Vasselheim

Vasselheim is the capital of human civilization on the continent of Issylra. It is predominantly a religious city with several districts, each dedicated to a patron deity. Vasselheim is sometimes called the Dawn City, the Cradle of Faith, or the Cradle of Creation, as it is considered the origin of civilization and various religions.

Description
Located in the region of Othanzia near Vesper Timberland, the city itself is built around a massive mountain called the Heaven's Stair approximately 20–30 miles inland from the Ozmit Sea. Vasselheim has many walls, varying in age and composition, armed with dragon-headed ballistae. The streets are unpaved and made mostly of packed mud. The only conventional way to enter the city is by foot, as the journey to Vasselheim is considered a religious pilgrimage. In the case of an emergency, a haphazard airship platform has been constructed on top of a mill.

Vasselheim has a large mining operation for cobalt in the mountain. Many of the stores tend to sell supplies for miners and workers that operate in the mountain.

Silver Talon's Reach
The Silver Talon's Reach is a district dedicated to the worship of Bahamut, the god of life and order. It placed at the very northern part of the town attached to the Heaven's Stair. The priesthood for this district are the Scalebearers.


 * Heaven's Stair: A mountain overlooking Vasselheim that bisects the northern region of the city.
 * The Platinum Sanctuary: The oldest known temple to Bahamut in the world. The Horn of Orcus that Vox Machina recovered from K'Varn is interred here.

The Braving Grounds
The Braving Grounds District is dedicated to the deity of war Kord. The district is the west part of the city, which greets weary travelers incoming from Glasswalk Road. It runs northward from the city through the Vesper Timberland and toward the Zenwick Mountains. The Braving ground's priesthood is the warriors of the Dawn Fist.
 * The Crucible: An arena fighting pit where Grog challenged the previously reigning champion, known as Kern "the Hammer".
 * Statue of Kord: Atop the Trial Forge, a gargantuan statue of Kord loomed over the entire district. The statue depicted a musclebound titan of a figure standing heroically with a giant beard, bracers on his arms, and one knee raised.
 * The Trial Forge: The local sacred temple to the patron god, Kord. It also served as a meditation and physical training center.
 * The Temple of Renewal: A recently discovered ancient temple of Sarenrae within the Braving Grounds. It had been buried under the fallen tower of Syrac. Pike led this temple's restoration efforts after arriving at Vasselheim and before returning to Emon.

The Quadroads
The Quadroads District venerates the law and civilization associated with the god Erathis. The district is named for the four roads, incoming from every other disctrict of Vasselheim. They form two main routes and meet up together in the middle of the city into a large bazaar. Its priesthood is known as the Holy Paramours.


 * The Crown of Erathis: The temple to Erathis in the Quadroads, overseen by a priesthood known as the "Holy Paramours". In cooperation with all the other temples of the Dawn City, it cradled ancient texts that speak of long forgotten deities of the Founding and creation of Ruidus, keeping them as their sacred secret and fearing to share them with the rest of Exandria. Around 843 PD, agents of Grim Verity stole them without a blood letting and stored them in Yios.
 * The Slayer's Take: A local hunting guild which Vox Machina were coerced into joining.
 * Forscythia's Shop: A operated by a hag known as Forscythia.
 * Bazaar: Accommodates mostly foreign, traders selling exported goods. Former location of Cidrick Gillsman.

The Abundant Terrace
The Abundant Terrace is the district of Vasselheim devoted to the worship of Melora, goddess of the wilderness and the sea. Located in the western part of the city, it consists mostly of wooded areas and farmland and provides most of the food for Vasselheim. Various enchantments in the district keep the weather mild, allowing for year-long harvests from its orchards.
 * The Birthheart: The main temple to Melora, which is an ascending series of tiered and irrigated gardens.
 * Midnight Breath Tavern: A tavern co-owned by Dagon.

The Duskmeadow
The Duskmeadow District is dedicated to the worship of the goddess of fate and death, the Raven Queen. The district celebrates death as a part of life and appears lively in contrast to the other parts of town. The buildings are dark, but the morbid celebration is constant here. Its priesthood is the leaderless order of dark-veiled maidens of the Raven Queen known as the Trust of Winter.


 * Raven's Crest: The Gothic cathedral dedicated to the worship of the Raven Queen.
 * The Amaranthine Oubliette: The prison of Vasselheim.
 * The Catacombs: An underground structure in which the dead of Vasselheim are interred.
 * The Velvet Cabaret: A place of leisure for wealthy guests.

Notable locations
The Cobalt Vault: This archive of the Cobalt Soul is one of Exandria's leading libraries, ranking with that in Rexxentrum on the continent of Wildemount. The High Curator of Vasselheim shares dual and equal leadership over the entire structure of the Cobalt Soul with the High Curator of Rexxentrum (Yudala Fon.)

Society
The people of Vasselheim endured many wars and conflicts throughout the history. They generally seem rugged and stern, wearing patchwork furs and unkempt hair, moving through life with a mind set that "they can fight against this", and calling it a privilege to be able to survive in such harsh enviroment as a sign of their devotion to their respective deities.

Vasselheim has many guards, collectively called the Bastions, that consist of volunteers from the various religions. The Bastions primarily operate within their respective districts but also serve as the militia if the city were to be attacked.

