The Red Rooster Stead
Established by a botanist as an experimental farm, the homestead hosts myriad agricultural undertakings such as the selective breeding of livestock and the research of foreign produce. Its proximity to kobold territory has given the residents no recourse but to turn to pirates for protection.
007 Vista Record Wrote:"Red Rooster Stead"
The farmers on the Red Rooster Stead will rarely shy from testing their agricultural acumen on exotic crops or untested growing methods, and take pride in their willingness to sacrifice a harvest if it means a better yield an autumn hence. The plantation’s name is said to be taken from the bloody cockfights held after nightfall by the gamekeeps.
How to Get There:
The Red Rooster Stead is located in Lower La Noscea. It has no level requirements for the local Lominsan, but will require lv14 and the "Ul'dahn/Gridanian Envoy" Main Scenario Quest flagged for those who have started in Ul'dah or Gridania. The area is safe and free of any aggressive monsters save for FATEs, and can be traveled to at level 1 from Limsa Lominsa without difficulties.
Lore
Origin of the Name:
Have you heard the tale behind the name of this quaint little place? It all started with the birth of a rooster, feathers as red as wine. Would that the story ended there...
See, the farmers laid wagers on this bird being stronger than the others, but the contest grew ugly. Blades were drawn, and both roosters and onlookers were splattered with scarlet shades of blood. Not so quaint now, eh?
The Landlord, Anaoc the Youngest
Anaoc: Welcome to the Red Rooster Stead. What can I do for ye?
The name’s Anaoc, and I run this here farm. I’ve been a botanist for… well, for more seasons than I can count. I’d retire once, before all that nasty business with the Calamity came down. But I can hardly sit idle with all the rebuilding that needs doing, now, can I? I am fortunate enough, however, to have a goodly number of enthusiastic youngsters about the place. With a bit of direction from me, I look forward to seeing what wonders they’ll achieve at the Stead.
Yes, life in the fields carries on. There are the good days and the bad, but ye'll not see me grumbling─no, not when there's work to be done. The threat of the occasional kobold raid remains, but fear's not going to keep this old farmer from working this land to the fullest. As long as there are bountiful harvests to be had, there's no place I'd rather be. If I can live out the rest of my days here, I'll die a happy man.
Here at the Red Rooster Stead, we don't shy away from giving the latest farming methods a try. And you can see the results just by taking a look around. The crops are bountiful, and we've had to add pens for the extra livestock. The Admiral herself has praised the Stead as the perfect example of her new settlement initiative. If I were to find flaws, it would have to be with our lack of security. Time was that the local pirates would look out for an old farmer like me, but now their whole way of life has been outlawed. There was a time when they farm'd stage cockfights, and pirates from all across the island would come and bet on their favorite bird. Problem was, each cockfight would end up in a pirate fight, no matter which rooster prevailed, so we put an end to the matches for the safety of me and my hands.
The Red Rooster Stead boasts the greatest harvests of the biggest and best produce in La Noscea. It needs to be picked and shipped cleanly and quickly so that it reaches market at its freshest. Anything less would be doing the growers an injustice.
The Success of the Stead
The Admiral herself has seen it fit to dub our stead an exemplary model of her settlement initiative. The Stead botanists attribute their success to unyielding innovation─their willingness to attempt any and all agricultural techniques at least once, no matter how counterintuitive or potentially embarrassing.
Wool Production
The bulk of wool in Eorzea is shorn either here in La Noscea, or over in Coerthas.
La Noscean sheep are renowned for their soft white fleece, which is nothing like that coarse rubbish they peddle up in the highlands.
Moegramm (Stead Shepherd): As anyone who's ever raised livestock will tell you, animals feel and show emotions as deep and real as yours or mine. One need only look for the telltale signs: a fetching pose, a come-hither stare, some provocative tail-whipping... My pets never fail to show me the same love I show them.
The Dodos
Brianna: Ain't naught sweeter then the smell of ripe dodo dung on a clear night - or a cloudy one, for that matter. 'Tis what makes our crops the most sought-after in the land. Why, our produce even lines the larder shelves of the world-renowned Bismarck. The chefs themselves will oft frequent the Stead to select their own vegetables.
