How big are the biggest cities in your campaign world?

[Voadam]

Can I raise a practical question at this point?

What do those 7.8 million Dwarves do for food?

Underdark civilization food chains can require a bit of fantasy solutions.

I went with vast fungal vats and giant blind cave fish farms for an undermountain/underdark mountain dwarf kingdom in my game.

 

[Lanefan]

Underdark civilization food chains can require a bit of fantasy solutions.

I went with vast fungal vats and giant blind cave fish farms for an undermountain/underdark mountain dwarf kingdom in my game.

Yeah, plus a lot of trade with the surface. But even then, feeding 7.8 million people all in one place - where at the same time the surface cultures can't sustain population centers over about 50K - seems a bit beyond the pale.

 

[Tonguez]

Yeah, plus a lot of trade with the surface. But even then, feeding 7.8 million people all in one place - where at the same time the surface cultures can't sustain population centers over about 50K - seems a bit beyond the pale.

thats assuming human metabolisms too, which fantasy creatures dont have to match. for instance imc giants have very slow metabolisms which is also why in stories they are so often asleep - they required days worth of sleep to metabolise the food they eat, so although a single giant meal seems large, they then spend longer digesting it, so on average the eat about the same as a human.

perhaps Dwarfs absorb nutrients directly from rock via chemosynthesis. Dwarf mining is food harvesting

 

[gamerprinter]

Well I have one ecumenopolis (planet city), though it's entirely underground called New Dublin with 1.4 trillion population, mix of humans and dozens of alien species, the most populous location of Colonial Space, it's the military capital, with the largest orbiting naval yard in this sector, but not the adminstative capital. Below is a view of a small part of the city, but this is everywhere in a labrynth of tunnels and half water filled acquifers. Instead of skyscrapers, it features artificial construction like hexagonal basalt columns clinging to each other and the tunnel walls.

 

[Voadam]

thats assuming human metabolisms too, which fantasy creatures dont have to match. for instance imc giants have very slow metabolisms which is also why in stories they are so often asleep - they required days worth of sleep to metabolise the food they eat, so although a single giant meal seems large, they then send longer digesting it so on average the eat about the same as a human.

perhaps Dwarfs absorb nutrients directly from rock via chemosynthesis. Dwarf mining is food harvesting

Yeah, but the underdark drow have no sunlight for their elvish photosynthesis so you are back to square one.

 

[J.Quondam]

perhaps Dwarfs absorb nutrients directly from rock via chemosynthesis. Dwarf mining is food harvesting

That works especially well if the world is made of chocolate cake.

 

[John Dallman]

That works especially well if the world is made of chocolate cake.

That threatened to happen in my Amber Diceless Roleplaying campaign.

 

[Fifinjir]

Now that I think about it, my largest city could go for a few million. Mostly because it’s the gathering place for the undead and thus needs little in the way of food. Among the living, Vanalesse at its height could hold a million, but now it’s a home to beasts, demons, and scavengers.

 

[Dioltach]

Can I raise a practical question at this point?

What do those 7.8 million Dwarves do for food?

Troll meat. Every family keeps a troll, and just carves off what they need.

 

[Voadam]

Troll meat. Every family keeps a troll, and just carves off what they need.