Cymbrian Society

The most prominent characteristics of Cymbrians include their sense of status, their reputation, and the laws of hospitality.

Status

While for practical purposes there are differences between poor farmers who are concerned with their lands and members of the King’s teulu, all free Cymbrians are equal in theory. The importance of royal favor and status varies from kingdom to kingdom. In some kingdoms, like Gwynedd, the teulu and royal bards command the greatest status in the land. But in other kingdoms, like Gwent, local power is strong and even the King must be mindful of clan and Pen Cenedl. The free Cymbrian is superior to the bondsmen (aillt), the foreigner (alltud), and the slave. The aillts, like serfs, are bound to the land, and owe labor and rent to some great landlord like a king or abbot. Alltuds can live in the Cymbrian kingdom if they are attached to an uchelwr. Like the aillts, they mostly work the land; but alltuds can also function as servants or even serve as bodyguards and soldiers. Slaves are at the bottom of the social hierarchy. They are uncommon since the Church frowns on the practice of slavery; but some slaves still remain, captured in war and generally loyal to their masters. Spartacus-like revolts simply do not occur to Cymbrian slaves, and many would die to protect their masters. Status is particularly important to the householder. Every man who has his own homestead is master of it, and deference must be paid when entering. Cymbrians of fastidious breeding recognize those rights even among the aillts, and due deference to the mastery of aillt or alltud in his own home often buys his loyalty.

Reputation

Cymbrians are highly conscious of their own reputations, and take steps to safeguard it. Reputation will quickly spread in the kin-group simply by word of mouth. But another important aspect of reputation is shaped by the voices of the bards. Bards can make or destroy a reputation simply with their stories and poetry. For that reason, it is always a good idea to treat a bard well—if a travelling bard is paid one iota less than he feels he is worth, he will begin to destroy a man’s reputation for generosity. Other assaults can be made on courage or honesty. Reputation is so important among the Cymbrians that a seriously weakened reputation will result in penalties applied to skills, healing, and even combat and magic. This reflects the despair felt by the man who is so maligned. In serious instances, characters may die as a result of bards speaking ill of them. On the other hand, a heightened reputation will result in more favorable reactions to the character that may be reflected in offices and honors awarded to the character, the likelihood of attracting followers, or supporters in legal and social situations.

Hospitality

Hospitality is expected in Cymbrian society. Free Cymbrians take in other free Cymbrians; pilgrims find shelter within monasteries. There are no real inns or special lodgings for travelers, so even merchants must find shelter among the people. Hospitality is guided by practicality, of course. A poor farmer may tell a group of 10 mounted warriors that he lacks the facility to put them up, and it would be the utmost form of discourtesy to even ask (thus resulting in a blow to one’s reputation). Members of the King’s teulu, however, can expect to be harbored for a certain time throughout the year. Visiting bards constitute a special case. Uchelwrs (and only uchelwrs) are allowed to keep a harp in their halls for traveling bards. The bard is looked after, and in return he entertains his host and shares news. The travelling bard is the chief source for news of what is stirring in the far corners of the kingdom and beyond. Needless to say, guests are expected to behave in hospitable ways with their hosts. Sleeping with the host’s wife, daughters, slaves, or any women of the household is an egregious breach of hospitality, and carries with it some serious legal penalties (not to mention practical dangers). Guests are not supposed to overstay their welcome.

Living Conditions

Society in the Dark Ages is essentially agrarian; at least in Britain, there is no real city life. Bonheddigs grow up on farmsteads which are relatively isolated from each other rather than grouped together in a village pattern. Each farmstead consists of 5-8 buildings and is governed by the residing uchelwr. If adult bonheddigs live there, they may have their own households nearby, though they do not have their own lands. The farmstead also includes servants and slaves. Each farmstead is self-sufficient and includes a storehouse and a granary; there may be a lumber mill or smithy nearby. In the more civilized areas, the buildings are rectangular; but in remote locations far from Imperial influence, the old-fashioned roundhouse still remains. Often the farmsteads are enclosed by a wooden or a palisade wall, more to keep out animals and opportunistic raiders than for serious defense. Close kin dwell in farmsteads nearby while the more remote kin live a little farther off. 1-3 of these farmsteads forms a free “tref,” or “hamlet.” A group of 13 free trefs are responsible mostly for food rent to an overlord (usually the King). This normally takes the form of a special feast twice per year, when the King visits (once in summer, once in winter). Given the patterns of settlement, those 13 free trefs are generally comprised of 1-3 clans. Distinct from the free trefs are the bond trefs, small communities of aillts who owe work as well as food rent to their overlords. The bond tref is a small, self-sufficient farming collective. A group of these trefs is centered on a single neuadd, a hall which is the location of the llys, or court. Nearby is the maerdref, the administrative center of the group. The maerdref also functions as a local marketplace, visited by all the nearby free Cymbri as well to trade cattle and grain. The bond trefs are immediately distinguishable as such due to their more social character.

