A Travel Guide to Llomerynn

== A Travel Guide to Llomerynn ==
How best to describe Llomerynn varies from who you ask. Ask an historian and they’d call it one of the oldest cities in thedas, ask a pirate and they’d say that it’s a fantastic town for unloading “borrowed” goods. Ask a royalist and they’ll say it's a dangerous faction that must be brought back into the fold, ask a rebell and they’ll call it the last free city in Rivain. Ask an andrastian and they’ll warn you about the heathen practices and ill morals of its citizens, ask a native Llomerynner and they’ll call it home.
Ask me and I’ll tell you. 
(Also be sure to spell the name right, it is not uncommon for tourists to be lynched for spelling it Lomerryn or any other variation of the word)
== History ==
Before the age of man, the ancient elves built an outpost on a little island just south of Rivain. It is currently unknown what purpose the outpost served but traces of it can still be found around Llomerynn. Eventually the elves disappeared and humans started crawling out of the forests discovered the ruins and made it their home. It has been theorized that the first elders lived here before spreading to lead the various settlements across Rivain. The magic that the elders use is theorized by some to come from the ruins themselves back when they were mostly intact.
The Tevinter imperium came and discovered the settlement built around the ruins and took it over. The mote around where the city currently lies was once solid ground but most of the ruins were sadly demolished during this era as the Magisters dug out most of the place in search of magical artifacts. It is said that while digging, the Magisters dug into an active dwarven thaig beneath the city. As a gift to leave the thaig alone, the dwarves gifted the massive statue that still to this day guards the entrance to the city. 
After the Tevinters were driven out, traders from all over Thedas would make Rivain their home, and where traders are, pirates thrive. The elven ruins of Llomeryn became a smugglers cove, a home to pirates and criminals.
Among these pirates was Rialto Trastamara. 
When the Qunari invaded Rivain, he crowned himself the pirate King and conscripted the pirate crews and petty criminals of Llomerynn in defense against the qunari invaders. Refugees flocked to Llomerynn, and it quickly grew into a sprawling town in its own right. When the chantry called its exalted march, they joined forces with Rialto and forced the qunari back into the north to their colony of Kont-arr where they have remained ever since. Rialto later converted to Andrastianism and while the people of the capital approved of the religion the people of Llomerynn were outraged, the people who had fought to save Rivain still held their own religious veneration of the elders as they had for so many generations. 
Tensions grew between the former pirate settlement and the capital. The tensions would reach their peak in 7:84 Storm when the queen of Rivain at the time, Ximena II would lead an army of Chantry fanatics to Llomerynn, massacring the leaders and anyone else that refused to convert. The Queen installed a new mayoral system in Llomeryn and the tensions calmed for a time.
== Landmarks ==
=== The Titan of Llomerynn ===
Arguably the most iconic landmark of Llomerynn is the Titan standing guard over the sea entrance to the city. A gift from the dwarves to the Tevinters it has long symbolized the Llomerynners freedom and independence. A famous legend states that when Llomerynn is threatened the Titan will wade out into the sea to defend them.
The titan stands as a 120 meter tall steel figure in the shape of an armored man. It is unknown exactly how old the statue is but its construction dates back from before the Tevinter Imperium.  
=== The Exalted Bridge ===
The exalted bridge, formerly known as the road of Dumat, is a structure, not unlike the imperial highway leading from Llomerynn to the island nearby. The bridge was built by the Tevinter imperium and previously lead all the way to the Rivaini mainland. The Rivaini and the chantry warriors used the bridge during the exalted march against the qunari. In response, the qunari collapsed the section of the bridge leading to the mainland. 
=== The Blood Square ===
The blood square’s most prominent feature is the gallows. A big square around a raised plateau where criminals are hanged daily. The first use of the gallows were during the Llomerynn massacre in 7:88, it is said that so many people were executed during one month that the blood permanently stained the stones of the execution platform (in truth the platform was simply built from the mineral Drakestone)
=== The Gold Square ===
If you want a destination less dire than the blood square, the gold square is quite the opposite. Also known as the Bizarre Bazaar, it's one of the biggest markets in the world, the gold square makes the market in Denerim look like a lemonade stand. If you’re looking to buy something strange and exotic, this is where you’ll find it. From shrunken human heads and feet drawings of the last fifteen archons, to dragon eggs and gryphon feathers. If you’ve got the coin, you’ll find a place to spend it here. 
=== The Open Clam ===
Now last but not least. The Open Clam is a must visit for any single traveler to Rivain. A world famous brothel that can help you forget your long trip to the city.
Little known is the dark history behind the brothel. Rumored to have had underaged workers, the old Open Clam is said to have been a real scummy place. However in the last 20 years the brothel has been under new management, the madame Rubin turned the place around into one of the most esteemed adult establishments in Thedas. 
-By Azure Bleu