Rilara City

The city is not as diverse as some other major cities as it is mostly human, but it still boasts a good mix of races:

• humans-70%
• dwarves-20%
• gnomes-5%
• halflings-2%
• other races (half-elves, elves, dragonborn, and half-orcs)-3%

There is a smattering of multiple professions but the largest sectors are mining and crafting.  Rilara is well-known for its miners who mine raw ore, the smiths who refine and craft it, and the artisans who turn that metal into art.  There is also a sizable market for magically crafted materials, which is provided by the local mage's guild.

The city is run by the Lord Mayor and the city council.  Each district elects a councilman who will bring their concerns to the group and help develp laws and ordinances for the town as a whole.  The Lord Mayor arbritrates for the council and then exectutes the laws decided upon.  Though the Lord Mayor arbitrates and makes the final descision, the council can countermand the Mayor's orders with a 2/3 vote.  The People's Assembly meets once every month to bring the concerns of the common people to the Mayor and City Council, and they can also create bills that can be apporved by the council adn mayor and be enacted into law.  The Grand Duke does not have miuch to do with the day to day operations of the city as those tasks have been delegated, but the Duke has the right to sit in on all council and assembly meetings.  The Duke can also override the decisions made by the Lord Mayor or the City Council, but if a bill has the approval of the Mayor, the Council, and the Assembly, the Duke cannot countermand it unless the ducal council meets and overturns the proposed bill.

The outer wall and moat are the first lines of defense.  The wall is a combination of a smaller wall (only about 20' high) in front of a larger wall (about 50' high).  The ditch/moat in front of the lower wall provides that extra layer of defense.  Should attackers breach the outer defense, they have to fight through the hilly districts, which are arrayed in a way to make assault more difficult.  Buil;dings are built in such a way as to allow enfilade fire on apporaching armies.  In addition, the Ducal Ward is surrounded by its own wall that people can retreat behind if need be.  Finally, the mountains at the city's rear provide the final layer pof defense as no sizable host can scale the peaks to attack the rear.  The mountain passes are heavily guarded and the the underground routes are fiercely guarded as well.

Most of the industry of the city centers around mining, refining, crafting and agricultural engineering. Some of the best craftsmen and metalworkers on the continent work within the city limits, and thus, the city is one of th best producers of metal tools, armour, and weapons.   In addition, the city works hard to maintain its connections to the long distance trading networks so as to get a constant source of new resources and information from the farthest corners of the world.

The water supply is provided by an ingenius mix of aqueducts bringing water from far off sources in addition to the harnessing and diversion of several strems with originate within the city limits.  These waters are used to irrigate the numerous terrace farms with cover the outskirts of town and provide much of the food for the local populace.  Numerous well-tended roads connect the city with its outlying suburbs and far flung towns, and the Dwarven road cuts through the mountains connects the city and duchy with its Trans-Tieran territories.  The mines, smelters, and local refineries provided the city with a wealth of crafting resources.  The city is almost impossile to take in a siege as it can be self-sustaining if it needs to be.

The city is divded into six disttrics, called wards:

1. Outer Ward--This is the newest city district as the city and some of this ward sit outside the city walls. Much of the poorer elements of the city live here as well as most of the visitors and tourists.
2. Market Ward--This is one of two districts that directly border the Outer Ward. As the name implies, most of the markets, commercial enterprises and commodities exchanges are in this district. The Trade guild all but dominates life and politics in this district, and they do their best to ensure that this area is used primariyl for commercial reasons as opposed to industrial or residential (though most shop owners do live in their place of business).
3. Martial Ward--this is probably one of the smallest areas of the city, but this district contains the barrack, stables, and siege works for the ducal military. Town guard live and train here as well as the elite Mage Knights. Technically speaking, the walls, towers and gates are managed by the military and are thus considered an extension of the Martial Ward. The training grounds and military academy are located here as well.
4. Smith's Ward--Though named after the smiths, this distrtict houses the crafting and manufacturing center of the city. Some shops and factories operate here in addition to smelting and refining ores taken from the local mines.
5. Mining Ward--This district is interesting as abotu half of it is underground. The side of the mountain has gradually been hallowed out as the mines continue to delve deeper into the earth in search of ore. Some of the cleared out sections of the mine have been turned into small residential and market areas that have added some new touriost destinations in the area. In addition, vast tunnels connect the inner parts of the of the mines with those miles outside of the city limits, to the point that the military has requested to fortify some of the tunnels. Much of the dwarven population lives here and much of the mining, smelting, and refining is done here, though some of the later two tasks is farmed out to the Smith's Ward.
6. Ducal Ward--The Ducal Palace is here along with a host of other administrative buildings, such as the assembly and council halls. The local mage academy is here along with some of the more luxurious homes (relatively speaking).
The Ducal Ward is also protected by an inner wall that the populace can take refuge behind in case the outer wal is breached.

The great wealth of this city is its mineral deposits and its high supply of skilled smiths and metal workers.  Rilara has some of the best artisans on the continent, and the city has connected itself to the great overland trade networks.  Its participation in the Free People's Alliance incentivises foreign merchants to trade with the alliance members as travel from one end to the other is relatively safe.  Because of the influx of trade, most goods and services are avaiable in the city limits.

