camebit

[grigori]

camebit the castle within clouds

Camebit is a beautiful, bustling fantasy town that you'd expect to see out of a fairytale more than anything else. There are all walks of life here, from the everyday human person that you're more used to seeing, to elves, dwarves, beastfolk, ogres, gnomes, even little bird people the natives will refer to as grifflets. To say that this is a melting pot would be a bit of an understatement, but is interesting, given the fact that it's a fairly... well, difficult place for most to reach. What you can be forgiven for assuming is fog actually seems to be clouds drifting in and out of the city, as a glance over the edge of the city beyond the ramparts shows a concerningly long fall into a darkness below.

Well, just don't engage in too much horseplay around the city limits and you'll probably be fine, right? There are guards stationed along the wall, both high and low, overseeing the coming and going of the city, making sure that the citizens are kept safe. They also direct the traffic—because there still is traffic, with winged beasts of burden ranging from pegasi to smaller dragons to gryphons (which makes the grifflets population... interesting). Try not to get underfoot, as there are people that have jobs to do here.

Despite being what should be an isolated island in the sky, the city prospers as best it can. And the mixed population, along with the constant visitors and travelers, means that you aren't too out of place in the grand scheme of things. Everyone is rather welcoming, as it turns out. Where have you been? What stories do you have to tell? Share your burdens—just don't expect the natives to so openly share their own.

technology level: minimal; high fantasy and medieval europe, but with better hygiene, even if they still use leeches for medical practices. there are some renaissance style inventors, but the technology is scarce
population: thriving, elbow-to-elbow, mixed; humans and sentient non-human humanoids and non-humanoids alike call this place home - the watchers are not the only winged beings here
clothing styles: some leniency for creativity here; explore the entire range of the renaissance mixed with high fantasy/dnd

1. TOURNAMENT ARENA - An old holdover from different days, the arena is a grand stadium where performances, races, competitions, and fights are held with a fair amount of frequency. The royal family and the high court have their box seats, of course, but practically every seat in the house allows viewers to enjoy whatever is being held down on the field below. Four entrances mark the cardinal points of the arena, nestled in the walls below the seating and leading down into the field itself. It even appears that there's an aqueduct system in place, to allow the flooding and draining of the field for naval mock battles and other water shows.

One watchtower overlooks the arena, to ensure the safety of everyone involved, while also allowing an announcer's booming voice to narrate going ons for those that might have a harder time of making out the finer details. On the opposite side stands the stables and general storage, where animals are brought in from the city proper—and beyond, in some cases—for use in tournaments and shows, as well. Fancy a show while you're here? Maybe you'll catch one with Lancelittle do Not..!

2. TAVERN - There are quite a few pubs and the like in the castletown, but the Prancing Pegasi is the place to be! A local that goes by the name Maid Meriam is the proprietor, and she's got the best drinks in town and the nicest lodging available for visitors, no matter how long their stay. The three story building is welcoming and homey, with the first floor devoted to a common area for guests to be served. Long tables are set up for communal dining and drinking, but some small booths are nestled in corners, allowing groups some measure of privacy, should they need it. Just holler for Meriam or one of the barmaids, and they'll fetch you a drink from the bar (or downstairs in their cellar) and some food from the kitchen cook.

The top two floors are devoted to lodging, to no one's surprise. While it doesn't have all the amenities you would hope for from modern living, considering, it's still exceptionally comfortable, with constant upkeep to prevent dust and grime. The beds are just the right kind of soft and firm, the windows open up to the city where you have them, and you can request service at any time for anything you need, within reason. As you've experienced previously, your coin will only unlock the door to the room you're assigned to. See who you're set up with this time..?


tavern service available: hot water for the bath in your room, extra pillows/blankets, laundry (hand wash with washboards; you can either do it yourself, or the staff can), food (typical tavern menu), drink (including a variety of alcoholic ones)

3. SQUARE - In the middle of the castletown is the square, with an impressive fountain standing before the castle gates, the occasional glass bottle bobbing in the bubbling, crystal water. It's clear that this area is used for various announcements and festivities, allowing people the space they need for traffic just as much as they might need for a performance of some kind. At the moment, it's decked out—looks like you arrived in time for some festivities! Locals will happily explain that it's time for the harvest festival and Masquerade of Souls, so they're having any number of shows in the arena as well as preparations and celebrations here, in the square, before the masquerade itself in the castle.

Food stalls are set up with local and foreign delicacies alike. (You might even find some familiar food here..!) Instruments are on display for purchase or rent. Dresses, suits, and any number of fine garments are available for your inspection and use—nevermind, of course, the masks that are available! The craftsmanship is exquisite. There's a lot of choices there for you.

