Lamplight Fen

In the waning eastern edge of the Shadebog, just before the land gives rise into the highlands, lies the trade settlement of Lamplight Fen. Nestled in the southern banks of the Nomads' Bayou and and encircled by the Fleuve St. Laurent, this city came to prominence during the Arcanium Wars, when the once-wandering Mud Genasi of the area settled here by necessity — to stake their claim to their sacred bioluminescent Lamplight groves, when the monarchy had hoped to stage their southward invasion from the land.

History

For a thousand years the Mud Genasi of the Shadebog lived a nomadic lifestyle. In grand Flotilles Fluviales they traveled the swamp’s narrow waterways and expansive lakes, its mangrove mazes and cypress lanes. Hunting, fishing, farming by day; and by night anchoring upon a bayou expanse to drink and dance in exultant praise to Serindra of the Way. Their lives flowed, like the muddy waters of their deltas.

Pilgrimages in Kind

When the families that became the Prycian progenitors made their pilgrimage from the war-scarred west, they met with many survivors of the Sabling — trading, exchanging culture, accepting followers in their quest for a new home. One such group, the Mud Genasi, claimed descent from the primordials themselves, born of the very deltas they called home. For a thousand years the Mud Genasi of the Shadebog lived a nomadic lifestyle. In grand Flotilles Fluviales they traveled the swamp’s narrow waterways and expansive lakes, its mangrove mazes and cypress lanes. Hunting, fishing, farming by day; and by night anchoring upon a bayou expanse to drink and dance in exultant praise to Serindra of the Way. Their lives flowed, like the muddy waters of their home, stagnating only to tend to sites of religious significance. Chief among these sites were the Lamplight Groves, situated in a natural basin at the crux of a diversity of soil types which nurtured the bowers. Distillation of the trees' fruits was integral to a great many Mud Genasi celebrations and rituals — which, incidentally, usually take the form of raucous parties.

After spending time amongst the families staying amidst the groves, the Prycian travelers forged ahead into the east. Over the centuries, word of their exploits against the aarakocra who inhabited those lands trickled into the swamp, and it was not long before those became manifest. Their first incursions were to claim land of little significance — bitter peat bogs the Prycians named Hessen, where they established a sphere of influence for their burgeoning empire. It worried the genasi, but they deemed it not worth the risk for their people inherent in intervention. They could stay — if they stayed where they were.

Basile St. Laurent and the Nomads-No-Longer

Only — they were notorious already for their imperial appetites. When the Prycians came, it was merely houses and steads at first. Farms and families. But such things necessitated garrisons, protection; and soon, commodities and entertainment. The first towns cropped up, and they began to call their claim Hessen. Prycian hegemony was steadily advancing toward the bog’s most sacred ground: the Besotted Basin, home to the Glowfruit Groves. The Mud Genasi sent out word, and l’Auritaine was convened early to decide a course of action. After days of contentious debate, five families were elected to settle the sacred groves to preserve them: the Laurent, the Fonteneaux, the Moreau, the DuBois, and the Dupré. Bravely abandoning their lifestyle of motion, the families were dubbed Le Contingent Visqueux de l'Auritaine — the Viscous Contingent.

People

"The Pryce of the Swamp" is a cosmopolitan city, host to an incredible diversity of people. Genasi — earth, water, and mud — make up a large part of the populace, as the cultural progenitors of the city, but there is scarcely any walk of mortal life that can't be found here.

The Viscous Contingent