City of Treve in the Books

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[Elle Couerblanc]

Quick question about Treve in the books. Which books give the best description of Treve?  Well let me phrase this better...are any of the books about treve?  I know there is Captive but thats more in regards to Rask's camp not the city itself.  I've only read 1-13 and Dancer, so I am not sure if any of the later books focus on Treve. 

[dana Tehani]

Treve was a warlike city somewhere in the trackless magnificence of the Voltai Range. I had never been there but I knew her reputation. Her warriors were said to be fierce and brave, her women proud and beautiful. Her tarnsmen were ranked with those of Thentis, famed for its tarn flocks, and Ko-ro-ba, even great Ar itself.

Priest-Kings of Gor; p. 60



Treve was alleged to lie above Ar, some seven hundred pasangs distant, and toward the Sardar. I had never seen the city located on a map but I had seen the territory she claimed so marked. The precise location of Treve was not known to me and was perhaps known to few save its citizens. Trade routes did not lead to the city and those who entered its territory did not often return.
There was said to be no access to Treve save on tarnback and this would suggest that it must be as much a mountain stronghold as a city.
She was said to have no agriculture, and this may be true. Each year in the fall legions of tarnsmen from Treve were said to emerge from the Voltai like locusts and fall on the fields of one city or another, different cities in different years, harvesting what they needed and burning the rest in order that a long, relatiatory winter campaign could not be launched against them. A century ago the tarnsmen of Treve had even managed to stand off the tarnsmen of Ar in a fierce battle fought in the stormy sky over the crags of the Voltai. I had heard poets sing of it. Since that time her depredations had gone unchecked, although perhaps it should be added that never again did the men of Treve despoil the fields of Ar.

Priest-Kings of Gor; p. 60-61



"We have all the High Castes in Treve," she said, angrily.

Priest-Kings of Gor; p. 62



Cities, of course, would pursue the raiders from Treve, and carry the pursuit vigorously as far as the foothills of the Voltai, but there they would surrender the chase, turning back, not caring to risk their tarnsmen in the rugged, formidable territory of their rival, whose legendary ferocity among her own crags once gave pause long ago even to the mighty forces of Ar.

Priest-Kings of Gor; p. 63



"How do the people of Treve live?" I asked Vika.
"We raise the verr," she said.
I smiled.
The verr was a mountain goat indigenous to the Voltai. It was a wild, agile, ill-tempered beast, long-haired and spiral-horned. Among the Voltai crags it would be worth one's life to come within twenty yards of one.
"Then you are a simple, domestic folk," I said.
"Yes," said Vika.
"Mountain herdsmen," I said.
"Yes," said Vika.

And then we laughed together, neither of us able to restrain ourselves.
Yes, I knew the reputation of Treve. It was a city rich in plunder, probably as lofty, inaccessible and impregnable as a tarn's nest. Indeed, Treve was known as the Tarn of the Voltai. It was an arrogant, never-conquered citadel, a stronghold of men whose way of life was banditry, whose women lived on the spoils of a hundred cities.

Priest-Kings of Gor; p. 63



It was truly a woman of Treve who stood before me now.
I saw her as I had never seen her before.
Vika was a bandit princess, accustomed to be clad in silk and jewels from a thousand looted caravans, to sleep on the richest furs and sup on the most delicate viands, all purloined from galleys, beached and burnt, from the ravished storerooms of outlying, smoking cylinders, from the tables and treasure chests of homes whose men were slain, whose daughters wore the chains of slave girls, only now she herself, Vika, this bandit princess, proud Vika, a woman of lofty, opulent Treve, had fallen spoils herself in the harsh games of Gor, and felt on her own throat the same encircling band of steel with which the men of her city had so often graced the throats of their fair, weeping captives.

Priest-Kings of Gor; p. 64-65



Her voice had borne the cruel, icy, confident, passionate menace of a woman from Treve, accustomed to have what she wanted, who would not be denied.

Priest-Kings of Gor; p. 73



"You are Terence," I asked, "mercenary captain of Treve?"
The man nodded.
Treve is a bandit city, high among the crags of the larl-prowled Voltai. Most men do not even know its location. Once the tarnsmen of Treve had withstood the tarn cavalries of even Ar. In Treve they do not grow their own food but, in the fall, raid the harvests of others. They live by rapine and plunder. The men of Treve are said to be among the proudest and most ruthless on Gor. They are most fond of danger and free women, whom they bind and, steal from civilized cities to carry to their mountain lair as slave girls. It is said the city can be reached only on tarnback. I had once known a girl from Treve. Her name had been Vika.

Raiders of Gor; p. 272



"My pledge is steel," I said.
Terence smiled. "We of Treve," he said, "understand such a pledge."

