Dolenna

Small City: 6,328 (71% vesperkin, 15% human, 5% letheni, 9% other)

History

Dolenna has been a hot spot for adventurers for millennia, attracting visitors from around the world, all for one reason -- Ludranna Grotto. Dolenna was founded sometime in the late Upheaval period when a particular cave system was discovered in the mountains of the White Steppes that led to a region of the Deephollow which was rich in valuable materials. However, the wealth of materials wasn't the only reason that these caverns were so interesting -- it was the stable Hollowpools, portals to the plane of Obscurus, Umos' domain. The city's walls are built at the base of the mountain where the entrance to Ludranna Grotto resides.

Obscurus is well-known, especially to the Vesperkin, for its dangers, but also for Umos' gauntlets -- trials that Umos herself constructs to challenge those brave enough to venture into her domain of darkness, which also promises great rewards for completing them. The plane is home to many predators that have ensured thousands of adventurers who have entered the plane have never returned. However, these dangers do not sway the Vesperkin and Humans native to Myr, and Ludranna Grotto became a hub for these daring adventurers to gather and band together to tackle the gauntlets and claim Umos' rewards.

Exploring the grotto also led to the discovery of a subterranean population of Dwarves, similar in appearance to the Ashenfolk, called Deepfolk. These Dwarves were much more primitive than their surface-dwelling cousins, and through some initial hostile encounters and subsequent contact, it was learned that their ancestors had journeyed into the Deephollow all the way back in the Age of the Founders, thousands of years ago, seeking to explore the mysteries of the Aellorah's subterranean region, to uncover its most exotic materials. The Deepfolk are skittish, and due to their photosensitivity, do not come to the surface. However, the city's inhabitants have recently established a dialog with the Deepfolk and are attempting to create trade relations, as the Deepfolk's ability to withstand the pressure far beyond the depths the other races of Aellorah are capable of reaching allows them to harvest materials the other races may otherwise never obtain.

Government

As a member of The Commonwealth, Dolenna is represented by a Speaker like all other settlements within its borders. Speaker Athyssa, a Human woman, is Dolenna's current representative, and has been well-received by the community. In her early years, she began as an adventurer delving into Obscurus like the rest, but retired after an expedition gone wrong resulted in her being badly burned by a careless newcomer who conjured light within Obscurus -- something which can have deadly consequences, and which scarred half of Athyssa's face. She had made quite a name for herself, successfully completing three gauntlets beforehand, and doing numerous odd jobs on top of that, so when the time came to elect a new Speaker, the community chose her due to her experience with the grotto.

The Ludranna Grotto is heavily regulated both to protect those delving into Obscurus, and to make sure they come back alive. One of the most heavily enforced regulations is that items which can produce light, such as torches, are prohibited. There have only been a handful of gauntlets ever reported requiring the production of light to complete them, and given the dangerous consequences of using it, it was decided to disallow these items to protect adventurers. Another important regulation is that all adventurers exiting the grotto must be subjected to a search and an analysis by a trained sorcerer. Obscurus is home to creatures which can mimic the appearance or voices of their victims, and they have made their way into Dolenna a handful of times thanks to the neglect of the party the victim was traveling with.

Economy

Because Dolenna bases its economy around the treasures found in the Deephollow and Obscurus, many of its available services and shops are geared towards processing raw materials, producing enchanted items, and providing gear for adventurers looking to explore the grotto. There are also some At Matica workshops found here using technology from the Stratos Academy in Artus to aid in more efficient collection of materials. There have even been some innovations specifically geared towards defense in Obscurus which have revolutionized the city. However, other industries that are not as useful to adventurers struggle to make ends meet, as the demand for them is not nearly as high. Only about 20% of the city's inhabitants are permanent residents.

Much of the city's income has been driven by materials recovered from the Deephollow. Though the treasures found in Obscurus are a big boon when they are recovered, they are infrequent due to the dangers present there. One of the most valuable materials found in the grotto by far is Mutine, which hardens under pressure, which has allowed the At Matica workshops in the area to create vehicles capable of exploring deeper into the Deephollow where the pressure becomes too high to explore unprotected. This material was discovered when a Deepfolk trader offered some to a miner in exchange for some Doniten, which they had seen the miners using for pickaxes, which reduce fatigue and make virtually no noise, making it safer to avoid predators. These "Atmatic Mutine Vehicles" have been of particular interest to the Dwarves of Reshyk, who have been frequent customers of the At Matica workshops in the city.

