Haven
Demographics
Over the last three centuries a rather profound equality has permeated Haven. In Haven all are equal, even the individual currently the Governor. There is only two demographics as far as Havenors are concerned.
Citizens and non-citizens
Government
Democratic Autocracy.
Every two years the citizens of Haven above the age of Majority vote for a Governor who will wield absolute executive power for their term. Their only limit is that they may never do anything to hinder an Election.
The Governor is free to use community funds as they see fit. They may name individuals to offical posts with duties and privledges that they declare and they may make these appointments by decree.
Defences
Five shoreside Ballista platforms cover the entirety of the harbor from elevated and fortified watch towers. The Residential district has a mortered stone wall about 3 meters high and 1 meter thick.
100 citizens are chosen by citizenry vote, to keep and utilize the full battle kit of an Imperial Shadowguard. If a keeper of the kit dies or no longer wishes to serve in this capacity then a new keeper is voted upon. Non citizens are never told of this and no survivors to their deployment are ever left alive.
Industry & Trade
The community identity centers around two concepts that allowed Haven to survive and now flourish.
1. Every Citizen is equal to every Citizen.
2. Every Citizen will do their part to support Haven
This has lead to whenever a community task is decided upon the entirety of the citizenry works towards it. There are no slouchers and zero unemployment in Haven. The need for working together in those that founded it that it resonates in successive generations.
They have a massive forrest of various types of woods, including hardwood. The citizens recently voted not to export but save those in use with the ship repair operations, which are to be expanded since oceanic trade and travel is becoming more and more prevelant the farther away from The Fall the world gets
Every Captin who sails the southern ocean knows roughly where Haven lays. This knowledge is kept mostly for just in case purposes. The people of haven are known to be tough but fair with all who come as long as you do not overstay your welcome. You may not like the prices they charge to repair and reprovision your ship but Haven and their facilities can save your ship and your crew in the middle of nowhere. This is accepted among all the professional captains of trading vessals. Military vessals are always wary of the island that seems to defy any agressor arriving at it's shores.
Infrastructure
By the third century since The Fall Haven is a thriving community with a moderate size series of docks, capable of securing even the largest ocean going vessels, one or two at a time. The island has abundant timber resources so over the past thirty years it has become a waypoint for ships that need repair or refurbishments mid journey accross the Eastern Ocean.
To facilitate this the lumber yards have been expanded.
A hundred years ago deposits of iron were found deep in a cavern under Mount Shard. A detachment of the Order of the Striking Hammers from the Kingdom of Sendilar helped Haven establish a moderate iron mine to help take advantage of this.
These recent developments has seen a boom in Haven and money coming in more quantity then in the three century history of the community.
An expansion of the dock system is currently being contemplated by the current Governor, Millisep Dale
Districts
Haven has four main districts in it. The residential district, located on the hill running into the harbor, is where everyone who calls Haven home dwells.
Non citizens reside in the Harbor district, which is the largest. Three taverns operate as well as short term tenement housing. Four docks stretch into the deepwater harbor. Two, the largest, are for any to use. One is for ships owned or operated by Citizens of Haven. The fourth, and smallest is dedicated to the ship repair operation, located on the south side of the harbor
Beyond the residential district is the Lumber district. All carpentry is done here as well as serving as a main base for the loggers.
Along the eastern coast near the harbor district is the fishery. It sits at the point the Silver river runs down into the ocean. Those who fish the river and the ocean bring their catches here for processing. A trio of small docks are also here though these are constructed of wood.
Assets
Fairly substantial for a community of this size. Though that would not be known to any but Citizens.
The founders of Haven were survivors of the Imperial flagship that was carrying Emperor Goval VI. The wealth of that ship in terms of coin, Imperial gold thrones, and treasure of all types. Goval's mission was to bring a rebellion to a close and he had not anything out, even funding a counter revolution to bring everyone back under the Imperial fold. It also carried the ultimate source of Imperial control.
Magic Items.
Some of them have failed over the years but most, those of the personal collection of the Holder of the Imperial Throne, could last forever. There are several hundred and they serve various functions.
History
In the 9th year of the reign of Goval VI, the Emperor sailed with a massive fleet across the Eastern Ocean. Midway throught the passage a storm so massive that it's like had not been seen in centuries struck For three days it blanketed the ocean. Of the two hundred and seventy four that were with the fleet at the storms start, only thirty two ever made it back to a port.
The Imperial Flagship, The Soaring Pheonix , had been pushed far south of their original course. It ended smashed on rocks on an uncharted island far beyond the Tradeways. 92 men and women survived, Goval VI among them.
With no way to contact The Empire and uncertain chances of a rescue Goval managed to organize the survivors who were devided into two factions, one who saw him as the Emperor to be served and those who blamed him for the current situation, into a community. He organized the stripping of the Phoenix for supplies and material.
Shelters went up and exploring their new home began. Some called into question why Goval was still giving orders. In a move that stunned loyalist and condemers alike, he offered they should hold a vote to who should lead. He lost the vote and accepted it with grace. The Chief Carpenter of the Phoenix was voted as leader and Goval swore to support him and he did.
That was the start of both cultural ideals that are the foundation of the community identity of Havenors. All are equal and all will pull their weight. The community endured. Goval VI, or Beli as he wished to be called after the community was stable, had died 31 AF. After his death the Citizenry held an open forum and discussed and came to a unanimous desision to keep secret of their origins. All took different names so no trace to the Empire could be drawn.
