No spoilers please.
Is Restov part of Brevoy or independent?
PFwiki, "Restov is one of the two largest cities in the fertile region of Rostland in southern Brevoy. It is known as the Free City of Restov, but it is allied with Brevoy. "
Is Restov just a city in Brevoy, or is it an independent city or something in between?
No spoilers please.
Is Restov part of Brevoy or independent?
PFwiki, "Restov is one of the two largest cities in the fertile region of Rostland in southern Brevoy. It is known as the Free City of Restov, but it is allied with Brevoy. "
Is Restov just a city in Brevoy, or is it an independent city or something in between?
Restov is a city of Brevoy that is subject to the rule of the Brevic Crown. Certain statements made by characters in the Kingmaker AP make this clearer. I think the "free city" comes from the fact they are not ruled by a hereditary noble family like the rest of Brevoy, but by the Sword-Lords (who earn their position I imagine) and the Mayor (who is probably elected). Or perhaps I'm completely wrong and feeding you bad info, but this is the answer that I gave to my players when this question came up.
Restov is in the lands previously ruled by House Rogarvia, so the way I see it is that the Vanishing of that family left a power vacuum. I like to imagine that the Swordlords bartered for a sort of independence from noble rule for the city until such time as it can be determined whether House Rogarvia is coming back.
The way I see it, the Mayor is effectively a steward of those lands, much as Noleski Surtova is Regent whilst the fate of the ruling House Rogarvia is still undetermined. This suits the Swordlords fine, they hope the former rulers aren't coming back, they want to rule themselves, remember Rostland is a conquered nation and the Rostlandic spirit lends itself to resisting conquerors and tyrants.
Whilst mutual enemies, the Sworldlords AND House Surtova have both gained from the Vanishing of House Rogarvia and neither wants to see their newfound power eroded.
The gist of the responses above get the Pathfinder stamp of approval.
Think of the situation with Rostland as being similar to the South after the Civil War. A lot of folk aren't really happy about being part of the country, but they can't step out of line. So they garner what power they can, try to run things the way the want as much as they can, and subtly dissent in whatever fashions they can that don't risk bringing the hammer down on them.
Cool. Thanks!