Fianna'bhaile (fee-awn-uh ball-eh)
Fianna'bhaile is the capital city of the elven kingdom of Crann Riocht. Outsiders typically just call it by its first name - Fianna - if they have trouble pronouncing the full elvish name. This name is translated as "city of deer" and was named for the forest creatures that live in abundance around the sacred tree of Crann Sinsear.
The city is built around and near - though never actually touching the sacred tree. Around the tree, the ancient government buildings and temples are built very tall from some unknown lightweight metal - their architecture and construction lost to history. The city is odd to most outsiders, as there is very little sunlight that reaches the city - and most of that further away from the central tree; most light comes from the several dozen floating yellow-orange orbs that hover above the city and provide constant light. This has allowed all manner of elves to congregate and live in the city, including a portion of drow that call Fianna'bhaile home. The city's main central district surrounds the tree, out to a few hundred feet. It includes many large temples and important government buildings, as well as modest housing for the Council of Druids and some government functionaries. From there, the city radiates out, with twelve main roads heading out from the center equally spaced. Every second one of these main roads is wider than others, effectively dividing the city into six wards with another one of the twelve roads passing through the middle of the ward. These wards do not have any greater organization; they are not divided by race or function, though the poorer areas tend to be closer to the edges of the city. Most notably to the citizens and travelers, each of the twelve sections and the central area has one large tavern/inn and one large grocer/market, located along the bisecting main road. The city has not changed much throughout history, though it has expanded and grown outward at a slow but constant rate. Only once in history has the city or its central sacred tree been directly threatened by an invading force, but that was driven away by the city's guards long before they reached the Crann Sinsear. Most wars and battles took place on the outskirts of the forest or on Lake Sildar, both very far from the sacred tree's location. A good portion of the city's population are focused on maintaining the peace in the city and its surrounding forest environment.
The city is built around and near - though never actually touching the sacred tree. Around the tree, the ancient government buildings and temples are built very tall from some unknown lightweight metal - their architecture and construction lost to history. The city is odd to most outsiders, as there is very little sunlight that reaches the city - and most of that further away from the central tree; most light comes from the several dozen floating yellow-orange orbs that hover above the city and provide constant light. This has allowed all manner of elves to congregate and live in the city, including a portion of drow that call Fianna'bhaile home. The city's main central district surrounds the tree, out to a few hundred feet. It includes many large temples and important government buildings, as well as modest housing for the Council of Druids and some government functionaries. From there, the city radiates out, with twelve main roads heading out from the center equally spaced. Every second one of these main roads is wider than others, effectively dividing the city into six wards with another one of the twelve roads passing through the middle of the ward. These wards do not have any greater organization; they are not divided by race or function, though the poorer areas tend to be closer to the edges of the city. Most notably to the citizens and travelers, each of the twelve sections and the central area has one large tavern/inn and one large grocer/market, located along the bisecting main road. The city has not changed much throughout history, though it has expanded and grown outward at a slow but constant rate. Only once in history has the city or its central sacred tree been directly threatened by an invading force, but that was driven away by the city's guards long before they reached the Crann Sinsear. Most wars and battles took place on the outskirts of the forest or on Lake Sildar, both very far from the sacred tree's location. A good portion of the city's population are focused on maintaining the peace in the city and its surrounding forest environment.
Demographics
The vast majority (about three-fourths) of the city is elvish or half-elvish, with about 40% of that group made of wood elves, 40% high elves, about 5% half-elves, and the remaining 15% drow. These drow have a historical presence in the city, with a group of drow having made the trip to the surface from the Underdark around the middle of the First Age - inspired by the goddess Gaela who freed them from their worship of the Dark Pantheon deities. The remainder of the city's population is made up of disparate races who have come here from around the world to help preserve the balance of nature and protect the sacred tree.
Most people in the city live modest, simple lives, with bartering being the most common way to acquire goods and services (as the elven "electrum" coins are a bit high value to be used in everyday transactions by most people). For those whose profession does not produce barter-able items, some live off the kindness and donations of their neighbors, while others have saved up wealth from their time outside the kingdom. The dozen members of the council, plus the Speaker, are considered nobles within the city and achieve the usual level of prestige and "wealth" of nobles simply by being gifted things and shown deference in any business dealings.
Government
As part of the governing of the kingdom, the Speaker and the Council of Druids both have a hand in running the capital city - especially because it houses the sacred tree. There are no specific members that are responsible for city governance, and any citizen who petitions the government for change meets with a member of the advisory committee instead of the Council - though those meetings can be arranged for serious enough issues. There are several neighborhood or guild groups that also unofficially aid citizens with various issues they face. Any sort of taxation comes in the form of bartering and socially "recommended" donations to the many druids and other non-income earners in the city.
Defences
The central district of the city, which houses the main temples and government buildings along with the sacred tree, is surrounded by a thick stone wall with twelve openings - all of which can be magically sealed in times of attack or other threat. The external perimeter of the city has a stone wall surrounding some parts, though some sections have been torn down as the city expanded past the perimeter. In these sections, the new perimeter areas have constructed timber palisades to protect from the forest's dangers. These external walls and palisades support watchtowers every few hundred feet, where rangers from the city maintain vigil to protect the city's denizens.
Most of the city's Watch and defenders are rangers who specialize in longbow or crossbow use and hit-and-run fighting tactics. The interior central district has a special unit of infantry guards, which can be sent out across the city to assist the guards as necessary. Some of these infantry soldiers are druids who specialize in changing their shape to deal with threats, while others are nature-loving mercenaries and soldiers from around the world who came here to help protect the sacred tree.
Architecture
The central district's buildings are built in a typically elven style, with sleek metallic and stone towers and teal glass accents. Most roofs are tall and conical, made of some type of stone or slate. This architecture is also found in various buildings throughout the city, namely each district's tavern and market areas, as well as various other nicer houses. The majority of the city's houses and shops are simple wooden buildings with thatch roofs.
The drow neighborhoods in the city tend to be darker wood and stone - sometimes sourced from the nearby mountains and other times painted darker to make the buildings more familiar to the previous Underdark denizens. Other peoples from around the world sometimes build their houses and shops in the style of their homelands.
Founding Date
1 1A
Alternative Name(s)
Fianna
Type
Capital
Population
15,241
Inhabitant Demonym
Fiannae (fee-awn-ay)
Owning Organization
Comments