Falorian

Trunks of thousand year old trees seem so delicate from afar. Their branches which creak mightily in the wind, rising and falling as the forest breaths, are mere wiry twigs when seen at distance; the fifty thousand leaves which festoon each branch are just dark pinpricks. Above them, the sheer enormity of Ivilsuin rises up towards bright clouds, the mountain and the forests which adorn it's sides disappearing into a grey haze. Beyond that? From here, you cannot see, but if you were to make the climb up Ivilsuin, and pass through those grey clouds, you would be met with a sight of wonder: A grey spire, climbing far above the clouds, where the High Elves of Falorian make their home.
Falorian is the principal elven settlement in and around The Kingdom of Archaria. Like most high elven settlements, Falorian is built atop a mountain (called Ivilsuin), and takes the shape a a graceful grey-white spire which climbs a mile into the air. This gives the high elves a long view over the lands for dozens of miles around, to reflect the high elf philosophy of observing matters from a detatched, Olympian perspective, getting a sense of the whole picture before passing judgement. Buildings are built into this central spire, which is traversed by means of staiscases for shorter journeys, or airships and teleportation to climb longer distances.
As well as being famous for it's height and grandeur of design, Falorian is most notable for being the primary producer of Hielel's Cobweb (Amairalis in elvish), and has trained the most skilful weavers of Amairlothorens (see sidebar or Hielel's Cobweb article) in the known world - elves come from all over to seek guidance in the crafting of them.

Appearance and Structure

As mentioned above, Falorian is an unusual city, in human terms. Rather than being spread out across the land, Falorian is a city in the sky, atop the peak of Ivilsuin. Buildings are build into and around a huge spire of grey/white marble (with quartz crystals integrated into the stone, making the city glitter), and grey, weathered wood. The spire, which tapers towards the top, is almost a mile high, and looks like hundreds of vines and trees twisting around eachother as they climb higher, the immense fibres twisted into graceful arched windows. Platforms, passages, balconies and arches appear carved into the marble, roofed and supported with huge sweeping buttresses and naturally shaped arches of stone and wood. Over time, the elves have added parts to this ancient structure, which was, of course, created via magic. Nowadays, more wooden structures, no less masterfully crafted, are built onto the sides, serving as extra housing and sky ports for airships. Long flags constantly flutter from the city.
The city is enormous in design, and, including underground and forest sections of the city, is much too large for the population it supports. Therefore, there are many rooms and passages in the building which lie abandoned, yet still in pristine condition, making for a strange and surreal journey if one wishes to explore these places. Most of these abandoned places are at the base of the spire, underground, or at it's icy peak.
Falorian can be divided roughly into four districts, which are described here:

Ernathteraniamith (Underground City)

Inside the mountain beneath Falorian is a lonely place. It's a network of defensive tunnels and secret caves beneath the city. These tunnels can serve as a defensive asset, but also as storage for supplies. Entwined with the tunnels are mysterious, enourmous dungeons, with huge grand halls built in architecture not found anywhere in modern times (see Ivilsuin sidebar). These tunnels and halls make the Ernathterania treacherous indeed, as there is always a threat of getting lost. It is also here that iscolated communities of other, mostly poor humanoids (mostly humans) thrive unseen, living off the supplies that the elves keep down here.

Vandormith (Forest City)

This the second most populous district in Falorian, taking it's name from the ancient forests of Ivilsuin which surround it. It includes the base of the spire and the first 50 or so stories, up to the cloud line. This is where the main defensive force of the city dwells, and also the agricultural centre. The elves who live here are mostly soldiers, carpenters and farmers who tend to the fruit and nut trees of the forest. Here, the walls are much thicker to support the spire, and other wooden buildings spread out from the base into the forest, with some suspended in the trees.

Thermith (Sky City)

The most populous district of Falorian, Thermith is the vast central section of the spire, above the cloud cover. This gives it's inhabitants beautiful views of the gold and silver lined clouds stretching often to the horizon. It's where most elvish craftspeople, scholars, and other skilled workers reside, and is also the site of the city's most profitable industry - the harvest of Amairalis (Hielel's Cobweb in common), and the creation of Amairlothorens. It is also the site of most skyports, and other infrastructure. Education and heath facilities are also located here.

