bring. This is a Borough.
An ancient Suns Iron mine that winds deeper and deeper in the bedrock and still flows with wealth. The chambers above it contain a school, the finest subterranean tavern this side of the Steinvaults and an old armoury. A mineshaft, turned home that is defended by those raised in its darkness. This is a Borough.
A mountain top hall, made of old creaking oak beams that still threaten to buckle under every winter snowfall. Festooned with artefacts from far off forests and long-lost wars. Surrounded by tents, cabins and towering cliffs. Young people trying on their first summiters packs and looking down at a world that is there for the finding. Old timers tending to the fire and putting to tome the latest piece of news from the frontier. This is a Borough.
The last three warriors. The charred remnants of their shattered home collapsing around them. Their families, their friends, their comrades dead or scattered to the wind. Their history is written on their shield and in their hearts. Their blood on the ground. Their enemy returning to end this. Their hands clasped and their shields hefted one last time. This is a Borough.
The Valley is its Boroughs. The Boroughs are the Valley. They stand together.
Creating a Borough
In Character
Outsiders often interpret a Borough as a Valley name for any business enterprise or village. In reality there are a few important elements that separate any other undertaking by a group of Valleyfolk from a true Borough.
The first is that they ‘lay stones’, a phrase synonymous with putting down roots or setting up camp. An endeavour that Valleyfolk complete and then leave is just another opportunity. A Borough begins to grow when families arrive and those involved begin to make a life around the work, not just after it. This process may take years or a hundred Valleyfolk may arrive on your doorstep and start setting up a meadhall with little warning.
Once stones are laid and the work has begun, it is time for Carving of Legends. Each Borough has its own mythos of heroic and villainous forebears that reflect who they are now. For some Boroughs they may draw from famous Valleyfolk who worked, fought, or travelled where they now dwell. Others may draw from the bloodline of notable families in the Borough. Some may go all the way back into history, calling upon the names of famous Valleyfolks to act as their guiding stars. In this the nascent Borough begins to build its mythos and internal culture, more than just ‘a settlement of Valleyfolk’. It is worth noting that these famous legends may be of dubious truth, but to the Valleyfolk (who pride themselves on record keeping) it would be a great insult to insinuate that these stories are not as true as stone.
The final step to crafting a new Borough is recognition. For most, this will come when the Reeve of the Borough is recognised at the local Reeves council, be that for the region, township or even the whole Valley. The moment when the Borough’s Reeve first sits is such a simple act, but is often followed by raucous applause and shouting, for among the Valley it is so essential to be seen as a part of the greater whole.
For those Boroughs that are out on the ragged edge of the Valley’s frontier alone, a strange thing occurs. Often during the Laying of Stones and Carving of Legends, there will be some disagreements. Normally these are simple things, placated with a Sokn Duel or payment. But on the frontier a would-be-Borough may split in two. Perhaps pursuing a different toil in the same area, perhaps the same. This odd predilection towards division means that there will always be a Reeves council for a locality, rather than a single Reeve holding court unopposed. These splits are the start of a true Valleyfolk settlement. It also has the odd effect that many centuries old Iron Valley feuds of blood and violence track down to a simple need for there to be more than one Borough in a section of land.
Out of Character
When you’re putting together a Borough it is best to look over the core elements of Toil, Legends, Vigour, Ironclad and Citadel. Answering these ideas should form a well-rounded and grounded Iron Valley Group.
Your Toil is likely the foundation of your Borough. What does your Borough do? While not every member needs to be directly pursuing this action, it should inform their character concept. A Borough that focuses on mining might have miners and artisans, but also warriors to guard the mines and caravans, traders to haggle for a good deal and priests to minister to the miners. A Borough of Farseers may also have Summiters who venture out to find hidden arcane relics, alchemists to provide empowering concoctions and so on. Your Toil should be at the centre of the Borough, but recognise that Boroughs are holistic groups.
