The Millers
| Name of the Inn | The Millers'
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| Location of the Inn: | Village of Vayra Manor
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| Settlement: | Varya Manor, Grimruld Hundred,
Vemionshire, Kaldor
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| Propieter's name: | Joack of Finmeld
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| Size: | 4
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| Quality: | ***
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| Price: | Low
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| Number of floors: | one + cellar
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| Construction material: | Half-frame
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| Roof material: | Turf
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On this page:
Introduction |
Description of building |
History |
Business |
Rate of charges |
Room tariff |
Bar tariff |
Menu |
Mill |
Staff |
Layout of the Inn |
Ground floor |
Upper floor |
Cellar
The Millers' (as it is known by locals) is a combination of alehouse,
bakery and mill (a separate structure), run by the miller of Vayra Manor
(hence the name). Generally such franchises would be given to members of
guild of innkeepers only, but Vayra is practically at the edge of the
known (or civilized) land, and such rules tend to get a bit relaxed
there. Besides the miller brews a healthy, rustic ale and doesn't charge
too much so the chance of someone telling the innkeepres' guild is very
remote.
There aren't may other inns in the local area, so the alehouse draws
patrons from nearby villages as well. Since the district is definitely
rural, the clientale is mixture of peasants and freemen. Sometimes local
squires pay a visit too.
The owner, one Joack of Finmeld, is generally rather jovial person, a
proud father of 5 children, husband to a pretty wife and very respected
member of his community.
The alehouse is a rectangular building, one storey high, aligned roughly
in North-South -direction. The walls are low and plastered, the roof is
covered with turf. There are several shuttered windows on the wall, all
painted red. The building appears to have two distinctive sections. The
northern end (which is about 2/3 of the whole building) is built on the
ground, while the southern end rests on a basemet made of rocks and its
roof is consequently slightly (about 1 metre) higher than the roof of
the north end. There is a door opening to the street at the north end of
the building. Another door opens to the backyard, on the west side of
the building.
Since everyone knows the place, there is no sign on the outside.
The building itself is in good shape. The courtyard is fenced (to keep
the millers' animals inside and others' outside), and there is a small
garden plot in the backyard (with a sturdy fence to keep the pigs out).
The alehouse is relatively new, about two generations. The current
miller's father started with a small cottage to house a baking oven
where he could bake bread & buns from his excess flour and sell them for
profit. As the business went well, his wife came up with the idea of the
alehouse. They expanded the original cottage (which nowadays is the
kitchen) and added the common room plus an earthen cellar to store the
ale.
When the current miller got married, he decided to build an extra storey
above the cellar for family residence. The old miller and his wife
stayed at the loft of the mill (which was quite comfortable, one must
add). Both have died since and the mill-loft is currently empty, but in
good condition and is occasionally used.
FOOD:
The alehouse serves good ale, beer and mead, simple broth/soup, stew,
oatmeal, bread, buns, and other bakery products for a low price. More
elaborate meals can be made in the autumn (when the extra livestock is
slaughtered and preserved for winter) and winter (from the preserved
meat), but they cost notably more (except during the harvest festival).
In addition you can also buy grain and flour.
The food and drink in general is good, if nothing special. The ale is
very good and some of the buns are just delicious.
LODGING:
As the alehouse is located off the beaten track, it doesn't actually
have rooms to let. However, there are two rooms (used by the family)
that can be vacated if a need arises. When this happens, the family
moves to the loft of the mill for the duration. Due to this, as can be
expected, the price for renting a room is higher than in an average inn.
In addition one can sleep in the common room (i.e. the ale-room) when
the alehouse closes for the night. The price for this is nominal and
includes a luring chance to eat leftovers of the day's cookings (a
chance many a local patron uses every now and then!).
There is no ostler, nor a stable available. If needed, the horse can
graze on the local common (against a fee levied by the alewife on behalf
of the village reeve).
