Welcome to Græntfjall. For this edition of the World Cup of Hockey, all games will be played in Græntfjall. Each group will have their home base in a major city, but owing to the number of games being played, games will be spread around arenas in the local area. Each team should play a balanced schedule, with 2 games at each arena.
Group of Wands – AltendalurThe Group of Wands will have their home base in the northwestern city of Altendalur. The country’s second city in more ways than one, Altendalur is generally identified as the vanguard of the west, associated with the cultural tensions dividing the country in two. Those in the west identified more strongly with the old communist regime, and as a result have lost out politically in the new democratic order. According to those in the west, they lose out on funding for infrastructure and representation of their concerns in the Thing [Græntfjall’s parliament]; according to those in the east, the process is merely recompense for decades where the bias flowed the other way.
Altendalur is historically associated with the whaling trade, although despite the various scary whale skeletons that adorn assorted civic institutions (including an enormous complete whale spine over the entrance arch to the Florus Stadion, the city’s main football ground) the industry is today essentially dormant owing to international pressure. Fishing remains a key local industry, though, but bigger drivers of revenue are off-shore gasworks and merchant shipping. Altendalur remains an industrial city even as Græntfjall modernises, with huge foundries and factories along the waterfront, massive industrial parks in the interior, and a scrawling, chaotic, “kraken’s tentacles” road system culminating in the infamous Junction of a Thousand Honks, an enormous interchange connecting 18 major roads.
Altendalur is a little more ethnically homogenous than the eastern cities; owing to its extremely bitter weather in the winter, it’s been a less attractive destination for immigrants. Nonetheless, attracted by the industrial sector, ethnic enclave neighborhoods have grown in recent decades. The city has a growing NDF faction but hasn’t seen ethnic division or anti-immigration activism on the same scale as the east. Residents often regard themselves as more authentically Græntfjaller than those to the south and east, whom they see as having grown soft and been corrupted by foreign values. (However, as we will see, those in the east see themselves in exactly the opposite way.)
Games will be held at the following arenas in and around Altendalur. On each MD, the first listed game will be at the first arena, the second at the second, and so on.
1.
Bedeskov Garden, Altendalur (cap.: 6,969)Located in the formerly industrial, now largely suburban Bedeskov neighborhood. Main arena of the city’s, rather poor, ice hockey team. The Garden is a modern facility that boasts the largest LED scoreboard in the country.2.
Mjölnir Technologik Stadion, Hintersfjörður (cap.: 8,846)Hintersfjörður is a city in the outskirts of Altendalur. Once a wholly separate city, it has increasingly merged into a northwestern megalopolis, to the disquiet of its more urbane, middle-class population, who regard themselves as Altendalur’s rivals – but to the rest of the country are just grouped together as generic ‘Westerners’. The Stadion is newly renovated and sponsored by Mjölnir Techonologik, the major industrial machinery manufacturer.3.
Enlundhallen, Þingsnitz (cap.: c. 7,000)The Enlundhallen was the first all-seater ice hockey arena ever built in the country, although it’s seen better days. Not so much rebuilt as built-upon, it’s had additional seating hacked in via various ugly additions. This activity doesn’t seem to have extended to the notoriously dilapidated changing rooms while the guest boxes retain a certain commitment to communist-era brutalism-meets-functionalism. Þingsnitz is a city that lies a few miles to the east of Altendalur, the other side of the Bay of Blood. It’s more cosmopolitan and less industrial; more welcoming of foreigners and easterners; dominated by the fishing trade; oh, and, relatedly, it stinks to high heaven. Many Græntfjaller jokes involve something smelling as bad as a ‘Þingsnitzer fishwife’. Cruder variations of this joke also exist.4.
SynTransPowerDome, Altendalur (cap.: c. 14,000)The only Altendalur arena built entirely new for this tournament, the PowerDome will host indoor sports from ice hockey and bandy to handball and basketball, cultural events including art, dance, and theater, and conferences for business, government, and NGOs/third sector. At least, that’s the plan. Right now, it’s just an immensely ugly white domed structure, an abrupt pimple that looks ready to burst, set along the Altendalur waterfront amid aging gray-brown industrial factories and fisheries. There’s no exact Græntfjaller translation for ‘white elephant’. Which is fortunate. Despite the ugly exterior, the inside is highly modern and features comfortable seating, well provisioned refreshment options, and luxurious team facilities for home and visitors alike.5.
