A common manner of dress found across The Heartwood is the combination of tunic and overtunic. A tunic is a simple one-piece pullover, normally with a full skirt. The overtunics are cut slightly differently and are of contrasting or complimentary colors. While tunics usually have full and flowing sleeves as modeled, this by no means is a rule. There are many variations of a tunic's particular cut, providing a choice of style. This lady is wearing a long belt, a style that is common from Dawnview to Talesan's Village. While a simple mode of dress, the tunic's relative worth and wealth of the wearer can be told from simple cues. The first is the amount of jewelry worn, the second is the tunic's trim. The more ornate and wide the trim, usually around the cuffs, collars and skirt hems, the finer the tunic... the more wealthy is its wearer. Gold and silver threaded embroidery also betrays a modicum of wealth. Traditional border trim includes key patterns, found in areas of Imperial influence or fancy knotwork traditionally found in the farm villages of the High Tarn.
Most clothing on The Heartwood is not gender specific. You will find both men and women wearing all the variants of tunics, overtunics, and surcoats. A common variant is the tunic and surcoat as worn by this gentlefolk. A surcoat is a rectangular piece of cloth with a hole for one's neck, worn over a tunic and belted at the waist. Simple surcoats are just a rectangle of contrasting or complementary color; however, fancier surcoats often bear the colors or device of a Noble family or other distinctive group. This fellow has a purse tied to his belt, a common practice since pockets have yet to be invented. Sometimes the flowing sleeves of a tunic are sewn halfway up, providing a rudimentary place to secret items, and is the closest one comes to a modern pocket.
While full skirts are the norm, tunics can also be as short or as long as the wearer desires. Those folks lucky enough to own horses will often split their skirts to form half or quarter panels, so one can easily sit upon the saddle.
This gentle is wearing a shorter variant of the tunic, belted at the waist. This is a very comfortable and simple garment, and constructed in a similar manner as its longer cousin. It is simply a rectangle of cloth with a hole cut for the neck, and the sides sewn only most of the way up, leaving a slot for one's arms to slip through. While a simple article of clothing, the shorter tunic does not have to be plain. Material choice — from wool tartan to finely trimmed broadcloth — provides a great deal of variation. This lord's tunic is made up of individual rectangles of cloth, each of a different color. He also wears a pair of simple breeches, also known as braccae. He chooses to wear them loose, but many times the legs of one's breeches are also laced with leather ties.
Boots of both soft and hard leather are common foot gear. Tall soft leather boots are usually laced while more traditional hard leather boots with heavy soles and wooden heels are preferred by sworders and horsemen. Leather shoes of various kinds are also made, ranging from cut down versions of the taller boots to ingeniously cut single pieces of leather that, when laced up, form comfortable moccasin style footwear.
Cloaks of all sorts are the primary protection from the cold and harsh weather, with the most common being the traditional half-circle cloak. Fancier hooded and fitted cloaks are favored by the more wealthy.
In general, the folks on the mainland follow these styles of dress. Nobles and Imperials usually wear their Family colors or have their Family's device worked into their clothing. Those who belong to certain churches usually wear the garb associated with their Temple. Thus, the followers of Lord Rames the Protector will most likely be found wearing a white tunic with a red and gold surcoat. Lord Hastur favors blue robes while Lady Attera pure whites. New Jvrillian mercenaries tend to wear clothing that echoes their unit's horsemark. Black is the Imperial color and is normally only worn by high ranking members of the Bankorpool Empire. The fashions of Highgaard are famous for their warmth and practical nature, and include heavy wool tunics and heavy fur-lined cloaks. Dawnview Vale, on the other hand, has a reputation for high fashion and is experimenting with fitted gowns and other types of fine clothing.