Vonmith (Ice City)

In the incredible high altitudes of the top of the spire, the temperature is extremely low. In the highest fifteen stories of the spire, the temperature is sub 0 (Celsius) all year round. This tier is dubbed Vonmith, or ice city in common. Here, the marble walls are glistening with ice crystals, and rooms filled with icicles and frozen fountains. The five lowest levels are where high ranking nobles reside. The ten highest levels are where the council of Falorian meets in the highest chambers, but apart from this governmental use, and a few temples and holy sites, the district is left as a sort of pristine, frozen museum, without exhibits. Silent elves wearing silver masks guard the entrance. A surreal place indeed.

Government

Elves are constantly reincarnated, their souls reborn with every death. This makes some elf souls more ancient than others, and therefore closer to the primal elves, which the mortal elves see as perfect forms. The governing of Falorian is entrusted to these elves with ancient souls, as they usually retain some of the personality and memories of their past lives. This means that these elves are almost always good and just rulers, being closer to the perfect elvish form. Elf souls are passed down in family lines, so rulers are usually part of five ruling families, the heads of which meet at the zenith of the spire in Vonmith. Sometimes, elf lines can be broken, or loose favour with elf deities or their peers. In these cases, the ancient souls pass not to members of the same family, by to other lines. Elf clerics can sense this, and let the new lines into the rulership.

The Line of Amakiir

Only 4 of the 5 ruling houses of Falorian are true carriers of ancient souls. The line of Amakiir is one of skilled illusionists and enchanters, dwelling in Vandormith before they rose to ruler-ship. By unscrupulous use of their magic, they have been able to trick the clerics into believing that they carry ancient souls. Despite their dubious methods of coming to power, the Line of Amakiir is not evil. They only hold unorthodox doubts over the "holiness" of ancient souls, and believe that all elves should be equal, no matter the origin of their soul. The Amakiir are mostly responsible for the supplies to Falorian, agriculture, water and trade.

The Line of Nivellovra

The Line of Nivellovra is a line of priests, who mostly deal with the spiritual aspects of life in Falorian. Ever since the Line of Amakiir rose to prominence, the Line of Nivellovra has been suspicious, but haven't acted or accused. This raises the question, are they unsure, do they know but have a reason not to say, or do they secretly share common beliefs?

The Line of Sanukiir

The Line of Sanukiir is a war-like family, and has produced many fine warriors and adventurers. Their business lies mostly in defence of Falorian, and exploration. They have enjoyed good relations with the Amakiir, with both hailing from Vandormith, as well as with the Quarin, as they share common goals. They dislike the Folmanith, who they think weak.

The Line of Folmanith

The Folmaniths are no strangers to the freezing temperatures of Vonmith where the ruling lines hold council, for being incredibly wealthy, they reside on it's lower levels. They are a family of merchants and engineers, in charge of the city's trade and infrastructure. They dislike the Sanukiirs, who they think hot-headed, but they have a good alliance with the Vollonwriths and the Naïlos.

The Line of Vollonwrith

The Line of Vollonwrith is a family which specialises in the arcane arts and teaching. Their responsibility in Falorian is with education and research. They also oversee the city's main industry - the collection of Amairalis and the weaving of Amairlothorens. In fact, some of the most skilled Amairalis diviners come from this house. They enjoy a good relationship with the houses of Folmanith, who have been generous donors to their research, and Nivellovra. However, they know that the Amakiir are suspicious of them.

The next two lines are of old souls, not ancient enough to rule, but still old enough to take a part in city affairs.

The Line of Naïlo

The line of Naïlo deals with the more unscrupulous affairs of the city, not being afraid to get their hands dirty. They work sabotage, manipulation and assassination to eliminate the city's enemies. The house has produced a lot of successful adventurers.

The Line of Quarin

The Line of Quarin is a house of travellers and merchants, who bring news from far reaches of the world to the council. Due to their experience with other cultures, the Quarin are often called upon as diplomats.

Defences

Being built on-top of a mountain and in it's particular design, Falorian is particularly resistant to attack. It would be extremely difficult for an ordinary army to climb the spire to the top without the aid of magical teleportaion or flying vehicles, and during attacks, teleportation circles in at risk areas are shut down. On top of this, the base of the spire at Vandormith is surrounded by 3 layers of fortification, built into the spire itself. This serves not only as a defence, but also as structural support for the spire. Another defensive feature of Falorian is the network of tunnels in Ernathteraniamith. These ancient halls and passages are mazelike, and are only known well to a few of the city's denizens. Hidden teleportation circles in the tunnels allow emergancy evacuation of the city, and allow regiments of soldiers to be transported from higher levels to Ivilsuin for counterattacks or to relive siege. The last layer of structural defence is that each floor of Falorian can be shut off from the one below by means of marble blocks and portcullises, making the journey up the spire a gruelling one for any attackers, who have to break through each level, one by one. In case of airborne attack, the interior of the spire can be shut off from the platforms and balconies with heavy stone doors.

