Rivermen's Association

"Dammit, I grew up on these canals and I know them like the back of me hand! I don't need no high-and-mighty pilot to tell me how to run my own lighter!"

- angry riverboat owner

Located in a small building on Sikkeleiland, across from Stoessel where the Geligwater Canal enters the Bruynwater, the Rivermen's Association is the enemy of the Brotherhood of Seamen and Pilots. The rivalry was born over a century ago when a group of bargemen formed their own breakaway group because they felt the Pilots' and Seamen's Guild was favouring saltwater sailors at the expense of those who really kept the port moving. Bad blood has run between the two groups ever since, with disagreements between them often turning into full-scale brawls.

The root of the dispute lies in a clause in Admiralty law giving members of the Brotherhood of Seamen and Pilots the right to guide all boats and ships entering or leaving Marienburg harbour, for a fee of 1/- per foot of boat. The Rivermen, all of them experienced and many of them native Wastelanders, resent this because they feel they know the river and harbour as well as any pilot. Many Reik users, whether rivermen or not, claim the Pilots are little better than racketeers, and their power to call on the River Watch to enforce their rights rubs salt in an already open sore. There have been recent groundings and collisions that the Rivermen's Association claims were arranged by the Pilots to discredit those who were complaining too loudly.

But the Association is poor and lacks the influence of the better-connected Brotherhood. Relations between the rivals aren't helped by the fiery temper of the Rivermen's Association guildmaster, Axel Huurder, who's known across Suiddock for his sharp tongue and his disputes with the Pilots' leader, Albert Loodemans. The guild can't even afford to maintain a full-time staff: Huurder still has to make a living off his own boat (and pay piloting fees to boot). While some members staff the Association's small office on a volunteer basis, its doors are often locked and the windows shuttered.

Although the guild, and Axel in particular, are vocal about their complaints, lately some Rivermen have been talking more quietly about its lack of success. There have been discussions about the Pilots' dirty tricks, and whether it might be time for the honest rivermen of Marienburg to begin fighting back with the same weapons. At present it's no more than talk, but feelings are running close to boiling.

Source

 * Warhammer Fantasy RPG 1st ED -- Marienburg: Sold Down the River
 * pg. 56

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