Kuju
The southern capital, which houses the majority of the population in the south. This place is the cultural epicenter when it comes to southern traditions. The biggest tradition that is seen within the capital is the new years festival within the Emperor's keep. The capital is far more traditional than the surrounding areas with the homes resembling feudal Japan architecture with very few modern additions. This means that common-owned structures were long and narrow with steep thatched roofs. This was a stark contrast to the open-style homes of the nobility which featured large gardens and centralized courtyards surrounded by hallways to give an open-air feel and to allow relaxation amidst nature. The roads are hand-laid bricks and cobble and lit by torchlight rather than the gas lamps seen in other nations. In noble districts, these torch lights are surrounded by glass bulbs to magnify their light and perfumed to mask the musk of the smoke. Similarly 'small' luxuries are the coveted property of the nobility and inaccessible to the majority of the populace. Despite the seemingly archaic nature of their architecture and homes, their military is at the forefront of discovery with cutting edge training regimens and weaponry. They have prioritized defense for so long that it has become central to the culture and very design of the city, leading to a multi-layered wall system that acts like a Russian nesting doll, with the Emperor's keep at the epicenter of the capital. This is divided into two sections one for the Public and events, while the other exists for the Emperor's (and family) private living quarters and military strategizing. The Emperor spends most of Their time in military meetings with Their top shoguns rather than dealing with more simplistic city management.
Demographics
Predominantly high elf, half elf and human with a smaller population of orcs and half orcs. The remaining less than five percent of the population is other races. Due to stark class differences in the culture, most of the occupants of the city are either commoners or soldiers. Only ten percent have earned the designation of samurai or are members of the established shogunate.
Government
The top of the chain sits the Emperor of the South, who resides in the keep in Kuju. They decide every aspect of life with a single command. Below Them are the other feudal lords, the shoguns, who act as advisors to the Emperor and usually dictate most daily tasks. The many captains of the army, designated as samurai, take their orders from their associated shoguns. Below them are the soldiers and common folk of the cities, who revere the Emperor as a godly figure who rules by Divine Right. They cherish the Emperor as though they were a god, but this also gives rise to superstitious attitudes when times are hard that They have lost Divine Favour and need to be replaced.
Defences
The outermost two walls are double-layered stone with an open area between that can station troops for patrol as well as trap or isolate intruders. The buffer section between wall layers has several gates to separate it into smaller sections so that enemies can be corralled and trapped while fired on from archers stationed above. This strategy was developed shortly after the completion of the keep proper, and therefore was not implemented on the innermost wall due to both space restrictions and a resistance to tearing down pre-established protections, even to rebuild them better, which would leave the Emperor's keep vulnerable. Therefore, the new wall plan was imposed outside the then-Common Quarters, and later around the whole city as it expanded past those borders and the inner area was repurposed as homes for the elite.
Each entry point to the city houses an independently managed military outpost, with a full compliment of soldiers under the eye of a single samurai or shogun, depending on the importance of the gate. Generally speaking, the outer walls are managed by samurai, however occasionally shogun are assigned out as disciplinary or punitive measures. Gates within the noble district are associated with significantly more power and prestige and are awarded out as rewards for long and good service. Consequently, these shoguns tend to have the most experience and expertise, and you can weigh the importance of a general's military advice by checking which gate in the hierarchy they are assigned to via their insignias.
Each gate is outfitted by a technology unique to the South: magically-augmented arbalests that can fire out several kilometers. These are manned by long-standing wizards or other magically-inclined warriors who are trained and appointed by the Emperor, as magic is seen to be the Divine Providence of the Emperor. These machines cannot be used by people who are not magically trained or sensitive without serious consequences and risk of death or explosion of the original device. Whether this was imposed as a safety measure to prevent non-Imperials from using them or if it is a genuine need for the design is largely unknown.
It is said only occupants of the city known where the storehouses are to be found, as not a single non-inhabitant has ever been able to secure food from anything but a local market or alehouse. Resupplying always goes through the military, and all foodstores are owned and operated by either shoguns or the Emperor directly. It is rumoured that the Emperor has ways to cultivate food within the city itself, but these have never been confirmed.
Industry & Trade
Due to their location, they are relatively self sufficient as the surrounding area is rich is natural resources. The local forests provide them with all of their hardwood needs, a western mine has deep veins of iron, silver and gold which despite being within a day's journey of the city limits has yet to be exhausted by their regular use of its materials. To the north they have carefully cultivated the soil after clear cutting forest areas into a fertile farmland. The farms almost never extend past the reach of an arbalest's blast in order to protect their food source from invasion, pillaging or sabotage. To the south they have their other primary food source, the sea. This provides not only a wealth of seafood and related byproducts, but also access to a myriad of trade routes as they provide a well-protected hub of commerce to passing merchant vessels.
Their primary exports are alcohol and both semi-precious and precious gemstones which are found in the course of their mining for iron to supply their military.
