[v.3.5] Fallenlands: Continent of Margoth-Nal

CRILIAN, CITY OF THE BURNING SUN
Crilian is one of the largest jann cities on the continent. It is also one of the most famous cities known throughout The Fallenlands. It is famous for its merchant lords and for its open-air bazaars. It is also famous for being one of the more tolerant jann cities: tolerant meaning “careful liberalism.” One should never question that the jann are in charge here, but one can find freedom on the streets of Crilian by working hard. Life in this city revolves around commerce and law, and one would be wise to learn its ways while visiting. The city gets its name from the pace of work that goes on here. Workers have been known to forget to protect themselves from the heat suffering sunburn and even sunstroke as a result. Visitors have been known to die from the heat while trying to keep up with the pace that Crilians set for themselves.

CRILIAN
Metropolis conventional/monstrous (emir/jann), nonstandard (mercantile guild); AL LN
GP Limit 100,000 gp; Assets 162,625,000
_____________________________________________
DEMOGRAPHICS
_____________________________________________
Population 32,525
Type mixed (79% jann, 9% hengeyokai, 5% bakemono, 3% kenku, 2% hadozee, 1% nagpa, 1% other races)
_____________________________________________
AUTHORITY FIGURES
_____________________________________________
Ahmet Zarrag, emir (LN male janni aristocrat 6 / trader 4); Tülay, vizier (NG female janni sorcerer 12); Ediz al-Quotti, merchant lord (N male janni fighter 5 / trader 5); Iskender ibn Firuz, merchant lord (LE male janni trader 12); Nizhoni, master of thieves (N female bakemono rogue 11); Suharto, merchant lord (LN male hengeyokai [dog] ranger 6 / trader 6); Ahar'ron, merchant lord (LG male nagpa trader 6 / wizard 7)
_____________________________________________
OTHER CHARACTERS
_____________________________________________
Hakan, monger (CG male half-janni hengeyokai [dog] trader 6); Wayra, city guide (LN male bakemono expert 5); Krikor, matrud (NE male kenku fighter 8); Utari al-Qirr, minstrel (N female hengeyokai [monkey] bard 11); Kalla bint Bansh, sailor (CN female hadozee rogue 10)

Locations
Emerald Pits: While slavery isn't common in Crilian, it isn't forbidden. In fact, it is a booming business that has expanded greatly since the end of the Age of Isolation. The one restriction is that no citizen of the city can become a slave without the direct intervention of the emir and the judges of the Abode of Law. And that citizen must committed treason against the city. The largest slavery business in known as the Emerald Pits. This huge complex houses over 5,000 slaves on a rotating daily basis and is more like a resort for those slaves that are in the highest demand. Mamluks, concubines, and trained scholars are the highest order of slaves available at the Emerald Pits.

House of Iskender: Iskender ibn Firuz is known as a ruthless trader who often bends the law to make a profit; however, he never breaks it. At least, no one has been able to prove that he's broken the complex trade laws of Crilian. The House of Iskender is a brooding edifice that is very un-jann-like. The house, more like an estate, stands over the Emir's Souk like some sort of stalking beast of the Ong Jungle. The house looks like the Temple of Elemental Evil crossed with Persian architectural style.

House of Zarrag: The home of Emir Ahmet Zarrag stands opposite the House of Iskender on the other side of the Emir's Souk. The House of Zarrag is both grand and traditionally jann in style. No one would mistake it for just another janni lord's home. Many in the city call it the Emir's Palace, but no one in the house itself would ever call it that in front of the emir. He is truly humble for a jann and believes that it is the rule of law and tradition that guides the city. He is the city's caretaker not its lord and master. This makes him beloved by all of the people but disliked by many of the merchant lords.

Parched Pier: As a port city, Crilian has dozens of docks and piers but none like the berth known as the Parched Pier. The pier is the busiest set of docks in the city and activity often begins before dawn and last well beyond dusk on most days. The captains, dockworkers and sailors of the Parched Pier often set their own break-neck pace in order to bring in the best trade from all over the continent and beyond. The end of the Age of Isolation has brought about a huge boom of business by sea. Crilian sea captains are becoming well known in Merria, the Dark Continent, and even as far away as Triadora. The most successful of these captains anchor their ships at the Parched Pier. The pier gets its name for the many water barrels that sailors use after coming back from long voyages. The water in these barrels isn't the best but its free and wet. Some sailors have died waiting for a chance to get their turn at one of the water barrels.