Guilds

• Mining Guild--all work in the Rilaran mines goes through them, and most mining operations in the Duchy have to get approval from the guild before doing business in the duchy's name.
• Artisans Guild--almost all of the craftsmen and tinkerers in the city have to pay dues or they cannot do business.   The guild also regulates prices, doles out apprenticeships, and formalizes new shops and market stall for their wares.
• Caravanersy--this group organizes all trade going to and from the city proper.  Other indpendent contractors can still operate, but they must receive a pass before being allowed within the ciy limits.  

Factions

• War Hawks--this is a small minority with the ducal hierarchy, but they continue to loudly proclaim the the Grand Duke should take his rightful place as the ruler of Urellia and appoint a new duke to rule the Grand Duchy.  Though lacking in authority and clout, their desire for conflict is often fullfilled as Urellia continues to try to force the Duchy to reintegrate.
• Peace Faction--this group represents a majority with the assemblies and councils, and they maintain that it is better for stability and trade if we maintain the peace.  They are the reason why there are intermitent periods of peace for the Duchy.
• Isolationists--This group pushes the Duke and his advisors to withdraw from the Free Peoples Alliance, make peace with Urellia, and then cut off the rest of the world to preserve the integrity of Ducal rule.

Rilara started out as a frontier citadel fortress at the fringes of Urellia.  Even though it was militarily significant settlement and the area had access to tremendous resources, itt was a posting that most nobles avoided  as it would not bring presitge.  It did not achieve its renaissance until the fateful day that Duke Marius Vidal was given governorship of the region.  Duke Marius was ousted from the royal court during the War of the Brides when Marius sided with his mother over the royal consort his father had taken.  Taking a consort was pefectly legal under old imperial custom that the kingdom followed, but the young duke resisted.  A cold war ensued with minor skirmishing, but to maintain the peace with his father and brother, he sent himself into exile.  Upon his return, he was able to reconcile with the royal court provided he exiled himself to Rilara.  Once there, he decided to do more with the settlement and stop it from being a minor bump on the map.  He took in refugees from the veldt, made alliances with the dwarven clans under the mountain and offered amnesty to political dissidents.  He used this influx of people and labor to open up the mines, lay the ground work for the creation a large town, and establish passes over the mountain so that long distanvce trade could be opened up.  Marius Vidal took a minor fortress and made it into a small city in a matter of decades and becasme the envy of the neighboring coiunties and baronies.  As the duchy expanded so did the prospects of Rilara, and within a generation, Rilara started to rival the Urellian capital.  Rilara was not as grand or large as its sibling, but its power and influence were becoming problematic for some at court.  With the Vidal brothers were alive, the relationship worked and the Rilara was just another jewel in the crown of the Kingdom, but once the king passed and Marius nephew took the throne. Rilara's future was put into question.  from that point onward, the city had to strike a balance between martial prowess and monetary spelndor.

The terraced farms and multi-leveled look of the city is a marvel for visitors, but on the whole they visit the rich market place and artisan shops within the cultured wards of the city.  In addition, the hollowed out mines are becoming increasingly popular as the empty mine shafts and storerooms are being expanded and turned into its own little village.

Later imperial aritcure has a good amount of influence with the high culture sloping rooves and narrow contruction, which is couple with a minor High Elvish influence that primarily come from eastern sources. Many buildings have that classic natural elegance associated with Elvish buildings. However, the largest influence is dwarven as they make up a large minority amongst the population, and their contruction is built to last.  The new castle/palace is of dwarven design and thus towers over most other buildings.  Angular in conrtsuction, it is meant to be strudy and imposing without much of the sleek curves of Elvish craft.

Rilara is situated in the lower parts of the Tieran Mountains, thus the districts are spread between the mountain itself, the lowers hills, and the bottomlands.  Several stremas flow out of the mountain that gather at the base to form a small river, though much of the water flow is diverted to the terrace farming projects.  Parts of the mountains and hill not incorporated into the cioty proper are heaviuly forrested.

Nestled in the mountains, the climate is temperate, though the winters can be fairly punishing.  The lower parts of Farpoint Valley are sheltered from the heavy snows, but the mountains do not have that luxury as heavy snows will blanket the mountains during the winter times.  The spring thaw will turn the mountain streams and rivers into raging torrents, though spring and summer are fairly mild with fall being a typical harvest season.  The rocky soil and relatively short growing seasons mean that farming is diificult, though, the city engineers have found ways to ameliorate that problem.

The Farpoint Valley provides a wealth of resources to the Grand Duchy, such as fast flowing rivers and fertile bottom lands, but the true wealth of Rilara lies in its plentiful forest covered mountains and its large deposits of iron and copper ore.   In the deeper veins in the mountains, some gold ore has been found, which is adding greatly to the city's wealth.  Even though, not all of the mines are located in the city's enivrons, they are still under the ducal authority of Rilara City.