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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Silverblade The Ench" data-source="post: 4223393" data-attributes="member: 19083">EDIT, fixed typos <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f61b.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":p" title="Stick out tongue    :p"  data-smilie="7"data-shortname=":p" />How do wandering merchants survive?...they hired the now out-of-work gnomes and put them to work as pole dancers?:rimshot:lol, sorry couldn't resist <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f609.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=";)" title="Wink    ;)"  data-smilie="2"data-shortname=";)" />Well, I do think the Points of Light idea is just way over done.Look at European history...The Border region between Scotland and ENgland was until the late 1700s, so damned dangerous that monarchs wouldn't go through the area without a literal army or major guard.Yet merchants sure got through.Why?because the merchants either went around (by sea) or more simply, didn't get bothered by the Reavers because the Reavers wanted pots and pans, Spanish steel for swords, pins and needles (very valuable, actually), spices and so on. They were happy to deal witht he merchants and thus, protected them.Greeks and Phonecian traders worked the British isles before the Romans. So, "Points of Light" is just frankly ridiculous, for most settings.Should be more like: "Points of light, with some empires, trade routes, having multiple wives in various tribes for safe passage, bribing locals with salt..." etc.Degree of danger, of mystery and barbarism, should vary highly.In times past, rulers did not have "community service", they slaughtered bandits with the utmost horrible methods possible, because they were such a threat to the state. The Border Reavers and Highland clans got hammered by kings who wouldn't put up with their troublemaking any more (interesting to read up on).If a king cannot guarantee that "Merchant Bob", can travel his kingdowm safely, or his army march unhindered, or his peasants create tax wealth...he's going to lose the crown. Kings won't tolerate that. They exterminate such threats, drastically.So...Points of Light doesn't really make sense as it's throw at us, currently. Anywhere there is governance, travel and border security is absolute paramount. Thus, PCs, would be very desirable for exterminating bandits, riding "shotgun" on merchant caravans etc.if you have true anarchy...meh, check Rome's fall. Fine if you WANT that for the millieu, but that degree of instability is not likely, as it either causes collapse, or folk hit back, hard, and re-establish.</blockquote>

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