Cothunor

Small City: Population 6,268 (45% letheni, 30% lynoxi, 15% vesperkin, 8% human, 2% other)

History

Originally founded during the early Age of Creation by the Dwarves of the Drakantal Empire, Cothunor was absorbed into the Kingdom of Derunadel after the Drakantal Empire's destruction. Though the Dwarves have long since departed Cothunor and the settlement's original name is not known, there are remnants of the Drakantal Empire's civilization scattered across the city and on its outskirts. The locals do not fear these relics from the ancient past, but they stray away from them, as none seem to know the purpose of these relics and whether or not they could be hazardous if tampered with. The local Enforcers occasionally patrol near them in order to ensure none go near them and potentially trigger something. It is rare for the Dwarves to be seen outside Reshyk, but a handful have visited Cothunor and shown interest in these relics; but they seemed unconcerned with whatever it was they learned of the relics. The only thing the locals have learned about them, courtesy of a Dwarven merchant from the beginning of the Restoration period, is that one particular relic which he named "Skaa Wabiren", or "royal spheres", was a religious artifact of some significance to the empire.

The Reckoning period was particularly devastating for Cothunor, as half of the town broke off from the Arak mainland along with a large chunk of land above it which floated out to sea. During one of the many conflicts between the Sorcerer's Cabal and the Obsidian Cloister, a destructive Wellspring eruption tore a large chunk of a land off of the coast, sending it out to sea, which took not only half of the city with it, but also two villages to the north which as a result of being dragged so far out to sea, saw their entire population wiped out due to lack of sufficient resources and ships, as well as residents of Cothunor being unable to locate them on the open sea. This Wellspring eruption became known as Am Tandor Kaidareth, and the island formed by this broken chunk of land has never been located. The island is referred to as Neltenzir by locals, and those who mention seeking it out are often ridiculed.

In recent years, there have been an increasing number of sightings off the coast of ships coming under attack by unknown assailants that emerge from the water, climbing to the deck and wiping out the crew with ease. The nature of the attackers is as yet undetermined, but those who have investigated ships that have been attacked report finding a strange slimy substance coating the deck which quickly rots the wood and when touched, putrefies bare skin. The fact that no goods were stolen suggests the attacks are deliberate acts of terror, rather than piracy. This has caused a great deal of unrest with some sailors refusing to take the usual fishing routes, and some merchants diverting to Darrakeltir despite the hazards there. The city administrator has issued a hefty bounty calling for an investigation and the ones responsible to be dealt with.

Government

The city of Cothunor falls under the jurisdiction of magistrate Tordynnar Veverell of Mythwell to the southeast. The city has a great relationship with the magistrate, mostly due to the fact that their ports allow a convenient trade route with a short distance to travel by land to reach Mythwell. As a result, Cothunor receives favored treatment from the magistrate, being allocated a large amount of funds that they use to maintain their infrastructure and offer incentives to entrepreneurs in the city to keep trade flowing through port as often as possible. Due to the high volume of traffic traveling through Cothunor's ports, a local administrator named Trina Lovenneth, a Vesperkin woman, handles the day to day administration of the city to relieve some of the burden from Tordynnar's responsibilities.

Economy

Being a major port city, Cothunor is rather wealthy, seeing a large portion of the trade coming into northern Arak due to their proximity to Mythwell. The city's infrastructure is well funded by Mythwell to ensure it stays an attractive destination. The many stalls found in the Sitharan Keltir generate a large amount of revenue for the city through a modest tax placed upon all goods sold there. Most of the food purchased in Cothunor comes from the docks as well, with a vibrant fish market, as well as many exotic foreign foods the locals enjoy. However, Cothunor has no export goods of their own, which has made some residents of the city nervous about relying solely on others for their income. Though Mythwell has remained an extremely popular destination for thousands of years, some locals are trying to branch out and start industries of their own; but Cothunor's location doesn't place them near any major resources that would not be imported.

Notable Locations

• Sitharan Keltir - The city harbor which handles all of the incoming ship traffic. Flooded with merchants and sailors, the harbor is the most crowded area in the city and is quite noisy; not just because of the sailors, but because of the hundreds of gulls that are always flying over the docks, squawking loudly, and swooping in to steal food from those partaking of the harbor's many food stalls. Many merchants set up to sell their goods directly from stalls along the street overlooking the docks, leaving this street extremely crowded during the day. There is a monthly night market on the last 3 days of the month where merchants try to offload goods they have been unable to sell by offering steep discounts.
• Skaa Wabiren - A series of seven spheres whose name translates to "royal spheres", made of various types of stone located in a small cove on the northeastern edge of the city. Identified by a Dwarven merchant in the early Restoration period by worn writing on the monument, these seven spheres are believed to be a religious artifact that was significant to the Drakantal Empire. The monument is found partially submerged in the waters of the cove during high tide, but becomes uncovered in the early morning and mid evening. The spheres emit a resonant tone that causes a visible ripple distortion on the surface of the water nearby and calming any waves coming into the cove, even during storms. The Dwarf that identified the writing that was still legible at the time did not have any information about the purpose of these spheres, but because of their clear magical nature, the city has asked residents and visitors to stay away from them, and the Enforcers occasionally pass by them on their patrols to ensure nobody is tampering with them.
• Lendari ith Mindotha - Located deep underneath the sea off the coast, these ruins were located by divers twenty years ago, and have been an object of fascination to the city ever since. Though the Antiquarians' Guild has not yet been able to mount an expedition to the ruins, some locals have managed to get close enough to survey them from a distance. The ruins appear to be the remains of one of the towns located on the landmass that broke off and drifted out to sea during Am Tandor Kaidareth in the Reckoning period. What is alarming, however, is the fact that those who have done initial surveys of the ruins have noted seeing figures moving around within them; humanoid figures.

