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[OOC] Styria: Years of Blood (Adult 18+) Page 2
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gorgenmast
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11 mos ago
Dinh AaronMk my beloved (french coded)
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Re-pasta'ing this because it's done.
City-State: Sipani
Ruler: Duke Adolfiano Clairmont Artoya Amallo
Flag:
Capital Description: Sipani is a moderately sized coastal city, long home to many long lived minor noble houses. The rising colorful facades of the centuries old buildings rise up a gentle sloping hill on the coast line, bordered on one side by the gently rolling black waters of the Olba river. Its white walls skirt the hill, while just outside at its base the assembled and scattered hovels of the urban poor are often scattered in hodgepodge hamlets just in the shadow of the towers and bastions. Atop the city mount, the ancient Ducal Palace stands soaring high over the city, from whence the ancient blood-soaked nobility has lived within the comfortable confines of their city.
While outside the walls, vineyards and orchards rolls over the picturesque green hills among wheats and the sentinels of the mills. Castles to the minor nobles lay scattered throughout the land brooding over their own serfs and principalities within the city-state. Their flags form a rainbow that hides the sky when all assembled.
History: The city-state of Sipani has long been ruled by its dukes. Through intrigues or marriage successive families have gone in and out of the ducal palace located at the center of the city, atop its central mount. Priding itself on its fertile soils the families and people of the city accrued a modest wealth to themselves, made all the more better by the river. While the city never ascended to the power and dignity of many of the other cities of the continent, they still came to cherish a certain life-style.
The aristocracy of the state though have always held a long tradition of "chivalric virtue" and romance to war. In ancient times when Styria had a king they would be foremost among his knights, first to charge to battle. Meanwhile at home, for reasons forgotten, they've long held a rivalry with the nearby city-state of Muris that has been the central locust of conflict for the sons of Sipani. Repeatedly over the generations clashes have broken up between them and their neighbor for any number of reasons. Sometimes minor, oft-times major rolling regional conflicts. Though, one side has not gained the upper hand for long and the tides of this seemingly permanent feud are locked in a constant ebb and flow.
Lately, with the forceful demise of the Union in Styria and their ouster from the city of Westport the conflict with Muris was put on hold as a broad coalition of Azure Sea principalities pooled together their resources and battled the Union from their coasts. Sipani was among them, lending their sons and levees into the new enemy of the moment alongside mercenaries from Vesserine and Puranti as well as their rivals of Muris.
With Westporn fallen to its new mercenary king, the knights of Sipani return home ennobled by another grand war and with bounty looted. But as the wine flows, old troubles have not been doused and a war again for the river may return.
City-State: Sipani
Ruler: Duke Adolfiano Clairmont Artoya Amallo
Flag:
Capital Description: Sipani is a moderately sized coastal city, long home to many long lived minor noble houses. The rising colorful facades of the centuries old buildings rise up a gentle sloping hill on the coast line, bordered on one side by the gently rolling black waters of the Olba river. Its white walls skirt the hill, while just outside at its base the assembled and scattered hovels of the urban poor are often scattered in hodgepodge hamlets just in the shadow of the towers and bastions. Atop the city mount, the ancient Ducal Palace stands soaring high over the city, from whence the ancient blood-soaked nobility has lived within the comfortable confines of their city.
While outside the walls, vineyards and orchards rolls over the picturesque green hills among wheats and the sentinels of the mills. Castles to the minor nobles lay scattered throughout the land brooding over their own serfs and principalities within the city-state. Their flags form a rainbow that hides the sky when all assembled.
History: The city-state of Sipani has long been ruled by its dukes. Through intrigues or marriage successive families have gone in and out of the ducal palace located at the center of the city, atop its central mount. Priding itself on its fertile soils the families and people of the city accrued a modest wealth to themselves, made all the more better by the river. While the city never ascended to the power and dignity of many of the other cities of the continent, they still came to cherish a certain life-style.
The aristocracy of the state though have always held a long tradition of "chivalric virtue" and romance to war. In ancient times when Styria had a king they would be foremost among his knights, first to charge to battle. Meanwhile at home, for reasons forgotten, they've long held a rivalry with the nearby city-state of Muris that has been the central locust of conflict for the sons of Sipani. Repeatedly over the generations clashes have broken up between them and their neighbor for any number of reasons. Sometimes minor, oft-times major rolling regional conflicts. Though, one side has not gained the upper hand for long and the tides of this seemingly permanent feud are locked in a constant ebb and flow.
Lately, with the forceful demise of the Union in Styria and their ouster from the city of Westport the conflict with Muris was put on hold as a broad coalition of Azure Sea principalities pooled together their resources and battled the Union from their coasts. Sipani was among them, lending their sons and levees into the new enemy of the moment alongside mercenaries from Vesserine and Puranti as well as their rivals of Muris.
With Westporn fallen to its new mercenary king, the knights of Sipani return home ennobled by another grand war and with bounty looted. But as the wine flows, old troubles have not been doused and a war again for the river may return.
