Settlements and Sites of the Four City-States #181

Settlements and Sites of the Four City-States #181 

June 30th, 2023 

• Number: 181 

• Name: Deep Dive on a Site of Interest: Tawen of Noldrune Part 6 

• Location: Along the Tauoi River between Ma’amore Maug and Far Harbor (#36) 

• Population (approx.): 4,000 inhabitants spread over the 3 wards of the large town 

• Brief and Notables: 

• Most of the inhabitants of Upper Tawen belong the “tall folk” People of the Skies who were second to arrive in Tawen. The People typically have a given name, usually used by their kin, and a nickname, usually used in public conversation. 

• Eagle – “Cesqen”; Tatius “Skycurse,” is an elderly Human man who fears he might be the last of the Eagles in Tawen. The Elder blames what he calls the Curse of the Skies placed upon his peoples in times past when an ancestor encountered Corruption. He sponsors numerous expeditions seeking to bring more of his Kin to Tawen. 

• Falcon – “Toixtex”; Lada “Treeflower,” is a young shortish Wildfolk woman who is chief huntress and Elder of the Falcons. She is typically found travelling the outskirts of Tawen land, hunting and gathering, when not called to the town for Peoples’ business. 

• Hawk – “Xenxinele”; Phonat “Farsight,” is a young tall Silver Elf male blessed (some say, others say cursed) to see beyond the horizon (resulting in glimpses of the future). He is a priest of the Sky and Daylight, who lives with his grandfather the Hawk Elder of the Council. 

• (Sea)Gull – “Geni”; Vashnavi “Whitedrake,” is a middle-age High Man lady of fierce and commanding disposition. Captain of the Sky Guardians, the Council of the Eight have also “elected” her as Viscount Tawen, becoming the outward face of the community. 

• Geography: 

• Fearing for his health and the Curse, Tatius holds court in the reinforced lower levels of the Eagles’ Aerie tower against the south wall of Upper Tawen. He has surrounded himself with wards and guards, conducting business with seekers in a small hall outside his chambers. 

• Lada’s People most live in a pair of towers against the east wall of Upper Tawen, but the huntress is rarely home, preferring to spend her nights under the stars outside of walls and windows. 

• Phonat can usually be found at the top of the Hawk’s Perch, a tower against the west wall of Upper Tawen, staring into and beyond the setting sun. Scribes sit nearby in case Phonat utters the results of his latest vision. Once the sun has set, he wanders downstairs to spend time with his grandfather in their shared apartments. 

• Vashnavi watches over Tawen from either the Gull’s Nest, a spire against the north wall of the upper town, or the battlements surrounding Outer Tawen where she frequently confers with Tosca, her counterpart Guardian Captain. Although she has her family rooms in the spire, she also keeps an apartment in the outer town in the Guardian barracks. 

• Next Article: Notable persons and sites of Outer Tawen