STAFF:
The alehouse is mainly in the charge of the miller's wife, assissted by
their children. The eldest is a girl, about 17, who is somewhat of a
simpleton and the miller's wife keeps a constant eye on her, to prevent
anyone from taking advantages of her state. She's usually not serving,
but spends most of the time in the kitchen. The other two that are old
enough to help are 16 (boy) and 14 (girl). The miller himself is also
quite often in the tavern, serving the customers.
Note: Even though prices are given in monetary terms, the usual way is
to barter, i.e. pay in kind (with grain, eggs, firewood, services,
etc.).
| Room | 15 d per day (includes a bowl of stew, loaf of bread and
ale)
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| Common room | 0.25 d per night (includes chance leftovers of
the day)
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| Grazing on local common | 0.5 d per day
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| Ale (strong) | 0.25 d per two pints
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| Beer (medium) | 0.25 d per two pints
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| Mead (sweet) | 0.25 d per two pints
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| Broth/soup, with loaf of bread | 0.5 d per bowl
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| Stew, with loaf of bread | 0.75 d per bowl
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| Oatmeal | 0.25 d per bowl
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| Bread (rye) | 0.25 d per loaf
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| Bread (wheat) | 0.5 d per loaf
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| Buns (sweet) | 0.5 d per dozen
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| Oatcakes | 0.25 d per dozen
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| Hot meal with meat / spring, summer | Unavailable
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| Hot meal with meat / harvest festival | 1 d
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| Hot meal with meat / autumn, winter | 3 d
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| Rye (grain) | 0.25 d per pound
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| Oat (grain) | 0.5 d per pound
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| Wheat (grain) | 0.75 d per pound
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| Rye flour | 0.5 d per pound
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| Oatmeal | 0.75 d per pound
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| Wheat flour | 1.25 d per pound
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- Name: Joack of Finmeld
- Sex: Male
- Age: 42
- Job: Miller, Baker, Innkeeper
- Guild Status: Master Miller
- Appearance: Average in height, somewhat stocky but not
overly so, short-clipped brown hair, brown eyes, lots of wrinkles,
balding forehead. In his youth was a fairly handsome chap.
- Clothing: Linen shirt (long-sleeved) and hoses (loose
trousers), cap and shoes.
- Personality: Jovial and relaxed, but stubborn if confronted.
Vocal (likes to talk, likes hear himself to talk and rarely lets things
unsaid..)
- Remarks: Respected member of his community. Wealthy by
rural standards
- Name: Tyne of Fereth
- Sex: Female
- Age: 36
- Job: Alewife (runs the alehouse)
- Guild Status: n/a
- Appearance: Tall, round (healthy), brown long hair (worn in
braid), brown eyes, pleasant to look at.
- Clothing: Long gown and an apron, sometimes a scarf over
head or on her shoulders. Shoes.
- Personality: Relaxed, but strict if need be. Known to give a
full earful to patrons who have misbehaved - regardless of their
standing. Very touchy about her eldest daughter
- Remarks: As a wife to a wealthy husband, Tyne has the
rare luxury of having some jewelry of her own. She likes the latest
acquisition (a plain silver brooch, given by his husband to celebrate
the birth of their youngest son) the most and wears it often. Keeps an
eye on her eldest daughter (somewhat simpleton) in case someone tries to
make any amorous advances.
- Name: Eyla
- Sex: Female
- Age: 17
- Job: Mainly kitchen maid, but sometimes serves
customers as well
- Guild Status: n/a
- Appearance: Tall, lean, brown long hair (worn in braid),
brown eyes, not at all bad to look at.
- Clothing: Long gown and an apron. Shoes.
- Personality: Somewhat simple (not stupid, just simple - i.e.
very open.). Curious and friendly.
- Remarks: Watched constantly by her mother. Quite a good cook.
- Name: Carys
- Sex: Male
- Age: 16
- Job: Serves customers
- Guild Status: n/a
- Appearance: Tall, lean, medium-long brown wavy hair (often
drooping over his eyes), brown eyes, fair young chap.
