Gaywood Castle

Gaywood Castle (/gaywood/ [Translation Unavailable]) is a subtropical Small City located in Dorwind Dutchy, Nefan Kingdom, within the Sylvan.

The name Gaywood Castle is derived from the Sylvin language, as Gaywood Castle was founded by Hellwasp Swarms Thaxter, who was culturaly Sylvin.

Climate

Gaywood Castle has a yearly average temperature of 13°C (55°F), with its average temperature during the summer being a cool 14°C (57°F) and its average temperature during the winter being a cool 13°C (55°F). Gaywood Castle receives an average of 266 cm/y (104 in/y) of precipitation, most of which comes in the form of snow during the brutaly long winter months. Gaywood Castle covers an area of nearly 10 km² (4 mi²), and an average elevation of 2526 m (8287 ft) above sea level.

Overview

Gaywood Castle was founded durring the early 12th century in winter of the year 1112, by Hellwasp Swarms Thaxter. The establishment of Gaywood Castle was somewhat plagued by a lack of willing colonists, leading to Hellwasp Swarms Thaxter electing to pay people to resettle in Gaywood Castle.

Gaywood Castle was built using the conventions of Sylvin durring the early 12th century. Naturaly, all settlmentss have their own look to them, and Gaywood Castle is no diffrent. The city's buildings feature waddle and daub construction with good timber frames and a stone foundation protected by thatched or shingled rooves. Most buildings with second floors are built in such a way as to overhang into the streets on the upper floors for more space, as building size seems to be the primary indicator of wealth within the community. Most buildings are not decorated with any integral features, but instead use ivy, flowers, and other natural elements in planters of on trellices to breathe life into the structure they grow upon.

Gaywood Castle is buildings are built arround a single crampt packed earth mainstreet which forms a counterclockwise spiral to give the city a over all circular shape. The city is the proud owner of a properly designed set of renforced walls made from mighty querried stone blocks. Their construction and material choices would make a dwarf weap with joy, for each and every part of the elaborate fortifications are purly functional and robust well byond reason. Even nonexperts can tell the walls are an excelent defencive structure. The exceptionaly well made fortifications has suffered a visible ammount of structural damage, leaving them effectivly useless. One can't help but wonder why the has not yet effected repairs.

Looking around Gaywood Castle you immediately realise that the locals are looking back at you. All of them. Everywhere you look somone is staring back at you analytically, looking over every inch of you, your gear, and your companions. As you get close to people, their hands move closer to their belt knife, or dagger. You may want to watch where you go and what you say...

Civic Infrastructure

Gaywood Castle has an animal control department which works to enforce local ordinances relating to the control, impoundment, and disposition of animals.

Gaywood Castle has an Office of Civil Groundskeeping, which works to enforce local ordinances relating to the construction and upkeep up of all plant life, water features, and other natural decorations within Gaywood Castle. They are also responsible for the maintenance of these features. Notably, the OCG is not responsible for Gaywood Castle's parks.

Gaywood Castle has an Office of Civil Vicary, which is responsible for providing a livelyhood for all officialy recognised religious figures within Gaywood Castle.

Gaywood Castle has a government-funded child care program, overseen by the local Department of Nursemaids, which is responsible for providing childcare to working-class citizens according to local ordinances.

Gaywood Castle has a Gravedigger's Guild, which is responsible for collecting the dead and laying them to rest according to all applicable laws and religious customs.

Gaywood Castle has a Department of Firefighters, which is responsible for organizing fire fighting efforts during a fire and enforcing local ordinances relating to fire safety.

Gaywood Castle has a Highwayman's Guild, which is tasked with maintaining the roads and highways leading into town as well as keeping them safe for travelers.

Gaywood Castle has a monistary of an order of Civil Monks, who provide divine-related services to the general public and maintain Gaywood Castle's public wards, blessings, and other arcane systems.

Gaywood Castle has a Parks and Recreation Department, which is responsible for the construction, management, and usage rights for all of its parks and parklands. They are not to be confused with the Office of Civil Groundskeeping as they do not hold authority over nor responsibility for Gaywood Castle's natural decorations nor waterways.

Gaywood Castle has a Guild of Roadworkers, who are responsible for maintaining the roadways and public paths within town. They also have the duty of enforcing all civil laws relating to the roadways.

Gaywood Castle has a public schooling program overseen by the Hall of Sages who has the responsibility of ensuring access to affordable high-quality education in all basic classes (Reading, Writing, Mathmatics, General Sciences, General Arcana, and Social Education) is made available to all citizens.

Gaywood Castle has a public septic system, which allows its citizens to have indoor bathrooms. The septic system is overseen by the League of Sewerkeepers, who posses the legal authority to enforce all laws relating to the septic system, and are also tasked with its maintenance and upkeep.

Cultural Notes

Gaywood Castle's mayor's house was built using a different architectural style from the rest of the town. The style used is known primarily for its use of abstraction and simplicity. Clean lines, right angles, and primary colors characterized this aesthetic and art movement expressed via architecture and paintings. Its design ethos allows only primary colors and non-colors, only squares and rectangles, only straight and horizontal or vertical lines. Vertical and horizontal lines are positioned in layers or planes that do not intersect, thereby allowing each element to exist independently and unobstructed by other elements. These seemingly impossible principals for an architectural style coalesces into structures which most experts find hard to put into words. It is not that their geometry is impossible, but rather the style's attempt at producing works only describable visually was most successful..

Due to the actions of local Kami, spring is short in Gaywood Castle.

The Caypup near Gaywood Castle are known to be almost tame, such that they can be put to domestic use.

Gaywood Castle's citizens partake in a curious ritual relating to their local kami. It takes place in winter and involves gestures to channel Truename Magic energies of tier 1 via throat chanting.

Economy

The following information was obtained via the Imperial Census Bureau as part of the Eyom Economic Outreach Program. It differs from Standard Imperial censuses in that many of Tom's citizens, regardless of culture, work in more than one occupation or hold more than a single job. The Imperial Census Bureau has ruled that a job is a job, hence, the intigers within the data presented here can count an individual more than once.

Gaywood Castle Census Data: Year 2000

837 of Gaywood Castle's population work within a Foundational Occupation.

• 47 work in Agriculture
• 186 work as Craftsmen
• 64 work as Merchants
• 132 work as Service Workers
• 86 work as General Laborers
• 34 work as Skilled Laborers
• 127 work as Civil Servants
• 73 work in Cottage Industries
• 44 work as Artists
• 44 work in Produce Industries

1432 of Gaywood Castle's population do not work in a formal occupation, but do contribute to the local economy. 170 (7%) are noncontributers.

Points of Interest

Gaywood Castle makes use of canals for some of its streets. Locals often fish in the canals.

POI

History

Almost every community has some problem with bandits and highwaymen, but Gaywood Castle is seriously plagued with raiders. One or more groups of persistent plunderers are hitting the community repeatedly, and they lack the necessary resources to fend them off or protect all their holdings.

In time immemorial, reportedly some time during the late 2nd century the Kami ended a drought plaguing Gaywood Castle. One of Gaywood Castle's local festivals commemorates this miracle.

History