Raiders of Gor; p. 273



Rask of Treve, as a raider true to the codes of Treve, that hidden coign of tarnsmen, that remote, secret, mountainous city of the vast, scarlet Voltai range, had not, in these circumstances, much pushed pursuit. In the shadows of the forest the crossbow quarrel can swiftly touch, and slay. The element of the tarnsman is not the green glades, and the branches; it is the clouds, the saddle and the sky; his steed is the tarn, his field of battle, strewn with light and wind, higher than mountains, deeper than the sea, is the very sky itself. Such men do not care to venture creeping into the shadows of forests, pursuing scattered game. Victorious, they roar with laughter and, hauling on the one-straps of their tarn harness, take flight. There is always other gold, and other women. And, the Priest-Kings willing, a coin that is lost today, or a woman, may, at a later time, in a more convenient place, be found, and more! A woman, who escapes your collar this afternoon may, by nightfall, find herself chained at your feet. If the coin is to be yours, argue such men, it will be; and if the woman is destined, some night, on this or another, in your tent, on your rugs, by the light of your fire, to feel your chains locked on her body, she will. Flee though she might, that fate will be hers, and she, on the rugs spread over the sand, will be yours.
There was little known of Rask of Treve.
Indeed, there was little known even of the city of Treve. It lay somewhere among the lofty, vast terrains of the rugged Voltai, perhaps as much a fortress, a lair, of outlaw tarnsmen as a city. It was said to be accessible only by tarnback. No woman, it was said, could be brought to the city, save as a hooded, stripped slave girl, bound across the saddle of a tarn. Indeed, even merchants and ambassadors were permitted to approach the city only under conduct, and then only when hooded and in bonds, as though none not of Treve might approach her save as slaves or captive supplicants. The location of the city, it was said, was known only to her own. Even girls brought to Treve as slaves, obedient within her harsh walls, looking up, seeing her rushing, swift skies, did not know wherein lay the city in which they served. And even should they be dispatched to the walls, perhaps upon some servile errand, they could see, for looming, remote pasangs about them, only the wild, bleak crags of the scarlet Voltai, and the sickening drop below them, the sheer fall from the walls and the cliffs below to the valley, some pasangs beneath. They would know only that they were slaves in this place but would not know where this place in which they were slaves might be. It was said no woman had ever escaped from Treve.

Captive of Gor; p. 190-191



"Lo Rask," said he, "Rarius. Civitatis Trevis."
"I am Rask," he said, "of the caste of warriors, of the city of Treve."

Captive of Gor; p. 266



Warriors of Treve, I had heard, had a fondness for warm wines. I supposed that Rask of Treve might have his wine so. It seemed strange to me to think of such tarnsmen, such brutal, wild men, caring for such a small pleasantry. Too, I had heard, they were fond of combing the hair of their slave girls. Cities and men, I thought, are so strange, so different. I suspected there were few men as fierce and terrible as those of Treve, dreaded throughout Gor, and yet they enjoyed their wine warmed and were fond of so simple a thing as smoothing the hair of a girl.

Captive of Gor; p. 274



“Treve,” she said, “has spies in many places.”

Captive of Gor; p. 298



But Rask of Treve does not buy women, for he is of Treve. My price could have been an arrow point or a copper tarn disk, but his answer would have been the same. He takes women. He does not buy them. But I fear I may not be taken from Bosk of Port Kar.

Raiders of Gor; p. 365



When Rask of Treve demanded that I be given to him, Bosk, my master, first sword in Port Kar, drew his own blade and, for answer, drew on the tiles of the piazza, a sign that of the city of Ko-ro-ba. Rask of Treve, cloak swirling, turned and strode away.

Raiders of Gor; p. 365



“Doubtless,” I admitted. And, indeed, I had little doubt that what Samos had said was true. Rask of Treve, though in love with her, and she with him, would keep her rightless, in the absolute bondage of a Gorean slave girl – for he was of Treve.

Hunters of Gor; p. 9



“It is said that those of Treve are worthy enemies,” said Samos.

Hunters of Gor; p. 9



He withdrew an object from his pouch, and held it before me. “Do you know what this is?” he asked.
It was like a small, veined, metal leaf, narrowly ovate in shape. It had a tiny hole in the wider end, in which, in a tiny loop, there was twisted a small wire. On the leaf, indented m, was a sign, and some tiny printing.
“Do you know this sign?” asked the man.
“No, Master,” I whispered.
“It is the sign of Treve,” he said.

Slave Girl of Gor; p. 277



Several years ago I knew there had been war between Ar and Treve. The tarnsmen of Treve, over the snow-capped crags of the scarlet Voltai range, had turned back the squadrons of Ar. It had been one of the fiercest, bloodiest taro battles ever fought in the history of the planet. Ar had never forgotten that she had been checked in the Voltai, nor had Treve forgotten the cost of having done so. Terence, I conjectured, would not be willing to ride against Ar unless he had removed the insignia from his helmet and shield. It did not seem likely he would do so. Men of Treve commonly disdain to conceal their identity.

