Castles

Table of contents

• Building a Castle
• Benefits of a Castle
  • … for the Community
  • … for the Owner
  • Patronage
• Money and Titles
• Your Personal Touch
  • Additional Patronage
  • Bunker-Built
  • Comfortable Chambers
  • Formidable Fortress
  • Multitudinous Garrison
  • Powerful Pulpit
  • Profitable Palace
  • Royal Guard
  • Secret Escape
  • Stupendous Stable
  • The Tallest Tower
  • Wards of Privacy
• Composing a Royal Password

Castles represent the apotheosis of architecture, the ultimate Building for any civilization. Castles often serve as the seat of government for a whole country. As such, they are rarely found in any but the most prosperous and powerful cities.

Having a Castle in the midst of your city not only provides additional protection for its citizens in the event of an invasion, but benefits the city’s economy and stature, as well as providing a lovely domicile (and contingent of private soldiers) for its owners.

Building a Castle

Castles are not cheap to build. A Castle requires the following Materials, all of the same Rank, to build a Castle of that Rank:

With spacious walkways, tall walls, and luxurious accommodations, Castles take up significant real estate – much more than the typical House or place of business. While Rebuild the Wild does not include specific rules for parceling our property, it would still be a good idea to make sure your castle grounds have plenty of room.

Raising a Castle takes a team of Heroes, or a construction crew, a full month (30 days).

Upgrading a Castle takes a team of Heroes, or a construction crew, 25 days. All other rules for upgrading a Building apply.

Deconstructing (razing) a Castle takes 20 days. This yields 4 Gemstones, 10 Food Ingredients, 18 Metal, 28 Cloth, and 40 Wood, of the Castle’s Rank. All other rules for Deconstructing a Building apply.

Benefits of a Castle

… for the Community

Having a Castle in your community serves as a statement of importance. Your settlement is now a player on the world stage, able to stand toe-to-toe with the likes of Hyrule and other great nations. The presence of the Castle, as the seat of power, brings traders, money, and people in positions of power from all over the kingdom and beyond.

In addition to the money a Castle (and the government within it) brings, the Castle also offers protection in times of great strife.

When a city is invaded or besieged, its people may retreat within the confines of the Castle, allowing it to serve as a final line of defense in the face of a siege.

While a Castle is full of people fleeing war, it offers no benefits to its Owners – the many huddled, stressed civilians make it impossible for everyday business to be conducted.

… for the Owner

Castles offer their owner the benefits of a wide variety of Buildings and Amenities, all under one roof – and the Owner’s control.

All Buildings in a Castle are of the same Rank as the Castle. They do not directly contribute to the Owner’s coffers, however – that amount is included in the money a Castle brings in regularly.

Barracks: A Castle is staffed with servants, as well as a small cohort of personal guards. These guards are sworn to serve the Castle Owners, and to protect them at any cost.

Commons: A Castle’s immaculate gardens and easily-seen balconies serve as the perfect place for the Castle’s Owner to make proclamations and give speeches.

Cooking Fixture & Forge: A Castle features a Cooking Fixture and a Forge, allowing Owners to dabble in whatever crafts they enjoy.

House: A Castle contains a set of private chambers, exclusively for the use of the Castle’s Owners and their guests. This House cannot be rented out.

Office: A Castle contains a number of rooms that enable its Owner to coordinate their investments, collect taxes, and otherwise ensure that their money continues to grow.

Stables: A Castle contains a set of Stables. This allows the Owner’s mounts to be ready and available in moments.

Tower: A Castle is not complete without a tower to dominate the skyline, and provide a view of the countryside to the inhabitants.

Walls: A Castle is surrounded by Walls. These serve to keep out both the common riffraff, and to protect the inhabitants (and any refugees) from besieging forces.

Well: Castles typically include at least one Well, granting their Owners (and those who work for them) easy access to fresh water.

Patronage

A Castle’s Owners, befitting their wealth and status in the community, can become Patrons of existing Buildings and Amenities.

You can be a Patron to (Castle Rank) different Buildings or Amenities. You can only become a Patron of a Building or Amenity ofyour Castle’s Rank, or lower.

Becoming a Patron of a Building or Amenity means that you throw the weight of your name behind it. The Building’s Owner might drop your name in conversations and negotiations, and will be sure to mention to customers that this is where you choose to spend your time. An Amenity you patronize might feature a plaque dedicating it to you, or a statue of your visage in the middle of it, ensuring your name is remembered.

Of course, becoming a Patron of a Building has benefits for you, as well. As a Patron of a Building, you have all the benefits of ownership of that Building, except the Rupee per-diem that an Owner would expect.

