Bounded on the north by the
Titan Wall, on the east by
The Great Plateau, south by the
Shifting Jungle and with the sea to the west, the City-States region of Lasair is the most concentrated area of
Humans' development and population on the continent. The region is dominated by a number of cities associated to each other by centuries-old
pact, watched over and protected by the
Mages and
Mercenary Guild.
History
After the
Dragonscourge,
Humans had been reduced to a number of scattered tribes. Once the fighting and destruction was over, these tribes began the long haul of establishing civilization once again. They began rebuilding towns and cities around the few ruins they discovered in the wilderness, using these (initially tiny) settlements as bases into which other survivors were drawn to. Over time, some settlements became large enough to truly earn the title of “city”, and became centers of influence, economy, and military struggle.
Fertile land near the coast is limited; the land is alternately marshy, rocky, or overrun with tall but weak trees. Because of this, the early cities frequently fought over the limited land available for farming, and the twin cities of Kolar and Malara (standing on opposite sides of the mouth of the Lasair River) were frequently ruined in the battles, and the minor cities up and down the coast suffered frequent raids for the supplies they could provide.
The situation lasted for decades and threatened to destroy any hope for the future of human stability within the region. It came to a climactic moment when scouts from the city of Mytos (founded well up the Lasair River in order to provide lumber for the war effort of the cities down the river) finally fought their way up the seemingly impassible mountain wall that isolated their lands from what lay beyond. These scouts came back from their trip, and whispered to the city's lords that they had discovered something that would make them all wealthy beyond their dreams: the mountains were the edge of a
plateau, upon which lay huge,
extremely fertile plain, all fed by a delta of tributaries crossing it and meeting to form the great falls which descended and formed the Lasair. If they could keep it secret long enough to fortify their claim on the lands, Mytos stood to become the dominant power in the region.
The secret, unfortunately, did not remain so for long. Spies from both Kolar and Malara discovered the existence of the so-called Fertile Lands, and knowledge soon leaked out to the two giants' allies. Before the month was out, two enormous armies were marching east, along either side of the river, ready to lay waste to Mytos and even the Fertile Lands themselves if it would prevent the other side from gaining control of them and the huge strategic advantage they represented. The two armies arrived outside Mytos over the course of a week and faced off with each other and the (rather meager looking) forces protecting the city. Direct hostilities did not kick off right away, and the armies settled into a loose stalemate. As more and more troops arrived the situation seemed ready to explode: every lord and practically every fighting man from the coastal cities was standing ready to wipe out what could be the best hope for stability since the Dragonscourge. After a particularly acrimonious day of standing and waiting, experienced soldiers on both sides knew that it would soon happen.
The next dawn, however, saw the appearance of seven robed figures standing on the flimsy log bridge that forded the river between the two armies. Many lords and generals recognized one or two of the figures as powerful
mages; several of them had been in negotiations with a mage over the last year as the mysterious order sought to take possession of an island off the coast. As the lords and generals conferred on each side of the river, and each of them pointed out which ones they recognized, they came to the realization that all seven of the figures were extremely powerful individuals.
Magic had largely drifted into legend since the Dragonscourge, except for the occasional mage passing through a city on their way somewhere else, sometimes with an apprentice. Never in living memory had seven mages appeared together, much less seven who had to have been equivalent to lords amongst their kind. Both sides sent anxious representatives out to the bridge, not sure if they'd survive the experience, and each carried a simple message back to the lords and generals, explaining the mages' presence.
“This stops here.”
Over the next weeks, the mages helped guide negotiations between the major and minor powers to establish order between the cities and to provide for a secure future. The result of these negotiations was the
Lasair Compact; the day the mages arrived was
Midsummer, which would forever after be known in human lands simply as “Compact”.
Prominent Cities
See the article on Humans for more information on life in the City-States in general.
The twinned cities of Kolar and Malara lay astride the mouth of the Lasair River-Canal, bound by decades of history. The center of economic power within the City-States region, much of the trade and wealth of the region flows in and out of the two cities. Once a single city, the people on the south side of the river - the industrial center of the city - rebelled to gain their own share of the wealth moving being created. That rebellion gave birth to the city of Malara - independent but an integral part of the region.
Magear
The gateway to the
Mages' Ordered Realm, Magear serves to help trade moving into the Mages' lands.
A smoky expanse of low-lying buildings nestled into the edge of the northern hills, Aratosa is one of the primary mining capitals of the City-States. The city provides much of the metal that goes into weapon production and construction on the north side of the Lasair River.
A shipmaking city, Altor hosts docks for the ships that carry trade across the gulf and which run along the west coast of the continent. The small navy managed by the
Mercenary Guild maintains a pair of docks within the bay.
Also known as "Contract City", Alanor is a city built around making deals. As the center of many business negotiations, Alanor is home to some of the most dedicated legal minds in the region, and those looking for a precise wording on a trade document or a neutral arbitrator for an agreement will often travel here for the purpose. While the Compact doesn't include any provisions regarding law between cities, all of the cities have agreed that a contract verified by an Alanor
Sealer is fully valid and binding.
The city that nearly became a flashpoint of war over
The Great Plateau today stands at the base of a set of lifts that move trade up and down the wall of the plateau alongside the great falls that cascade from above. Nearly all of the food that comes into the City-States passes through this city, and its warehouses and barge docks are the largest outside of Kolar-Malara and Altor. The city maintains a close relationship with Teneara, the small town at the top side of the lifts where grain from the Fertile Lands await their turn to ride down to the canal.
At the halfway point along the
Lasair Canal sits
Britor, a city grown wealthy on lodging and travel. This wealth supports a vast array of culture, art, and entertainment, creating a destination for the wealthy across the City-States. Britor frequently hosts galas, opening nights, and... murder.
Nestled up against the southern tip of the
Overlook Mountains, built largely from the stone of those mountains, the small city of Suranor is one of the more self-sufficient of the City-States Region . Thanks to the mountains and the waters controlled by the
Sura Dam, the city grows much of its own food, produces its own metals, and even features a number of water-powered workshops providing goods production. From this somewhat-isolated position, the residents of Suranor enjoy a life quietly detached from the politicking of the other cities. As one of the younger cities in the region, with its growth flourishing in just the last century, Suranor finds itself looking to its future in a way few other places do.
Sitting at the mouth of the
Sura River, Surtor is the southernmost port of any significant size that serves the City-States region (
Southport is further to the south but is much smaller). It largely exists to bring blocks of stone out of
The Sink into the north, but also has a small bit of trade supporting the farming or harvesting of resources around the
Shifting Jungle (a somewhat fraught and dangerous line of work).
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