Montfort is a minor Bretonnia faction in
Total War: Warhammer. It only appears in the Season of Revelation
mini-campaign, as in the Grand Campaigns it is combined with Bastonne.
The ruler of the combined Bastonne is also
listed as Bohemond.
"Gilles the Unifier and his Companions
may have fought here on horseback, but we cannot match their achievements. We
must fight as we can, against the same foes, with the same courage."
—Duke Folcard of Montfort
The Dukedom of Montfort is a founding
Dukedom that lies upon the eastern borders of Bretonnia, along the central
spine of the Grey Mountains. Stretching from the Gisoreux Gap to the north and
Axe Bite Pass to the south, the Dukedom of Montfort acts as the central buffer
state between the lands of Bretonnia and those within the Empire of Man. Almost
all of Montfort lies within the Grey Mountains, with what little arable land
being devoted totally to agriculture.
As such, the communities living within
Montfort are seasoned mountaineers, used to the harsh environment and the
constant threat of Greenskin raids all along its territory. This of course only
makes the Montfortians a very tough people, but this toughness comes at the
cost of having an extreme degree of xenophobia. Mortfortians are very welcoming
of Human outsiders, but anything that is less than Human, such as Dwarfs or
Halflings are eyed with extreme prejudice and hate. It's current ruler is Duke
Folcard.
Geography
"There’s more than one secret mine in
Montfort. And most of them aren’t digging for something as mundane as
gold."
— Common rumour in taverns in Parravon,
Gisoreux, and Montfort itself.
The dukedom of Montfort lies almost
entirely within the Grey Mountains, running from just south of the Gisoreux Gap
to just south of Axe Bite Pass. To the north and west of the Grey Mountains,
the border of the dukedom and of Bretonnia runs along the edge of the mountain
range, whilst within Bretonnia a narrow strip of pastoral land forms part of
the dukedom. There is little farmland within Montfort, and even that is not
particularly fertile. The dukedom is barely self-sufficient in food in a good
year and must import if there is any problem with the harvest. In a dukedom
plagued by Goblins and Orcs, problems with the harvest are common.
Fortunately, the dukedom has two other
sources of income. The first is the tolls on Axe Bite Pass. This is the main
trade route between the Empire and Bretonnia, as merchant caravans come over
from the Reikland and then take ship on the River Grismerie to Gisoreux. The
pass lives up to its name. For most of its length, the road runs along the
bottom of a steep, narrow V-shaped valley, with only a narrow strip of sky
visible overhead. The road is wide enough for two merchant caravans to pass
easily, but there is very little space off the road.
It normally takes several days to pass
through, so there are inns placed along the route where the lie of the land
permits. This has created “Ludwig’s Run” near the middle of the pass, where the
gap between two inns is more than a day’s travel. If a caravan really pushes
hard, it can make it, and most try to. Almost unique among isolated inns, those
two (“Ludwig’s Nose” and “Ludwig’s Toes”) open the gates after dark if
convinced that an arriving group is genuine.
The second is mining. The Grey Mountains in
Montfort contain a number of rich veins of iron ore, as well as other metals.
There is even a single gold mine, the location of which is kept secret. The
mountains in Montfort are as sharp as the Grey Mountains in Gisoreux, but
whilst the Gisorens do not try to live in them, the Montfortians have no
choice. Flat land is for crops and livestock, not houses, so all mountain
homes, including castles, are built on steep, rocky slopes.
The
People
"High tolls? Yes, I used to think so.
Then half a dozen knights with men-at-arms came to rescue us from an Orc
raiding party. Now I pay happily.”"
—Siegfried of Bogenhafen, Imperial
Merchant, at Ludwig’s Nose.
Montfortians live in a hostile environment,
and it shows. They live for the moment even more than most Bretonnians, working
extremely hard and playing even harder when they have the chance. They live in
isolated communities, which has two possible results. Either the community
becomes extremely close, or it disintegrates under the pressure of internal
rivalries and hatreds. Obviously, the communities that are still there are
mainly of the first type. Few Montfortians are suspicious of human-looking
outsiders, however. Every community has been rescued by knights sent from one
of the mountain castles, and every mountain community relies on food brought by
outside traders. Non-human outsiders, including Dwarfs, Elves, and Halflings,
are likely to get a hostile reception, as the residents assume they are some kind
of Orc.
Some Montfortians leave because they get
tired of looking at the same rocks every day, others because they do not get on
with their neighbours. A considerable number of adventurers leave because they
are among the few survivors of an attack on their village. Greenskin attacks
are a fact of life in Montfort. Almost everyone has some experience of fighting
the Orcs and Goblins, and villages are built to be able to withstand an assault
long enough for help to arrive. Axe Bite Pass is the only route wide enough to
allow an army to enter Bretonnia, and so it is heavily guarded. Montfort itself
guards the Bretonnian end, whilst fiefs have been established along its length.
Most of these nobles have encouraged inns in the protection of their castles
and deprive their income mainly from taxes and tolls. A few have built castles
overlooking the main routes into the pass from the mountains.
Each of these nobles normally controls a
mine, which serves as the main source of income. The nobles of the foothills
are constantly seeking to expand their holdings, across the River Grismerie and
into Bastonne and Quenelles. None are willing to foreswear their Duke, however,
so those who succeed are eventually driven back. When challenged by the other
Dukes, Duke Folcard promises to do something about it when the Greenskins give
him some time. Of course, they never do. Relations with the Empire are
excellent. A large part of the Duke’s income relies on traders using Axe Bite
Pass, so he is ruthless with nobles who might think that taking land from the
Empire is a good idea. Nobles do occasionally push into the Wasteland, but the
land there is not worth much, and Marienburg is more worried about Couronne. As
long as Duke Folcard maintains official disapproval and does not allow it to
get out of hand, the Marienburgers are willing to overlook small incursions.
Official Name: Dukedom of Montfort
Ruler: Duke Folcard d'Montfort
Government: Feudal Government
Capital: Castle Montfort
Chartered Towns: Tharravil
Major Exports: Ores, Gold
Type: Minor
Category: Bretonnian Kingdoms
Ruler: Bohemond le Beau
Campaigns: The Season of Revelation
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