Arcanus
Beneath the boughs of the Silverwood, the metropolis of Arcanus flourishes in the filtered darkness. Light refracts off the silver leaves, dulling its burning effect on the skin of the drow. Once, it was the holy city of Arctiax, the great dragon that rescued the wood elves from the Blackbane. But in the light of the Flamebringers, it was revealed that Arctiax was the false savior, and the true Soulinium dragon that prevented the downfall of Old Arborea in it flew east after the Darkest Night.
Arcanus and the surrounding land has since shed the title of the Theocracy of Arctiax, opting instead to refer to the surrounding land by the city's name.
Geography
Arcanus sits apart from the rest of the continent, separated by the Rift. While it is unsure what caused the Rift, how long it has been there, or what awaits at the bottom, it offers the perfect natural moat for the city. Of course, in order to even get close enough to approach the Rift, travelers must pass through the Gloamwood. Rife with Blackbane, the Gloamwood stretches for days of travel up either side of the coastline, presenting a hazard to merchants and invaders alike.
Geographical Features
From its pillar of land in the Arcan Ocean, Arcanus is separated into two cities: The Silver City above and the Old City, or Undercity, below. The Silver City is directly beneath the boughs of the Silver Tree, earning it its name, and holds the bulk of the city's citizens, mainly of the middle and upper classes. The Silver City was constructed in full above teh Old City after the Darkest Night, great platforms raised from the ground and braced against a network of subterranean columns and the Silver Tree itself. One well-placed earthquake could cast the Uppercity into the Rift, were it not for the roots of the Silver Tree that have grown to hold it in place.
The sides of the expansion that lifted the Silver City up are honeycombed with openings that allow airflow and the passage of floating gondolas though to the Old City. Home to the lower and lower-middle class, the Undercity is the Silver City's delinquent sibling. Little light from the boughs finds the lower reaches, and as such the Undercity is home to creatures that not only shrink at the sight of the sun, but abhor light altogether. A safe haven to gang barons and vampires, the Undercity is only patrolled as strictly necessary, never more, sometimes less, by the Arcanus guard. There has even been whispers of revolt to separate the Undercity from its supposed oppressor, bu tintil that day, the Undercity continues to bow to the rule of the matriarchy.
Arcanus is connected to the mainland by a series of bridges, the largest of which is the Gloamcrossing. It connects from the northeast to the Gloamroad leading north, through the Gloamwood and eventually connecting to the Grass Road, bringing travelers to the imperial capital city of Helorix.
Government
Arcanus has experienced constantly shifting political structures since the Darkest Night. Prior to the event, Arcanus was a part of Old Arborea, led by the conclaves which have since settled their remnants in Illemnor, outside of the Gloamwood.
Following the Darkest Night, Arcanus followed the Blood of the Dragon, a matriarchal lineage of House Dreux, crowning a High Matron from those who were first touched by the light of the silver dragon that saved the city and left the greatest impression on them. The other royal houses, house Deveraux, Bouclier, Epee, Laureate, and Voyelemeur, have dragonmarks in their lineage that grant legitimacy to their claims to nobility. However, those without the Blood of the Dragon have no claim to the seat of High Matron, held by House Dreux. Responsibilities fell to each of the royal houses, Dreux leading, Deveraux operating the spy networks of the ciy, Bouclier acting as defensive guards, Epee as offensive soldiers, Laureate as ambassadors, and Voyelemeur as sages and researchers.
As the Silent War progressed, it also saw the nobility of Arcanus torn asunder. Deveraux and Voyelemeur fell on different sides of the conflict, Voyelemeur siding with the Pathfinders and Deveraux entangling themselves with the Web. As a result, House Voyelemeur was all but destroyed, and House Deveraux assumed the dead house's role of researching and recordkeeping. Great swaths of the city's short history, more specifically in relation to its founding and the fate of the dragon that saved the drow, were branded "heretical" and burned. In this time, it is believed House Deveraux hatched a white dragon they would raise to become the False Arctiax, filling the poor creature's mind with the belief that it was truly the legendary wyrm and giving rise to the rule of the Theocracy, headed by House Deveraux. In this time, the position of High Matron was largely as a figurehead with little actionable power outside of her own house and the theater of public opinion.
Following the death of the False Arctiax, Deveraux's assassination of High Matron Sonilyth, and the Purge which followed, the remaining houses—Dreux, Bouclier, Epee, and Laureate—Arcanus again reassessed its political structure. The populace, lacking faith in the other houses, turned to House Dreux for stability. Bouclier stood with the Blood of the Dragon without hesitation, but Epee and Laureate took time to settle back into their roles.
Now, under the leadership of High Matron Dahlia Dreux, Arcanus stands unified once more by the Blood of the Dragon. The houses have returned in large part to the roles ascribed to them by their dragonmarks, but with Voylemeur and Deveraux scattered, lesser houses are vying to make a name for themselves, with several quickly rising to prominence.
Undercity Politics
While the Silver City's politics define Arcanus' position in the greater empire, the Undercity is governed by an Archbaron. Placed in power long ago, the title of Archbaron once belonged to House Spencer, one of the lesser houses founded by a tribe of deep gnomes that immigrated to the city in the late 2900s, and designated them fit to rule the Undercity as an extension of the High Matron's authority. However, over the years the position shifted, and now while the Spencer family still rules the Undercity, the title of Archbaron belongs to the head of the Black Suns, a crime syndicate which calls the Undercity home. A member of the Spencer family generally holds one of the Baron positions under the Archbaron, but a Spencer has not held the title of Archbaron since the second Archbaron's assassination.
