Lockwood, Maine, USA

**Lockwood** is a mythical community located in central Maine, United States. It was the first official, mythical-only community in the Americas. Settled in 1694 by the warlock and mythical communities fleeing the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the wake of the Salem Witch Trials, modern-day Lockwood is a hub for magic and is home to several powerful warlock/witch families. While it still currently has a smaller population of only about 5,000 residents (both in the village proper and in the surrounding woodland communities), it is currently experiencing an increase in population as more mythicals are opting to re-settle in the area.

## Geography

Like many mythical communities, Lockwood is quite isolated, being about an hour and half's drive to the nearest major city of Portland. It is most similar to its sister-city of Alabaster, in the United Kingdom, in terms of its geography and layout; Lockwood is surrounded by woodland although the most populated area of the community lies in and about the town square. Many of its inhabitants do actually live out in the woods though, given there is sufficient infrastructure and roads which allow for this to be a possible living option without being too inconvenient or out of the way.

Besides Enoch, Lockwood was one of the only major mythical communities not to be too terribly damaged during the mortal mythical war. As a result, there is a mixture of new and old buildings throughout the community, with most of the "downtown"/central area resembling a traditional New England town center. Although Lockwood is not at all a religious community, its Puritanical history means there are several small churches scattered throughout the community. The largest of which still serves as the town's community center, and community-wide meetings are still mostly held here to this day.

## Government

Ever since Lockwood allied itself with Enoch after the Mortal Mythical War, it has been rather unclear who exactly is in charge of its governance. While most residents would not claim they are Enochian subjects, they would still say they respect Enochian monarchical and council authority.

The town does have a small council of its own (along with a small, but seldom used police force and judiciary system), which consists of a handful of older, well-respected community members responsible for overseeing the law. However, a lot of conflict within Lockwood is resolved on an individual coven or pack basis (given the predominant species within the community are warlocks and lycanthropes). Nevertheless, there is hardly any reported crime within the community. The few major incidents which have arrived over the years have almost always garnered the interference of Enochian forces.

## Population Demographics

Since its founding, Lockwood has been a popular residence for members of the various magical species within New England. It currently has the highest population of witches/warlocks of any other American mythical community, and is also home to a number of smaller faerie and elven faeries. Historically, this is because Lockwood has never had an especially high vampiric population (like Alabaster). Without a high predatory population, many less physically capable species feel more comfortable settling in Lockwood. This also attributes to the second highest species population in Lockwood; the community is also home to a number of lycan packs, although these individuals choose mostly to live in the woodland outskirts of the community. These packs are quite often at odds with each other, although their conflicts rarely ever escalate to a point at which they cannot be controlled.

Currently, Lockwood is the only Enochian allied-community which is not currently experiencing a dramatic increase in vampiric population, which has made it an even more appealing place to live to other species.

## Historical Overview

The need for a separate mythical settlement in the Americas became apparent not long after the country’s initial colonization. After the first Puritan settlers established the Massachusetts Bay Colony, it became clear that, although they claimed to have immigrated from the United Kingdom to escape religious persecution, that they too desired a more homogeneous society. Those few initial mythicals who did cross the Atlantic to come to the New World quickly found they had made a mistake in thinking they could integrate successfully into human society without any problems. With so few settlers to begin with in the New World, mythical presence became even more obvious… Ultimately, the Salem Witch Trials began, leading to the execution and persecution of both suspected mythicals and actual witch/warlocks. Fearing for their safety, the small mythical population living within Massachusetts in the mid to late 17th century ultimately abandoned the existing townships and villages in order to forge their own settlement elsewhere.

Lockwood was established mostly because of its location within what is now known as the state of Maine. Since some of the mythical settlers knew how Alabaster thrived in isolate, in the woodlands, the quiet wilderness of Maine seemed an ideal place to set up residency. It did not take long for the town to grow, as more and more families and species decided to call the quiet little town their home.