Azul, City of Lies
City
Territory 30,000 square miles
Population 14,000 (Humans 50%, Half-Orcs 5%, Halflings 10%, Nezumi, 20%, Xeph 5%, Saurians 3%, Synads 1%, Elan 1%, Other 5%)
Ruler The Masked Council, the Harbormasters, the Darkest, the Shadowspeaker Ellis Bannerman (Human Male)
The Masked Council was missing a member for a while as one of the masks went missing. An investigation revealed that it was possible the councilman was abducted by Intai Hunters. He returned before the city took action, but he has not been the same since.
Triag's revolution was seen as a business opportunity and Azul provided the insurgents with plenty of weapons. The new government has broken much of the previous trade agreements, claiming they are unfair.
Recent rumors coming from the Great Work speak of a new invention that stabilizes the weave in its vicinity. If this is true, it could be a threat to the power of the Shadow Weave. Azul has been at war with Sa'Owu for centuries. The dispute concerns the intrusion of undead on Azul territory. Attacks by mindless undead on Azul farms are common. The leaders of Sa'Owu claim to responsibility as the undead are mindless and not under their control. Battles between both cities are rare as the war has cooled down considerably. Most of the war is now fought through assassinations and small scale targeted attacks. The sorcerers of Azul make ample use of the Bloodgate south-east of the city. As it is located between Azul and Sa'Owu, control of the gate is contested.
Territory 30,000 square miles
Population 14,000 (Humans 50%, Half-Orcs 5%, Halflings 10%, Nezumi, 20%, Xeph 5%, Saurians 3%, Synads 1%, Elan 1%, Other 5%)
Ruler The Masked Council, the Harbormasters, the Darkest, the Shadowspeaker Ellis Bannerman (Human Male)
History
Azul was once nothing more than a fishing village on the shore of the Grey Sea. It was here that thousands of years ago a young girl, Chandra, was born. Chandra possessed an exceptional innate talent for magic and despite the chaotic nature of the weave in the Silent Lands, grew up to become a powerful sorceress. She used her power to take control of her village and her reputation lured many would-be mages to the region, hoping to be allowed to study as her apprentices. Her power alone would have assured the growth of Azul into an influential city-state, but her ambition went much further. Chandra left the Silent Lands and journeyed north, where she met the Sphinxes of the Samm Sea and Sands of Riwaya. From them she learned of Edon, god of magic, his control of the weave and his quest to create a weapon against the Devourer. She tricked the Sphinxes into sending her to Edon's palace where she met the god and offered her services. Edon was intrigued by the mortal's ingenuity and allowed her to stay and help as best she could for a little while. Unlike what Edon expected, Chandra did not use the time to try and steal his secrets, but devoted herself fully to his work. In truth, Chandra intended to ingratiate herself to ask for Edon's help in stabilizing the weave in the Silent Lands. Chandra worked with Edon for many years, and the two grew very close, even becoming lovers for a time. When Edon finally offered her a reward for all the work she had done, Chandre revealed her wish. To her dismay Edon said he could not help her, that her wish was impossible. Chandra pretended to understand, but was already making new plans. Her intentions changed and from then on she used her time with the god to reveal his most well guarded secret, how he made and controlled the weave. It took her a long time, but eventually she learned and stole the secret and fled back to the Silent Lands. In her absence Azul had changed. It was no longer a city of arcane learning, but a city of commerce. A large harbor now dominated the city and her old tower had fallen into disrepair. Corrupt officials with ties to merciless thieves' guilds had surplanted the mages that had once ruled Azul. Chandra took back control in a single night, known in Azul lore as the Night of Drawn Shadows. Those that oppossed Chandra died while those that bent the knee became her puppet rulers. After she had restored her rule of Azul, Chandra set out to correct the instability of the weave. She knew she could not use the current weave so she planned on creating an alternative. Using the latent energy of the Plane of Shadow that permeates the Silent Lands she wove a new network across the continent. Similarly to Edon's weave, this Shadow Weave allows arcane practicioners to cast spells and use magical items. The nature of the shadow energy still plays a part, however, and spells of the illusion and enchantment schools are more prominent and easier to use than others. Over time the Shadow Weave elivated Chandra to more than simply human. She became a quasi-divine immortal being. The more spellcasters use her weave, the more powerful she becomes. Each spell is like a prayer to her. As it had done before, Azul grew with its master's power. Once again mages flocked to the city, but now so did those who wanted to worship the living godess. As the city became the fulcrum of the power of shadow, cults of the Umber Lords also found their way here and have been trying to steal Chandra's control of the shadow weave ever since.Architecture