Fighting Slave of Gor; p. 266


Thats some quotes I could find. It just seems scattered to me. Not in one book like Nomads etc.

[Elle Couerblanc]

@Dana - Thank you!!  That's what I thought as well so we have kind of piecemeal together from different books to get an idea of the City of Treve.  Norman talks about Treve often that I keep waiting for some meaty section of at least one book devoted to the City itself. 

[Anarch Allegiere]

From the Luther Scrolls, which in itself are nothing but an ordered sommation of paraphrased quotes from the books, most often at least:

Treve
                                 
"This is a city of thieves, of raiders and warriors."
(Witness of Gor, p.335)

 

     The city of the Voltai with the most recognizable name across Gor must be the city of Treve, also known as the Tarn of the Voltai.  The infamy of Treve is well known in many Gorean cities but most of what is known is only rumor and supposition.  Facts about Treve were rare in the Gor novels until the recent publication of Witness of Gor, the 26th book of the Gorean series.  Witness of Gor added numerous details about Treve, as much of the book was set within that infamous city.  But, many details were still omitted as well, helping to perpetuate some of the mystery of this mountain city-state.  Some details were vague, hinting at added wonders within Treve.       

     The exact location of Treve within the Voltai is generally considered a well-kept secret though there is much speculation as to its general location within the mountains. Some Gorean maps show its suspected location as about 700 pasangs northeast of Ar, toward the Sardar.  This speculation is fairly accurate and it appears that the secret of Treve�s location may not be as secret as it once was.  For example, in Witness of Gor, a large force of tarnsman of Ar are able to locate the city of Treve and attempt to make a raid upon the city, seeking to recover Marlenus, who is a prisoner in Treve.  The loyalty of its citizens must be strong for no one to have previously betrayed the location of the city to outsiders.  Many cities would pay dearly to learn the true location of Treve, desirous of seeking vengeance against this city of raiders.  After the events of Witness of Gor, the actual location of Treve may spread across Gor.  Which could mean that Treve will begin facing more and more interlopers.   

     Those who attempt to explore or invade the Voltai in hopes of discovering the location of Treve are most likely to first encounter one of the various mountain outposts of Treve.  These outposts are intended to intercept invaders, to prevent them from gaining closer access to the city-state of Treve.  These outposts do not remain passive.  They send out patrols to travel randomized paths through the mountains to seek out interlopers.  There is a certain line of interdiction, not specifically marked within the mountains, from which anyone who passes without authorization is said to never return.  Due to the various dangers of the Voltai, few people except for armed parties willingly brave, on foot, the perils of the mountains.  Travel by tarn is the far more common method of transport, thus avoiding many potential threats.       

     There are no established trade routes to the city though the city does engage in some mercantile trade.  There are a few Merchants and ambassadors who are permitted to visit Treve.  These individuals must first seek clearance for travel to Treve, often within their own city.  Once approved, they can then travel into the Voltai, carrying the proper passage banners.  They are supposed to report to one of the mountain outposts.  There, these authorized visitors must allow themselves to be hooded and bound before being transported to Treve.  Treve will not allow anyone to come to their city except as a slave or captive.  Any woman coming to Treve can only enter as a hooded, naked slave girl.  Such women will be commonly bound across a tarn saddle.  Treve will also not permit most visitors to bear weapons within the city.  Rare exceptions are made, such as for authorized Assassins visiting the city.

    It is rumored that Treve is a mountain fortress, accessible only by tarn, and this is largely true.  The bulk of Treve is within a fortified citadel, on a mountain top, and only accessible by tarn or through a few other well-guarded underground entrances.  Surrounding this mountain are many winding paths, at different levels on the mountain.  Along these paths, which are often no more than three feet wide and end at a sheer cliffside leading down into a rocky ravine below, are many cells built into the rock walls.  These cells contain a variety of prisoners, captives and slaves, both male and female.  Each cell possesses a barred portal that locks into place.  There is a paneled niche outside each cell, which a captive within the cell cannot reach, that contains a keyhole.  The proper key will activate a mechanism that raises the portal above the doorway.     

     At least one of these paths, and likely several, eventually lead to a plain rock wall with no apparent means of entrance.  It appears to be a dead end.  But, a guard of Treve can use a whistle and blow a series of piercing notes.  These notes have been correlated to the letters of the alphabet and thus can be used to spell out passwords or code phrases.  These passwords and code words are changed at least daily, and sometimes even more frequently.  The guard will receive a whistled response, the countersign to the original password or code phrase.  If this is performed successfully, there will be a loud, grinding noise from above.  Looking up, you will then observe a wooden platform, about twenty feet square, slide out of the rock wall.  The platform has a square hole in it that is about four feet by five feet.   

