Zion's food supply

SWM wrote:

Keith_w wrote:It is also quite likely at this point that Zion is suffering as a result of the Sword of Schuler. I would consider it highly likely that a good portion of their food supplies came from Siddermark and as a result of the Sword, that supply has been cut off and will be for quite some time even following the conclusion of the war, leaving the Temple Lands and Harchong as their major external source of foods. Additionally, even beyond the damage the Sword has done to the supply situation, war has its own costs in terms of manpower and logistics. In short if you take the manpower and put it in the army, they aren't growing food and both the TL and Harchong are heavily dependent on manpower to do the work, and if you have an army, you also have to feed that army, further reducing the food supply available to ship to Zion and if you are shipping food to wherever your army is, that shipping is not available to ship supplies to Zion. Isn't it funny how double-edged Swords can be?

Siddarmark is a bit far for transporting food by canal in an age before refrigeration. There are plenty of closer farmlands in the Temple Lands, the Border States, and North Harchong to get food. No need to reach as far as Siddarmark.

Keith_w wrote:

SWM wrote:Siddarmark is a bit far for transporting food by canal in an age before refrigeration. There are plenty of closer farmlands in the Temple Lands, the Border States, and North Harchong to get food. No need to reach as far as Siddarmark.

I am pretty sure you don't have to refrigerate grains such as wheat or rice nor do you have to refrigerate most vegetables including tubers (potatoes, carrots etc), and firm fruits. As long as you can keep things cool, that should be sufficient.

Edit: Chris shipped shipload of food to Siddarmark which is a lot further. Additionally, western Siddermark is a lot closer to Zion than it is to Siddermark City. Farmers like markets, the closer the better.

SWM wrote:Okay, I accept the point.

But it is still true that Zion doesn't need to go as far as Siddarmark to get food. There is plenty of farmland in the Temple Lands, the Border States, and North Harchong. Just the Temple Lands alone has sufficient farmland to supply Zion. Zion was never dependent on Siddarmark for food.

Isilith wrote:

SWM wrote:Okay, I accept the point.

But it is still true that Zion doesn't need to go as far as Siddarmark to get food. There is plenty of farmland in the Temple Lands, the Border States, and North Harchong. Just the Temple Lands alone has sufficient farmland to supply Zion. Zion was never dependent on Siddarmark for food.

The Temple Lands also have a population of 89mm, so their farms have to feed those people as well. And, as was pointed out more than once in the books, the agricultural practices of the TL weren't even up the standards of Siddarmark, much less Charis.

Merlin is not prepared, is not willing, is morally unalterably opposed, to murdering a couple of million people who would never have any opportunity of defending themselves simply because they have been controlled by a monstrous lie and exploited by a corrupt institution headed by four greedy men, one of whom is a certifiable megalomaniac

Randomiser wrote:Don,

In the FAQ on 'Why doesn't Merlin just nuke the Temple?' RFC writes,

Merlin is not prepared, is not willing, is morally unalterably opposed, to murdering a couple of million people who would never have any opportunity of defending themselves simply because they have been controlled by a monstrous lie and exploited by a corrupt institution headed by four greedy men, one of whom is a certifiable megalomaniac

Maybe that's where your 2 million figure originates?