Uxphon (Oosh-fahn)
Along the western edge of the Black Riage mountain range lies Deathwater Canyon. A distingushing characteristic of the canyon system is the network of huge ceramic pipes that run through it, exiting from the solid rock for a time and disappearing back into a canyon wall. The pipes are 10 to 15 feet (3 to 5m) in diameter and sometimes split into two or three conduits at key junctions. No one has ever determined where the pipelines originates or terminates, but the pipes are said to be empty now, or mostly so.
The large city of Uxphon sits at the heart of Deathwater Canyon, amid a central core of the pipe system where something still flows. The 25,000 people that call Uxphon home use the pipes in two ways: the empty conduits have become throughfares, and the others radiate heat. The homes of the wealthy abut the warm pipes, which also provide hot and cold running water thanks to some recent ingenious engineering of small pipes.
Uxphon is a very old city. Seven families that have lived there the longest claim noble status and dwell in ancestral manors. Rumours say that some or all of the buildings have hidden chambers and subterranean levels where the nobles hide their debaucheries, treasures and greatest secrets. Local thieves claim to have broken into the manors and seen some of these secret places, but most such boasts are probably lies. Of course, that doesn't mean the hidden chambers don't exist.
Uxphon has a large slave population, and the city's slave market is renowned. It's fueled by the gladiatorial arena, where well-trained slave combatants fight each other as well as captive beasts. Successful gladiators not only win their freedom but can also become wealthy in their own right.
Type
Large city
Population
25,000
Location under
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