With House Deveraux cast out of the Rooted Citadel, House Spencer has moved in and hopes to consolidate their hold on the Undercity and reclaim some of their lost infamy.
Law & Order
In large part, the policing of Arcanus is handled by House Bouclier, who moderate both halves of the city and are in the midst of a push to greater regulate the criminal underbelly of the Old City, but have a long way to go in that regard. There are several circuits of judges within the quarters of the city, with a High Court presiding over appeals and final jurisdiction given to the High Matron, should it come to that.
In a twist of fate, the Rooted Citadel was where the bulk of criminals were held by royal authorities, and with the shift in warden from House Deveraux to Spencer, House Bouclier has voiced concerns that Spencer will leverage this new position to further their aims with the Black Sun. House Spencer has agreed to regular audits by the other houses to ensure the integrity of their holdings in the Rooted Cells, but many have doubts as to their efficacy. There are rumors that there is a tenuous agreement between House Spencer and the other royal houses, with the understanding that House Spencer will be allowed to pursue its ulterior activities with little resistance if they are discrete in their handling of political prisoners the other houses might send to the Roots.
Crime
Since its founding, Arcanus has struggled with high crime rates. Once word spread of a city hidden from the sun, denizens flocked to it from across the empires, looking for a place to sink their talons into. The resulting concentration of ill intent, both mundane and arcane, working in concert with Arcanus' troubled political history, has created a haven for criminal activity within their borders. The Black Sun rules the criminal networks of both empires with an iron fist from its seat in Arcanus, keeping regular meetings of their many circles where the Monarch's light does not reach. Never has there been a more wretched hive of scum and villainy than is found in the Undercity.
Trade
Arcanus widely trades in delicate metalwork and products of artifice. Their filigreed silver designs are unparalleled, and artisans come from around the continent to study at the feet of Arcanite masters of the art. Original pieces are highly sought after fetches prices north of a thousand gilded roses, and to even have metal detailing done to a frame costs a small fortune. This mastery of metallurgy is reflected in the architecture of the city, where the buildings would be indistinguishable from those grown in Old Arborea or the Falkwood, were they not wrought of the silvery metal that is Arcanus' hallmark.
The city's skill in artifice is also renowned throughout the empires, recognizing Arcanite artificers as an authority on arcane technology second only to the dwarven craftsmen of the Hollow Mountain. In place of warforged, they use automatons to aid in their construction and manufacture them for exports. Unlike warforged, these automatons are not truly sentient, and offer only a simulacrum of intelligence. They aid in Arcanus' blossoming airship trade, which has grown to surpass that of the Red Mountains. Because of the Rift, a great deal of Arcanite trade is conducted by air, and with that has come an age of innovation in aircraft construction. It was an Arcanite artificer who first harnessed an elemental to power a ship rather than depend on a mundane furnace and fragile balloon.
Defenses
In large part, Arcanus is defended by the Rift. It not only physically separates the city from the continent, but the mythological depth of the Rift also works as a deterrent, with few would-be attackers interested in finding their fate at its bottom; or discovering if the Rift is truly bottomless. It also offers a window for cannons positioned in the Undercity to take aim on assailing ships through entrenched embankments that offer little room to fire back at the defenders.
The city also has a strong air force, built up through the centuries, that is used to patrol the Gloamwood at times, but is largely held in reserve in great caverns beneath the Undercity. Every trader native to Arcanus that owns an airship is a volunteer in the city's air force, with a sworn duty to defend the city in its time of need. By extent, almost every airship the city has ever produced is battle-ready, with at least one embankment of cannons.
As a last line of defense, the Silver Tree is the final barrier an assailant must pass. The membrane of the "tree" that creates a harmless glow from the rays of the sun can also take a beating if need be, and has the ability to regenerate. So even if an invading air force penetrated the barrier, they would need to keep constant vigil on any breach points to ensure they do not reseal.
Were a force to attack by land, they would first need to survive the march through the Gloamwood, which takes ten days by road and five following the shortest coast; while the time difference is notable, so is the danger of traversing the Gloamwood offroad. Then the force would need to cross the bridges to arrive at the city gates, but the first step in the cities defense would be to drop the bridges into the Rift, once enough enemy soldiers had begun to make the crossing, of course. Should a bridge mechanism fail to drop, any assailants would then be met with the full force of the House Bouclier army, which specialize in prolonged defensive battles.
Transportation
Arcanus is a relatively small city compared to the other nations' capitals, at only three miles across. However, the tangle of bough-scraping buildings and winding city streets leaves much to be desired in the way of getting around. Much of transportation is done through air gondola, allowing seamless transitions between Upper- and Undercity. Motorized carts, driven by automatons, also offer easy modes of free travel on regular schedules, but are unable to cross between the two halves of Arcanus.
There has been talk of constructing a rail system that would follow a looping track that spirals between the two halves, but the political unrest in the cities has made gathering the funds for such an undertaking nearly impossible.
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