Faunfall

City in the Deep

The towers fell and the walls crumpled like wet paper. Streets buckled and wooden beams were thrown upward like grasping hands. The place shook, sighed, and with a final groan, fell into the bosom of the world. Down went Anthemir, still seated on her immovable throne, and all of her priests who dove in after her.

The Great Fall of Anthemir

The Faunfall is the ruins of the city of Fanfare after the Great Fall of Anthemir. Though the Fall is typically blamed on the Dwarves who carved great halls into the mountains, it is truly the fault of Anthemir's followers who quarried so heavily for their innumerable stone churches. At a time just before the Fall, Fanfare, built atop the porous limestone rock of the Fertile Valley, was estimated to have nearly nine-hundred churches.
Thousands died in the fall and many more perished after long days spent trapped beneath the rubble. The fall was seen by some as a reckoning and an end of the Tarnipury faith. Others saw it as a revelation and leapt into the crumbling city, cursing those who stayed behind. Anthemir herself sunk deep into the earth and lay unconscious for many days. A pilgrimage of her followers found her and offered her power through their prayer, but it was only enough to keep her alive. And so New Tarnipurism was established, also called Anotinysm, the Buried Faith, and became a forbidden religion throughout the rest of the Continent.
As the falling stones settled and people returned to the now-sunken city, Faunfall developed a civilization entirely unique from that of its predecessor. Toppled churches jut out from the cliff walls and water pools in cisterns made from the fallen towers. Certain mosses and creatures are found nowhere else but only in specific strata of this chasm. From these exotic goods emerged a new economy and a people flourishing at the bottom of the world.

The Seven Stands

The city is divided roughly into these seven sections, most of which are uninhabited. Only two regions truly foster civilization--First Cathedral and Middlechurch.

First Cathedral

About a quarter-day's journey down the sheer cliff walls is the First Cathedral. The monument juts defiantly from the sheer rock face, one of the great churches of the old city mostly unharmed by the fall. It is visible from the top. Though a small settlement has sprung up around it, the terrain is rough and flat ground is scant. Most people here are "officials" of Faunfall, self-proclaimed men who preside over matters in the deeper settlements and regulate the little trade that goes in and out of the city. There is also the Hospice which provides free stay and meals to merchants who do trade in Faunfall. Rumor has it that those on especially good terms get discounts on drinks and whores as well.

Wading Pools

Here, many springs pour out and down the cliffs, their water gathering in tepid, yellowing pools. Heavy rains flood the pools, sending cascades of water into the depths. Though the water is clean, it reeks of sulfur and is avoided except by only the most desperate of travelers. The region is uninhabited save for several rickety inns and a scattering of bandit camps.

Middlechurch

This settlement is a one to two day's journey (depending on experience, timing, and recklessness) from First Cathedral. Caught against a slope of the cliff wall, a great deal of buildings collected here after the Fall. The stones were cut afresh and lain to build a modest township. Nearly 85% of Faunfall's populace reside here in simple homes built from scavenged stones or carved into the cliff face. With the law of First Cathedral so far above them, the town can be fairly seedy. Though a Democratic government run by a handful of elected officials keeps most things in order.
Stronger than the word of politicians, however, is the New Faith and its select few priests. The arrival of Anotinyne Priests from the lower stands rouse families from sleep and chore to watch in respectful silence the enlightened men pass through the streets.

Slime Woods

A forest of fungi, mosses, and molds that stretches deep and wide. Roads cutting through it are closed in mere days by the aggressive foliage and the rich diversity which makes the woods so valuable is also its greatest danger. Caustic mists irritate the skin and lungs, the air quivers with mosquitoes, and the undrinkable water teems with invisible parasites. It is here that the ubiquitous Earth Impel amasses in great quantity, compounding yet further the lower one travels. The entire region is prized by botanists, herbalists, and druidic scholars and many have made the dangerous journey to see this wild place.

The Old City

The denizens of Middlechurch use this name jokingly for nothing remains here but rubble and ruin. Many settlements were started here but they all faltered under the lack of sunlight and corrupting presence of the Earth Impel which quickens aging and changes the body in dangerous ways. Rare treasures are still dug up every now and then and the nobles and rich merchants of the First Cathedral are always vying for these historic spoils. A wavering road is scraped out of the stone rubble, connecting the tangle of forest above to the settlement below.

The Last Settlement

The ruins of the The Old City bleed into this pitiful collection of people living in huts and forging for the meagerest of food. These are the Anotinyne Priests of the New Faith who commune with Anthemir and deliver her holy truths unto the world above for despite her condition, she still rules her people. For many years, the priests tried to free Anthemir from her stone tomb. Though they had some success, a single accident erased all their progress and broke half of the goddess' bones. From then on, the priests devoted themselves to easing Anthemir's pain and taking the place of her angelic servants who had long ago disappeared.
The rare outsider who comes to this place (a full week's journey from the top) is affected greatly by the Earth Impel and it is unlikely they will return to the surface fully human. The priests suffer from this effect as well but have accustomed themselves to it. In some rare cases, they have also ascertained its great power.

Anthemir's Holy Den

At the bottom of the world is Anthemir, half dead, half rotting skin and bone. For the better part of a thousand years, she has lain buried beneath rubble of her old city and its nine-hundred churches. Her pain rises and fades. At its best, she communes with the Anotinyne Priests and issues orders to her people above. At its worst, her screeches have caused earthquakes.
Her motives for continuing to live are inscrutable. Perhaps she clings to the hope of rescue or still relishes the power she exerts over her people. Perhaps she is disillusioned by her priests which assure her of a happy a prosperous people who adore her. The people of Middlechurch whisper that one day, a brave soul will take it upon themselves to end the poor thing's life and destroy the faith that birthed their very race.

Type

Large city

Location under

Faunland

Related Historical Events

• 871
  The Great Fall