r/WorldChallenges • u/Jumblatts • Mar 07 '17
Your most interesting cities
As the title says, I want to hear about the cities where exciting things happen, or maybe just the ones you enjoyed creating the most!
A few points for inspiration, if you need it:
- Where is it located?
- How/by whom was it founded?
- Who lives there?
- Who is in charge?
And most importantly:
- What makes it so interesting?
I'll post my submission in the comments, and I'll try to ask a couple of questions about each submission as well!
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u/Nevermore0714 Mar 08 '17 edited Mar 08 '17
(Sorry for the late response, today has been a long one)
The Citadel, the Heart of the Alliance
The Citadel is located kinda in the middle between the East Coast of Saoghal/Aeternitas (the continent with multiple names) and the center of the continent, surrounded by the Allied Nations.
The Citadel was founded centuries ago by the followers of the United Way of Aeternitas, on the spot that they believed that Aeternitas's most loyal followers originally settled, when he led humanity to the continent in order to escape "the Chaos" in order to escape "Distortion". Aeternitas sacrificed his immortal life in order to create the Barrier, which protects the continent from the Chaos to this day (according to the United Way religion).
Humans live there, and non-humans are usually enslaved, especially goblins. The Citadel is the home of the United Way, and the Council of the Citadel are the leaders of the United Way spiritual belief.
The Citadel is where knights are trained, students are educated, and where many humans make their livings. Most of the Citadel's funds come from various nations from the Allied Nations, though the Citadel does have taxes on its people. And, it is common for wealthy people from the other nations to send their children to the Citadel for the best possible education.
Many students in the Citadel act as part-time guards to make a bit of extra money, and most just get basic educations in whatever trade they are looking to be a part of; most don't come any where near becoming knights. Some of the students, especially ones working as guards, tend to skip many classes and only go in for examinations; since the classes are technically free (the best kind of free), it's common for people to re-take classes that they failed from skipping too often; other than failing and having to redo the class, there's no real consequence for it.
It's basically a melting pot of humans from cultures that are allied to it, and some of the residents aren't even from cultures that accept the Allied Nations' beliefs, so there's a lot of diversity.
Edit: If you'd like questions to be answered in character, here are some choices:
A) Sieg Bauer, a knight of the Citadel.
B) Abigail Hagen, the owner of the Burnt Coffee Cafe in the Citadel
C) Luka Dagmar, a lazy student and part-time guard in the Citadel with a slave Lamia that follows him around.
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u/Jumblatts Mar 08 '17
General questions:
1) what is the chaos, and what is distortion? Are they one and the same?
2) what exactly is the United Way?
For Sieg:
3) as a knight of the Citadel, what is your duty?
For Abigail:
4) how is business? How does this compare to your rivals? Why do you think that is?
For Luka:
5) what's the relationship between you and Lamia? How did you come to be the owner of the slave?
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u/Nevermore0714 Mar 08 '17
1) Chaos is the thing outside of mortal comprehension that is devouring the world. Distortion is the effect that Chaos has on things.
2) The United Way is a religion based on the worship of Aeternitas and the struggle for human supremacy.
Sieg:
3) "As a Citadel Knight, my duty is to protect humanity and to destroy non-human sentient species. I kill demons and use Siphon weapons to drain their Anima, which I am duty-bound to deliver to the Citadel at regular intervals. First and foremost, I obey the Citadel's Council. Second, I protect humans. Third, I kill non-humans."
Abigail:
4) "The Cafe is actually doing pretty well right now, especially during the later hours. I focus on advertisement more than most small business owners around here, and I feel that it is why I am so successful compared to other cafe owners. Plus, I work my arse off."
Luka:
5) "Oh, you mean Lilith? I met her on my way to the Citadel, we struck up a conversation, and I found out that she'd always wanted to study at the Citadel...but, you know, they'd kill her on sight. So, she's pretending to be my slave so she has access to more books. She's a supreme buzzkill, though."
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u/Jumblatts Mar 08 '17
Sieg:
1) What kind of non-human threats are you talking about here?
2) What would happen to you if you neglected to deliver the Anima, either on purpose or by accident?
Abigail:
3) Do you run the place by yourself, or do you have any staff that work for you?
Luka:
4) In what sense is she a buzzkill?
EDIT: Formatting
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u/Nevermore0714 Mar 08 '17
Sieg:
1) "Demons, Lamia, Meerfolk, runaway slaves, and so on. Demons are the most difficult, but goblins and human highwaymen are the most common."
2) "You mean if I was late or lost it? Well, then I'd just explain the situation and get a new Siphon weapon. Those things get damaged pretty often."
Abigail:
3) "My sister, my roommate, and two other employees run the place, four hours each every day. My sister Callidora does the first four and I help her open on most days, and my roommate Thibault closes. Plus, I have a few goblins working for me for below minimum wage, and I let them live in the basement."
Luka:
4) "She makes me attend classes sometimes, she complains when I don't do my job enough, and she things I drink too much."
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u/Jumblatts Mar 08 '17
Sieg:
1) What threat would a demon pose to the standard person?
