The Sovereign Realm of Ostolfo
Demography and Population
Ostolfos promises of liberty, equality, and opportunity had the unsurprising consequence of drawing the downtrodden, impoverished, and misunderstood from every corner of the known world. Refugees from Urkenthest, Bahktiar, and Gheorghetoma fled the ravages of war and their own oppressive governments, elves, Mydderlachs, and mutated humans like the tribes of Mundir saw Ostolfo as a haven free of persecution and judgment. As a result the population of Ostolfo is amongst the largest and most diverse of any city and even exceeds those of some countries. In fact, this interweaving of multitudinous lineages, coupled with the ever-present influence of chaotic radiation has caused the gradual appearance of several new strains of humanity within the people of Ostolfo. Couplings between Bahktii and Tomi have created breeds of armored giants with the strength of four men and the protective qualities of light powered armor, various elves matched with Mundirians has produced some of the most psychically and mystically gifted humans the world has ever seen, and Mydderlachs born with a contribution of Moonlight Elf genetic material mature into towering shadows known colloquially as Ghosts of the Titan.
So many aberrant forms of humanity have made themselves known over the years that standard, unchanged human beings have become extremely uncommon, occasionally appearing in illicit carnival exhibits as strange curiosities. Many scholars have cited the increasingly bizarre populace of Ostolfo as the motive force behind attacks from a number of other, more puritanical nations such as the Mykolaean Empire or the Angelwerth Enclaves, but Ostolfos rulers have adamantly kept their doors open to all in need, regardless of appearance or affliction. In fact many of the chaos-warped hybrids of Ostolfo are valued highly for their natural talents and supernatural gifts, leading to certain Autromeri lodges and other organizations drawing new recruits almost exclusively from the ranks of particular mutants. Lodge Aukra for example, is known for all but refusing to induct any individuals not of Bahktii/Tomi or Mydderlach stock, stating that the inbred hardiness and size of such people decreases the number of modifications require to make them into Autromer and makes them more likely to survive the implementation of the others.
Many have marveled that this dizzying diversity of culture does not result in civil unrest or at the very least immense confusion, but any Ostolfo that happen to be nearby are often quick to inform them that the multitudinous peoples of their home are now so thoroughly mixed it is impossible to tell where one ends and another begins. After all, it is difficult to look down upon someone for their strange practices and ideas if you or many of those close to you engage in the same practices and espouse the very same ideas. There are no "normal people" in Ostolfo, for each citizen is as outlandish as the next, and though they may grumble and gripe about their neighbors they would also be the first to come to their defense. For they are well aware of how harsh and uncaring a place the world can be, as descendants of the spurned and outcast, and they would rather die than see Ostolfo become just as cold as the world it left behind.
Territories
Although it has laid claim to particular settlements and resource extraction facilities in the lands beneath, the Liberated Republics greatest and most valuable territory is Ostolfo herself. Incomprehensibly vast and resplendent with every imaginable form of life, the gateway to the as it is sometimes called) has been lifted by numerous scholars as the greatest achievement of humankind, easily surpassing all but the most fabled pieces of relic technology. Turbines the size of small villages thrum at the heart of every city block and chains with links thicker than an ancient oak sway faintly in breezes only they can feel. Both are the palanquin bearers of their ponderous master, the first thrusting downward to war off the clouds below and the other reaching up through the city's multitudinous layers to bite into the roof of eldritch skystuff above.
From afar it has been said to resemble a great, slow-moving beast: with tendrils, spines, and mouths reaching ever outward, covered in long metal hairs drawn to the sky. Like a beast the old city possesses a truly monstrous appetite, swallowing millions of aircraft every day, spitting them out when it has eaten its fill. Shapes, multitudinous and minuscule swarm within it as cells within a titans veins, repairing, devouring, defending, and creating the components needed to sustain their master. Refineries and factories larger than most towns break down and reshape raw materials, outputting them as ships, building materials, household appliances, weapons, and anything else the grand old city desires. Universities and laboratories operate ceaselessly to preserve old knowledge and create new wonders, solidifying and furthering the technological supremacy of Ostolfo, as well as paying homage to Great Minds long past.
Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Ostolfo (including its incredible levitation and the wonders it cultivates) is not the city itself but the great rift that hangs above it, suspended in nothingness, a crack in the visible world that none were meant to see. It lurks there, its edges flickering and snapping in an eternal struggle to reunite and crush the wards that keep them at bay. Between them rests the Baleful Fault, illuminating the city night and day with a primeval orange glow. With each new dawn a swarm of vessels arises from Ostolfo like a migratory flock, filtering one after another into the Fault to plot a course through the Membrane and find their fortune in the roiling chaos beyond... Most of them return, but others aren't so lucky. Hours, days, months, and even years can pass before these expeditions return (depending upon the tuning of their wards and the skill of their navigators) but the reward is always worth it, and each successful journey inspires a thousand more. This relentless exploration and exploitation of the unmapped realm is the lifeblood of Ostolfo and the regime that claims to master it, it is this monopoly on the mysteries and energies of the void that allows Ostolfo to take its place as the most influential city in the world.
Military
Although once little more than a handful of professional soldiers and a gang of armed hooligans, the Autromeri and the Skyheart Compact have matured into the two halves of the worlds finest military.
Possessed of steely discipline under their mismatched weapons and thrown together uniforms, members of the Skyheart Compact wear the Badge of the Winged Heart to indicate both they they are the true lifeblood of Ostolfos armies and that their hearts will always return to her. As the Autromeri are Ostolfos arrow, so is the Compact her spear and shield: fast enough to strike first but strong enough to hold the line when the sanctity of their home is threatened. By joining the Compact, Ostolfi carry on the legacy of the ancient citizen soldiers of Gernot, receiving regular training and the means to purchase professional-grade arms and armor in between their day to day tasks. They are given no additional rights or privileges beyond those granted by official warrants or marching orders and are held to the same standard as civilians, whether on the streets, in the shops, or under the scrutiny of a judge. Although bearers of the Winged Heart are often accorded a measure of respect due to the self-sacrificing nature of their duties, they are not entitled to discounts or preferential treatment save what is willingly given to them. All too clearly do the rulers and law-makers of Ostolfo remember the cruelty of the oft-drunken standing armies that infested the streets of Gernot as its golden age drew to an end. Vile beasts they were, free from predators natural and legal but with no shortage of prey to subject to their wicked sport. Needless to say it was decided that such mistakes were best left in the past where they belong.
Skyheart recruitment is rife with regulation from the start to finish, with each an every volunteer being screened thoroughly for past criminal activity, accusations of violent or otherwise reprehensible behavior, or indications of mental instability. After acceptance recruits are required to attend at least three weekly training sessions before being given the requisition credits they will use to acquire weapons, armor, and ammunition of their choosing. These credits can only be used to purchase military-grade supplies and are only accepted at licensed arms dealers, but they do grant access to equipment and munitions considered too dangerous to be sold to the general public. Training consists primarily of challenging exercises designed to ensure new members are fighting fit or help them reach the desired condition as soon as possible, with the remaining time being focused on the correct use of weaponry. Both weekly training and the purchase of equipment from licensed merchants are mandated by Compact law, any found in violation will be questioned by ranking officers and reported to the authorities if the answers provided are not satisfactory. All of Ostolfos military and paramilitary organizations are held to a universal code of conduct, but the Skyheart Compact (as the least formal and most difficult to regulate) has had said code impressed upon it more firmly than most.
With the Compact stands the thirteen Great Lodges of the Autromeri, protecting its hardened backbone with a host of talons. Steeped in martial lore and empowered by classified physiological modifications, they are the culmination of a clandestine project that began in the laboratories of Old Gernot and required more than a century of Ostolfi labor to perfect. Transhuman grace, power, and beauty cling to the Autromeri like a cloak of liquid light, flowing and shifting mesmerizingly with their every movement and granting them the appearance of demigods who have deigned to walk amongst mortals out of some form of divine charity. Frequently standing over seven feet in height and rippling with muscle, they stand as unflinching sentinels against the darkness and uncertainty of the world, their augmented gaze piercing fog, illusion, and shadow to unearth those who would harm Ostolfo or her people... Or at least that's what the history books say.
