BARGATE CASTLE

In Numen the Slayer, I depicted the home of Numen’s mother, uncle, and cousins of House Torren: Bargate Castle. I named the castle after a gatehouse in Southampton, England, which I thought would be a nice homage to real-life medieval castles. However, the Bargate Castle in Numen the Slayer is not a gatehouse. Instead, it is a motte-and-bailey castle that rests on an island in the middle of a lake. The lake acts as a natural moat and the only way in or out of the castle is by crossing a drawbridge that connects the castle with the mainland. The sigil of House Torren is a silver portcullis on a blue field, which are references to the Bargate gatehouse and the Beaufort family, who are the blood relatives of King Henry VII. In Numen the Slayer, the head of House Torren is Braun Torren, Numen’s uncle, and his son and heir is Edgar Torren, Numen’s cousin. Braun’s daughter Katherine Torren is married to the heir of Foxden Castle, Brom Letum, and this marriage ultimately forces the Torrens to take action against King Robar when he lays siege to Foxden Castle.