New Crobuzon

New Crobuzon is a city-state in Bas-Lag. The city of New Crobuzon is composed of numerous neighborhoods, species, social groups, and a wide mix of cultures and infrastructure that can vary from block to block.

History

The original city of Crobuzon was founded around 1,800 years ago as a small village near the coast of the Iron Bay, at the mouth of the Gross Tar river. Crobuzon's prosperity rendered it a favorite target for pirate attacks and, 100 years after its founding, a particularly large raid burnt the city to the ground.
After the burning of their city, Crobuzon's inhabitants migrated to the confluence of the River Tar and River Canker, where they refounded their city and named it New Crobuzon. Despite the renaming, the original dating system that had been used since the founding of the first city, Anno Urbis, was retained.
Pirate Wars (1100–1545)
The Pirate Wars were two rounds of warfare fought between New Crobuzon and several rival maritime city-states, including Suroch. The wars ended in 1545 with the dropping of two Torque bombs and three Colorbombs on Suroch, rendering the city and its surroundings uninhabitable.
Full Years (1352–late-1500s)
The Full Years followed New Crobuzon's victory against the island nation of Khadoh in the Battle of the Torpid Coast during the first round of the Pirate Wars. As this period of economic prosperity drew to a close, the New Crobuzon government commissioned the construction of the Grand Easterly in a desperate attempt to prove that its golden age had not yet ended.
The Grand Easterly, which proved to be an ineffectual battleship during the Pirate Wars, was believed to have sunk a few years after its construction.
1804–1805
See: Tesh-New Crobuzon War

Calendar

Epoch
The epoch of the New Crobuzon calendar is set at the original founding of Crobuzon, a century before its razing and subsequent reestablishment as New Crobuzon. All years are recorded as "anno urbis", or "city year".
Months
New Crobuzon has a 12 month calendar.

• Lunuar
• Soluary
• Swiven
• Chet
• Melluary
• Tathis
• Tilven
• Sinn
• Octuary
• Rinden
• Arora
• Dust

Days of the week
New Crobuzon has a seven-day week

• Shunday
• Dustday
• Blueday
• Dockday
• Fishday
• Chainday
• Skullday

Government

New Crobuzon is ostensibly a parliamentary republic, although it bears a closer resemblance to an oligarchy in practice. Still, elections ensure that every citizen has a voice, no matter how faint.
The New Crobuzon government is based on Strack Island, a fortified island located at the confluence of the River Tar and River Canker.

Office of the Mayor

The mayor is the effective head of state in New Crobuzon, although parliament controls the budget while the home secretary controls the civil service.
The mayor influences foreign and domestic policy through direct control of the city's militia through the Lord Captain of the Militia, along with the powers of arrest, torture, and Remaking. In good times, the mayor and parliament work together in a sort of political symbiosis that enables effective and timely policy-making. In bad times, political schemes and revenge have no bottom threshold, and it is not uncommon for political rivals to be subjected to remaking, blackmail, or imprisonment.
The mayor's cabinet
A cabinet of between six to seventeen lords and ministers is appointed by the mayor at the beginning of his or her term. The precise configuration of the cabinet varies from mayor to mayor, but generally includes:

• The Lord Privy Seal
• The Minister of Commerce and Industry
• The Chancellor of the Exchequer
• The Minister of Justice and the junior minister for Remaking
• The Lord Captain of the Militia
• The Minister of State
• A Minister Without Portfolio.

Parliament

Parliament generally consists of around 500 members, although the exact number depends on the political climate and timing. Parliament is almost entirely composed of humans, with a few Xenians whose elections are elevated by special mechanisms to "ensure reputable representation". Legend holds that parliament was founded on Jabber's orders to rule after his disappearance.

Parties and elections

The parliament is divided into at least a dozen main political parties, although the ruling party is usually the Fat Sun or, more rarely, Finally We Can See. Parliamentarians are elected annually by eligible voters - primarily land owners, but also common people who are selected as part of the suffrage lottery, a mechanism intended to "add the voice of the common man to the expertise of the wealthy". In practice, winners of the suffrage lottery often sell their tickets to "vote shapers", who use their vote to promote special interests.
During the Tesh-New Crobuzon War, after the suppression of the Commune rebellion but prior to the war's conclusion, parliament was divided into political camps based on their views of the war. These included the Victorians - hard-line hawks who pushed for the prosecution of the war against Tesh at any cost, the Concessionists - the middle-ground party, and the Suitors - pursuers of peace at any cost.

Militia

New Crobuzon is the foremost military power in Bas-Lag, second to none. Its primary armed forces are the New Crobuzon Militia, who function as army, navy, marines, and secret police as needed. The power of the militia is supplemented with special Warforged and a formidable surveillance apparatus. Procurator, as commissioned intelligence officers, may be considered a part of the military.
Merchant Navy
The New Crobuzon Merchant Navy is one of the most capable navies in Bas-Lag, able to project power thousands of miles from New Crobuzon if needed. The navy is largely composed of steam-driven armored warships. Dreadnoughts like the NCS Morning Walker are some of the largest ships in the fleet.