     A rope will then be lowered from this aperture and there will be a stirrup and a canvas bag attached to the end of the rope.  The canvas bag is used to transport slaves, and possibly other captives as well.  The bag has two holes in the bottom and this is where a captive places their legs.  The bag will then be sealed at the person�s neck, thus keeping the person�s arms within the bag as well.  The bag is located several feet above the stirrup.  The stirrup is for a guard of Treve.  He places one foot in the stirrup and holds the rope with his left hand, keeping his right hand free in case he needs to use his sword.  Once in place, the rope will then be drawn up, via a pulley, toward the platform aperture above.       

     Atop the platform, there is a set of double doors on the mountain face.  Those doors can be opened or closed when the platform is extended or retracted.  Within each of these large gates is a smaller door, sufficient for a single person to pass through.  The gates are about one foot thick, twice barred with heavy beams.  The exterior of the gates is sheathed with nailed copper sheets, generally to resist fire.  At the bottom of each gate are large spikes.  When the gates are lowered, the spikes will fit into sockets on a stone sill, sealing the gates even further.  These gates lead to a series of narrow, labyrinthine corridors and a number of guard stations and posts.  Travelers must be able to provide numerous different signs and countersigns to make progress through these tunnels.  Many of these passages contain holes for defenders to use arrows, quarrels, oil, pitch, or even acid against interlopers.  Eventually, these corridors lead to the surface, within the city-state of Treve.

     Treve is a raiding city, a city of war.  Despite this, Treve is still ruled by an Administrator and High Council, not a Ubar.  Treve�s primary military units are tarnsman and their skills rank with those of Thentis, Ko-ro-ba and Ar.  It is these tarnsmen who are the most visible citizens of Treve to the rest of Gor.  It is unknown how many tarnsmen are in Treve but many of their raiding parties do not seem to consist of more than 100-200 tarnsmen.  But, they are consummate raiders who plunder the many cities of Gor, seeking women and other riches.  These raiders may be away from Treve for several days, or even a few months.  They will often conceal their loot camps, sometimes even in enemy territory.  Eventually, when they are satisfied with their endeavors, they will collect all of their loot and fly home.

     The objective of these raids though is rarely only the acquisition of wealth.  In addition, raiders attempt to gather any and all information that is of possible political or strategic significance.  Such intelligence can be quite vital to the future plans of Treve.  In addition to these raiders, Treve has spies in many of the cities of Gor as well.  They help to keep Treve in touch with current events and aware of ay potential threats or opportunities.  For example, Treve was aware that Cos intended to invade Ar before many others knew of it.  Despite its isolation, Treve greatly desires to remain aware of what is occurring across the rest of Gor.  Their isolation is more a defensive measure than anything else. 

     When a raiding group returns to Treve, bearing its rich booty, it is often a festive occasion.  The primary docking area for the arrival of returning tarnsmen is located between the cliffs and the warehouses.  You must move across a terrace and bridge to reach the large, flat expanse of the tiled docking area.  This area is large enough to easily accommodate over 150 tarns.  When a raiding party returns, many citizens will rush to the docking area to see what they collected.  Music will be played and the city alarm bars will ring in jubilation.  Some of the loot will be stored in chests within the warehouses.  Logs will be kept of the treasure that is stored away, and the chests will be locked and sealed with wax.  A mark will be impressed into the wax to signify the owner.  Items such as a signet ring or cylinder seal might make the mark.  The Initiates of Treve often make an appearance when a raiding party returns, to ensure that they also get a share of the gains.  Begrudgingly, the raiders will give the Initiates a share.     

     Treve does not engage in agriculture and there may not even be a Peasant Caste in Treve.  It is possible that there are some Peasants in Treve who raise livestock, though they do not plant anything.  To acquire its necessary agricultural foodstuffs, Treve raids the harvests of others.  Each autumn, they choose an area to raid, which will vary from year to year.  The raiders will steal everything that they can carry and then destroy the rest, often by burning it.  This is intended to prevent the victim city from possessing sufficient supplies to retaliate against Treve.  Without those supplies, any counterattack would have to be very short.  The victim would not have sufficient supplies to mount a protracted campaign, especially with winter so near.   

    Treve does generally avoid making agricultural raids against certain cities.  It has never attacked Thentis, likely because Thentis has superb tarnsmen and also because Thentis is a mountain city like itself.  Treve use to raid the fields of Ko-ro-ba but no longer does so. This is a recent development that occurred during the reign of Matthew Cabot.  Matthew set up a series of warning beacons to alert the city in case of attack.  These beacons would thus enable Ko-ro-ba to swiftly react to any attack.  This thwarted Treve that often had previously relied upon being able to make a lighting raid against a limited amount of defenders.  When instead they would be faced with a large contingent of Koroban tarnsmen, they chose to attack elsewhere.  Treve also does not attack the extensive fields of Ar.

