New Olamn Bard's College
The New Olamn Bard's College is a long-standing place of study for entertainers, artists, and musicians. It is known for its incredibly competitive enrollment process, tough instructors, and extensive niche programs. The college itself is built into Waterdeep's oceanside bluff, located under The Black Citadel, and is only accessible through the tunnel comprising the Melody Mount Walk. The college's gate is situated at the end of this tunnel and opens to a specific tune which is changed on a daily basis. Students of the college are responsible for learning the day's melody if they wish to leave or enter the college.
The Melody Mount Walk
The Melody Mount Walk is a quarter-mile long tunnel leading to the college's sealed gates. The black tunnel walls are enchanted with patterns of sound-reactive colorful lights which dance in response to music. Traditionally, first-year students play music in an alcove halfway through the tunnel, and are responsible for keeping the music continuously echoing through the walk by adhering to a strict performance rotation. The Eternal Melody began the on the spring equinox 20th of Kythorn, 98 PU and persisted for 32 years until the 24th of Kythorn, 130 PU when a shatter spell collapsed the tunnel, killing all seven of the current performers. This event is known as the New Olamn Massacre. Shortly after the massacre, a young half-elven woman by the name of Risla Wish began singing on the rubble of the collapsed tunnel. She sangs for two days straight, until her throat was swollen and her knees swayed. Just as her words begin to fade, others come to sing with her. Normal citizens-- those who loved the eternal song as much as her. A crowd gathered, some bringing makeshift drums and horns, others lending master craft instruments. Like a phoenix from the ashes, the eternal song renewed as quickly as it died-- this time drawing from the collective soul of the city rather than the strict necessity of the bard's college; cobbled together from the wreckage of those who remain. The new melody is less rigid, less tuned, less practiced than the original. It is malleable, ever changing, as life should be. It pulls from stories and experiences of all that participate, molding into something more visceral, more genuine. Having lived through its own death and revival, the song now seems to understand the plight of life, and revives as a source of inspiration for those facing the indifferent, tragic nature of life. This incident inspired the now famous song, The Shattering.
Type
University / Educational complex
Parent Location