Asspire Arena, Hintersfjörður (cap.: 9,333)Named for a Græntfjaller financial services company whose name renders somewhat unfortunately in English, the Arena is the largest hockey stadium in Hintersfjörður. Unlike the MTS, it hasn’t been renovated in years – basically, the hope is you’ll burn to death in the rickety old fire hazard long before you have to worry about all the asbestos you’ve gulped down in the process – but also unlike the MTS it has some genuine character, with everything from sepia-toned photographs of the communist-era People’s Hockey Club lining the walls, to whaling trophies – figurative and literal – adorning the rafters above the rink itself.6.
Wolfwell Arena, Järvendorf (cap.: 13,850)Järvendorf is a city located to the south of Altendalur, but despite not being on the coast it shares its fishing and trading traditions, thanks to its proximity to the huge Lake Pärhula. The Wolfwell Arena is primarily a bandy arena rather than a hockey one, although allows for both sports to be played. Järvendorf is the northernmost point of the annual migration of the Kamdyr people, semi-independent, semi-nomadic herders of buffalo, reindeer, unicorns, dragons, and other animals. The city’s enormous market welcomes the visiting nomads once a year, which will coincide with the tournament itself, so you may see the Kamdyr – ethnically distinct from native Græntfjallers – trooping their wares into the city center in their brightly colored caravans. The arena received a renovation about ten years ago so it’s not state-of-the-art, but nor is it crumbling to ruins.Group of Pentacles – LaafjörðurThe Group of Pentacles will have their home base in Laafjörður, the country’s northermost mainland point and main port city west of the capital. Laafjörður has always been seen as sitting at the dividing line between west and east Græntfjall (literally, as it is built around the mouth of the Odinsfluss’s western fork). As such it’s always embodied a tension between the competing ‘two Græntfjalls’ and has a reputation as the perennial seat of rebellion. It’s no surprise that
Clockwork, the famous play by Zóphonías Juliusson (leading playwright in his day, former prime minister, and now leader of the opposition left-slate political party) which features a mercurial political activist who switches allegiance ‘like clockwork’, was set in Laafjörður.
Laafjörður is a port city first and foremost, a hub for transhipment, an arrival for imports and immigrants in teeming numbers, a departure point for everything from hulks laden with exports to off-shore gas workers and military convoys. A city that never sleeps, with a population pushing 8 figures when counting suburbs and nearby towns its absorbed into its sprawling conurbation, Laafjörður has the traditionally boisterous nightlife associated with ports, and a younger-than-average population, retirees heading south to escape the bustle (and the increasingly multicultural ethnic mix). There’s still space for tradition, with the huge Basilika, the ancient castle dominating the hill overlooking the main city, and the museums of history testifying to Laafjörður’s place as the seat of the Græntfjaller industrial revolution.
Laafjörður has been in the news over the last year for all the wrong reasons as violent race riots led to nights of burning cars and police, right-wing mobs, left-wing mobs, and immigrants brawling in the streets against and with each other. Things have quietened down now, and all visitors can be assured of their safety, but there’s still a much more visible police presence here than in other cities. NDF posters adorn the walls – Laafjörður is the main city of the right-wing populist movement – competing for space with antifa slogans and graffiti in Akhdari, Arabic, Turkic, Bigtopian, Kijani, Verdean, French, and myriad other languages. There are one or two neighborhoods where the national ban on face coverings is less than strictly observed, but in the more middle-class areas where the ice hockey games will be clustered, there shouldn’t be any trouble.
[An OOC disclaimer is necessary here. While Laafjörður’s history and present political situation is an important part of my canon, there will not be any such repeat trouble during this tournament. You can comment on it IC but please don’t attempt to instigate any new riots!]Games will be held at the following arenas in and around Laafjörður. On each MD, the first listed game will be at the first arena, the second at the second, and so on.
1.
Westfjall Arena, Laafjörður (cap.: c. 12,000)Defending league champions Laafjörður are one of the most successful ice hockey teams in the history of the GHL. Sponsored by brewing company Westfjall, their arena isn’t the biggest in the country but is one of the best. Player and fan facilities are up-to-date, and there’s even full disability and visually impaired provision (Græntfjall is somewhat backwards in this aspect in other arenas). Of course, many league title banners adorn the arena and local fans are fiercely proud of their own team, so it’s advisable not to wear jerseys of other GHL teams.2.
