Mercantile Isles
A busy part of Geata-Iarainn that many would never traverse or visit. Home to only a few more than Castellon Heights, only the second most populated region, and notable portions of that are tied to the church, as well of course as workers in the busy Mercantile Isle that lends the Cori-Clan its name. The smells of the sea, the horns and shouts of command, the various back and forth of dock officials and staff and sailors and captains. A never-ending cacophony of noise and activity.
This district is the hub of naval traffic, the place many ships are in and out all day, cargo being disembarked or loaded, constant movement of goods both in and out. It is the beating heart of the busiest port in all of Suranth. The static population of this district may not seem high, however Mercantile Isle also has a half dozen inns, adding to the others present in the Dockside districts, and they are oft full to the brink nightly. The ports here are rarely any less than three quarters full at any given moment, night and day, and during the middle of the day, the busiest time frames, it is often a bit of a traffic jam inside the Inner Baysides, with vessels directed to wait in situ, anchor down for a time to keep them from drifting, as traffic needs to be organized and directed and vessels currently moored need to depart. The only district that may be equally as busy within this industrious city is Railside, as one might expect, due to the railyards.
This district is the hub of naval traffic, the place many ships are in and out all day, cargo being disembarked or loaded, constant movement of goods both in and out. It is the beating heart of the busiest port in all of Suranth. The static population of this district may not seem high, however Mercantile Isle also has a half dozen inns, adding to the others present in the Dockside districts, and they are oft full to the brink nightly. The ports here are rarely any less than three quarters full at any given moment, night and day, and during the middle of the day, the busiest time frames, it is often a bit of a traffic jam inside the Inner Baysides, with vessels directed to wait in situ, anchor down for a time to keep them from drifting, as traffic needs to be organized and directed and vessels currently moored need to depart. The only district that may be equally as busy within this industrious city is Railside, as one might expect, due to the railyards.
Demographics
As usual, mostly human and dwarves, though the dwarven population by percentage is notably lower, with humans dominating massively in this district, specifically those of Renarii heritage, a tidy community of imports to the city.
Points of interest
The Mercantile Isles are by and large an industrial and commercial district and thus, though there are half a dozen inns and bunkhouses they are not generally the sort to highlight for tourism reasons or point of interest reasons because they are usually well and heavily booked, full to the brim, nightly with the crews of the ships coming into port. Most places in this district would be either residential compounds or industry and shipping compounds and dockyards that would not really be regular places people would be attempting to visit. In that way, it is an unsung district in Geata-Iarainn when discussing the city and its locales, for though such places are not your typical destinations or curiosities, the district has enough importance that it deserves to be acknowledged.
Though they do not have a proper entry, the larger sister to this wall, the Outer Baysides, is the one that naturally gets the most attention. These monstrous walls, anchored via the efforts of master magisters of the Topaz and Sapphire, act as equal parts levy and security. The outer ones tower some seventy feet above the surf line, and though the walls aren't solid below, with reinforced sluice and tunnels for currents and wildlife, importantly they are blockades for naval approaches.
The Inner Baysides, though not as tall are no less equally cunning in their construction and serve a similar purpose. Rising some thirty or so feet above the surf line, they act as a second line of defense, a fallback point if needed, and a secondary levy, or breakswell if you will for those rare storms, true Nor'westors, when they hit the city head on, helping limit the damage and flooding. The gates, massive structures of timber and iron, are actually a mechanical wonder. Above water the iron and timber gates slide open into the wall allowing ships passage. Similarly below the section of wall that would cause vessels to run aground under those gates are built with tracks and supports, mechanically sinking near thirty to forty feet to allow clearance for ships.
Most of the time these gates and entrances are simply let open mind you, and though they would take some time to close, with the heavy naval presence in and around the city, the three or four minutes it would take such mechanical systems to be properly closed and secured are not a major concern to the city when it comes to its defenses.
Giving this structure its more common name, the third tower of rock that juts up from the bay like a defiant spear, and the island at its base are the complex that houses well, the church of the Storm Lord. This is the temple, the home, the center, the grand cathedral of the Kartheartian faith. The tower of stone, this natural protrusion, holds no more of its natural form. Every visible inch has been worked by skilled and highly dedicated craftsfolk, carving iconography, religious symbols, bits of scripture, runes and entire scenes and murals, as well as statues and monuments tied to the faith. Sir Kartheart's likeness is of course the most common, but as is only fitting for their ancient history and stories of the faith and of Ascension, the others make appearances at their appropriate junctures. Captain Black Jeremiah for example at sea level, facing the church's own ports. This mighty temple houses a museum, an amphitheater, an entire schooling facility, several floors that are but temples and congregation halls, as well as the garrison and stables for the Storm-Lancers.
Now whilst not something I would normally deign to mention about a port city, after all shipyards and dry-docks are not so strange, what one needs to realize is the sheer size and scale of those on Mercantile Isle, and just how busy the trade is. Daily there is never any lack of vessels in for work, hauled up out of the water. Between the two sets of dry docks and the easily dozen or so different shipwrights operating businesses in those two areas of pier, there is space for easily fifteen to twenty vessels, maybe more. Yet even with that, getting into one of these slots oft costs a premium because they are in notable constant demand. Rare is the day where no less than ten to twelve vessels are up out of the water for some sort of work, be it patching, upgrades, repairs or maintenance.
This massive and busy complex of records, government offices and registar buildings, as well as warehouses and vaults are the central location for the city's, and well the nation's Port Authority. As Geata-Iarainn is the capital of the nation, this institution is robust, handling not just cargo or shipping but also being a port of entry. Offices of the Port Authority are located and operating at every commercial and civilian dockside in the Dockland Quarter, the only ones without them, handling their own paperwork internally and sending it off to the Port Authority as needed, are the Kartheartian Faith, and those of the Magisterium.
