Bastrayne
| Bastrayne | |
|---|---|
| Names and titles | |
| Title(s): | Baron of Woodwych |
| General info | |
| Occupation: | Noble |
| Home: | Nyrond |
| Alignment: | Neutral |
| Gender: | Male |
| Species: | Human |
| Ethnicity: | Oeridian |
| Class: | Fighter 9 |
| Dates | |
| Death: | 596 CY |
Baron Bastrayne of Woodwych was a noble of the Kingdom of Nyrond.
History
Following the Greyhawk Wars Baron Bastrayne of Woodwych was one of the dominant local rulers in the western lands of Nyrond.[1]
In the hard economic time after the Wars King Archbold III revoked the traditional autonomy of the Celadon Forest within Nyrond, allowing and even encouraging Bastrayne and other nobles to extract taxes from the area. The local Nyrondese entered the fringes of the forest, logging, hunting and burning undergrowth for grazing. Bastrayne also found the area to be a source of resources.[2] The Celadon wood-folk initially tried talking the Nyrondese out oflogging and hunting their forest, and then drove them away by force. The Baronial Guard and militia then mounted raids in retribution, killing wood-folk and elves, resulting in full scale skirmishing in and around the Celadon.[3]
Bastrayne and his Bailiff, Radnen Gryppe, feigned support for the king, and managed to dispatch about 70% of taxes and tithes demanded by Archbold. However, the two imposed additional taxes and tithes and were skimming abut 30-40% for themselves. Bastrayne denounced the rebels in the Celadon Forest as "terrorists", and exaggerated in reports about his troops imposing law and order including protecting vital trade on the highway west. He imposed virtual martial law on the city of Woodwych using his 100 strong personal Baronial Guard, and preventing anyone reporting back to the king about his activities. The city as a result was a grim and hard place, with the locals cowed and afraid.[1]
Bastrayne (and Gryppe) withheld wages for a month from the local militia at the start of 585 CY, blaming such on the king and then paying them himself to obtain their loyalty. He persuaded most of the militia the inhabitants of his lands could afford the taxes to be collected. By providing decent equipment and wages, allowing the militia to buy food for their families, he maintained their loyalty. He also advocated the need for a strong army to assist in the militia believing they were doing the right thing for Nyrond.[1]
In Spring 585 CY Bastrayne was marking time until he was able to flee Nyrond with as much money as he could steal from collected taxes, and was planning to do so after the coming harvest that year.[4]
In 586 CY Baron Bastrayne and Bailiff Gryppe fled with the bulk of the tax money they had skimmed. The Baron's despoiling of the Celadon Forest and inhabitants being in rebellion was revealed in full to the new king, Lynwerd. Lynwerd’s men were unable to find Bastrayne who disappeared without trace. The elves and wood-folk of the Celadon were in full revolt verging on civil war[5], attacking anyone who entered the forest, and Lynwerd had to deploy troops to secure the Celadon's borders but refrained trying to take control of the forest lands.[6]
The king offered a reward for Bastrayne’s capture, dead or alive, but Bastrayne was still at large in 591 CY.[7]
Description
Appearance
Bastrayne was 5' 9" tall, slightly fat with notably short and pudgy fingers, a fat-cheeked face and carroty hair color. He was described as unappealing in appearance.[8]
Personality and alignment
He was wholly, selfish, wily, cunning, and unctuous to other nobles of higher or equal rank. Bastrayne was of Neutral alignment.[8]
Abilities
In Spring 585 CY he was a 9th level fighter, and had Str 17, Dex 17 and Int 16 (first edition).[8]
Home
Bastrayne's home was in his baronial seat of Woodwych.
Equipment and possessions
In Spring 585 CY he possessed plate mail +1 of command, and a shield +1, +4 versus missiles.[8]
Relationships
Bastrayne was opposed in his attempted ongoing exploitation of the Celadon Forest by the Brothers of the Bronze and the Defenders of Celadon.
Radnen Gryppe was Bastrayne's main accomplice in his role of Bailiff.
In 585 CY King Archbold would hear no ill of Bastrayne given his delivery of more tax revenue than most in hard economic times.[1]
In Living Greyhawk
Bastrayne was mentioned extensively in the Living Greyhawk campaign for the Nyrond region, due to his previous deeds in Woodwych and their aftereffects.
His fate was revealed in the Nyrond & Her Environs Meta-Region (NMR) adventure "The Blighted Star", the conclusion of the "Blight" series of adventures, the events of which were caused by the actions of Bastrayne and Gryppe. Bastrayne and Gryppe were seized in 586 CY by natives of the Celadon as they attempted to flee, relieved of their stolen tax monies, and driven into the Celadon. Gryppe led them to the Star Haunt, where he believed the Celadon locals would not follow them. The Star Haunt affected them, but was also affected by their evil nature thus leading to the events of the "Blight" series which was caused by Bastrayne's and Gryppe's desire for revenge on the inhabitants of the Celadon. In 596 CY adventurers investigating the effects on the Celadon entered the Star Haunt and defeated Bastrayne and Gryppe, thus ending their plans and effect on Star Haunt and the Celadon. They also discovered a devilish and ensorcelled meteorite which penetrated the dungeons of the Star Haunt years before. Bastrayne and Gryppe used the meteorite through magic to cause the blight.[9]
External links
Disclaimer:Any lore presented through the following links does not necessarily adhere to established officially published content, and the views expressed do not necessarily represent the views of the editors of this wiki.
- Nyrond Living Greyhawk Triad web site via Way Back Machine
References
Citations
- ↑ a b c d WGR4 The Marklands (1993), p.69.
- ↑ WGR4 The Marklands (1993), p.62.
- ↑ WGR4 The Marklands (1993), p.70.
- ↑ WGR4 The Marklands (1993), p.69 & 90.
- ↑ Living Greyhawk Gazetteer (2000), p.139.
- ↑ The Adventure Begins (1998), p.30.
- ↑ The Adventure Begins (1998), p.31.
- ↑ a b c d WG4 The Forgotten Temple of Tharizdun (1982), p.90.
- ↑ The Blighted Star, Dan Taylor and Danny Stratton. RPGA, 2006..
Bibliography
- Sargent, Carl. The Marklands. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1993.
- Moore, Roger E. The Adventure Begins. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 1998.
- Holian, Gary, Erik Mona, Sean K. Reynolds, and Frederick Weining. Living Greyhawk Gazetteer. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2000.
- Taylor, Dan, and Danny Stratton. "The Blighted Star". RPGA, 2006.
Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index
The Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index (EGI) is based on previous work of Jason Zavoda through '08, continued by numerous other fans. The EGI article has a list of sources, product names, abbreviations, and a link to the full, downloadable index.
| Topic | Type | Description | Product | Page/Card/Image
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bastrayne of Woodwych (Baron) | Non-player character | [F9], | Dragon magazine #191 | 66 |
| Bastrayne of Woodwych (Baron) | Non-player character | [F9], | The Adventure Begins | 30, 31 |
| Bastrayne of Woodwych (Baron) | Non-player character | [F9], | WGR4 The Marklands | 62, 69, 70, 71, 89, 90 |