Azul is a mixture of many different styles of construction. The Old City Center still resembles the initial fishing village with small wooden buildings surrounding a cobbled market square. The Magewrought District is only a little younger and dates back to Chandra's initial rise to power. It consists of old mage towers, small magic schools and dorms for the students. The buildings here are often decorated with beautiful illusions, sometimes animated. Harborside is full of warehouses, bars and brothels while Porton is a residential district with both middle-class and upper-class houses. Finally, the Shadowheart district is the youngest and largest of all. It is a warren of tall buildings constructed close to each other, with narrow streets and alleys between them. The Cathedral of Black Light, which worships Chandra and is the only religion allowed in the city, is also located here. Above the city the Lapis Sphere slowly spins as it floats about 100 feet above the tallest steeples. The Lapis Sphere is a dark blue sphere with a diameter of 500 ft. It has no visible windows or doors. The Sphere is known to be the residence and palace of Chandra.Culture
Wealth and influence are everything in Azul. Some obtain this through arcane power, others through trade, thievery, assassination, ... The balance of power in Azul is always changing, The only things that remains the same is Chandra. Although some have tried, so far none have been able to challenge her dominion. The city is governed by the Masked Council, who's members are unknown. 7 magical masks allow entry to the House of Masks, where the Council meets to discuss and make decisions by majority vote. He who possesses a mask is a member of the Council. The Council stays in power and maintains a semblance of order through the shadow elementals that patrol the streets. Only the Council (and Chandra) can control them. The Council can summon and control up to 140 of these elementals at the same time. While the Masked Council has the political power, the Harbormasters control the city's trade. The Harbormasters are a guild that consists of the city's 7 wealthiest merchants. Some say the Harbormasters and the Masked Council are one and the same. Others point out that the two have been at odds more than once, with fights between shadow elementals and hired mercenaries breaking out in the streets. The third leg of the Azul triad of power is the "Darkest". This is a thieves' and assassins' guild that rules the most unsavory part of the Azul underworld. The one person (save for Chandra) that knows the identities of all these powerbrokers is the Shadowspeaker, the personal representative of Chandra. While he does not rule, he delivers messages from his mistress and keeps an eye on them. Threatening or hurting a Shadowspeaker never ends well.Religion
The only religion sanctioned by the city is the worship of Chandra. The Cathedral of Black Light in the Shadowheart District is a large gothic cathedral adorned with dozens of gargoyles. The high priest of this cathedral is the Shadowspeaker, the one person in Azul who meets with Chandra on a regular basis. He is a powerful shadowcaster and leads the ceremonies at the cathedral on important holy days. Although illegal, the cult of the Umber Lords has been present in Azul for centuries. They oppose Chandra and want to steal her control of the Shadow Weave. They believe the shadow weave can be used to grant their masters access to the Silent Lands. The cult meets in backrooms and private abodes in secret meetings. They operate as cells with no-one aware of too much information.Army
Azul's army mostly consists of hired mercenaries employed by the Harbormasters. In time of need the Council can summon up to 140 shadow elementals to join the military and the Cathedral of Black Light is protected by dozens of actual gargoyles under control of the High Priest. Ever since Chandra returned to Azul, there have been no threats to the city. Her presence acts as a military deterrent.Relationships
Azul has a decent relationship with the Great Work, Intai and Triag. The three cities have been trading partners for centuries. Recently, some disturbances have been cause for concern.The Masked Council was missing a member for a while as one of the masks went missing. An investigation revealed that it was possible the councilman was abducted by Intai Hunters. He returned before the city took action, but he has not been the same since.
Triag's revolution was seen as a business opportunity and Azul provided the insurgents with plenty of weapons. The new government has broken much of the previous trade agreements, claiming they are unfair.
Recent rumors coming from the Great Work speak of a new invention that stabilizes the weave in its vicinity. If this is true, it could be a threat to the power of the Shadow Weave. Azul has been at war with Sa'Owu for centuries. The dispute concerns the intrusion of undead on Azul territory. Attacks by mindless undead on Azul farms are common. The leaders of Sa'Owu claim to responsibility as the undead are mindless and not under their control. Battles between both cities are rare as the war has cooled down considerably. Most of the war is now fought through assassinations and small scale targeted attacks. The sorcerers of Azul make ample use of the Bloodgate south-east of the city. As it is located between Azul and Sa'Owu, control of the gate is contested.
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