The Lion King
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- Intent: To provide a new home to the Beorni and further the lore of Midvinter.
- Image Credit: Pengzhen Zhang (artstation.com/zpz)
- Canon: N/A
- Permissions: N/A
- Links:
- City Name: Beornstead
- Classification: Holy City
- Location: Midvinter
- Affiliation: The Beorni
- Population: Moderate
- Demographics: Being the kind and generous people that they are, the citizens of Beornstead welcomes visitors from all corners of the world. Its completion marks it the first Beorni city in millennia, and they are eager to share it with friend and stranger alike. Though a vast percentage of inhabitants are indeed Beorni, remnants of Valkyri with nowhere else to go since the fall of Tháinbroek have been taken in by their ancient protectors. There is even a small Aelvar enclave come from Averlorn.
- Beorni: 87%
- Valkyri: 11%
- Aelvar: 2%
- Wealth: Low: There exists no currency on Midvinter, and there are no hoards of treasure hidden away. The people lead simple lives, and none more so than the Beorni. Only the occasional personal trinkets and heirlooms could be considered valuable to an offworlder.
- Stability: High: The Beorni have always been a pacifist people, having learned to set aside the very concepts of vindictiveness and greed long before the younger races of this world ever came into being. No malice or jealousy exists among their kind, but have instead been replaced by harmony and serenity in all aspects of life. There is no crime, and thus no need for armed guards. Disturbers of the peace will be asked to leave, and only thrown out by force if necessary.
- Freedom & Oppression: The atmosphere of Beornstead can be described as open, friendly, and relaxed. True to the nature of the Beorni inhabiting it, the city exudes a sense of peacefulness and any visitor is expected not to disturb said peace. There is no government to speak of, as the bear-folk have ever followed their own hearts and minds over any authoritarian figure. They heed the wise words of the Council of Elders but do not see them as their de-facto leaders.
- Description: Noticably unique in its design, typical Beorni architecture includes a blend of round and sharp angles. One floor may be a perfect circle while its upper floor take on a square shape, or vice versa. Probably what stands out the most are the rooftops, with their distinctly concave angles which then join together to become a spire or perhaps even another, smaller tower. The tallest of these spires can be interconnected by the use of rope bridges and other improvised walkways. Countless runic inscriptions and small shrines jot every street corner, as a symphony of wood chimes and brass cymbals fills the air. Wherever Beorni are seen meditating there is the unmistakable smell of incense accompanying them as these large, fluffy bearmen huddle together in small groups occasionally chanting in their earth-shattering vocal register. They are the most senior sentient race Midvinter has ever produced, the very first settlers in aeons past, thus it is only fit that their ancient culture and long history is presented in every piece of masonry and woodwork.
- Temple of Everlasting Peace: Having been denied a site of worship ever since their exile imposed by the Valkyri in ancient times, the Beorni are finally able to properly honour the Spirits of the Wild as was done in the long past. The centerpiece of Beornstead, the Temple of Everlasting Peace is a large circular building dedicated to meditation and religious chanting. Large gongs accompany impossibly deep throat-singing as incense is burned before icons of the many Spirits inhabiting the world.
- Tháinbroek Memorial: Built upon the ruins of the old Valkyri capital since ages past, Beornstead features a monument in the form of a wide wall of polished, black stone, erected at the foot of the hill upon which the Great Hall once stood. While the hill and its surrounding areas are nigh-unrecognisable since the reconstruction, the runes carved into the stone tell of the history of this site, as well as lists the name of every High King that has ever sat upon that ancient throne, now only a memory; from Hrothgar Dragonbane to Thyrian the Uniter. Many come here to place offerings at the foot of the memorial, believing they will reach the noble kings of old in the afterlife. The fact that this project was conceived and implemented by the Beorni, who would be in every right to hold a grudge against them, was not lost on the grateful Valkyri.
- Tea Shops: A rather rare drink on Midvinter, the boiling of herbal tea is an art the Beorni have passed down through the generations as a deeply spiritual process, and they take their work very seriously. Similarly, tea shops are regarded almost sacred as these establishments have all mastered this art, each with their own family recipes and tweaks that make their particular brew special. While these shops are open to the public, tourists are asked to respect local customs as these are no mere taverns or watering holes. For an outsider to partake in the tea-drinking ceremony should be considered an immense honour and be conducted with utmost dignity.
