Denbare is the barony of Baron Kerrick. His barony centers on the large village of Dene.

Baron Kerrick is the fourth Baron of Denbare. His great grandfather was an adventurer who settled here before Greenvale expanded this far out. When the County of Highscar was established, the Barony of Denbare was created. One reason the Baron was given his title was because he claimed descent from the previous lords of the region in the days of the 2nd Empire. To avoid a drawn-out dispute over his rights, he and the Count came to the simple agreement that the Barony of Denbare would always be considered the premier Barony of the County.

Baron Kerrick holds 5 other villages and a number of hamlets within his keeping. The villages include Shadybrook, Sandy Hook, Silvergrove, Hillsboro and George's Mill as well as Dene. Dene is the furthest east of his holdings, while Shadybrook and Silver Grove are the furthest west. His lands stretch just past the Monastery of the Sun in the south, but Dene and Shadybrook are more or less on the northern edge of his lands.

Baron Kerrick's lands are famous for three things; his wife's cheeses, the fine quality breads made by the bakers of Dene (reputed to be especially so because of the superb quality of the flour produced by the local grist mills), and the small but long-enduring gold mine located just outside the village of Dene proper.

Baron Kerrick's wife and her family have been making cheese using milk from the family's special breed of cows for about the past thirty years. The cows were brought into the region and have thrived on the excellent pasturage found in the Kar River valley. Lady Edryth Kerrick has three sisters, a grandmother and a number of female cousins who all help her in the cheese-making, and bring much wealth into the community. She has two daughters who are also learning the family trade, although her elder daughter, Alyce, is a tomboy who prefers to go out in the woods hunting with her hawk or bow and arrows.

The gristmills of Dene, Sandy Hook and (to a slightly lesser degree) Shadybrook are all powered by the Kar River. What makes their grain-flour so high quality is a guarded secret. Some say it is the local stone, but other say there is some kind of enchantment at work. In any case, bread and pastries made in Dene and the surrounding hamlets are known for their soft, tender texture and naturally sweet flavor. The title Masterbaker of Dene is one that is recognized and sought after by many as a true mark of prestige.

The goldmine of Dene is a small one, never producing more than a moderate amount of ore in any given year, but has been in steady production for nearly forty years (except during the two war years when Dene, like Shadybrook, was abandoned and overrun by the enemy). Baron Kerrick is very conscious of the worth of his mine and spends a good deal of his own attention on managing it, despite having an excellent Reeve to oversee it.

Baron Kerrick recently tried to arrange a marriage between his daughter Alyce and the younger son of the Count of Highscar, who is only 8 years old. Alyce decided she would not submit to such an arrangement, and apparently fled. Kerrick is still searching frantically but secretly for her, and is now claiming she has gone into "religious seclusion" before her autumn wedding. Little does he know that she fled to her lover Bertram of Shadybrook, who has taken her into hiding and married her out of hand. The results of this convoluted debacle have not been revealed. About a month or six weeks after his daughter went "into seclusion", Baron Kerrick, his wizard and his bodyguard all three vanished while responding to cries for help from the Monastery of the Golden Sun. The monastery and nearby villages were being attacked by "Iron Zombies". The Baron and his  men relieved the Monastery and sent the surviving folk off to safety, escorted by an adventuring band who also came to their aid. When the adventurers returned, the Baron had vanished, leaving behind only his soldiers. He has not been seen nor heard from in the ensuing months.

Baron Kerrick of Dene:

male human Nob7: CR 6; Size M (5 ft., 8 in. tall);

HD 7d8; hp 40; Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 30 ft.;

AC 11 (+1 Dex);

Attack +6 melee, or +6 ranged;

SV Fort +3, Ref +3, Will +5; AL N;

Str 12, Dex 12, Con 10, Int 14, Wis 11, Cha 14.

Languages Spoken: 'Valer (read and write 4), Daintali (3), Dwarvish and Elvish (2)

Skill points: Nob 70

Skills: Bluff +6, Diplomacy +8, Disable Device +4, Gather Information +12, Heal +2, Hide +1, Knowledge (History) +10, Knowledge (Nobility and Royalty) +12, Listen +9, Move Silently +1, Perform (Oratory) +12, Sense Motive +4, Spot +0;

Feats: Eyes in the back of your head, Great Fortitude, Quick Draw, Skill Focus (Knowledge (History)).

Possessions: +1 chain shirt, +1 rapier, anklet of translocation, potion of cure moderate wounds, tanglepatch, dust of dispersion

GreenVale    County Highscar