Economy

One of the most defining features of New Crobuzon is the large wealth disparity between classes and neighborhoods. Many buildings, especially in the poorer neighborhoods, are dilapidated. Squatters are not uncommon, and the lack of a functioning welfare system and benevolent government leaves thousands of people struggling to make ends meet. This problem is particularly prevalent amongst the Xenians within the city: the Aarakocra have occupied a ruined neighborhood on the edge of the city, with many of them living in disused skyscrapers which were originally built to house wealthy new homeowners.
Street urchins can often be seen roaming the streets of New Crobuzon and many children scavenge scrap and salvage to sell. Prostitution is rife amongst the lower-strata within the city.
Several affluent areas exist within New Crobuzon, occasionally butting up against the poorer areas. Entirely different neighborhoods can be adjacent: one neighborhood may host thriving businesses and commerce whilst the other is dirty, lawless and infested with crime.

Population

New Crobuzon has an estimated population of 3,510,000. Humans are the majority race within the city, followed by the Dragonborn, Elf, Dwarf, and Gnome.

Boroughs and districts

Wealthy districts
The wealthy districts boast good security under the watchful eye of the Militia. All of the wealthy districts are clustered around the center and northeast of New Crobuzon. In addition to the less-notable Mog Hill and Mafaton districts, the wealthy areas include:

• Chnum - The district is home to merchants and factory owners, as well as the large mansions they inhabit. It is well-guarded and generally a dull but pleasant place.
• The Crow - A fashionable commercial and shopping district that is spread out around Perdido Street Station. It has three main shopping streets.
• Flag Hill - A hill district that has seen recently expanded luxury housing. The district is divided into old money at the top and the nouveau riche who live in the more contemporary-style houses around the bottom.
• Ludmead - Home to some of New Crobuzon's old money as well as the city's most prestigious university, the aptly-named New Crobuzon University.
• Salacus Fields - One of the city's most fashionable districts, inhabited by artists, poets, and crowded with tea-houses and bars.

Poorer districts
The poorer districts, as well as ghettoes and slums, are notorious for their poor construction, haphazard street planning, and open sewers that flow through the areas.

• Bonetown - Named after the ribs that arch over the district. It is regarded as a shabby place where nothing good lives, and for good reason. The crime lord Motley has his base of operations here.
• Dog Fenn - A place of markets that sell stolen goods. The district is distinguished from the other poor areas by the presence of the last station on the skyrail line, Dog Fenn Station.
• Howl Barrow - A small slum known for its homosexual, transvestite, and theatre community.
• The Ribs - The shards of an ancient, long-dead behemoth that once roamed Rohagi. The Ribs are something of a tourist attraction.
• Sheck - Well-known for its anti-Xenian unrest and consequently home to its own militia tower. Numerous antigovernment figures, union organizers, journalists, and others live here.
• Spatters - A pure shantytown build from refuse and castoffs at the edge of the Rudewood. Spatters is, bar none, the poorest district in New Crobuzon. It is largely inhabited by aarakocra and home to a minor gang lord, Savage Peter.

Special and xenian districts
Most of the city's Xenian population is concentrated in a handful of special, often self-governing and self-policing, districts. These areas are, officially or unofficially, off-limits to the New Crobuzon Militia:

• Brock Marsh
• The Glasshouse
• Kinken

Industrial districts and rails

• Arrowhead Mines
• Arrowhead House
• Griss Twist
• Kelltree
• Perdido Street Station

Other notable locations

• Grand Calibre Bridge - An expansive, broken swing bridge that spans the River Gross Tar at its widest point. The Grand Calibre Bridge was built was large cannon intended to protect New Crobuzon, but engineering and design failures resulted in the middle of the bridge collapsing.

Industry and technology

The technology of New Crobuzon is best described as steampunk. The science of punch-card computing is understood, and prior to 1805, Warforged were in common use. Airships and aerostats are common, and the city's militia use muskets, wands, and submersibles.
Carriages are the main form of transportation around New Crobuzon, although boats do traverse the main rivers that run through the city. Militia and the wealthier population are able to use dirigibles and the city's skyrail system, which connects at seven towers located around the city.
At one point, the city had a functioning weather-control tower, the cloudtower, manned by wizards. The cloudtower enabled New Crobuzon to fend off a Torque storm. Several centuries after its construction, the tower inexplicably ceased functioning and its full utility has never been restored. Presently, the cloudtower serves as a weather station for predicting the weather.
New Crobuzon is at the forefront of the science of remaking, practiced by the city's capable bio-engineers. Used as a form of punishment against criminals, so-called Remade, which may be human, xenian, or animal, are used as slave labor, soldiers, and transportation. During the Tesh-New Crobuzon War, the city's militia were known to use remade whale-based submarines, referred to as ictineos, to move behind enemy lines.

Crime

Criminal activity is rife in New Crobuzon: drug-trading, extortion, rape and violence are just some of the cruel acts which have become part-and-parcel of everyday life in many areas of the city. The most common crimes are petty acts of theft and vandalism that result from the large wealth disparity. The militia presence is nearly nonexistent on the streets of poorer neighborhoods.
Sentencing
Sentences are handed down by Magister, who hide their faces and operate under pseudonyms during court sessions. Oftentimes, the punishment for any significant crime is remaking.
Dissenters
The wealth disparity and borderline dictatorial rule by the Mayor and Parliament have caused several underground opposition groups to spring up. In Anno Urbis 1779, the largest of these was the underground newspaper, the Runagate Rampant.

Type

Geopolitical, City-state