Mara D'Lessio Merrill
The Lesser D'Lessio
Name: Castle Miriamele
Image Source: Bran Castle, Romania
Classification: Castle
Location: On the medieval, mountainous world of Kilia IV, most civilization exists within a single continent-sized valley. Castle Miriamele dominates a forested hill at the west side of the valley, on the western shore of a lake. All to the west, up through the foothills, is forest. A few clearings offer potential emergency landing sites, but as a rule, Mara and her guests land on a mountain plateau and descend by pulka. The planet is largely forgotten.
Affiliation: [member="Mara D’Lessio Merrill[/SIZE][FONT=Arial]"][/FONT]
Population: 100-120 (Castle Miriamele), 200-400 (adjacent fishing village). Of those, perhaps 200 are combat-capable with local weapons. All are human, though occasionally one finds genetic quirks from various near-human species who can breed true with humans.
Defenses: Castle Miriamele has three main sets of defenses. One uses local technology against local threats; another, more covert, uses offworld technology against offworld threats; and the third uses Force ‘technology’ against Force threats.
To guard against bandits and potentially armies, the castle has sturdy stone walls, a portcullis, metal-and-oak doors, a moat, a drawbridge, a functional well, food stores, murder-holes above the gatehouse, and clockwise newel stairs to impede an attacker’s sword arm. Windows are generally small, and are quite rare at lower levels. The entire fishing village can evacuate to the castle or over-water destinations if necessary.
Concealed within the castle is a fully functional deflector shield and (inside a turret of the keep) an early-warning sensor/comm suite. Other anti-siege measures include a miniature medical suite in a courtyard outbuilding, and a couple of solid fuel/ration converters in the basement of the keep.
Castle Miriamele was, for several months, a primary residence of the noted alchemist Rave Merrill, after her attempted reformation to the Light Side. She often tinkered with the castle’s mundane defenses. For example, two Kilian Ranger statues beside the front door function much like Watchers, though they only impede Force-sensitives of Dark Side alignment. Various doors throughout the castle tend to get mysteriously stuck if Darksiders attempt to open them. Several nudj lizards gently and gradually nullify whatever minor Dark Side energy might show up.
Despite all these protective measures, Castle Miriamele’s primary defense lies in secrecy. Kilia IV is a forgotten and insignificant world, far away from anything important, and the castle’s technological aspect is not obtrusive or easily detected. An ion scrambler prevents the castle’s few transmissions from being traced.
Points of Interest:
The courtyard (the open space between the gatehouse and the keep) contains several buildings, which hold a miniature medical suite, craftspeople’s workshops, extra storage, stables, and so forth. The stables house Kilian pulkas and Kilian banthas.
A courtyard training ground offers a broad selection of local weapons, mainly of the sword/axe/spear/bow variety. Fully functional siang lances and shield gauntlets are available for Kilian Rangers, as well as the inert shields and spears which most Rangers use in this century.
At ground level, the keep offers three main attractions: the great hall, the audience room, and a grand entry foyer which leads to the main spiral staircase.
- The great hall’s floor is strewn with dry rushes. Locals and travelers eat off dry-bread trenchers at long wooden tables. The air is constantly smoky, in the best sense. A traditional high table sits on a low dais opposite the room’s entryway.
- Adjacent to the great hall, the audience room is where Mara (or her delegate) hears petitions, receives formal company, and learns of issues that need to be addressed.
- The entry foyer’s grand stair leads up to the residences and down to the keep’s basement. The residences include comfortable lodgings for travelers, which might include Kilian Rangers or offworld pilgrims.
The basement holds Mara’s workshop, which is generally open to Kilian Rangers and offworld Force pilgrims. Most of her crafting work is crystal-based, and the workshop holds a comprehensive selection of Force-related crystals and gemstones, as well as cutting and etching tools. Available to borrow, take, or barter from the staff, the workshop holds examples of the following:
- Lifeweb Spyglass
- Hearthcrystal (also found throughout the region in small rock veins)
- A few rings and other pieces of jewellery
- Minor healing crystals patterned after the Ankarres Sapphire
- Small samples of Ankarres Wood
For especially trusted visitors, the following resources are available:
- The Kilian Book of Adjuration, annotated and with a foreword by Rave Merrill
- The holocron of Jedi Master Jem Wyzen
- The Ankarres Sapphire
- The Grip of Enlightenment
Half an hour’s walk from the castle is ‘Talith Outpost,’ a recently rebuilt stone tower owned by [member="Kaili Talith"]. As with everywhere that Kaili calls home, the tower contains various droids.
Description: Castle Miriamele is a castle of middling size and importance. Originally built as a fortress in the Empire era, it saw a more fanciful renovation prior to the Gulag Plague, fell into decrepitude during the Dark Age, and was fully renovated in the modern era. As a result, it presents a slightly confused architectural picture to the discerning eye. By and large, though, it remains a functional castle.
