Northwest Schrote!

As any self-respecting inhabitant can tell you, the northwest is the worst area by far of the bishopric of Schrote. Things to hold against this portion of the tiny state are (a) it is part of Schrote; (b) it contains the largest urban area - the town of Schrote itself, with a population of some 600; (c) it is part of Schrote; and (d) it contains all of the bishopric's bridges. The answer to the question of why the last of these reasons should be so significant can easily be had by visiting said structures and looking for oneself at what passes in Schrote for 'a sturdy stone structure, only recently refurbished'. It is doubtful if the repair work on these structures could be less effective if one had packed them with fruit scones and then used clotted cream for mortar. The bridges at least then would taste better.

The southern boundry of this region of Schrote is marked by the road that runs from Schrote town to the Saukopf border. This terminates in the village of Bautzen Um Trumpelhein. Three hundred people live in this village. Much of the road runs parallel to the Kleine Tinkel, a stream some eight feet wide and often quite deep, with steep banks. For those that like heavy exertion and the strong certainty of mud, there are fords leading north in Bautzen and also at Wiffel's farm. 

Schrote itself stands in the lee of a line of unremarkable hills, the Mittelmassige Hugel. This gives the town some protection from the northeasterly winds that would otherwise remove some of the dank smells and clinging mists that permeate the capital. Main roads run northwestwards to Bautzen and also to the north. The northern road crosses the Tinkel at Schrote bridge and Tinkel mill, before heading to the other border crossing into Saukopf. This runs via a farm, Hanamel Farm, before reaching the border hamlet of Zandruf (population 100, except when tithes are due; whereupon the population is four). The two main roads are generally passable for wagons and artillery in most weathers, though the ill-made repairs tend to give coach passengers the same quality of comfort as if someone, a Prussian no doubt, had decided to fit the carriage with wheels that were square. From Tinkel Mill, a spur on the main road can take travellers to the bishopric's two universities, Oxfurt and Kambritz. These educational establishments are notoriously difficult for students to get into, because the doorways are so small.

Between these two main roads is a wide area, much of which is composed of rolling meadows, with the odd copse of two. There are, however, two areas of marshy ground. The worst of these is referred to by locals as the Northish Marsh, because it is probably to the north, but no one there really owns a compass; and the other tract is known by the imaginative locals as the More Marsh, because they already had one. Three small farms lie in this area - Immerdal Farm, Nurgle's Farm, and Hanamel Farm. Tracks link these small clusters of buildings, and they are generally, with one exception, of reasonable quality. The exception is the track from Immerdal to Nurgle's Farm - since it actually passes through the Northish Marsh, it should be undertaken only by those who have been able to find, and then domesticate, toads the size of horses. Locals, they say, know of a number of unmarked routes, but one cannot trust the locals any further than one could throw a giant domesticated amphibian.