In reality the Autromeri are bound hand and foot to the Great Minds will and the will of their subordinates. They have stitched together a crude tapestry of warrior pride and noble self-sacrifice from the mythologies of a hundred cultures, but still they comply with every command their masters issue, committing deeds regardless of morality or personal comfort. Some uncommonly bold scholars have suggested that it is this conflict between the idealistic outlook of the Autromeri and the bleak truth of their existence that seems to drive them inexorably towards the brink of blood-soaked madness from which few can return. As the most trustworthy and capable of the Minds servants they are given the tasks deemed necessary but grim enough to be kept from the light, seeing them act more like secret police than the society of high-minded warriors they long to be. Guilt and despair have caused many to seek all manner of carnal distractions: recreational narcotics, spilled blood, and extravagant fornication, anything that will assuage their haunting regret.
Despite this they remain the greatest soldiers the world has ever seen and Ostolfos mightiest defenders. Fleets have shuddered and burned before laying eyes on the city herself, realm-spanning criminal guilds have been shattered within days, and allied armies have tasted long-lost hope at the sight of Ostolfos avenging angels coming to their aid. Standing against the Autromeri is akin to facing an invincible bulwark, an unseen dagger, an omnipotent hunter, a tide of gnashing teeth, or a bolt of divine lightning, depending upon which lodge is dispatched to deal with you... something friends of Ostolfo have had the privilege of witnessing first hand.
Foreign Relations
Ostolfos leaders work tirelessly to maintain a complex series of pacts, alliances, and trade deals that safeguard their city from the influence of the worlds other great powers and their insatiable thirst for expansion. If Ostolfo is threatened more than fifty foreign militaries are duty-bound to render aid, overwhelming any nation ambitious enough to attack it. In return the Great Mind offers their partners favorable prices on goods pulled from the chaos beyond, the right to send expeditions beyond the membrane, and the aid of their elite Autromeri in times of war, ostensibly keeping their friends rich and their enemies scared.
Publicly adopting an open-armed stance towards cooperation, prosperity and diversity, Ostolfo takes great pains to appear innocent and welcoming even when the truth is somewhat less clear-cut. This approach magnifies the aggression and deceit of invaders and competitors whilst ensuring that Ostolfo will forever appear as the victim of any given confrontation. Even when a hostile armada is torn to pieces by the bloodthirst of the Autromeri such actions are portrayed as a natural and inevitable consequence of endangering Ostolfo and her people, a heroic act intended to keep the peace and put the war-mongering peoples of the world in their place. Naturally this facade does little to deceive the rulers and politicians of the world, but it has increased Ostolfos standing in the eyes of the masses immensely.
Agriculture & Industry
As she has on many other fronts, Ostolfo finds herself in a curious position when it comes to the harvesting of raw industrial and agricultural resources. She receives regular shipments of lumber, ore, grain, and other necessaries from her terrestrial holdings (which are typically given as gifts by grateful allies), but these are rarely enough to satisfy her. Colossal greenhouses and recently invented flesh-vat facilities have been erected in a few of her industrial districts to quench the hunger of her ever-growing population, and though they excel in this by providing cheap and reliable sources of food the call for construction and manufacturing materials goes all but unanswered. In their efforts to alleviate this problem the Ostolfi looked to the sky, or more specifically they yawning, churning void beyond it. After spending an inordinate amount of time and resources their foremost researchers eventually discovered a method that could be used to create strong, light, and apparently safe substances suitable for inclusion in everything from citadels to spoons.
First amongst these exotic new materials is Delenoire's Oak, so called because it can be shaped with tools used to work hardwoods and is invariably stabilized in large, branching clusters that somewhat resemble the limbs of a tree. Excluding these similarities Delenoire's Oak has little in common with its terrestrial namesake as its surface is pitch black (with its onyx surfaces turning grey at the edges of every cut or substantial indentation) and has the texture of smooth bone. Secondly we have Frisnite, a metallic substance both harder and lighter than steel but significantly more difficult to shape with any sort of magic. On its surface Frisnite is pale grey with a faint iridescence, but each length holds a pale violet core, leading many commoners to give it the nickname "Starsteel". Frisnite stabilizes in thickets of perfectly parallel beams, each one fused to at least two others. These beams are can be between five and forty feet long and feature a hard-edged, almost crystalline structure. During late-stage experimentation it was discovered that both Frisnite and Delenoire's Oak could be given both a different color and texture during the stabilization process, allowing suitably wealthy patrons to pick and choose how their new buildings would both look and feel. This has led to beautiful monuments such as the Crystal Talon (a gigantic statues made entirely from transparent blue Frisnite) and more questionable structures like Glthae's College of Vitality, which was crafted from Delenoire's Oak that feels like warm flesh and expands and contracts to mimic the breathing of some immense animal.
