My group's having a fun time running a stead in the Riskland campaign and are wondering how, when, and to what extent they reap rewards from their labors.
While I realize that this is fantasy and a game and therefore whatever I decide is okay as long as it's fun for the group, I thought I'd pose a few of my maunderings to you. Forgive me if I ramble.
How do they survive the first year? The land is owned by the clan and given to them to farm. They won't show any results until they harvest a crop. So, I assume the clan supports them during the first year.
I assume the clan gives them seed, oxen, a plow, and some sheep. The clan would also have to help feed the steadholders. To what extent does the clan require them to pay this back? It would make more sense that the clan select steadholders that already have this stuff, or have the wealth to obtain it. But, Riskland is a special case because they're trying to build a new clan.
I asssume that the clan levies some form of taxation, as any government, to provide services that benefit the entire clan (for examples, fortifications). Probably a certain percentage of stead yield (leaving a capitalist incentive to work harder to make more for yourself (and, by the way, the clan)) or all yield above a certain level; i.e. Hector, the steadholder gets the first 300 bushels, and the rest goes to the clan (leaving a socialist(?) incentive to work harder to make more for the clan).
Does the clan use coin? Or, do the steadholders barter the grain for goods and services they want?
What is the grain of Dorastor anyway?
Just what are the implications of the WSLF (Weekly Stead Labor Factor) anyway? I understand how you compute it and what it says but would that really work? How much yield does the stead produce? The higher the WSLF, the more or better the yield. This implies that you can get a return for extra work. I guess it means you plant more (asssuming you don't use up your tillable land) and tend the crop better. What does it mean for herding? If you work harder at herding are you going to get a better yield? The herd only reproduces so fast. I guess you could work harder to keep your animals safe and help the young ones survive. So, to some extent you would get a better yield. But, I'd think the yield curve levels out due to diminishing returns pretty quickly with herding effort.
The steadholders don't care about most of this. They want to know how much grain and sheep they have, how much they have to give to the clan, how much it takes them to survive, and how much they have left over to buy weapons, armor, and to fortify their stead so that the Scorpionmen, the Thpiders (that's what Fodor calls them!), and the Werewolves don't tear them to shreds (like those poor Soderfalls).
The steadholders built up a high WSLF by having a *bunch* of less experienced farmers and herders work their stead. The steadhouse is pretty crowded. They have a high WSLF, but they have higher expenses (more people) and they must divide their gains up more ways.
It also seems to me that all of the steadholders in the clan's domain are affected by drought, rain, etc. in a similar manner. Thus, they all tend to do well at the same time and do poor at the same time (there are some exceptions). In a good year they may exceed the needs of the clan for grain and the value of a bushel goes way down. In a bad year the clan may be in dire need of grain and the value of a bushel goes way up. In any case, the stead yield doesn't directly translate into stead income.
Although it's simplistic, I'll probably just multiply their stead labor factor against a "standard stead yield" to approximate their own stead yield. Then, unless I want to use drought or flood as a plot device, I'll just assume they get some "satisfactory" price/bushel for their grain that will make them happy.
Powered by hypermail