Another valuable commodity discovered in the grotto is the crystalline material called Adraniten, which has the property of resonating in the presence of charged Flow. This effectively means that it can be used to detect the presence of magic nearby, similar to the Dwarves' ability to sense magic. The only downside is that Adraniten only functions if it retains its original shape. Breaking the crystal down into smaller pieces or turning it into powder stops this attribute from functioning. The crystals can vary in size, but are typically the size of someone's head. They must be carefully extracted to ensure no part of the original crystal is broken, as even a small chip will ruin its function. Many Atmatic Mutine Vehicles are equipped with these crystals to warn the operator of nearby magical effects which may be hazardous. They were discovered early on after the discovery of the grotto, as they grow within the regions that are safe for surface-dwellers to explore, but the lack of tools to extract them without damaging them made it impractical to harvest them until the early Restoration period.

Notable Locations

Dolenna has a wide variety of unique shops and services not found anywhere else. Among the notable attractions in the city are:

• Ludranna Grotto - This large grotto in the mountainside that the city was built around is home to a labyrinthine network of tunnels and wondrous ecosystems, as well as a number of stable portals to Obscurus, called Hollowpools, waiting for eager adventurers to explore their depths and plunder its resources, and to explore Umos' gauntlets. This entrance to Aellorah's depths is a tourist attraction that brings adventurers from all over the world and is the basis for the city's economy.
• The Delver's Guild - This guild hall located to the right of the entrance to the Ludranna Grotto is the home of the Delvers, a guild of adventurers specifically geared towards exploring Obscurus. The guild has some nominal membership fees, but the services it provides are well worth it. They have scouts that routinely explore Obscurus, recording sights of gauntlets found, as well as any known threats, and maps of the Deephollow with locations to known Hollowpools highlighted. There are no "ranks" for adventurers, but members can earn rewards for gathering information on new things discovered within Obscurus or the Deephollow. They also coordinate creating groups of people that wish to explore Obscurus or to tackle a gauntlet. Becoming a member can also earn you a 10% discount from most services and equipment shops found throughout Dolenna.
• Mahani's Menagerie of Mystical Marvels - A museum found in the heart of the city that catalogues some of the most curious things discovered as a direct result, or even as an accident, of exploring the grotto. The curator, a Human named Mahani, was once an Antiquarian, but fell in love with Obscurus. She speaks rather manically about her collection, but she is one of the most knowledgeable people in the city regarding the dark plane. She has at least one sample of every unique material found as a result of exploring the Deephollow and Obscurus, and even a few treasures plundered from Umos' gauntlets donated to her collection by the Delvers.
• Lucan's Foundry - Dolenna's largest At Matica workshop, catering to the needs of Delvers and adventurers alike. Lucan, the Vesperkin owner, produces Atmatic Mutine Vehicles for deep exploration, specialty mining equipment, some specialized weaponry, steam-powered forging tools, and various other wondrous devices. Lucan's devices have revolutionized mining in particular, with key inventions including his steam-powered drills, rock pulverizers, automatic hammers, and ore transportation systems. Lucan has a very limited selection of At Matica weaponry, as that is not his specialty, but the Delvers find his crank-powered heavy crossbows ingenious.
• Furious Flow - Don't let its size fool you -- this kiosk outside the Delver's Guild hall is always well-stocked with a variety of enchanted items that the owner, a Vesperkin named Tanesha, creates herself. If what she has on display isn't to your liking, ask, and she may have it in her "cellar", which is deceptively large considering no subterranean expansions are permitted on city streets. Tanesha's specialty seems to be enchanted weapons and wands, though she seldom has stock of enchanted accessories. She has a personality larger than herself or her kiosk, and there have been rumors that she deals in illicit magic -- though if you ask her without a referral from a trusted customer, you're sure to get an earful.
• Runesmith Denith - A small workshop owned by Denith Karidan, a Dwarven Runesmith who opened up shop after King Rangrim lifted restrictions on Runetech usage outside Reshyk. He provides his Runesmithing services to the local miners and sells regulated Runetech items. He has a small selection of Forgeborn chassis and rectification capsules, as well as some single-use Runetech weapons -- but they fetch a high price.

