Garn

Garn over the Ages

For thousands of years the sleepy chartered township of Garn has sat at the tip of the realm of Amber at the bottom of the Vale of Garnath below the plateau of the Grove of the Unicorn and the high walls of the City of Amber and Mount Kolvir.

It was never much more then a port of call for sailors wanting a hot meal not cooked on ship's galleys. A place for them to rest after the passage through shadow into Amber before going on to the big city. It had a merchant port for the agricultural produce of the long farmlands of the Valley of Ganarth, nearly all of which went to the city of Amber.

It had a large retirement community of Amber soldiery of the army and navy. Considering how Aging in Amber works a retirement community of the elderly is a warehouse of the walking dead.

There were sleepy estates and sport marinas for the rich and well-off in Amber as well as vacation spots.

Its proximity to Rebma made them a frequent presence in Garn as they continue to be. Many Rebman nobles had land-based homes in a Rebman community on the east edge of old Garn.

The Black Road War comes to Garn

The Black Road war changed Garn forever. Its part began when the Black Road came from the Fane of Zilla to the Vale of Garnath and the City of Garn and on to Amber and Kolvir . During the year of battle in Amber the armies of Amber and Shadow came to the harbor of Garn. Much needed to be constructed to get them to land and things were done fast and dirty. Benedict didn't have time to be subtle.

Long utilitarian harbors were quickly installed, troop encampments built, wide roads built. Estates and plantations were taken over.

As the war came on most of Garn was destroyed. Either in efforts to prosecute the war by Chaos or defend Amber. In the end the devistation was nearly total.

Reconstruction After Patternfall

In time the war was won and a new king came to town.

Garn was the recipient of a monumental reconstruction plan. Random knew that population would increase and industry would grow; he was a more modern king then Oberon. He was not a dark age monarch as Oberon had been. He was a man of the Renaissance. So Garn grew from a town of 10k inhabitants to a massive place of 100k in a short time. But Random brought scholars and engineers and civic planners to Amber to do it right.

What they created is arguably the most modern city in the Kingdom of Amber. Modern plumbing. Lighting. Parks, sporting facilities and stadiums. Clear roadways and thoroughfares. New harbors for the enlarged Navy During the war the Black Road came down the Valley of Garnath past Garn to the foot of Kolvir and the City Amber. For military reasons the marinas of Garn became the logistical base for attacking the Black Road for over a year up till the eventual defeat of the forces of Chaos. By that point the war had over run most of the estates and lush woodlands of the Garn region an left behind a desolate wasteland.

The new reign of King Random allowed the reconstruction of Garn to occur using more late era city planning methods and materials. A mighty port was built to facilitate renewed merchant shipping. Renovations in Amber and North Riding and the prospect of inexpensive and more comfortable living spaces in a newly built modernish city drew many transplants. The city also attracted elements from nearly all the Golden Circle kingdoms and many other realms as well. The new Garn is spacious, with parklands and plazas and large residences at very inexpensive prices.

The Port was built to house a far larger navy then Amber has even maintained in preparation for new threats. Three seperate naval bases are in the region as well as 23 separate naval facilities for Golden Circle kingdoms.

Despite the size of military ports the majority of harbor space was for merchant shipping and commerce.

Cosmopolitan Garn

After the reconstruction of Garn a variety of things began creating a very new vibe for the new city. The city of Amber, as the center of a Shadow spanning kingdom and leading city of a community of Golden Circle kingdoms had long been a cluster of embassies, factors, small neighborhoods of foreign countries like Litte Begma and Small Thelusia, and representatives of any grop that want the attention of the kingdom of Amber. The cot of living in the City eventualy forced most working people into the North Riding area and other areas far from the center of Amber.

The creation of the Garn was a opportunity to build and move to many citizens of Amber. They were encouraged to relocate with chances for larger residences and cheaper costs of living.

Foreign sources took the opportunity to move many of its ongoing activities to the new city.