Saumart

Saumart is a Human city, thought once to be just a small fishing village, it has since grown to be a bustling center of art (and fish).

Forvan Redfury by Jarhed

Vacation Destination

There are many things that make Saumart a go-to place for tourists in the Human Kingdom. Locations, traditions, and of course, festivals make Saumart a must-see place.

Forest After Dark

Forest After Dark, also known as FAD, is the restaurant of Forvan Redfury. It is known for having a wide variety of choices for meals, such as Stygian Salad. Here is an excerpt from a review of FAD, published by Forvan's own company, F.O.O.D.:

"Forest After Dark is not just a restaurant or a hang-out, it is the full package. Excellent food, atmosphere, and service from a single, charming, hard-working man. Normally a one-man restaurant would never have such quality, but Forvan Redfury has captured the essence of what a restaurant needs, and has perfected it. If you haven't been to Forest After Dark, stop on by for the greatest culinary experience of your life. It's so good, you won't believe it's not magic!"

— Lorden Trispoon

It is, in fact, magic, as Forvan Redfury uses his Food Magic to create the greatest meals one could ask for with little effort. Another, more recent review of Forest After Dark, says:

"Masterful is not a word that I throw around with ease, but there is no lighter word than that to describe the taste of the food at Forest After Dark. I cannot look at food the same again after this, for nothing after this can even meet the definition of food, as this has raised the bar that high."

— Kimble Broilforth

So if you're in Saumart, Forest After Dark is the only option for a good meal, because there has never been a better meal in all of Totania.

F.O.O.D. Headquarters

F.O.O.D., the food reviewing company created by Forvan Redfury, is based within Saumart. Not all reviewers are in Saumart, as a matter of fact they are spread out quite far to ensure that when a new restaurant pops up, they'll be there within the day.
The Headquarters in Saumart is home to the original reviewers, where they keep track of all data brought in by reviewers and publish the newspapers and magazines that feature their reviews.
It is said that it features a full bar and restaurant that has been recommended by all top reviewers at F.O.O.D. It is open to the public two days a week, and at all other times is only accessible to F.O.O.D. Employees.

The Founding

Saumart was founded by a group of Humans who were fishing in the city of Gremont and were swept out a bit too far North by the sea. When they made it back to shore, they were too far from home, and had to improvise.
So they continued fishing, finding the seas around this new home filled with more fish than they could ever imagine. And not just boring old fish, though there were plenty of those as well. These were exotic fish. Fish from all over the world.
Later it was found there was a strange current that brought all fish to the nearby Gulf of Cassis, which was next to Saumart. It is likely due to Selene's meddling in creating a new sea.
The town was built entirely on fishing for much of its life, and was quite self-sufficient. Eventually, the Church of Athena found it and brought it under its wing, where it was then found by the Court Wizard who brought it into the Human Kingdom under Nerodil.
Ever since then, Saumart has been under the control of Nerodil. It stayed focused on Fish for much of its time, though in recency this changed.

Center of Art

Forvan Redfury is a man of artistic taste. He grew up in Saumart and has lived there his whole life. It was his starting of a restaurant, Forest After Dark, and food reviewing organization, F.O.O.D., that made people realize Saumart could house much more than Fish.
His wife, Chaze Redfury soon began showcasing her art around the city as well. This, along with Forvan's work, inspired people. Soon enough, murals started popping up around the city, Getoh began having his plays performed in Saumart, and an artistic and cultural rebirth began, characterized by the birth of Cozall Redfury. Due to this, along with his parents, it was dubbed the Redfury Renaissance.

Aquatic Museum of Art

The Aquatic Museum of Art, also known as AMA, is the museum of Chaze Redfury. The walls of the Aquatic Museum of Art are made entirely of glass, so that anyone can see the paintings, even if they cannot afford to go into the museum. Chaze wishes for the museum to inspire people, and doesn't want that locked behind a paywall, because the people that need that inspiration the most would never get it.
Most of the paintings in the Aquatic Museum of Art are made by Chaze Redfury. They are paintings of things she enjoys, like her family, sunsets, the water, and mountains. She is inspired to make these things, and that passion seeps out onto the canvas.
However, recently, the Aquatic Museum of Art has been accepting other paintings as well. It began when Chaze accepted a painting from her son, Cozall Redfury. Not wanting to show nepotism, she used this as an opportunity to start a competition for others to get into the Aquatic Museum of Art. This started an initiative in Saumart where people would grab a canvas and a brush and paint on the streets. Even now, it would not be surprising to find people doing this on the streets.

