Syngorn

Description

Syngorn is built against the western base of the Stormcrest Mountains, and is surrounded by 40-foot-high walls of jade. All entrances into the city are warded by threshold crests depicting Syngorn's symbol, a crescent moon flanked by two trees over a cerulean stone. These stones anchor the city to the Feywild, allowing the city to transport to the other plane of existence in times of crisis.  

Beryl Keep

Beryl Keep is the military district located on a hill in the northwest of the city, separated from the rest by walls of beryl. Within are the necessities to train Syngorn's military, the Verdant Guard, including barracks, archery ranges, and forges.  

• Beryl Keep: located At the far northwest is the fortress after which the district is named. The keep's boundaries are marked by six ancient eucalyptus trees, which legends hold are treants who will animate to defend the keep in times of crisis.

 

Emerald Citadel

Looming over northern Syngorn is a mighty castle of faded marble covered in climbing ivy known as the Emerald Citadel. Located at the highest point of the gradually sloping city, the citadel's emerald-tipped spires can be seen from anywhere below.  

Memory Ward

Considered to be the mind of Syngorn, the Memory Ward is built within a ring of marble walls on the northeast side of the city. A winding staircase called the One Thousand Steps leads to the district, which contains at its center the Sequoia of Remembrance, a three hundred-foot-tall redwood tree that mystically stores the lives and memories of every palid elf in Syngorn.  

• Spires of Yurek: This academy is named for Yurek Windkeeper, founder of the Bladedancing wizard art. The seven towers of the school are home to dormitories for the students, as well as many scholars who teach, study, and experiment with magic within its marble walls.

 

Reverie Walks

The Reverie Walks is the artistic and spiritual center of Syngorn. The district is made up of a shifting labyrinth of living trees and stones. Elves seeking meditation will wander through the Reverie Walks for hours in a trance-like state.  

• Stone of the Archeart: At the center of the Reverie Walks is a column of pure diamond carved in the likeness of a Corellon. This stone is dedicated to dead god of elves, Corellon Loth, who intervened to save Syngorn. Many who seek enlightenment wander through the Reverie Walks seeking to find the Stone of the Archeart, but few find it within it's shifting paths.
• Herald's Holdfast: the esteemed lore-house is home of the College of Herald. Its primary purpose is to safeguard ancient history and legends. .

 

Tarn Ward

Syngorn's central district is the Tarn Ward, a commerce district surrounding Lake Ywnnlas. During the day, the Tarn Ward holds no business save for inns and restaurants. At night however it becomes a bustling marketplace, home to expensive goods of fine elven make, as the trade of common magical goods.  

• Lake Ywnnlas: During the day, many magically propelled boats sail across the clear waters of the lake. By night, it becomes a perfect mirror reflecting the heavens above.
• The Feygrove: Once a large manor belonging to an elven noblewoman, the building is now completely overgrown with plant life. Following the city's return from the Feywild after the era of dragons, a small pocket of the Fewyild was seemingly brought with them. The manor is now teeming with fey creatures, and is ruled by a pixie prince. The fey who make their domain within the Feygrove have named it after the archfey who allowed them into the city.

 

Society

Government

Military

Bladesong

Those who see a bladesinger in battle never forget the sight. Surrounded by chaos and blood, the bladesinger moves in an otherworldly dance. Spells and sword act in concert, meshing awe-inspiring beauty with fearsome deadliness. When the bladesinger’s sword whirls through the air so swiftly that it keens and the air hums and whistles in chorus, the bladesong has begun — and it might be the last thing the bladesinger’s enemy hears.   The elves and half-elves who practice the art of the bladesinger, appear to be almost casual in combat, deflecting opponents’ blades while elegantly moving into position to score hits in return. A bladesinger wields a weapon one-handed, leaving the other free for spellcasting or to manipulate a wand that can be incorporated into the fighting style. This technique gives a bladesinger the freedom of movement necessary for the dancelike motions of the various forms of martial art, which allow both magical and physical attacks to flow freely.   Few among the elves, and an even smaller number of half-elves, have the honor of being inducted into the ranks of the bladesingers. One must have the mind necessary to be a great wizard, and also the agility of the greatest dancers.  

Culture

Law

Syngorn boasts a military forces: the verdant guard. Use the Guard Arrival Times table to determine how long it takes for the verdant guards to arrive at a location after a crime or similar incident is reported.     Consistent with their long perspective on the world and their knowledge of its history, elves have a special view of morality. They abide by the traditional definitions of good and evil, but tinged with elven sensibilities.   Property crimes such as theft are usually considered evidence of significant character flaws, because elves don’t value material goods as highly as shorter-lived races do. An item’s intrinsic value is secondary to its historical and sentimental value, which can be considerable. An elf who steals a pouch full of gems would be pitied, but someone who steals a dried flower presented to an elf by her long-gone sister would be seen as a monster and likely exiled from the community.  

