Springscale

Springscale is a fortified town in the savanna managed currently by Mukasko, a blue dragon that was previously put there to help keep Demons in the area under control. It is named after a magical spring that the dragon's father taught him to make that has special properties. Notably the town is host to many of the more monstrous races, living in surprising harmony.

Layout and Architecture

Though the many sandy and ivory-white buildings are a bit drab in their uniformity, their verdant gardens, occasional flashy features, and colorful awnings give the dwellings much-needed character. As can be seen by any who can access them, all basements within Springscale are cooled by trough water. The impossibly cool and clear water flowing through whitewashed troughs on either side of the non-alley streets of the town would look remarkably appealing to drink from if not for the water functionally being the town's gutter water.

The town's western swimming pool and bathing house are well known and quite popular among the locals. It is far cooler than the surrounding savanna, due in equal parts to the stout, tropical shade trees planted on corners, the cozy faux-natural walls, the remarkably cool water flowing in open-top troughs along each street wide enough for a wagon to go down, and the many colorful but uniformly-arranged awnings that the town's inhabitants have secured permits to erect.

A market is set up on the weekends in the plaza, showcasing both local and exotic goods from far and wide. Otherwise the town is host to a fair many stores providing services more specifically catered to it's monstrous and outsider inhabitants. The glassblowing works, once a small enterprise, have expanded significantly during the Five Years of Rest, finding patronage with the now established light-based beings, known as the Luminar, that arrived not far from their town through one of Etera's many rifts. As the agreement with the Luminar was forged by Avalia Naramoore, representatives of her Steelworks have established and maintained a small branch within the town, focused mainly on the research of the hard light from the Luminar realm while making good use of the local glassworks for the specialised lenses they produce.

The superficially tight space within the seemingly natural walls has since been painstakingly expanded upon with powerful but precise magic, allowing the town to keep up with its relative boom in population and popularity. As such there are plenty of empty space to be found, with most of it is being used for gardens, patios for gatherings, and tree nurseries until they are repurposed for more permanent structures.

Demographics

Springscale is home to a great many monstrous races and, more recently, outsiders displaced through the upheaval of The Godfall. Older outsiders still persist from the days of the Verk Empire when Mukasko was installed to quell the troubles. The breakdown is unknown as a census has never been undertaken but rough figures would reveal that 50% of the populace is of the monstrous races with a further 30% being outsiders and the remaining 20% of residents being of the humanoid races. Though not residents, beings of pure light that emerged from the nearby rift are frequent visitors, often trading objects and 'sculptures' made of hardened light.

Of the monstrous races the majority are Minotaurs, Centaurs and Gnolls. Many of the Gnolls are refugees or survivors of Behemoth following or just preceding the successful assault on their former home by the combined efforts of Eteran adventurers. Most of the others are survivors (penitent or otherwise) of the Lamashtu-worshipping tribes of the desert who suffered at the hands of the Praetors during their desert purge of such worship.

The Spring

The titular spring for which Springsale is named is magical in nature, impossibly clear, minerally rich, ever cool and capable of sustaining crops in the otherwise harsh environment. The town makes exceptionally effective use of this by having the source stream split off and run through the basement as a means of cooling. Streams also run throughout the town in various directions, both beautifying it and eventually reaching land intended for crops or trees. The water earmarked for consumption, while not directly restorative, aids in recovery and helps to keep the residents in good health. As the town has grown both technology and magic have been used to increase the flow and pressure of the spring to accommodate the increased population.

Despite the impressive qualities of the water very little effort has been made to actually discover its true properties. This is mostly on account of the mayor, Mukasko, keeping tight lipped on the secret of its creation, the secret having been passed down to him by his father. Those few that have tried note that magical interference with the water causes most of the supernatural qualities to fade quickly, rendering even the most minor of intrusive magical methods not viable for further research. Even the magic used in aiding the flow of water has had to be scaled back in favor of technology to address fears that the magic might cause the spring to become inert.

The Rift of Light

Just prior to the Two Years of Peace one of Etera's many rifts opened not far from what was then a village, allowing the passage of beings made of pure light. Though they could not traverse beyond the rifted area alone they were able to attach themselves to objects and people, effectively riding them out and into the world. The first and unfortunate few creatures quickly became stranded within their hosts and many were not seen again. Those that remained as the rift widened were eventually contacted by Avalia Naramoore and an agreement was struck to limit the rift's expansion in exchange for drone technology they could replicate with their own hardened light, allowing them to expand beyond their plane and explore Chronus.

Since then the rift has remained stable and the beings, known now as Luminar, have started to explore Etera using their hardlight mechanical bodies. They often conduct business with the residents of Springscale, selling works of artistic sculpture to the residents for trade beyond and often purchasing works of glass from the local glassworks.