For example, if you became Patron of a Bank, your available storage space at that Bank would double; if you became Patron of a Post Office, you would occasionally receive packages from the lost-and-found.

In addition, becoming a Patron of a Building ensures its Employees always have time to see you, and that they serve you first and foremost even when things are busy and crowded. You might also hear any rumors or news they receive, before anyone else.

If the Building is a Shop of some kind, then they might save the occasional weird, powerful, or dangerous item for their Patrons, giving them ‘first dibs’ on rare or unique goods. However, just because they’re saving an item for you, doesn’t mean they’ll cut you a sweetheart deal on it.

Other benefits of becoming a Patron may vary for each Building, community, or Owner. When becoming a Patron of a Building, speak with your GM, and work out what benefits might behoove your generosity!

Money and Titles

Owning a Castle provides the Castle’s Owner a significant amount of personal income. This money might come from a variety of sources – taxes collected on the local populace, tourists visiting the castle and its gift shop, gifts from visiting dignitaries, and so on.

Ownership of a Castle also confers a Title – the grander the Castle, the more impressive the Title. This Title might vary by country, era, or world, but below are some suggested Titles per Rank of Castle.

Castles might even be purchased, particularly from royal families willing to sell titles in exchange for a hefty donation. The below table lists Castle Market Prices.

Note that claiming a Title (or Building a Castle at all), when your betters have not granted you explicit permission to do so, may result in unpleasantness – or even war!

Your Personal Touch

The mightier a Castle is, the more powerful its Owners’ personal touch is. A Castle’s Owners may, upon construction, put up to (Rank) Personal Touches on the Castle.

This Personal Touch puts extra resources and attention towards that part of the Castle, improving it, and its effects, to the utmost.

Each Personal Touch can only be taken once, but multiple Personal Touches can affect the same part of the Castle. For instance, you may have a Multitudinous Garrison and a Royal Guard, granting you an impressive personal army.

Beginning on the next page is a small list of Personal Touches that can be applied to your Castle. GMs and Heroes looking for new ways to personalize their ultimate abode are encouraged to come up with new ones!

Additional Patronage

Rather than spending your time on your Castle, you’re spending it in the community. You become the Patron of one additional Building.

Bunker-Built

When the Castle is used to house a large population (such as during a siege), normal operations continue, and the Castle’s Owners may continue to make use of the Castle’s amenities.

Comfortable Chambers

Resting in the Castle grants its Owners Temporary MP and SP, as well as Temporary HP, like resting at an Inn of the Castle’s Rank.

Formidable Fortress

Double the Defense and the HP of the Walls of the Castle.

Multitudinous Garrison

Double the number of soldiers in the Castle’s Barracks.

Powerful Pulpit

Double the Trait Check bonus for speaking to an assembled crowd at the Castle’s Commons.

Profitable Palace

Increase the amount of Rupees the Castle brings in by 25%. This Personal Touch can be taken multiple times, stacking cumulatively (so 25%, 50%, 75%, up to the maximum of +125%).

Royal Guard

+1 to the Rank of all equipment used by all soldiers in the Castle.

Secret Escape

In case of insurrection, the Castle features one or more secret escape paths. These paths lead out of the Castle, and exit a significant distance away (no more than a day’s travel overland). Only the Castle’s Owners know how to reveal these paths, where they begin, and where they go.

Stupendous Stable

Companions who rest in the Castle gain Temporary MP and SP, as well as Temporary HP, like resting at a Stable of the Castle’s Rank.

The Tallest Tower

Double the height of the Castle’s Tower. If your game world has significant infrastructure in the sky (such as a Sky Kingdom or airship travel), the Castle now has direct access to that infrastructure.

Wards of Privacy

The Castle stonework is enchanted to prevent magical access. Songs such as Farore’s Wind, Song of Discovery, and any other means of scrying, remote viewing, or teleportation, fail to work so long as the Castle’s walls are all still standing. You may designate exceptions to these wards as you see fit, such as letting trusted advisors bypass them, or allowing those who know your Royal Password Song through.

Composing a Royal Password

As the proud owner of a new Castle, you are entitled to one further benefit: you can now Compose the “Royal Password” Magical Song. This Magical Song represents your family, adventuring party, or whatever you consider those closest to you, and only they may play it.

Once per Extended Rest, while in a place you currently own (that no one else can stake a claim to), you may permanently seal an object by playing your Royal Password. With a Rank 0 Castle, you may only seal messages, hiding them from view. With a Rank 2 Castle, you may seal or hide doors, chests, or other objects. Finally, with a Rank 4 Castle, you may seal complex mechanisms.

Once sealed, the object will activate (or de-activate) whenever it hears your Royal Password

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