Wizardry

There’s a reason most powerful wizards are old. The special formulas of action, item, and sound that produce wizardly magic require precision, and such precision comes only from long practice. More than that, each spell a wizard might cast requires a portion of one’s powerful intellect to be dedicated to the task, with the necessary patterns of thought and proper mindset kept in stasis, ready to be unleashed. Even after these concepts are mastered, new knowledge of magic remains elusive, and a wizard must progress steadily through deeper levels of understanding, breaking through mental barriers in order to achieve ever greater mastery.   Of all peoples, elves are perhaps best suited to wizardry. They have centuries of life to devote to their studies, and their trance effectively gives them extra time to practice, as lessons learned during study can be reinforced by recalling them during resting periods. The patience and restraint for which elves are well known serves them well in this pursuit.   Elves are often seen as masters of magic because of how easily it comes to them, but the mightiest of their mages are always those folk who burn with ambition. The path to power is never smooth. Anyone who tells you otherwise is a fool or an enemy.  

Demographics

Syngorn is a large city with a population of 37,030. It is one of the most homogeneous cities in lightfoot land, with the vast majority of citizens being elves (91%). The rest of the population is made up of halflings (5%), gnomes (2%), and other races (2%).  

Factions

Verdant Guard: The guard and military of the city.  

Map

 

History

Nymue, having ascended as the Archdevil of Gluttony, is consumed by bitterness and regret for her past actions. The centuries of torment, Grolantor's betrayal and her transformation into a devil has warped her. Corellon, her father, becomes a symbol of everything she has lost—innocence, love, and her place among the elves.   Nymue sees Corellon’s unwavering devotion to the elves as both noble and naive. She believes his love for them has blinded him to their flaws and caused him to neglect her suffering. Her emotions are complicated. Despite her bitterness, a part of her still seeks Corellon’s recognition and approval. She schemes a plot to kill her father, serving both as revenge and as a desperate cry for his attention.   Using her cunning and devilish powers, Nymue devises a long-term scheme to lure Corellon into a trap. She exploits the elves’ distrust of her to manipulate events in her favor. she starts by spreading rumors of a growing demon resurgence near elven lands, knowing Corellon will act to protect his people. Disguised as a repentant former demon, Nymue manipulates the elven leader of Syngorn into summoning Corellon for aid. She pretends to be working against a new demonic threat, earning their reluctant trust.   Nymue orchestrates the opening of a rift to seven hells, disguising it into a rift to the abyss. From the gates of hell, her devils, disguised as demons pour into Syngorn, forcing Corellon to intervene personally. As Corellon intervenes, he understands the trickery, aware that this rift leads to the seven hells, but before he can warn the elves of the betrayal of their demonic advisor, he is pulled into the seven hells. Unaware that his daughter is behind the plot, Corellon fights the legion of devils waiting for him in this unfavorable terrain. The god of the elves fully intends to close the rift and protect the elves, but Nymue finally arrives. She reveals her true form and intentions, a reunion between a father and his daughter as both have changed in the last millennium.   Nymue confronts her father with accusations of abandonment, neglect, and hypocrisy. She mocks his failure to save her from corruption and his inability to protect their people throughout history. A tragic battle ensues between father and daughter. Corellon, reluctant to fight Nymue, tries to reason with her, but her rage and infernal power overwhelm him.   As the battle reaches its climax, Corellon, weakened by guilt and the emotional toll of fighting his daughter, falls. With his dying breath, Corellon forgives Nymue, telling her he never stopped loving her and expressing hope that she will one day find redemption.   The elves feel the shock of their god’s death through the planes. His divine essence is snatched by Brandobaris who becomes the god of journey and freedom in addition to thievery and adventure. Nymue is left hollow, her vengeance fulfilled but her pain unrelieved. The act of killing Corellon shatters the last vestiges of her elven identity. She retreats to her infernal domain, consumed by sorrow and self-loathing.   Unlike her other victims, Nymue did not consume her father's soul, keeping it trapped within her domain, Nymue watched her father's soul with sorrow and bitterness: Even in death he couldn't bring her happiness.   Nymue’s actions have lasting consequences. The elves begin to see her as the ultimate cautionary tale—a reminder of the dangers of unchecked ambition and the corrupting power of vengeance.  

Notable members