Founding

Settlement Founding — Why This Place Exists

Every settlement begins with geography and purpose. The terrain explains why people would settle here, and the founding resource explains what keeps them here.

In engine terms, founding pins the first nodes in the Geography layer and establishes the settlement’s anchor. The founding resource is the first post between the two layers — the constraint that explains why this place exists where it does.

Geographic Foundation (Major Terrain)

Roll on the Terrain–Geography table (Ex Novo p. 36) or choose based on regional context:

2d6	Terrain Type	Character
2	Mountains	Defensible, isolated, harsh climate
3	Plateau	Elevated, wide vistas, exposed
4	Valley	Hidden, sheltered, fertile
5	Deep Forests	Mysterious, resource-rich, dangerous
6	Hills	Rolling terrain, varied resources
7	Plains	Open, vast, vulnerable
8	Riverland	Trade routes, fertile, flood risk
9	Coastal	Trade hub, weather extremes
10	Peninsula	Isolated but accessible, strategic
11	Island	Truly isolated, self-sufficient
12	Special	Underground, floating, unusual

Draw the Terrain Shape

Sketch the major terrain feature covering about a quarter to a third of the map. This establishes spatial relationships, not artistic quality.

Terrain Features

Roll 4 times on the Terrain–Features table (Ex Novo p. 37). For each: roll/choose type → draw on map → name it → ask “What makes this feature significant?”

Founding Location (The Key Resource)

Roll on Purpose–Location table (Ex Novo p. 38):

2d6	Resource	Adventure Hook Potential
2	Ruins of former settlement	What happened to them? What’s still buried?
3	Travel route	Who else travels here? Border conflicts?
4	Trade route	Bandits, tolls, exotic goods, smuggling
5	Valuable natural resources	Gold, gems — greed and danger
6	Useful natural resources	Timber, ore — who controls extraction?
7	Abundant edible plants	Farmland — who was displaced?
8	Abundant edible animals	Hunting grounds — territorial conflicts
9	Defensible location	What threats does it defend against?
10	Strategic location	Chokepoint — military importance
11	Favorable climate	Who wants to preserve it? What threatens it?
12	Culturally important location	Holy site — competing faiths

Place it on the map, name it specifically (“The Deepvein Shaft” not just “gold mine”), mark with 2 power tokens.

Resources Create Conflict

The founding resource is the original source of power — the first contested node. Factions will compete to control it. Historical events will threaten or enhance it.

Settlement Decision (Who Founded This Place?)

Roll on Purpose–Decision table (Ex Novo p. 39):

2d6	Decision	Implications
2	Accident	Stranded travelers — scrappy, adaptive culture
3	Exile	Outcasts, refugees — suspicious of outsiders
4	Escape	Fleeing oppression — valuing freedom
5	Individual vision	Founder-hero worship, descendants still prominent
6	Group consensus	Democratic traditions, town meetings
7	Economic opportunity	Gold rush mentality, wealth disparity
8	Noble decree	Planned settlement, class hierarchy
9	Military orders	Fortress origins, martial culture
10	Cultural expansion	Colonial outpost, identity tension
11	Sacred duty	Temple origins, pilgrimage site
12	Divine command	Prophetic founding, theocratic leanings

Create the first district: draw it, name it, mark with 1 citizen token.

Quick Founding (5 Minutes)

1. Pick terrain type
2. Pick founding resource
3. Combine into a name (Rivertown, Deepvein Hold, Thorngate)
4. Note one-sentence description

Quick-founded settlements exist as provisional canon — real enough to reference, undefined enough to develop later.