GM
DELETED32084
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2 yrs ago
@Dinh AaronMk, accepted. Well written. I expect nothing less from you.
Pepperm1nts Revolutionary Rabblerouser
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11 mos ago
Is there a place for something less committal, like an organization?
Pepperm1nts Revolutionary Rabblerouser
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11 mos ago
I was thinking of a group of people, like a band of outlaws or something. Something simple that could develop into something bigger but that at least at first would be relatively inconsequential to the greater plot. I may still need someone to be okay with having a group of outlaws running around in their territory, though.
gorgenmast
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Seen
11 mos ago
I was thinking of a group of people, like a band of outlaws or something. Something simple that could develop into something bigger but that at least at first would be relatively inconsequential to the greater plot. I may still need someone to be okay with having a group of outlaws running around in their territory, though.
Corontiz, my lub. Be some of the pirate seafolk on the islands east of Corontiz. Or some rebel in the countryside.
Pepperm1nts Revolutionary Rabblerouser
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11 mos ago
<Snipped quote by Pepperm1nts>
Corontiz, my lub. Be some of the pirate seafolk on the islands east of Corontiz. Or some rebel in the countryside.
I can always count on you, my sweet lub.
EDIT: If Wyrm's okay with it, I'll write something up.
1x Thank
gorgenmast
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11 mos ago
Just write it, querido. Wyrm's cool with it.
P.S. i lub u 5ever
P.S.S. das mo den 4
P.S. i lub u 5ever
P.S.S. das mo den 4
GM
DELETED32084
Banned
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2 yrs ago
@Pepperm1nts, works for me. You also have the option of a mercenary force hired by various city-states if you like. Write something up and I’ll have a look at it. Good to have you.
The Nexerus Sui generis
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2 yrs ago
Principality of Muris
Muris is a somber city, famous less for its architectural marvels or grand industries than for one particular historical event: the Muris Massacre. The massacre destroyed much of the older buildings of Muris, including the former prince's palace, and even after the blood had dried and the fires had ran out, thick grey ash covered the city streets, giving it the new nickname of the 'Grey City'. Besides necessitating the newness of many of the notable buildings throughout the city, the massacre also gave it a reputation as a dark place, obsessed with mortality and decorated in dark tones of black and grey. This affects high fashion in Muris as well; Murissian nobility consider bright colours and loose fabrics gaudy and lurid, with the exception of the colour red: that colour which was most associated with Muris before the massacre.
An especially stable and orderly city, Muris' streets are defended from ne'er do wells and rival cities alike by the Greyguards: a small, professional gendarmerie force personally sworn to the Prince of Muris. The justice meted out by the Greyguards is infamously stark, more liberal with executing criminals than the guardsmen of other cities. They are also responsible for making monthly excursions to the neighbouring towns and villages of Muris, gathering the tribute they owe to the prince of the Grey City. As their names would imply, the Greyguards' uniforms are plainly decorated, the most notable aspect of their outfits a distinctive tri-horned helmet, meant to emulate the three shields on the city's sigil.
Like most Styrian cities, the main industry of Muris is trade and commerce. The city's port facilities are the last port of call before the Azure Sea, and the merchants populating it dominate the economic activity of many of the islands dotting Styria's southwest coasts. As for domestic production, Muris is notable perhaps only for its great quantity of fisheries; the currents running between Muris and the islands to her south bring in great schools of fish that fill the bellies of many Styrians. The great economic weakness of the city is in high culture: the restrictive sensibilities of Muris are damning to fashion and other artists, and great talents in those regards who hail from Muris tend to migrate elsewhere, where their abilities can be more appreciated.
An especially stable and orderly city, Muris' streets are defended from ne'er do wells and rival cities alike by the Greyguards: a small, professional gendarmerie force personally sworn to the Prince of Muris. The justice meted out by the Greyguards is infamously stark, more liberal with executing criminals than the guardsmen of other cities. They are also responsible for making monthly excursions to the neighbouring towns and villages of Muris, gathering the tribute they owe to the prince of the Grey City. As their names would imply, the Greyguards' uniforms are plainly decorated, the most notable aspect of their outfits a distinctive tri-horned helmet, meant to emulate the three shields on the city's sigil.
Like most Styrian cities, the main industry of Muris is trade and commerce. The city's port facilities are the last port of call before the Azure Sea, and the merchants populating it dominate the economic activity of many of the islands dotting Styria's southwest coasts. As for domestic production, Muris is notable perhaps only for its great quantity of fisheries; the currents running between Muris and the islands to her south bring in great schools of fish that fill the bellies of many Styrians. The great economic weakness of the city is in high culture: the restrictive sensibilities of Muris are damning to fashion and other artists, and great talents in those regards who hail from Muris tend to migrate elsewhere, where their abilities can be more appreciated.
