Marigold Station itself isn't much to talk about; it is small, with a single bench and walls grown from marigold flowers.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Marigold_Station|The Marigold Station|Fallen London|}}</ref> But it exists for a reason; it is both the last stop before reaching Hell on the Moloch Line,<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/For_All_the_Saints_Who_From_Their_Labours_Rest|For All the Saints Who From Their Labours Rest|Fallen London|}}’"Well, well. I'll arrange for the train to make a brief stop at Marigold Station. It'll be the only stop we make before Hell."’</ref><ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Horizons_of_Hell|The Horizons of Hell|Fallen London|}}</ref> and the terminus of the [[The Great Hellbound Railway|Great Hellbound Railway]].<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Returning_East|Returning East|Fallen London|}}</ref>
Built by Hell as the terminus of the Moloch Line,<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/For_All_the_Saints_Who_From_Their_Labours_Rest|For All the Saints Who From Their Labours Rest|Fallen London|}}''"Well, well. I'll arrange for the train to make a brief stop at Marigold Station. It'll be the only stop we make before Hell."''</ref><ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Horizons_of_Hell|The Horizons of Hell|Fallen London|}}</ref> and now also used as the final stop of the Great Hellbound Railway,<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Head_to_Marigold_Station,_the_end_of_the_line|Head to Marigold Station, the end of the line|Fallen London|}} ''"Where the Great Hellbound Railway meets the Devils' own lines."''</ref> Marigold Station itself is not much to behold. It is a small building with walls grown from marigold flowers, and only a single bench inside.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Marigold_Station|The Marigold Station|Fallen London|}} ''"The station is a splash of vivid orange in a desolate landscape. Up close, it is apparent that the walls are formed from living marigolds forced to grow in a tight lattice [...] This station is the final stop before Hell on both the Moloch St Line and, [...] your own [...] there are no facilities, [...] only a single bench, [...]"''
</ref>
== Those Who Bear the Marigold ==
There is an ancient Hellish amphitheater near the station;<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Empty_Amphitheatre|The Empty Amphitheatre|Fallen London|}} ''"An ancient arena stands high upon a hill. Colossal basalt stones lean against each other to form a colosseum. [...] A gate yawns in the ground above a vast pit, [...]"''</ref><ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Chorus_of_Hell|The Chorus of Hell|Fallen London|}} ''"The amphitheatre is just one of many outposts of Old Hell. [...] Once, Hell's arm was long."''</ref> within the amphitheater is a gate leading to an enormous chasm that contains [[the Mandolinist]], a deposed [[Grand Devil]].<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Break_open_the_gate|Break open the gate|Fallen London|}} ''"The stairs below wait. The darkness yawns. A mandolin sounds in the depths."''</ref><ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Mandolinist|The Mandolinist|Fallen London|}} ''"The chasm below Marigold is the size of the Vatican. No light disturbs its depths: [...] At the heart of the abyss there is a great pillar. Something stands against it, perhaps pinned or impaled. [...] Its breath is sweet as roses, perfuming the rotting of its body."''</ref> Several other landmarks of the Hinterlands, including the [[Lilymire]], [[St Trezigor's Folly]], the [[Edict of Towers]], and Hell itself, are accessible from Marigold.
Thanks to the signing of the Treaty of the Marigold, toward the end of Hell's Season of Revolutions, dissenters among the [[devils]] are offered a choice: they must either recant their views and accept the majority opinion, or they are exiled. Those who have chosen exile wear marigold badges, and can only be welcomed back if they succeed at a typically impossible task decided upon by Hell.<ref name=":0">{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Accept_a_commission_2|Accept a commission 2|Fallen London|}}</ref> The '''Gnarled Stationmaster''' is tasked with keeping an eye on the progress of these '''Knights of the Marigold'''.<ref name=":0" />
== A Tourist's Guide to Hell's Surroundings ==
==Those Who Bear the Marigold==
Marigold Station stands in the vicinity of several landmarks of the [[Hinterlands]].
