Kodonholm

Kodonholm was a city in the northeastern Elsir Vale. It was one of the first member states of the Pennant Regency, and later, the Dragon Federation.

History

The city of Kodonholm had its roots as a trading post along the banks of the Emerald River. Its name in Old Common translated to "place of the low river". It was a key stop for travelers between the kingdom of Gladstone and the northern Nentir Vale during the 2nd- and 1st-centuries BME.

The Pennant Regency's Founding

When Odiss Pennant, a Velgassi noble, separated from the northern kingdom to escape political strife there, Kodonholm was already well-known. When Pennant's troops fought off a hobgoblin attack force and saved the city, Kodonholm pledged itself to his cause. The nobles from the north created the Pennant Regency, with Kodonholm as its capitol, in 313 ME.

Capitol Kodonholm

The city served as capitol of the Regency for 50 years. In that time, it grew significantly, eclipsing a population of 20,000 souls. Odiss Pennant I built several expansions and improvements to the city, including defensive walls, watchtowers, and anti-pirate water traps.

The Capitol Moves

In 363 ME, Odiss Pennant II moved the capitol to Elder City, far to the south, to combat the troubles there. Kodonholm's nobility voted against the idea, but King Pennant II's executive power overrode the vote. It was a controversial move to say the least, but the city of Kodonholm remained vital to the Regency until the last decade of the Middle Era.

First Chaosball Teams Formed

In 675 ME, the first professional chaosball teams were formed. These included the Elder City Knights, the Barstow Banshees, and the Kodonholm Wildmen. The league would expand to include several other teams in the 7th and 8th centuries.

The Kodonholm Decree

One of the most infamous socio-political missteps in Echelon's history occurred in 753 ME in Kodonholm. As the city had been growing and the bureaucracy of the Regency was far removed in Elder City, the nobles of Kodonholm sought to end decades-long strife between the peasantry and the upper classes.

Furthermore, colloquial wisdom held that the gods of nature and civilization coordinated poor weather due to the mistreatment and neglect of the helpless in the city. A popular saying at the time was "the coldest winters thrive on broken homes"; records did indicate that the winters of the 740s and 750s ME were unusually harsh. The nobility of Kodonholm drafted and eventually published the Kodonholm Decree.

The Decree stated that all eligible widows and orphans in Kodonholm and the surrounding villages would be given state-sponsored housing, food, financial support. Tenements were hastily constructed in the city's Industrial District, but the project could not keep up with demand. A sprawling tent city sprang up inside the district almost overnight.

The Decree barely lasted two years. As the burgeoning slums began to attract criminals and gangs, the project lost popularity. What was more, the coffers of Kodonholm were running dry by the end of 754; with nobles unwilling to part with their riches and increasing taxes on burghers creating friction, the city was arguably worse off than when the project began. When the winters of 753 and 754 were just as oppressive as in previous years, aristocratic oracles and sages advised the nobility that the gods were not placated. The Kodonholm Decree, now seen by the upper class and most of the middle class as a disaster, was quietly rescinded in the autumn of 754.