Tchur-i-kahn
Tchur-i-kahn is a city of smithies. Built atop the point of highest elevation in all the Utterends (a jumble of low, rocky hills), Tchur-i-kahn is at least as ancient in its foundations as the Chafa Temple. This is where the Tabaxi first learned to smelt and forge, and some of the oldest stone forges are still preserved, used today for gold and silver works (since they cannot be made hot enough for smithing iron and steel).
Over time, Tchur-i-kahn has grown in size, technology, and importance, and has come to be another major annual stop for the Guivoc nomadic communities. While the rocky hills remain high and dry all year round, able to support a modest monsoon-season population, the ground around the hills is all marsh during the rains, unsuitable for large camps of people. In the dry season, however, the areas around the Tchur-i-kahn hills are hospitable and rich with life. Communities therefore come here to camp for a time on their way back to Quiris Meadow for the harvest season and have turned Tchur-i-kahn into a grand annual market taking place usually at a midpoint between Spring Equinox and Summer Solstice, in line with the Utterends’ unusual harvest cycle.
This tradition has, in the eyes of some, given the Guild of Smiths (who largely run the city) an inflated share of national power, and the Guild of Smiths’ council has thus become one of the hardest guild councils to join and one of the easiest to be expelled from. While this may have prevented corruption on the council, it has unfortunately promoted a certain degree of disorganization, and market time in Tchur-i-kahn is usually a jumbled chaos.
A smaller festival takes place in Tchur-i-kahn each year during monsoon season and is attended by only a few volunteer representatives of each community every year. This is the birthday celebration of the Lord Dragon. It is said that the Lord Dragon claimed his birthday was just after Fall Equinox in order to prevent the Guivoc people from making a fuss over him every year, but they still do — it’s just a smaller fuss than it might otherwise have been.
In a large gathering hall, each nomadic community that sent representatives presents a work of art from its own band that is dedicated to the Lord Dragon. These are judged by all attendees and prizes are awarded to the communities of the winners in various categories such as poetry, performance art, sculpture, etc. All entries (or transcripts thereof) are displayed in the gathering hall until market season the following year to make sure the Lord Dragon has a chance to see them, but it is said that he makes his way in secret to the ceremony every year without fail to hear performances and poems in person. For this reason, attendees are always on their best behavior since they all know that any other attendee might be the Lord Dragon in disguise.
It is unknown whether the Lord Dragon actually appears at his birthday celebration each year, but some say he once promised someone that he would, and he is known to always keep his promises if at all possible.
Settlement
Tchur-i-kahn, City of
Owning Organization
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