Mapping Population Experiment: Part Four Alpha

After about fifteen minutes, I changed the map to what I feel is a more Bat in the Attic feel.

All land within two to three hours travel from the Central Settlement will be patrolled and farmed by the local populace. This is where I diverge from his mapping / setting style. I tend to go for settlements protecting their own and think this approach is feasible, though maybe not historically accurate as his Manorial setup.

Central Settlement main populace (ABM = Able Body Men):
73 one mile hexes at .865sq miles per hex is 63sq miles, give or take. Divided randomly based on my personal whims; 40sq miles of agriculture (20160 ABM), 15sq miles of herd animals (7500 ABM), and 8sq miles of swine (6400 ABM). This translates, if I did the math correctly, to the Central Settlement able to self sustain 34060 ABM. This creates a HUGE population in my mind, especially if you consider 4.5 people in a household. Granted not all of the 34060 would be part of a household, but still. Even at 70% of self sustainable max (23842) we are still in the Metropolis range. Add in a 10% tax of goods and services to the outlying villages, and Manors, the total climbs back up.

I realize, after looking at the map, that I did take the 'best case scenario' for what the settlement could farm, which in my mind would be an older, established, settlement. Cutting it down to what a newer settlement might look like, gives me this:

This would be what a younger settlement would look like in my mind. Still patrolling out a few hours, but without the benefit of a ferry or other river fording devices, it would be confined to terrain to the North-East of the settlement. This area consists of 26 one mile hexes (22sq miles). A strictly agricultural settlement, at 100% utilisation, could sustain 7040 ABM. Divide up into roughly equal venues, it could sustain; 11sq miles of agriculture (3520 ABM), 7sq miles of herd animals (3500 ABM), and 4sq miles of swine (3200 ABM), or 10220 ABM. Figure in a 4.5 member household, with half of them married with households, and the total populace jumps back up over 20000 people.

I don't know. Maybe I am doing something wrong, or missing something critical? This methods gives my OCD a warm and fuzzy, but until I can figure it out, maybe getting some feed back from Rob Conley, I should go with the Third Population Mapping Experiment?

Hey Rob! Help a brother out here?  = )

Best,
TB