Cymbrian Law

Cymbrian justice is locally administered. The local uchelwr administers justice to all under his roof, even the aillts and alltuds living on his land. Disputes between uchelwrs of a single clan are resolved by the Pen Cenedl. Disputes between uchelwrs of different clans are referred to a royal court which meets at irregular intervals and in which the King is assisted by prominent free men chosen from the area. Even the King is bound by his own justice—for this court adjudicates disputes between King and uchelwr also, and does not always find in the royal favor. By far the most serious matters to be adjudicated in these courts are matters involving galanas and the blood feud. Each person within a kin-group has a blood-price (galanas) in case he should be killed. It does not matter whether the death was accidental or deliberate with regard to payment itself, although circumstances alter how much is owed. Every member of a kin-group found responsible for the death of a member of another clan, up to the fifth generation, must contribute to paying galanas. Failure to pay so much as a single penny can result in a blood feud, in which the offended clan may wipe out every member of the opposing clan with impunity. Blood-feud is so extreme that it will be avoided if at all possible, even by strong and belligerent clans. At the same time, the galanas is so costly that clan members who involve their relatives in the payment are subject to the most severe reprimands within the clan. This system of shame and danger is meant to prevent the killing of others except in extreme and justifiable circumstances. It has the added effect of making murder in secret a time-honored way of resolving disputes.

Cymbrian Religion 

Cymbrians are Christians, but their style of Christianity is Celtic, highly individual, attuned to the natural world, and subsuming earlier religious traditions. The most typically Cymbrian religious figure is the holy hermit—even monasteries are more collections of individual cells than real Benedictine-style monastic communities. Monasteries are centers of learning, often with their own holy relics that have the power to heal supplicants of true faith. Solitary hermits are good sources of information and may have powers that are either helpful or baneful to player characters. All Cymbrians revere the saints, some of whom come from their ancient pagan past. The most loved is Saint Brigid, the Lady of Light who was supposed to have brought to men the arts of poetry, war, and smithying. She is kept alive in every Cymbrian household in the tradition of the hearth fire. She is also supposed to have powers of healing and resurrection. Other important saints, like Saint Dyfed, Saint Cadoc, and Saint Tathiw, lived in historical times working miracles of healing and raising the dead. Player characters who take on the role of saints may find a visitation from one of these saints to be a prequel to their own saintly history. Some more shadowy figures suggest the memory of the gods. Govannon, the god of smiths, is still much revered in stories. Arawn and Gwyn ap Nudd are mythical other-worldly hunters, in the tradition of Cernunnos, the Horned God. The worship of Saint Dwynwen, Patron Saint of Lovers, recalls folk rituals surrounding the Flower Maiden who was transformed into an owl for her misdeeds by the Enchanter Gwydyon. Mothers tell stories about Ceredwen the Hag to frighten stubborn or unruly children into obedience. The mingling of Christian and pagan traditions in particular affects the way that Cymbrians look at holy places. In a sense, the whole world is magic, imbued with strange powers. And every Christian holy place has a pagan tradition associated with it as well. Cymbrians are aware of the mystical powers of a place when they visit it. In traditional fantasy games, players visit temples to pay for healing and more religious supplies. In the Cymbrian kingdoms, they visit shrines and holy places where they sacrifice and pray for blessing, buying vials of holy water or blood, drinking from holy wells, kissing bones and relics.