Your Legend is a chance to evoke the feel of your Borough. Are you loud and proud Valleyfolk who are patriots and partiers? Then maybe your Legends are a great Warlord who led the Valley to strength and her husband who was a renowned brewer! Perhaps her weapon was a mighty spear that crossed with a tankard to form your mark. Your people cheer “We are the Spear!” on the battlefield and “May your tankard be nothing but holes” to their enemies. Your Legends are where you can create these fun turns of phrase and forge a mythos that channels the feel of your Borough.
Your Vigour is about how your Borough lives. What is the biggest celebration of the year and how do you celebrate it? How does your Borough teach children their place in the world and their work? How do you treat your dead? Boroughs are the meeting of work and life, knowing how that functions will show you how you can bring that same life to your active play. Perhaps meals are rotated around the Borough, with one family cooking for everyone else each night? So at the Summit you rotate meals through the Band. Perhaps everyone is expected to take a child on as an Apprentice each day so they can find their place, and so you do the same at the Summit.
Your Ironclad is how you bring your Boroughs history, style and feel to the battlefield. There are plenty of elements to consider, ranging from weapon styles, how you fight individually and as a group, as well as war cries and how you treat vanquished foes. It is also a good opportunity to consider how you train. As a martial people with a conqueror's past, the Valleyfolk know the strength that skill-at-arms carries and how your borough shows that can evoke your themes and also bring you closer together.
Your Citadel is about place. Valleyfolk by their nature are not transient and where you lay down stones says a lot about your people. You should know where your Borough is based, be able to point it out on a map and describe what living there is like in real terms. Spending some time with your Band mates talking about little quirks about the Borough helps to infuse this off screen place with a sense of home that will mimic your character’s love for it. It is recommended that you keep the specifics of your Burough slightly vague in regards to the area it controls (“We have our mine here” as opposed to “We control all the mines in this whole area”) to allow space for others to grow in the area.
You may submit your Borough through the Player Group submission link found Here. Your Borough may be both a Band and a Sect. A Borough requires at least three members to be active and recognised by both the story and the Valley.
Joining a Borough
Joining a Borough is straightforward, much like the Valleyfolk themselves. A Valleyfolk is expected to speak to their current Reeve and advise them that they are looking for a new home in another Borough. This may be a surprise, it may not. Reeves are forbidden from forcing a member of their Borough to stay, they are not kings after all, but it is polite to inform your Reeve first.
Next, they must present themselves to the Reeve of the Borough they wish to join. It is the Reeves duty and power to bring new members into the fold but they must balance this with the goodwill of the Borough. Some Reeves may ask for a demonstration of skills they may bring to the Borough or may even call the whole Borough to give a vote, perhaps even Sokn Duelling the newcomer. Regardless of the particulars, if the Reeve agrees to their joining, then the individual is taken to a Sanctified Square and allowed to demonstrate their loyalty by saying the oath before the Spheres, their new Borough and their new Reeve.
Given the all-encompassing nature of a Borough, it is not surprising that families are entirely contained within it. Married couples are expected to be in the same Borough and any children (be they born or adopted) are a part of their parents' Borough. In many large Boroughs, marriage within the Borough is common as many families make up the total group. But marriage outside the Borough is not uncommon, although the discussion for where a new family should lay its own stone can be a difficult one, with many new families forming the embers for whole new Boroughs.
When children become adults (normally after passing their citizenship test) they are traditionally presented to their Reeve who will offer them to join the Borough. A largely ceremonial offer, since the young person was already a member of the Borough, this is a moment for them to strike off on their own and recognition of their new role as an adult within society.
Leadership in a Borough
Boroughs are led by a Reeve, one of them members chosen by the communal whole. The tenure of a Reeve and the method of election vary from borough to borough, but a Sokn Duel is the most common format. Reeves are answerable to their borough and should always be able to have their position challenged. This ensures that Reeves remains accountable and is never perfectly sure of their position.
Reeves acts as both representative and leader. They take the issues of their borough to the local Reeves council (and higher if required). They rule on disputes, coordinate the efforts of the borough as a whole and act as the figurehead of the borough when needed. Functionally they have a lot of power, but any of their decisions can be questioned at any point. A good Reeve is never questioned, not out of fear or crushing power, but because they are working with their Borough, not having their Borough work for them.