Post by Juniper Wynd on Sept 21, 2020 1:24:26 GMT
The setting for this foray into the World of Darkness takes place in and around Missoula, Montana. The Caern itself is located just outside a ghost town known as Garnet up in the aptly named Garnet Mountain Range.
Garnet 1900s
Garnet 2000s
Garnet was named for the semi-precious ruby-colored stone found in the area. The surrounding mountains were rich in gold-bearing quartz. There was a school, the crime rate was low, and liquor flowed freely in the town’s many saloons. The bawdy houses did a brisk business and Missoula and Deer Lodge were close enough for necessary supplies. In the early 1900s the town was nearly lost in a fire though the origins of that catastrophe aren't widely known. The Sept was lost for a time after the Rite of the Still Sky and then came under the protection of House Unbreakable Hearth shortly after WW1 when they purchased the property that the ghost town resides on. The Sept was given to the Children of Gaia for stewardship and they oversee it to this day.
The town now consists of a small visitor center and a number of original buildings that survived the fire, the local saloon and inn being one of them. The ghost town is not only an act of conservation but also provides the Sept with a source of income as well as a cover for the traffic in and out of the Sept.
Garnet 1900s
Garnet 2000s
Garnet is accessible by a decently maintained dirt road that eventually connects to the highway. In the winter the snow gets deep up in the mountains and the road is not maintained so Garnet is accessible only by foot or snowmobile. The area surrounding Garnet offers a range of landscapes...everything from hand dug mines of old to modern mines still giving up ore from below, giant swaths of forest for garou to run free, rivers and streams, abundant wildlife while still having wi-fi (most of the time).
The Caern of the Broken Sky is located a few miles hike from the ghost town proper, and garou are welcome to stay in a building called the Estate (with a lot of tongue in cheek). Life at the Caern harkens back to age past where garou could live in the serenity that Gaia provided. The modern amenities are few and far between so anyone looking to browse Netflix or pop something into the microwave will be sorely disappointed out at the Caern. There is a main house with several bedrooms that are open to any garou to use. The Estate has clearly been there for some time and can be seen even in the Umbra. If one took the time to look they could see that the place wasn't made by any modern construction methods...the nails weren't uniformed enough to come from a factory and had likely been made by the blacksmith in Garnet, the boards that covered the outside face of the building were just a little too imperfect and had be felled locally before being cut by hand. The house has been cared for and offers shelter for any garou who wishes to stay though the grounds of the Caern are open for sleeping under a blanket of stars as well or one can find a quiet place in the woods to put up a yurt if one has the need and desire.
The house is the only place one will find any electricity out at the Caern, an agreement worked out with the spirits and powered by several types of renewable energy as an example of how modern needs can be blended with the needs of Gaia and Garou. Electricity isn't abundant though and is usually relegated to refrigeration and other basic necessities. There is no wi-fi or cell phone access at the Caern and while there is running water, the hot water is in short supply.
The Estate