Sundown (Past Chronicle [Dates Here])
Sundown Location Guide - by T.A. Saunders ©2012
The Kithanis uth Braegon Public Library
Another post civil war addition to Sundown, the library is a diverse collection of books from Lord Kithanis uth Braegon's personal library and books others from across Tal`Rah have donated. It was an unspoken truth that Ko and the vampire regime purposefully chose to not allow a library or a school to be built in Sundown prior to this, in an attempt to keep the population from becoming educated on a large scale. Upon her overthrow however, the second thing Kithanis did after instituting the Shadow Hunters as the city's peace keepers, was to covert this former hall of records into a library for the people.
A large structure, with bleached stone walls and columns that span three city blocks, the library houses a wide variety of books of Imarel lore, history, mathematics, science and other various subjects of interest. Also to be found is a very generous fiction section, with many old fairy tale books that Kithanis himself had read to him when he was a child. There is also a small section of magical lore and spells, but this was purposefully controlled as to avoid misuse of very powerful magic.
The Hall of the Setting Sun
This building holds the distinction of being the only one destroyed utterly during the Sundown Civil War in the Garden District, as retaliation for Ko`rashae Ri's killing of an unborn child the Asyndi Skye was carrying. Upon discovering this cruel attack, Lord uth Braegon sent word to the Anthalaen Airship, H.M.S. Vendetta to level the Hall in hopes that it might catch Ko there. While the attack failed at killing the legendary vampire queen, it did succeed in killing two of Ko's oldest blood slaves and destroying countless gathered munitions that had been secreted away within the Hall.
After the war however, the structure was rebuilt essentially as it had been, brick per brick in appearance. This was intentional as the Hall itself was and still is one of the most prominent buildings in the Garden District, with huge flagstones of white marble, veined with gold that catch the light of the sun as it rises to the east, then give the building an unusual orange cast as the sun sets in the west. Perhaps the largest building in Sundown, next to the massive Coliseum, the Hall of the Setting Sun is meant to serve as Sundown's hall of records in its west wing, center of government in the center hub and court of magistrates the eastern wing.
The basement of the Hall was converted from a war shelter to a museum dedicated to Sundown's local history, including relics from its original settlement, which include the first flag of Sundown and a mast from the Primrose Jane, to some of the cannons used in the Sundown Civil War. Meant to lure citizens to the hall that was closed off to them during the vampiric regime, this particular attraction has become quite popular and gains new relics and items of interest each day.
Court of the Evenfall
This building serves as the local presence of the Nahara in Sundown. An opulent structure with a golden dome and marble walkways and columns, the Court is meant to be as pleasing to the eye as the Nahara that live and train here. Often music can be heard playing from the lavish gardens that line the court that blends perfectly with the gentle sound of the water from the extravagant fountains found within. A veritable paradise cut from the rough of Sundown, the Court perhaps one of the most beautiful structures in the city.
While rarely seen in other parts of Sundown, the Nahara often escort heads of state, visiting diplomats from elsewhere and powerful merchant lords. As their credo notes, they do not involve themselves in politics, wars or disputes, preferring to stay above such things. Because of this neutrality, more than once the Court was put at odds with Ko and the vampire regime. The height of this conflict sparked during the civil war, when two Nahara were found brutally slain for refusing to surrender information they reputedly had. The retribution was swift from the Nahara that resulted in a great deal of information being brokered to the Sundown Rebellion.
Shadow Hunter Guard House
Once the barracks for the since-reformed and reorganized Sundown Regulars, the Shadow Hunter Guard House serves as both a prison for Sundown's criminals and a headquarters for the city guerrillas turned lawmen. While Ko had control of Sundown, the Guard House often served as a place to torture uncooperative prisoners and enemies of the state alike. Since the civil war, the new government has removed and destroyed all implements of torture, literally scrubbed the walls, floor and ceilings clean, added an armory for the Shadow Hunters and heavily bolstered the building's sorcerous defenses. The gallows and the chopping block for executions still remains however and is open to the public for such events.
A looming structure that sports four guard towers, thick boromandite-plated gates and a Starmetal-reinforced holding area that adds an anti-magic effect, this headquarters for the Shadow Hunters is somewhat ironic, since many Shadow Hunters were incarcerated, tortured and killed here under Ko's regime. Upon claiming the structure and placing Kaal's blessing upon it, Samuel ‘Old Sam' Brookholte stated that “Claiming this building on behalf of the Shadow Hunters justifies all the blood we have lost here and serves to remind us what corruption can bring.” Indeed, many of the veteran Shadow Hunters hold a certain measure of cold respect for this building for that reason.
As mentioned, the Guard House has an anti-magic effect built into the very walls of the structure, by way of large amounts of Starmetal filings mixed in with the mortar that seals the flagstone. This makes it impossible to dispel and impossible to overpower due to the vast quantities of Starmetal flake in the mortar itself. This particular countermeasure was added to prevent magic-using prisoners from either escaping or communicating with the outside world. While break-outs are still possible, such attempts will require guile and wit, rather than brute magical or explosive force.
Sundown Coliseum
The Sundown Coliseum is one of the older structures in the Garden District, originally used by the vampire regime as a convenient way to dispose of troublesome individuals in the form of gladiator games. The Coliseum also serves as a place for public gathering and political rallies. Traditionally, if there is a meeting of citizens of the city to be had it is done at the Coliseum.
The tradition of gladiatorial combat has not ended with the change of regime but prisoners are no longer executed here as a means of entertainment. Prisoners can however, volunteer to fight in the arena to gain a lightening of a sentence or in the case of smaller infractions of the law, have the charge lifted all together. Commonly, professional gladiators and fighting slaves are brought here to fight to the death in bloody glory with one another, when some other more civil means of entertainment isn't taking place here.
A huge, open-air structure that spans several city blocks, the Sundown Coliseum represents the hub of city activity and social interaction. The walls themselves are fashioned from bleached stone and have weathered generations of the population. Within, there are seating arrangements for over 15,000 people and can accommodate many more in crisis situations, where the population of the city must be brought together. (Click here to join our coliseum channel and here for the game rules for participating).