When a lord first steps onto the marches, they choose a culture. The decision is permanent. It governs which five asymmetrical buildings their houses may raise, and — more importantly — where in the world they will be dropped.

The Anglo-Saxons claim the lowlands of southern England and the contested border regions. Their settlements rise on open arable fields, where rivers and Roman roads meet. The land is rich, but exposed: every harvest invites an enemy march.

The Franks spawn into the fertile river valleys of northern France and Normandy. Their vineyards and trade routes flourish along the Seine and the Loire, but the open ground also welcomes massive doom-stacks. Wealth and risk arrive on the same tide.

The Norse hold the rugged coasts of southern Norway, the Scottish Highlands, and the northern Danelaw. Their lands are stingy with grain but generous with natural choke points. A Norse hall in the fjords can hold for years against numbers that would crush a lowland keep in a single season.

Whichever culture answers your sword, the world does not. Spawn regions are chosen for you. The marches are not fair — only just.