Neck

They were a poor folk, fishers and frog-hunters who lived in houses of thatch and woven reeds on floating islands hidden in the deeps of the swamp. It was said that they were a cowardly people who fought with poisoned weapons and preferred to hide from foes rather than face them in open battle.
- A Clash of Kings

The Neck is the colloquial term used to describe the lands that stretch from the headwaters of the Green Fork in the Riverlands, to the boundaries of the Barrowlands in the North. Whilst other regions boast a great variety in topography and cultures - the opposite can often be said of this strange and unknowable region.

The headwaters of the Green Fork do not end in a single spring, but in a great confusion of fens and stagnant waters. Not even Charlton men will bring their barges far into these parts...

Terrain and Culture

The Neck is defined by a series of unending bogs, fens and marshes that stretch on for hundreds of leagues. The climate is predominantly cold, though it has been known to become particularly humid during hot summers. The marshes are also prone to gathering mists - which has further added to the reputation of the Neck as being entirely impassable to any other than the peoples who call it home. Among these waterlogged landscapes, there are in fact woods, moors and hills, but even these cannot be navigated safely without a great deal of experience. This is made ever more truthful by the presence of the dangerous animals that dwell in these marshes. Particularly infamous are the Lizard-Lions of the Neck, which have been known to lie perfectly still for hours, disguised as logs - before devouring men with vicious abandon.

While they are largely water-dwelling creatures, Lizard-Lions have developed legs that allow them to pursue their prey with dogged determination...

The term Crannogman is predominantly used to describe the native culture of the Neck. To the outsider, they likely appear to be an entirely homogenous people - however as with all cultures, this is certainly not universally true. There are a variety of Clans within the Neck, each taking their name from the flora and fauna of their wild homeland.

Notable Crannogmen Clans

• Blackmyre of Leach's Fort
• Boggs of Churwell
• Cray of the Cray
• Fenn of Crannbrook
• Greengood of the Seastrands
• Marsh of Moat Cailin
• Murk of Murkwood
• Peat of Basaltback
• Quagg of Cypressbottom
• Reed of Greywater Watch

Landmarks of the Neck

Moat Cailin

A gargantuan fortress, even in its ruins, Moat Cailin is the centre of Crannogmen power and the Neck where all denizens of the bog pay homage to the Marsh Kings that rule there. Erected long before the Crannogmen emerged as a people, Moat Cailin was among the mightiest of the great holdfasts the original First Men erected, trailing dust and blood and sorrow all the way from Dorne in the Dawn Age. And in later centuries, it was the centre of where the singers turned the Neck into the swamps and fens it is today.

Greywater Watch

The greatest fortress erected by the Crannogmen, and said to move amongst the swamps like a floating island. Greywater Watch is home to the Reeds, and dominates the south of the Neck as the first point of contact between any southron armies that seek to conquer the bogs.