"I know the ground here needs to rest son, don't I know! Who taught you that anyway, hey? The ground needs to rest but we need to pull more from it nonetheless. The taxmen in this area assess what they think the output of the land is, not what it actually is - so if we want to eat, we need to plant more grain I'm afraid."

-A Farmer Near Stugani, Decimus Casca

Agrarian Upbringing

An agrarian life is the life of most people in most places - at least most places with 'settled' populations. In any given kingdom, republic, or empire, anywhere between 80-95% of the population is involved directly in agriculture. These are the yeomen, farmers, herders, and breeders involved in producing the world's supply of food. At times these folk just provide food for their own family, mostly in isolation from others. Mostly however, they serve at the behest of a liege, providing some percentage of their crop for their liege. In other places, they are expected to sell the surplus of their crop, and they are taxed from the output of their land. In most societies, they are both simultaneously the foundation that all civilization is built on, and some of the least privileged and politically powerful people in the world.

          Those brought up in an agrarian life are likely, on average, to be born and die within the same 50 mile radius. Agrarian living is dull, day in and day out, and often doesn't feel particularly rewarding. It is however also grounding; it can grant someone a connection with the land and the beasts and people who live on it. Those from an Agrarian Upbringing are likely to have a greater appreciation for the amount of work that goes into providing someone a meal - a concept that flies over the heads of most city-folk. More than anything, people who used to live on a farm tend to be used to hard work: from a very young age, children who live on a farm get used to hulling buckets of milk, mucking out stalls, herding animals, tilling fields, and running oxen. Those who finally grow up often feel a desperate need to actually see more of the world - to not die close to where they were born. Others feel deeply tied into their family and life on the farm, and even when they do stray from home, often feel the pull to return.

          Characters from an Agrarian Upbringing have a constant reminder of life on the farm - a Loyal Farm Animal from back home. These can be a Sheep Dog, Cow, Chicken, Sheep, Goat, Mule, Alpaca, Riding Horse, Pony, or similar agrarian animal. The benefits of this animal depend entirely on the type of animal (milk from a cow, wool from a sheep, security from a dog, transportation from a horse, etc.) The animal cannot be communicated with, but is extremely loyal to you, and will follow you wherever you go - it can also be given very simple commands like 'stay'.

If you choose the Agrarian Upbringing, you gain the following:

~Either a +1 to your Strength score or a +1 to your Constitution score~

~A -1 to your Intelligence score~

~A language of your choice, one taught to you by a parent, guardian, or mentor from your upbringing~

~A Sub-Discipline in every social skill on checks dealing with other members of Agrarian Upbringing~

~A Loyal Farm Animal from your time in the country~

Back to Upbringing

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Back to Adra - 3rd Era World Guide