Designing Cities For Giants!

[SHARK]

Greetings!

I am currently in the process of designing a kingdom of cloud giants, who rule a kingdom that includes several cities located on the ground in a mountainous region covered in lush rainforests--(similar to what is found in Peru)--as well as a city that floats in the air on an enchanted island.

What kind of magical effects and defenses would such a floating giant city have in your view? How do you design giant cities in your own campaigns? In addition, what kind of economic and political effects would such a giant kingdom have in the surrounding campaign environment?

Semper Fidelis,

SHARK

 

[Emiricol]

Such a city could be a voracious consumer of raw resources, so it would have to buy a LOT (no country around it to support it!) of metals, woods, foodstuff, etc. Since it is mobile, it could go where the best deals are. If I ruled such a city, I'd demand favorable trade arrangements, and have chartered companies - perhaps selling licenses to trade with the city?

Politically, it would have to act, in places it traded in, as an additional power center, I'd imagine. They'd want spies to find who's price gouging them, where the best deals are, etc. Heck, I could see them having a setup in human lands a lot like a rogue guild in a city, without necessarily all the rogues

Maybe the gates and insides of the floating city are imbued with a permanent reduction spell with contingent on being Large size or greater. I mean, real estate in the air must be at a premium

 

[LuYangShih]

That depends on how you rule the biological functions of Giants work. If they are essentially huge Humans, they would consume a great deal of resoureces, but it is entirely possible that is not the case. Such is for a DM to decide in his own world, of course.

I would assume such a city would have absolutely monolithic fortifications, dwarfing that of Human cities. That alone would make it far more difficult to invade. When I have the time, I will give more in depth thoughts. I really am impressed with the level of dedication and detail that goes into your world, I must say.

 

[Tonguez]

IMC Giants have much slower metabolisms than humans and so don't eat or that much more (say twice as much overall) this is because they eat huge amounts in one sitting but then spend the next few weeks/months digesting (and consequently sleeping -hence all the legends of Giants being slain in their sleep))

If your Cloud Giants fit a similar model then I suspect that they would need two things - Agents able to deal with the World below and bring their Bimonthly feasts, and defenses to keep them safe while sleeping (IMC a 20 ft giant sleeps for at least 3 days in every 4).

Thus the giants are an aloof and distant nobility whom the small races below rarely see and whose power is that of threat and legend.

Real power is in the hands of the agents below - who are appointed by the giants but who are otherwise left to rule as long as they bring the giants what they need (ie food)

The idea of Gigantic Architecture suits the Fantastic Image of Cloud Giants and thus their Palaces are huge complexes with thick outerwalls. I'd combine the look of the Taj Mahal with gigantic guardian golems at the gates. The complex would include a large audience chamber with a high central dome (vaulted ceilings fit giant architecture imo) with balconies all around that allow ambassadors from small races to interact with them.

Defenses would include maybe some loyal pets (Griffons, giant eagles, dragons?) as well as magics designed either to rouse them from sleep or make their walls impenetrable um

.. I'll keep thinking - gotta go work now

 

[Varianor Abroad]

Wow, nice ideas! Your explanation of the sleeping and eating cycles is a clever one.

As to your question, I think force fields is the only solution. Force fields with massive scrying protection to stop assassination teleports and fireballs and so forth. They would be strategically placed in all major areas and strongholds.

One idea for offenses would be huge boulders with a returning enchantment on them. Even giants don't want to have to go pick up boulders all the time. [Warning. Don't do this if you have extremely clever PCs. I'm sure you'll regret it when they find a way to steal and use them.]

The giants would probably employ smaller winged races for scouting and skirmishing.

There's a city in the clouds in Book of Eldritch Might III. Granted it's for humans, but I'd suggest checking it out for spells and more ideas.

The political/economic effects of a cloud giant city entirely depend on the game. It could be a pre-eminent place where many races and lands pay tribute. Or it could be just an oversized city. Chances are that the giants have either subjugated the areas below their city or have deals for meat and food. Otherwise there would be a panic every time a big cloud moved in to disgorge giant paratroopers coming in for hunting!

Oh, if the city's permanent, what's underneath the shadow of it? Giant mushrooms and things that like growing in the dark?

 

[Dr. Strangemonkey]

A giant floating cloud city would be the uber-Venice.

Think about it, invasion is practically impossible to pull off, and you're people are going to be straight up consumers which gives them special incentive to be better educated and aggressive traders, manufacturers, and entrepeneurs. Your protected position coupled with high degree of mobility makes you the ultimate banking centre and home to wealthy exiles.

Now, that's all stuff that Venice and this city have in common.

What this city has as an advantage is a high degree of mobility in and of its own right and, potentiall, a high degree of control over the weather.

Were I this city, I would set the cloud on a roughly regular cyclical route, whereever you go you hold vast trade fairs. The city is the ultimate merchant ship and clearing house, supported by its own fleet of cloud ships or aerial travellers. In the end you get the vast profits and economic control created by the medieval French, German, English, and Italian system of markets and fairs.

Now, add to this that the very base of your city is a vast store house in which you collect moisture. You can then sell a regular and dependable source of water and rain.

Even using it as a strategic weapon by which you can ruin competitors crops or river systems.

Oh, the wealth and power....

 

[Dr. Strangemonkey]

In terms of defense, the terrain is entirely at these Giants command. Just change it around a lot to make teleportation assaults less likely.

Not your biggest worry anyways, this is a city where the merest commoner is something like an 8th level encounter.

Keep a lot of flying ships around and a good detection system. With valor, will, and cunning you should do all right.

 

[green slime]

I have floating cloud "cities" controlled by giants. But their presence is unknown to the large majority of humankind. Human leaders covet these citidels of course, but such is the power of the giants, that taking one over would be a major undertaking. (but knowing your Epic world SHARK, nothing beyond the capabilties of your players, or the Empire). However, given the strength of the entire giant kingdom (the captial of which is located near the south pole), any such measure would cause a great deal of strife and misfortune for the aggressor.

As the capabilities (numbers, whereabouts, abilities) of the giants are unknown only the foolish would launch an invasion upon one of their vessels. No non-giant has ever been recorded as visiting one of these cities, and great care is taken that the information available is misinformation, conflicting rumours and innuendo.

Part of the defences IMC is a requirement for a giant to control the movements, and appearance of the city. Also, most giants would rather crash the citidel into a valauble piece of real estate than let it fall into enemy hands.

Epic level Spells preventing scrying and interdimensional access are standard. (The harsh weather conditions near the pole are part of the defenses of that area. Actually within the capital reigns a permanent pleasant Spring weather.)

The eternal war with the Giants is what drove the Dwarves underground in the first place.

 

[Maldur]

Giant floating city thoughts:

A floating city is not the easiest to enlarge, so it stays at the same size most of its existance. Planning for more citizen could result in sections with empty buidlings or no building eyt.

A Floating city has to be made from something. So somewhere there will be a "floating city-Yard" (like a shipyard only for floating cities) with massive quarries nearby, a giant sized floating city even more so. It could even be a mountain afloat, so somewhere a mountain is missing.

How are the giants entering and leaving the city? and how are resources transported up? Water? Food?

 

[green slime]

My cities are made from cloud... I suppose you could have a mine of cloud ore somewhere.

Water and food are created through magic. THese are highly magical beings, IMC. Not much want in their cities. Nor much interest in earthbound conflicts either. Probably why most of the population has never heard of them.

Leave? You fly down. They could also create a cloud ladder to facilitate access should someone not have the ability to fly, if they wanted to.