The Shire of Leeha

A halfling shire of some 7,000 hin on the western coast of the Great Bay, at the mouth of the White Bear River [Alm-Leeha]. Not a city-state but a democracy of five clans; it is the oldest human-scale polity in Norwold, its county founded by halfling settlers around BC 350 [Alm-Leeha] [MMB-Timeline].

• Government: democracy. Elected clanmasters advise an elected sheriff (the office of count) [Alm-Leeha].
• Sheriff: Shaedrik Divotfoot, halfling male, Fighter 9, in office since AC 1010 [Alm-Leeha].
• Predecessor: Collin Nimblefingers, the guerrilla leader who beat off orc and frost-giant invasions [Alm-Leeha] [Neri-RBP].
• Military: a standing force of about 1,500 warriors, the Leeha Defence Force, plus the krondar (the shire police) [Alm-Leeha].

The town

Leeha is a walled river town: riverbank warrens, a central market, docks, a stone toll bridge, and parks the hin call “greens.” The southwest district, Nighthin Nest, is a warren of thieves, smugglers, and gangs near the river; the krondar mostly leave its tunnels alone. The famous Gardens of Leehashire, fields of snow tulips, draw visitors [Alm-Leeha].

Land and neighbors

The shire holds 998 square miles on the Great Bay’s west coast: rolling Catberg Hills to the east, the Greenwood forest, and the navigable White Bear River, fed by the Greenwood, Naszbras, and Snakebite. The Fogvail Swamp (quicksand) lies along the Naszbras; the unexplored Northguard Woods mark the northern edge; and Frosthaven, out in the frozen Norzee, is the source of the frost-giant raiders who come when the Great Bay freezes [Alm-Leeha] [Neri-TG]. Leeha keeps friendly ties with the Kingdom of Siegeria and the Duchy of Chitine (said to speak for Alpha) [Alm-Leeha].

Economy and the situation in AC 1016

Farming, fishing, and river trade, mostly by barter; the clans levy tolls at the bridge both ways [Alm-Leeha]. The shire is at peace, but trouble is local: gang wars in the Nighthin tunnels, monsters and quicksand in the Fogvail, venomous snakes along the Snakebite, and the old fear of a hard winter that freezes the bay and opens the road to Frosthaven’s giants (as happened in AC 1002) [Alm-Leeha].

Running Leeha as a home base

Leeha is the cozy, folk-tale start with teeth underneath: a safe, likable town whose troubles (smuggling rings, swamp horrors, a looming hard winter) scale perfectly for levels 1-3 without a war on the doorstep. It suits a party that begins as locals rather than incoming sell-swords. The deep fan development of the shire is in [JTR-Leeha] and [Eustace-Leeha]; seeds are in Campaign: Home Bases.