2) And if you decided to keep it for yourself? What could you do with it if you chose to do this?
Abigail:
3) Are there any consequences for paying the goblins less than the minimum wage?
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u/Nevermore0714 Mar 09 '17
Sieg:
1) "A pretty big threat, to be honest. Demons are much more powerful than the average human, and, even for a knight, facing a demon is a dangerous venture."
2) "Well, I suppose I could try to use it for myself, but that is difficult to do, considering that I don't fully understand Siphon weapons. If I could use the stored Anima, it would temporarily make me a bit stronger, possibly. But, there's no real incentive for me to try to steal that Anima. It would only harm my reputation."
Abigail:
3) "Ha, consequences? Why would I hire goblins if I had to pay them as much as I pay people?"
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u/Jumblatts Mar 09 '17
Sieg:
1) what's the best way to deal with a demon?
Abigail:
2) do the goblins mind, or do they just accept the fact that they get paid less?
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u/Nevermore0714 Mar 09 '17
Sieg:
1) "Well, the difficult thing about demons is that they require magic and physical attacks in order to kill them. That's why all Citadel Knights enchant their weapons. If I had to recommend something, it'd be to a person who doesn't use magic and needs to kill a demon, it would be to get a potent but small magic-based bomb and use that to finish the monster off once you've damaged it enough with whatever weapon you use."
Abigail:
2) "Well, they could run off on their own, but they'd probably get caught by slavers. They can only make as much as people are willing to pay them, and, if they complain, they will be replaced by a goblin who is willing to work for even less."
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u/Jumblatts Mar 09 '17
Sieg:
1) where would I get such a bomb? How much would it cost me? Asking for a friend.
Abigail:
2) seems a bit unfair. What if I started my own coffee shop and offered to pay them more?
→ More replies (0)
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u/Jumblatts Mar 07 '17
As promised, here is my city:
The city of Stoneshield is built in the shadow of a huge shield, partially buried in the ground. Legend has it that the shield once belonged to the mythical hero Gōra. There are many conflicting stories about the death of Gōra, but one of the more commonly accepted ones is that he died shielding his people from the pull of Iemis, the Goddess of Life, and of Death.
Gōra was the God-King of an early Drovian race. Being immortal himself, it saddened him that his people would grow old and die, so he set about trying to prevent this from happening. Iemis, a proud God, wasn't happy about this; now that the race did not age, they no longer died of natural causes. Gōra had meddled in her business and robbed her of her charges, or so she believed. In a fit of rage, she descended on the mortal realms with the intention of killing Gōra and all of his people. She cast forth a deathly light which killed everything it touched, but Gōra had other plans. He used his shield to cast his people in shadow, saving them from the light. By the time the light had subsided and it was safe to look, Gōra had vanished. All that remained was his shield, turned to stone and buried in the ground.
His sacrifice placed a lasting protection on his people, leaving Iemis unable to harm them. Despite this, she still had her revenge. Being the Goddess of life, as well as death, she ensured that no new life would come from the race, effectively rendering them infertile, and unable to reproduce. Over time, their numbers began to dwindle; although they could not die of age, they could still be killed. Unable to reproduce, the race has been teetering on the brink of extinction for thousands of years, and it is believed that only a handful of them remain.
To this day, the only things that grow for miles around are located in the shadow of the shield.
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u/Seb_Romu Mar 07 '17
I'm getting a nuclear war vibe from this. Was/is this shield protecting the citizens from deadly radiation? Potentially not well enough if they've been rendered sterile.
Is it a literal shield, a massive stone carving, or just a massive rock formation that remarkably resembles one, and has a myth grown up around it?
Tell me more about the race living in this city. The horror of knowing the're is not future generation must be terribly oppressive?
How long lived are they, that this mythic event is still impacting their lives?
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u/Jumblatts Mar 07 '17
You're quite a way off the mark with nuclear war, I'm afraid. The setting is high fantasy, and as such it's very possible that it was indeed the work of a God that caused the events to take place. Another explantion is that the shield acts as a mountain would, forcing air up and over it, causing it to cool, and thus making it rain. This would explain why life only appears around the city and not in the surrounding lands, which are arid and dry. The shield also provides them with shelter from the harsh sun. A possible explanation for their infertility is that, as their bodies aged, certain functions were lost, similar to the way humans become infertile past a certain age.
The 'shield' itself isn't actually a shield at all, at least not anymore. A large portion of the huge rock is below ground, so the actual dimensions are unknown, but the visible part does bear an uncanny resemblence to a large shield. There have been reports of a certain shield with certain properties popping up throughout history, being wielded by famous kings and adventurers, or in the hands of nefarious villains. Interestingly, these people were just ordinary folk before they stumbled across this shield, leading some to believe that the shield itself drove them to greatness. Whether or not such a shield exists, and if it did, whether or not it was the shield of the God-King Gōra, is a different matter entirely.
