The Dovecote

 

The dovecote is a tall, narrow, circular tower in rubbled masonry which serves as the village’s pigeon coop and messenger bird tower. It is also the town's highest point (taller even that the belfry of the Church), and affords a good view up and down the River Prulme.

As with all dovecotes, it is part of a network of similar towers operated by the Fellowship of Feathers, connecting villages, towns and cities in all directions. Carriages carrying a few dozen cages of messenger birds who were hatched and roost here will be sent overland to other dovecotes in the network. These can then be released and will reliably return with their messages.

Messenger birds can travel 500 km in a day, meaning messages can reliably be sent to Bulostioi or Dileniu in a single day, and, if sent early, responses can be expected by the end of the following day. The dovecote is only open from dawn to dusk unless specific urgent messages are expected or need to be sent, and the bird keeper is brought from her home.

With the quarantine, the Dovecote will not be able to continue exchanging birds with neighboring towns which will soon lead to them being cut off from outside communication. For this reason, messages cannot be sent without authorization from the council. If the players need to send messages related to their mission, they can get authorization from the Primar or any of the Consilieri.

People who can typically be found here include: