The Outside World: Villages

Among the towns and cities stand the villages. While they are set up differently than the other two, life is much the same. They are set up differently as they do not have electricity running to them. The residents need to use candles at night if they have work that needs to be done. As they often use the sun as a light source they use it to tell the time. Life is not different as their life has regressed since The Great Rewind although much more simple than in the towns or cities. ^{[A typical map of one of the villages is in the sidebar]}. They have no electricity supply as the power line is no longer maintained and has been taken down safely. If it were still operational a nearby town or city could not make enough power for both of them and they would prefer to only generate power for themselves.

People

Residents

Residents use the Sun as a clock waking them when it rises above the horizon and finishes working when it is setting unless they have work that really needs to be done. They live a simple life that is almost medieval in nature. Each person is given basic education to Secondary standard. Once at this level of education, they may be lucky enough, and if they are close enough then they will be educated at a college. Most village dwellers do not have this luxury. If they are unlucky with their education, they are put to work often matching genders. For example a son with his father, and a daughter with her mother. They then learn their job from their parent. If a son has no father or a daughter that has no mother, they will be given a role suitable to them and this is reviewed often.

Buildings

There are two types of buildings, those that are for industries and those that are residential. The buildings that are used for industries are made out of brick as they will be used through the ages. Buildings that are used for being resided in are made up of panels of wattle and daub as the house will then be cheaper to make ^[1], this is because; straw, mud and horse dung are readily available ^[2]. As Wattle and daub are more temporary ^[3] as the residents of the village may increase or decrease with time as well as attrition.

Residence

The houses themselves are more in the medieval style as upon entering the home, a visitor would notice that everything on the bottom floor is all in one room. The parent’s bed, cooking arrangements and a desk to work by are all found on this floor. Storage and the children’s sleeping arrangements can be found in two loft conversions at either end of the house. The children’s sleeping arrangements tend to be above the parent’s bed and the storage above something else. That is not being above the desk. They eat by a fireplace if they are lucky to have one or on the floor, cross-legged around a fire with a hole in the roof to allow for smoke to leave. This firepit is central to the bottom floor. The loft conversions are accessed using ladders. Ladders are used as they take up less space. The children tend to sleep in sleeping bags or under blankets, with something under them to make sleeping comfortable. Beds aren’t used as they would be hard to get in a cramped space.

Visitors

Visitors are welcome to the villages. They rely upon trade from other nearby villages and the tourism of city and town dwellers.

Things

In most Village squares sits the statue of the village’s deity whose message is to work hard and celebrate later. The square itself is nothing special, it often has one or two trees, with desire paths making the square itself.

Camp Site

In the summer months, there is a part that is laid out for city and town dwellers to use as a campsite. The city dwellers enjoy the idea as they are used to living in buildings and will take camping as an experience. These experiences are similar to going rock climbing or kayaking on holiday in the Old World.

View Points Culturally

While this is an experience for the city and town dwellers, it is life for the village dwellers. The village dwellers, although having less technology, enjoy their lives and see the city dwellers as needing too much technology to feel adequate. The city dwellers see the villagers as a look on more of the past. With this taken into account, they do get on with each other and enjoy the trade that each other does.

Inn

The inn is the main social hotspot of the village, it is the place in winter, visitors stay. The upper floor is where the rooms for sleeping are. One half of the floor is laid out for city dwellers and the other half is for village dwellers.

City Dwellers

For the half that is for the city dwellers, the room is separated into smaller rooms as they would not be accustomed to sleeping with strangers and would prefer sleeping with family members or other people they are familiar with.

Village Dwellers

With the village dwellers, half resembles more hostel-type sleeping arrangements; there are smaller beds for children and cradles or cots can be provided for infants. All cots and smaller beds can be provided to city dwellers too. It is that majoritively it is the village dwellers that require these type of sleeping arrangement.

Industries

As with towns and cities, the villages themselves also make what they can to be self-sufficient. Shortfalls in commodities are traded with other villages, towns and cities to get that particular item.

Blacksmith

The blacksmith produces items of iron or steel, if they are not shoeing horses they are more than likely sharpening knives or making replacements as well as making any item the village needs, be it; pot, pan or utensil.

Carrier

The carrier, as the name would suggest, carries items from one place to another. Unlike in towns or cities, they can assist residents of the village by carrying items from one place to their homes or vice versa.