Overview: Muris is governed as a hereditary princedom, ruled over by the incumbent noble House of Varro. The Varro family first came to prominence in Muris centuries ago, making a name for themselves as lawmakers and diplomats serving under the then-dominant Di'Olento family. After a pivotal moment in Muris' history—the infamous 'Muris Massacre'—the Di'Olentos were forcibly removed from power and brutally put to the sword by a peasant mob, supposedly riled up (according to folklore) by agitators sent from the city of Sipani. The devastated Di'Olento's only surviving mainline family member, the Lady Emily Di'Olento, third daughter of the deceased Prince, was married to the then-heir of the House of Varro, Giona Varro. Giona and his wife had escaped the massacre through sheer luck, by virtue of their presence in Westport on a diplomatic mission on the day it occurred. Giona's own father, Vittorio Varro, was also killed in the massacre.
Giona worked alongside those few remaining nobles of Murissian families to gather up an expeditionary force of mercenaries and attachés of foreign cities, sufficient to restore order to Muris. He then partook in the second part of the Muris Massacre, the reconquest of the city from the mob and the mass execution of those determined to have played a role in it. Unlike many of the other vengeful aristocrats, though, Giona had maintained some modicum of mercy in dealing with the rebels, and had both sustained the strength of his portion of the army as well as bolstered it with surrendered militants of the rebellion. Therefore, the night after the fighting in Muris had ended, Giona pressed his advantage and took personal command of all those fighting men left in the city that he and his wife Emily could oblige or bribe the loyalty of, to press his claim to Muris. The men of his rivals proved too exhausted and undermanned to prevail against him, and Giona emerged as the undisputed ruler of what was left of Muris.
The heirs of Giona Varro have ruled Muris to this day, governing the city as an unbroken line of nobility that have helped rebuild the city of Muris and keep it an especially stable and orderly example of a Styrian city-state. In fact, so secure is House Varro's hold over Muris that the principality's minor nobles are all considered to be of little political consequence; much too far beneath the Varro family to justify intermarriage. Thus, the Varros tend to marry into families of other cities, and enjoy an extended web of marriage alliances with nobles of the other Styrian cities: an appropriate state of affairs for a noble family descended from diplomats. An exception to this is Sipani, a state whose nobles have never before married into Muris' ruling family: House Varro would never debase themselves by mingling with a dynasty hailing from that despised rival city.
Notable Family Members
Prince Martino Varro, Aged 49; Martino is a man well past the middle of his life, but he has only spent the past three years of it as a ruler. His elderly father, Niccolas, governed for decades before him, and was renowned across Styria as a shrewd and wise political navigator. Even as an adult, years into his own reign, Martino still feels trapped within his esteemed father's shadow. His machinations—for Styrian nobility are always involved in machinations—mostly revolve around glorifying himself, and attempting to leave a legacy to match that of Niccolas. He is largely absent from the lives of his children, except as they are needed for the fulfillment of one or another of his plots to attain glory and prestige.
Hugo Varro, Aged 30; The next in line to attain the rank of Prince of Muris, once Martino passes. Hugo is a man cut from his own cloth, thoroughly disinterested in his father's attempts to match his grandfather's heights in such abstract matters as 'prestige'. Instead, Hugo cares for a more countable measure of success: wealth. He is a major investor in a great many merchant vessels and trade guilds both within Muris and beyond, and has a reputation as something of a cautious shareholder. It takes much convincing to pry the coin from Hugo's hands for anything but a guarantee of profit. He is married to Lady Ella (née Knightfall), a noble lady who is sister of the Grand Duke of Visserine. Their marriage was a practical one, enabling Hugo to earn intimate access to the market goings-on of that greatest city of the Azure Sea.
Camilla Varro, Aged 27; Camilla is a woman of two faces. Her public image is carefully sculpted to fit in to her place as a noble lady of the esteemed House of Varro. She has a noble husband, a young daughter, is beautiful and graceful, and enjoys music and poetry and everything else she's supposed to enjoy. Privately, however, she is also interested in a great many hobbies unbecoming of a lady of her stature. Foremost among these is combat: her attendants are secretly women-warriors, with whom Camilla practices her talents as a duelist in private. The lady also enjoys hunting and archery, as well as reveling in the sort of political intrigue that is meant to practiced by noblemen. Her talents of deception, earned from disguising her masculine dispositions, have improved her abilities at this kind of backroom maneuvering so much that her father has entrusted her to serve as his spymaster—all under the table, of course.
Cirillo Varro, Aged 24; The youngest of Prince Martino's three children and the most aggressively ambitious. Cirillo identifies himself with his household more than any other member of the House of Varro, taking especially personally any and all grievances and rivalries between the Varro family and their enemies. His zealous dedication to the hatred of his family's foes impresses his father and befuddles his brother and sister, and it is worsened by Cirillo's tendency towards violence and anger. On at least one alleged occasion he has killed a man for simply being from Sipani. To cultivate these martial instincts, Cirillo was gifted by his father with captaincy over the Greyguard, the civic military of Muris. Cirillo personally is a great warrior, perhaps the equal of his sister, and is particularly fond of daggers and other easily hidden small arms.
