Kaer Essentials

[Flagg]

I'd like some help in brainstorming a list of things even the most basic of kaers would need to be viable.

Clearly there needs to be replenishable supplies of food, water, air, light, medicines, and somewhere to dispose of waste (and the dead). You'd also need a stockpile of raw materials to make and repair tools, clothing, cookware, etc. That covers basic survival.

There would also be social/societal needs. Communal gathering places, private spaces, workshops, entertainment, etc.

Finally, in order for the disciplines to endure, there would have to be ways to accommodate their practice. Beastmasters would need animals. Cavalrymen would need mounts. Archers would need bows, arrows, and a place to practice with them. Sky raiders... are problematic.

I think a lot of these things could be mitigated, whole or in part, by magic (though if that reliance is too heavy, it makes the kaer's magicians very powerful and would probably lead to social stratification and despotism). I'd like to hear from other people how they addressed these considerations in their kaer designs.

[ArcadianRefugee]

Check out Ardanyan's Revenge starting on page 91. For instance, "Bound elemental spirits were often used to keep [air and water] clean, but it is also known that there were other means to filter water and air, such as the use of sponge plants and elemental water filters. If there wasn’t an underground river that could be tapped for fresh water, then water had to be recycled...."

As far as Discipline practice, kaers weren't D&D dungeons with 10' ceilings. Many (most?) were cavernous, allowing Illusion magic and light quartz to simulate the cycles of the sun. This also meant that there was room enough to sail an airship, although I doubt they would harbor more than a couple of the smaller ones at best.

Likewise, a Cavalryman's mount doesn't necessarily need to be a horse or animal you'd typically envision for the role. No reason a windling can't have a dog (Sir Didymus, anyone?) or a human even a cow or mule (in Ardanyan's Revenge, one of the NPC Cavalryman has a donkey as his mount). Remember, these aren't ideal times, and the sole goal was simple survival. That includes mere survival of the Discipline, even if it wasn't the prettiest way to do so.

[Kasbak]

The resources available will be heavily dependent on the population building and inhabiting the kaer. True element dispensers would be more available for richer populations, but those without as much money available would be more dependent on natural sources. Animals are expensive to obtain and upkeep, especially when resources are scare, so poorer populations would have limited access to livestock. Magical methods of replacing anything will be expensive. Consider the small amount of adepts in Barsaive as a whole, and then consider how much smaller that number would be when you have a fraction of the populace isolated. Some disciplines may not be present in certain kaers if they don't have the resources to maintain them. Several were lost to certain communities during the scourge and rediscovered upon re-emerging.

Space would also be at a premium, though the kaer would be built to include planning to expand. Most places except for individual dwellings would be communal and multi-purpose. Buildings like the library, record halls, and government management would probably be combined; workshops with similar needs may be set up on a rotating shift or a rental basis rather than being privately run; there would probably be only one or two bars (no need for taverns since you wouldn't have travelers), which may also be used as the central meeting hall.

I believe the most important part of building a kaer into your campaign is to figure out how you want it used in your story. From there, you can figure out what resources would need to be available to support your use, and then determine methods to justify it.

[Flagg]

[Kasbak]

[treorai]

[ArcadianRefugee]

[Mogre]

I can look at how Kaer Ardanyan had a little split due to greed and can easily imagine it getting bad enough where there could be Sky Raiders. The part I really liked about that adventure is how the people of the Kaer would make tools and dishes from their relatives' bones. Social rules adapt to the situation.

[ArcadianRefugee]

Well, it isn't as if the Sky Raider Discipline was developed within the kaer as a result of their schism; someone in the kaer would have to have been a Sky Raider when the kaer was sealed. Likewise, keeping the Discipline alive (training others) would have had to have been ongoing well before the schism. Just as Warriors can engage in mock combat with one another to stay "battle ready", I'm sure the Sky Raiders (or Sky Raider...) practiced sailing and the occasional mock raid when they could, even if it was simply leaping onto someone's rooftop patio and making away with a planter....

The part about bones used as tools and jewelry was nice — you use what you've got and you don't waste anything that could be re-purposed.

[Slimcreeper]

Education and the arts would not be neglected! The arts would focus on things that have a practical use, or that are reusable, like a mural mosaic that can be removed and recreated in a new image every time a new council is elected.