Toward the end of Hell's Season of Revolutions, the warring factions of [[devils]] signed the '''Treaty of the Marigold'''.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Accept_a_commission_2|Accept a commission 2|Fallen London|}} ''"The Season of Revolutions [...] At its end, the Treaty of the Marigold was a critical component of the peace that followed."''</ref> Per this treaty, dissenters among the [[devils]] are offered a choice: they must either recant their views and accept the majority opinion, or they are exiled and "take up the Marigold."<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Accept_a_commission_2|Accept a commission 2|Fallen London|}}''"The Treaty established a provision for dissenters, [...] who oppose a decision of the collective body of Hell. Such devils must acquiesce with the majority, or [...] take up the Marigold."''</ref> Those who have chosen exile wear marigold badges, and can only be welcomed back if they succeed at a typically impossible task decided upon by Hell.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Accept_a_commission_2|Accept a commission 2|Fallen London|}}''"A Marigold-bearer is given a badge to prove their office, and burdened with an often impossible task. With both, they must leave Hell, exiled. If they wish to return, they must complete their task."''</ref> The '''Gnarled Stationmaster''' is tasked with keeping an eye on the progress of these '''Knights of the Marigold''', and personally tracks them down after some time has passed to assess their status.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Accept_a_commission_2|Accept a commission 2|Fallen London|}}''"After a suitable interlude, the Stationmaster goes after them, to discover their fate"''</ref>
=== The Road to Hell ===
Known Knights of the Marigold include a historian who tried to document the Season of Revolutions, when Hell demanded that its history be mutable;<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Destiny_of_the_Marigold|The Destiny of the Marigold|Fallen London|}} ''"This Knight of the Marigold earned the enmity of Hell [...] Hell rewrites its doctrine regularly: [...] This Knight, [...] was once a historian. [...] attempted to create a comprehensive analysis of the revolution. They were given to the Marigold for their trouble [...] return only when they had found Truth."''</ref> and the [[The Marigold Menagerie Keeper|Marigold Menagerie Keeper]], who proposed easing the tortures of the imprisoned Grand Devils. Many of these Knights meet bitter ends,<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Accept_a_special_commission|Accept a special commission|Fallen London|}} ''"The Knights usually perish, or disappear, or give up, never to return to Hell and home – isn't that what Hell desires?"''</ref> and it is implied that Hell does not actually want them to succeed, cultivating false hope to watch them run themselves into the ground.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Payment_of_Hell|The Payment of Hell|Fallen London|}} ''"The Gnarled Stationmaster [...] "Nasty business, the Marigolds. [...] We must always offer the possibility of redemption – even if we never mean to fulfil it."''</ref><ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Speak_to_the_Dauntless_Knight_(Starshine)|Speak to the Dauntless Knight (Starshine)|Fallen London|}} ''"The Stationmaster [...] "We have to let one of the Marigold bearers succeed, once in a while, to let hope ruin the rest.""''</ref>
<blockquote>''"The drone is as insistent as toothache and its pull begins in the bottom of your stomach. The stones ahead form a path now. The way to Hell is clear. How could you have ever missed it?"<ref name=":4" />''</blockquote>A road paved with white stone leads to the entrance to Hell.<ref name=":4">{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Approach_Hell%27s_Walls|Approach Hell's Walls|Fallen London|}}</ref> The great city calls...
=== The Lilymire ===
==References==
<blockquote>''"This is a place Hell has refused to conquer: only its dead and its exiled linger here."''<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Lilymire|The Lilymire|Fallen London|}}</ref></blockquote>'''The Lilymire''' served as Hell's graveyard<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Brave_the_Lilymire|Brave the Lilymire|Fallen London|}}</ref> until it was flooded by the city's waste.<ref name=":1">{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Search_for_a_Hellish_artefact|Search for a Hellish artefact|Fallen London|}}</ref> It is now a marsh, filled with candles that grow out of rotting lilies.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Lilymire|The Lilymire|Fallen London|}}</ref> The hallucinatory waters pose an additional hazard for anyone foolish enough to plunge into the bog.<ref name=":1" />
=== The Edict of Towers ===
<blockquote>''Hell has abandoned this place. No devil comes here – at least, not of their own free will.''</blockquote>South of Hell lies '''The Edict of Towers''':<ref name=":2">{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Walk_the_Edict_of_Towers|Walk the Edict of Towers|Fallen London|}}</ref> an old defensive array of walls and towers, only one-fifth of which, or even fewer, are real.<ref name=":5">{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Edict_of_Towers|The Edict of Towers|Fallen London|}}</ref> This mirror-strewn labyrinth<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Recover_the_Dauntless_Knight|Recover the Dauntless Knight|Fallen London|}}</ref> was constructed while Hell still resided in [[Parabola]].<ref name=":5" />
=== Saint Trezigor's Folly ===
<blockquote>''"There is a laughter buried deep in the stones of Saint Trezigor's. You hear it in the walls, a sibilant mix of litany and mockery. The tongue hisses, as though cloven."''<ref name=":6">{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Recover_an_artefact_of_Hell_(St_Trezigor%27s)|Recover an artefact of Hell (St Trezigor's)|Fallen London|}}</ref></blockquote>'''Saint Trezigor's Folly''' was a communal living place for a group of [[Goat-Demons|goat-demons]] long ago;<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Saint_Trezigor%27s_Folly|Saint Trezigor's Folly|Fallen London|}}</ref> now, it only contains their bones.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Explore_the_Folly|Explore the Folly|Fallen London|}}</ref> The walls of the place move and shift when spoken to, and it might even speak back.<ref name=":3">{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Beseech_Saint_Trezigor|Beseech Saint Trezigor|Fallen London|}}</ref> A goat head carved in stone serves as its face.<ref name=":6" />
=== The Ancient Amphitheatre ===
<blockquote>''"An ancient arena stands high upon a hill. Colossal basalt stones lean against each other to form a colosseum. Each stone bears a sigil, larger than a London townhouse. The stone seats are gargantuan and grooved in ways incompatible with human physiology."<ref name=":7" />''</blockquote>On a hill near the station lies the ruins of an '''Amphitheatre.'''<ref name=":7">{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Empty_Amphitheatre|The Empty Amphitheatre|Fallen London|}}</ref> Beneath it is a chasm that serves as the prison of a [[Grand Devils|Grand Devil]], [[the Mandolinist]].<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Break_open_the_gate|Break open the gate|Fallen London|}}</ref>
=== The Chapel of the Brazen Brigade ===
<blockquote>''"Light, carmine and full of loathing, blazes at the edge of the gloomy chapel."''<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Bear_witness_(Chandler)|Bear witness (Chandler)|Fallen London|}}</ref></blockquote>Through the Lamentation of Violets, past the old battlefields of Hell, lies the chapel of another Grand Devil, [[the Chandler]].<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Call_in_favours_2|Call in favours 2|Fallen London|}}</ref> This chapel is the meeting place of the '''Brazen Brigade''', a group that seeks to free Marigold Knights of their duties.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Return_to_the_Chandler's_chapel|Return to the Chandler's chapel|Fallen London|}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Speak_to_the_Dauntless_Knight_(Seal)|Speak to the Dauntless Knight (Seal)|Fallen London|}}</ref>
== References ==
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[[Category:Places]]
[[Category:Places]]
[[Category:The Neath]]
[[Category:The Neath]]
[[Category:The Hinterlands]]
[[Category:The Hinterlands]]
Revision as of 20:57, 26 March 2023
"Are you quite sure you want to know this?"
