Rio Plano

The town of Rio Plano sits in the southern part of the kingdom of Oestbernia, on the border with the Toldrun See. Rio Plano is, in fact, the only Oestbernian town located on this border, making it a hub of trade and cultural diffusion. The Toldrun River that flows just south of the town marks the division between the two nations, and Riojans (ree-oh-hahn) monitor the bridge and road traffic closely.
Like Madera in the northern part of Castillon, Rio Plano was one of the original settlements of this area between the two rivers (the Toldrun and the Castillon). Settlers fleeing the northern area of Nordtvein met others who had come from southern and eastern lands and decided to embark on the journey together. Like their northern brethren, this group meshed their cultures and languages together, creating a new tongue that blended parts of all the others. This new language was similar to that which developed in and around Madera, but it was different enough that the two areas had trouble communicating when the Kingdom of Castillon was first formed.
Over the last few centuries, Rio Plano has been a flashpoint in the tense relationship between Oestbernia and The See. Despite generally friendly relations, The See occasionally sends its Inquisitors across the river into Oestbernia to hunt for people it claims are religious or political fugitives. Several times in the last 400 years these Inquisition forces have razed part or all of Rio Plano, and the Oestbernian military has been called in to force them back to their homelands. These provocations would have led to war many times over, were Oestbernia not a republic with far distant towns reluctant to send their men to openly fight the See's forces. Thankfully, the last such raid was over 70 years ago, and the town has lived in peace since then - albeit with a small permanent garrison of troops to thwart Inquisition plans.

Demographics

Almost two-thirds of Madera is made up of humans, with halflings being the next largest group. Historically, there used to be a large dwarven diaspora in this town, but after the first few Inquisition raids many dwarves resettled either to the See itself or further north away from the Inquisition threat. Agriculture and trading are the two most prosperous industries in Rio Plano, with a healthy portion of the town being military that is stationed in Rio Plano to watch the border. The average citizen leads what could be described as lower middle class, with enough money to comfortably afford housing and food, plus some extra for finery or travel. The owners of the three wealthy mercantile companies are considerably well off, even compared to other nobility. Thankfully for the laws of Oestbernia, only one of these families can serve as the town's representative to the National Council at any time, but the families trade that position and the mayorship back and forth between them, creating in effect an oligopoly on the town's leadership positions.

Government

The citizens of Rio Plano elect their mayor and advisors every five years, during the same elections in which they choose their National Council representatives. The nation's laws state that only one member from Rio Plano can be nobility, so the three prominent families tend to trade that position between themselves every few elections. Unfortunately, that same protection does not extend to the town's mayoral position, so the three families have rotated that office as long as anyone can remember - mostly by actually paying for votes. Every popular measure to introduce anti-nobility limits - or at the very least, a ban on direct payments for votes - has been struck down by the mayor and council, and the National Council has not deemed it appropriate to intervene in these situations. The council does tend to be more representative of the common people, with members coming from the various industries and walks of life that make up Rio Plano.

Defences

The town of Rio Plano used to have an exterior wall, but due to the repeated Inquisition raids it kept being destroyed. After one of the more recent raids over a century ago, the people decided they would just not rebuild the wall; so, for almost 120 years, Rio Plano has existed without a wall. There have still been a few Inquisition raids since this, with the most recent one occurring around 70 years ago. The town is guarded by a combination of its Watch members and around 700 troops that are stationed in a fort just south of the town proper. This fort is located a few hundred feet from the Toldrun River and is able to monitor and control traffic on the bridge between the two nations.

Infrastructure

The main trade road through Rio Plano is paved, as is the central square and several roads near or connecting to that area. Other areas of town also have paved roads, but those are sporadic and not as well-maintained as the central square. Though the town is not situated directly on the river, it does provide a good amount of water for the people, joined by several wells throughout the town. The main bridge that crosses the Toldrun River and connects Oestbernia and The See is south of the town proper, but it is watched by the military garrison stationed nearby.

Architecture

With its repeated razing and rebuilding, Rio Plano could be considered a new town architecturally. Few buildings are more than a century old, and those that are have been rebuilt or renovated in the last 80 or so years at least once. As such, most houses tend to be Georgian in appearance, varying in size between small two-story houses and larger four- or five-story tenements. The government buildings and temples are more Baroque or Rococo, with flourishes and adornments common on all facets. The large estates of the noble merchant families are sprawling and contain a variety of different architectural styles, having been built up over time as certain parts of the family moved out of the main estate house into their own smaller manors on the grounds.

Founding Date

460 2A

Type

Town

Population

6,946

Inhabitant Demonym

Riojans

Owning Organization

Oestbernia