Shadehaven
Shadehaven was one of the villages founded during the Occupation. Mordzon is the patron deity of this settlement and it is the second farthest from the center of the empire, only Raven's Reach is more remote and that only due to the somewhat reclusive nature of their god. The main occupation in this city is logging and there was, in fact, a logging camp here before Mordzon placed his temple here. Wood cut from the jungle edge is sent down the river to Three Waters, loosely lashed together as impromptu rafts. The Rulin who are sent with the logs to make sure they reach their destination and to bring the revenue back to the village are somewhat disparagingly referred to in Three Waters as River Rats and this has slowly drifted to refer to anyone from Shadehaven. There is a lumber mill here as well though they don't do as much business in milled wood, most of it going only to Skyhome.
Shade Haven is a dark place, physically and metaphorically, the nearness of the Narbe and the inland jungle gives it an almost constant overcast. As the temple of the god of the dead is here the largest graveyard in the empire is also here, many people wanting to be buried in the graveyard directly overseen by the Unborn as church doctrine states that this is the best way to make sure the dead reach the Unformed Lands in peace. This graveyard is the second largest source of income for the village as noble families pay for tombs and then pay to have them up-kept as time goes on.
Rulin have more rights here than anywhere else in the Empire. The Unborn, Mordzon is pictured and historically appeared to his followers as a Rulin, but never the same Rulin. This has created a culture in which any unfamiliar Rulin is treated as though they might be Mordzon in disguise, though it has been at least a few generations since there has been verifiable proof that anyone actually encountered him.
The oppressive and somber atmosphere here seems to have encouraged inhabitants to care less for the conventions of the rest of the empire. This, paired with their uncommon respect for Rulin and low population size, has the combined final effect of creating a village where the rigid caste system of the rest of the Empire is all but non-existent here. The Noble caste still rules the town but there are very few of them and they are generally seen as... eccentric by the rest of the noble caste. This frowned upon mixing of castes has come to full scandal in the past few years as the new young Matriarch Alimna has actually taken a Rulin as her First Consort. This is previously unheard of in the Empire and has caused quite a bit of talk among the other noble houses.
Shade Haven is a dark place, physically and metaphorically, the nearness of the Narbe and the inland jungle gives it an almost constant overcast. As the temple of the god of the dead is here the largest graveyard in the empire is also here, many people wanting to be buried in the graveyard directly overseen by the Unborn as church doctrine states that this is the best way to make sure the dead reach the Unformed Lands in peace. This graveyard is the second largest source of income for the village as noble families pay for tombs and then pay to have them up-kept as time goes on.
Rulin have more rights here than anywhere else in the Empire. The Unborn, Mordzon is pictured and historically appeared to his followers as a Rulin, but never the same Rulin. This has created a culture in which any unfamiliar Rulin is treated as though they might be Mordzon in disguise, though it has been at least a few generations since there has been verifiable proof that anyone actually encountered him.
The oppressive and somber atmosphere here seems to have encouraged inhabitants to care less for the conventions of the rest of the empire. This, paired with their uncommon respect for Rulin and low population size, has the combined final effect of creating a village where the rigid caste system of the rest of the Empire is all but non-existent here. The Noble caste still rules the town but there are very few of them and they are generally seen as... eccentric by the rest of the noble caste. This frowned upon mixing of castes has come to full scandal in the past few years as the new young Matriarch Alimna has actually taken a Rulin as her First Consort. This is previously unheard of in the Empire and has caused quite a bit of talk among the other noble houses.
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