Giona worked alongside those few remaining nobles of Murissian families to gather up an expeditionary force of mercenaries and attachés of foreign cities, sufficient to restore order to Muris. He then partook in the second part of the Muris Massacre, the reconquest of the city from the mob and the mass execution of those determined to have played a role in it. Unlike many of the other vengeful aristocrats, though, Giona had maintained some modicum of mercy in dealing with the rebels, and had both sustained the strength of his portion of the army as well as bolstered it with surrendered militants of the rebellion. Therefore, the night after the fighting in Muris had ended, Giona pressed his advantage and took personal command of all those fighting men left in the city that he and his wife Emily could oblige or bribe the loyalty of, to press his claim to Muris. The men of his rivals proved too exhausted and undermanned to prevail against him, and Giona emerged as the undisputed ruler of what was left of Muris.
The heirs of Giona Varro have ruled Muris to this day, governing the city as an unbroken line of nobility that have helped rebuild the city of Muris and keep it an especially stable and orderly example of a Styrian city-state. In fact, so secure is House Varro's hold over Muris that the principality's minor nobles are all considered to be of little political consequence; much too far beneath the Varro family to justify intermarriage. Thus, the Varros tend to marry into families of other cities, and enjoy an extended web of marriage alliances with nobles of the other Styrian cities: an appropriate state of affairs for a noble family descended from diplomats. An exception to this is Sipani, a state whose nobles have never before married into Muris' ruling family: House Varro would never debase themselves by mingling with a dynasty hailing from that despised rival city.
Notable Family Members
Prince Martino Varro, Aged 49; Martino is a man well past the middle of his life, but he has only spent the past three years of it as a ruler. His elderly father, Niccolas, governed for decades before him, and was renowned across Styria as a shrewd and wise political navigator. Even as an adult, years into his own reign, Martino still feels trapped within his esteemed father's shadow. His machinations—for Styrian nobility are always involved in machinations—mostly revolve around glorifying himself, and attempting to leave a legacy to match that of Niccolas. He is largely absent from the lives of his children, except as they are needed for the fulfillment of one or another of his plots to attain glory and prestige.
Hugo Varro, Aged 30; The next in line to attain the rank of Prince of Muris, once Martino passes. Hugo is a man cut from his own cloth, thoroughly disinterested in his father's attempts to match his grandfather's heights in such abstract matters as 'prestige'. Instead, Hugo cares for a more countable measure of success: wealth. He is a major investor in a great many merchant vessels and trade guilds both within Muris and beyond, and has a reputation as something of a cautious shareholder. It takes much convincing to pry the coin from Hugo's hands for anything but a guarantee of profit. He is married to Lady Ella (née Knightfall), a noble lady who is sister of the Grand Duke of Visserine. Their marriage was a practical one, enabling Hugo to earn intimate access to the market goings-on of that greatest city of the Azure Sea.
Camilla Varro, Aged 27; Camilla is a woman of two faces. Her public image is carefully sculpted to fit in to her place as a noble lady of the esteemed House of Varro. She has a noble husband, a young daughter, is beautiful and graceful, and enjoys music and poetry and everything else she's supposed to enjoy. Privately, however, she is also interested in a great many hobbies unbecoming of a lady of her stature. Foremost among these is combat: her attendants are secretly women-warriors, with whom Camilla practices her talents as a duelist in private. The lady also enjoys hunting and archery, as well as reveling in the sort of political intrigue that is meant to practiced by noblemen. Her talents of deception, earned from disguising her masculine dispositions, have improved her abilities at this kind of backroom maneuvering so much that her father has entrusted her to serve as his spymaster—all under the table, of course.
Cirillo Varro, Aged 24; The youngest of Prince Martino's three children and the most aggressively ambitious. Cirillo identifies himself with his household more than any other member of the House of Varro, taking especially personally any and all grievances and rivalries between the Varro family and their enemies. His zealous dedication to the hatred of his family's foes impresses his father and befuddles his brother and sister, and it is worsened by Cirillo's tendency towards violence and anger. On at least one alleged occasion he has killed a man for simply being from Sipani. To cultivate these martial instincts, Cirillo was gifted by his father with captaincy over the Greyguard, the civic military of Muris. Cirillo personally is a great warrior, perhaps the equal of his sister, and is particularly fond of daggers and other easily hidden small arms.
Muris is a city as embedded in history as any other in Styria, but the reality is that two major situations in particular are more responsible for forging the Muris of today than anything else in the city-state's long story. The first of these is Muris' rivalry with Sipani, which dominates the regional politics of both cities' environs, and has shaped Murissian politics for centuries. The second is the infamous Muris Massacre, which instilled the city with its current culture and current regime.