Vallihús, Esna (cap.: c. 5,200)If the busy tumult of Laafjörður is too much for you, you could do worse than escape to the scenic seaside town of Esna, west along the coast. Of course, in Græntfjall, seaside towns aren’t really the place for sunbathing – in winter, the ice cream doesn’t even need refrigeration – but even if you don’t need pack your bathing suit, there’s still picturesque views to be had out over the Bay of Plenty. A particular highlight is the traditional lighthouse, guiding boats east along the coast towards the trade hubs. The small, functional arena is rather quaint by international standards with its wooden seating and home-cooked refreshments.3.
Vígmar Kinansson Eishallen, Laafjörður (cap.: 7,070)The Eishallen is a commercial multi-sports arena in downtown Laafjörður, named for local hockey legend Kinansson. However, since Laafjörður moved to the Westfjall Arena, it actually sees relatively little hockey: it’s mainly used for ice skating, both figure and speed, and will host the upcoming national championships in both. As such a return to hockey will be a welcome sight for the local fans, and visitors should find facilities up to a good modern standard (so long as they don’t mind confused changing room attendants trying to stuff them into tutus).4.
Róska-Friðrún-Íþróttshús, Laafjörður (cap.: 8,355)Another multi-sports facility, the RFÍ is much newer than the VKE. Named for two anti-communist martyrs, both women, it’s home to Laafjörður’s women’s team and has hosted training games for the national women’s team. (Unlike in soccer, in Græntfjall top level hockey is all-male.) Just because it’s a women’s arena doesn’t mean it’s second-rate, though, with fairly good facilities. An interesting feature is the exterior being entirely covered in solar panels (cynically, this was because investors women’s hockey wouldn’t generate enough revenue and so wanted to build in an alternative income source; as it happens, the women have sold out season tickets every season anyway).5.
Frefi Cube, Untersiersvík (cap.: 9,000)The ‘cube’ used to be a cruel nickname for the communist-era arena in Untersiersvík, a mid-level town a few miles southeast of Laafjörður. With its angular design and grim concrete walls, it was a much unloved symbol of the regime. Some might see it as a kind of irony that in the capitalist era it’s been re-designed – into an even cubier cube. Now a perfect box of reinforced glass, steel, and plastic, all in a coat of white that the local seagulls do their best to keep fresh, the arena – sponsored by frozen food giant Frefi – is even more incredibly ugly than before. It’s more used as a skate rink than for hockey but owing to its size has been retrofitted for this tournament.6.
The Lilypad Arena, Akurgarten (cap.: c. 10,000)Akurgarten is a port city west along the coastline from Laafjörður and home to one of the country’s leading hockey teams. Akurgarten is built on the fishing industry and this has influenced certain native traditions, particularly the flinging of “krakens” (really squids, octopi, and assorted fish parts) onto the ice. The locals might ease up on this a little as the home team isn’t playing here, but you still might not want to wear your Sunday best if you’re sitting in the front row.Group of Cups – Háttmark-SouthThe Group of Cups will have their home base in Háttmark, the capital city. With a population that’s counted in 8 figures, Háttmark is a sprawling conurbation that’s grown from its origins as a port city into a hive of modern industry, the political center of the country, the seat of the royalty, and one of the major tourist destinations in the area. The Group of Cups will be keeping to the southern half of the city, and spreading further south into the industrial hinterlands, the eastern heartlands of the country. Fierce anti-communist and resolute Catholic sentiments strengthen the further south one goes, while Háttmark itself retains a mixture of highly traditionalist thinking, with the day’s morning announcements on the subway beginning with the playing of the royal anthem, and modern cosmopolitanism, as delivery drones skim through the air bringing coffees to office workers in skyscrapers.
The south of Háttmark is dominated by large suburbs, the country’s population having steadily flocked to the northeast in search of jobs of the industrial corridor developing there. River traffic – along the east fork of the Odinsfluss – and sea commerce historically added to humming environment: Háttmarkers are stereotyped as always being in a hurry, and with over 10 million of them hurrying around, that’s a lot to deal with. They’re also stereotyped as a bit cold and rude. Don’t tell them about this repuation, though, or they’ll get
very cold and rude. The economic heartland of the country lies here, and they can be protective of their dominance of the political scene since the break with communism, regarding the rest of the country as having colluded with the old regime and themselves as being the saviors of freedom.
