Update, September 27th: Nevermoor, one os the five Steehead City regions, has a new lease of life. Willow Leafstorm (zoelass) has taken over ownership of the region, which has been renamed and relocated to Ravenwood Forest. There have been some very minor changes made, but the aim is for the region to “live on in the spirit of Steehead”.
Steelhead City, the “American Victorian Steampunk Community in the Second Life Nestled in the Coastal Pacific Northwest” and set around the 1850s, is to close at the end of September.
The news initially came via an announcement to the Steelhead community from founder TotalLunar Eclipse at the start of the month, followed by further information given in a town hall meeting held a few days later. There are multiple factors involved in the decision, the majority of which are personal in nature, relating to health, career and family situations.
I first wrote about Steelhead far back in 2012, and while I’ve had a number of visits since (although admittedly not since around mid-2014), I’ve never managed to get an updated blog post written. Unsurprisingly, a lot has changed since then, although much of the estate remains as I’ve always remembered and enjoyed it.
For example, over the years, the city and port have undergone a series of changes, although the more rural areas of Steelhead Boomtoown and St Helens have remained their natural look and feel with few obvious changes. Similarly, Steelhead Nevermoor has always retained its eclectic mix of rental properties, dark and mysterious churches and hints of fantasy I found instantly attractive during my first visit in early 2012; however, I admit I miss Steelhead Sanghai, the “sino-Steampunk” region, which went off-line a while back, one of two regions that decreased the estate’s size over the years from 7 at the time of my very first visit to the current five.
While the estate itself is due to go off-line, Steelhead as a community is determined to continue. The Steelhead group will not be closed, and it is hoped that the school and classes will continue. The Steelhead Salmons RFL team, founded by Fuzzball Ortega, have already indicated they’ll be continuing and have secured land on the d’Aillez Estates to which they are relocating.
In the meantime, the five regions of Steelhead City remain open to visitors (although the welcome centre is a tad denuded of information – don’t let that put you off), and I gather that when the time comes, things may be going out with a bang.
SLurl Details
- Steelhead City Welcome Centre (Rated: Moderate)
Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld 