Kannera

Kannera is the economic capital of the Kanik peninsula, and the second largest city in the province of Lucrenia. It has been at the centre of many cultural and political movements including the secession of the Hahgiahk during Abahk Stuz and recent movements to reclaim lost Hahgi culture from before the Goblin Crusades.

Demographics

Kannera's population is almost entirely Hahgi, with only a thousand or so members of other races living permanently in the city, these few made up mostly of Redcloak soldiers and migrants from Volodaria. Before Abahk Stuz, the majority of the population was made up of farmers and lumberers. Nowadays, there is a growing population of higher class professions to be found within the city, such as glassblowers, paper-makers and weapons manufacturers.

Government

Historically, the city was governed by a lord from the Thranish peninsula who reported directly to the governor in Lucria. Since Abahk Stuz, however, agreements were drawn up allowing an elected mayor in place of a lord, a position that was filled in 405 IF by a goblin by the name of Gart Monjin, once a member of The Nullifiers. Under Gart, the settlement has prospered to a degree, though its denizens still pay a harsh tax, supposedly to repay the costs incurred by their rebellion.
The city is ruled by a council which Gart sits at the head of. There is, however, a large Redcloak garrison to be found within the city, meant supposedly to keep order, who answer to the Exarch in Lucria rather than to Gart, a source of contention for the city's councillors.
It is, as of yet, unclear to what degree Gart and his council hold power in the city - some believe that the mayorship provides merely the illusion of autonomy, ready to be taken in a moment should they act against Lucrenian politics.

Defences

Kannera is in a naturally defensive location in a valley surrounded by hills. In addition, it features a perimeter wall along the north and south entrances to the valley. The Ghadinak Bridge can also be raised in the event of an emergency, essentially sealing each half of the city from the other. However, its garrison is not controlled directly by the city, and fortifications on its eastern and western hillsides are designed to act as much to keep an eye on its own inhabitants as invaders out.

Industry & Trade

Kannera has strong trading links with the gnomes of Lak Fip, and lesser links with the gnomes of Nek Tharad. They also export large amounts of lumber to the Thranish Peninsula where it joins the lumber from Volodaria on its journey north, to the shipyards of Nara Tok. Kanikwood is distinguished by its dark red hue and its flexibility is highly prized.
Kannera also has a burgeoning paper-making industry, exporting its product to Lucria and from there, onward to cities in the Yethis.

Infrastructure

Kannera is not the most infrastructural advanced, as its location and revolutionary history have led to little investment from guilds within the wider Empire. However, it does feature the Ghadinak Bridge, the largest and most popular crossing across the Dajji river. The city's proudest institution is the Kanneran College, one of the only colleges in all of Aelderin to exist outside of the influence of the Circle of the Vine, founded by another ex-Nullifier, Bakid Jaf, a sage of some renown. While the college remains relatively young, Jaf has already secured sponsorship from the Inkers, which has allowed him to begin the task of educating the most promising Hahgi students in earnest.

Guilds and Factions

As in every city, Kannera is bound up in layers of bureacracy with factions at every level. The newly formed paper-maker's guild, for example, continues to push for the city council to grant it tax breaks, constantly inundating council sessions with their requests. Kannera's recent past also places it at the centre of a wider web of intrigue, however, with far more cutthroat factions.
Perhaps the least dangerous of these are the Inkers, a continent-wide guild that was founded after the creation of the printing press, in Nara Tok itself, and has been central to many social movements. The Inkers have provided funding to Bakid Jaf's College as well as distributing many books and leaflets relating to the growing tensions in Lucria itself. They have plans in place to begin construction of their own press in the city, though these plans are slow in execution. They possess little political power, but their power over the press is not to be underestimated - thus far it has created contention with the Exarchy in Lucria, who wishes for restrictions on their publications.
As in many Imperial cities, Kannera also has its own branch of Loyalists, veterans from the Vengeance Campaign who report directly to Emperor Aivo. Thus far they have done little but attempt to keep the peace and mediate between the other factions, especially attempting to keep a handle on the Nidirniji.
The local Redcloak garrison also sits outside of the city's own power structure, a highly contentious position, as the garrison massively outnumbers the city's own police force. While occasionally involved in criminal investigations, the Redcloaks mostly sit in their fortifications and watch the city, involving themselves little in its politics except to occasionally arrest Hahgi they suspect of belonging to the Nidirniji.
The last power within the city are the Nidirniji, a group of violent revolutionaries inspired by the continuing exploits of the Black Eagles in the area around Minera. Its members seek to once again ignite the fires of rebellion in Kannera, through the propagating of leaflets and speeches held in friendly taverns. Members of the Nidirniji can be found across the city, at every level, and the identities of the members of its highest council is a carefully guarded secret. It is common for a low-ranking member of the group to know only a handful of others.

History

There is evidence to suggest that there has been a settlement in the Kanneran valley for over two thousand years. Originally a town populated by the ghoblins of the Kanik lowlands, Kannera rose to importance after its annexation into the Empire, where it grew into a large lumbertown for the Empire's growing navy, Kanikwood being especially prized for certain ship-parts. It is recorded that by 350 IF, the town of Kannera had grown to house over a thousand permanent inhabitants.
Kannera truly blossomed during the Hahgiahk government, during the period of Abahk Stuz, when it became the administrative capital of the independent Hahgi republic. Ghoblins, orkhs and bugbirh travelled to the capital in droves, to join the defensive movement or in search of employment in the city's new administration. Over the course of the next decade, the town would grow from five thousand to over twenty thousand making it the third largest city in the region of Lucrenia, only narrowly trailing behind Thrane. During this period, Kannera was the centre of a growing political battleground, and its defenders were instrumental in foiling many assassination attempts funded by the Di Mari Family. Ultimately it was the capture of Kannera by General Vraidan Ffandor that saw the collapse of the Hahgiahk government, and it was in Kannera that the framework was drawn up for the return of the peninsula into the Imperial fold.
While no longer an official capital, Kannera continues to serve as the cultural capital for the Hahgi people, and remains the centre of the movement to regain their lost cultural history. The election of Gart Monjin to office, saw the first Hahgi Imperial official in all of the Empire, and his leadership has seen the city continue to flourish, growing to house 30,000 permanent inhabitants, overtaking the city of Thrane in the process.

Architecture

Much of the city is constructed from wood gathered from the Bukwit forest, though slate and granite from the Broken Spires is also used fairly regularly. Carvings of Kral, the black dragon god, are common throughout the city, a popular part of reclaiming ancient Hahgi culture.

Geography

Kannera is located just east of the Bukwit forest and along the Dajja River. It marks the beginning of the Kanik lowlands, the most populous region of the Kanik peninsula, west of The Broken Spires. It is connected by road to the settlements of Minera and Haven, while its position on the Shattered Coast allows it easy access to maritime trade. Kannera sits in the centre of a fertile river valley, with hills to either side of it.

Natural Resources

Kannera is located just east of the Bukwit forest and so employs many lumberyards and paper-mills. In addition, Kannera is in a particularly fertile valley through which the Dajja River flows, providing it with bountiful harvests.

Alternative Name(s)

The Kanik Capital

Type

City

Population

30,000

Inhabitant Demonym

Kanneran

Owning Organization

Empire of Nara Tok