Sundren City
Origin/History
Sundren City is the main area of urbanization in the entire valley. It was the center of Mundus' power, will, and vision in creating a nation in this dangerous plot of land so close to the Spine of the World. As such, it houses most of Sundren's trading and elite, a center for the extravagance of the rich and the slums of the poor. There are a few Legions stationed within and around the city, and so it is probably the most well ordered city in the entire valley. The farther one gets from the City, the farther one gets from the law. From bustling markets to shady taverns, Sundren City is a place that holds many secrets and many adventurers for those willing to brave the urban jungle that it has turned into.
With the Second Bloodmaim War, the City was forced to defend itself from encroaching Banite forces. The Hands of Mundus devised a daring, complicated, and near suicidal scheme in order to save the city from certain destruction. Using the rare mineral called Sundrite, the Hands managed to erect a spell that raised the city into the sky like Netheril of old. With the City's raising and the Second Sundering of the valley, the districts have been redefined and refugee's poured into the city to escape the Bloodmaim and Black Hand hordes that plague the valley.
Districts
The City is divided into four main districts with a small amount of leeway in between. These districts house very different groups depending, and in general have little to do with one another besides being next to one another. For instance, the Forum has booths and commoners bustling about, but one district over and you're in Castrum, with troops patrolling around and the looming Legion Chapterhouse and Helmite temple. In any case, the districts are well known and well traveled by even the newest adventurer.
Forum
The Forum is the district with the largest amount of shops and market, a bustling place that you can find just about anything you need to start adventuring. Thrifty Hides has the finest leather products such as belts and armor, while Braxis' forge makes many weapons suited for the adventuring life. Some even say he has a stash of silver weapons in stock to deal with the undead menace. Immovable Objects has a fine selection of armors of all fashions, one just has to make certain its the type one wants to buy! Sure Shots is full of exotic looking bows and arrows for the fledgling archer as well. Finer Point caters to those who dance on a razor's edge with a rapier wit and blade.
Castrum
The Temple of Helm and the temple itself caters to all of those who need assistance. Abbot Proskus is always willing to lend a hand, and can help revive your fallen comrades for a small donation. The Sundren Legion has built a new Chapterhouse in the district in order to protect the portal that leads down to the Gate of the Sunderer. That portal is the only passage to and from the City, and so it is heavily guarded by the Legion, the Hands, and the Evocati.
Cheapside
The City has been packed full of refugees since the Sundering, and the City hasn't been able to handle the huge quantity of poor souls who need food, water, and shelter. As a result, most of the refugees have made their home in the more rundown parts of the City, and crime is a common element.
For a seedier time in the City, head to Jimmy's tavern. Jimmy himself may be an intimidating fellow, but don't let this stop you from exploring the blackjack offered along with the cage fighting at the center of the place with betting going on. Rumor has it that some shadier people play and meet in the back of Jimmy's, so it's a likely place for those looking for trouble to find it.
The upper part of the district is home to the Temple of Oghma. They usually have crafting stations open to the public, as well as a huge amount of supplies for the beginning alchemist or crafter. The Exigo HQ within the city sits right next door, and is always busy with some bizarre invention or another. Rumor has it that there is a shady fellow around the district, selling things to the right customer for the right...motivation.
Aspirations
Aspirations is frequented by all manner of people, from scholars to performing bards. It is full to the brim of exciting things to do, and one cannot expect to remain bored for long if its traveled fully. The Sundren University is considered widely to be the best school for several leagues, and is home to many a mage and scholar. It's conveniently placed near the Sundren Library, where Seer Marcus helps students sift through the vast amounts of information. He also has been known to sell a few magical scrolls, some more powerful than others.
The Triumverate also makes its home across the park from the Sundren Comfort, a place of sanctuary and peace for all who desire it. The temple has been newly dedicated in the wake of the Second Sundering, due to the efforts of the Adjudicators and nobility Dain Tornbrook and Darius Blackwell. Their work with the Triumverate has made it a bastion of justice and law.
The Trade and Balance is the city's performing institute. Town meetings and plays frequent its halls, and it sells alcoholic beverages to boot!
Sewers
The City has various sewer grates located throughout the districts that lead to a network of tunnels beneath the City. No one is quite sure what is down there, but rumors say that there is some kind of ooze that seeps through the stonework walls. Even deeper, rumors say that gangs have made their lairs within the disgusting tunnels, and might be a repository for whomever the gangs might have severe dislike for.
Sleeping with the fishes would be preferable to the things that potential victims might lie with instead in these dank, light-less tunnels.
Government
Most of Sundrens laws and government can be found here.
