Central Tilth
Certainly there are more wretched hives of scum and villainy. Just not on Argentii.
The capital city of the island of Tilth sits amidst a seemingly barren desert, protected from an endless barrage of sandswirls by the Bubble Wall, a thick wall of glass that diverts the storms over, but traps the heat, dust, and oppression of an overcrowded city inside.
Demographics
The hot, arid quality of Tilth makes it difficult for anyone to live outside the city. A stiff breeze will blow enough sand and grit to strip the flesh from an unprotected body in just a few hours. Still, while more than 66% of the population is Metilth, other ethicities can be found working and dwelling inside the city.
Within the caste system, 10% of the ruling caste are of non-Metilth heritage, and 25% of the merchant caste are non-Metilth.
Defences
The city's famous Bubble Wall keeps it safe not only from the raging sandswirls that plague the desert island, but also keep it safe from invasion both over land and by air. Even though it is open-topped, the deflected winds mixed with the outpouring of super-hot air from the glass foundries make air-sailing over the city impossible.
Industry & Trade
As it's name implies, Tilth's largest industry is glass. The entirety of Argentii's glass production by both trade and industry, is on Tilth. Those foundaries make up more than 90% of the industry and employment within Central Tilth.
More than 99% of its necessities are imported, including fresh water, food, fuel, and common goods.
Infrastructure
Central Tilth was constructed around the site of a well that plumbed into the island's only source of fresh water, an underground lake. Within seven generations, this had been polluted beyond potability. Another five generations beyond that, and the expanding foundries finally drained it dry, exhausting the island's fresh water supply.
A significant portion of Central Tilth's construction is underground, where the endless heat cannot penetrate the ancient bedrock. The ruling and merchant castes live almost exclusively underground. (Except, of course, for the the Ploui and his Cused, who live in the tallest peak of Spectrum Spire, high above the upper limit of the Bubble Wall.
There are no openings in the bubble wall. All traffic into and out of the city travels through underground tunnels that deliver newcomers to the Mercantile and Entertainment Districts of the city.
Wide avenues define the limits of each District, with a capillary-like webbing of narrow streets and dingy alleys sneaking through. All vehicle traffic is limited to the city's underground tunnel system. Carriage trains, share carts, pedalwheels, and even kick boards are all limited to underground use.
Districts
Central Tilth is arranged in six ring-shaped, concentric districts.
In the middle is the Capital District, where all the government buildings tower like vengeful glories over everyone that beholds them, and where government ministers, their aides, and other wealthy, important people live. It is jammed with tall towers of illuminated glass that rise up like glittering crystal formations twinkling with the neon essence of Technomancy,Theeksfur.
Next out is the Mercantile District. On the inside of this district are the high end shops and sunken sub-level townhomes of merchants, traders (ship captains, not ordinary sailors), and other mid-caste inhabitants of the city. Across the avenue are the every-day shops, while the alley that borders the outermost edge of the Merc is home to the black market shops, the usery agents, and gambling houses, as well as eateries where the stew is always fresh, always hot, and always best eaten without looking or tasting.
Further out is the Entertainment District of Central Tilth. Theaters, freak shows, arenas, dance clubs, brothels, and taverns crowd shoulder to shoulder along both sides of the avenue here. It's the one place in the city where all the castes mingle without seeming out of place.
The Residential District, or the Rezzie, is where 95% of the population, the working caste, of Central Tilth lives. It is cramped, crowded, noisy, and polluted. And everything, from the buildings to the streets to the people and their clothes, is a uniform shade of dirty, sandy tan. Buildings are blocky and unimaginative, made from vitrified sandstone bricks, and mostly above ground, providing little to no relief from the stifling heat and oppressive stench of the outer rings of the city.
Pinning the Rezzie face-first up against the chaotic ED is the Foundry District, the second-largest area of the city. This is where all of the glass foundries, trade workshops, and artisinal ovens are located. It is a reeking, toxic land of industrial pollution and second in exploitative practices only to the ED itself.
Finally, the outermost district ring is the Wall District. A barren stretch between the foundries and the actual wall, this is where the manufacturing cooperatives dump everything that's too dangerous even for the Rezzie. Here, the Orbshroom clusters convert raw toxins into a bright, comforting glow.
