March 10, 2017

City of The Great Scroll

Ruler: King Monthar Dannon

In the northern regions of the Lord-doms, through a harsh stone pass, is a strong, hard city where all manner of life is subject to royal approval. Clothes, houses and even food are arranged by the crown. In exchange the people are protected and given the opportunity to achieve their highest potential. Such is life in Eden-On-The-Rocks.

Established before the second Great War, Eden-On-The-Rocks was intended to be a sanctuary for learning. A group of priests to Iambulus established Eden-On-The-Rocks, and flourished. Iambulus himself recognized the strength of the budding city and blessed their studies, filling the priests with knowledge and insight. With knowledge and study now coming easily to them, the priests grew lazy. When Iambulus instructed them to continue working, lest he remove his gift, the priests laughed, believing their blessing had come from within. Enraged, Iambulus cursed the city. All who resided within were struck deaf and dumb and the city began to crumble. It perhaps would have, had Iptar not seen this transpire and stepped in. Seeing the potential of the city, but still wishing to have the priests learn their lesson, she blessed the city. The city became home to enormous gem deposits, bringing incredible wealth, and the priests found their blessing restored. However the price they had to pay came in the form of a scroll written by Iptar herself. A series of rules the priests and all who would eventually follow them had to adhere to, lest the city become cursed yet again.

The rules laid down by Iptar include a variety of standards and restrictions. Men and women were restricted to wearing the same grey and blue clothes Monday to Friday, yellow robes on Saturday and something different every Sunday. Every house in Eden-On-The-Rocks must conform to dimensions given by Iptar and must all maintain a carefully manicured garden. Citizens must always greet each other with a closed fist against the forehead and of course observe a strict 6am waking time. The scroll is several meters long and from the moment it arrived in Eden-On-The-Rocks, a priest has been appointed to constantly comb through the scroll and city alike, ensuring the laws are being followed correctly.

While the city is no longer ruled by a convent of priests and hasn’t been for many thousands of years, the rules lain down by Iptar are still followed and enforced at the highest level by King Monthar Dannon. King Monthar is the latest in a long line of Dannons, instated as the royal family of Eden-On-The-Rocks after a bloody coup against the priests who had turned slovenly. King Monthar sees the rules as a necessary prerequisite for the city to flourish and gladly follows them. He is a harsh, stern man; but fair and just. He does however regard the rest of the Lord-doms with a little moral superiority and many a tavern joke has been cracked outside of Eden-On-The-Rocks about King Monthar’s somewhat inflated opinion of himself.

Despite the strict conditions of Eden-On-The-Rocks, the city is incredibly prosperous. Its sizeable gem deposits mean there is always plenty of work to go around, and plenty of gold going into merchant coffers as its precious stones are shipped around Ianis. Visitors are always welcome to Eden-On-The-Rocks and are not subject to the same rules as its citizens, provided they stay no longer than one night. With some of the oldest architecture in Cantillia and a genuine relic from Iptar herself, Eden-On-The-Rocks is a popular destination.

Art by Jon Pintar
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