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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Gilladian" data-source="post: 5950081" data-attributes="member: 2093">Thanks, everyone! Keep the info rolling! I've been reading up on Greek City states, and will check into the medieval German free towns, as well.I run an E6 campaign, so only up to 3rd level magic, and low prevalence of magic items. I'm intending the city-state region to be located on a LARGE island (say 300 by 900 miles or more) in a subtropical climate. It is somewhat isolated from the mainland, but not absolutely; sea traffic is seasonal and depends on the frequency of storms, pirates and sea-monsters...The island could probably support a population of around 1 to 1.5 million, if my calculations are close to correct, at the medieval-type agricultural level; perhaps the humanoid population would be as much as 2 - 2.5 million counting tribes of orcs, goblins, etc...My idea is that there have been successive waves of invasion over the past several thousand years; each wave comes in, conquers some portion of the island, and establishes one or more cities. Then for whatever reason (mainly the isolated nature of the region) the invaders never consolidate their hold on the island, and they end up forming one more city-state, just keeping their culture going. Magic and/or the Gods could play a role in this recurring historical series of events.So there are a number of cities that were founded by various different cultural and racial groups, and none are particularly "indigenous" to the island, except that after 500 or 1000 years, people forget where they came from!One city, in the most mountainous central region of this otherwise fairly low-lying island, is controlled by the island's "original" inhabitants; the dwarves. They're an extremely lawful people with very rigid views, locked into their belief that ONLY they have the TRUE right to rule the island. LN leadership, with some LE tendencies... They're the metal and stoneworking folk, of course. They are also the single largest city, and are fairly warlike.Another region (the southern end of the island) is fairly desertlike- it supports only small villages and semi-nomadic herders who raise the giant flightless birds that are used instead of horses on the island. These folk remember their seafaring origins, and would return to the sea, if only they knew what they had done to offend the sea-goddess...So far, that's all I've come up with. More ideas very welcome!</blockquote>

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