Apasstaan

Defences

The Great Dwarven Empire did not assign a permanent garrison to the bridges over the Channel, so did not build permanent fortifications upon them. In that way they were left open to assault by the dwarves themselves if seized, but when held by the Dwarven Imperial Army, their unmatched engineering and construction abilities would allow them to construct a fortress at each end nearly overnight. Despite the lack of ready-made fortifications and the near complete lack of architectural skill of the Aakaipokaiksi Atotáán, the fact remains that there are only two entrances to the city, and both approaches are eminently visible from most of the city. It remains highly defensible.

Infrastructure

Apasstaan relies entirely on the ancient mechanisms of the Great Dwarven Empire to exist. It is "built" atop one of the great arched bridges over the Channel, and relies on that bridge's internals for much of its infrastructure including storage sheltered from the extreme weather and heat, sewage, and most importantly fresh water. In their usual philosophy of over-preparation and over-engineering, the dwarves deliberately designed each bridge over the channel to collect and store enough water to supply a full army for a year, and to recharge this reservoir within another year. This means that, in practice, it meets the daily needs of such an army in new collection each day. As such, the native population of the city would need to increase nearly tenfold before they even began to deplete the reservoir.

Architecture

Apasstaan is a dualistic city, with clear delineation between the great igneous stone architectural marvels of the ancient dwarves, and the often haphazard bone and hide constructions of the Aakaipokaiksi Atotáán.

Geography

A theoretical bridge large enough to cross the Channel designed today would require extensive use of enormous piles and/or columns, which would disrupt the flow of the lava beneath it. The ancient dwarves found this utterly unacceptable, and so instead carefully designed the largest arch bridge in the world, then built dozens of them. Much of this is lost on the Aakaipokaiksi Atotáán, who mostly either complain about the sloping ground when travelling towards the center or praise it when moving away from it.

Founding Date

Unknown

Type

Capital

Location under

The Dust

Owner/Ruler

Nayavu, Son of the Phoenix

Ruling/Owning Rank

Chieftan