Creche
Creche is part of the Deepwood, a kingdom which has seven demesnes. Both the city proper and the demesne surrounding it are called by that name.
Those who reside in Creche are for the most part Thaumurgos or Chimerists. As the demesne of Creche is essentially a giant bespoke plant nursery, the Thaumurgos who live there spend much of their time experimenting with plants, growing them for specific purposes. The Chimerists are considered important to every demesne of the Deepwood, as they grow the giant house-trees in which the general populace reside.
The government of Creche is subordinate to the High King of the Deepwood, and is made up of a council of princes - in this case, not necessarily a gender specific title - essentially the head of household for those whose families first came to the Deepwood. There are five in the demesne of Creche: the Warden, the Governor, the Religieux, the Master Viridian, and the Medicker. Each prince has a duty, which is semi-hereditary.
That being said, if any of the princes' natural heirs is found to be unfit for the office, they are replaced with someone who can fulfill their duties - in practice, swapping heirs in order that the next generation is given the duties and responsibilities they are fit for is somewhat common. The name goes to the house most fit for it, though it is said that the Guardians have always excelled in the martial province.
The responsibilities of the council are divided roughly so:
The Governor handles administrative tasks, as well as correspondence and trade agreements with other demesnes. When judgment is needed over any dispute, the Governor is the tie-breaker in any decision that cannot be resolved in favor of one side or the other.
The Warden handles both internal and external security. Their family often produces heirs who are either Thaumurgos or Chimerists, but their Talents sometimes bend toward Swift. They are trained in martial arts as well as their native Talent, and keep the demesne's militia in fighting shape.
The Religieux are essentially a family of clergy, who find their joy in helping others use their Talents - or, as they are known colloquially, 'blessings'. They oversee public holiday preparations and celebrations, and conduct weddings, funerals, and christenings, in addition to performing all major religious rites.
The Master Viridian is the head of all the Thaumurgos and Chimerists who work in the demesne of Creche. They oversee soil and plant health, the business of the nursery, and the demesne's exports of useful plants.
The Medicker is essentially the doctor of the demesne, as is their family. Medicine in the Deepwood tends less toward surgery and more toward preventative care and herbalism, as is right and proper in a society so overfilled with green men. They have the least hereditary position, as their office must be occupied by a Thaumurgos.
Those who reside in Creche are for the most part Thaumurgos or Chimerists. As the demesne of Creche is essentially a giant bespoke plant nursery, the Thaumurgos who live there spend much of their time experimenting with plants, growing them for specific purposes. The Chimerists are considered important to every demesne of the Deepwood, as they grow the giant house-trees in which the general populace reside.
The government of Creche is subordinate to the High King of the Deepwood, and is made up of a council of princes - in this case, not necessarily a gender specific title - essentially the head of household for those whose families first came to the Deepwood. There are five in the demesne of Creche: the Warden, the Governor, the Religieux, the Master Viridian, and the Medicker. Each prince has a duty, which is semi-hereditary.
That being said, if any of the princes' natural heirs is found to be unfit for the office, they are replaced with someone who can fulfill their duties - in practice, swapping heirs in order that the next generation is given the duties and responsibilities they are fit for is somewhat common. The name goes to the house most fit for it, though it is said that the Guardians have always excelled in the martial province.
The responsibilities of the council are divided roughly so:
The Governor handles administrative tasks, as well as correspondence and trade agreements with other demesnes. When judgment is needed over any dispute, the Governor is the tie-breaker in any decision that cannot be resolved in favor of one side or the other.
The Warden handles both internal and external security. Their family often produces heirs who are either Thaumurgos or Chimerists, but their Talents sometimes bend toward Swift. They are trained in martial arts as well as their native Talent, and keep the demesne's militia in fighting shape.
The Religieux are essentially a family of clergy, who find their joy in helping others use their Talents - or, as they are known colloquially, 'blessings'. They oversee public holiday preparations and celebrations, and conduct weddings, funerals, and christenings, in addition to performing all major religious rites.
The Master Viridian is the head of all the Thaumurgos and Chimerists who work in the demesne of Creche. They oversee soil and plant health, the business of the nursery, and the demesne's exports of useful plants.
The Medicker is essentially the doctor of the demesne, as is their family. Medicine in the Deepwood tends less toward surgery and more toward preventative care and herbalism, as is right and proper in a society so overfilled with green men. They have the least hereditary position, as their office must be occupied by a Thaumurgos.
Demographics
Approximately 1/3 of the population is made up of Thaumurgos; the rest of the population are a mix of other green men and women. Perhaps 1/7 of the population of the entire demesne, mostly in the outskirts, are forest folk.