Assets
Central Tilth is considered to be an example of progressive, cosmopolitan ideals by everyone who doesn't work there.
In addition to the obvious wealth involved with the glass monopoly, Central Tilth's ruler, the Ploui of the Shadow of the Wing has established a thriving trade in secrets, espionage, and blackmail. These funds not only support the extravagant lifestyles of the Ploui and his ministers (almost half of which are also Cused within the SW), but also fuel the propeganda machine that have much of Argentii's general population convinced that all of Central Tilth is reflected in the Capital and Mercantile Districts of the city.Guilds and Factions
The Licensed Guild of Glassblowers is one of the more powerful organizations in the city, but in the last generation they have been unable to move the Ploui away from his rampaging path of destruction against the Working Caste.
This has lead to the rise of a strong, grassroots opposition to the Ploui and the Shadow of the Wing in the form of the The Underground Artisans Alliance.
Climate
Hot, arid, and windy, locals say Tilth has two seasons: the hot dry season, and the hotter drier season. In the city, it is even worse, as the curve of the Bubble Wall extends over the Rezzie District, trapping the heat and creating a subtle, constant updraft that drives sand and grit everywhere, but especially ears, noses, and eyes.
Average rainfall on Tilth rarely exceeds 2.5 cm annually. Again, the curve of the wall prevents even a drop from reaching the parched alleys of the Rezzie.
Natural Resources
Tilth is a desert island, rich in borosilicate sand that is perfect for making strong, clear glass. It is also plentiful in certain other silicates and minerals, most of which are integral to Technoalchemy and Technomancy.
Lately, there has also been some promising research involving several Tilthian native species, including Orbshrooms.
oof! This city sounds like a nightmare to live in! So many people and the heat!
Love to code, but this one is driving me crazy!
My world Shattered won as the "Most ground-breaking premise new world"!
sounds like a *non stop party* you mean. Signed a child of heat and fire. I love summer. Gimme gimme
I kid of course. Mostly. I do love warmth though
I, myself, cannot stand the heat nor people! You can keep the town all for yourself!
Love to code, but this one is driving me crazy!
My world Shattered won as the "Most ground-breaking premise new world"!
There is something about crowds + heat that screams oppression. Probably leftover remnants of a colonial perspective. That's also why I chose a caste structure, instead of a class structure. Again, that heavy weight of hopeless oppression, that this is all there is to life and there's no escape. Also, reflected in the layout of the districts, how the Rezzie is trapped between the ED and the Foundries. It's a very clear, but still subtle, delineation. You live here. You may go here to work, you may go here to pay. That's it. These are your walls, and between them, you shall stay. They even drive the economics of where the working caste spends their money...based on which entertainment venues advertise fans and chillers, and which don't. It's sort of like staying in a hotel in the States, where you have to pay extra for each amenity at the fancier places, but at the cheaper places, you get wi-fi, HBO, and a continental breakfast, all at no extra charge, even though the accommodations are of an obviously lower quality. The tough part about this was keeping something of a balance. Only a tiny fraction of very small islands have the capacity of being self-sufficient. So, I had to come up with a reason why this Technmancial society, all full of magic-punk technology and research, was unable to just reach out and conquer the continent with impunity. So I took away 100% of their fresh water. Despite being controlled by a wackadoo cult, they still have to play nice with the rest of the continent because an embargo would kill them all within 3 weeks.
Haly, the Moonlight Bard
Wow
Love to code, but this one is driving me crazy!
My world Shattered won as the "Most ground-breaking premise new world"!
OOOFFF yeah that'd be some incentive to play nice with others. When your upper limit of survival for an embargo, much less a siege, is 3 weeks, that's not a lot of room for error or shit disturbing.
Yeah, the cult needs to be either eliminated or at least brought out of power before anyone finds out that Orbshrooms can desalinate water and make seawater into fresh water.
Haly, the Moonlight Bard
Can i contact with your people for a second? No particular reason :p
Love to code, but this one is driving me crazy!
My world Shattered won as the "Most ground-breaking premise new world"!