Due to Kilia IV’s absence from most star charts, the mountainous, medieval planet has seen almost zero offworld contact since the beginning of the Dark Age. The castle and all its surroundings are visibly authentic, and function much like any other castle and village on Kilia IV.
The castle’s employees are paid and treated according to good offworld labour standards. Notable senior staff include the chamberlain (Rickard Longarm), the mistress of maids (Bethen of Rheim), and the captain of the guard (Sir Jethro Ninefingers). Common guests include the Kilian Ranger Sir Germaine Tionc and his father Lord Adelar Tionc, who live in a mountain fort to the northwest.
The castle’s heraldic arms are a gold compass on a plain blue field, surmounted by a gold chevron like a circumflex. The chevron indicates that Mara holds the rank of Kilian Lord, equivalent to Jedi Master; it is the only formal Force title she holds. The castle guards wear the castle’s arms on their shields, and carry Force-imbued spears that are strongest when Mara is in residence.
History: The remote, largely forgotten world of Kilia IV had fallen to a medieval level of technology by the time of the New Republic, when explorers rediscovered the Kilian system. At that time, Kilian civilization only existed in a single massive valley, containing various feudal demesnes. The Kilian Rangers -- the planet’s trademark Force tradition -- confined themselves to very small numbers. They prized, but did not understand, their few heirloom technological weapons. During this era, prior to Kilia’s rediscovery, Castle Miriamele was a noted stronghold of the Kilian Rangers.
Galactic contact had a profound effect on Kilia IV. In short order, sightseers, reenactors, holiday makers, and anachronistic dreamers flocked to the medieval world. Some sought the lifestyle that came with galactic standard technology, but others looked for a simpler existence. Both before and after Darth Krayt’s era, Kilia IV saw constant immigrant and emigrant flows. The planet’s population expanded into other valleys, courtesy of offworld technology that carved new passes and mountainside paths. The locals faced the choice between heritage and galactic civilization, and the Rangers grew in number. Castle Miriamele changed hands more than once. For example, Darth Krayt’s One Sith once killed several Rangers at Castle Miriamele. After the defeat of the Sith, a wealthy offworld hobbyist purchased the damaged castle and repaired it.
Over the next few hundred years, Kilia IV experienced consistent growth as a curiosity and tourist destination. When the Gulag Virus descended on the galaxy, however, Kilia IV closed its borders. Hobby farmers and historical tourists found it necessary to truly learn from and live among the people they’d considered curiosities. The learning curve was steep: by some local accounts, over half the offworlders died within the first three winters. Castle Miriamele began four centuries of wear and tear under the auspices of various local lords or factions of Kilian Rangers.
By the modern era, Castle Miriamele was uninhabited, a ruin in decent condition, largely serving as a source of pre-cut stone for the nearby fishing village. As Mara Merrill’s expedition to Kilia IV became long-term residence, her partnership with local Rangers and lords led her to renovate the castle as a base of operations. Kilian labour flocked to the site, lured by good wages and working conditions. Almost by default, Mara became the local lord. She and her crew, along with the Tionc family of Rangers, oversaw the defensive needs of the castle and the nearby village. After the Ilum Enclave Massacre, which Mara and her crew barely survived, the castle received enough technological improvements to resist or impede offworld threats.
Castle Miriamele is now a waystation and hostel for Kilian Rangers, and for occasional offworld Force pilgrims who want to learn from them. By and large, Mara keeps Kilia IV’s location and significance fairly quiet, but word tends to spread. Lightsiders and some neutral Force-sensitives, as plausible, are made welcome at Castle Miriamele. They are generally received by the staff, as Mara may or may not be in residence at any given time.
Intent: Castle Miriamele exemplifies the impact of the Gulag Virus and the Dark Age on a remote world with unique circumstances. The castle offers a point of reference and a hostel for people wishing to write Kilian Rangers, or to write about learning from them.
Links:
- In Fact It Scares Us (15 posts, 18,000+ words) - Mara voyages to Kilia IV, meets the Tionc family, and journeys to Castle Miriamele.
- Sticks and Stones (124 posts) - The thread comprises several of Kaili Talith’s visits to Castle Miriamele, including interactions with Mara and Rave Merrill.
- Reading a Letter (12 posts) - At Castle Miriamele, Mara reads Rave Merrill’s letter on the Kilian Book of Adjuration.
- Crystals And Their Properties (18 posts, ~6 directly relevant) - Mara discusses Castle Miriamele and Kilia IV with an SSC student.
- Recuperation (10 posts) - Micah Talith visits Mara and Kaili at Castle Miriamele after the Ilum Enclave Massacre.
