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View Full Version : [City] Cy'Rontog-Shlygah, (Twin Cities)



narfi_ref
2005-07-03, 09:25 PM
When I first set eyes on my destination, I nearly wept for its majesty. Jutting half a mile out of the ocean stood the fabled twin cities of Cy'Rontog-Shlygah, the city that dares to spit Fate in the eye.
As my ship set down in Dock-Town, I noticed the miserable wretches that were forced to live there; too poor to live within the safety of Cyrontog, and suffering from mal-nutrition. Luckily, I quickly found a gondolier and was inside the Sinking Tower in a matter of minutes. When I finally entered the city proper, I was even more amazed. I saw beautiful bas-reliefs and eldritch runes covering every surface carefully maintained by the dwarves, humans, and gnomes of the Guild of Miners and Architects. People traveled from tower to tower and level to level on bridges and staircases that one would think impossible. On the water's surface, gondoliers ferried customers around while the sea elves of Shlygah came up to do business before diving back down to home. And in the center of town, held aloft by eight massive chains, yet hanging into the water, was the very thing that made this marvel possible: the Stone of Fellowship. -Ferrick Dahl, tourist

STATISTICS

BACKGROUND
History:
About 2500 years ago, the Cyvalan archipelago was discovered by the (in)famous human pirate/explorer Remmick Cyvaro. Weary of pirating, and discovering that the largest of the islands (Cyvalah Major) was rich in mineral deposits, he decided to retire and settle the place, setting himself up as governor.
As news of the natural wealth of the islands spread, people (mainly humans and dwarves) flocked to the islands to mine it for its resources. With the dwarves came the religion of (placeholder dwarven god) the Stonecutter. As the mines grew in depth, so did the city of Cyvala Major grow in height and majesty, shaped from the stone taken from the mines.
As the city grew, an order of druids came to the islands. Afraid that the rest of the islands would eventually be taken over as Cyvala Major was, they set up shop on the remaining islands to protect their abundant and exotic flora and fauna.
Approximately 2000 years ago, the city of Cyvalah Major completely covered the island of Cyvalah Major. With the Guild of Architects and Miners, begin knowledgeable in the mysteries of (X), the Stonecutter, were able to plan the city directly over the mines without any loss of stability. Despite this, a strange thing started to occur; the island started to sink at a rate of a foot per year. Unwilling to leave their homes, but not wanting to die, the populous started to panic.
It was at this point that Gerrick Rontog, a dwarf of unusual social aptitude, and Grand Master of the Guild of Miners and Architects was miraculously able to calm the public. He convinced them of the stability of the city and the mines, and assured them that a solution would be found. That solution was found in the neighboring underwater city of Shlygah.
The underwater kingdom of Shlygah predates Remmick Cyvaro's discovery of the islands by aproximately 500 years. Originally founded by merfolk, the kingdom grew to include a substantial amount of aquatic elf citizens, as well as a few triton. Geographically, the old kingdom covered the underwater portion of Cyvalah Major except for an area reaching aproximately 100 feet beneath the surface. The various races of Shlygah lived together harmoniously for many years, and even when the dry ones settled the land above, they had peaceful, if sparse contact. This changed when the sahuagin came. A massive army, bent on undersea conquest found Shlygah, and wish to make it their own. Naturally, the people of Shlygah fought the invaders, and were at first succesful. But over the years, the horde kept comming. Many of the merfolk thought that exileing the elves and tritons, the natural enemies of the sahuagin, would end the assault once and for all. The kingdom of Shlygah would be destroyed from without and within on the millenial of it's founding unless (sea god) the wavemistress granted them a miracle.
It was at this time this time that a diplomatic envoy of dwarves and humans ventured below the surface. Gerrick Rontog and King Blaarvasuis VIII and their advisors discussed their respective crises. After much discussion the Guild Master and the King came to an agreement. The smiths of Cylvah Major would immediately begin work on supplies for the Slygaean army to use against the Sahaguin horde (as masterwork adamantine tridents are much better than ones made of coral.) Once the threat has been driven back satisfactorily, the Slygaeans would take over the mining of the island under the supervision of the Guild. The Guild members not supervising the mining would then start to work on what would be the greatest feat of architecture in the known world: an ever growing tower that would hold the entire population of Cylvah (now known as Cy'Rontog out of admiration for their savior), and eventualy the people of Shlygah, as the island and tower continued their descent into the ocean.
The inhabitants of both communities were thus saved from horrible fates, but now a delicate interdependence has formed that, if disturbed, could bring ruin to all.

Layout and description
Cy'Rontog proper: The tower of Cy'Rontog currently extends aproximately 2000 ft. above sea level and is octagonal in shape with a diameter of 670 ft. corner-to corner. It is divided into eight districts; one district corresponding to each side. Each district is divided into vertical layers of 100 ft in height, however the altitude of these layers are staggered amongst the districts. Each district is controlled by a single property owner known as a District Lord. Living in the city, with few exceptions, means leasing a house from the appropriate District Lord. Seeing as how the city requires certain areas of the city to be designated for civic use, the Guild Architects assign these areas to different districts on different layers, so that these areas are always available on the layer needed, and so that the burden of leaseing to the city (at a reduced rate) is spread out amongst the Nine District Lords. For example, the Guild-house for the Guild of Miners and Architects is always on the third highest layer, currently the 18th, and is currently in district 7, but in 25 years time, that Guild-house will have descended to the 17th layer, and so will be converted to other uses. The new Guild-House will then be in the 2nd district. Likewise, the headquarters for the Clockwork Guild is always in the middle (currently the 11th), and currently resides in district 5, but in a few years time will be in district 8.
To the outside observer, the contents of the city appear to be a jumbled mess of stairs, bridges, platforms, chambers, and subtowers that by all rights should not be possible. The truth is that this mess has a deeper symmetry, and through its confusing masonry a matrix of arcane power is woven by the Guild of Miners and Architects in accordance with the secret teachings of (X), the stonecutter, and enhanced by (his?/her?) divine blessings.
The surface of the stone of the tower varries from district to district, and layer to layer. This is because its appearence is decided by both the current District Lords and their appointed Head Masons in accordance with their whims, so long as the result helps the stability of the tower. (X-ian) runes (a modified form of Dwarven Runes), geometric designs, in-laid stones and metals, and sculptures depicting the three gods of Cy'Rontog Shlygah, and bas-reliefs telling the history of the city are all popular choices of decor.
At various places around the top and outside of the tower are windmills built by the Clockwork guild. Each of these windmills is used solely to wind the springs of the "clockwork batteries" used in several of the devices in the city. The most notable uses of these batteries are in construction equipment used by the GoMaA, and in the elevators found throughout the city.

Docktown: Surrounding the tower at sea-level is the floating sprawl of Docktown. This wooden city of rafts extends aprox. 3 miles out from the edge of the tower, and is inhabited by those too poor to afford the high rent of the city. Much of the Docktown is ignored by the government of Cy'Rontog, with the exception of the guilds located there, and of course the actual docks connecting the city to the outside world. As such, the Dockies (as the inhabitants are refered to) suffer from harsh weather conditions, malnutrition (see below), and pirate raids (see below).

Druidic Islands:

Government:

Governing Councils:

Cy'Rontog

Shlygah

Guilds

Religion: While verry few religions are outlawed in Cy'Rontog-Shlygah there are three gods in particular that everyone, both above and below is expected to worship. These are as follows:

(Dwarven God), the Stonecutter: (LN) (Earth, Knowledge, Law, Magic). Originally worshiped exclusively by Dwarves, (X)'s worship grew to include most of Cyvalah major in the pre-fellowship days, and all of Cy'Rontog Shlygah, after. (his/her) religion values knowledge and stability above all else, and teaches its clergy, the Guild of Miners and Architects, arcane secrets with which to spread stability through the earth. Since the Fellowship, both Humans and Gnomes have been admitted entrance into the guild, and by extension, the clergy.

(Aquatic Goddess), Mistress of Waves

(Human God), Lord of wind and rain. (Neutral)
Worship of this god was brought over by Remmick Cyvaro himself. Without his favor, the city might suffer from bad trade-winds, drought, or calamity. Druidic Order

Economics & Civic Function:

Exports: The major exports of Cy'Rontog-Shlygah are ores, gems, and art objects.

Imports: The major imports of Cy'Rontog-Shlygah are non-perishable foods, spices, textiles, and paper.

The Delicate Balance:

Fresh Water and Sanitation:

Arts:

Law & Crime:

Notable Laws:

Criminal Element:

Monument

Power Struggles

Wet League:

Dockies:

Adventure Hooks:
1) Disappearances of Shlygaean miners and their dwarven foremen have been reported with increasing frequency. Some of the remaining miners claim to see brief glimpses of figures hiding in the mines. The sea elves fear sahuagin are responsible and are planning to invade from below the sunken city. They are wrong.

2) A freak hurricane has developed and is projected to hit the city in less than two days time. All attempts by the priesthood of [unnamed weather god] to divert the storm have inexplicably failed. While Cyrontog will survive with minimal damage, Dock-Town will be torn asunder, and the City Guard is under orders not to let the dockies enter.

narfi_ref
2005-07-04, 08:09 PM
just in case

narfi_ref
2005-07-04, 08:09 PM
just in case