The Estate
Unlike most of the Northern Clime, the Estate sits on higher ground with sweeping forests, fields, and arable farmland that rarely suffers from the flooding that plagues the rest of the region. A massive pre-Fall mansion dominates the landscape, mostly dilapidated and falling to ruin, with vines overtaking portions and foundation stones marking where sections once stood. Some segments remain in active use. The structure is still grand despite its decay.
The Estate is controlled by the Bill Sworn, a clan of civilized Semper Mort who work the farmland, operate a market, and maintain pre-Fall artifacts with near-religious devotion. They are civilized compared to the feral Cursed in the nearby Cypress Wood, but civilization here comes with terms. The Sworn sustain themselves by purchasing other Strains as "blood bags," housing them in the Estate Village, a small cluster of wooden houses surrounded by a high wall with water-filled pits on the exterior. Whether the wall keeps threats out or residents in is a question visitors learn not to ask out loud.
The blood bags report that the Semper Mort cater to their wants and needs. They are given housing, food, hooch, and amenities. The Sworn cycle through them to avoid overfeeding from any single individual, allowing recovery time between feedings. Many claim to know no other life. Those who attempt to escape find the Estate Cellars: extensive underground chambers where chained and caged individuals of all Strains serve as both deterrent and backup supply. Repeat offenders spend years in confinement. Above ground, groves of trees and fields of corn and wheat feed the village population, with surplus sold at market. The Estate possesses one of the Northern Clime's few sources of arable land, and its owners do not eat. They have other appetites.
The Estate is controlled by the Bill Sworn, a clan of civilized Semper Mort who work the farmland, operate a market, and maintain pre-Fall artifacts with near-religious devotion. They are civilized compared to the feral Cursed in the nearby Cypress Wood, but civilization here comes with terms. The Sworn sustain themselves by purchasing other Strains as "blood bags," housing them in the Estate Village, a small cluster of wooden houses surrounded by a high wall with water-filled pits on the exterior. Whether the wall keeps threats out or residents in is a question visitors learn not to ask out loud.
The blood bags report that the Semper Mort cater to their wants and needs. They are given housing, food, hooch, and amenities. The Sworn cycle through them to avoid overfeeding from any single individual, allowing recovery time between feedings. Many claim to know no other life. Those who attempt to escape find the Estate Cellars: extensive underground chambers where chained and caged individuals of all Strains serve as both deterrent and backup supply. Repeat offenders spend years in confinement. Above ground, groves of trees and fields of corn and wheat feed the village population, with surplus sold at market. The Estate possesses one of the Northern Clime's few sources of arable land, and its owners do not eat. They have other appetites.
Demographics
The Estate is controlled by the Bill Sworn, a clan of civilized Semper Mort. Unlike the feral Cursed in the nearby Cypress Wood, the Sworn work with other Strains, operate a market, and engage in trade. Their primary cultural mission is the preservation of pre-Fall artifacts and the study of what caused the Fall. The Estate Village houses a secondary population of purchased individuals from various Strains who serve as blood sources. These blood bags are given housing, food, hooch, and amenities. The Sworn cycle through them to avoid overfeeding from any single individual, allowing recovery time between feedings. Many blood bags claim to know no other life and report that the Semper Mort cater to all their wants and needs.
Government
The Bill Sworn exercise complete authority over the Estate. No formal government structure exists beyond the collective control of the Semper Mort clan. They manage the farmland, market, and artifact preservation efforts. The blood bag system operates on terms set entirely by the Sworn: purchased individuals live in the Estate Village under conditions that range from comfortable to confinement depending on their compliance. Those who attempt escape discover the Estate Cellars, where chained and caged individuals serve as both a deterrent and a backup blood supply. The Sworn do not govern through elected representation or democratic process; they govern through ownership of the land, the food, and the people.
Defences
The Estate Village is surrounded by a high wall with water-filled pits on the exterior. Whether the wall keeps threats out or residents in is a question visitors learn not to ask. The higher ground that the Estate occupies provides a natural advantage over the flooding that plagues the rest of the Northern Clime. The Estate Cellars serve as a secure underground facility. The Sworn themselves are Semper Mort, inherently dangerous in close combat and difficult to kill permanently. The isolation of the Northern Clime location, combined with the swampy terrain that surrounds the elevated grounds, makes the Estate difficult to approach without knowledge of the area. Farm storage buildings are closely guarded, with severe punishment in the cellars for anyone caught stealing food.
Industry & Trade
Farming drives the economy. Groves of trees and fields of corn and wheat are tilled and tended by the Semper Mort themselves, feeding the Estate Village population with surplus sold at market. The Estate operates a market in the village where produce, crafts, and carefully rationed pre-Fall artifacts are sold. They trade with Rovers who pass through the area. The Sworn control the food supply as a source of power, selling surplus crops or trading them for cloth, food varieties, and other necessities they cannot produce. The Estate possesses one of the Northern Clime's few sources of arable land and a significant collection of pre-Fall artifacts including books, historical items, and objects of unknown significance.
History
The Bill Sworn arrived at the Estate a few years after the first Semper Mort began to wake. The massive pre-Fall mansion and its surrounding grounds offered elevated terrain, arable farmland, and a structure grand enough to house the clan's ambitions. The Sworn established themselves as a civilized alternative to the feral Cursed that most survivors associated with Semper Mort, building a market, tilling farmland, and preserving pre-Fall artifacts with devoted care. The blood bag system developed as the Sworn's solution to sustaining themselves without the chaotic predation of their feral cousins. The Estate Cellars were constructed or expanded to handle those who resisted the arrangement. Over time, the Estate became one of the most developed areas in the Northern Clime, its prosperity built on soil that its owners do not eat from and labor purchased with a currency measured in blood.
Semper Mort plantation where comfort is the price of blood and chains wait below
