Britain
Britain, the city of Compassion and since Sir Robert’s defeat on the Crimson Plains also the capital of Britannia, lies besides a great river that runs from the eastern mountain range, also known as the Serpent’s Spine to Britanny Bay.
The Serpent’s Spine on the one hand protects the city of Britain against raiders, but on the other hand it makes travelling a whole lot more difficult. Although there is a pass over the mountain range many travelling merchants prefer to go a long way round, because the area is often visited with ettins and orcs. The Serpent’s Spine is indeed a massive and often dangerous mountain range, and it is the tallest mountain range in whole Britannia. |
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Britain itself is the hugest town in Britannia and for its size it is a very clean city. The roads are paved with stone and the major stone buildings of the town are intermixed with robust wooden houses, used as shops and homes.
In the middle of Britain lies British Castle, a beautiful sight for both, strangers and inhabitants, surrounded by a moat. British Castle of course is the residence of Lord British himself, who rules over the city of Britain with a caring, yet strict hand.
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Lord British managed to obtain the virtues in the town, and many people living in Britain still are holding to them, even more than the inhabitants of other towns. Nevertheless, there are smaller groups who do not like the ultimate reign of Lord British and who would prefer if the reign of the town would be given to the population again. Nevertheless, peace is obtained in town and there are no violent movements.
| Maybe those groups are supported by Lord Blackthorn and his chaos guards. Blackthorn Castle, as the castle of Lord British but much smaller, is another beautiful sight in Britain. It is located at the north-east of the town on a small, artificial island with prospect to the wild ocean. Mostly visited by chaos guards assuring their fealty to Lord Blackthorn, Castle Blackthorn usually is a very quiet and peaceful place. |
The inhabitants of Britain are very mixed – there is not class that cannot be found in the capital of Britannia. Britain’s crafters and workers, mages and engineers, scholars and animal trainers are well known all over the vast lands of Britannia and in their skills only exceeded by the citizens of towns that specialized in a certain field.
There is a very strong circle of mages habituated in Britain which had the result that one the one hand the magical infrastructure of the town is a very good one, and on the other hand that the people of Britain look at magic rather positive than neutral. Britain’s mages are only exceeded by the mages of Moonglow, and only scarcely a day passes by when a mage does not manage to invent something new.
The main class of Britain though are the Bards. They are very well known all over the lands, and highly respected in the city itself. Britain is the place where the bards learn to play their instruments, and it is the place where their songs and serenades are born. Not only bards can be found in Britain, but many other artists – Britain definitely is the city of fine arts, a fact that it also reflected by the presence of many artist guilds, and the pinnacle of the artists, the Conservatory. Shows and performances are relatively common and if there are festivities the many artists of the towns often compete with each other to create the most tremendous event.
The farmlands surrounding the town are very well guarded and allow Britain to be pretty much self-dependant. The farms yield a good amount of grain, fruits and vegetables and they also supply the town with meat and milk. Still, Britain heavily relays on other cities for innovations and supplies.
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Britannian customs are a colorful mixture of several different lifestyles and freedoms. Important days are celebrated with huge festivals, one more perfect and opulent than the other. The most important holidays are Lord British’s Birthday, when the Lord himself throws a fest for whole Britannia, Serpent’s Day, a six day celebration of the surrender of Lord Robere after the six month campaign in northeastern Britannia, and Autmn’s Eve, a night of masked revelry to prepare for the sun’s upcoming slumber beneath a shroud of snow.
The principle of Britain is love, contradictory to its nearest dungeon, Despise.
Impressions of Britain, by Roakith Fasthand, Adventurer
I have been traveling the world, but there is no other town that welcomes me like Britain does. After a long absence I am entering over the bridge into the town to reach the stone building of the First Bank of Britain. There is no town as busy as Britain, merchants are bargaining their goods and customers are trying to lower the price.
I take a deep breath and suddenly know that I am at home. Britain, city of my dreams, Britain, majestic and awesome, Britain, my home. I pass by the bank and go on northwards, when I am suddenly stopped by the sight of Castle British. All pictures I have in my memory are insufficient to explain and do justice to the actual beauty of the castle. Smilingly I stop for a moment and allow the wonderful sight to delight my soul.
When I continue my way I pass by more people, children are laughing and waving at me, and many of the people around me are carrying their lutes and harps, making their way to the conservatory. Suddenly I remember the last time I had visited my hometown. It was a sunny and friendly day and we celebrated the birthday of our dear Lord. The remembrance makes me smile and suddenly I realize how much I have missed my home.
I come past the armor shop where Sildur, an old friend of mine is doing his business. He waves at me and I can read joy in his eyes, and before I vanish out of sight he shouts to meet him at the tavern later on this day for an ale and a story. I nod and laugh and rise my hand greetingly.
Finally I am reaching the suburbs of Britain, where the omnipresent stone buildings had to make place for sturdy wooden houses. One of them is mine, one of them is my home and the home of my family. I do not have to search long and automatically my feet find their way.
And then, suddenly I am standing in front of the door. Again I smile and then enter. “I am back, I am at home!” I shout out and smile. Britain, my love, I will never leave you again. I am at home, at the most wonderful town of whole Britannia.
