Pendragon Starter Set - Appendix C - Overland Movement
Pendragon Starter Set - Appendix C - Overland Movement
Pendragon Starter Set - Appendix C - Overland Movement
W
hen characters journey overland, the Gamemas- Castles and market towns are thus usually about twenty
ter charts the passage of time in days or weeks, miles apart. This assumes that the travelers know the way
narratively or by pointing to landmarks on the or have a guide, they carry sufficient food or receive it along
map. Sometimes the journey is the adventure, as in a long the way, the weather is suitable, reasonable road maintenance,
pilgrimage, where every day may bring a new scenario. and nothing unusual occurs. The different Movement Rates
The usual manner of getting around in strange places of horses and people are not relevant for leisurely travel since
is to have a general idea of direction and to ask for more a party moves at the rate of the slowest member.
specifics when meeting someone along the way. Since most Mounted characters can certainly travel faster but only
people one meets are local to the area, they have a pretty good at the risk of losing a good horse due to overexertion. Once
idea of the surrounding world, which, in the case of peasants, a horse has blown its wind, it never recovers. The usual pace
is only the five-mile or so radius around their village, or for to quickly travel a long distance is to trot, trot again, and
knights, the extent of their lord’s domain. People possess then canter at 15-minute intervals. See below for how the
only vague and often incorrect information about areas rules of Forced March work.
outside their home territory. People do not usually provide Table C.1: Overland Daily Riding Rate provides infor-
directions in miles but rather in vague travel times, like mation on rates of travel broken down by type of weather,
“a long time,” or “until noon,” or “a little while.” Using road, and conveyance. All distances are given in miles per
landmarks is more accurate and may be specific, like “the day, traveling with a guide or foreknowledge, and assume
ford with the standing stone,” but can be confusing too; i.e., the party has no wheeled vehicles. If traveling with wheeled
“the big tree,” or “where the rocks fell down,” or “the ruin.” vehicles, the rate can never be faster than Leisurely.
People may not really know but give bad directions anyway,
out of fear or mischief. Information about dangerous areas Types of Weather
is particularly incomplete. Vast areas of woodland in Britain Ő Good: Warm, either sunshiny or overcast, but with
are unknown to any mortal. nothing more than light rain.
Even moderately-settled areas may be lost to the knowl- Ő Bad: Moderate to heavy rainfall, muddy roads, strong
edge of nearby folk should a group of enemies cut off the winds, flooded fords.
roads and trails to the settlement. A modest quest for a Ő Terrible: Snow accumulation, icy roads, strong winds,
group of young knights might be to travel into an area that frozen roads of indeterminate ice thickness.
has become lost in this way and return with an accurate
description of landmarks and so forth. It is common to get Types of Road
lost and backtrack to the last known place. Ő Roman: An ancient, paved road the Romans built
Player-k nights have a good knowledge of their own centuries ago. Though generally unmaintained, it is
county and have traveled around most of it while serving still very serviceable.
as squires. They will have visited nearby major sites as well Ő Trade: A raised dirt or gravel road, repaired regularly.
and have a rough idea of more distant places. Ő Local: A common, undrained, ill-repaired dirt road.
When covering long distances on royal roads, both horsed Ő Path: A narrow, marked trail through woods or fields.
and unhorsed characters travel about twenty miles a day.