Sipani and Muris have been at each other's throats for untold generations. The cities have endured numerous wars and have a constantly fluctuating border, as frontier towns and villages are fought over for reasons of pride and revenge rather than any material benefit they provide to the city dominant over them. The origin of the rivalry is lost to both sides, but its intensity does not show any signs of wavering. House Varro has never married a noble of Sipani and has shown that they never will, and citizens of Sipani are despised in Muris and driven out of the city by the Greyguards whenever they arrive. Culturally, too, the citizens differ, the city streets of either state mirror opposites of each other; grey solemnity in Muris and colourful splendor in Sipani. It is simply an immutable part of being Murissian to hate Sipani.
Easily the most important event in the history of Muris is the Muris Massacre. The original source of the riots is hotly debated, with some emphasizing the role that rising grain prices in the city played, and others blaming the riots on agitators from Sipani. Whatever the cause, unrest among the peasantry reached a tipping point, and violence ensued. What began as protests in the city centre gradually began more violent, and the resources of the Muris City Guard—the precursors to the modern day Greyguard—were stretched too thin. As law and order eroded, opportunists from the countryside flocked into the city, taking advantage of the chaos of the riots to loot and steal with impunity. Vigilantes and criminal gangs brawled openly in the streets and bandits brazenly assaulted guardposts, slaughtering any man sworn to the Prince and using their gold and weapons to recruit more vagabonds from among the desperate populace. The city guard gradually withdrew to only defend the Prince's Palace itself, where the nobility hid from the peasantry underneath them that sought to extinguish feudal rule over the city. The ensuing massacre when the palace fell changed the history of Muris and brought the House of Varro to power in the city, turning Muris into the cultural and political entity that it is today.
Most recently, Muris was one of many participants illicitly involved in the Mortem Legio's capture of Westport. Though the Grey City is officially neutral in all matters concerning the Union, coin from the Varro family did somehow find its way into the coffers of the mercenary company that captured Westport away from the mercantile empire across the sea. Muris is an independent minded city and Prince Martino Varro an independent minded ruler, and would rather not have a powerful empire knocking on their doorstep, even if it means separately supporting the same cause as Sipani.
Sipani and Muris have been at each other's throats for untold generations. The cities have endured numerous wars and have a constantly fluctuating border, as frontier towns and villages are fought over for reasons of pride and revenge rather than any material benefit they provide to the city dominant over them. The origin of the rivalry is lost to both sides, but its intensity does not show any signs of wavering. House Varro has never married a noble of Sipani and has shown that they never will, and citizens of Sipani are despised in Muris and driven out of the city by the Greyguards whenever they arrive. Culturally, too, the citizens differ, the city streets of either state mirror opposites of each other; grey solemnity in Muris and colourful splendor in Sipani. It is simply an immutable part of being Murissian to hate Sipani.
Easily the most important event in the history of Muris is the Muris Massacre. The original source of the riots is hotly debated, with some emphasizing the role that rising grain prices in the city played, and others blaming the riots on agitators from Sipani. Whatever the cause, unrest among the peasantry reached a tipping point, and violence ensued. What began as protests in the city centre gradually began more violent, and the resources of the Muris City Guard—the precursors to the modern day Greyguard—were stretched too thin. As law and order eroded, opportunists from the countryside flocked into the city, taking advantage of the chaos of the riots to loot and steal with impunity. Vigilantes and criminal gangs brawled openly in the streets and bandits brazenly assaulted guardposts, slaughtering any man sworn to the Prince and using their gold and weapons to recruit more vagabonds from among the desperate populace. The city guard gradually withdrew to only defend the Prince's Palace itself, where the nobility hid from the peasantry underneath them that sought to extinguish feudal rule over the city. The ensuing massacre when the palace fell changed the history of Muris and brought the House of Varro to power in the city, turning Muris into the cultural and political entity that it is today.
Most recently, Muris was one of many participants illicitly involved in the Mortem Legio's capture of Westport. Though the Grey City is officially neutral in all matters concerning the Union, coin from the Varro family did somehow find its way into the coffers of the mercenary company that captured Westport away from the mercantile empire across the sea. Muris is an independent minded city and Prince Martino Varro an independent minded ruler, and would rather not have a powerful empire knocking on their doorstep, even if it means separately supporting the same cause as Sipani.
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gowia Buried in a Book
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1 yr ago
The City-State of Jacra
Ruler: The city-state of Jacra is a peasant's republic, in which the different clans elect an individual from amongst them to raise to the highest office. That individual then has close to dictatorial power for a term of ten years and appoints each member of government, after which another election is held. The people elect in the Assembly of the Clans and, in cases of gross misconduct, can cast a two-thirds vote to end the term of the current High-Syndic early. This will suspend the powers of the High-Syndic, cause an immediate election, and mean the total overhaul of every position in government. Currently this has only happened twice since the affirmation of the supremacy of the citizen.
