Birchlake

Birchlake (/bɜːʧ/ /leɪk/ [Translation Unavailable]) is a subtropical Large City located in Butterview Dutchy, Ledonia Earldom, within the Sylvanian Empire.

The name Birchlake is derived from the Sylvin language, as Birchlake was founded by Parciel Fitzsimons, who was culturaly Sylvin.

Climate

Birchlake has a yearly average temperature of 17°C (62°F), with its average temperature during the summer being a warm 26°C (78°F) and its average temperature during the winter being a cold 8°C (46°F). Birchlake receives an average of 135 cm/y (53 in/y) of precipitation, most of which comes in the form of rain during the spring. Birchlake covers an area of nearly 268 km² (107 mi²), and an average elevation of 6814 m (-20594 ft) above sea level.

Overview

Birchlake was founded durring the late 14th century in winter of the year 1288, by Parciel Fitzsimons. The establishment of Birchlake was plagued by a lack of willing colonists. After attempts to pay people to resettle failed Parciel Fitzsimons struck deals with nearby nations and communities to establish Birchlake as a prison colony.

Birchlake was built using the conventions of Sylvin durring the late 14th century. Naturaly, all settlmentss have their own look to them, and Birchlake 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.

Birchlake is buildings are arranged arround a single restrictive split-log ties mainstreet with many smaller streets branching off of it which gives the city a over all rectangular shape, albit one warped and twisted by the nature of the curves of the main road. The city is the proud owner of a proper castle-style stone wall complete with all of the trimmings. It has towers, a moat, gatehouses, drawbridges, and even merticulationsshortsizeleadershipname.. The perhapse unnessisarily well built defences 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.

Birchlake has a very calm atmosphere. People can be seen relaxing, scocilizing, and going about all manner of business other than the daily grind. Men, women, children, all can be seen enjoying life in a laid-back way in the many parks which line Birchlake’s streets. A look around Birchlake has something terribly wrong with it. It’s impossible to put one’s finger on, but something is horribly wrong. Maybe it’s the way fog blankets the ground, but only in the connors of places. Maybe it’s the vermin scutteling between shadows in the corner of your eyes. Perhaps it’s the overcast sky which seemed to creep out of nowhere, or the distant howling of wolves. Maybe it’s everything together. Regardless, you do not feel it would be wise to remain in Birchlake long.

Civic Infrastructure

Birchlake possesses a Aethary Link for its accademic, government, and financial institutions. Public Aethary access is available through one or more of these intitutions.

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

Birchlake 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 Birchlake. They are also responsible for the maintenance of these features. Notably, the OCG is not responsible for Birchlake's parks.

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

Birchlake 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.

Birchlake 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.

Birchlake has a Guild of Nurses, which is tasked with caring for the elderly and infirm in accordance with local ordinances, religious values, and customs.

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

Birchlake 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.

Birchlake has a Hall of Slayers, which is tasked with maintaining the roads and highways leading into town as well as keeping them safe for travelers.

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

Birchlake has an Millitary Academy which trains military officers and specilists.

Birchlake possesses a Galvanic Power Grid, which brings galvanic current to most if not all buildings in town, and permits a great many consumer goods to function within the Large City. Birchlake's grid is powered by mana accumulators.

Birchlake's old civil lighting system was converted to Galvanic Lamps recently, and expanded to provide nighttime illumination to all city streets.

Birchlake has a first rate hospital which caters to anyone in need of long term medical care.

Birchlake has a library, which keeps a large collection of books, scrolls, and archives all manner of physical items. While not open to the public, the librarians and scholars employed by the library will assist anyone with their research needs, and wealthy individuals can purchase membership to access the library's materials themselves. In spite of being generally closed to the public, the library has a room with several Aether Linked devices available to the public during business hours.

Birchlake 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 Birchlake's natural decorations nor waterways.

Birchlake 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.

Birchlake 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.

Birchlake 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.

Birchlake is home to a University which provides higher education in a variety of fields, and also serves as a research institute for those same fields.

Cultural Notes

There’s more than one leader in Birchlake, but at least some of them are at each other’s throats. It might be a conflict between formal leadership and informal authorities, or it could be a struggle among civil officials. Their interests might diverge sharply, or it could be a personal grudge that’s boiled over. Outside threats and internal problems are likely being ignored until the power struggle is resolved.

Birchlake's chapel was built using a different architectural style from the rest of the town. The style used is best known for its functional shapes, abstract shapes used sparingly for decor, simple color schemes, holistic design, and basic industrial materials. Its simple designs were created to be beautiful, functional, and mass-producible. The style used little to no embellishment or ornamentation, instead drawing attention to the streamlined design, such as flat roofs to create a simple, geometric look. The simplicity masks the style's nearly sinister functionality, as every last feature is designed to guide the people living in the building in how to make the most efficient use of the structure.

In Birchlake leaves and flower petals never touch the ground.

The Leshy, Leaf near Birchlake are known to be more aggressive than normal.

Birchlake's citizens partake in a curious ritual relating to their local kami. It takes place in summer and involves reenactments to channel Mysticism energies of tier 3 via throat singing.

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.

Birchlake Census Data: Year 2000

24452 of Birchlake's population work within a Foundational Occupation.

• 1350 work in Agriculture
• 5400 work as Craftsmen
• 1986 work as Merchants
• 3706 work as Service Workers
• 2498 work as General Laborers
• 1023 work as Skilled Laborers
• 3608 work as Civil Servants
• 2175 work in Cottage Industries
• 1366 work as Artists
• 1340 work in Produce Industries

34449 of Birchlake's population do not work in a formal occupation, but do contribute to the local economy. 5121 (8%) are noncontributers.

Points of Interest

Birchlake has a substantial mill pond located a short distance from town.

POI

History

The the a Poleyn of Mysticism, an a Poleyn imbued with great amounts of Mysticism energies was created in Birchlake by in time immemorial, reportedly some time during the early 2nd century.

History