Here are the BNN Articles related to the construction of the Skara Brae Faire Ground on Baja. The first couple articles deal with the passing of the previous landowner, which leads to the construction of the Skara Brae Faire Grounds.
It seems that the last few sentances of these articles are missing. If anyone discovers the location of the full article, please send me a private message.
Wealthy Land Owner Passes On - August 13th, 2000
It seems that the last few sentances of these articles are missing. If anyone discovers the location of the full article, please send me a private message.
Wealthy Land Owner Passes On - August 13th, 2000
Skara Brae Craftsmen Unusually Busy - August 14th, 2000Ambrose, one of Skara Brae's most influential landowners, quietly passed away two weeks ago, after a long and drawn out sickness. Also long and drawn out is the story of the slow decay of his lands. Once, under Ambrose's expert management, the fields had not only been the largest, but also the most productive of the township. For several years already he had been bedridden by illness, forcing him to hire managers to direct the laborers toiling at his fields - - an unhappy succession, as each manager in turn proved unable to properly direct the seedings and reapings, instead depleting the land's fertility. Ambrose hired and fired an average of two of them per year, to no avail, as the land continued to lose its value through misuse and abuse. Now that the grieving is over, the late Ambrose's neighbors voice concerns over what will happen to the wide swaths of land owned by Ambrose.
"He was the biggest landowner around here", recalls Dwayne, who was Ambrose's closest neighbor. "Of course his land was being overused, but if you leave it fallow for a few years, it can be fertile again." Also problematic is the land's new owner. "Ambrose's nephew ended up being his heir", Dwayne says. "He was some sort of merchant who lived in Magincia, and he sure ain’t any better than the last lot of helpers. At least Ambrose had the sense to hire farmers to work on his fields, this man’s been hiring carpenters…"
The heir in question, as a quick visit to Ambrose's attorney informed us, is a Magincian merchant named Bert; mostly a caravan master, he has nonetheless tried his hand in just about every commercial endeavor known to Britannians. Unfortunately Bert was negotiating a deal in Jhelom when we came by his home in Magincia, and thus was unable to comment.
Regardless of who owns them, however, more concerns remain about whether the economy can support so many farms. "There's a lot of farms in Britannia", explains Laura, who owns a single farm a long while away from Ambrose's lands. "Every time I go to market there's more stalls, but not a lot more customers. I'm worried that the smaller farms may get crowded out by big ones like Ambrose's."
"It was almost a good thing for the region that Ambrose's farms slowly lost their production", Dwayne says, seeming almost ashamed at the notion. "There was already more supply than demand, and if the farms had been producing like they had ten years ago some of the smaller farmers would've had to leave."
"I was almost hoping that this merchant fellow would forget about the land, but with all the activity over there as of late, he seems to be up to
Skara Brae Faire Grounds Constructed - August 15th, 2000Skara Brae's craftsmen have always been an industrious lot, since hard work strengthens the spirit so dear to the residents of this township. This month, however, their work ethic has been put to a harsh test, as a large number of huge requests for their work has been received.
"It's incredible", explains Devin, a carpenter. "Normally at this time of the year, people only request replacement furniture for redecorating their homes a bit and maybe replace a broken table or two. But this year... First the housing boom, and now this fellow who comes in and orders several thousand boards! Not furniture, not chests, just the boards. What could someone possibly want to do with just boards, let alone several thousand?"
His partner, the lumberjack Edward, agrees. "I am going to have to travel far a field, maybe as far as Yew, to find all that wood", he explains. "And even then it's going to be rough. I have three people already all over the forest and I'm going to have to add two more or I'm not going to meet it!"
Other craftsmen, running the gamut of Skara Brae's market, have received similar outlandish requests. "With my neighbor passed away and his lands in the hands of some merchant, I have the largest farm of the region", the farmer Joseph announces proudly. "I didn't expect the kind of order I'd get, though. Lord Agnacio asked to make ready enough food for well over two hundred people!" The benefits of this unexpected boom extend to other Britannian cities. "I've had to import all kinds of cattle from all over Britannia", Dwayne recounts. "And I'm going to have to do the same with grain and vegetables."