Beyond this point lie major spoilers for Fallen London, Sunless Sea, Sunless Skies, or Mask of the Rose. This may include endgame or major Fate-locked spoilers. Proceed at your own risk.
You can find out more about our spoiler policy here.
"Marigold Station sits in the very shadow of Hell. The white walls of that city loom on the horizon, like stormclouds before the first crash of thunder. The station is a small splash of orange in the harsh and broken moorland before Hell."[1]
Built by Hell as the terminus of the Moloch Line,[2][3] and now also used as the final stop of the Great Hellbound Railway,[4] Marigold Station itself is not much to behold. It is a small building with walls grown from marigold flowers, and only a single bench inside.[5]
There is an ancient Hellish amphitheater near the station;[6][7] within the amphitheater is a gate leading to an enormous chasm that contains the Mandolinist, a deposed Grand Devil.[8][9] Several other landmarks of the Hinterlands, including the Lilymire, St Trezigor's Folly, the Edict of Towers, and Hell itself, are accessible from Marigold.
Those Who Bear the Marigold
Toward the end of Hell's Season of Revolutions, the warring factions of devils signed the Treaty of the Marigold.[10] Per this treaty, dissenters among the devils are offered a choice: they must either recant their views and accept the majority opinion, or they are exiled and "take up the Marigold."[11] Those who have chosen exile wear marigold badges, and can only be welcomed back if they succeed at a typically impossible task decided upon by Hell.[12] The Gnarled Stationmaster is tasked with keeping an eye on the progress of these Knights of the Marigold, and personally tracks them down after some time has passed to assess their status.[13]
Known Knights of the Marigold include a historian who tried to document the Season of Revolutions, when Hell demanded that its history be mutable;[14] and the Marigold Menagerie Keeper, who proposed easing the tortures of the imprisoned Grand Devils. Many of these Knights meet bitter ends,[15] and it is implied that Hell does not actually want them to succeed, cultivating false hope to watch them run themselves into the ground.[16][17]
↑The Marigold Station, Fallen London"The station is a splash of vivid orange in a desolate landscape. Up close, it is apparent that the walls are formed from living marigolds forced to grow in a tight lattice [...] This station is the final stop before Hell on both the Moloch St Line and, [...] your own [...] there are no facilities, [...] only a single bench, [...]"
↑The Empty Amphitheatre, Fallen London"An ancient arena stands high upon a hill. Colossal basalt stones lean against each other to form a colosseum. [...] A gate yawns in the ground above a vast pit, [...]"
↑The Mandolinist, Fallen London"The chasm below Marigold is the size of the Vatican. No light disturbs its depths: [...] At the heart of the abyss there is a great pillar. Something stands against it, perhaps pinned or impaled. [...] Its breath is sweet as roses, perfuming the rotting of its body."
↑Accept a commission 2, Fallen London"The Season of Revolutions [...] At its end, the Treaty of the Marigold was a critical component of the peace that followed."
↑Accept a commission 2, Fallen London"The Treaty established a provision for dissenters, [...] who oppose a decision of the collective body of Hell. Such devils must acquiesce with the majority, or [...] take up the Marigold."
↑Accept a commission 2, Fallen London"A Marigold-bearer is given a badge to prove their office, and burdened with an often impossible task. With both, they must leave Hell, exiled. If they wish to return, they must complete their task."
↑The Destiny of the Marigold, Fallen London"This Knight of the Marigold earned the enmity of Hell [...] Hell rewrites its doctrine regularly: [...] This Knight, [...] was once a historian. [...] attempted to create a comprehensive analysis of the revolution. They were given to the Marigold for their trouble [...] return only when they had found Truth."
↑The Payment of Hell, Fallen London"The Gnarled Stationmaster [...] "Nasty business, the Marigolds. [...] We must always offer the possibility of redemption – even if we never mean to fulfil it."