Falorian supports a professional garrison of 750 warriors, however, almost all high elves have some sort of combat training, and the city supports a militia of almost 5000 elves. The militia is mostly made up of archers who attack from the city's higher levels. In times of attack, spellcasters assist the defence through long range magical bombardment from the higher levels of Vandormith and the lover levels of Thermith. They can also provide cover and protection for airships to collect supplies to hold during a siege.

Industry & Trade

As mentioned in the introduction, the collection of Amairalis (Hielel's Cobweb ) and the creation of Amairlothorens is Falorian's main industry - what the settlement is famous for.
Falorian's Amairalis collection is achieved in the higher levels of Thermith through use of arcane nets - shimmering blue/white netting whigh is strung out from the spire to catch the precious strands. Below, on the clouds where Vandormith meets Thermith, hundreds of elves on airships collect the strands from the tops of the clouds.
Meanwhile, in the higher tiers of Thermith is a level full of Amairalis diviners, who will assist elves in using the webs to glimpse into their memories from past lives. Weavers then guide the customers to weave the strands into lengths of cloth to commemorate and bring spiritual connection to their spiritual pasts. These Amairlothorens are Falorian's main product, and it is almost impossible to find weavers of a better quality than the ones here. However, on the weaving levels of Thermith, there is still much variation in skill. Some weavers, such as those from the lines of Vollonwrith and Kasukir, are more sought after than others, while others cater for those with limited budgets, and their Amairlothorens tend to be of a lower standard.

Infrastructure

Falorian has a great many wonders of infrastructure within it's great height. Perhaps the most amazing however, is the city's water supply. The city is fed by natural springs in Ivilsuin, however, to bring the water up high, a great pipeline draws it up via use of magical pumps. This pipeline also feeds one of the most beautiful features of Falorian - a huge waterfall, in which excess water from the pipeline is ejected from pipes high up in Thermith, and falls in a beautiful arc down towards a grand collection pool for later use. Water can also be obtained via the clouds which surround the city.
Falorian also boasts one of the largest skyports in all of the Archarian region. Hundreds of airships come and go daily, carrying supplies, or ferrying passengers up and down the city.

Alternative Name(s)

The Spire

Type

City

Population

18,000

Ivilsuin

Ivilsuin is the elvish name for the mountain on which Falorian stands. It is an unusual geographical feature, not only because it is a lonely mountain, not part of a range, but also because life can flourish so far up it's slopes. In fact, the whole mountain, right up to near the clouds, is wooded. Different cultures have many different tales about the mountain, to explain it's unusual nature. Elves believe that it was a fortress of empyreans at the beginning of time, or even an outpost of the Gods themselves. However, in an ancient war, the fortress was all but destroyed, leaving only a demolished mound of stone, which became Ivilsuin. The halls in the mountain are what's left. As the story would suggest that those halls are holy ground, elves bury their dead in these halls. The natur on the mountain is the holy aura of the mountain protecting life. Stories from other cultures include Ivilsuin being the sole survivor of it's range, the other mountains having been destroyed.

Amairlothorens

Amairlothorens are the product which Falorian is famous for (amongst other things). An amairlothoren is considered sacred to it's owner, as it contains essence and whispers of their past lives. For this reason, and to preserve the sacredness, an elf must always have a hand in the creation of their own amairlothoren, be it a guided hand. In rare cases, if an elf dies and it's soul is found in another elf, the amairlothoren of the dead elf is given to the child, as it is part of their soul's story. The child will most likely add to it with more amairalis, to add the flickers of their last life to the story. It is forbidden to weave an amairlothoren for a non elf, but in exceedingly rare cases, it is done such as that of (Ommund Rifflock, High Priest of Hielel, Esteemed Sage of Mount Akkum, Noble Lord of the Kylis Tomes, Mightiest among Mortals, etc. ). However, other humanoid souls are not reincarnated, so for non-elves, the amairlothoren has no real spiritual value, and the weaver will just make it based of whims. Elves who craft Amairlothorens for non-elves are held for sacrilege or even treason in extreme circumstances.