Cart Driver

The Cart Driver drives the cart from one place to another. The cart is driven by two horses, which of course drive the cart along with at least one family and with what they need to set up camp along the way.

Cartwright

The cartwright spends the majority of their time repairing the carts, in the unlikely case that a cart is needed. They have the skill to make another one. They also provide lodgings for the horses and the cart, when arrivals occur.

Cook

The cook works in the inn, making the meals for the patrons and residents.

Farmer

The farmer grows and tends to fields of crops or animals. The food grown is not traded with other villages unless they have a surplus after hoarding for the winter.

Thresher

The Thresher separates the grains from the chaff. So it can be used by other people.

Hunter

If the farmer majoritively grows crops and there is not enough space for Animal Husbandry or more appropriately they want a greater variety of meat. The hunter is there to go off in groups to take down deer or if they are unlucky, on their trip to find deer they may take down a wolf or two. Either of these is celebrated with venison comes times of celebration of something different to eat. With the wolf, it is not just that there is one less of them to attack the villagers but also another pelt to process and sell. The hunter is the person that, when they are not out hunting they will process the pelts ready to be sold at the nearby cities or towns in their Warehouses.

Fletcher

Is the person who makes arrows, bows and quivers for the hunter, so that they can keep a safe distance, when hunting.

Guard

The guard is local law enforcement. They are also the person who defends the village from that one hungry wolf that can never take no for an answer.

Travel

Village Dwellers

A portion of the residents of the village are nomads so will travel between the villages trading for items that are required by their home village.

Trade

Trade is a major part of the villager's life. A portion of villagers who are nomads either make their way from their village to either a city or another village.

Trade with Cities or Towns

When trading with cities or towns they load up their horse-drawn carts with items they will need for the journey as well as any camping needs. They take their families with them. They do this as all members will have jobs. Such as the children with supervision from one or more of the adults, will collect wood. The husbands or men may set up the tents for the night along with other things that would be needed on a campsite. Along the way they may be attacked by wolves when this happens, the men and teenage boys will protect the others. Once the wolf or wolves are killed they skin the wolf for its pelt. The next stopping point may be; camping for the night in the wilderness or another village. They tend to the pelts throughout their time at the campsite or the inn of the village. If they are at a campsite the processed pelt will be saved until they are in a place that can trade with them. Upon arriving in a city, they will hitch up their horses and go and stay in one of the taverns. The taverns they will stay in are more likely to be in Zone 5. During their stay they will visit the Warehouses. Once at the Warehouses if they have any wolf pelts they will sell them to get more New Sovereigns. Along with anything else they first intended to trade when they set off of their travels. They tend to spend their money on either; candles, tools or clothes. This may not be at the Warehouse as they may get better deals with merchants rather than at the Warehouses.

Trade with Villages

When trading with Villages they will load up their carts as they do with going to City or Towns, which will not be as exciting. Trading with cities allows for a greater amount of coin to enter the economy of the villages, without which the village economy reverts to a bartering system. Trading with villages also is more of the lines of trading away surpluses and getting commodities that are in shortage. While this can be helpful to the village, they much prefer buying the items from cities and keeping as much money as possible for other villages to arrive and trade with them.

Caravans

Once a plan for trade has been made they load up their carts with what is needed for the journey. For items which are;

Two blankets per person unless it’s winter then it will be three or can be as much as four.
For each person gets a camper mat.
For every four people a camp stove is packed or a large version is packed if the numbers do not go into four.
An estimation on distance not on how far, but how many days it would take, four litres are taken for each person, for a 2 days trip. Water can be purified along the way when they camp.
Food rations are worked out and are packed. These rations are similar to the biscuit rations packed on camping trips, but can be other items that can be packed^[5].
They pack enough water and oats for the horses.
For every man and teenage boy above the age of 15, two knives are packed. One of these is a pen knife similar to a swiss army knife. While the other is much longer and is used in defence, not of each other but of the wild animals that may attack them during their travels or in the night.
Tools such as an Axe and rope are packed, the axe can be used to chop wood on the campsite. The rope can get be used for a variety of things such as keeping bandages wrapped and for making netting ^[6].
For every four people a four-person tent is packed. Of course, if the numbers don’t go into four, a tent big enough for five will be packed
They also take over things such as posts and mallets that are hammered into the ground to give a place to hitch up horses for the night.
And, of course, what they plan to trade when they get to their destination.

