Talon's Port Nation Application

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Settlement PRO Name: camocat9

Nation Name: The Sovereign State of Talon’s Port

 

What is the history of your settlement?:

 

Talon’s Grotto was founded in the year 1734 of the First Age (62 FE) by a human named Arthur Sterling alongside a small group of his followers who sought to create a city of thieves-- a paradise for pirates roaming throughout the Queen’s Isles. The city was constructed beneath a large rock overhang on the southernmost point of Arcas, with the staple of the city being it’s isolated position and brick-focused construction, made of clay from the surrounding jungles. Arthur Sterling was the first Sovereign of the Depths, who surrounded himself by a council of five members who partook in the rulership of the city. The position he created was never one meant to be passed between generations of families, but rather awarded to the most capable of council members beneath him once he was to pass on.

    As Arthur Sterling’s life came to an end, the loyal councilors who remained took note of their options, and eventually appointed an adunian known as Nathanial Valorum Goldblight to rule the city in Sovereign Sterling’s stead. Beneath the watchful rulership of Sovereign Goldblight, the city began to see great reforms-- the city hummed with the life of construction and trade as the new sovereign attempted to clean the stains of piracy from the now-prospering portside city, seeing a recently unparalleled growth of population. During the reign of Sovereign Goldblight, the city of Talon’s Grotto found itself entangled in a war with the Holy Orenian Empire. Through deft diplomacy, Sovereign Goldblight and his council managed to forge a peace with the powerful empire, which later led to an alliance. Though, as the years wore on, it was clear that not everyone was content with the new changes, as Sovereign Goldblight was murdered by an unknown assailant late in his reign.

    Upon the death of Sovereign Goldblight, a mountain dwarf known as Durlak took up the position of Sovereign. Sovereign Durlak was a well-liked leader within the city, known for their boisterous personality and level-headed attitude. He was constantly seen mingling with the citizens of the prosperous port city, and hosting celebrations that many spoke of for years to come. Sovereign Durlak’s relaxed and cheery attitude is one that is still upheld in the city to this day. Some years after being appointed as the next ruler, Sovereign Durlak stepped down from their position, prompting the council to elect the high elf known as Castiel Valaker as the next sovereign.

    Sovereign Valaker’s rule started in a way that gave many high hopes for the years to follow-- the newly appointed ruler managed to broker an alliance with a multitude of settlements and nations throughout the continent, forming the Anti-Bandit Coalition to quell the rampant banditry that had plagued them for so long. But, year after year, Sovereign Valaker became less and less engaged with the city, causing it to fall into a state of disrepair once more. In a unanimous decision from the council, Sovereign Valaker was voted from their position of leadership in the year 1780 of the First Age (16 FE).

    Upon the removal of Sovereign Valaker from his position, the council voted once more to appoint a human known as James Avery as the next Sovereign of the Depths. After the negligence of Sovereign Valaker, Sovereign Avery began breathing life into the city once more. Beneath the rulership of Sovereign Avery, the city experienced the same growth as it had seen beneath Sovereign Goldblight. The city prospered once more, with the layout being completely redesigned and new housing programs being implemented to fit the influx of new citizens. Previously unused structures were repurposed, and a ferry was charted between Sutica and Talon’s Grotto. Later in Sovereign Avery’s rulership, a group of peoples known as the Li-Ren approached the sovereign, prompting if they could seek refuge within the city, having nowhere for their people to live. The Li-Ren were welcomed into the city with open arms, their unique culture and large numbers a wonder to the grotto dwellers. After fourteen years of successful leadership, Sovereign Avery made the decision to step down from their position in the year 1794 of the First Age (2 FE).

    After Sovereign Avery stepped down from the council, the council voted unanimously in favor of appointing the Talon’s Grotto Minister of Defense, Gail Cordius, in his place. On the day of his coronation, Sovereign Cordius promised to bring more transparency to the city government and reform the ministries that made up the government into more coherent organizations. In the year 1795 of the First Age (1 FE), after being warned by the merchants of Brev that disasters had begun to plague the lands of Arcas, Sovereign Cordius instructed that the previously unfinished construction of the World Ship being completed, outfitting the large boat as a floating city of sorts. As disasters began to strike the city of Talon’s Grotto, the population was evacuated on to the World Ship with what few possessions they could carry.