X'payan: The dodos love the farm-fresh food so much, they're always pecking at the fences! Sometimes they'll even peck themselves free and run about. I suppose the exercise is good for them, but it's certainly not what I need!
Roleplaying Tips
Things You Can Do here:
The Red Rooster stead has a lot of working facilities for the country-type roleplayer. The property includes:
- A farmhouse;
- Chocobos pen;
- Dodos pen;
- Sheep pen;
- Storehouse;
- Various fields that include: lavender, pumpkins, wheat, barley and other products;
- Orchards of oranges and grapes.
- The nearby Gray Fleet windmills take care of crushing the grains to produce flour.
The uniform of the Stead Workers includes:
- A bandana, or farmhand hat of light brown color (info missing on material and dyes):
- A leather jerkin of green color (info missing on material and dyes);
- A pair of vambraces of green color (info missing on material and dyes);
- A pair of culottes of green color (info missing on material and dyes);
- A pair of mocassins of brown color (info missing on material and dyes).
Trivia:
The area includes moogle mail service, chocobo porting, and has a resident levemate. The leves include several of the tasks to be performed in the Stead, from pest control, security, sheep herding, and deratization.
The Ladybugs. the Leafbleed Blight, and Puks
Ladybugs may be classified as vilekin, but they are anything but vile. For they feed upon the foul aphids who suck the lifeblood from our crops here at the Red Rooster Stead, making them more than welcome in our fields. That is, the ones who aren't carrying the terrible leafbleed blight. Rumor states several infected ladybugs hitched a ride on a merchant's vessel carrying fruit from Gridania. Now, not only are they spreading the sickness to the crops, but to healthy La Noscean ladybugs as well. The Stead is looking for adventurers to seek out the carriers of the blight and eliminate them, trying not to harm any of the unaffected ladybugs in the process.
Also, the local puks consider the ladybugs a delicacy, and will descend from their rocky nests every morning to feast. The Stead is offering good coin to any adventurer who will travel to the nearby rocky outcroppings, lure out the hungry puks, and slay them.
Red Rooster Stead Landlord, Anaoc the Youngest
The Rats
Every summer, we lose more than a quarter of our yield here at the Red Rooster Stead to a plague of filthy rats who sneak into the fields at night and eat the young vegetables straight off the vine. Every winter, we lose another quarter to the same rats when they chew their way into our storage silos. If the quick-breeding pests are not continuously dealt with, our losses will grow even larger, and I will be forced to abandon the farm. The Stead seeks fleet-footed adventurers to come and chase down the creatures so that my family and I might rest easily.
Red Rooster Stead Landlord, Anaoc the Youngest
Adventurers for Hire on Securing the Roads
We Yellowjackets of the second levy are ordered to patrol the myriad roads of middle and lower La Noscea, ensuring safe passage for the merchants and travelers who frequent them. Unfortunately, since the Calamity, there are simply not enough men and women in our ranks to cover every malm, which is why we seek the assistance of adventurers in slaying those beasts who wander too close to the outlets.
2nd Levy Infantry, Yellowjacket Private Ancreta Ilm
The New Sheep Hound
Ever since our old sheep hound was mangled by a pair of megalocrabs, his replacement has caused us nothing but trouble. Not only does the flea-ridden mutt run slower than a one-legged stag, but he spends most of the day looking for some tree to mark, when he isn't eating the chickens' feed. Thanks to him, we lose nigh on half a dozen of our flock every day, which is why, until our faithful old hound's legs heal, we require adventurers to find the stray sheep and lead them back to the Stead. They may be a tad overstrung, so a little coercing with your blade may be required before soothing them.
Red Rooster Stead Shepherd, Moegramm Sheepsong
To be an interesting, intriguing, well-written character, there needs to be something to allow the audience to relate to them. That is what the problem is with who wants their character to be "perfect". Perfect characters will never be strong, and strong characters will never be perfect, because WE (those who read, who watch, who RP) are not perfect.
"What makes a strong character is how they deal with their flaws, their fears, their turmoils, their troubles that get in the way. That's what makes them relatable." -- N.C.
"What makes a strong character is how they deal with their flaws, their fears, their turmoils, their troubles that get in the way. That's what makes them relatable." -- N.C.