skin, bone, and arrogance
C A L A V A R
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- [SIZE=11pt]Intent: To create the capital city of Galidraan and a new, Galidraan-centered faction[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Image Credit: The Blue Palace (Schloss Nordkirchen, Wikimedia Commons) / The River Palace (Palace of Westminster, OrogoldLondon.com) / The Royal Gallery (National Gallery London, NationalGallery.org.uk) / Reed Modern (Tate Modern, LondonCityBreak.com) / Calavar River Restoration (Ioan Dumitrescu) / Judicial Quarter (KitBash3d) / [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Canon: Galidraan on Wookieepedia[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Links: N/A[/SIZE]
SETTING INFORMATION
- [SIZE=11pt]City Name: Calavar[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Classification: Metropolis[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Location: Galidraan's largest continent, near the mouth of the Calavar River[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Affiliation: The Galidraan Unified Council, The Sith Empire[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Demographics: 90% human, 10% alien. While there are no laws restricting immigration to the city, the planet is not known for being an easy place to make a new start. It is cold and generally inhospitable, and though the planet itself is wealthy, there is a prevailing wisdom that that wealth which can be drawn from the dirt and rocks and mountains is already being drawn, and there is not a feeling of easy entry into money-making enterprise on the planet. In addition to these considerations, the city is, like the rest of the planet, stratified greatly, with the ruling classes of hereditary wealthy nobles and oligarchs perched on top of the social order, below which the upper middle class, the middle class, the working class, and the poor are arrayed. [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Wealth: High - long the capital of the planet of Galidraan, it originally grew up from a hub town, where materials were shipped in from offworld and then transported along the river as far as was feasible. Likewise, exports would be shipped along the river to the spaceports in Calavar where they would go offworld. Calavar grew wealthy on the fees charged on these transactions, as well as on good and services for those who settled there to facilitate the trades as well as those passing through. Once the government was established, a bureaucracy and a social set grew up in Calavar, keeping the money coming in and out. [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Stability: High - Galidraan is not an oppressive society -- except socially -- but there is a social contract on a certain, agreed-upon behavior. Honor and community are important concepts to Galidraan, as is the idea that one should put one's head down and get on with it rather than complaining about one's lot in life. As such, criminal activity and social unrest are typically at a minimum.[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Description: The capital city of Galidraan is the oldest on the planet, starting its life as a mining outpost, then a port town and finally the political center of the planet when Galidraan established its monarchy. It is the undisputed epicenter of culture, wealth, and power in Galidraani society. Brimming with well-preserved ancient buildings, government offices, cultural centers like opera houses, theaters, and museums, Calavar also places a strong emphasis on environmental concerns. Its early history was a story of a polluted warren of cramped streets and dirty water; city leadership at the time, recognizing the health impacts, wrote into the city charter a commitment to cleaning up the pollution and keeping it clean. As such, the city features plenty of green spaces -- parks, community gardens, wooded areas, and in the outskirts of the city, farms. [/SIZE]
POINTS OF INTEREST
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[SIZE=11pt]The Blue Palace: In addition to being a structure (or, more accurately, a compound of structures), the Blue Palace is also a term used to refer in media and society to the Galidraani executive government, serving traditionally as the official residence and workplace of the Governor General of Galidraan, and before that the Galidraani Royal Family. The palace is large and drafty, built in the early ages of the Galidraani monarchy as a symbol of wealth, prestige, and power. To this day it symbolizes the grandeur of Galidraani society, and through the monarchy has been replaced with a Governorship, many of the important government and social functions continue to be played out at the Blue Palace. It features a large main residence, extensive offices and quarters for the staff, massive gardens, stables and facilities for vehicles, guest quarters, and entertainment facilities for state visits. [/SIZE]
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[SIZE=11pt]The River Palace: Also referred to as "Parliament," the River Palace (so named for its location on the northern bank of the Calavar River) was at one point a royal residence which was converted for use as a government building, replete with chambers for both houses of the Galidraani Parliament to convene. Although Parliament has not convened for over a decade, the building's office space has been used most recently by the Provisional Leadership Committee after the resignation of Governor Iain Deltera. With executive power now invested in the new Grand Duke, the River Palace continues to serve as focal point for the civil services and there are rumors that the Parliament may soon be recalled.[/SIZE]
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[SIZE=11pt]The Royal Gallery: Containing a massive collection of fine classic art, including portraits on loan from the Historical Trust from the former Royal Family's collection, the Royal Gallery also plays host to a rotating exhibition of different kinds of art, from sculpture to tapestry to installation art. Free to residents of Calavar City, the Royal Gallery is in the middle of the Museum District and is a favorite of the aristocratic classes that visit the city, playing host to three or four Private Views in late spring that signal the opening of the Calavar Season.[/SIZE]
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[SIZE=11pt]Reed Modern: Though no one really uses its full name, the Tavish Reed Center for Modern Art, this museum appeals to the younger and more middle-class residents of Calavar City. Set on the southern banks of the Calavar River, Reed Modern was once power plant. The Reed family made its fortune in mining coal and providing power, but when the city leaders began pursuing cleaner energy solutions, the Reed family patriarch, Tavish Reed, invested in green energy, decommissioned the power station and donated it to the city for a huge tax break. He founded a perpetual trust to provide for the development of a modern art museum and fellowship in the old power station.[/SIZE]
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[SIZE=11pt]Calavar River Conservation: As pictured, most of the roads in the city have been replaced with durable, environmentally friendly grass, suitable for foot traffic, small hovervehicles (speeder bikes) or small wheeled vehicles (like bicycles). Private speeder traffic is allowed only in skylanes, and the city features an extensive and efficient underground subway system. Small, green platforms are available at affordable rates allowing residents of the city to keep a garden where their flats and townhouses might not offer any green space for it. [/SIZE]
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[SIZE=11pt]Judicial Quarter: One of the oldest and wealthiest portions of the city is the Judicial Quarter, so named for the Supreme Court building. Once host to many solicitors' and barristers' offices, and their homes, the area is now home to many of the wealthy and powerful, with many members of Parliament and the aristocracy owning townhomes and mansions in the area. Perhaps the least modernized and accessible area of Calavar City, the Judicial Quarter is no stranger to such apparent idiosyncrasies as aged aristocrats strolling along a promenade, gentleman's clubs and ladies' social circles, and antiquated tailors and dressmakers rather than luxury department stores found elsewhere in the city.[/SIZE]
HISTORICAL INFORMATION
[SIZE=11pt]Calavar took its name from the river on whose banks it started its life. Growing from mining encampment to supply outpost to major seaport to the capital of Galidraan over the course of two hundred years, it has since enjoyed significant prominence on Galidraan as the seat of government throughout the monarchy years and after the monarchy was replaced with a nobility-appointed Governor. In addition to being the seat of government, the city is the center of the aristocratic social season and the economic community as well. It is home to the largest banks on Galidraan as well as the planetary stock exchange. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]During the plague years, Calavar maintained its position even after Galidraan shut its borders. Though wealth due to imports and exports decreased, trade continued on the planet, so Calavar returned to its port history, maintaining its wealth and position with shipping fees through the city's port and along the river.[/SIZE]
