Definition of Good Road

[guver]

In page 156 of the revised book it mentions the different terrains and the multiplier to the travel distance they incur.
According to these, a "good road" would multiply the distance to travel by 0.5 (essentially divide the distance in half).
Sooooooooooooooo.... what is a good road?
We have been playing for a long time now and we always thought the Elf Road was a "good road"... but then I read a couple of indie adventures and official ones which made me believe we had been wrong all along!

Are there any good roads in Wilderland? If not... then travel across the elf road is a daunting task
20 hexes from the forest gate to the King's Halls. So 200 miles multiplied by 3 (Severe terrain) it's 600 miles. So for a regular company at 20 miles an hour is 30 days.
We were doing this same distance in: 200 miles split in half for a good road, 100 miles, split again since they go on horses, 50 miles... 2 and a half days...

If the Elf Road is not really a good road, then why is it marked as a road in the map???

[Rich H]

On the same page the table also states under Severe:

any road or path in Mirkwood**

The Elf-path therefore fits this definition.

However it does aid Corruption Tests - see page 12 (Tales from Wilderland); subtracting 2 from the usual TN of 14 for such tests.

[Otaku-sempai]

The 'good roads' rule is superseded by another rule in the Terrain Difficulty table: any road or path in Mirkwood is counted as severe terrain.

I don't think that 'good roads' are ever properly defined in RAW, but I suggest that they are regularly used, well-maintained roads as opposed to any old path or trail.

[ThrorII]

I'd say the only 'good roads' in northwest Middle-earth are the Great East Road from the Tower Hills to the High Pass, and the Greenway from Bree south through Rohan to Gondor. Then all the Gondor roads listed in Journey's and Maps. Should your campaign open up the Old Forest Road again, I'd call that a good road. Everything else is just a path, even if it is a well-worn path (like the Trading Road through the Grey Mountain Narrows).

[Otaku-sempai]

I'd say the only 'good roads' in northwest Middle-earth are the Great East Road from the Tower Hills to the High Pass, and the Greenway from Bree south through Rohan to Gondor. Then all the Gondor roads listed in Journey's and Maps. Should your campaign open up the Old Forest Road again, I'd call that a good road. Everything else is just a path, even if it is a well-worn path (like the Trading Road through the Grey Mountain Narrows).

I would not consider the Old South Road through Eriador to be a good road after the ruination of Tharbad. Even before floods destroyed the bridge, the road had likely deteriorated considerably over the nearly one thousand years since the fall of Arthedain. But I do agree that the Great East Road and main roads traversing Gondor, even through Rohan to the Gap of Isen, should be considered to be good roads.

[Terisonen]

The ruination of Tharbad only mean that approaching the ruin are difficult. For the remains of road are buid to last. I doubt that the Great East road have seen much maintenance beyond Bree, and it is still fit to travel. So must be the Greenway and Old South Road, except the south causeway giving access to the ruin of Tharbad.

Edit: and the broken bridge of Tharbad. Tharbad was flooded and abandonned in 2912. That not very far from the period played in The One Ring.

[Otaku-sempai]

Edit: and the broken bridge of Tharbad. Tharbad was flooded and abandonned in 2912. That not very far from the period played in The One Ring.

Yes, but who would have been looking after the road after the North-kingdom fell? Tharbad would have only had the resources to maintain the crossing and the part of the road in the vicinity of the city. Gondor had its own problems and would not have spent the time and effort even taking access to the Grey Havens into consideration. If that were the case then Gondor would have restored and maintained the Tharbad bridge.

A well-constructed road might still be usable even after 1000 years of neglect, but would it still be in the condition of a 'good' road? The rate of speed of the Company of Thorin certainly doesn't suggest that their travel time was reduced at all through usage of the Great East Road.

[Terisonen]

Edit: and the broken bridge of Tharbad. Tharbad was flooded and abandonned in 2912. That not very far from the period played in The One Ring.

Yes, but who would have been looking after the road after the North-kingdom fell? Tharbad would have only had the resources to maintain the crossing and the part of the road in the vicinity of the city. Gondor had its own problems and would not have spent the time and effort even taking access to the Grey Havens into consideration. If that were the case then Gondor would have restored and maintained the Tharbad bridge.

A well-constructed road might still be usable even after 1000 years of neglect, but would it still be in the condition of a 'good' road? The rate of speed of the Company of Thorin certainly doesn't suggest that their travel time was reduced at all through usage of the Great East Road.

There is great discrepancies in line with the speed of Thorin & Company and the speed of Frodo & Company between Bree and Rivendell. And even Frodo & Company don't take the east road. I wouldn't take the speed of travel given in The Hobbit too literally. Of course, this is entirely my 2 cents.

[Rich H]

There is great discrepancies in line with the speed of Thorin & Company and the speed of Frodo & Company between Bree and Rivendell.

About 9 chapters.

[Otaku-sempai]

There is great discrepancies in line with the speed of Thorin & Company and the speed of Frodo & Company between Bree and Rivendell. And even Frodo & Company don't take the east road. I wouldn't take the speed of travel given in The Hobbit too literally. Of course, this is entirely my 2 cents.

True, though we also have Aragorn's estimate:

'But I know how long it would take me on my own feet, with fair weather and no ill fortune: twelve days from here [Weathertop] to the Ford of Bruinen, where the Road crosses the Loudwater that runs out of Rivendell.'

The maps of TOR puts Weathertop to the Ford of Bruinen at 230 miles. If the Great East Road is a good road then Aragorn should be able to cover 40 miles per day to reach the Ford in 6 days. On the other hand, if we go just by terrain: 20 miles of daunting terrain (3 days); 90 miles in severe terrain (9 days); 120 miles in moderate terrain (9 days). Using RAW and ignoring the Road, it should take Aragorn approximately 3 weeks to reach Rivendell. However if we count the East Road as a 'well-trodden path or track' then we consider the entire journey to be over easy terrain at 20 miles per day for a journey length of 12 days--exactly right.

Now, the four returning Hobbits leave Bree mounted on ponies on October 30, 1419 (S.R.) to arrive at the Brandywine (say 80 miles) at dusk. That indicates that the Road is a 'good road' (very easy terrain) through Bree-land and the Shire.

If the Great East Road is considered to be easy terrain (as in 'a well-trodden track or path') then the Greenway/Old South Road is likely no better than that and perhaps worse in stretches. Boromir's journey from Minas Tirith to Rivendell (estimated by him at 400 leagues or 1200 miles) bears this out: he departs from Minas Tirith on July 4, 3018 to arrive in Rivendell late at night on October 24, a journey of 3 months, 20 days (literally 10 miles per day). And Boromir was mounted until he lost his horse fording the river at Tharbad. Admittedly, Boromir does state that it took him many days just to locate the correct path to Rivendell.