Anvil Vale Calendar

• A year is divided into four seasons.
• Each season is divided into a certain number of five-day weeks, depending on how long the season lasts in the Vale (the seasons have different durations in other parts of the world; the Sea Domains are known to have roughly equivalent lengths of seasons, for example).
  • Winter lasts 26 weeks.
  • Spring lasts 16 weeks.
  • Summer lasts 14 weeks.
  • Autumn lasts 16 weeks.
• Weeks are gathered into six-week months of thirty days apiece, each of which is named for a notable figure of one of the Great Clans.
  • The Guilds have begun work to try and change these names to something less associated with the previous regime.
  • Unfortunately, efforts to "assign" a month to different guilds is hampered by the fact that there are sixteen guilds, and the historians have promised to riot if they try to re-divide the calendar into four-and-a-half week months.

The Seasons

By and large, the actual seasons are a non-entity for those who dwell within the citadels. Winter may simply mean that some food prices may rise a little, and fresh produce is harder to come by. By and large, though, the folk of the citadels do not have to worry about the freezing winds or the swelter of summer. The same cannot be said for the Valefolk, however. The Vale's long winters in particular can be quite onerous, with lives lost in some places.

The Wintertide

Stàilinn 11th to Reithe 20th
Among the Valefolk, the rising of the Wintertide is a time of dread. The cold winds and mists come out of the mountains, and soon the snows will begin. Hungry mountain beasts already descend to escape the bone-chilling cold of those heights, and once snows cover the ground, even the patrols cannot wade through enough of it to clear out those predators who find their way into the Vale. For the most part, folk must huddle in their homes and hope that no beasts become so hungry that they break down doors or walls to get at those inside. The towns are usually spared these predations, but some of the hamlets gather their outlying folk into the Thane's Barns at their heart. The living conditions are less than ideal, but there is safety, warmth, and food during such times.

• Wintersgate (Valefolk): Stàilinn 10th - 11th. The Festival of Wintersgate is a gathering-in of folk, reminding them to join their strength to help everyone survive the harsh Vale winters. It is a preparatory festival, to some extent, with local bothys cleaned and stocked with fuel and food for winter travelers, and households cleaning chimneys and hearths in preparation for heavy use throughout the cold winter. Evergreen boughs are hung from windowsills and doorframes, invoking the power of such greenery to survive the harsh winters.
• Winterspeak (Valefolk): Fìor 15th. In the dead of winter, the Winterspeak festival brings much needed joy and light to the people gripped by the deathly winter darkness. In both town and hamlet, groups of hardy young men and women gather together, under the leadership of the Thane (or the Thanesman in hamlets). After a little alcohol and hot food, and some dancing to warm the blood, these groups don hooded garments of fur and evergreen boughs, with simple canvas masks, and they go from house to house bearing sleds with necessities: fuel and food, primarily. These groups descend on the folk, restocking as needed, sharing a cup of something warm with their hosts, before disappearing back into the darkness. Those in need of a healer's touch may light lanterns or candles in windows or beside doors, and healers often join some of these groups to visit such homes where they are needed. It is not uncommon for the saints of the Mysteries Pastoral to also make appearances on these nights, their masks of wood rather than canvas, and their magics potent defense against the harshest weeks of the year.

The Vernaltide

Reithe 21st to Tiene 10th
xxx

• Vernalgate (Valefolk): Reithe 20th - 21st. xxx
• Vernalpeak (Valefolk): Gumath 30th. x

The Summertide

Tiene 11th to Sgian 20th
xxx

• Summergate (Valefolk): Tiene 10th - 11th. xxx
• Summerpeak (Valefolk): Celley 15th. xxx

The Autumntide

Sgian 21st to Stàilinn 10th
xxx

• Autumngate (Valefolk): Sgian 20th - 21st. xxx
• Autumnpeak (Valefolk): Umha 30th. xxx

The Months

• Àirde: Clan Gempeak • Six Weeks of Winter
• Fìor: Clan Truesilver • Six Weeks of Winter
• Airgaid: Clan Silverbeard • Six Weeks of Winter
• Reithe: Clan Ramspur • Four Weeks of Winter + Two Weeks of Spring
• Gumath: Clan Merrycask • Six Weeks of Spring
• Caevle: Clan Brightmantle • Six Weeks of Spring
• Tiene: Clan Firepoint • Two Weeks of Spring + Four Weeks of Summer
• Celley: Clan Brightaxe/Woldpike • Six Weeks of Summer
• Sgian: Clan Glimmerdirk • Four Weeks of Summer + Two Weeks of Autumn
• Umha: Clan Bronzemask • Six Weeks of Autumn
• Tàirn: Clan Thunderwall • Six Weeks of Autumn
• Stàilinn: Clan Runewright/Steelcoin • Two Weeks of Autumn + Four Weeks of Winter