Even the Naval Academy, their docks have such an office for non-military or student personal and non-military goods or vessels that come in and out. This operation is still the arm of governance that accounts for the most government jobs in the city, notably so, and when combined with the other two similar authorities at the Sky-Port and Railyards, it becomes quite the gap between this and any other department or section of 'government/governing' departments.
This is a uniquely new thing, an open market place of sorts, but not for goods but for the promise of goods. It is a location businesses, civilians and others can come seeking safe passage, shipping of goods or to put in requisitions and contracts to receive them. For captains and shippers its almost like an open job center of sorts, for one off jobs, fees they won't need to chase or struggle to collect because the fees will have been collected up front by this third party, the Requisitioners.
A rather new concept this, but one catching on in many cities and regions across the realm, this middleman third party taking a humble five percent cut of all fees and payments they handle to sustain themselves and their organization. The streamlined system of this has allowed, at a notable but not impossible markup, smaller businesses and private interests access to the sort of robust shipping ability of the commercial world, something that thus far seems to be a boon to both shipper and client alike.
Inner Baysides
Though they do not have a proper entry, the larger sister to this wall, the Outer Baysides, is the one that naturally gets the most attention. These monstrous walls, anchored via the efforts of master magisters of the Topaz and Sapphire, act as equal parts levy and security. The outer ones tower some seventy feet above the surf line, and though the walls aren't solid below, with reinforced sluice and tunnels for currents and wildlife, importantly they are blockades for naval approaches.
The Inner Baysides, though not as tall are no less equally cunning in their construction and serve a similar purpose. Rising some thirty or so feet above the surf line, they act as a second line of defense, a fallback point if needed, and a secondary levy, or breakswell if you will for those rare storms, true Nor'westors, when they hit the city head on, helping limit the damage and flooding. The gates, massive structures of timber and iron, are actually a mechanical wonder. Above water the iron and timber gates slide open into the wall allowing ships passage. Similarly below the section of wall that would cause vessels to run aground under those gates are built with tracks and supports, mechanically sinking near thirty to forty feet to allow clearance for ships.
Most of the time these gates and entrances are simply let open mind you, and though they would take some time to close, with the heavy naval presence in and around the city, the three or four minutes it would take such mechanical systems to be properly closed and secured are not a major concern to the city when it comes to its defenses.
Armory of Valor
Giving this structure its more common name, the third tower of rock that juts up from the bay like a defiant spear, and the island at its base are the complex that houses well, the church of the Storm Lord. This is the temple, the home, the center, the grand cathedral of the Kartheartian faith. The tower of stone, this natural protrusion, holds no more of its natural form. Every visible inch has been worked by skilled and highly dedicated craftsfolk, carving iconography, religious symbols, bits of scripture, runes and entire scenes and murals, as well as statues and monuments tied to the faith. Sir Kartheart's likeness is of course the most common, but as is only fitting for their ancient history and stories of the faith and of Ascension, the others make appearances at their appropriate junctures. Captain Black Jeremiah for example at sea level, facing the church's own ports. This mighty temple houses a museum, an amphitheater, an entire schooling facility, several floors that are but temples and congregation halls, as well as the garrison and stables for the Storm-Lancers.
Dry-Docks
Now whilst not something I would normally deign to mention about a port city, after all shipyards and dry-docks are not so strange, what one needs to realize is the sheer size and scale of those on Mercantile Isle, and just how busy the trade is. Daily there is never any lack of vessels in for work, hauled up out of the water. Between the two sets of dry docks and the easily dozen or so different shipwrights operating businesses in those two areas of pier, there is space for easily fifteen to twenty vessels, maybe more. Yet even with that, getting into one of these slots oft costs a premium because they are in notable constant demand. Rare is the day where no less than ten to twelve vessels are up out of the water for some sort of work, be it patching, upgrades, repairs or maintenance.
Geata Port Authority HQ
This massive and busy complex of records, government offices and registar buildings, as well as warehouses and vaults are the central location for the city's, and well the nation's Port Authority. As Geata-Iarainn is the capital of the nation, this institution is robust, handling not just cargo or shipping but also being a port of entry. Offices of the Port Authority are located and operating at every commercial and civilian dockside in the Dockland Quarter, the only ones without them, handling their own paperwork internally and sending it off to the Port Authority as needed, are the Kartheartian Faith, and those of the Magisterium.
Even the Naval Academy, their docks have such an office for non-military or student personal and non-military goods or vessels that come in and out. This operation is still the arm of governance that accounts for the most government jobs in the city, notably so, and when combined with the other two similar authorities at the Sky-Port and Railyards, it becomes quite the gap between this and any other department or section of 'government/governing' departments.
Records and Requisition Complex
This is a uniquely new thing, an open market place of sorts, but not for goods but for the promise of goods. It is a location businesses, civilians and others can come seeking safe passage, shipping of goods or to put in requisitions and contracts to receive them. For captains and shippers its almost like an open job center of sorts, for one off jobs, fees they won't need to chase or struggle to collect because the fees will have been collected up front by this third party, the Requisitioners.
A rather new concept this, but one catching on in many cities and regions across the realm, this middleman third party taking a humble five percent cut of all fees and payments they handle to sustain themselves and their organization. The streamlined system of this has allowed, at a notable but not impossible markup, smaller businesses and private interests access to the sort of robust shipping ability of the commercial world, something that thus far seems to be a boon to both shipper and client alike.
Type
District
Population
9903
Stunning
Well thank you. Nice to just get another of this city's districts done and written up :) Only 3 left now. Not sure I'll go through this level of detail always for other large/capital cities in Valerick, but it is cool to do just as like 'I can for campaigns or writing purposes should I want or need'.