The Free City of Sunken Lund
From Aparsus
Contents |
[edit] Location
Sunken Lund is located at the mouth of the Great River, Kardath, in the swampy lowland known as the Kardath Delta, located near the edge of the Desert Anacht and over-looking the Shining Sea. Two roads lead into Lund - the Shifting Path, a half-ruined road constructed by the Ancients in the Anacht, and the March of Amrus, constructed by the Oligarchs of Eldeer on behalf of the famed merchant-prince Amrus. Despite its width and sturdy construction, the March of Amrus is only marginally less treacherous than travel through the open swampland surrounding Lund, as much of the road has sunk into the swamps, or is haunted by the ghosts of the slaves who died building it.
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[edit] Factions in Lund
Lund's rulership is, at best, lax. It exists primarily to protect the city, enforcing only a handful of laws important to ensuring Lund's survival as a hub for trade throughout the South. As a result, factionalism - both within the government itself and throughout the city - is fierce, and a fairly constant level of low-grade warfare exists between and among the factions of the city.
[edit] The Triumvar
The three merchant-houses of Amrian, Garuus and Tilm for the Triumvar. Originally a trade organization established to capitalize on the wealth flowing into the city, the Triumvar has - over time - grown into something of a "merchant's guild" for those seeking to trade in Lund. Though the city itself does not tax the sale of any goods, the Triumvar requires that a licensing fee be paid by any merchant seeking to sell their wares within the city walls. These fees make up the majority of the city's profits, though a fair share fall into the Triumvar's coffers as well.
[edit] The Noble Houses
House Ruuntele and House Vynaln have ruled Lund since antiquity, and though their power has waned since the abolition of the position of Archon, they are still the oldest and most recognizable source of authority within the city - dominating Lunds diplomatic and military corps as they have for generations. The two houses are close allies, though conflicts of interest do arise quite frequently, most Lundians regard this as something akin to lovers' spats or a quarrel between an old married couple, as an example of how intertwined the two houses have become in the minds of their subjects.
[edit] The Pirate Kings
The "conquest" of Lund by the Pirate Kings would have been comical, had it not led to some of the bloodiest street fighting Lund had ever previously seen. Since the Compact of Shadows, the Pirate Kings stay mostly to the Gravewatch - the platform city that they built atop the Graves, near the Nyssian docks. Despite their name, the Pirate Kings are rarely actually pirates - though they still profit considerably from smuggling goods and people into other parts of the South. Instead, they derive their power from a mixture of elements - they are heavily invested in mercantile pursuits, of which smuggling is only one, and they provide the bulk of Lund's considerable merchant marine, an important duty due to the prevalence of actual pirates, not to mention the creatures that emerge periodically into the harbour through the Gate to the Domain of Akhavesh.
[edit] The Syndics
The Syndics are as close to a crime family as one can get in a city with so few laws. They specialize in smuggling goods under the Triumvar's tariffs, as well as controlling the gambling houses, brothels, arenas and other vice dens of the city. The Syndics are largely tolerated for the services that they provide, but the Council of Lords watches them closely, and Syndics that stray too far outside the body of Lund's laws find themselves the target of the Hounds.
The sticking point that keeps the Syndics from becoming an open organization within Lund is their support of theft and protection rackets, both of which can be bad for business within the city if they get out of hand, and both of which earn the fences and legbreakers of the Syndicate a swift trip to the depths of the Archonium.
[edit] The Cult of Ahrunes
The Cult of Ahrunes did not die in the Great Storm, though many of its adherents were killed during the Storm and its aftermath. Hidden in the Undercity and some of the less damaged parts of the Graves, it has thrived and grown in secret, waiting for the day that they can complete the destruction of Lund and finally wipe the last living trace of the Ancients off the world. The Council is quick to act on any rumour of the Cult, and often sends Hounds into the Graves on Cult-breaker missions.
[edit] The Hounds
The Hounds are the hands of the Council. Very little else can be said about them, save that they are the most feared enforcers and warriors in Lund - the elite soldiers and executors of the Council's will and the law of Lund. A visit from a Council Hound rarely ends happily for the individual so blessed, for the Hounds are only sent to resolve the most dangerous situations, or to deal with those who have proven intractable to the Council's other methods of persuasion.
[edit] The War Guild
The War Guild of Lund was established shortly after the Red Tide, and is one of the south's pre-eminent mercenary organizations. Its members will take any contract, and are trained as true warriors and soldiers at the Fist of Iron, a black tower that justs over the Nyssian Quarter. The War Guild tends to stay out of politics whenever possible, but it's not rare for its members to be hired to back up Council Hounds, or to fight in one of the petty wars between the factions.
[edit] Locations in Lund
[edit] The Dams of the Archon
The Dams of the Archon form a ring around the city of Lund, broken only where the Great Storm tore through them, for the people of Lund lacked the resources to repair them. The Dams no longer function due to the damage sustained during the Great Storm, but now serve another purpose - living quarters. Space being a premium in the city, the tops of the dams were converted into estates for the wealthiest of Lund's citizens, interspersed with strong fortifications in case someone is foolish enough to try to scale the Dams. Inside the Dams, where once the lock controls worked ceaselessly, the poor of Lund live amidst the dripping, water-soaked catacombs. Few people who do not live in the Dams travel there, for the estates atop have some of the best security in Lund, while the tunnels inside are home to the poorest of the poor - beggars and swindlers - and more than a few monsters in the depths.
[edit] The Graves
The Graves are those areas of the city utterly destroyed by the Great Storm, including the areas that sank beneath the Shining Sea. Few people make their lives in the Graves, save for scattered gangs of bandits and street urchins, and the only two settled neighbourhoods are the Gravewatch, a flotilla of wooden platforms built from and around the seven ships of the Pirate-Kings, and the Irridonian Grotto Temple District, an undersea Irridonian ghetto.
[edit] The Fist of Iron
The training center and headquarters of the War Guild, a black tower made entirely out of iron that was originally built by the Ancients as a barracks for the local guard. Most of the barracks areas are intact and still in use, and the War Guild has dug deep beneath the Fist to create the perfect training ground for new recruits.
[edit] The Crater
The Crater is one of Lund's biggest attractions. A "typical" Southlander gladiatorial arena writ large, it is the biggest of its kind in the entire Southland, and gladiators from all over civilization come to the Crater to compete. The area around the Crater is known as Blade Street, and it's abuzz day and night with the sound of hammers forging new weapons and armour, gamblers carousing in the brothels and taverns, and slave gladiators training in their owner's stable-houses.