     Agricultural and booty raids are not the only reasons for such raids.  Raids sometimes occur to avenge an insult made against Treve, a form of punishment against any who dare to dishonor Treve.  For example, the administrator of a distant city, never identified in the books, claimed that the people of Treve were at best �cowards and petty thieves.�  Because of this insult, this slight, Treve chose to organize a raid against that city.  The tarnsman of Treve struck hard and returned with over four hundred free women from this city, almost all being of High Caste.  No slaves were taken.  This example also shows the potential scope of a raid by Treve.  Claiming over four hundred women, especially all free women of High Caste, in a single raid is no small achievement. 

     Treve and Ar have long been enemies though there is some confusion in the books concerning the specific history of these two cities.  One passage states that about one hundred years ago, Treve and Ar fought a major battle in the skies over the Voltai.  The battle ended in a stalemate and since that time, Treve had no longer attacked Ar�s fields.  Another passage states though that several years before 10126 C.A., Ar and Treve were involved in a terrible aerial battle over the Voltai, thought to be one of the �bloodiest tarn wars ever.�  Again, this was a stalemate though a costly battle to both sides.  It is not clear if these are supposed to be two separate battles or if Norman made an error on the time frame in the original passage.

     Whichever is the case, Ar chose to strike back against Treve.  In 10129 C.A., Marlenus, Ubar of Ar, chose to lead a force of tarnsmen on a punitive raid against Treve.  But, it was a trap.  Treve, with the aid of traitors within Ar, had lured Marlenus into the Voltai, with the intent of ambushing him.  Treve was aware that Cos intended to invade Brundisium as the prelude to an attack on Ar.  Treve was even aware of the existence of traitors within Ar who were assisting Cos.  Treve had no incentive to warn Ar, its longtime enemy, of the upcoming Cosian strike.  During the ambush in the Voltai, Marlenus fell down a mountainside, rolling for a hundred yards or so, and striking his head.  The injury apparently led to amnesia.  Marlenus was then secured within the infamous pits of Treve, labeled as prisoner �41,� and believing he was a Peasant.  His fate is described in Witness of Gor.

     Beneath the city-state of Treve, within the mountain upon which the city sits, are numerous underground levels, and the deepest levels are known as the pits.  One method of entry to the underground levels is a type of slide, a sectioned metal tube that is about three feet in diameter.  This slide descends, in a spiral, all the way to the pits.  A person can stop at numerous points on the descent.  This slide could be used for the rapid deployment of military troops or simply as an escape route.  Slaves being sent to the pits might be bound before being placed onto the slide, preventing them from stopping anywhere else.  At the very bottom, they will fall into a net and wait to be released.  There are other methods of gaining access to these depths.

     The pit Master is named Tarsk and his word is law within the pits.  All of the slaves in the pits are under his complete control.  Tarsk is an intelligent man and very strong but he is extremely ugly and his body is misshapen.  He has small legs but a large upper body, disproportionate to the rest of him.  His face is grotesque and his voice is slurred, scarcely human in sound.  Women looking upon his visage are often horrified.  Tarsk was born this way but is apparently happy to be the pit Master.  He is also very loyal to Treve and concerned with matters of honor.  He also seems to have great respect for Marlenus, one of his prisoners.

     There is no map of the area of the pits and that is intentional.  It is not permitted for a map to be created, the same as no map of the city itself may be created.  This is common to many cities of Gor.  The area of the pits consists of multiple levels of corridors, tunnels, rooms and such.  Barred gates or plain iron doors, with bolts and padlocks, secure many of the rooms and areas.  The floor is commonly stone but there are sometimes perforated plates or grillwork.  Beneath those plates and grillwork may be pools of water, or even the lairs of animals.  As additional security, the pits contain a myriad of traps that can be set or unset at the will of the pit Master and guards.  Slaves in the pits may be aware of some of the traps but know the areas they should not travel through.  Blades and sharpened metal stakes may flash out into a corridor.  Pits may open up in the floor sending a person onto metal stakes, or into a pit of osts.  Gates may drop to seal off a passage area and then a panel could open releasing savage tharlarions.  These dungeons can be extremely lethal to intruders.     