Infrastructure
The dominating feature of the city is the walls. These have been in place since the inception of the city and are made from the locally-occurring stone. Each wall is double layered, which means that they have two sets of portcullises that can be used to isolate and lock in intruders if any suspicion arises. There are three major sets of walls differentiating the outermost Common's Quarters from the Noble's Quarters and finally isolating the dual-sided Emperor's keep. The entrance to the innermost wall is the only one that deviates from the double-layered designed as it only has one portcullis. These are the oldest walls in the city and therefore were unable to be upgraded to the newly proposed design as the surrounding buildings were already established.
Paths to get around begin as basic cobblestone in the outermost quarters, and increase in quality and craftsmanship as it approaches the center of the city. These are periodically lined with torches, with the outermost quarters holding foul-smelling but efficient oil-soaked torchsticks that are easy to restock and replace. However, once you pass into the Noble's quarters, lighting fixtures are permanently-established with glass bowls to magnify light and perfumed to mask the musk of smoke. Small luxuries such as carved softwood murals and papered windows are prevalent here, to show of the wealth of the individual occupants. A shogun can show their extreme wealth or status by serving ice wine and similar cold-weather delicacies to guests.
Water is retrieved through a well-system as the hard rock terrain made establishing a sewer network too tedious. Consequently, homes and structures in the city are backed onto shared wells which draw from the local water table. This has been criticized by many as being their greatest weakness in a siege due to the chance of someone poisoning the water supply. The local shoguns offset this by ensuring that ports remain open and stocks of fresh water are on hand, as well as being available via trade in emergencies. Due to the centralized nature of the well system, the city is organized into blocks or "courts" of buildings that share a common well.
Assets
Each quarter is set up like a mini town with their own hospitality establishment, open-air food market, general store and craftsmen. Typically artisans in these districts perform work around the area and therefore tend to have at least one smithy and carpenter, but there are specialized artisanal districts that prioritize crafting, for example, smiths who specialize in making barrel bands and woodworkers who can fashion barrels to make one of their largest exports: alcohol.
Similarly, each military outpost is set up with its own specialized craftsmen and eateries. These outposts are also responsible for manning and guarding the store caches that are maintained in secret throughout the city. The military outposts do not have any hospitality services but instead have basic barracks for the soldiers on reserve. While soldiers can own homes elsewhere in the city, especially when they reach an age that they wish to have families, they are asked to stay at the barracks part-time when stationed there in order to ensure the most efficient response time and to avoid decentralizing weapon stores.
Due to the superiority of their combat training, the Emperor allows very specific contingents that are rented to other countries and powers. These groups tend to be made up of magic users and people whose loyalty to the Emperor is unquestionable. These mercenary groups are famed for their combat prowess and efficiency and, despite their exorbitant cost, are well worth every gold they charge.
The only area of the city which appears unalien to visitors would be the port-proper. Most external trade is managed there, and visitors deeper into the city are both rare and met with mixes of curiousity to suspicion.
History
Kuju used to be a neutral zone for trade and negotiation by the warring factions that surrounded it. The city itself was not more than it's port as the area surrounding it was so frequently contested as to be uninhabitable. Rumours say that the land the Emperor's keep was built on was so soaked with blood as to be unable to grow anything until They arrived. Riku Wei was the only one to notice the external threat to their way of life. Other lords were too busy with petty squabbling to notice the Divine Coalition forming, and the storm it brought their way. When his pleas for unity fell on deaf ears, Riku Wei petitioned the Great Dragon, Huánglóng, for aid.
The Angel of Rebirth saw great things in Riku Wei and gifted him a son, Tsun Wei, as proof of their favour. Riku Wei then called all the lords together and ascended to Emperor, leading them in the battle against the Divine Coalition. They spoke at great length of Their plans for Kuju, and Tsun Wei themselves, to Their adopted son and pledged shoguns. Their great sacrifice in the Battle of Kuju is said to have purified the land of death, and brought on the era of peace currently enjoyed under Tsun Wei's leadership.
To honour Their father, Tsun Wei established the Emperor's keep and set forth to turn Kuju into the military colossus it is today. The haphazard tents and villages huddled against Their keep walls gradually transformed into the Nobles' Quarters and, as Their influence spread and more people answered Their call, the city expanded to encompass the wide area that Kuju currently occupies.
Tourism
Visitors are almost exclusively limited to the port area, with extremely rare diplomatic delegations being permitted to be escorted to the Formal Palace for ceremonies of Peace. Outsiders are viewed with suspicion and even citizens found outside of their quarters are viewed suspiciously, as the city was designed to ensure peak efficiency and minimize the need for civilian travel. Soldiers are the only ones who can navigate the city freely, however, even they are limited by protocols and restrictions based on their position, status and current-standing orders.
Geography
Bordered on the south by a saltwater sea with arid forests on the other sides. The area surrounding the walls is clear-cut out to an arbalest's range, with farms occupying the northern and eastern protected zones. Far enough west, the forest gives way to a rocky desert rich in ores.
Natural Resources
Hardwood forests, iron, gold and silver and gemstones.
The topsoil supports tropical fruits, rice and other grains used primarily in alcohol production.
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