Economics
Population Approximate: 15,000
Physical and Magical Environment
Terrain: None, floating
Appearance: Cheapside (Unattractve); Aspirations (Beautiful); Forum/Castrum (Average)
Hygiene: Cheapside -3 (Healthy Environment +1, Poverty -1, Catastrophe -2); Aspirations +1 (Healthy Environment +1, Strict Public Health Enforcement +1); Forum/Castrum +0 (Strict Public Health Enforcement +1)
High Magic (Common Enchantment)
Culture and Economy
Language: Common
Literacy: Native
Wealth: Cheapside (Struggling); Aspirations (Comfortable); Forum/Castrum (Average)
Status: -2 to 8 (Beggar to Emperor)
Political Environment
Government: Military Government
Ruling party: Legion
Resident factions: Sundarian Legion (including Helmites and Hands);
Triumvirate; Eboncoin; Exigo
Trade
Major Imports: Foodstuffs, Raw Materials, Spices, Luxury Goods, Ore, Raw Minerals from Mirabar, Magical Components
Major Exports: Manufactured Goods, Magic Items, Armaments, Innovative Machinery
Economic Analysis
The City is full to bursting with craftsmen, engineers, and other learned professionals. The Temple of Oghma alone employs a dozen scribes a day, and the wealth of knowledge contained in the City is monumental. Magic items created by the Hands and other craftsmen are also available, but only in small amounts since magic is so tightly regulated and there' a shortage of magical compnents. As a result the economy is able to function, barely, with the presence of outside traders at the Gate of the Sunderer. the land routes within the valley are locked, effectively, but the Gate of the Sunderer is close enough to Avanthyr to trade, and is accessible enough to pull in goods and raw materials from outside the valley.
The town is a hive of manufacturing, due to the presence of the Exigo as well as the former capitol of the previous Sundarian government. It is a center of craftsmen, mages, and knowledge that is unparalleled by the rest of the valley.
However, due to the recent food shortages and overpopulation, the City has seen a great disparity between various citizens. Refugees are sectioned off to the ghetto's of Cheapside, while the remainder of the citizenry are able to move about the City as needed. Cheapside has seen ever increasing rises of crime, corruption, and disease. The famine is starting to effect even the upper tiers of the City, and there doesn't seem to be a solution in sight beyond dedicating the majority of the tax income to buying food from outside the valley and through the Port in increasingly expensive caravans. The Legion is well regulated and paid, and are able to keep control of the town for the time being. But it is becoming clear that there needs to be a solution, and soon.
Notes
Military Strength: The Legion currently has several Legions living in and around the City, and protecting the Gate of the Sunderer as well as the roads leading to it. The military might of the Legion is a shadow of its former self, but is still formidable in its own right. If they had need, the Legion could deploy the entire 7th Legion in the City's defense.
Range of Territory: Because the City floats, it is difficult to govern the lands directly below due to the bottleneck of the Gate. Therefore, the Legion has sought to guard the area around the Gate as best it can with patrols, making it safe enough for peddlers and merchants around it. This translates to about a twenty mile area of safety for the refugees that are able to make a living somehow, but the majority of the people who fled from the Bloodmaim are still present in the City. After all, the possibility of a Bloodmaim attack is still present, and some people prefer the safety of the City over the unpredictability of the ground.
Current Problems: The City is in dire need of food and raw materials. The overcrowding of the City has become a constant problem, and as a result there has been construction vertically rather than horizontally within. Home above home, house above house, the City's only solution thus far is to build up.
Cheapside has been a particular problem. Due to the population constraints, and the ghetto-ed off portion of the town being limited, it has become a place of disease, filth, and death. There have been efforts by the Triumvirate temple to aid these people, and even a lot of organization of the gangs by the Eboncoin in order to prevent their territory from splitting off. However, it's hardly a permanent solution, and neither group is able to prevent even most of the happenings in the quarter.
Government Financial Analysis
The aerarium (state treasury) is supervised by members of the government rising in power and prestige, and usually bureaucrats of the Emperor known as Prefects. With the dawn of the Second Sundering a major change took place, as the emperor assumed the reins of financial control. Emperor Verinus has adopted a system that is, on the surface, fair to the other nobility. Just as the valley was divided in factions, so was the treasury. All tribute brought in from nobly controlled provinces is given to the aerarium, while that of the City proper go to the treasury of the emperor, called the fiscus.
The Emperor's Prefects have specific roles. The head of the fiscus and aerarium is an appointed Prefect of Finance, the Comes Sacrarum Largitionum (count of the sacred largesses). He maintains the general treasury and the intake of all revenue. His powers were directed toward control of the sacrum aerarium, the result of the combination of the aerarium and the fiscus. He is a figure of tremendous influence, and responsible for all taxes, examined banks, mints and mines everywhere, watched over all forms of industry, and paid out the budgets of the many departments of the state. To accomplish these many tasks, he is aided by a vast bureaucracy. Just below the Comes Sacrarum were the Prefect Rationales positioned in each sector. They act as territorial chiefs, sending out agents, the Rationales Summarum, to collect all money in tribute, taxes, or fees. They can go virtually anywhere and are the most visible extension of the government.
Only the Prefects who are responsible for the supply of the army, the imperial armament factories, weaving mills, the maintenance of the state post and the Magister Officiorumcan counter the political and financial weight of the Comes Sacrarum Largitionum. The Magister Officiorum (master of offices) makes all the major decisions concerning intelligence matters, receiving a large budget, over which the Comes Sacrarum Largitionum has only partial authority. These two figures are the Emperor's left and right hands, able to govern the City as effectively as any can given the circumstances.
To understand how the Economic System works, click HERE.