     There are more mundane areas of the pits.  There are bridges that cross certain chasm-like gaps in the passageways.  These are often narrow, metal bridges that may be no more than eighteen inches wide.  The bridges are locked into place by wooden pegs and those pegs can be removed to move or remove the bridge.  This also acts as a deterrent to intruders.  There is a workroom in the pits where there is an anvil and forge, to make and repair necessary metal items.  One part of the pits is a prison area, where the lowest and most dangerous prisoners are kept.  Slaves do much of the scut work in the pits, bringing food to prisoners, replenishing water cisterns, emptying waste buckets, carrying fresh straw, cleaning cells, etc.  Pit slaves are sometimes allowed to visit the surface of the city though they often must return before nightfall.

     Marlenus was kept in a cell, behind a door with five locks, in the lowest passages of the pits.  Marlenus was chained to the wall by his neck and four limbs.  Ten sleen had been given his scent, which were all of the sleens in the pit master�s pens.  Treve was supposed to turn over their prisoner to Cosian agents.  Cos though sent twenty-two Assassins allegedly to bring Marlenus back to Cos.  This seems an incredible amount of men for a single prisoner and would have been quite a costly endeavor.  In fact though, the Assassins� objective was to kill Marlenus.  Rask of Treve was outraged and vowed 1000 men to stop the Assassins.  Yet, nothing is known about whether Rask attempted to fulfill this vow or not.  The administration of Treve may have quashed his idea, not wanting to upset Cos.       

     Tarnsmen from Ar did attempt to rescue Marlenus.  They launched a massive aerial assault against Treve, attempting to find an entrance into the pits.  They were successful in finding such an entry but those who entered the pits died there.  They did kill at least 100 guards of Treve but all of the men of Ar died.  And they never reached Marlenus.  Fortunately for Marlenus, he was able to escape from his captivity and had to be pursued by the Assassins through the myriad tunnels and rooms of the pits.  There is evidence that the pit Master may have assisted Marlenus in his escape.  In the end, all twenty-two of the Assassins were dead and Marlenus had escaped from Treve.  Marlenus then somehow traveled, alone, through the Voltai and returned to Ar.  It is currently unknown whether his memory has returned or not.  The stage is now set for Prize of Gor, the next Gor novel, which will likely see the conclusion of the Cos/Ar war.         

 

     Much of the rest of the information concerning Treve in the novels are small facts, details and rumors that will be listed here.

     The Warriors of Treve are said to be fond of warm wines.  They also enjoy combing the hair of their slaves.

     The women of Treve are said to be �proud and beautiful� but few women of Treve ever become slaves outside of Treve.  As they are a rarity, they are highly prized by collectors.  As the location of Treve is generally secret, it is very difficult for other Gorean cities to raid Treve and steal its women.  Other cities can only try to capture Treve women who dare venture out of the city, though few free women of Treve seem to leave the city. 

     All five of the High Castes exist in Gor but it is unknown how each is treated within Treve.  The Initiate Caste of Treve seems degenerate in some ways.  They appear unhealthy, very pale, as if they spend most of their lives indoors.  They are thought to be pathological, simple, and of unsound mind.  Many in Treve see them as parasites, claiming a share of raider booty yet contributing little to the city.  Yet they obviously possess some measure of power within the city.   

     Treve has some silver mines, an additional source of income for them, though the mines are not as rich as the silver mines of Tharna. 

     Sherbet, in various flavors and colors, is eaten in Treve.

     Two major landmarks within Treve include the seven towers of war and the wall of Valens.  Unfortunately, these locations are only mentioned and not described.  These locations though do seem to have some notoriety outside of Treve and may be commonly known across much of Gor.

     The city has a bazaar area, a mercantile section like most other cities.  The upper terraces and courts of the cities have a nice view of the mountains.  One of the terraces is mentioned as possessing three fountains and this may be indicative of a common occurrence in much of the city.  The upper basin is reserved for citizens of Treve and non-citizens who have received the honor of being able to use that basin.  The second basin is reserved for non-citizen residents and visitors.  The third basin is reserved for slaves and other animals.

     Two paga taverns within Treve include the Golden Shackles and the tavern of Fabius.

     The men of Treve commonly do not conceal their identities though obviously some do, such as the spies of Treve.  The famed Rask of Treve is notorious for his skill in disguises.

     There is a saying among Goreans that Treve is a �worthy enemy.�  The Warriors, especially their tarnsmen, are respected for their prowess, bravery and boldness.

     Treve uses mirrors, reflecting the sun, and smoke signals as signaling devices.

     �Civititas Trevis� translates as �I am of the city of Treve.�

     Treve mints its own coins, each bearing the mark of Treve, a �tau,� the Gorean letter �T.�

     Treve raiders often mark their plunder by attaching a small, metal leaf.  The leaf bears the mark of Treve and also bears the identity of its owner.  When claiming slave girls, the leaf will be attached to a wire and that wire will be attached to a girl's earlobe like an earring.  Even if the girl's ears are not pierced, they will pierce it then and there with the wire.

     The common slave brand of Treve is a cursive �tau� that is about 1.5 inches high.