The person responsible for this mini-boom is none other than the famed Lord Agnacio, Skara Brae's wealthiest nobleman. Met by our reporters at his manor, Agnacio was mysterious as to the whys and wherefores of his orders. "You'll see", was his message. "I promise you won't be disappointed. I am going to resurrect a long-lost Skara Braean tradition", was the most he would say.
Whatever Lord Agnacio is planning, it must be soon, if the time limits of the orders is any guide. "Requests for rounded stones are already pretty rare", explains Gwen, a stonecutter of Skara Brae. "Spires and round towers are completely out of fashion. But the man not only wants them, he gave me less than a week to cut them!" She indicates she will have to hire additional apprentices to finish the job in time without neglecting her other customers. The specifics of the order are also puzzling. "With the curvature he asks for, whatever he intends to build can't be more than two paces across."
But the gold is too good to pass up. "Twelve coins a stone - - thrice the usual price!" says Gwen with a glint in her eye. "Whoever it is, he has a lot of gold to throw about", Devin concurs. "Agnacio paid me twice the usual fare for the boards!" "And then he negotiated a price with me for getting the logs", Edward adds. "I tried to tell him that Devin's price already included my own fee, but he'd hear none of it." In total, he counts, the boards will give the pair four times their usual revenue. "I don't know why Agnacio wants any of these", Gwen concludes, "but if he's willing to spend so much gold, we'll do our best to accommodate
Agnacio, nobleman of Skara Brae, and Bert, the Magincian merchant who became Skara Brae's largest landowner overnight, announced today that they were entering a partnership. The move puzzled and confused many people, both among those who watch the nobility and those who track the land's merchants.
"It must be a great move for Bert", said Jeremy, a scribe in Yew. "He has found an independently wealthy nobleman to partner with, but I truly wonder what Agnacio thinks he will get out of it. Something like this has to have a very specific purpose."
Goriel, a Trinsic shop owner, was equally puzzled. "I personally don't see what Bert is looking for here. Agnacio is known as a bit of a philantropist, but he has no real interest in the mechant's craft. He can supply gold, of course, but I know of a dozen potential partners for Bert who are equally wealthy and who would prove more useful on the commercial side of things." While the pair has not revealed the purpose of their partnership, one immediate result has been felt. Skara Brae's craftsmen were asked for one last flurry of activity as Agnacio's plan came together today, and the purpose behind the nobleman's purchases has been revealed. Today on Bert's fields near Skara Brae stands a stage, an arena, a statue, a banquet table... and more.
"Agnacio's craftsmen are very talented", said the famed architect Benton. "Not only are these constructions well-made and well-designed, they've also been erected almost overnight. That must have taken a lot of work, and I must say, I am impressed." Strong approval from a man who has been known to harshly critique the style of Lord Blackthorne's residence.
Prominently displayed on banners around the field are the words, "Skara Brae Faire Grounds". It seems Agnacio's intent was to give Skara Brae one thing it was direly missing: a place to hold its festivals and holidays.
Rachel, a fighter from Jhelom, was especially excited by the closed arena. "A fine place for dueling", she comments. "Just the right size, not so large that one has to run forever to catch his opponent, but not so small as to make strategy useless." "My friend and I snuck in and tried the stage", said Jean, a young lass of the town who aspires to be a bard. "There's lots of seating for the audience and I love how the sound carries."
Not all mysteries have been solved in Skara Brae, however. "Looking at the calendar, I see no holidays coming", said Jessica, scribe to the town's mayor. "Agnacio might be preparing for the next big feast, but that is a few months from now, so why all the haste?"
Some, like Jean, don't care. "I think Agnacio and Bert are planning a