Háttmark is pretty diverse by comparison with the rest of Græntfjall, but still retains strong national characteristics: statues of Sankt Jakob and other national heroes, churches from the vast Basilika to tiny street-corner shrines, and enjoyment of sports, although ice hockey is less popular here than in the west.
Games will be held at the following arenas in and around Háttmark. On each MD, the first listed game will be at the first arena, the second at the second, and so on.
1.
WMM Arena, Ilsburg (cap.: c. 16,000)Sponsored by telecommunications giant WMM, Ilsburg are a leading GHL team. Ilsburg itself is located south of Háttmark. An industrial city built along the Odinsfluss river, it has a strong manufacturing tradition as metals and ores mined in the south would be brought north along the river, which continued into the present era with the construction of a huge nuclear power plant. The arena itself is some way outside the industrial hub, however, set among the suburbs built in the mid-20th century to accommodate the population surge. It’s one of the best arenas in the country, both in terms of capacity and facilities.2.
Valhalla Hockey Arena, Kangasdorf (cap.: c. 15,000)Kangasdorf was once an independent city, swallowed up whole by Háttmark’s growth and today regarded as nothing more than a suburb of the capital. Its strong local team, regularly competing for the GHL title, are sponsored by Valhalla, a brewing company. An unusual quirk of the large, though rather sterile arena, is that beer can be bought in (imitation) horns, plastic drinking receptacles that are very much an acquired taste as they’re difficult not to spill but add a certain ‘Viking ambience’ for those who go in for that sort of thing.3.
Hämeenvalta Super Arena, Molding (cap.: 10,000)Molding is a district of southern Háttmark more famous for its football club, the Gold Shrews. While that club has received an infusion of cash from Tequiloan multinational Grupo Taxhavn, the same largesse has not extended to the hockey club, whose pitiful arena has been included in the tournament rota only because it’s reasonably large and has good transport links: in other words, it’s very easy to pack a large number of people in the horribly maintained, ill-equipped, dank place, complete with permanently malfunctionining scoreboards and comically unhygienic changing facilities.4.
IceBank Arena, Hinteram (cap.: c. 17,000)One of the largest arenas in the country is based in Hinteram, a southern district of Háttmark that’s more middle class and residential. It’s sponsored by financial services company IceBank who’ve invested money in improving the arena to a standard far beyond the poor performing local hockey team. Until the construction of the Grand National Arena, the IceBank Arena served as the de facto national hockey arena.5.
Forum Harmersgrunn (cap.: c. 4,000)One of the smallest arenas being used for this tournament, which is a little deceptive as Harmersgrunn are a fairly strong GHL side. Harmersgrunn itself was once the heart of Háttmark’s industrial sector but has since been substantially gentrified. There’s much local agitation for a bigger, better arena, so this tournament could be the last hurrah for the small, cosy little facility featuring symbols of Harmersgrunn’s past (it was particularly associated with train manufacturing, and train wheels adorn the exterior walls).6.
ACE MultiArena, Mokofen (cap.: c. 10,000)ACE is a tech firm, although distinctly inferior to Qardinal, the near-monopolistic web giant. As such, their arena is much smaller and poorer than anything Qardinal would deign to touch; the best they can manage is the dingy little MultiArena in Mokofen, a southeastern suburb of the capital. The hockey team based here aren’t particularly good and the area is pretty drab, having failed to keep pace with the modernizing drive of the city further north. It’s mainly used as a concert venue outside of the hockey season.Group of Swords – Háttmark-NorthThe Group of Cups will have their home base in Háttmark, the capital city. With a population that’s counted in 8 figures, Háttmark is a sprawling conurbation that’s grown from its origins as a port city into a hive of modern industry, the political center of the country, the seat of the royalty, and one of the major tourist destinations in the area. The Group of Swords will be spread across the northern half of the city, and also have some games in Hofvinger, which is the northern exclave of Græntfjall the other side of the Komodo Channel.
North Háttmark is most associated not with hockey, but football: Gunzlach and Steinaux, the country’s two leading soccer teams, contest their fierce ‘North Háttmark derby’ here. But there’s more to North Háttmark than football. There’s the Thing, the national parliament; the Höll, the official royal palace; and a huge mix of rapidly gentrifying neighborhoods complete with ethnic food markets and weekend cultural festivals, along with traditional working-class industrial hubs around the port and river, fiercely proud of their traditions and increasingly uneasy about the rate of growth and change in their city.