The Abode of Law: This structure is where the business of the city takes place. Crilian has a very complex yet fluid set of laws when it comes to commerce. The merchant lords work tirelessly to protect the wealth of the city from hit-and-run traders hoping to strike it rich in the city. Protecting the average citizen doesn't usually come into play unless that citizen is being preyed upon by an outlander. The Abode of Law handles all aspects of law in the city, however, not just law that applies to commerce. The head judge in the city is Jamal al-Ishkira (LN male janni expert 10), and he doesn't play favorites even when dealing with the merchant lords.

The Bizarre Bazaar: While Crilian is famous for its various bazaars, the Bizarre Bazaar is the city's major claim to fame throughout The Fallenlands, and now that the Age of Isolation is over, the fame of this bazaar has spread as far as Merria and the lands of the Dark Continent. Located near the heart of the city, the Bizarre Bazaar is as large as the city's other half-a-dozen or so bazaars combined. The bazaar lives up to its name in many ways. Most notably, it can be said that when you think you've seen everything that there is to see in the Bizarre Bazaar, you will come across a kiosk that contains the weirdest thing you've ever seen. This has become even more true since the end of the Age of Isolation.

The Emir's Souk: This permanent marketplace would never be mistaken for the Bizarre Bazaar. The Emir's Souk is as grand a marketplace as its name sounds. It is only for the wealthiest of they city's citizenry, which makes it both exclusive and expensive. You may not be able to find anything in the souk, but you can find exotic animals, goods and services, and magic within its protected walls. The souk is almost like an open-air fortress of commerce. It is guarded at all hours of the day, and its vendors have the best security in the city. However, the souk feels open and inviting and has some of the best shaded courtyards in the city. As long as a visitor has the wealth and/or status, he or she is welcome in the Emir's Souk.

Tülay's Spire: The emir's vizier has her own home, a grand spire that rises high above the rest of the city. The emir had this spire built for her at great expense to his personal fortune. Many in the city believe that he loves her as much as he respects her council. Even if it is true, Tülay has never shown any sign that her relationship with the emir is anything but professional. Tülay's Spire is more than a home; it is also the center of magical research and lifestyle in the city. True wizards are rare in the city as the emir doesn't trust them, so he and Tülay often rely on other arcanists to provide the city with magical support — bards, elementalists, and sorcerers. These arcanists often gather at the spire for important council meetings and social events. Being invited to an event at the spire can make or break an arcanist's career in Crilian.

ASKINESIKS, CITY OF BLACK GLASS
Visitors should tread lightly in the City of Black Glass. This jann dominated city has existed under the unyielding presence of a truly evil Imperial Family of jann for hundreds of years. The head of this family is considered to be the Overlord for Life of the city for as long as he (or she) lives. Currently, there isn't an official Overlord as the last one died (murdered, actually) before his son was old enough to officially claim the title (by killing him). The city is currently ruled by the Prince's mother who is to act as regent until he comes of age. The last Overlord, Hakim ibn Ilhami, was murdered by an assassin that was never caught but most believe that it was the city's efreeti vizier who paid for the deed to be done. He and the regent now control the city absolutely, and they are not likely to give it up without a fight. The Prince has very few loyal servants willing to oppose the duo openly, so the Prince waits and bides his time.

Therefore, Askinesiks is a city under martial law and in the grips of an evil and power hungry nobility. The city thrives on slavery and the mining of obsidian from the nearby deposits in the Volcanic Lands. Obsidian is very valuable in The Fallenlands, almost as valuable as silver and copper. Only gold is worth more and that is a rare commodity indeed. Therefore, the Regent and the Vizier dictate a mining pace that kills dozens of slaves every week. As a result more slaves are brought into the city on a daily basis, and the flow of humanoid suffering here is painful for outsiders to endure — even more so if they decry the current situation as it will likely end in them being enslaved too. Note that there are good people here but most of them are terrified of the Vizier and the army of slayers that are rumored to be at his command.