4. CASTLETOWN - The stalls currently set up in the square give you the chance of a sneak peek at what shops are available in the castletown of Camebit itself, but there's still many more to be seen. No building is under two stories tall, and there are many that seem to have been added on over the years to reach their height—can't really blame them, when there's not much room for safe expansion, right? There's the typical fantasy city wares and shops, of course, including seamstresses, blacksmiths, apothecaries, and general goods. The other pubs and taverns are here and there, with a bakery neighboring here, a butcher over there. Private homes are also a little different, considering. Camebit has capitalized on its space, and many of the common folk find themselves in apartment living, in a way, with a few generations of families living in one place or having built upon their businesses to live above them.

5. CASTLE - The grand castle that stands above all the rest of the city in the sky breaks even higher through the clouds, acting as something of a beacon to those that would come to Camebit, regardless of whether it's for business, pleasure, or shelter. Much of the aristocracy calls this place home, not only the royal family. Still, the castle gates are often open to the public—the condition simply is that you aren't to be wandering into places that you should not. Guards are posted in every hall, and set to patrol the ramparts around the castle itself, so there's almost an eye on every corner. Almost.

The entrance hall leads to the north hall, where the royal family resides; the east wing, where the aristocracy lives; and the west wing, where the servants quarters are and much of the work is done.

In the north hall, the upper floors are closed off to visitors unless you have specific invitation to visit the royal family. However, the reception hall—something akin to a lounge and sunroom, where visitors may spend time—is available near the staircase that leads up to the barred floors. Additionally, the ballroom can be found here, accessed beyond the reception hall through a door beneath the grand staircase, with impressive, massive ceilings and beautiful chandeliers bringing brilliant light where the stained glass windows don't.

Hang a right to the east wing, and, again, the upper floors are closed off to visitors unless you have specific invitation to visit someone residing here. But there's the castle library, taking up an entire tower and filled to the brim with books of every sort. There's even attendants acting as librarians, in the event you want to find something. Careful on the ladders! Nearby, a set of impressive doors decorated in beautiful, angelic figures are locked, no matter any attempt to get inside.

And, off to the left in the west wing, are of course the servants quarters. You can get into these with effort—most of them lock the doors—but why would you go breaking and entering into somebody's simultaneous workplace and home? The dining hall is here at the forefront, with beautiful, high back chairs and ornate tables. A dais sits apart from the other tables, where the royal family are served at celebrations. Further in, through some servant doors, is the kitchen—nothing too strange, here! Everything that you would expect for a medieval kitchen can be found here, along with entrances to staff passageways that they would kindly ask you to not use? Thanks? (Of course, let the mods know if you try to.)

Right off, though, the servants will let you know that if you try to take one in particular? It leads to the dungeon, which is guarded and locked. Unless you want to get thrown in there for causing trouble, you'll be turned away by the guards there.

6. RAMPARTS - A bit of a holdover from history long gone, the ramparts around Camebit are, regardless, kept in the best condition that they can be and still have routine patrols. Each tower has an entrance at the bottom interior, and a guard with a key—considering that it's just a precaution, they can be talked into letting visitors check out the upper walkway with the promise of remaining on their best behavior. It really does give an amazing view of the small city and the open skies beyond. Dotting the skyline are other landmasses of varying sizes—little islands that are nothing more than stepping stones, structures left afloat in the sky with no way to safely navigate them, ruins of an outer city, even other settlements that can be seen with a telescope if you fancy.

7. SOUTHERN ISLES - Much like the rest of Camebit, the trees of the southern isles are in perpetual fall colors—golds and yellowed greens and burnished orange and brilliant crimson leaves, all in perfect health. There are no bridges to these isles, as they have a habit of falling apart over time due to unsteady ground. Getting to these isles is a little bit of a tricky endeavor, but one can rent a pegasus to be able to travel deeper in. Obvious wildlife still thrives here, finding their own ways to traverse the isles—whether it be to adaptability like many of the other animals in this world, or because they've figured out tricks to travel safely. However, if you do so, let a mod know exactly how deep into the isles you decide to travel.

8. LAKE - With a river that sluggishly runs through the remains of a fragmented earth and is fed by the rains and moisture of the clouds that the city sits in, descriptions of the isles from the locals indicate that there's also a lake somewhere in there. Let the mods know if you go looking for it! Supposedly, only the lucky souls can get safely into the depths of the forest, here, to find the lake itself.

If one gets a little more daring, and a little inventive with a telescope or other spyglass of some kind, it's possible to see through the fluffy white clouds that encase the city... but not much further, given the swirling darkness below. It's not just the distance that obscures what lies below—it's something more ominous, with the occasional flash of light or deep, dark violet in all that inky black. Regardless, better to not step off the edge. It's a long way down.

 

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