     There is a simple collaring ceremony in Treve, used when a man of Treve first collars a new slave.  The woman is brought before the man and she removes all of her clothes. The man will then say to her �submit.�  The woman will immediately kneel, lower her head and extend her arms.  She will cross her wrists so that they can be bound.  She will then state her name, caste and city and that she submits to the man, giving his name, caste and city.

     For example, she might say the following: �I, Physician, Rachel, of the city of Vonda, to the Warrior, Rask of the High City of Treve, herewith submit myself as a slave girl.  At his hands I accept my life and my name, declaring myself his to do with as he pleases.�  The man will then quickly bind her wrists with a length of binding fiber, likely using a Warrior's capture knot.  The slave girl is then asked to read the words on her collar.  Commonly, it will say �I am the property of�.�  The collar will then be locked around her neck.  Finally, after she is collared, she will say �I am yours, Master.�  The ceremony will then be completed.

     
�The city above was quite beautiful.  It was like a lovely, lofty jewel set in the mountains.�
(Witness of Gor, p.334)


People of Treve
     Here are a few people of Treve of note in the books.

     
Terence of Treve: He is a mercenary captain most noted for aiding Port Kar in its epic sea battle against Cos and Tyros.  Terence controls a mercenary army of tarnsmen. He took a contract with Tarl Cabot to place his tarns aboard Port Kar ships and then release them far out to sea.  The tarns fought well and helped turn the tide against Cos and Tyros.  Normally, tarns cannot be flown out to sea but when they found themselves surrounded on all sides by the sea, they did not panic at all.  Terence would be unlikely to take a contract against Ar due to Treve's past relationship with Ar.  Terrence also became the owner of Dorna the Proud, once the usurper of the throne of Tharna.  The fate of Dorna, after her escape at the end of Outlaw of Gor, had long remained a mystery but was finally resolved in Witness of Gor.


 Vika of Treve:  Vika was the daughter of a Physician and a Passion Slave.  She chose to journey to the Sardar Mountains, hoping to seduce the Priest-Kings and acquire vast riches.  Instead, she was turned into a chamber slave by the Priest-Kings.  Vika�s father, Parp, also ended up in the Sardar.  The Priest-King Sarm used Vika to try to seduce and control Tarl.  Vika had been quite successful in the past of dominating men who came to the Sardar.  �A hundred men, said Misk, allowed themselves to be chained to the foot of her couch where she would upon occasion, that they might not die, cast them scraps of food as though they might have been pet sleen.�  (Priest-Kings of Gor, p.129)  Tarl Cabot did not fall under her influence and eventually helps free her from the Priest-Kings though Parp is killed by snow larls.  Vika then chose to journey to Ar to become a Physician, to work on research concerning the dreaded disease of Dar-kosis.   

 Rask of Treve: The most infamous of the men of Treve mentioned in the books has to be Rask. Like Treve itself, there are many myths and legends about Rask.  Rask is broad chested and broad shouldered, with a large head surmounted by shaggy black hair.  He has large, rough hands and his skin is very tanned, mostly from wind burn as he is a tarnsman.  His eyes are dark and predatory.  The list of adjectives used to describe him is near endless such as young, audacious, ruthless, powerful, brutal, bold, resourceful, brilliant, and elusive.  Though most men of Treve dislike hiding their identity, Rask is a master of disguise and subterfuge.  He is a superb swordsman and a master tarnsman.  It is rumored that his parents are dead and that he loves flowers.  We must remember that to a Gorean, a warrior that loves flowers is not a lesser man.  Most Goreans love nature and it is not unusual for a Warrior to care for such matters.

     His reputation concerning women is muchly known across Gor.  He is said to have a ravenous appetite and also a contempt for women, preferably free woman.  He will never buy a woman though, only steal them.  He is alleged to only use a woman once, brand her with his mark and then discard her.  He brands her so that she will belong to him no matter who her owner may be.  This is counter to general Gorean custom that a brand does not identify a girl's owner.  He will only use her once because he believes that in that single time, he has exhausted everything of value from her.  She will then possess nothing further to attract him. It is said that no man could so humble or diminish a woman as he.

     Despite this brutality, many women fantasize about spending a night in his collar. Yet, Rask does succumb to love in Captive of Gor.  The Earth girl, Elinor Brinton, touches his heart and though he tries to send her away, he must have her back.  He even pays Tarl Cabot to have her once again, paying 100 gold tarns for her.  This is the first time, and probably the last, that Rask will ever pay for a woman. 

[Aislynne Melnik]

Elle,

You need to READ Witness of Gor ... in fact, if more Trevians did, they would probably do some major rebuilding.  Fascinating all the little amazing walkways and gadgets for security.
I haven't finished the book, about 1/4 through (it's a long, detailed, pretty boring read so far) BUT excellent information about Treve.