ASKINESIKS
Large City conventional / monstrous (regent / jann); AL LE
GP Limit 40,000; Assets 37,000,000
_____________________________________________
DEMOGRAPHICS
_____________________________________________

Population 18,500
Type isolated (96 % jann, 2% bakemono, 1% mongrelfolk, 1% other races)
_____________________________________________
AUTHORITY FIGURES
_____________________________________________
Alia umm Ala'i, regent (LE female janni wizard 10); Ala'i bin Hakim, prince (LN male janni aristocrat 2); Diyab al-DuZabān, vizier (LE male efreeti aristocrat 2 / cleric 6 [Kossuth]); Mendulk, master of the Forge (NE male mongrelfolk expert 10); Eglath al-Huini, mamluk (LN male goliath fighter 8 / mamluk 4)
_____________________________________________
OTHER CHARACTERS
_____________________________________________
Christelle, body slave (NG female human [Coeurdîan] expert 8); Mahtab, concubine (N female janni rogue 6); Aqissiaq, pit fighter (CG male bakemono warrior 6); Sacagawea, shop owner (CN female bakemono adept 5); Zabel, freedom fighter (CG female kenku rogue 10)

Locations
House of Black Glass: This structure is the meeting-place of the faceless, secretive order that controls the city's day-to-day mining activity in the Volcanic Lands. They answer directly to Regent Alia umm Ala'i and have a mandate of wealth before the living. As a result they often work the slaves allocated to them to the brink of death; they only stop production when the number of deaths rises to the point to be unprofitable. Members of the Black Glass discourage freelancers from mining obsidian anywhere near the holdings of the Imperial Family, and since the Regent considers everything she can see from Askinesiks walls to be the property of the Imperials, those holdings are vast. The truth is that the members of this order are a bunch of hired thugs who will go to any length to locate, steal, and/or unearth obsidian for the coffers of the Imperial Family.

Maidān: Askinesiks, like many cities in The Fallenlands, has an open-air arena that is used for special performances and city events. The Maidān is located near the Obsidian Gate on the western side of the city. It is used mainly for gladiatorial combats and slave markets now, but it was used as a race and parade-ground in the past. Many of the previous Overlords were fond of grandiose events, and the Maidān is where such events were traditionally held. The grounds are in severe disrepair and stink of death and the unwashed. For when the Red Caravanserai overflows with slaves, it is the Maidān where they end up chained together in groups of ten to twenty against the freestanding pillars located throughout the arena.

Obsidian Gild: While the Regent has her own secret police in the members of the Black Glass, her militant followers are nothing compared to the members of the Obsidian Gild. It is rumored that the secret guild house of this group of assassins is located somewhere less than 200 feet from the Palace of the Overlord. However ,it is also rumored that the guild house moves from location-to-location within the city from year-to-year. Regardless of where the headquarters of the Obsidian Gild is located, it is likely one of the securest locations in Askinesiks. Note that, officially, the assassins of the Obsidian Gild are outlawed in the city, but in truth, they are directly controlled by Vizier Diyab al-DuZabān. It was the Obsidian Gild that assassinated Overlord Hakim on the orders of the Vizier, and it is these assassins who constantly threaten the life of the Prince. There has never been any proof that implicates the guild, but everyone in the city believes it is true.

Palace of the Overlord: In the center of Askinesiks stands the home of the Imperial Family. The Palace of the Overlord is a grandiose and intimidating structure that has stood since the founding of the city near the beginning of the Age of Isolation. It has withstood countless wars and unnatural disasters of every sort. It and the Imperial Family has survived famines, plagues, and hundreds of coup attempts. The palace is built like a fortress and is guarded at all times by steadfast, fanatical mamluks. The leader of the mamluks is a goliath named Eglath al-Huini whose loyalty to the Prince is unwavering. It is this huge man who has been responsible for keeping the Prince safe from the assassins that constantly threaten him. Eglath knows that the Vizier wants the Prince dead, yet as a slave warrior he can only oppose the evil efreeti by protecting the Prince's life. The Prince has other allies in the palace including his mother's body slave, an outlander girl named Christelle. This human beauty often spies on the Regent for the Prince, and she is his lover as well.

Red Caravanserai: Askinesiks has always been a city that accepts slavery, but in the past there were limits to how brutal the commerce of slavery was. The last Overlord believed in the (bottom line) value of slaves, and those that abused their slaves too much were often sanctioned. Under the Regent's rule there aren't any sanctions. The slave trade has taken over the city in many awful ways. One of the worst changes was the construction of the Red Caravanserai near the entrance of the Slave Gate on the eastern side of the city. This caravanserai is designed in the traditional fashion — a square building with a single, wide entryway with a courtyard that is open to the sky. The interior walls of the enclosed sections are laid out in an orderly fashion with numerous identical stalls and chambers. However, that is where the similarity to a roadside caravanserai ends and the similarity to a slave bazaar begins. The Red Caravanserai isn't designed for the comforts of travelers. It is designed to keep a maximum number of slaves available for sale yet separated from each other in small groups. The caravanserai is divided by the needs of the purchaser, so different types of slaves are kept in separate stalls. The Red Caravanserai has the feel of a marketplace, but it is a marketplace of misery.

