World & Spatial Design
17 Enterable Parish Building Interiors
Every functional building in Stonecross is a physical, enterable room on a dedicated non-overlapping sub-map: Master Odo's Forge, Beatrice's Bakery, Reeve Alden's Manor, Thornfield Watermill, the Tithe Barn, Weaver's Loft, the Chapel, Toll Gatehouse, and Barrows Watchpost. Engineered doorway threshold collision zones guarantee zero bounce loops or spawn jams.
Living World Simulation
4-Phase Living Diurnal Schedules
Inhabitants do not stand motionless in the rain. Across Dawn, Midday, Dusk, and Night, townsfolk live real routines: blacksmiths strike hot billets at sunrise, carters haul timber at noon, laborers drink bitter ale at the tavern by dusk, and farmsteads bolt their shutters against nightfall.
Career Progression
Six Grounded Feudal Livelihoods
War is expensive, and violence is not the only occupation. Earn honest silver by hiring out your muscle:
threshing rye as a Farmhand (+8G), stoking bellows for the Smithy (+14G), walking the palisade on Town Watch (+10G), hauling stone in the Quarry (+18G), stalking deer as a Crown Forester (+15G), or gathering roots as an Herbalist (+12G). Accumulate capital to purchase formal tenancy leases with daily dividend yields.
Feudal Mercantilism
Systemic Economy & Rule 13 Assize of Bread
Markets simulate local supply and demand. Rowan carries goods within physical cargo tiers (3-sack Foot Pack, 10-sack Pack Mule, and 30-sack Carter Wagon). Under the Rule 13 Royal Assize of Bread, the Crown caps staple wheat at ≤ 18 Gold in royal markets like Stonecross and High Cairn to prevent starvation, while rebel Dunhollow suffers runaway inflation past 30 Gold.
Narrative Engine
37 Reactive Branching Conversation Trees
A living web of 28 unique village characters and 9 historical landmark inspections. Townsfolk react dynamically to the advancing War Clock, your standing with the Crown or Iron Council, unpaid tavern tabs, and visible battle wounds. You are never flattered as a mythical hero; you are a working man-at-arms whose repute must be earned contract by contract.
Interface Design
Diegetic 5-Tab Commoner's Notebook
Pressing [J] opens Rowan's folded parchment journal:
1. What I've Learned (historical annals and church lore),
2. Papers I Carry (royal warrants, tax receipts, safe-conducts),
3. What People Say (overheard tavern rumors and market chatter),
4. Work & Contracts (feudal military and carter bounties), and
5. Debts & Standing (faction favor, renown, and active debts).
Tactical Combat
Consequential Steel-and-Leather Combat
Precision melee offense across 5 historically accurate weapon classes (Arming Sword, Greatsword, Dagger, Hunting Bow, and Poleaxe/Spear) coupled with real-time defense. Every swing burns stamina and dulls blades; unblocked blows gouge armor plates. Defeat does not miraculously restore you: you awaken at 50% HP, nursing Bruised Ribs with repair bills and a medical rescue debt recorded on the chapel slate.
Retinue & Social Bonds
Retinue Companions & Sellsword Morale
As Rowan's chivalric renown rises, hire up to two retinue companions (such as veteran crossbowmen or shield-bearers). Retinue members require daily food and wages; neglected wages lower morale and risk desertion, while well-maintained retainers grant active combat synergies and tactical flanking.
Locked Canon & Setting Grounding
Strict Historical Canon: Zero Magic, Zero Supernatural Forces
Built under strict compliance with the 12 Locked Canon Rules and Rule 13: zero spells, zero dimensional rifts, zero magical portals, zero monsters, zero chosen-one lineages. Every mystery, crime, and war consequence is rooted in authentic 1150–1350 medieval material culture, common law, and feudal institutions.
