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Old 06-21-2017, 12:26 PM   #11
Tinman
 
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Default Re: Yrth: surface highways through Zarak?

Fair enough, I stand corrected!
Wold the people of the previously mentioned surface towns, make roads to use between each other?
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Old 06-21-2017, 12:31 PM   #12
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Default Re: Yrth: surface highways through Zarak?

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Originally Posted by Tinman View Post
Fair enough, I stand corrected!
Wold the people of the previously mentioned surface towns, make roads to use between each other?
Would they have a choice? I suppose it depends on how you define "road" but they'd eventually wear cart paths, regardless of any engineering they do or do not do.
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Old 06-21-2017, 12:41 PM   #13
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Default Re: Yrth: surface highways through Zarak?

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Would they have a choice? I suppose it depends on how you define "road" but they'd eventually wear cart paths, regardless of any engineering they do or do not do.
It depends on the density of the surface dwellers and on the availability of caverns. I suspect there are lots of short distance paths and few long distance ones.

The opening page of Zarak answers that:

Quote:
The valleys are comparatively warm and fertile. Many hold small farming communities, populated by gnomes, a few surface dwarves, and even some humans. The valleys are connected to each other by mountain passes, but few roads lead to the outside word.
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Old 06-21-2017, 01:22 PM   #14
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Default Re: Yrth: surface highways through Zarak?

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It depends on the density of the surface dwellers and on the availability of caverns. I suspect there are lots of short distance paths and few long distance ones.

The opening page of Zarak answers that:
Dwarves might at times be inclined to make tunnels even when roads are feasible simply because their native engineering skill makes it more practical and a tunnel can be blocked off if necessary. The disadvantage of roads is always that unfriendly users find them equally effective.
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Old 06-21-2017, 01:28 PM   #15
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Default Re: Yrth: surface highways through Zarak?

I'd expect that trade that goes through Zarak uses the underground route and that there are trade posts at both sides. They might even be seasonal depending on what the big trade items are like the wool fairs and fur fairs. There is also a bit of Megalos that reaches past the mountains and I'd expect sea based trade during the right season from there to Sahud.
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Old 06-21-2017, 01:37 PM   #16
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Default Re: Yrth: surface highways through Zarak?

I would note that tunnels do not worry about snow, ice, rain, or without bridges, up and down. Given the use of things like Shape Stone, I suspect tunnels are the better option.
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Old 06-21-2017, 02:13 PM   #17
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Default Re: Yrth: surface highways through Zarak?

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I would note that tunnels do not worry about snow, ice, rain, or without bridges, up and down. Given the use of things like Shape Stone, I suspect tunnels are the better option.
More importantly for the xenophobic dwarves of Yrth is that tunnels don't have to worry about orcs or humans, or surface dwellers in general.
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Old 06-21-2017, 06:48 PM   #18
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Default Re: Yrth: surface highways through Zarak?

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More importantly for the xenophobic dwarves of Yrth is that tunnels don't have to worry about orcs or humans, or surface dwellers in general.
The dwarves in Yrth aren't bad sorts all told and given the propensities of humans and orcs a little xenophobia might be in order.
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Old 06-22-2017, 07:48 AM   #19
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Default Re: Yrth: surface highways through Zarak?

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I'd expect that trade that goes through Zarak uses the underground route and that there are trade posts at both sides.
Thank you all for many Posts and discussion.
However, it seems that the Point of my personal interest was not clear enough - or not interesting enough for you...
;-)

In the Banestorm Rulebook in the chapter about Zarak it says:
- Zarakun (nearly) never allow non-Zarakun in their tunnels.
- For each of the big Clans there is (exactly) one trade town directly above their clan capital
- For each of the big Clans it is said with whom they trade. There are Clans that trade both with Sahud AND with Megalos.

If all this is true, then humans from Sahud and humans from Megalos somehow have to be able to come to the same trade town.
And if that is true, there must be two direct road connections between Megalos and Sahud - one through each of the trade towns that trade both with Sahudese and Megalans.

On the other Hand, if you have a look at the map, it seems that Zarak was designed to be a barrier between Sahud and Megalos. So maybe no land connection between Megalos and Sahud was intended?

This is important to me as I have to direct my party from western Megalos to Sahud soon (see other thread).

But this also should be important for the structure of the world:
If Sahudese and Megalan merchants can easily meet in a Zarak trade town, then why don't they engage in direct trade there?

Do Zarakun Keep their trade Partners separate? If yes: How do they do this? Do trade towns have different quarters for trade Partners coming from the North and others from the south? Would Zarakun enforce this Separation violently (if needed)?
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Old 06-22-2017, 08:37 AM   #20
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Default Re: Yrth: surface highways through Zarak?

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Originally Posted by dds_ks View Post
In the Banestorm Rulebook in the chapter about Zarak it says:
- For each of the big Clans there is (exactly) one trade town directly above their clan capital
Wait, What?! I haven't seen anything saying anything about either of the two facts.

1) where does it say each clan has exactly one trade town
2) where does it say the trade town is anywhere near the capital?
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