The Below: While the city and its Palace has stood the test of time, many of its residents and other structures haven't been so lucky. Many parts of the city are located in areas that are slowly sinking into the sand, and the worst areas suffer under the worst of this condition, which happens on a yearly basis. Sinkholes are common in areas that not important enough to repair in the eyes of the Imperial Family. Quicksand is a problem too, but such areas are very rare. Regardless, as the old sinks, new construction is built over top of the old. In many place these old abandoned buildings simply become encased in sand and debris, but some have survived to become a labyrinth of dungeons under the city known as al-Pāyin or the Below. These ruined chambers are often unstable and many are haunted the undead spirits of those who refused to abandon their homes. It is also common practice in Askinesiks to bury those who have died under the city, so some of these catacombs have become grisly graveyards. There are rumors of mass graves deep under the earth of buried slaves and/or famine victims from ages past. Some of the Below is now occupied by freedom fighters such as the nagpa named Zabel. She and her allies hide from the Obsidian Gild in the catacombs of the Below. Many past Overlords have also been buried in the Below including the last Overlord. The location of this Imperial chamber is a guarded secret, and those who trespass there risk death not by execution but by the undead hands of Overlord Hakim ibn Ilhami (CE male janni [dry lich] elementalist [earth] 12) who now haunts the Imperial catacomb. The Regent would be horrified by what her former husband has become and the Vizier would likely be terrified by what the undead Overlord would do to him if freed.

The Forge: The name of this structure is a bit of a misnomer. The Forge is where the city's obsidian is refined into art objects, coins, gems, tools, and weapons. The wealthiest citizens prefer to look at themselves in mirrors made of obsidian instead of normal glass, and they adorn themselves with gold and obsidian jewelry. All of these items are made at the Forge, a huge complex filed with skilled craftsmen and slave workers alike. The Forge is run by a vicious mongrelfolk named Mendulk who betrayed his entire tribe to the Order of the Black Glass. His reward was to be hauled away with his people as a slave; however, he managed to gain his freedom through guile and hard work and now he is the Master of the Forge. Everyone in the complex answers to him in one way or another, and he is nearly as rich as some of the city's nobility. He is the personal toady of the Vizier, and he hates the Prince almost as much as the efreeti lord does. The Forge is located in the northwest part of the city.

OTHER GODS
This section is getting revised... significantly.

• Aies (see below)
• Cagn
• Dhidbin
• Istredhos
• Jamshid
• Meph
• Ra’po
• Sel’ik’ku
• Thoren
• Turuk

---

Aies
The Aeolian, The Air and the Wind, Deity of Storms, The Sirocco, Squall and Zepher, Summer Breeze, Varied Winds

Greater Deity
Symbol: An upward-pointing triangle, bisected by a horizontal line
Home Plane: Elemental Air
Godly Realm: House of the Wind
Alignment: True neutral
Portfolio: Air-based outsiders, air elementals, creatures that can fly, djinn, Elemental Air, rainbows, the sky, storms, vapour, weather, wind
Worshippers: Air elementalists, the baklath, chromithians, desert dwellers, djinn, dragonkin, <fremlins>, jann & cheitan jann, the sahne, some <nagpas>, tengus, wind lovers
Cleric Alignments: LN, NG, N, NE, CN
Domains: Air, Balance, Cloud, Ethereal, Obscuration, Storm, Twilight, Weather
Favoured Weapon: Longbow/composite longbow

Aies is the Fallenlanden Deity of the Air and the Wind. They are known by many titles: The Aeolian, Squall and Zepher, and Summer Breeze. However, their most often used title is The Sirocco. Aies is worshipped by almost any intelligent creature that can fly, which includes not only djinn and jann, but also the bakleth, chromithians, dragonkin, <fremlins>. and tengus. <Nagpas> are less likely to worship Aies since they cannot fly.

Aies faith is strongest among the desert dwellers of the Fallenlands, and many of the sahne halflings consider the deity a patron of sorts. Their caravans pray to Aies for good weather and gentle breezes. As the Deity of Storms, Aies can sometime be seen as a vengeful deity, so many desert dwellers pay respect to the Varied Winds everyday at sunrise.