[Grondar Quartz]

Sounds great for a rebuild but think of the Prim cost !!!!

[Carter Ebbage]

Elle,

You need to READ Witness of Gor ... in fact, if more Trevians did, they would probably do some major rebuilding.  Fascinating all the little amazing walkways and gadgets for security.
I haven't finished the book, about 1/4 through (it's a long, detailed, pretty boring read so far) BUT excellent information about Treve.

Read it and was so tempted to try and build something as described.. but, came to the conclusion it would make a terrible RP environment with all the towers, squares on different levels, markets etc etc.... plus the caves, pits, baskets to lift people up over the walls... as a project it would have been a great challenge, but couldn't see it working for interaction.

I once made a very small town called Fortress of Saphronicus.. it worked very very well.. Then decided to make it bigger and grander and with twisty alleyways, towers and cylinders spiralling to the skies.. it killed the atmosphere of the community and we all got lost and became isolated in little RP 1:1 scenario's...so vowed to try to keep it simple and focus on a place with two distinct centres for people to interact.. which became the city of Treve and Minus.. with enough terrain to reflect the mountains and fields to shoot Torvies in 

Ps...a great reference more reflecting the spirit, character and general theme of the Trevian civilisation, with some excellent references to unique elements of the city and its people, which shows how isolated Treve was and developed customs and ways of life that are different to other cities...... is this web site

http://www.worldofgor.com/reference.aspx?rpID=18

[Elle Couerblanc]

Elle,

You need to READ Witness of Gor ... in fact, if more Trevians did, they would probably do some major rebuilding.  Fascinating all the little amazing walkways and gadgets for security.
I haven't finished the book, about 1/4 through (it's a long, detailed, pretty boring read so far) BUT excellent information about Treve.

OOH YAY.  I am buying it right now!  Thank you. 

[Aislynne Melnik]

Elle,

You need to READ Witness of Gor ... in fact, if more Trevians did, they would probably do some major rebuilding.  Fascinating all the little amazing walkways and gadgets for security.
I haven't finished the book, about 1/4 through (it's a long, detailed, pretty boring read so far) BUT excellent information about Treve.

Read it and was so tempted to try and build something as described.. but, came to the conclusion it would make a terrible RP environment with all the towers, squares on different levels, markets etc etc.... plus the caves, pits, baskets to lift people up over the walls... as a project it would have been a great challenge, but couldn't see it working for interaction.

I once made a very small town called Fortress of Saphronicus.. it worked very very well.. Then decided to make it bigger and grander and with twisty alleyways, towers and cylinders spiralling to the skies.. it killed the atmosphere of the community and we all got lost and became isolated in little RP 1:1 scenario's...so vowed to try to keep it simple and focus on a place with two distinct centres for people to interact.. which became the city of Treve and Minus.. with enough terrain to reflect the mountains and fields to shoot Torvies in 

Ps...a great reference more reflecting the spirit, character and general theme of the Trevian civilisation, with some excellent references to unique elements of the city and its people, which shows how isolated Treve was and developed customs and ways of life that are different to other cities...... is this web site

http://www.worldofgor.com/reference.aspx?rpID=18

Carter ... I MISS YOU!!!

[Payton999 Robonaught]

Elle,

You need to READ Witness of Gor ... in fact, if more Trevians did, they would probably do some major rebuilding.  Fascinating all the little amazing walkways and gadgets for security.
I haven't finished the book, about 1/4 through (it's a long, detailed, pretty boring read so far) BUT excellent information about Treve.

Read it and was so tempted to try and build something as described.. but, came to the conclusion it would make a terrible RP environment with all the towers, squares on different levels, markets etc etc.... plus the caves, pits, baskets to lift people up over the walls... as a project it would have been a great challenge, but couldn't see it working for interaction.

I once made a very small town called Fortress of Saphronicus.. it worked very very well.. Then decided to make it bigger and grander and with twisty alleyways, towers and cylinders spiralling to the skies.. it killed the atmosphere of the community and we all got lost and became isolated in little RP 1:1 scenario's...so vowed to try to keep it simple and focus on a place with two distinct centres for people to interact.. which became the city of Treve and Minus.. with enough terrain to reflect the mountains and fields to shoot Torvies in 

Ps...a great reference more reflecting the spirit, character and general theme of the Trevian civilisation, with some excellent references to unique elements of the city and its people, which shows how isolated Treve was and developed customs and ways of life that are different to other cities...... is this web site

http://www.worldofgor.com/reference.aspx?rpID=18

Carter ... I MISS YOU!!!

We all miss him, but I'm certain Treve wouldn't give away northerners for free.  *just hrmps and wonders exactly how much gold was in that bag*