    The people of Talon’s Grotto were at sea for months before they first sighted the shores of Almaris. Upon seeing the new lands before them, the start of a new era of Talon’s was declared. The first parties of Talon’s explorers went ashore in the initial days of Year 0 of the Second Age (0 SE), coming across a lush jungle environment much like the one they had left behind at their home. Upon planting feet on the shore, Sovereign Cordius declared that this be the sight of the new city of Talon’s Port. There was a small encampment founded on shore, with the residents of Talon’s Port working within the surrounding marshes and living on board the World Ship.

    Although it took some years, the city of Talon’s Port was finally constructed within the jungles to the pride of the citizens. Alongside the typical brick-buildings of Talon’s Port, the Li-Ren people who kept showing up to the city in droves were given a quarter of their space to construct the Tai Ping district, one of the bustling hubs of present-day Talon’s Port beneath the rulership of Li Xiu-ying. Soon, the city began to fill with residents of old Talon’s Grotto, and travelers who had heard tales of the newly formed port city. Within the first months of the city being constructed, the population skyrocketed as festivities began to be held and new businesses opened their doors.

Talon’s Port got involved in the world of diplomacy, forging non-aggression pacts with states such as Oren and Norland to guarantee the safety of their troops, and open possibilities for future alliances. 

As the years passed, Talon’s Port continued to fill until the city had run out of housing, resorting to burrows in the ground to house their citizens without the necessary land to continue expanding their city on the surface, and their population continues to grow ever-larger.

 

How has your settlement expanded into a core LotC staple, warranting nation rights?:

 

    Talon’s Port has developed into a location that is well-known throughout the server due to the community of the city. Talon’s Port, both in roleplay and out of character, is welcoming of all, new players and old. With a large portion of our stewardship and leadership being made up of community team members, we pride ourselves in being able to engage players with our city. Our activity in the recent weeks has brought in a multitude of new players, and the relaxed atmosphere that we try to keep the city in has brought in numerous more. After attempts in the past to form Talon’s Grotto into a more heavy anything roleplay city have typically not worked out and the city has flourished under the current conditions, the community of LOTC has clearly displayed that they like Talon’s Port for what it is-- a location on the server where one can do some simple roleplay and relax. The narrow, dirty streets and rough brick buildings provide a new type of feeling that is seen nowhere else on the server this map-- while many nations chose to go big, Talon’s Port was built specifically to provide a contrast to the large, open-plan cities that are seen in many locations.

 

What are your plans once getting Nation Status for the remainder of your tile?:

 

    Upon gaining access to our full tile, we plan on expanding the main city center of Talon’s Port outward and providing more housing for our population seeing as we no longer have sufficient space within the 150x150 parcel of land we were granted before, alongside creating space for more ‘rural’ builds on our tile, such as lone farmhouses and interesting player-ran event sites. Alongside this, there are multiple groups who reside within the city who have enough activity to justify giving them space within the tile to vassalize and build their own towns, such as the Li-Ren people of Tai Ping.

 

What niche does your nation capture that does not exist among the current ones?:

 

    Talon’s Port has a very relaxed tone to it in comparison to most other nations. The largest number of our population comes to the city in order to have relaxed, low-stakes roleplay. Slice-of-life roleplayers make up most of our city population, and due to this, Talon’s Port is akin to a highly urbanized city filled with those of similar roleplay interest. Government and military roleplay exists within the city, but is limited and nowhere near our main focus. Specialty districts within the city such as Tai Ping also provide people of smaller cultural groups such as the Li-Ren space to roleplay with others who have a similar interest. Smaller guilds within the city such as the Foxtrot Adventure Guild, or one of the numerous mercenary companies based in the city provide unique opportunities for players should they wish to be more involved in the community.

 

Do you feel confident that your settlement has grown to the point that it can survive the departure of its existing leadership? Is your player-group able to incorporate new players into the existing roleplay community that founded your settlement?:

 

    I do feel confident over this fact. With our focus now set upon becoming a small, stable nation for lower-stakes roleplay, making the transition from leader to leader has been made extremely easy. Seeing as the next ruler of Talon’s Port is selected by a popular vote from the council, the next ruler is not inherently the next leader, but rather who the council believes can do the most efficient job in continuing to uphold the values of the city and run it effectively. Talon’s Port’s environment makes it easy for new players to jump into the community. Seeing as Talon’s Port has existed for nearly over a year, we have seen our share of players come and go. Many of the players who were new all that time ago are now concrete parts of the community, happy to show newer players around in hopes that they would one day do the same-- some newer members of the community are also taking part in activities within it such a leadership or stewardship, making sure that the opinions of a single ‘generation’ are not the only ones heard.

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This application has been accepted! Congratulations on all your hard work towards reaching nation status.

Completed.