Culture

With such a heavy focus on adventuring, much of the city's culture is also based around adventurers and celebrating their accomplishments and struggles. Dolenna is host to a number of festivals and holidays dedicated to the brave people that venture into the grotto. Because the Orators are native to Myr, the city has a heavy bardic presence for those who tell tall tales of the many interesting events that have decorated Dolenna's history books; as well as those who tell stories to ensure these adventurers are not forgotten. One of the more well-known holidays in Dolenna is "Sophenir", during which the city's Orators tell stories of heroic deeds, as well as those who have lost their lives exploring the Deephollow. There is a celebration involving fireworks and a communal dance to praise the city's heroes and remember those who have fallen. Another popular tradition is a rite of passage called "Valis Drotha" for new adventurers who join the Delver's Guild in which, once a month at the end of the month, the guild sends them into the Deephollow to locate a cache the guild has left there with a prize pool collected from other adventurers in the guild. The adventurer that finds the cache gets to keep it. These caches usually contain an assortment of money and maybe some equipment to get the adventurer started.

The Delver's Guild plays a big part in the city, and the guild hall is always filled to the brim. There are a number of street vendors selling equipment and food outside the hall, and many of the most important businesses in the city convene at their location, so it can be considered the city's "cultural hotspot". However, the city isn't all about adventuring -- with so many adventurers coming to the city from all parts of the world, they bring their culture with them, which has made Dolenna a melting pot of many different cultures. Dolenna has a wide variety of foods from all across the world available, with street vendors selling handheld foods to adventurers walking past the Delver's Guild hall, and a handful of taverns and restaurants serving elaborate meals.

Defenses

Dolenna is one of the most well-defended cities on the planet despite its population due to the high concentration of adventurers that take up residence here. The city has its own local chapter of the Marshalls provided by The Commonwealth, though the reason the Rathmore Empire has avoided Dolenna for the most part is because of the skilled adventurers which have aided in Dolenna's defense a number of times, though they are not required to do so. Being at the base of a mountain and being mostly surrounded by walls gives Dolenna an advantage, though the city has infrastructure in place for its citizens to be able to retreat into the Ludranna Grotto should the need arise.

Besides the local adventurers, the At Matica workshops found in the city have provided a number of advanced defenses not found anywhere else, including steam-powered ballistas which do not require reloading and can fire a volley of six ballista bolts in rapid succession. These alone have kept the Rathmore Empire at bay, as though their Esciten may protect them from magical threats, an At Matica steam ballista can punch straight through a Myrmidon's shield and pin him to the ground. The At Matica workshops in Dolenna have even made a breakthrough in pressurizing small canisters of Mutine that allow the pressure to be vented rapidly, which has been devastating when combined with Petroxitenn. These small Petroxiten canisters have been outfitted to the end of steam ballista bolts to cause large scale explosions in the middle of Myrmidon forces advancing on the city. Unfortunately, this particular weapon has been banned for the time being because of how volatile it is after an accident destroyed a large chunk of the city's walls and the neighborhood surrounding the offending ballista. They are also controversial because they are seen as "excessive", and The Commonwealth is in talks to ban them completely.

Crime

Crime in Dolenna isn't particularly unique, but the things considered contraband that can be found within its "black market" certainly are. With access to a wide variety of unique materials found in the Deephollow, a number of them are utterly dangerous or illegal, and as such, there is a market for them. Materials like Petroxiten are heavily regulated and can only be bought and handled by certified At Matica workshops, while many plants and mushrooms found in the Deephollow which are known to be poisonous or hazardous are illegal. It is well-known that criminals convene in remote areas of the grotto to trade in illicit materials, but given the sheer size of the grotto, it's difficult for the Marshalls to patrol them effectively to stop these illegal deals.

Competition between adventurers in Dolenna is friendly at best, and deadly at its worst. The rewards found in Obscurus are so coveted that there are those who will kill for them. It is not unheard of for gangs to ambush groups of adventurers coming through the Hollowpools to rob them of their spoils. Due to regulation of those traveling into Obscurus, many well-known Hollowpools are guarded at all hours of the day, so some criminals have taken to delving deep within the grotto to find unguarded Hollowpools to enter so they can hunt adventurers returning from a gauntlet. The Marshalls in Dolenna regularly post bounties for known "grotto rats", as they are called.