Farms and raids

Most zones, and Spitehold's own fields, have a farm or two out in the countryside: a farmhouse and a barn on a yard, and a fenced field of barley, oats, turnips or cabbages. Every farm has a name of its own. It is written on a sign at the field's gate, on the zone's map, and under the minimap while you stand on it. A farmer walks the rows and one of the family keeps the farmhouse door, and both will talk to you. Nothing wild wanders onto farmland.

Inside Spitehold's walls, Wallgarth Farm grows barley in the town's north-west corner. It is worked the same way, but nothing ever raids it.

Raids

Now and then a farm is overrun. A band of 4 to 7 of the zone's own creatures, all of one kind and led by a seasoned raider, comes up out of the farm's ground. They hold it: each stands its ground on the field or the yard, comes for anyone within 14 m, and goes back to the farm once the chase is over. The family runs for the edge of the farm and calls for help, loud enough to be heard a long way off.

Everyone in the zone is told when a farm falls. While it is held, the objectives tracker lists it under Farms overrun, with an arrow pointing the way there and how many raiders are left. The minimap's line reads the farm's name with "(overrun)".

A farm stays overrun until every raider is dead. Nothing else comes while it is held, but nothing leaves either. When the last one falls, the family comes home and thanks you, and everyone alive within 60 m of the farm is paid 12 copper for each level of the zone's toughest creatures, plus experience: 0.9% of what their own level takes to reach the next. The raiders' own kills pay as any creature's do, and out in the wild zones count toward their region's warden.

A cleared farm is left in peace for about 30 minutes, give or take, before the next raid.