Pilgrim's Path

The Eternal Road, The Neutral Ground, The People’s Highway

The Philosophy: The Road Goes Everywhere

The Pilgrim's Path is the spiritual and physical spine of Tayon. It is a continent-spanning network of roads, bridges, and trails built entirely by the people who walk it. It operates on a single, sacred mandate: "The Path is Free."

While Duchies maintain "Trade Roads" and "King's Highways" where tolls are charged and borders are enforced, The Pilgrim's Path is Sovereign Territory.

• The Right of Passage: By ancient treaty (The Pilgrim's Concord), no Lord, Duke, or Dragon may block the Path or charge a tax for walking it. To stand on the Path is to stand on neutral ground.

• The Destination: The Path has no end. If a Pilgrim wishes to go somewhere the Path does not reach, they build the spur themselves. Over millennia, this has created a web that touches every corner of the continent.

The Builders: The Wandering Masons

While most Pilgrims walk until they find their home, a unique sub-culture exists: The Eternal Pilgrims. These are individuals—often high-level Druids, Wizards, or Artificers—who never felt the "Resonance" of a home. Instead, they fell in love with the Road itself.

• The Lifework: They roam the continent their entire lives, dedicating their skills to improving the Path. A Master Mason might spend twenty years turning a dangerous mountain scramble into a perfect stone staircase. A Wizard might spend a decade enchanting a bridge to never ice over.

• The Iteration: These builders often return to spots that defeated them in their youth.

  • Example: A young warrior might wade a river because he cannot build a bridge. Fifty years later, he returns as a Master Architect to build a span of white stone that will last a thousand years.

Magical Infrastructure: The Wards of the Way

Because the Path traverses the "Dark Ages" wilderness of Tayon—filled with monsters, necromancy, and weather—it has been reinforced with potent, permanent magic by centuries of spellcasting Pilgrims.

1. The Sanctuary Stones At roughly one-day intervals along the major arteries, massive waystones are planted.

• Function: These emit a low-level Sanctuary spell or Magic Circle against Evil. They prevent undead and unintelligent beasts from approaching within 50 feet, creating safe campsites for travelers.

2. The Climate Corridors In extreme regions (like the Duchy of Mithrilbeard), the Path is lined with "Warm-Pillars"—enchanted totems that create a tunnel of temperate air, keeping the road clear of snow and protecting travelers from freezing to death during the "Iron Winter."

3. The Mercy Bridges Some bridges are enchanted with Feather Fall fields. If a traveler slips from the wet stones, they drift gently to the water rather than breaking on the rocks.

Political Status: The Free Passage

The Path represents a legal nightmare for tyrants and a blessing for trade.

• The Loophole: A merchant can legally travel from Moonpedal to Mithrilbeard without paying a single tariff if they stay strictly on the Pilgrim's Path. However, the Path is often longer and more winding than the direct Trade Roads.

• The Conflict: Corrupt local lords often try to "encroach" on the path—building fences too close or trying to toll "services" nearby. But to block the Path itself is to invite the wrath of the Eternal Pilgrims, who are often powerful enough to dismantle a castle brick by brick.