In short: Ostolfo is as unusual as she is exceptional, exploring new fields of science and magic when her contemporary resources run dry just as she took to the sky all those years ago in pursuit of a new, kinder reality.
Trade & Transport
Trade is imperative to the survival of Ostolfo, and it is therefore facilitated at all costs. Airship docks and warehouses line the edges of the city, moving ever outwards as it expands, welcoming the vast influx of air traffic that accompanies each new day. Vessels create a multilayered shell that ripples and bubbles with each arrival and departure but never fully disappears. Even during times of conflict when Ostolfo herself is threatened, once can still find a myriad of airships at anchor, conducting their business and waiting out the storm within her multitudinous layers of defense. All this disregard for personal safety and desperate jockeying for position is incentivized, nay, caused by the nigh immeasurable monetary, spiritual, and intellectual wealth that can be found, bought, stolen, or traded for within Ostolfo herself.
It is said that anything can be bought or sold within her labyrinthine markets, regardless of legality or general feasibility... If you know where to look. Products from every corner of the known world are on display, as well as a great many from the unformed lands beyond the Fault, enticing the senses with a heady and unfamiliar glamour. Coursing through the great avenues of the commercial districts like a roaring river of humanity, traders, merchants, roaming vendors and customers purchase, trade, and barter through all hours of the day or night with pause. So popular are these districts that older ones comprised primarily of wood have had to be closed off or torn down and replaced with metal ones, such was the wear and tear they sustained. Along the roadways running from the docks to the bazaars housing is cheap and the spaces for shops and restaurants have never been more expensive, with both exposed to the incessant bustle and hubbub that pumps through Ostolfos veins, with all the profit and sleep deprivation they may bring.
Education
Before the first schematics that would become Ostolfo were created it had been decided she would be city of wisdom and learning, a place where knowledge and research would take precedence over all but the most vital affairs. When the plans were drawn up they included no less than five separate universities and around forty school houses, even though the city would likely contain no more than fifty-thousand people at the time of launching, most of whom were adults and unlikely to seek further education. During covert raids to gather construction materials and supplies, books, chemicals, and lab equipment held value equivalent to that of fresh water and forged nails. Ostolfos founders unanimously agreed that learning and education were the only way to uplift the downtrodden and give them the power and opportunity they deserved, and made every effort to ensure this enlightenment through learning was never beyond reach.
With this in mind it should come as no surprise that Ostolfo remains a nexus of knowledge and academic study despite years of political power grabs and complex bureaucracy. Wealthy families can afford expert tutors and entry to exclusive universities while poor ones cannot, but a series of government-funded programs ensure that even the penniless are given the opportunity to better themselves through learning. Although Ostolfo has deviated in many ways from the wishes of her founders she has upheld the noblest of their ideals: to raise up the decrepit and disadvantaged elements of society by granting them the understanding and ambition needed to rewrite their destinies.
Each city district contains numerous schoolhouses staffed by professional teachers and overseen by traveling scholars learned in the arts of education. These scholars serve as impromptu inspectors, appearing without warning, assessing the teaching staff of each schoolhouse, and questioning students to ensure they have properly learned the material. Admittance to these schoolhouses is free of charge and both the staff and their inspectors are compensated generously for their efforts.
After graduating from a local schoolhouse, young adults are expected to attend a university of some form, whether it be the closest one they can find or one they genuinely want to attend matters little. While it is technically possible to seek work before earning a degree, it is highly discouraged, and anyone attempting to do so will find it particularly difficult as most occupations in Ostolfo require a form of special education. It should be clarified that a vast majority of Ostolfi universities offer free room, board, and tuition as the funds required to run them are rolled into standard taxes, with only a handful electing to increase their tuition fees and offer additional advantages in hopes of attracting rich patrons.
