Build a Fantasy Village: The Lord and the Law

In this episode, Mac and Zoe discuss how medieval peasantry worked, the complexities of the system, what sort of peasants there were, and how world builders, writers, and game masters can both accurately represent and adapt the village system in their medieval fantasy worlds and TTRPGs.

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Citations

• Gies, Frances & Joseph. Life in a Medieval Village. Harper & Row, 1990.
• Bennett, Judith M. Ale, Beer, and Brewsters in England. Oxford UP, 1999.
• Graeber, David. Debt: The First 5,000 Years. Melville House, 2011.
• “Medieval Settlements.” Historic England. A great PDF introduction. Link .
• Ellis, Penny. “Medieval Thoralby.” Thoralby Through Time. Link .
• Ray, T.J. “Manorial Language.” T.J. Ray: The Eclectic Eccentric. Link .
• Ray, T.J. “Feudal Language.” T.J. Ray: The Eclectic Eccentric. Link .
• The Middle English Compendium. (Note: this site often goes down.) Link .

Terminology & Spelling:

• ale-taster
• bailiff
• beadle
• cellarer
• claviger
• hayward
• majordomo
• messor
• reeve
• seneschal
• serjant
• steward
• woodward