Swiss Army Knife

A Swiss Army Knife is used to cut other things such as thin branches to get their tents into position; it can also be used to cut bandages or to makeshift things when the need arises. These can be used to make a wooden spear to go hunting for fish in shallow rivers.

What If The Road Is Well Travelled

If the road has been well travelled, as in people have been travelling down the road frequently and the route is well known and its dangers are known. The route will more than likely have spots along the route for carts to pass each other. This would also include places for the horses to rest, to be watered and fed. This will also include premade campsites, where the area has been made to be suitable for camping. The cart goes faster than normal, but at a speed at which the horses can slow down to a halt and not be too far away than where they are intending to stop. This is done for purposes of comfort breaks and if a wolf attacks it can be easier to be killed and processed, rather than getting the horses to speed up in an attempt to outrun the wolves and tire them out or pursuing the wolves that they are not worth the hunt.

What If The Road Is Not Well Travelled

If the road is not well travelled, then the carts will go slower than if the road was more well known. This also means that wolves are more likely to attack, as the cart is going slower. As the road is not well travelled this also means that the roads will not have passing places or places for horses. These areas are purely fortuitous. Areas, where the camping happens, are often makeshift and make do with where they camp out.

En Route

On their journey to either destination, the men and teenage boys protectively sit on the outer edges of the cart. This is also done for when wild animals attack. They can spring into action when they attack or when the horses are requiring watering or feeding. This can also be for setting up camp for the night.

Setting Up Camp

Upon arriving at a place suitable to stay for the night they set up by hammering the posts into the ground to hitch up the horses. Next, they set up a communal area for the fire to cook and warm themselves. Lastly, they erect tents and sleeping arrangements.

Throughout the Night

Upon finishing their evening meal, they begin to get ready for bed. The men along with the teenage boys will come up with a rotator of watches so that the horses or other members don’t get attacked in the night and the fire doesn’t burn itself out during the night. These watches will be at least a party of three; one to watch the fire, one to collect wood and another to ready a weapon and to be the first to attack the wolf. This person will also be the person who gets reinforcements if there are not enough of them in the watch party to defend themselves. The watch themselves are two hours long, and swap over members with fresh rested members. Each night there are four watches. All goes well for the night, all four watches will go on with no problems. The rest of the members will awake safely with a fire to cook by. On nights where this is not the case, more people are woken up to give reinforcements to fight the threat, if they require it. If a wolf is skinned its pelt is seen as a lucky occurrence, as it is something else the travelling band can sell, to either cities and towns for New Sovereigns or villages for an item they require. If they trade a wolf pelt for other items they will get a lot of that item due to the value of the pelt.

Family Roles

Roles depend on the gender and age of the person.

Male Roles

Boys when they are old enough will start by collecting sticks for firewood. As they get older they will be able to carry more heavier sticks. As they get older still, but not old enough to be considered to be able to fight they will start chopping logs for firewood. When they get old enough to fight, this is around 15 years old. They begin training with an adult with a wooden version of what they will be using when they are fully trained. Back at the village, they train with a wooden analogue of a wolf to get the moves in and understand how to kill the wolf, but without reducing the value of the pelt too much. When the trainee fights their first wolf regardless if it is killed by them or not they will learn from another on how to skin the wolf for its pelt and what to do with the carcass. Dealing with the carcass is not just for hygiene reasons but also they don’t want to attract more wolves. Even if it means more money in the future, it’s not worth the risk. They do this because wolves can be cannibalistic ^[4]. As men get older and unable to fight, they are welcomed to take it easier and allow those who are able, to take over the responsibility.

Female Roles

Girls when they are old enough will help their mothers with cooking arrangements. As they get older they will do increasingly difficult tasks. If they show promise they may study medicine and help out the boys when they get injured, which will happen sooner or later.

Arriving Back At The Village

Upon arriving back at their home village, they are welcomed back. Any injured members are housed in the inn to be away from others and to allow them to rest if it is recommended for them to get better.Often it is better for the injured to sleep alone to allow others to not worry as they will wake them if they are getting into the same bed. They may also have their wounds better cared for than it was on the campsite or on the roads. The trade items are then sold at the store to be sold to the inhabitants of the village. The money made from the trade is shared equally among the members of the travelling band, children do not get paid, but may get pocket money. To the children, this would be considered to them to be getting paid.