Following the Calamity, as the oldest preserved civilization and the place of earliest temples in the world, Vasselheim functionally became Exandrian spiritual center and the host to abundant archive collection that kept gathering dense records for every century pasted since its origin.

Due to the previously impetuous arcane past during the Age of Arcanum, release of the Betrayer Gods by a magic pratictiner name Vespin Chloras, and the subsequent adversities of the Calamity, arcane magic became largely frowned upon in Vasselheim. Any public display of semi-powerful magic that isn't divine in nature will draw attention, requiring an explanation by the keepers of order, small fines, or minor jail time.

Government
Vasselheim is led by a council of the highest ranked members of each temple. In The Legend of Vox Machina, these leaders are called the Dawn Marshals. In Critical Role, Groon is the only leader so far directly stated as a Dawn Marshal, though Bertrand Bell broadly referred to multiple Dawn Marshals. Chetney Pock O'Pea, who is not confirmed to have visited Vasselheim, remarked on multiple Dawn Marshals as "like the people that run the place".

As of 812 PD, at the end of Campaign 1, members of this council include:
 * Vord of the Platinum Sanctuary
 * Groon of the Crucible
 * Ophera of the Birthheart
 * Curtis Uleas of the Crown of Erathis
 * The Trust of Winters of Raven's Crest is leaderless. Many of their order attend meetings and it appears that a pair of maidens who talk in unison speak on behalf of the temple.

Pike Trickfoot attended one of these meetings, apparently as a representative the Temple of Renewal. It is not clear if she is a member of this council, however, as she was standing "at the edge of the council, trying to listen in".

Meetings of the heads of the city are attended not only by the members of the council but also by other representatives and notable members of each temple and its district, such as Lieve'tel Toluse and Bertrand Bell.

Economy
Vasselheim proudly exports variety of enchanted potions, and Mertin Cyndrial claims that most of them, one could see throughout the world in some way, shape, or form, originated in Vasselheim.

History
Vasselheim have survived every catastrophe ravaged the lands of Exandria — from the elemental chaos of the Founding to the clashes of gods during the Calamity — the Dawn City is the only bastion of civilization, successfully withstanding them both. The earliest alleged humanoid races of humans, elves, and dwarves civilization stemmed from this city, which is assumed to occur "tens of thousands of years old".

After the Dawn War, a name for the Founding rarely found in the world outside of Vasselheim, Bahamut shed a tear for the sacrifices his devoted followers had made during the war. From the tear was born a crystal, the Star of Exaltation, which was preserved in the Platinum Sanctuary for millennia to come.

On the threshold of the Calamity, an archmage of Vasselheim named Vespin Chloras attempted the Ritual of Seeding to ascend to godhood, in hopes to take the place of Asmodeus in the pantheon. He sought the guidance and power of the Betrayer Gods, unintentionally releasing them into the Material Plane and starting a new epoch in Exandrian history known as the Calamity.

Approaching the end of the first day of the Calamity, Erathis and Bahamut helped to defend the city against Asmodeus and Gruumsh. Following the fall and banishment of the Betrayer Gods, Platinum Dragon and the Lawbearer returned to Vasselheim, the only remaining remnants of civilization, announing the decision of Prime Deities to depart from the Material Plane and create the Divine Gate, which must preserve Exandria from direct influence of any deity.

Shortly after 510 PD, when the city came under "a terrible siege", the Star of Exaltation was used as a focus in a ritual to bring Bahamut's intervention and defend Vasselheim. Unfortunately, this efforts expended its last potential, destroying the crystal on the Material Plane.

Defending against Vecna
When Vecna ascended to godhood, he made Vasselheim his primary target. His "miracle" to prove his divinity and recruit more worshipers would be to destroy the spiritual center of the Prime Deities and literally place his own city (Thar Amphala) on top of the rubble. The council of Vasselheim sent word across Exandria, requesting aid. J'mon Sa Ord eagerly offered aid from Ank'Harel (bringing all the Hands of Ord to Vasselheim), and Republic of Tal'Dorei pledged their support as well. However, King Bertrand Dwendal refused to mobilize against Vecna until the threat was confirmed to have reached Wildemount and the borders of the Dwendalian Empire.

Vecna had reanimated a deceased Earth Titan and placed Thar Amphala atop it. While Vox Machina stealthily made their way up through the Crypts of Thomara (inside the titan), the allied forces fought against Vecna's forces. An arcane barrier guarded Thar Amphala from exterior assault, so Vox Machina's mission to banish Vecna with the Tome of Isolation became imperative.

As Vox Machina battled the Whispered One atop the ruined Tower of Entropis, the Earth Titan had reached the outskirts of Vasselheim and had begun smashing the Braving Grounds district. When Vecna was banished beyond the Divine Gate, the Earth Titan ceased to be reanimated. It fell to its knees and remained motionless where it had been standing: at the base of the Heaven's Stair.

With the defeat of Vecna, the city rejoiced and Vox Machina were hailed as the saviors of Vasselheim, if not all of Exandria.

Behind the scenes
Matthew Mercer first developed Vasselheim during a four-hour plane flight. He noted that Vasselheim has "somewhat Norse" influences, and the Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting sourcebook more specifically says Issylra's cities are inspired by 12th-century Norway, centered around religious sites and relics reminiscent of ancient Mesopotamian and Sumerian temples.