Infrastructure
Living off the of the land is not a particularly tempting option for the Ostolfi, as such almost everything they build can be classified as some form of infrastructure, whether it be roads, Autromeri lodges, building platforms, flesh-vat facilities, or turbines. In the city beneath the Fault the world is not only what you make it but also how you make it, as each new stretch of unoccupied space pushes back the yawning sky below just a little further, fabricating a new reality one beam at a time. Through labor and artifice is the dream of Ostolfos founders kept afloat, her colonnades and avenues are the dedication of millions made manifest, spreading a little wider with every passing generation like a great blossom that derives strength from the blood and sweat of humanity.
Heaved upwards by titanic turbines and lashed to the roof of the world by chains large enough to bind a leviathan, Ostolfo is a precarious home at the best of times, but she does her best to be accommodating. Through the brightest days and most tumultuous nights her mechanical hearts pump without pause, liquefying water vapor, transforming earthen energy into palatable pieces of meat, pushing warm air through millions of kilometers of pipe, and prying the edges of the Fault apart, allowing void craft to slip through and return filled with unknown treasures. Ostolfo is a caring mother, providing her symbiotic children with every modern convenience, despite her circumstances. Psychic missive networks run throughout her vast frame, accompanied by veins of Salt, heating ducts, and pipes to carry both drinking water and sewage. As they go about their business Ostolfi tread on her suspended bridges, walk into her arcane factories, and stroll through the foreboding shadow of her Autromeri lodges, barely cognizant of the marvels mystical and technological that surround them in every waking moment.
Eternally on guard, Ostolfo stands ready to defend herself and her children with immense batteries of artillery, fleets of Autromeri vessels, a host of mystical snares and wards, and an arsenal of esoteric weaponry with its origins in the Unmade Realms. If all these measures should be brought to ruin, invaders would be forced to come face to face with Ostolfo herself: a twisted thicket the size of a small country filled with Autromeri-manned checkpoints, booby traps, and members of the civilian militia.
Type
Geopolitical, City-state
Capital
Government System
Monarchy, Elective
Power Structure
Unitary state
Economic System
Market economy
Currency
As a city-state with trading partners all over the known world Ostolfo receives and exchanges currency of every sort and uses a great deal of it internally as well. However it will always hold a particular preference for the Gernotian Lilioch, a short, flattened piece of iron that curves into a hook at each end, allowing for Lilio to be strung together as part of a transaction or for easy transport. This peculiar form of currency is more than three thousand years old and was originally forged by the Gernotians as a standardized currency for their burgeoning trade empire.
Major Exports
Due to her unconventional position Ostolfo lacks many of the typical exports like grain, steel, or cattle, choosing to rely instead upon the unusual, the unnatural, and the mystical. From her seat amongst the clouds she can gather greater amounts of Sun, Moon, and Sky energy than any other, and her populaces growing affinity for the Unmade Realms grants her access to a never-ending vein of supernatural resources. Some of her citizens have even found niche markets for clothing, accessories, and jewelry made from the leather and bone of the multitudinous sky-born beasts that continue to fill the skies, accenting them with carvings, patterns, and exotic dyes intended to capture the imagination.
Major Imports
As one might expect from a city-state in its position, Ostolfo imports immense quantities of materials, foodstuffs, and exotic items, with fresh drinking water, cloth, and steel being first amongst them. In most cases Ostolfo is more than capable of producing what it imports but is incapable of creating enough to account for its ever-expanding population or cannot provide enough variety of products to please its wealthier citizens. Take water for example: Ostolfo can acquire it by harvesting moisture from passing clouds but the current system is no efficient enough to give the entire city the water it needs, therefore it is considered prudent to supplement the cities supplies with water from the surface. Steel is also not technically a necessity for Ostolfo thanks to the discovery of Frisnite but it's easier to procure and does not require star magic to shape properly. Additionally it should be noted that Frisnite is a relatively recent discovery and may still contain a number of unknown properties while steel has been explored more thoroughly.
Tropical fruits, precious gemstones, exotic fabrics, and unusual animals are also commonly imported as they are both difficult and expensive to grow or manufacture in Ostolfo herself.
Legislative Body
Ostolfos laws are dictated by the Great Mind and reviewed by their council of elected advisors before being instated in the Tome of Laws and Regulations. It is also possible to remove laws if both the Great Mind and their council decide unanimously to do so.
Judicial Body
Laws and regulations are enforced by the Autromeri, physiologically enhanced soldiers that act as judge, jury, and executioner.
Subsidiary Organizations
Location
Related Ethnicities
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