Solvunn Commune

Item from Some Game

Solvunn comprises the southwest portion of Abraxas, and is mostly made up of of flat plains that are easy to traverse, with a mild climate that is neither too hot in the summer nor too cold in the winter. Rich in resources and farmable land, the majority of the population lives in relative comfort. Parties, festivals, and feasts are common in Solvunn and it has a thriving arts and recreation scene as well. Most of the population only works for a couple hours a day, taking care of their current duties before lunch and devoting the afternoon and evening to recreation and family time.

Despite having a lower aptitude for magic than Thorne and less of a military than Cadens, the peaceful Commune has managed to hold on to their desirable land for thousands of years. Rumor has it that they have won the favor of the Old Gods, but the members of the Commune are all very tight-lipped about the subject.

Solvunn is governed by an elected committee that rotates once every three years. Individuals may serve as many terms on the committee as they are elected for, and the same people tend to be appointed term after term until one of them retires or passes away. Economically, all resources are shared within the commune and available to all citizens, with social shaming being the primary method of getting everyone to do their fair share of work. Given how little work is expected of each individual citizen, this is not usually a problem (save for some hooligans in the tertiary settlement). Solvunn has ample resources to trade and can easily afford to pay a middle-man from a neutral nation to procure goods from Thorne and Cadens.

Pending committee approval, defectors from other nations are permitted to join the Commune after three months of work and residency as long as they can get recommendations from at least three citizens.

## Notable NPCs

* Winifred Bordeaux
* Rowan March
* Josselyn Creed

## Major Locations

### The Primary Settlement

The primary settlement, where the Town Hall, the school, the library, and various markets reside. The primary settlement has a good mix of jobs available from fishing and farming to textiles and carpentry, and is generally considered the most desirable of the three settlements. All parents with kids under sixteen can live temporarily in the primary settlement, as the other two lack a school.

The primary settlement is responsible for the education of its settlers as well as the care for its families. Families with children attending school are given room and board in the primary settlement until they’ve had their education and taken their aptitude exams. It is also the home of the Council, the governing body of Solvunn. It is compromised of three main members representing each settlement, all with their own set of duties. Nothing quite as impressive as Thorne’s massive libraries, Solvunn offers a modest collection of books and tomes dedicated to various trades as well as a small selection of poetry, fables, history, and scholarly essays. A reading group meets there in the morning for parents whose children aren’t quite ready for school while they work.

All of the booths in the marketplace are family-owned, and it’s common practice to trade with both coin and goods. There’s very little competition, most have found their niche ability to bring fortune for their family and for the wealth of the community. There are all matters of goods to be found, as well as suppliers from Thorne and the Free Cities through a third party’s caravan. If what you’re seeking cannot be found in the marketplace proper, perhaps the traveling merchant can find it for you elsewhere-- for a price. The secondary and tertiary settlements also haul their goods and services over at least once a month.

### The Secondary Settlement

The secondary settlement, which is more of a collection of loosely-connected farms. Most of the produce and livestock comes from the secondary settlement, and though it lacks some of the amenities of the primary settlement, owning a farm in the secondary settlement is a prosperous occupation and many of the families here have farmed the land for generations. Though sparsely populated, the residents of this settlement get together several times a year for extravagant festivals.

Where the primary settlement is organized and easy to navigate, the secondary settlement is far from it. Being mostly farmland, it is a horribly disorienting maze to those who are not accustomed to its layout. Fair warning to those looking to travel, it’s been told that without permission, the gods will likely eat you there. Whether or not that can be proven is irrelevant- the settlers believe it and those travelers were never seen again. Most of the farms in the area are specialized, perfecting the growth of one or two endeavors. Feuds have broken out in the past between families disputing the legitimacy of the other’s crop. While they do work for the better of the community, farming is taken as a great badge of pride that cannot be suffered dishonor by another family stepping on their toes. There are just as many farms that specialize in livestock as there are orchards and fields of grasses or produce.

The prominent family of the settlement is the March Family, who have been goat farming for generations. The eldest son Rowan has been seated on the council which is a point of pride for the entire settlement- it isn’t often that council members are chosen outside of the primary settlement due to the nature of the thing. The March Family is seen as one of the leaders of the settlement, brought in to help reach negotiations between feuding farms and their word is typically seen as law.

Most families in this settlement like to keep farm work within their own family, however if there is interest in tending to the fields as labor, they can be persuaded to offer food and shelter in return after a trial run.

### The Tertiary Settlement

The tertiary settlement just off of Hydra Gulf, which has a primarily fishing-based economy on the roughest terrain. The least desirable of the settlements, newcomers who don't bring any valuable skills with them, troublemakers, and childless young adults without significant family connections are often shipped off to the tertiary settlement. No one will officially call it a punishment, but anyone who lives there for a long stretch of time will notice that people seem to regard it as one anyway. The real purpose of the tertiary settlement is to keep an eye on the neighboring Borrel and prevent Thornean soldiers from sailing to Solvunn unnoticed.

For those interested in settling in Solvunn, most work will be relegated here as a trial run. While not outright stated as being a punishment, life in this commune has its difficulties in comparison to the others. Being able to thrive in the tertiary settlement is reward enough to be made a community member for those looking elsewhere. While most of its residents are a revolving community from other places looking to relocate, there are some families that have decided to stake their claim and make this place theirs.

Fishing on such unforgiving terrain and murky waters takes skill, and it can be a lucrative career if one knows how to do it. There are a great deal less people living here than in other places due to the threat of careers found in sailing or by piracy. Perhaps they found the life Solvunn has given them to be not enough and they defected to Thorne. It’s all the same to the families that remain around the coast- people leave and don’t come back, but they’ve got a good feeling about you being a productive member of society!

## Notable Landmarks

### The Hotsprings

Obligatory hotsprings, somewhere near the Primary Settlement.