Cottongrove
By far the most peculiar town in Concordia is Cottongrove. The reasons for this involve a bit of history, a bit of magic, and a lot of technological progress.
Cottongrove was founded as a home for a large group of warforged from Torenrig. They had come to Concordia to aid in the first Concordian-Grezan war. After the conflict was resolved, they lacked purpose and belonging. St. Aubrey's orphanage and the Everlight guild helped them to build their own colony on the Corundes planes, where they could harvest cotton and weave clothing that would provide a reliable income. From then on, Cottongrove has gained inhabitants of many different races, but forgefolk, and particularly weaverforged, still form the majority of the population.
Another peculiarity of Cottongrove is its curse. When Concordians first reclamed this area, they ran afoul of a witch from the Cotanglo woods. She had cursed the local lands so that no child would be born healthy in the area. Forgefolk were not troubled by this curse, so they could settle freely. After a few decades, they made more peacefull arrangements with the witch, who lessened the curse's effect. It is still present, but only harms those that draw her ire, for example by not preserving and respecting the forest.
The forgefolk already had their foundry, where they forge new bodies, for many centuries. The process of the 'sparking', as they call the awakening of the personality and programming in the automated body, has remained a well-guarded secret, except for that it differs greatly from the method used in Torenrig and gives a forged one much more free will and the ability to learn (some even argue they have an actual soul). In the Age of Progress, this expertise in magically connecting will to mechanical bodies was applied for new purposes. The forgefolk of Cottongrove are the foremost experts in crafting and attuning mechanical body parts. Although costly, these can be used to replace lost limbs, to provide senses or mobility to those born without it, or even to enhance one's natural abilities. Although engineers and medical scientists in Torenrig are also striving to get ahead in this field, Cottongrove is known as the single town to consider for the most accessible, versatile, and efficient prosthetics.
Cottongrove was founded as a home for a large group of warforged from Torenrig. They had come to Concordia to aid in the first Concordian-Grezan war. After the conflict was resolved, they lacked purpose and belonging. St. Aubrey's orphanage and the Everlight guild helped them to build their own colony on the Corundes planes, where they could harvest cotton and weave clothing that would provide a reliable income. From then on, Cottongrove has gained inhabitants of many different races, but forgefolk, and particularly weaverforged, still form the majority of the population.
Another peculiarity of Cottongrove is its curse. When Concordians first reclamed this area, they ran afoul of a witch from the Cotanglo woods. She had cursed the local lands so that no child would be born healthy in the area. Forgefolk were not troubled by this curse, so they could settle freely. After a few decades, they made more peacefull arrangements with the witch, who lessened the curse's effect. It is still present, but only harms those that draw her ire, for example by not preserving and respecting the forest.
The forgefolk already had their foundry, where they forge new bodies, for many centuries. The process of the 'sparking', as they call the awakening of the personality and programming in the automated body, has remained a well-guarded secret, except for that it differs greatly from the method used in Torenrig and gives a forged one much more free will and the ability to learn (some even argue they have an actual soul). In the Age of Progress, this expertise in magically connecting will to mechanical bodies was applied for new purposes. The forgefolk of Cottongrove are the foremost experts in crafting and attuning mechanical body parts. Although costly, these can be used to replace lost limbs, to provide senses or mobility to those born without it, or even to enhance one's natural abilities. Although engineers and medical scientists in Torenrig are also striving to get ahead in this field, Cottongrove is known as the single town to consider for the most accessible, versatile, and efficient prosthetics.
