Baal a Clia

Situated a few days' ride from Ollscoil and more or less in the center of the Shield region, Baal a Clia may not be the official capital of the area, but it does serve as the heart of Shield culture. Ollscoil maintains the stories and memories of the people, while Baal a Clia attracts artists and artisans, generals, and philosophers all to participate in the living culture of the land.
Baal a Clia is home to bards who compete to weave the best tales, warriors who test themselves against each other in games, hunts, and combat, and artists bringing traditional styles into the modern era. Though political strife is rampant and factions argue bitterly over the extent to which the city should open its arms, merchants around the world know that Baal a Clia is the Last Tradehub in the West.

Demographics

The population is 95% human and 5% dwarven. The elven enclave has only a few dozen residents.
Though the majority of the humans are from the Shield region, plenty of trade has attracted permanent human residents from around the world. Of the human population, around eighty percent are Shieldites in whole or in part, with the rest being a mix of peoples from all the continents.

Government

A Ree or Vanrion (King or Queen) is elected from among a council of nobles to approve laws and make decisions about city policy. The nobles are drawn from prominent warrior families, and the martial spirit of the Shield ensures that no one rests on their laurels; warriors who do not prove their might and valor (there are games to do so in the absence of genuine conflict) can be and are dismissed from the council. Those who move to the city have a chance to join the council if their valor can be proven (though they must often have trained before and provide their own arms), so long as they embrace the culture of the city. The king or queen confers with the council of nobles and supports the judgment of the druids, religious figures who have a great deal of say in legal matters. The druids send representatives to Baal a Clia to advise the king on laws.
The enforcement of laws comes from warrior nobles, who are expected to adhere to a code of conduct. While any warrior may challenge another over a perceived injustice, this does occasionally mean that an exceptionally puissant warrior can get away with heinous behavior for some time before being brought low.
When a king or queen comes to power, the council votes in the Tannisht, or successor; this man or woman can expect to succeed the current monarch and spends the intervening years learning from them. Often the Tannisht is unrelated to the current monarch, in order to prevent dominance of one family line. While dwarves (and even a handful of elves) live in the city, they're granted a great deal of autonomy and therefore aren't permitted to be King or Queen. Each enclave sends a representative to the Council of Nobles, however.

Defences

The wall ringing the city proper stands fifteen feet high and has a catwalk running around the entire perimeter. A handful of magicannons adorn the battlements alongside mangonels and ballistae, with both water entries to the city bearing a chain that can block boat traffic in a murder hole position. The keep proper has a cluster of magicannons and the ability to draw in the city's prana temporarily, which can ground most skyships and leave them vulnerable. On top of this, the city's population includes roughly twenty thousand warriors of varied proficiency and noble rank (even if only two hundred sit on the council), and some possess warmachines passed down through the years.

Industry & Trade

The city serves as a massive trade hub for the region, and imports spices, coffee, silks, and literature from around the world, while exporting wool, musical instruments, unique artwork, and metals.

Infrastructure

Central to the city is a large keep, in front of which sits a deep pool from the Black River flowing through the city. Four bridges span the river, with the two outermost bridges extending from the wall around the city. An attempt at city planning was made long ago, but the orderly radial pattern of roads from the city center has become twisted and tangled in the intervening years, resulting in a chaotic sprawl squeezed into the walls and bursting beyond. Fresh water is never an issue, as the river runs deep and enchantments are lain upon it yearly to preserve its cleanliness. Sewers were constructed to bring waste away from the river, pouring waste into the large bogs south of the city. A main thoroughfare cuts through Baal a Clia alongside the river and ensures that goods are always available at the market.
Without the plumbing of Republic cities to bring fresh water to individual homes, the citizens of the city use the river for bathing, either by laboriously collecting water and heating it (this is rare, and typically an affectation of wealthy merchants) or by bathing in the river proper, downstream from the main water collection points. Warriors in particular are expected to bathe regularly in the river even during the winter months as a show of their vitality.
Baal a Clia does have a reasonably sized skydock, capable of servicing half a dozen skyships at a time. Though the trade of larger human cities is much greater by comparison, Baal a Clia manages to maintain its cosmopolitan atmosphere just fine.

Assets

The city has plenty of money, as the Council of Nobles levies a tax on all of the extensive trade that occurs. Three dozen warmachines are owned by warriors within the city, along with an equal number of skyships of varying sizes.

Guilds and Factions

The Noble Council controls the city, with two hundred representatives from the various houses in the area sent to debate and discuss policy with the king or queen.
Druids also have considerable power here, serving as religious and legal authorities.
The Young Blades are a newer faction, though they're retreading old territory. These xenophobic warriors fear the corruption of Shield culture to be had from mingling with others, and often demonstrate against immigrants, dwarves, and elves. Though officially condemned by the government, occasionally and exceptional warrior can defeat sufficient challenges to make themselves a burden on the city.
The Constellation is a fraternity of wizards from all walks of life who train together and offer each other support. Though they accept nobles and non-nobles alike, the Constellation has little political power, operating more like an exclusive club.
The Chotshee are a criminal organization within the city, responsible for a great deal of theft, black market trade, and racketeering. Though the government condemns them there's little organized enforcement, and the Chotshee aren't above using dirty tricks and low fighting to take down rivals. Rumors of the druids secretly supporting the Chotshee as a check against warriors who ignore the code of conduct may be well founded, as the few concerted efforts to bring down the organization have failed, and most of the non-warrior citizens in the city think favorably of this band of rogues.

History

Baal a Clia has been settled for thousands of years, but the current culture came about nearly two thousand years ago. A mighty queen had raised an army to avenge the death of her family and the suffering heaped upon her by a nearby empire, and after driving the Empire out of her lands (and crippling it in the process), she settled in the small village by the river that would become Baal a Clia. Construction of the keep finished two years later, and the city has grown ever since. The walls are the most recent addition, having been built only two centuries ago after a Republic incursion brought legions perilously close to the city itself. Growth has continued beyond the walls since.

Architecture

The oldest buildings are stone and brick, typically with thatched roofs or shingles. Wooden houses are more common on the edges of the city and beyond the city, though some are so old they're starting to decay. Building upwards isn't as common in this city as it might be elsewhere, though multiple stories typically connote wealth or prestige. Warrior families commonly live in four or five story towers, while a well-off craftsperson might have a third floor as a show of wealth.

Geography

South of the city lies a massive bog and leach field, with fens stretching away to the north. Along the river the land is often firm and suitable for farming, gently rolling away in hills from the city, but Baal a Clia itself is more defensible for its position.

Natural Resources

The city itself has little in its immediate vicinity aside from peat and farm goods.

Alternative Name(s)

Blackpool

Type

Large city

Population

300,000

Inhabitant Demonym

Clians