Creche is mostly prosperous, though of course there are a few merchants and those of the oldest houses who have accumulated more wealth, mostly measured by land owned, as the more land a Thaumurge has, the more they can grow and thus maximize their profit.
Government
The council of princes meet at least once every ten days to discuss the business and concerns of the demesne.
There is no lawful method of taxation, but every adult citizen of the demesne is expected to spend at least two weeks out of the year on public works projects such as road maintenance. This tax of time can be waived by paying the equivalent of the time one might spend, or in the case of illness or disability, may be waived completely at the discretion of the council.
Defences
The defense of the demesne is mostly the impenetrable blackness of the Deepwood. No one who is wise goes out into the Deepwood alone, for there are forest cats fierce enough to kill bears, the bears themselves, packs of wolves, and other, stranger creatures that dwell in the darkness of the Deepwood.
However, the Guardian maintains a perimeter hedge around the demesne to protect livestock and people alike. The hedge is both thick and high.
Industry & Trade
The main export of Creche is seedlings and young plants, especially plants modified for specific purposes, such as the daylights.
Infrastructure
Most of the infrastructure of Creche is much the same as the rest of the Deepwood: holloways (roads which have been so used that their tracks have worn through nearly to bedrock), daylights - a type of plant modified by the Thaumurgos to emit light only for the time during which the sun is above the horizon, and several large halls for use at various times of the year and several purposes.
These last are unique in that they are living halls, with walls grown from the trunks of trees, their branches woven together into roofs, their upper stories planks of wood supported by live tree limbs. The Chimerists' main service in the community is maintenance of these halls, of which there are at least three that are notable:
The council hall, in which the people gather when there is a judgment to be made for the whole community, or for certain holidays, such as the Midsummer festivities; the temple, where weddings, funerals, and other religious rites occur; and the dance hall, which doubles as a threshing floor when the harvest comes in.
These last are unique in that they are living halls, with walls grown from the trunks of trees, their branches woven together into roofs, their upper stories planks of wood supported by live tree limbs. The Chimerists' main service in the community is maintenance of these halls, of which there are at least three that are notable:
The council hall, in which the people gather when there is a judgment to be made for the whole community, or for certain holidays, such as the Midsummer festivities; the temple, where weddings, funerals, and other religious rites occur; and the dance hall, which doubles as a threshing floor when the harvest comes in.
Assets
Creche's most valuable asset is its elders, those who keep the store of knowledge that the Thaumurgos and Chimerists work from. However, they also keep several granaries against lean years, and a store of tools used for farming and seed-starting that is free for anyone to use, though most prefer their own tools when they can get them.
Guilds and Factions
The main guild of Creche is under the direction of the Master Viridian; it has no official name. There are many divisions within its organization, related to growing, grafting, and developing new cultivars of requested plants.
Architecture
The living halls and house-trees of the Deepwood originated in Creche, Chimerists grow both, often in concert with Swifts, which allows them to shape saplings into massive multi-story homes in mere weeks or months, rather than centuries.
In the demesne of Creche, the main trees used for halls and house-trees are beeches, though since it is a nursery, there are also a decent proportion of experimental house-trees.
Geography
The Deepwood and its demesnes sit in a wedge of land between the ocean, the Cloudspine mountain range, and the greater Khoial forest. The land slopes up toward the Cloudspine from the ocean. The foothills sit at about 5,000 feet above sea level. There is no beach near the ocean; the whole shoreline of the Deepwood's demesnes is dominated by cliffs of varying heights.
Climate
The Deepwood has a temperate maritime climate, with frequent snow and ice storms in the winter, and hot, humid summers.
Natural Resources
Wood is, of course, the most abundant resource of the Deepwood, but each of its demesnes has a specialty, and in Creche, that specialty is live plants. The other name for the demesne of Creche is 'Nursery', and it lives up to that name, exporting all kinds of rare and specialty plants to the other demesnes.
However, there is another export from Creche: resin. This resin comes from several different types of trees that have been modified to uptake the heavy metals that contaminate much of the Deepwood's soil. This results in highly saturated, brightly colored sap, tapped in spring, which the artisans of Creche use to make beads, artwork, and even 'stained glass'. The crude sap is also exported to Foundry and Crucible, where the residual metals are extracted for other uses.
Founding Date
1 year post-Cataclysm
Alternative Name(s)
Nursery
Type
City
Population
approximately 7,000
Inhabitant Demonym
Crechan
Location under
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