Current Members of Government:
Aristides of Aicer
Responsibilities: The High-Syndic is the elected leader of the people of Jacra, following a gruelling election season they spell out the next decade for the state through their selection of members of government. Furthermore they can step in and adjudicate on any legal case they so wish. Cases of the highest offence are overseen by the High-Syndic always.
Responsibilities: The High-Syndic is the elected leader of the people of Jacra, following a gruelling election season they spell out the next decade for the state through their selection of members of government. Furthermore they can step in and adjudicate on any legal case they so wish. Cases of the highest offence are overseen by the High-Syndic always.
Iason of Aicer
Responsibilities: The Chief-Apodektai is responsible for the collection of the yearly rolls of land and income, which they then use to calculate tax owed. From there they organise collection and distribution to the appropriate parts of government.
Responsibilities: The Chief-Apodektai is responsible for the collection of the yearly rolls of land and income, which they then use to calculate tax owed. From there they organise collection and distribution to the appropriate parts of government.
Herodes of Aicer
Responsibilities: The Chief-Theorodokoi is responsible for sending and receiving ambassadors, at their own expense, and providing the High-Syndic with reports of the on goings abroad and the interests of abroad inside the state.
Responsibilities: The Chief-Theorodokoi is responsible for sending and receiving ambassadors, at their own expense, and providing the High-Syndic with reports of the on goings abroad and the interests of abroad inside the state.
Dion of Antachus
Responsibilities: The Chief-Hierophant is the highest ecclesiastic official in the city-state. They organise public holidays and events, as well as offer spiritual guidance for the state and act as the divine consultant to the High-Syndic.
Responsibilities: The Chief-Hierophant is the highest ecclesiastic official in the city-state. They organise public holidays and events, as well as offer spiritual guidance for the state and act as the divine consultant to the High-Syndic.
Epiphanios of Aicer
Responsibilities: The Chief-Polemarch is responsible for keeping the rolls of levy expectation up to date, organising the military affairs of the state, and leading the armed forces in times of combat. As well as this they manage the security of the interior of the city-state.
Responsibilities: The Chief-Polemarch is responsible for keeping the rolls of levy expectation up to date, organising the military affairs of the state, and leading the armed forces in times of combat. As well as this they manage the security of the interior of the city-state.
Euclid of Antachus
Responsibilities: The Chief-Navarch is technically responsible for all naval affairs in Jacra. However, bar a trickle of trade, there is virtually no navy. The only other part of the role that has some importance is the encompassing right to any and all naval salvage and flotsam.
Responsibilities: The Chief-Navarch is technically responsible for all naval affairs in Jacra. However, bar a trickle of trade, there is virtually no navy. The only other part of the role that has some importance is the encompassing right to any and all naval salvage and flotsam.
Honorifics: As modern as the Jacran state is, in many ways it is still a traditional and medieval society. Titles with little official power are still highly valued and, whilst not a part of government, still carry a great deal of influence.
Current Honorific Holders:
Dareios of Hereklus
Kassandra of Hereklus
Notable Clans:
The Clan of Aicer
Current Patriarch: Aristides
Members:
- Aristides
- Iason
- Epiphanios
- Herodes
Offices Held:
- High-Syndic - Aristides
- Chief-Apodektai - Iason
- Chief-Polemarch - Epiphanios
- Chief-Theorodokoi - Herodes
Brief History: The Aicer clan originated as a transient band of warriors who sold their services to other larger clans. Following the consolidation of Jacra the Aicer became embroiled with the political interests of Talins. Through financial and information aid they had a meteoric rise and now act as the political tools of the Talins in Jacra.
Rivalries and Bonds: Familial bond with Antachus and blood feud with Hereklus
The Clan of Antachus
Current Patriarch: Dion
Members:
- Dion
- Euclid
Offices Held:
- Chief-Hierophant - Dion
- Chief-Navarch - Euclid
Brief History:
Rivalries and Bonds:
The Clan of Hereklus
Current Patriarch: Dareios
Members:
- Dareios
- Kassandra
Offices Held:
- High-Archiater - Dareios
- Wild Sibyl - Kassandra
Brief History:
Rivalries and Bonds:
Capital Description: Jacra is a modest city, it's position by the coast and in the nook of the river Guero might suggest of useful naval trade links but with little investment into the development of land that often is host to bandits and warring clans and their retinue, the revenues of Jacra are diminished at the best of times and there is few reasons for extensive trade in Jacra. The populace is fairly well spread and , despite economic deficiency, the city does not suffer from much of the squalor that comes from wealth. And extensive public works are still the main currency of city-wide patronage.
History: The city-state of Jacra has a tumultuous and blood-soaked history. Originally the land was inhabited by clans of peoples who followed the leadership of the horse rearing elite. A man's worth was made in the horses he commanded and each clan would vie for resources and land. This practice evolved slowly over time as time and again High-Kings of the Jacrans were declared at intermittent points. This changed, however, when following the deposition of the last High-King there became a rejection of the idea of monarchy entirely. The pursuit of it had caused death and violence since as long as the records ran and so, during the Rejection of Monarchical Principle, a new system of government was enshrined.
