Tristan's Neighbour

The land

Open sea, 3105 m deep; within sight of a shore; temperate sea.

Cover

open sea

Depth

3105 m

Relief

broken hills

The sea

at sea

Climate

temperate sea

The patch

about 1.85 km north to south and 1.21 km across; 1,853 m north to south, 1,212 m east to west, 2.25 km²

Centre

49.1750°S 8.0083°E

What the land offers a builder

Of this land: timber, reed, sand, shell, hide, bone, cloth, rope, glass, water. Of the region: marble, slate, bronze, iron, gold. The land allows: stilts, afloat, carved, spanning.

Now

Wind and mild here, 04:16 local, late spring, first light.

The wild

Animals here this month: orca (feeding), seal (moulting), whale (feeding), shark (feeding), dolphin (calving), albatross (feeding).

The lay of the land

• The low knoll (knoll): a rounded rise with a clear view across the surrounding patch
• The north hill (hill): a broad shoulder of high ground dry underfoot after rain

What stands here

THE RAFT HALL — on the low knoll. House-sized, about 6 m. Timber, reed, sand. Afloat.
"A wide timber raft lashed with reed, a low cabin roof and hearth stone amidships"
A roof of reed atop the top: pitched low to shed rain and heavy gusts. A hearth of sand inside the centre: set with flat stones to hold the embers through the night. A doorway of timber facing the south: fitted with a heavy latch on the leeward side. A storage rack of timber along the north side, hung with dry provisions, cordage, and spare gear.
Of this land: timber, reed, sand.

THE OUTRIGGER BOAT — beside the north hill. Small, about 4 m. Timber, slate, bronze. Afloat.
"A narrow timber hull with slate spars and a lantern bracket at the bow"
A mast of timber atop the middle: stepped in a lashing block for running before the wind. A net rack of slate along the edge: coiled with weighted lines and floats. A bow lantern of bronze at the front: shrouded against salt spray for night watches.
Of this land: timber. Of the region: slate, bronze.

The story, as Lorcan tells it

Of the place

• Iron Sound Watch was laid out by Lorcan Dempsey, who marked the low knoll first and set the raft hall to face out of the prevailing weather.

Of the people

• They keep a dry stack of fuel beside the raft hall and share the first meal at the hearth with any traveller who crosses the low knoll. (heard when a people lives here)
• Before winter sets in they check the lashings and stones of the outrigger boat and sing the names of the first four who came. (heard when a people lives here)

The people

THE PEOPLE OF TRISTAN'S NEIGHBOUR — herders, gardeners, and hunters, settled, in hearth households.
Names from their own tongue. They hold the mountain sacred.
They keep: stone cairns on passes; wool working; burial in a cairn; the midsummer feast; hospitality to strangers.
They like stone, slate, ibex, and clear. They dislike fog, heavy rain, and sand. Wary to strangers.
Their words: hearth te, river or sea lorse, winter or the rains gar, the dead dogen, home dilde, stranger genrer, feast sirrir, child rili, old one tol, the place Ganer, the beast men, the sky mirtal.
Their herd: wild goat.
Founders: four. Lore: 2 lines.

Ways

herding, gardening, hunting

Settlement

settled

Kinship

hearth households

Marriage

either

Naming

given names

To strangers

wary

They hold sacred

the mountain

They keep

stone cairns on passes; wool working; burial in a cairn; the midsummer feast; hospitality to strangers

They like

stone, slate, ibex and clear

They dislike

fog, heavy rain and sand

Their herd

wild goat, 2 head

Founders

4

Counted

4 named folk, a household of 0, 0 born here, 0 died here

Founded

6 November 2026

Their words

hearth te, river or sea lorse, winter or the rains gar, the dead dogen, home dilde, stranger genrer, feast sirrir, child rili, old one tol, the place Ganer, the beast men, the sky mirtal.

Their lore

• They keep a dry stack of fuel beside the raft hall and share the first meal at the hearth with any traveller who crosses the low knoll.
• Before winter sets in they check the lashings and stones of the outrigger boat and sing the names of the first four who came.

Named folk

The chronicle

Every line is a record the land wrote; the names in quotes are the owner's words. What the chronicle does not say did not happen.

Year 1

The annals: 1 founders; 1 people founded; 1 ways changed.

• Late spring, the first year of Tristan's Neighbour: the ways of the people changed: name. kept
• Late spring, the first year of Iron Sound Watch: four came to Iron Sound Watch and lit the hearth. The net-mender "Setep", the boatwright "Sa", the fire-keeper "Lop", the lamp-lighter "Let". kept
• Late spring, the first year of Iron Sound Watch: Lorcan Dempsey called a people to Iron Sound Watch: the people of Iron Sound Watch. kept

Here now

the net-mender "Setep" (folk) · the boatwright "Sa" (folk) · the fire-keeper "Lop" (folk) · the lamp-lighter "Let" (folk)