Hunting and Recreation

Cymbrians are avid hunters. Uchelwrs are proud of their dogs, and the richest among them have their own masters of the hunt. The most frequent animals hunted are boar and stag. Wolf and bear are also hunted, but mostly for business, not sport. Cymbrian kings have their own hunt masters, special officials who see to their kennels and organize the royal hunts. The King hunts throughout his kingdom, and nothing is more exciting for local bonheddigs than the coming of the King’s Hunt. The royal hounds are kenneled at the expense of locals, and there is much feasting and celebration. The King’s Hunt brings with it a flurry of activity. Young men who have newly come into their majority are brought before the King in a special ceremony. That ceremony is followed by games and contests. Those who show special promise might be invited to train as apprentice warriors in the King’s teulu, a great honor. Marriages are solemnized, and officially recognized by the royal court (which also collects the marriage fee). Holy men are brought forth to bless horses, hounds, and hunters. The King presides in person over a special court to hear grievances and grant special boons.

Warfare

Like all Dark Age kingdoms, Cymbrian society is organized for warfare. Although the Church seeks to establish the so-called “peace of God” on earth, warfare is not only an honorable occupation among the Cymbrians; it is a cherished way of life. Ritualized fighting between Cymbrians is one way in which young warriors establish dominance. Often those fighting rituals spill over into other occupations. Fighting over grazing rights is not uncommon, and young tribesmen between 16 and 21 are almost expected to thieve sheep, goats, pigs, cattle, and horses. When such conflicts turn lethal, blood feud can result. Sometimes allied clans will band together to raid the sheepfolds and barns of the clans in a neighboring kingdom. Lethal combat, again, is avoided if at all possible, but protracted raiding between the clans of two kingdoms can result in larger skirmishes and even war between the kingdoms. The most promising field of action for an eager young Cymbrian fighter is the King’s Teulu. This personal bodyguard is supported by the King. They live in the neuadd, the royal hall. They are given arms, armor, and a mount. They accompany the King (or the Penteulu) wherever he goes. Smaller bodyguards serve the Queen and some of the greater uchelwrs. In addition to the Teulu, the King can call upon a general muster of free Cymbrians for six weeks of each year. The natural resistance of the clans to this general muster is modified by the presence, throughout the kingdom, of uchelwrs who have formerly been in the King’s Teulu. Sometimes the fiercest members of the general muster are the grand old warriors of 60-odd winters who wish to ride with their King one more time. The lord’s hall, or neuadd, is hierarchically arranged. The King’s neuadd is divided into upper and lower sections. In the upper sections sit the King’s officers, including the Captain of the Guard (Penteulu), the King’s Harper (Bardd Teulu), and the Chamberlain (Gwas Ystafell). The King’s smith holds a place of honor right beside the Court Priest (Offeiriad Teulu). The lower section of the King’s hall is occupied by the chaotic mob of the Teulu itself. The Teulu is maintained partly by the King’s lands, but mostly by the plunder it takes when it attacks the neighboring kingdoms. In return for their maintenance by the King, members of the Teulu are expected to show loyalty to the death.

The Bardic Fraternity While bards certainly hunt for patrons as a way of sustaining themselves, the fellowship of bards in the Cymbrian kingdoms is not established as a branch of the government but is rather a self-governing body independent of the King. The Chief Bard in any region is known as the Pencerdd. The Pencerdd is allowed to take on apprentices and grant them the rights to declaim known poems and compose their own. Players who wish to learn the craft of the bard become cerddorion. The apprentice cerddwr is called a clerwr; those who have been admitted into the bardic order are called prydydd. A bard can earn a post of teuluwr, or household bard; the highest position held by the household bard is the Bardd Teulu of the King or the Bardd Ystafell (Bard of the Chamber) of the Queen. But others may find patronage among the uchelwrs. The Bardd Teulu of the King accompanies the warriors on their expedition, singing a traditional song of Cymbrian independence as they go into battle, recounting their deeds, and if necessary composing elegies for those who have fallen. The independent Pencerdd does not have any obligation to the King or his followers; but a Pencerdd will often travel to a court that is visiting a region, and if he does so the Bardd Teulu must yield to him in precedence.