Culture

Cothunor's cultural center is undoubtedly the Sitharan Keltir, where people from all over the world show off their goods, food, and get to know each other over shared drinks. Between the sailors and the merchants, there is a clear social divide, with merchants being judged heavily on the clothing they wear. Unlike some other areas of the world, there is an unspoken rule that wearing fancy expensive clothing in Cothunor marks a merchant as conniving and arrogant, with those that wear simple clothing being seen as more trustworthy. But those that wear furs in Cothunor are ostracized and seen as repugnant, with many refusing to deal with them. But the merchants are not the only ones judged for their appearance; the sailors of Cothunor also have a visual way of distinguishing their social status, in the form of tattoos. Sailors will often be awarded with tattoos for feats of skill on the seas, such as surviving a kraken attack, or entering The Squall and managing to emerge unscathed. Those covered in tattoos are viewed as heroes in Cothunor, and those without are seen as novices. For a long time, this worked on an honor system, but a number of sailors boasting about feats of accomplishment they had never actually performed required verification, resulting in sailors needing to submit to the questioning of someone trained in magic able to expose deception to verify that one was telling the truth. Some believe this tradition is silly and outdated and refuse to participate, but it still commands much respect by the city's residents.

Sailors are well-known for their superstitions and perceived ill omens, as they can encounter some strange and horrifying things on the open water. There are a number of "sea monster" stories told by the fire, but one in particular stands out due to how many sailors claim to have personally encountered the creature in question. This creature, known as the Moldarrakil, is described by the sailors as having a long tendril emerging from its head that few have seen, as it conjures mirages at the end of the tendril to lure sailors overboard so it can devour them, often choosing to conjure the image of beautiful women. Despite knowing of the creature, many sailors have fallen victim to the creature, seemingly entranced by the imagery it conjures. A common ill omen sailors of Cothunor believe is that you should never rescue a woman who has fallen overboard, or from a shipwreck, as it is believed the Moldarrakil lies in wait in these situations, devouring the woman before taking her appearance to lure more victims. As a result, sailors will often demand that women stay off the deck. Unbeknownst to the sailors, a local fish that is eaten as a delicacy has a side effect of ensuring they cannot see through the mirages projected by the Moldarrakil, and the smell of the fish lingers on a person for days, which attracts the Moldarrakil.

One of the most anticipated holidays in Cothunor is that of the Quen's harvest festival. Typically in other cities, this is celebrated by locals bringing freshly harvested food to a large gathering and feeding everyone, making sure none go hungry. However, with the local food market being primarily fish and imported foods, there is not much of a "harvest" to be found. As a result, Cothunor celebrates the harvest festival by having each citizen cook a different dish to bring to the gathering. With the wide variety of ingredients available from the harbor market, the number of different dishes brought to this event is staggering. There are a handful of dishes which are classic crowd favorites, but many in the city like to experiment with whatever is new and exciting from the market. Two particular dishes that were once very popular became a single dish known as Acowacani Fashir when two residents who had prepared the dishes bumped into each other in the market and the dumplings of one dish fell into the stew prepared by the other. Not wanting to waste food, the dish was tried as is, and became a staple of Cothunor's local cuisine, favored by sailors for being hearty and warm. The dish consists of a curry sauce made with Acotekethi and cream, a seasonal blend of vegetables, slow-cooked chicken, and dense dumplings made from thick batter filled with cheese that is boiled in a spicy sauce.

Defenses

Given how much trade passes through Cothunor's harbor, it is important for there to be Enforcers to patrol not only the city and the road to Mythwell, but the harbor itself. Mythwell provides a number of Enforcers specifically for overseeing the Sitharan Keltir, to be on the lookout for smugglers and check cargo for contraband. The sorcerers of the Ars Aurum Academy in Mythwell have provided a number of magical solutions to help the Enforcers, given the sheer volume of merchants entering port. The Enforcers have access to a device provided by the academy that can detect illicit materials in a small radius, such as poisons, explosives, drugs, and certain plants and minerals known to be used for illegal purposes. However, this magical device was expensive to create and the Enforcers have access to only one, which is kept under heavy guard. The city has walls, but only along the harbor, with two main gates; one for outgoing traffic, and one for incoming traffic. On most days, these gates are open and merchants need only to be cleared by an inspector; but on days when the Enforcers have received information of smuggler activity, the gates may be closed to act as a secondary checkpoint.

In addition to contraband detection, the academy has provided a number of pylons that are installed along the coast which detect waves of a certain size and use stored spells to break apart the waves to prevent storms from destroying the harbor or the city. The pylons can weather most storms, but particularly violent storms can overwhelm the pylons and cause them to cease functioning if they consume too much Flow in a 24 hour period. In the event that this occurs, loud sirens will warn citizens to seek shelter. There are a handful of large underground shelters for the citizens to flee to that are warded against water, which allows them to safely wait out the storm, given that there is no higher ground to flee to within range of the city.

Crime

Like any port city, Cothunor has its fair share of smuggling activity. Though most seeking to bring true contraband, such as slaves or materials used in the crafting of affectives, are routed through Geledon to the far south; Cothunor has plenty of merchants who try to sneak drugs and banned goods through port to be sold in Mythwell. There is one particular smuggling group known as the Keltir Licani who are responsible for the majority of smuggling activity in the city, who have cultivated a complicated system that has allowed them to evade the Enforcers frequently enough to be a serious problem. They have even found a way to fool the device the Enforcers use to detect illicit materials.