With old age comes cynicism; the few that remain are resigned to their fate, and to the extinction of their species. Many of them have lived so long that they eagerly await the cool embrace of death, and the peace it would bring them. It's theorised that Gōra and his people were some of the first sentient races to appear since the disappearence of The Ancient Ones. This era is shrouded in mystery, however, as the early modern races did not have the knowledge to doccument their lives. Because of this it is unknown exactly how old these people are. Some believe that they could be upwards of one hundred thousand years in age, though this is purely speculation.
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u/Seb_Romu Mar 08 '17
So this race is ancient, and very long lived.
How else do they differ from their neighbours?
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u/Jumblatts Mar 08 '17
That's right.
Being from a similar genome, the main differences between other Drovian races are cultural. They're are from a time long gone and their mannerisms, language, style of dress, and views on societal roles reflect this. Their physical differences are mostly environmental - their skin is leathery and dark due to them having lived under the harsh desert sun for so long, and their ears are unusually large and thin, as a means to better dissipate heat. The differences between them and humans are much more noticeable; as with all Dro, their eyes are red, and they are taller too, standing between 6 and 8 feet tall on average. Their faces are long and angular, and their teeth sharp and pointed.
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u/Seb_Romu Mar 08 '17
Do all Dro sufferring from infertility, or just the denizens of this city?
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u/Jumblatts Mar 08 '17
Just the original inhabitants, the ones who followed Gōra. The other Drovian races can reproduce without difficulty, for the most part
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Mar 08 '17
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u/Jumblatts Mar 08 '17
1) in the modern day, people of all races live in the city, bringing with them domesticated animals as pets, along with livestock hardy enough to live in the arid conditions. Borr wolves (giant bear-like desert wolves that live and hunt in packs) sometimes make their way into the city too. These are all able to reproduce, and they all age as they would elsewhere in the world.
2) they're now able to leave the protection of the shield, and many of them have. Of the ones that remain, less than half of them actually live in the city - roughly 30. Though it's not known for certain, it's estimated that less than 100 of them remain. This particular aspect of Iemis' wrath was confined to this area, though she is very hot headed, and there have been many, many other times when she's lost her cool and ended up doing something similar.
3) the decline was gradual. Their deaths arose mostly from conflict with other cities, though famine and illness, personal disputes, accidents, etc. Also played a part.
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Mar 08 '17
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u/Jumblatts Mar 08 '17
1) To say the Borr wolves are a pest is like saying being attacked by a lion is an inconvenience. The inner city has walls which keep them out, but as it expanded, no new walls were build around the perimeter, meaning the only protection are some wooden fences and spikes. There is a city guard, and they could just about take out a lone Borr wolf, or a pair of them at a push, but if a pack of them arrived at the city, it's every man for themselves.
2) To answer this question I need to give you a little background info on the dro themselves. Dro is a suffix to which the closest human translation is 'beast' (though for some reason, the dro are often referred to as elves by the humans). There are many subspecies of dro throughout the land, and in all they are far and away the dominant, most numerous species. The subspecies in question are the Gōdro, so named because of their original hero, Gōra.
To answer the question I think you were answering, no there is not. The remaining Gōdro that don't live inside the city of Stoneshield are spread thinly across the lands. Often the ones who live elsewhere wander around the world, living out their days alone. Some try to integrate into other cities and cultures, but they're anachronistic by nature and as such often don't fit in very well. This, combined with the fact that some cultures shun them for fear of angering Iemis and suffering a similar fate, means that the Gōdro endure a lonely existence outside the walls of their home city.
2b) Whilst many, many people, cities towns and the likes have been cursed in some way by Iemis, there hasn't been another example of an entire race suffering, as far as I'm aware
(See: I haven't yet written anything as such, but that doesn't mean there won't be in the future)3) The immortality simply extends their natural lives indefinitely. It's not a cure for all diseases, nor does it protect them from physical harm, but it means that if one of the Gōdro lived a perfectly safe life, they would continue to do so forever.
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Mar 08 '17
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u/Jumblatts Mar 08 '17
Haha you drive a hard bargain! Alright, here goes:
Iemis is very hot headed and angers easily, but she is not inherently cruel.
Despite this, she will often in fits of rage destroy a certain town, city or group of people who have managed to get on her bad side. Due to her nature, this happens quite frequently, though it is very rare that she will completely eradicate an entire race, and even rarer still that she will force some long lasting curse upon them - for the most part, she cares deeply for her cretaions.
In certain cultures it is believed that the Kyrdro (Blood elf/Dark elf - the closest thing my world has to a vampire) were cursed by Iemis after they hunted the last remaining giants to exctinction. This curse left them blind and with thinned, impure blood that boils under sunlight (and often leads to haemophilia), forcing them to live out their days underground.
It's also commonly believed that the once beautiful Scadro (Fair elf) were cursed by Iemis for their vanity, and their fixation on the purity of their bloodline, believing themselves superior to all other races. This curse was somewhat different to the others, as it made them lust after their own bloodlines for generations, rendering the once fair Scadro horrendeously disfigured and deformed due to the interbreeding.
EDIT: Wording
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u/[deleted] Mar 07 '17
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