Eight years later, 39 AF, the first ship seen since they swam ashore from the wrecked Pheonix was seen. The ship, a trading vessel running low on supplies and having been blown off course far to the south, was met with wary greetings but agreed to repair and restock the ship in exchange for items carried by the trader, specifically iron, steel and cloth.
Over the centuries word of the isolated island far to the south has spread till most seafaring people on the southern hemispher of the East ocean are aware of of it's existance.
In 89 AF the Primark of Mogneir, wishing a base in which to control a stratigic position in which to establish oceanic trade, attempted at first set up an embassy in which to descuss joining the Primark's realm.
It was refused.
A trio of ships were sent to threaten Haven and if need be just outright take the settlement of, at that time just over a two hundred citizens. They arrived at midday held position outside the Harbor. After several hours and no sign of response from the Havenors who were seen through spyglass just going about their day, occaisionally looking towards the ships, a decision was made. A jettyboat was launched and rowed to the small fishing dock and handed sealed letter to a fisherman with orders to delivery it whomever was in charge. Legend says the fisherman shrugged and agreed.
The Jettyboat returned to their ship and the Primark's forces waited for Haven to accede to the demand of surrendor that had just been delivered. Their answer was delivered in the night.
The Keepers, garbed in Shadowarmor and taking small rowboats that were shielded from sight by the magical stealth field the armor produced, boarded the three ships and with the magical weapons of the Shadowguards, killed every man and woman aboard.
A forum was held to decide what to do with the ships. The Governor at the time decided that such a large decision need the consent of the citizens. In the end it was decided to strip the ships of everything usable and take them away from the island and scuttle them. If they were ever asked about the ships, they would deny they ever arrived.
And that is what befell every force that offered violence to Haven. Every person was slain, all resources stripped ,their ships scuttled, and an uncontestable declaration that no agressers ever arrived. After a century and a half of that rumors in other seaports that spoke of Haven also added that fate seemed to shield them from attack.
370 AF a ship flying the flag of the Order of the Steadfast Anchor, a knightly order out of Sendilar, ran aground when, fleeing an ambush of pirates a storm had tossed them about and snapping their main mast. Tides carried them far as the drifted, eventually sending them into the sandy western shore of the island. This one time the Havenors did something without fierce negiations. Sendilar had developed a rather solid reputation, heard even in Haven, of honorable dealings. This ship, captained by the heir to one of their duchies, had little aboard of trade value to Haven in return for repairing and reprovisioning the ship. This one time the accepted an oath as payment. Made by the ducal heir, that ever a bill was tendered or favored in compensation asked then it would be honored.
This proved true a decade later when iron ore was discoved in mount Shard. A Sendilar trading ship was in port, topping up water barrels during a particular hot summer when the news spread through Haven as was the grim talk of how hard it was to operate up in the mountain. The ships captain mentioned over dinner that one of the Orders of Knighthood from his land specialied in Engineering and did accept contracts. The citizens voted soon after and a ship was sent to The Duchy of Segla to ask the man rescued, now the Duke, if he could fascilitate this. He did more. He paid the contract to have an entire engineer company, 100 trained men led by a senior Knight Commander, of the Order of the Striking Hammer to build a main mine shaft and train Havenors in mining and processing ore. He ferried the company there in his ships and returned them home a year later after the contract was complete. Sendilar is one of the few places a Havenor will speak of with any approval. Mostly in the form of "They pay their debts in full"
Points of interest
Upon the death of Beli, formerly Goval VI, the Citizens unanimously agreed to how to handle the preservation of the knowledge of their origin
An oath was taken, one still taken to this day when a child reaches the age of majority, 17, and becomes a full citizen. They are told the truth of their origins. They are told that descendants of the Last true Holder if the Imperial throne are among them and no one but that family knows the truth. They are then sworn to keep all of that secret and to never speak or write any of this where those who were not Full Citizens could hear or learn.
The heir to Beli's family tree is told at their majority in secret by the family. They are then shown the Imperial crest which is only ever taken out for this one event.
A mechanism exists for a non citizen outsider to become a full citizen. A citizen must nominate someone and this person must receive a unanimous vote. If the vote fails they are denied. If the vote fails by more than ten percent then the nominating citizen is investigated to ensure their loyalty to haven. Anyone who is to be nominated must be able to completely forswear all former ties to any and all who were not of Haven. This was deemed necessary to protect the secret of their origins.
Tourism
None. Outsiders are told politly and firmly they are welcome to use the facilities and then depart.
Architecture
Mortored stone and timber. The last couple of decades has seen less wood and more cut stune as the mining operation continues. Few building are multiple stories and those are all completly stone construction.
The docks are also solid stone, wood having been replaced twenty years ago.
Geography
Haven sits upon an Island that outsiders call Haven as well. Havenors just call it 'the Island'. It is a moderatly sized landmass of about fifteen miles long and roughly 8 miles wide at it's furthest. The Southern end slopes up to the Peak of Mount Shard. Lower and lower heavily forested hills cover the northern half of the island with the Town of Haven in the protected harbor on the northern coast.
Climate
Subtropical mountain.
Natural Resources
Heavily forested hills provide all the lumber that is needed. Conservation efforts ensure this is a supply that will endure.
Metal and mineral deposits are also in abundance. Mining operations have been in place for a couple of decades at present time.
Founding Date
The Fall
Founders
Population
Initial 92 survivors. Over the next three hundred years it has risen to just under a thousand
Inhabitant Demonym
Havenor
Included Locations
Owner/Ruler
Ruling/Owning Rank
Comments