Giants and their House-Corporations

Giants always come back to their House.  As trappers and herders, giants spend most of the year on their own, only seeing others every once in a while.  But each spring, they come back to their ancestral home.

The House is like a corporation, thought of as a person that can own property.  It is a physical structure, but also a kin-group and a territory.  The house is a symbol of the lineage that gathers there and is governed by its highest-ranking members.  (Most of the time, only those of the first rank live at the house, sustained by tribute from lower-ranking giants.) 

Each House has a sigil, marked at the house and at the boundaries of its land.  The name of the house describes the appearance of its sign using specialized terminology, names like Lazy Deer, Diamond Walking Snake, or Smoke Over Turkey.

Membership comes with rights to gain food from the land on your appointed circuit.  Roll twice to see what kind of harvest rights are available:

Harvest Rights (d10)
1-3	Gathering, diving, beach-combing (d10) 1: clams/mussels, 2: walnuts, 3: acorns, 4: snails, 5: mushrooms, 6: eggs, 7: persimmons/huckleberries, 8: crab apples, 9: carrots/dandelions, 10: seals/walruses
4-5	Trapping, snares, bait, pit traps with stakes (d10) 1-2: jackrabbits, 3: geese, 4: otters, 5: beaver, 6: ducks, 7: squirrels, 8: turkeys, 9: raccoons, 10: goblins
6-7	Fishing with stone weirs, basket traps, spears (d10) 1-2: trout, 3-4: salmon, 5-6: crawdads, 7: bass, 8: eel, 9: herring, 10: river shrimp
8-9	Grazing herd animals for meat, cheese, wool (d10) 1-2: llamas, 3-4: alpacas, 5-6: bactrian camels, 7-8: yaks, 9-10: colonial longhorn cattle
10	Driving stampedes off cliffs, through narrow defiles (d10) 1-3: buffalo, 4-6: caribou, 7-8: bighorn sheep, 9-10: strange herd animals

taking the herd to good pastures

Wander about in search of food, but do not wander too far.  Each house governs a territory 20 to 100 miles across (30-160 km), enough room for hundreds to find food.

Border (d20)
1-3	Sea, large river, lake
4-6	Waterfall, rapids, cliff
7-9	Swamp, salt marsh
10-12	Ridgeline, desert
13-14	edge of the Forest
15-16	low range of Hills
17-19	Rock, standing stone
20	remnant of a lost Civilization

For each border, roll to see what the relations with the neighbors across that border are like.

Neighbors (d20)
1-3	long friendship
4-6	wary truce
7-9	enemies
10-12	paying tribute
13-14	peaceful trade
15-16	died/emigrated
17-20	shaky alliance against new enemy

stalking buffalo while wearing animal disguises

Near the house are a few places important to the people here:

Nearby Site (d6)
1	ancient Tree, alone on a grassy hill
2	deep Sinkhole with water, a cenote
3	natural Pillar of stone, a kigilyakh
4	large Cavern, difficult to reach
5	long-abandoned House
6	Ruin of an old kingdom

Roll to see the significance of each site.

Importance (d6)
1	Shamanist rituals take place there
2	forgotten Treasure hidden there
3	great Battle was fought there long ago
4	place of meeting Enemies under truce
5	Healing is said to happen there
6	new Religious movement gathers

The house itself is in a defensive position, used as a refuge in times of war.

Site (d6)
1-2	high on a Pinnacle, steep steps cut in rock
3-4	raised earthen Mound, riddled with ancient passageways
5-6	steep-sided Hill, only one shallow approach

But the house is also meant to be a gathering place for its hundreds of people.

(d6)	Around	Structure
1	stone wall 5 feet high (1.5 m)	stone/adobe walls with no gates, only ladders
2	steep-banked stream	raised high up on massive wooden pillars
3	hidden triplines and pit traps	circular stone wall, open-air courtyard
4	many large wooden spikes	roofed pavilion, open on all sides
5	hilltop sentries, signal fires	fenced-in garden with fruit trees
6	wide circle of standing stones	mission once built by the Colonials

The house itself has a few features to make life easier for the indolent first-rank members, or to support the annual gathering.

At the House (d8)
1	Lodge for the reclusive first-ranking members
2	open space for Games or the Moonlit Play
3	Cellar for storage of food, ice, or valuables
4	Granary or Treasure House up on stilts
5	cistern/cenote full of Drinking Water
6	lookout Tower, occupied at all times
7	Workshop for carving, flintknapping, weaving
8	Racks for stretching hides, drying fish/tobacco

a time for serious debate

Whether they're at the house or out on their rounds, the people of this House have been debating serious matters for the year ahead.

Topics of Debate (d12)
1	Fear that the War shall be reignited.
2	Whether the Prophecy be true.
3	Violent dispute with neighboring people.
4	Strange Travelers in these lands.
5	New religion in the lower ranks of the house.
6	Too many people; must establish a new House.
7	A great Deed to restore their dwindling glory.
8	Access to colonial arms, food, trade.
9	Vengeance for an ancient Crime against them.
10	Role in a greater Alliance of houses.
11	Risk of pursuing a great Opportunity.
12	A leader who cannot be trusted.

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Let's roll up a random House, Dead Broken Fence:

• People here gather persimmons and drive bighorn sheep into narrow places where they can be hunted.
• Long friendship with those who live beyond the marsh.
• Shaky alliance with those who live over the hills, allied against a new enemy.
• A new religious movement among the people gathers in secret at a nearby abandoned House.
• Meetings under truce are conducted at the standing stone.
• Sentries keep watch from hilltops near the house.
• The house itself is raised on mighty wooden pillars atop a steep-sided hill.
• At the house there is a separate lodge for the first rank, a cistern for collecting rainwater, and a place for stretching and drying hides.
• People debate whether the House has grown too large and shall have to split off a new House.

Roll up your own giantish House:

Click here for a random House.
food to harvest
border relations
nearby sites
site of the house
around the house
structure of the house
features at the house
matter for debate