Cozall Redfury by Jarhed

Athena Outpost

The Church of Athena did not create a Church for the residents of Saumart. It is part of the Church teachings that worship can only be done in the Church at Gremont. However, they do have an outpost in Saumart so that Priests can go to Saumart to preach to the masses.

The Murals

There was a time in Saumart history where murals began randomly popping up, right before the Redfury Renaissance. In recency, these have been attributed to the young Cozall Redfury, though many say he was too young at the time to paint something like this.
The paintings are of various things. There seems to be no clear theme, with things like Eden Zunno, the First Priest of Athena being one mural. Another mural, then, will be a painting of the moon, and another an underwater city made of gold. There is no consistency, and yet still each one is considered a beautiful piece of art, and the whole series has an emotional resonance that one would not expect from seemingly unconnected pieces of art put on random buildings.

The Docks

Perhaps the most famous part of Saumart are its docks. There are docks on all sides of Saumart to fit all of the fishing operations that bring in the majority of the city's food.
The docks look out over beaches, where one will either see the Northern Sea or the Gulf of Cassis. The beaches are sandy and beautiful, though not comparible to those of Martinau. The docks are made of wood, and are constantly replaced when the wood begins to rot or corrode.
Some docks are high above the ground for larger shipping boats, while small fishing boats get their own little docks to leave from and dock at. Each resident of Saumart who owns land is given a spot at a dock for a boat, and almost all residents will take this opportunity and get a boat.

Fish Fest

Perhaps Saumart's greatest calling card is that of Fish Fest, a yearly festival in the Summer that lasts for a week. It features all residents of Saumart (and any guests) dressing in fish costumes and going around as tents and games are set up for them to experience.
Everything is related to fish. Fish is the only food served, games are themed around fish, and all outfits are fishlike. They are not always full fish suits, though most people were such fullbody fish suits that their actual bodies can be seen. Some like this, as it hides their identity and lets people be themselves without having to show themselves, or lets them be someone else for a change.
There are some people, often called overconfident, who do not wear fish costumes during fish fest. This is not a sign of rebellion, but moreso a sign of self-assuredness. A sign that they do not need the fish costume, because they know who they are.
Some Fish Fest shenanigans get out of hand, and many Saumart residents claim to have met their spouses during Fish Fest while both were dressed as fish. It is said to connect people together like nothing else.

The Purpose

What it actually is for is a bit more complicated. Fish Fest is done in the Spring because Fishing returns after the Winter, and fish are able to be caught again. There is, then, an overabundance of fish as people fish too much after not being able to fish for a bit. It is also to celebrate the thing that brings such joy and money to the town, and to get to be someone else for a day, if one pleases.

Government

Saumart is under the rule of Nerodil's Human Kingdom. Therefore, they directly answer to the King of Humanity.
In recent times, however, Saumart has been left to their own devices as the Human Kingdom gets weaker. This has caused the Church of Athena to try and make power plays to gain control of Saumart, and for Saumart to instead gain more independence to retain autonomy.
Therefore, the Mayor of Saumart technically governs Saumart without any oversight. Some, like Chaze Redfury, have taken to calling the Mayor the "King of Saumart" and, in a way, it is not an incorrect statement. Mayor Dindurn Didz is technically the absolute monarch of Saumart, and rules it with a lazy fist.
Dindurn Didz has done very little. He mostly lets the city govern itself, though he did form a private military out of fishermen to protect Saumart from anyone who would attack it or try to take it over. They don't think they could take on the Church of Athena or Nerodil Guard's full forces, but they can at least send a message. A message that Saumart is not to be messed with, because while it is made up mostly of fishermen and artists, it is still mighty.