Morlavene
A city of artists and performers where many a festival is held and a party nearly every night.
Demographics
Due to its nature as a haven for artists from all over Kalkatesh, Morlavene is one of the most diverse settlements on the continent. Almost every single race can be found in this city, practicing their art in some form. Morlavene has a core population of roughly 2,000 permanent residents, but it has the facilities to house up to 5,000 additional seasonal residents that come for annual fairs and expositions.
Government
Morlavene is governed by a council of aldermen; which is mostly comprised of high-ranking figures in the local artistic scene, as well as various wealthy patrons who also reside in the city. The White Council does not have much of a presence in Morlavene despite its relative closeness to Crestfall—due to its lack of strategic importance.
Defences
Morlavene is a peaceful settlement that sits at the heartland of Orde, and as such employs only a small contingent of guards to keep the peace. During seasonal events, the council of aldermen hires mercenary guards to bolster their ranks and keep order to accomodate for the influx of people.
Industry & Trade
As a city of wealth, Morlavene enjoys trade from all over Kalkatesh, with daily deliveries of supplies coming in from Crestfall. The upper echelons of society, the patrons and the most successful artists, enjoy every modern amenity the city has to offer—and at night Morlavene comes alive with all manners of social functions.
The wealth of the city does not exclude the less fortunate, as aspiring artists are provided free room and board for up to one year until they find themselves a patron to sponsor them. Despite its long history of patronage, independent artists in Morlavene are fairly common—as work is easy to find—and many of these independent artists look down upon those with patrons.
Morlavene plays host to a number of art festivals all throughout the year, and the people of Orde flock to the city to gawk at the pieces on display and scratch their heads at the more esoteric works. These festivals bring in a great deal of wealth to the city, as they promote a brisk art trade; as well as provide a brilliant spectacle that keeps the city in the memories of the masses who attend.
Assets
Morlavene enjoys all the trappings of Ordean wealth—parks, plazas, clean water, etc. While divine magic is used commonly throughout the city, some more magically-inclined artists dabble in the arcane and druidic schools of magic and a fledgling magic trade has been established in the city.
Guilds and Factions
Morlavene pays lip service to the White Pantheon, and a number of temples devoted to them can be found all over the city. However, owing to its diversity, there are sects devoted to the other pantheons of Verum that can be found scattered around Morlavene. While most artists in the city seek divine inspiration from their deities, there is a growing sect of secularists in the city that seek to divorce their work from the trappings of the divine—seeking inspiration from only the corporeal.
History
Originally founded as a retreat for sculptors in Crestfall, Morlavene has its roots as a cooperative experiment between artists. The three nearby quarries provided cheap and readily available material for sculpting, and the artists of the settlement quickly began churning out works. Many sculptures were left unfinished or deemed failures as the artists moved on to other projects. Eventually word spread about the sculptors of Morlavene, and wealthy patrons began to make the journey from Crestfall in order to commission sculptures from the artists of the city. This brisk trade allowed the city to flourish for many decades; eventually the quarries of Morlavene ran dry and the settlement quietly dissolved, with the original founders moving elsewhere to seek better opportunities.
The city of Morlavene sat as an abandoned relic for many years until a group of wealthy and eccentric patrons and artists embarked on a project to restore the city. The scope of the project was incredibly ambitious—these self-styled Founders sought to recreate the original function of Morlavene as a haven for artists on a grander scale, despite the fact that the quarries had run dry. The Founders believed that the site of the original settlement had a place of cultural significance, so over the course of a decade the group poured their wealth into the city to turn it into a beacon of inspiration to the artists of Kalkatesh—leaving the original sculptures of the city as an homage to the original founders of the town.
In present times Morlavene is a bustling—albeit small settlement—in the heartlands of Orde. As a center of culture, the city attracts both artists, as well as connoisseurs of their works. The scope of the art produced by the city has expanded far beyond just sculpture found in the form of musicians, painters, performers, and others now also reside in the city. Despite this, the city continues to pay homage to its roots. It is tradition for every artist in Morlavene to create a sculpture and leave it somewhere in the city, and it is common belief among Ordeans that the only successful artists are those that leave their mark in the city.
Geography
Morlavene, the City of Statues, is a small settlement located a few days west of Crestfall. Built in proximity to a number of quarries, the city is well-known for its fantastical architecture. Statues and busts of all sizes and proportions can be found all over the settlement—be it in fountains, plazas, parks, or even as parts of buildings. Artists from all over Kalkatesh can be found gathered in this city, seeking inspiration for their own work.
Type
Large town
Population
5,000
Location under
Owner/Ruler
Comments