Falthringor’s bailey functions much like a commons. Farmers from the slopes enter the castle to trade their crops, meat, and dairy amongst each other. Priests provide impromptu guidance at the small shrine the lowlanders have added to the courtyard. Itinerant giants petition the Lord Ratchets for asylum. Spearmen spar, minstrels tell tales, and craftsmen peddle their wares. There are no truly public spaces in the halls of Falthringor—all chambers and halls are claimed by some such lord or guild—so despite the frigid temperatures, when commoners assemble, they do so outside.

There is always danger for those who spend their time in the bailey. After all, the innocuous seeming ward was designed for defensive purposes. Attackers who hope to take the stronghold by force will have to make their way through the bailey en route to the great hall, the Severed Keep, or any of the strategic bastions. Whether they scale the walls or burst through the portcullis, they will still have to pass through the bailey, all while getting pelted by arrows and harried by spearmen. If ever the Duscarn Giants levy a full assault on Falthringor, it seems inevitable that the bailey will be the site of maximal violence. That has yet to occur. Thus far, Falthringor has stood strong against all invaders.

Thanks to some combination of archery and bold defense by the spearmen, the bailey has remained a safe place for common folk and lords alike to convene and relax in the wind shadow of the curtain wall.