Low: Though the city and its inhabitants, just like Midvinter as a whole, lacks the advanced technology enjoyed by much of the galaxy, and said inhabitants are pacifist in nature, no other native sentient lifeform can hope to stand toe-to-toe versus a Beorni if sufficiently provoked. Armed guards are not needed when literally every member of their species is capable of ripping grown men's limbs apart. Crime among the Beorni is non-existent, and any would-be criminals from other races pose little threat to them. That being said, the city possesses no anti-air capabilities in the case of an exterior threat and would have to rely on the planetary shield to protect them from orbital bombardments. It was not built with military strategy in mind, but rather with peaceful intentions by a peaceful people.
HISTORICAL INFORMATION
Long before their tragic defeat and subsequent exile at the hands of those they had once called brothers, the Beorni thrived as the dominant species of their world. Their way of life was one of self-improvement and nature-worshipping, for there was nobody to fight in those days but their own kind, and where was the wisdom in that? Weapons still came plenty in handy however, for the fauna of Midvinter is nothing if not unforgiving. Protecting one's home against starved predators was no different then from how it is now.
In those days, apart from several Beorni settlements scattered about the vast landmass, there was the grand city of Beornskald; birthplace of the Beorni race and capital of the world. This was the very first and oldest dwelling in the history of Midvinter, as none that had come before ever possessed the knowledge to create fire, let alone build homes and cities. So impressive was Beornskald in beauty and scope that the Valkyri would later name the immortal realm of their gods after it, as for all they knew it was the center of the universe.
During the latter half of Beorni and Valkyri living in symbiosis, it became increasingly apparent that the younger of the two races did not hold life as sacred as their wise elders, and would often resort to violence to solve disagreements. Their innate lust for battle and their casual spilling of blood did not sit well with the pacifist bearmen, and this divide would only widen with time. It was ultimately revealed that a religious cult had taken root among Mankind, wherein godlike beings depicted as humanoids were worshipped rather than the Spirits to whom the Beorni had devoted their entire culture.
When words could no longer contain the situation, a tragic civil war erupted between pacifist and warmonger, resulting in the devastating and inevitable defeat of the former. The Beorni, unaccustomed to waging war against another sentient species, were driven to near-extinction at the hands of the fanatical armies of the Valkyri, spilling blood in the name of their new gods who favoured valour in battle above all else. Those that had been the first, who had taken in these pink, fur-less creatures and given them the tools with which to survive, were rewarded with dishonourable exile.
The splendor of Beornskald fell into ruin, mismanaged by the comparatively inept Valkyri occupants until it was eventually torn down and rebuilt into what history now knows as Tháinbroek. Most all traces of Beorni culture were lost to time, either erased by the new rulers of the world or merely adopted, its true origins forgotten. Not all was lost, however; their language, their knowledge of the land, their craftmanship - all these and more were passed on through the generations, just as they were once upon a time passed from Beorni to Valkyri.
Millennia later, the Beorni would reemerge in the spring of Thyrian the Uniter's reign, later joined by the Aelvar to complete the trinity known as the Three Kindreds. Similarly, upon his coronation High King Thurion Heavenshield would reward the bear-folk for their sacrifice by offering them lands of their own again, doubling as long-overdue reparations for his people's grievous betrayal. The central province formerly known as the Crownlands were bestowed unto them, since redubbed the Heartlands. In the wake of the Great War where Tháinbroek was lost and reduced to rubble, the Beorni set out to restore their once-glorious city while paying homage to what had come before.
Thus, Beornstead was in turn risen from the ashes of the old Valkyri capital. While much of their city-building knowledge had been lost to time long ago, this new site, humbler in scope, would be dedicated to the worship of Mother Midvinter; the planet as a whole, whether it be to the Spirits of the Beorni, the Gods of the Valkyri, or the Frostvatn of the Aelvar. Beornstead is now regarded as the spiritual capital of the world, and considered a holy city by its Beorni custodians. It is a place that inspires devotion to a higher cause, introspection, and betterment of oneself.
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