Thorp

Thorp was the largest city in Ondûn. Located in southern Emeros and northern Sapphros, it was a massive human-built metropolis that spanned half a continent.

Geography

Sometimes called the Nation of Cities, Thorp was actually dozens of interconnected city-states, overlapping across the southeastern and northeastern corners of Emeros and Sapphros, respectively. By ship, entrance to the city was made through the Bay of Thorp, a large body of water that opened into the channel separating the continents.
At the time of the Final War, the Bay of Thorp was guarded by the Gatehouse – a small island fortress and the clasp in the magical chain that stretched a hundred miles in each direction to prevent invasion from enemy ships.
The city-states of Thorp included:

• Patrician Plaza: Not a city in the strictest sense, Patrician Plaza was a large commons located in northern Sapphros and open to any citizen of Thorp. Full of terraced gardens and serene fountains, it was patrolled and defended by the Knights Metro. The Quorum, the stately senate house where convenes the Congress of Cities, was situated at the Plaza’s center.

History

Second Age

The earliest precursor to Thorp began to emerge at the dawn of the Second Age, as human refugees displaced by the Night Wars fled north into northern Sapphros and southern Emeros. There, they founded hundreds of independent townships, scattered across leagues and leagues of open country, and occasionally came into conflict with the qethriel populations that'd previously settled the region.

Third Age

It wasn't until the early Third Age that Thorp came into its own as a nation, when many of the growing nations signed an alliance. Their primary adversary, in the Third Age, was the wood elven nation of Cymbia to the north. The War of the Wood was a decisive victory for Thorp, cinched by the invention of gunpowder in 88 3A. This, coupled with the Awakening in 91 3A, effectively brought the war to a close.

Fourth Age

In the Fourth Age, Thorp became the headquarters of the Covenant Kingdoms, a worldwide alliance dedicated to the defeat of Yog. During this time, the Congress of Cities elected one representative – the Lord Mayor – to act on behalf on Thorp's combined military and defenses. In 898 4A, that Lord Mayor was the former mercenary Osvaldo Goldglass. 
By 895 4A, it had endured invasion attempt after invasion attempt from Yog’s armadas, who proved unable to conquer the impregnable Gatehouse – until the Marked of Yog overcame its defenses. In 898 4A, the leadership of the Covenant Kingdoms was slain in Patrician Plaza’s Quorum, their assailants escaping into the night.

Politics

As the most populous city – and the most densely populated place – on Ondûn, Thorp was a hotbed of political infighting and scandal. Each city was ruled more or less independently but the archons, governors, marquis, theocrats and mayors from each city comprised the Congress of Cities, a legislative that decides matters for the nation-city as a whole. This bureaucratic body was notoriously cumbersome, however, and rife with corruption and graft.

Campaigns

All Hail Yog

• The Watchtower: In 895 4A, Yog made several abortive attempts to conquer the Gatehouse and only succeeded when It tasked the Marked to spearhead its fourth attempt, despite the Soulsworn's efforts to defend it. In the process, however, the magical chain protecting the harbor was broken.
• The Covenant: In 898 4A, Yog heard tell of a secret meeting at the Quorum between the crowned heads of the Covenant Kingdoms and dispatched a team of assassins to slay all in attendance. While they planned their operations, the villains laired in a slaughterhouse south of Patrician Plaza. (Episodes 3 – 4) To cover their attack, they called down a supernatural snowstorm to blot out the sun and occupy the city guard. ( Episode 5) Once all the leadership was dead, the Knights Metro began a citywide manhunt for the culprits but all four villains slipped through their fingers. (Episode 10)

Name: Thorp
Capital: Patrician Plaza 
Government: Republic
Demographics: Integrated (37% human, 11% half-elf, 10% half-orc, 8% elf, 7% half-orc, 6% halfling, 4% dwarf, 17% other)
Demonym: Thorpan