The City-State of Jacra was henceforth a peasants republic, as only peasants served the common folk correctly. This system was, of course, flawed, and the previous families of landowning elite came to form the wealthy patron class that grew to dominate the new political sphere. In the previous decade Jacra has been thoroughly sidelined in business across the island of Styria, through the careful influence of Talins, and reduced to little more than a tributary. The next election will soon be upon the wilful people of Jacra, however, and time will tell if they reject their current lot of sub-ordinance.
Re-post to show I have finished (So far, I plan to add more when I get the time and more happens etc.) In regards to joint history any and all are welcome to drop me a line on how they stuck their nose into Jacra and fucked with it
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The Grand City of Borletta
The domain of the Grand Duke Duilius Bulgarelli di Borletta, or as he is known behind closed doors: the Mad Duke.
Borletta, the City of a Thousand Vices
This city by the sea has more than earned its enticing epithet. Its streets are infested with temptation, enough to make even the most pious of men buckle, and the most debauched blush. Its architecture, dominated by beautiful, white travertine stone gives the place an ironic, angelic appearance, which the historian Ardito Montagna remarked on in his work, A History of Borletta, and Her Sins:
"The city itself is beautiful beyond compare, the gem of the Azure Coast. Looking upon the city, and her brilliance can invoke in a man the feeling that he is looking upon the domain of angels, but that impression is false. For upon entering the walls of Borletta, you are accosted by pickpockets, and whores (often one in the same); you are bumped and jostled about without the slightest hint of remorse; and you are lucky to find yourself only penniless, and bruised before night's end."
Despite the harsh words Signore Montagna had for the city, Borletta remains a beloved destination for many travelers, especially Styrian nobles looking to leave their clean, and respectable courts behind for a time to indulge in the many pleasures the city has to offer. Borletta's main exports among the Styrian courts are fashion and beauty trends. New hairstyles, new dresses, new make-ups, new perfumes, all of them that matter come from Borletta's salons, workshops, and laboratories. While certainly being the most progressive of cities in regards to such matters, the same cannot be said for the matter of slavery. While most Styrian cities have long since outlawed the practice, Borletta has bucked that particular trend, instead wholeheartedly embracing the institution. Slaves can be found all over, from burly dockworkers heaving crates of goods, to petite, finely groomed and oiled servants waiting on the beck and call of debauched noblemen. Wherever you go in Borletta, the sound of chains follows you.
The Mad Duke
The Grand Duke of Borletta, Duilius Bulgarelli di Borletta, age twenty-two, is the black sheep of the family. From an early age, Duilius had a penchant for violence, and a fascination with pain, suffering, and power. He took well to lording his noble status above the servants, slaves, and paupers he considered below him. Apart from his 'quirks', as his mother insisted on calling his sadistic inclinations, Duilius appeared to be a model young Borlettan noblemen: bright, handsome, well-organized, witty, and stylish.
The second son of the former Grand Duke, Maximianus III, Duilius was slotted for a military career, his older brother - and only sibling - Maximianus IV was destined to follow in his father's footsteps, or so it seemed. Unfortunately, the Grand Duke's heir apparent fell terribly ill one winter when the city had become afflicted by a plague of consumption, which Maximianus IV soon succumbed to. This fateful death left the future of the city in the hands of Duilius, at the time only sixteen. The plague had also taken his mother, who the Grand Duke loved dearly (and who Duilius cared little for), leaving the already fleeting monarch weak, and in a state of despair. Less than a year after Maximianus III had lost his eldest son, and beloved wife, he died attending a summer feast under suspicious circumstances. While no evidence exists to indicate that Duilius had anything to do with his father's demise, that has not kept many among the courts, and among the citizens, from speculating.
Duilius was granted the title of Grand Duke of Borletta at the age of seventeen, and has spent the past five years working tirelessly in the pursuit of aggrandizing his city-state, and himself, with the ultimate goal of expanding beyond his current borders. The process of doing so has earned him no friends among the noble houses of his neighbor-states, especially that of the "Boar of Styria", who Duilius often refers to as a "boorish oaf", a vitriolic play on the warrior-duke's nickname. Relations are equally poor with the nation of Sipani to the south.
A Recent History of Borletta
Upon Grand Duke Duilius assuming his father's place in command of the city, he immediately began the arduous task of winning over the members of Borletta's noble assembly. Through raucous parties, underhanded donations, and less-than-subtle threats, he has managed to bring most of the city's politicians under his wing, though a few dissenters remain. The most notable of these is Cloelius Fermi, the head of the shipwright's guild in Borletta, and one of the richest men in the city. Duilius' father killed Cloelius' brother in a duel many years ago over a dispute of honor, and evidently the man holds a grudge. Unfortunately for the Grand Duke, the guildmaster's wealth affords him much sway among his fellow noblemen, allowing him to block the Grand Duke's proposed measures on a number of occasions.