Over the sea in Hofvinger, the northerners regard themselves as the
true Græntfjallers, hardier than the southern dandies, resilient in the face of the howling ice winds of the Komodo Channel that even at this time of year will bring fog, hail, and eventually snow. Hofvinger is home to the largest shipyard and is the seat of power for the Græntfjaller Navy, with its enormous King Þorberg Naval Base and missile complex. Daily car and passenger ferries mean it will be easy for teams in Háttmark to travel to games in Hofvinger, but getting a warm reception – or a warm anything – may be a lot harder.
Games will be held at the following arenas in and around Háttmark. On each MD, the first listed game will be at the first arena, the second at the second, and so on.
1.
Grand National Arena, Gunzlach (cap.: c. 14,000)Based in the working class neighborhood of Gunzlach, the GNA is a huge multi-sports complex. The ice hockey arena is separate from the football stadium, but it’s all part of the same mega-complex that will be familiar to those who’ve played in Græntfjall before in football or basketball. Gunzlach retains its white, Catholic, working-class identity far more strongly than surrounding neighborhoods, and is fiercely proud of its links to the military, being near the former Royal Arsenal (hence ‘the Gunners’ nickname’ for the local team.2.
Elínmundur Heiðreksson Halle, Steinaux (cap.: c. 12,000)Over the river from Gunzlach lies Steinaux, their arch-rivals. Historically, this was the heart of the meat-packing industry, hence the local team’s nickname ‘the Sausages’. Steinaux has, unlike Gunzlach, embraced change, with massive gentrification as it has emerged as a hub of high-tech computer, finance, and especially bio-pharma industries. Steinaux residents tend to be the most cosmopolitan in the country, with little trace of its working-class history not bulldozed over and covered in shiny new buildings. This includes the brand-spanking-new arena, named for former ice hockey great Elínmundur Heiðreksson, whose rambling speech at the dedication suggested he was less than happy about the changes – especially the demographic changes – wrought on his beloved community in recent years.3.
Hagejoki Play Park (cap.: 12000)Hagejoki is mainly associated with the University of Háttmark, large parts of whose campus and vast tracts of student housing (and the corresponding libraries, intellectual coffee shops, and crack-dens such activity brings) are based there. The multi-sports complex is a little run-down and the hockey arena unloved given the strong priority for football given by the club. However, Hagejoki’s lively nightlife means after a win it’s easy to keep the party going, and after a loss easy to find somewhere to drown one’s sorrows.4.
Hofvinger Community Arena (cap.: c. 10,500)The frosty northern exclave of Hofvinger doesn’t love ice hockey, but it hates being excluded and there was no way they would be left out of Græntfjall’s hosting of a major sporting event. Their stadium has seen better days – because it’s been rebuilt so many times, some angles make seeing replay screens and scoreboards a challenge worthy of M.C. Georgsson* himself – and is likely to be eclipsed by a planned new development next year. In the meantime, visitors can enjoy the local delicacies such as spicy fishcakes and honey-beer, and then be glared at by locals until they hurry back to the ferry to the mainland.5.
SuperBangMunchVöllur, Zevogur (cap.: c. 11,500)Located on the same exclave land as Hofvinger but west of the city itself, Zevogur is a much smaller and friendlier community. Built amid sea-lashed rocks, the locals who made their home here were mainly Jewish refugees following Græntfjall’s brutal inter-faith wars of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation, who – when they noticed that the Catholics and Protestants appeared to have made peace with each other and were casting around for a common enemy – wisely made the decision to scarper across the seas. Today Zevogur is actually mainly Catholic, but it’s generally more open-minded and tolerant than most mainland communities when it comes to matters of religion. The local arena was relocated four years ago by its snack food sponsors, so it’s still in fairly good shape and has a magnificent viewing lounge that on a good day allows great views of the Komodo Channel (and on bad days is a fog-shrouded nightmare).6.
Eisstadion Háttmark, Haderhavn (cap.: 7,109)Haderhavn were relegated from the GHL last season, but they’ll be back; the area has a long tradition of ice hockey. The Eisstadion was renovated recently to nearly double its seating capacity and outside the hockey season hosts skating and curling. Haderhavn was, decades ago, a fishing village, long since absorbed into Háttmark proper, but some of its old character remains in the narrow alleyways between the traditional cottages along the wharf-front, once inhabited by humble fishers, now retro-fitted into luxury second homes for the wealthy financiers who commute into the heart of the city.*
Græntfjaller artist known for his mathematically impossible, surrealist drawings.