Roleplaying games from historical research
Looe Island is a potential covenant site that will be added to the material which is gradually being collected for a Cornish gazette for the Ars Magica roleplaying game. Much of this material comes from Alex Langstone’s book “From Granite to Sea” or from the Cornish folklore journal he edits “Lien Gwerin”. Looe Island has…
Read More
I was listening to a novel from the St Mary’s Chronicles, and a plot hook linked to Cornwall emerged. Let’s harvest it for the gazetteer. Curtana, the sword of Tristram, Prince of Lyonesse, was in the English royal treasury until 1215 when it was lost, along with most of the portable wealth of King John,…
Read MoreLien Gwerin is a magazine that retells Cornish folk stories, so a lot of the material has already been claimed for the gazetteer project through its trawling of Victorian collectors of Cornish material. Similarly, its editor is Alex Livingstone, and there’s some crossover of material with his book, which has already been harvested for story…
Read MoreIn Heirs to Merlin there are two fallen covenants. Stellasper This one is is Scilly. I suppose I should have looked up more Sicily folklore before I wrote this. Stellasper was a Criamon covenant founded in 1025, and everyone vanished in 1163. The name means “through the stars” or possibly “during the stars”. I presume it’s an…
Read More
I’ve been having trouble getting material on Scilly: enough to go forward, but I’ve written to various people for help finding folklore. Let’s begin. The capital of Scilly in the 20th Century is St Mary’s, but in the C13th, it’s what’s now called “Old Town”. In period I think it’s called Ennor (although that could…
Read MoreNote on nobility. At the end of the C12th, there were three baronies in Cornwall, Launceston, Cardinham and Trematon. Launceston merges with the Duchy when Richard of the Romans takes it over. The previous holder of both titles having died without heirs in 1175, the land returned to the Crown, so that Henry III could…
Read More
Tenancy Carew notes that commonly 30 acres make a farthing, 9 farthings make a Cornish acre. 4 Cornish acres are a knight’s fee. Most tenants are required to pay “due capons” which are probably head taxes, not actually capons. make harvest journeys grind at the mill sue at the court discharge the duties of reeve…
Read More
Living things in Cornwall Herbs: Cornwall has a vast amount of Seaholm and Sampire. Seaholm is candied or made into a syrup. It’s a restorative. Rofa folis? Also has Hyssop, sage, pelamountayne, marjorum, and rosemary. Few Cornish people farm, comparatively: food is imported from Devon and Somerset. Wild fruits include “whurts, strawberries, and raspies.” Orchards provide…
Read MoreWe are almost done with the research phase. After this I want to go through Carew’s 1605 Guide to Cornwall. There is also a book of Scillion folklore. I’m getting to the futility point, though; my sources are quoting either each other or Carew. After that, it’s collating, making plot hooks explicit, and getting art…
Read More
Carew’s Survey of Cornwall is an interesting little book, filled with useful material and much quoted by my more modern sources. It was written in 1605, and the version I’m using, which is copied from Internet Archive, has the linguistic quirks of the time. It uses the f for long s, and has the letters…
Read More
Games From Folktales 