- Clothing: Hoses, shirt, shoes
- Personality: Friendly, helpful. Sometimes tries to show off
(he's at that age..)
- Remarks: Helps his father at the mill too, so may not be at
the alehouse. Teases his little sister a lot.
- Name: Lynnea
- Sex: Female
- Age: 14
- Job: Serves customers
- Guild Status: n/a
- Appearance: Tall (for her age), all legs and arms (as kids
of this age are prone to be). Brown hair (medium length), bright big
brown eyes.
- Clothing: Gown, shoes
- Personality: Brisk, friendly, helpful.
- Remarks: Quarrels with her big brother a lot.
- Names: Ayra / Tomar
- Sex: Female / male
- Age: 5 / 1
- Job: Helps at the herb-garden / newborn
- Guild Status: n/a
- Appearance: Brown hair, brown eyes
- Clothing: Shirt, shoes / shirt
- Personality: Curious / noisy
- Remarks: Kids
The building is divided in to two sections. The northern end takes about
two thirds of the building and contains the common room (ale-room) and
the kitchen. These are on the ground floor. The southern end has no
ground floor per se. It has two floors - the cellar and the upper floor.
The cellar is partially underground and the upper floor is built on the
top of it, i.e. is slightly above the ground floor (about 1 meter). Both
the cellar and the upper floor can be accessed from the common room via
a short flight of stairs.
The layout is rectangular, with the kitchen in the SW corner and the
rest being common room. The floor itself is of packed earth.
This is the main feature of the building. The common room (roughly
L-shaped) is spacious by rural standards. It has 3 long tables, plus
benches to go with. The entrance door on the north wall is sturdy and
has a latch. There is a fireplace, shared with the kitchen, in the
southwest corner. The southern end of the room has two flights of
stairs. The one next to the wall goes upstairs (to upper floor) and is
behind a curtained doorway. The other stairs lead down to the cellar and
terminate to a sturdy door (locked). The kitchen is separated from the
main room by a bar-table (and by the fireplace). Two spars stand up in
the middle of the room, giving additional support for the ridge beam.
The illumination is provided by the fireplace (and rushlights if
additional light is needed). Guests are free to provide their own
candles if they so wish. There are also two shuttered windows on west
wall, but these are kept closed to prevent draft and are usually opened
only on hot summer days.
Usually you'll find 2 to 10 patrons sitting in the common room (less
during the day, more towards the eve).
The kitchen occupies the SW corner of the common room, and opens
directly to it. It is roughly square, with tables going around the
walls. There is a door with a latch on the west wall, opening to the
backyard of the alehouse. The kitchen shares a fireplace with the common
room and has a baking oven on the top of the furnace. In addition you'd
find all the necessary utensils for baking and making food.
This is where the alewife and her children usually are, when not
carrying ale and stew to their customers. The eldest daughter spends
most of the time in the kitchen.
Upper floor is about 1 meter higher than the gorund floor. The stairs
lead to a short corridor, that has two doors on the western side. The
southern end of the corridor has a shuttered window. The floor itself is
of wood.
The first (northern) room is occupied by the children (except for the
newborn). There is a wide bed (enough for two kids to sleep
side-by-side) for the eldest, while the rest sleep on mattresses on the
floor. There are couple of small stools but no table. The east wall has
a small shuttered window. The floor is covered with rushes. The door has
no locking mechanism.
The second (southern) room is occupied by the miller and his wife, plus
their newborn child. It is quite comfortable (though somewhat crammed),
with a double bed, couple of chairs, a writing table, a cradle and next
to the door a small table with a washing bowl. There is a shuttered
window on the south wall and a small, locked chest under the bed
(removed if this room is rented, it contains the family jewelry plus
money). The floor has a thick layer of rushes. The lock on the door is
quite simple.
The cellar floor is about 1 meter below ground. Stored here are several
barrels of mead, ale and beer, plus any other preserved foodstuff that
the family has. The door has a lock and is quite sturdy. There is no
source of light in this room. The floor itself is of packed earth.