River Notch

According to legend, the first River Notch was carved by a player who defended their claim through seventeen consecutive challenges during the infamous logjam. Each time a challenger approached, they carved another notch into their tag, until the tag itself became a record of their dominance. The river current carried the story downstream, and other pioneers began carving their own notches to tell similar tales.

A rectangular wooden tag, dark as wet earth, with one long edge carved into a series of deep notches that resemble the teeth of an old saw. The wood has been worn smooth on two corners where hands have gripped it through countless rounds. Faint water lines mark the surface like ancient tide charts, and small mineral deposits sparkle in the grain where the river has left its signature. The wood is darkened from prolonged river submersion and carries the subtle curvature of something shaped by current.

The River Notch represents territorial claims that have been tested by the flow of competition and survived - each notch is a record of a successfully defended challenge against a challenger. Holders are recognized as players whose claims have been proven against relentless pressure, making their territorial holdings among the most respected in the Stumptown Settlement.