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| - The Duchy of Light's Reach (Founded 25 BTA) Characterized by two pairs of enormous torch towers situated to the east and the west of the town proper, the Duchy of Light's Reach was the seat of House Mikin and the centre of their political and economic power in the realm. The township was located upon a mesa in the southeastern portion of the Forest District and the light from its beacons could be seen for miles in all directions. The towers stood as a symbol of House Mikin's unfaltering will and efforts to drive the Shadow completely from the realm of Fastheld and the inhabitants of the township prided themselves in the symbolism despite the oddity of living in nearly constant daylight. Thus it was that many of the more pious inhabitants of the realm took up residency in the Duchy, and placed themselves in the care of whose piety and dedication to the Light matched their own. In 624 ATA, it became evident that although the Mesa upon which Light's Reach was built was the perfect location for the beacons of House Mikin, it served an older purpose which the founders of the township had no knowledge of. Beneath the mesa, a series of caverns formed the prison for a mighty creature of the shadow known as the Ravager. When the mage-created wards of the prison were not renewed, the skeletal dragon burst from the Mesa destroying much of the township. In the process the former Surrector, Gell Mikin was destroyed in a blast of the creature's breath. The citizenry of the Duchy were forced to flee in the face of the creature and when the Ravager chose to remain in the ruins of the township the people were forced to relocate, some to the Mikin townships of Wedgecrest and Southwatch, and some scattered to the rest of the realm, their faith shattered by the destruction of their homes by this spawn of the Shadow. After the departure of the Ravager in the following spring, plans were set in motion by the Imperial Council for the rebuilding of the township. The task is a daunting one however and it may be years before the reconstruction process is brought to a conclusion and the Duchy of Light's Reach is inhabitable once more.
- Owned and controlled by House Valoria, the city of Light's Reach is less a city than a vast citadel. Though already nigh-impregnable due both to being built upon a mesa and protected by a high palisade wall, the township proper sits under the watch of the impressive structure known as Dawnstar Keep, and is home to the Imperial Tribunal and the Imperial Cult, as well as being under the guard of the Imperial Watch. The city is distinctive for a number of reasons, but perhaps the largest note of interest is that it is the second such township to bear the name Light's Reach. The first such city was somewhat smaller than the current incarnation and was destroyed in 624 ATA after a chain of events in the region lead to the awakening of the creature known as The Ravager, which had been imprisoned in the very rock of the mesa itself. The city lay in ruins until 626 ATA when Serath Valoria - fully under the influence of the Light after the events of the Silver Dawn - rebuilt the entire township via a miracle of the Light, thus undoing the damage of the Shadow and ushering in a rebirth of divine inspiration. It is from this act that two further curiosities of the city can be attributed: The first is very few buildings in Light's Reach are actually man made, for everything is a construction of Light and imagination, and utterly flawless to a tee. This created a slight problem in the wake of the miracle in that the city had to be populated from scratch, leaving the Imperial Watch with the somewhat difficult task of ensuring that looters, squatters, and outlaws, did not take up residence in any of the empty buildings. The second is that the Shadow has no presence in the township of all, and that all Shadow powers are rendered impotent while within the palisade walls. It is from this that Light's Reach has earned the title of "City of Light", and it is said that it remains the only place in living memory where there is no such thing as a Shadow-Touched citizen. Other locations of interest within the city of Light's Reach include:
* The indomitable stone battlements known as the Twin Bulwarks that protect the only road in and out of the city (and to and from the bluff itself).
* The solemn Mikin Hall memorial.
* The Imperial Tribunal, home of the Imperial Law.
* The Imperial Museum of Artifacts, which stores a wealth of unique items.
* The Great Oak which is an old tree that is said to have been the only thing to have survived from the old city.
* The four great Torch Towers that burn brightlessly and endlessly at each corner of the high palisade wall.
* The Dragon's Horde Tavern and its quirky currency laws.
* The Temple of the White Dragon, home of the Imperial Cult.
* The Southern Aria, a magical portal that links to Crown's Refuge.
* Dawnstar Keep, the home of Prince Serath Valoria and Duchess Rowena Valoria
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![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)