Free City of Crosswell

The Free City of Crosswell is a city-state in northeastern Galessia. A member of the Alliance of Overmyre, Crosswell lies in the region known as the Blessed Breadleas, and is one of the Twin Cities, twinned with Burrath across the Esmar Lagoon. A city of unfettered commerce and innovation, the Free City is a trading hub for all of northern Galessia, the only major port unaffiliated with the Kingdom of Grasynnia, and actively trying to market itself as Galessia's answer to Waversham. Its ruler is Earl Dominic Aurix.

History

The area around the modern location of Crosswell was long uninhabited, aside from a small dwarven outpost set up during the time of the Ancient Dwarven Empire, who occupied the land during its conquests. The outpost was abandoned during the Darksky War, as the valueless land was deemed unworthy of diverting resources to. The ruins of the dwarven outpost still remain to this day, on a peninsula north of the city across the water. Crosswell itself was founded by settlers from the Kingcity of Herdskeep, who desired to find the end of the Sea of Storms and establish a port there. Struggling for generations to cross the seemingly endless Eastern Steppes and often falling to the raging tribes of nomadic cinder goliaths that inhabited them, they eventually succeeded to find land's end, and founded the settlement they named Crosswell, a wish for all who would visit - to cross well. However, in its early years, the settlement struggled to find its footing, suffering frequent raids from the Burrathites who would rob them of their already sparse supplies. Luckily, a deal was struck with the raiders by the man who would later declare himself the first Earl of Crosswell, and the surrounding lands proved to be perfect for the growth of wheat and other cereal crops, which quickly spurred a massive population boom in the settlement. Under the Earl's cunning guidance, more deals were struck - with several goliath tribes, the goblins of the Gray Lake, and Estoria, who all provided goods or services to Crosswell to help it grow, in exchange for interest down the line. As he personally oversaw the execution of these deals, most of the wealth generated went directly to the Earl's coffers, for him to allocate as he saw fit. However, the Earl saw fit to keep most of it, only investing what he needed to honor the deals and keep the citizenry from causing an uproar, and not a copper piece more. Due to this, the current Earl, Dominic Aurix, is commonly considered to be the wealthiest man on the continent. Crosswell grew quickly, especially during the years of the Zenith War, when it was considered to be the sole safe port on the continent. The Earl handily took advantage of this situation, levying high taxes on the traders and merchants who were stuck without an alternative. When the Meeting of the North saw fit to invite the Earl, he saw an opportunity to make another deal. Crosswell would join and agree to financially support the war effort, in exchange for the nullifying of the interest agreements for all members of the new Alliance and all their denizens. While reluctant, the other parties agreed, not knowing what repercussions this would have. The Earl privately funded some of the war effort, yes, but the loss of the interest agreements interrupted an important revenue stream for Estoria, as well as many smaller localities, businesses, and individuals, who weren't even aware of this deal being struck. Regardless, the deal was maintained, and the Earl's representatives to the Alliance have impressively managed to defend its terms ever since.

Geography

Situated where the Eastern Steppes end, the surroundings of the Free City of Crosswell are mostly flat grasslands, richly arable due to its plentiful freshwater resources and loamy soil. Like its twin Burrath, Crosswell is often humid, though the winds billowing across the lagoon make it less oppressive in the latter, and keep the temperatures pleasant. Winters are mild here, and summers cool. North of the city, the coast becomes more rugged as the navigable Esmar Lagoon gives way for the Sea of Storms. Occasionally, windstorms from the north blow through Crosswell, though these are uncommon. The peninsulas north of the city are used as stone quarries for the construction of the city - most notably, Goldcrest Manor, the impossibly giant mansion of the Earl and his family, which is often seeing additional construction. The roads to these quarries are well-built and maintained, as are the long road to Estoria across the Eastern Steppes. A regular ferry runs between Crosswell and Burrath.

Politics and society

The Free City of Crosswell is an earldom ruled by the Earl, currently Earl Dominic Aurix. The Earl's immense personal wealth and ostentatious tastes make him unpopular within the city, and if that proves to be insufficient, the exceedingly high taxes his government inquires comfortably makes up the difference. Laws are lax and the constabulary are very prone to corruption. However, the Earl's personal guard is extremely powerful, well-funded, and quick to arrest and persecute. Whenever the Earl leaves Goldcrest Manor, entire caravans of guards and mercenaries roll up to defend him with their lives. Writers and political commentators such as Markrag Chiptusk and J. Arcanius Freeburgh have marked the Earl as an avaritious egomaniac, and there exist plenty of rebels and dissidents among the ranks of the poor populace of the Free City. The class divide is immense, yet where one might expect mass exoduses, the inverse is actually true: many flock to the Free City, in the hopes of working hard and becoming rich themselves. In reality, very few of them ever succeed. As a trading port, Crosswell has many piers, wharfs, and warehouses, as well as chapters and headquarters of many businesses and organizations. The Threecloak Company has a chapter here, and the Obsidian Blades have a strong hold in the city's underworld. Most prominent, however, is the presence of the Hightails, a semi-secret organization dedicated to aiding the poor by stealing from the rich. They are often a thorn in the side of the city's wealthy elite, and affiliation with the Hightails is grounds for outlaw status within the Free City's dominion. As an offshoot of the Kingcity, humans are the most common within the Free City. Claims exist that the city is also host to a secret society of changelings, but due to their nature, this is difficult to confirm. As a part of the worldwide trading system, most races can be found here in some number - however, the people of Crosswell have long maintained a strange cultural villification of members of small races, such as gnomes, halflings, and goblins. Many stereotypes, slurs, and hostile reactions to them can be found here, and as such, it is exceedingly rare to find a member of a small race within the city. Among the poor of Crosswell, there exist two camps: the one still believes in their own capacity for accruing a fortune within the city, and as such, worships divines such as Tymora and Waukeen. The other camp, disillusioned and bitter, direct their energies to either Ilseias - to bring some semblance of balance - or Mask - to take it from the rich. Among the rich, worship is much more varied, usually directed to whatever force, be it holy or unholy, they perceived to have helped them attain their wealth.