[Work in progress. History will be expanded upon, and a flag will be added soon; just wanted to get my claim up. There may be a few spelling/grammar mistakes strewn throughout the post, forgive me, it's six in the morning.]
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Wondering if there are any openings for other cities, or if all have been taken? Was thinking of writing up a Most Serene Republic or a Transylvania (mountainous, hardy, history of... "arguing" with its neighbors)
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@TrinaisPop onto the discord. The dibs-list is up to date. I haven’t been on my PC to update this list yet.
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@Elssorry for the double post. Hope onto discord so we can chat further. I like the look so far but there are a couple bits we need to discuss.
Cheers!
Cheers!
The Serene City of Caprile
Ruled by Her Serenity, Dogessa Mahria Therene III (33)
Ruled by Her Serenity, Dogessa Mahria Therene III (33)
Her Most Serene Dogessa, inheritor of the city from her father, Doge Mikkle Therene, has ruled for some 8 years, though the Masters of the Banking Houses claim she has ruled for no less than 15. Doge Mikkle was feeble of mind for a long period of time and Mahria was able to manipulate her father into giving her command of the local militsia, the citizen levies. Long neglected in favor of expensive Talins mercenaries, court gossip saw her as a tomboy with ambitions beyond reality. There was even talk of supplanting her for the young prince Giovan when she refused to give up her military ways, but fate intervened when Giovan was struck down by the pox.
Mahria Therene ascended the throne at the age of 25 and immediately used her loyal militzia to secure the fealty of the Banking Houses and the lowland villages before launching a period of sustained combat and siege against the Highland lords and their fortresses. The banking houses saw she was capable of destroying the brutes in their forts and opened their pocketbooks to finance a true war to secure the city of Caprile.
Today, Mahria reigns in a shaky but largely independent city. The Banking Houses enjoy a new era of profits but quietly whisper and plot while the Dogessa remains unwed and has been dismissive of marriage prospects.
NO FLAG, NO COUNTRY!
A colony of Talins in all but name, Caprile's architecture reflects this in the everyday streets and stately buildings across the city. The Doge's palace is less a castle and more a manor home with minor fortifications and can only be spotted on the horizon from the stargazing tower, built by Doge Rian "The Mad" a century ago. The common folk's dwellings reflect the more stoic, basic needs of the people. Often made from heavy and plain stone to resist the sea gales that batter the coast, few dwellings rise above a second floor.
The Banking Row and its great houses, with their domes and windows of colored glass, line the dockside. Fitting, as they make their fortunes on which ships come to port and which sink at sea.
The Arsenal lining the river is the city's strongpoint. From here, every man and fit woman in their eighteenth year receive training with the militzia, with pike, crossbow, and sword and shield.
Long a vassal of the great city of Talins, Caprile's hill clans have served as mercenaries and brute enforcers for the greater city-states of the West while the mercantile interests in Caprile City have made small, incremental moves to secure more liberty for themselves and their city. The traditional hill-folk long dominated the politics of Caprile by dint of their mercenary ways- the survivors would bring back coin and loot from their ventures in trade for an arm, and eye, or a leg. Whenever Caprile's Doge tried to bring them to heel, the clans could retreat into mountain castles in the Fang Peaks until, waiting for their neighbors to answer the call and repel the lowland levies. The merchants of Caprile watched as their chances for independence and greater wealth came and went with every decade, feeding the city of Talins. Sitting at the mouth of the Capra river, the entrance to the Loranar valley- the great trade route to Borletta through the Fang Peaks, and with fertile pastures to the south to nurture the wool and textile trades, Caprile's greatness was always within its grasp- it needed only to break the dominance of the hill clans to seize it.
It took the wars of Lucius and Westport to break the impasse.
Called by the promise of plunder and pillage on a scale not seen in a generations, a full third of the highland clans marched to join the bloodbath. The merchants of Caprile realized that their chance had come and did not let it pass again. With a combination of men-at-arms, citizen levies, and Talins mercenaries, Caprile brought the lowland and highland villages into the fold of their new city-state while fending off opportunistic ventures from neighbors. The Highland clans returned from Westport to find the border closed to them- creating a stateless horde that was denied the food and fodder.
The past five years have seen sweeping changes come to Caprile. The mountain clans have been broken, with many descending to the lowlands for the promise of wealth through pasturing. Their mountain holdfasts have been seized by the Dogessa and turned into watchposts for the citizen-militia military. A fleet of trade-ships have been contracted to bring Caprile wool to workshops across the land, though the primary buyers are in Talins and Jacra.
To most of the other cities in the realm, Caprile is a subject of Talins that has grown into wealth and prestige- but still a servant to its more powerful master. The fortifications being raised along the Capra river and the development of a standing army in service to the Dogessa signals ambitions for true independence. It's only a matter of time before Talins must re-assert its dominance or suffer the consequences when the Dogessa publicly refuses a command from the Grand Duke...
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