Barasoma
Barasoma was the first city the party encountered after returning from the Kingdom of the Snorks on the Coral Serpent. The first day all seemed well, but at night, strange things happened. The city was attacked by demons, including shadowy frog behemoths that someone, after research in the Academy's library, concluded to be Flumphs. The seeming emptiness of the usually bustling city was explained by the increasing frequency and violence of these incursions. The party fled the city without helping, on the way out getting spooked by an elderly couple who seemed to know more than they let on.
Defences
Barasoma employs a large and well-armed militia to protect the goods passing through. A portion of the militia is a permanent standing watch that guards the warehouses of the dock and caravan stations at the borders. This guard is known informally as the Sea Dogs, as many of its members are retired sailors. The militia, although well funded, is not extensively trained and disciplined, as grizzled sailors experienced on the streets and quick with a truncheon tend to fare better than well-intentioned baby faced recruits.
Industry & Trade
The majority of products shipped into Barasoma are industrial and military imports from Deruv and foodstuffs, such as fish and spices, from Rayki. Exports include grains, alcohol, and textiles. Many of the city's inhabitants' employments are in one way or another connected to the shipping industry. Whether sailors, dock workers, fishers, working directly within the industry, or administrators, tavern keepers, construction workers, and shopkeepers supporting them, almost everyone's livelihood is connected to the busy docks.
Infrastructure
Barasoma is home to an Academy, where students from across northeast Hisberia come to study scholarly subjects and a few arcane secrets. Although not as prestigious as some of the other academies and wizardly universities in Marsedon, the sheer number of people and commodities passing through from all over the world makes students well adapted to life outside of the ivory walls, as government officials, ambassadors, and guild representatives.
The Council Lodge and Courthouse are famous landmarks, and Barasoma is also home to many markets, some seasonal, some permanent fixtures.
Assets
The dockyards of Barasoma are extensive and renowned for the volume of traffic they can officially manage. Nearby to the docks are several huge warehouses where goods are held in the interim before transportation, either by ship or caravan.
Guilds and Factions
The Dockworkers and Sailors Guilds are some of the most powerful in the city, though recently they have been weakened by new policies that empower ship captains and industry leaders to enforce their decisions. The Dockworkers Guild is rumoured to be heavily infiltrated by the Black Tongue, and as such it is not uncommon for high value goods to go missing in Barasoma, only to appear elsewhere in the black market.
History
Barasoma is one of the oldest cities in Hisberia. It quickly grew to be the gateway into the country as the natural bay on which it was built was a natural shelter for ships coming in from all over Marsedon.
Architecture
Most of the buildings in Barasoma are built in the traditional Hisberian style of red mud bricks, sometimes coated with plaster and painted bright colours. Further away from the core of the city, new buildings can be found in a wide range of styles, as migrants from across the world settled and built neighbourhoods in their own style. The Academy, designed by dwarven architect Artos LaMencia, is one of the most notable parts of the skyline, a dominating structure constructed with pink granite imported from southern Glahlir.
Geography
Barasoma is nestled within the Cuenca Bay, in the Sea of Swords. The cool currents make the city more comfortable to live than other towns further inland, but often coat the area with a thick sea fog.
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