Kursk

Kursk is a diverse urban center with a strong majority of native Kopolchians. The population includes nobles, artisans, laborers, dockhands, and merchants, with a growing class of scholars and bureaucrats. A small but visible population of transient sailors and traders adds to the cosmopolitan atmosphere of the city. Nightstair is home to some of the city’s most marginalized populations, including displaced persons and refugees from conflicts across the continent.

The city is governed by the Prince or Princess Regent of Kopolchia, who rules on behalf of the Crown. An appointed High Council made up of nobles, merchant representatives, and influential guild leaders manages day-to-day governance. Local matters within each district are handled by Magisters, who report directly to the Regent.

Exports: Preserved fruits, luxury jams, seafood, artisan metalworks, spices, and fine fabrics.

Imports: Precious metals, silk, exotic spices, stone, and timber.

Industries: Fishing, fruit processing (including jammeries), textile production, metalworking, shipbuilding, and black market trade (notably in Nightstair).

Kursk is a well-developed city with an integrated transportation network, including paved main roads, a port complex with cranes and dry docks, and an underground aqueduct system that channels water from distant springs. The city also maintains a sophisticated waste management and canal drainage system—essential for managing the still-moist land around Six Mires.

Old District

The original settlement; the administrative and historical heart of Kursk. Narrow lanes, arched windows, and wrought-iron balconies with charming artisan shops hidden among the state buildings built from sun-bleached stone, giving this area a timeless aura.

The Port

A noisy, bustling hub of economic activity. Kursk's port is essential for importing spices textiles, and metals while exporting seafood, fruit-based products, and high-end crafted goods. A few restaurants are famous for serving fresh seafood with excellent views.

Nightstair

Shrouded in shadow and steeped in whispers. This district is largely controlled by The Shadowsong Order, with many viewing it as a city within a city. A place where illicit goods change hands, often in dark alleys.

Honey Song

Warm, golden, and musical. Known for its daily street festivals, artisan booths, and enticing scents of candied fruits, roasted nuts, honey, and spices. Colorful awnings shade the narrow streets.

Six Mires

Once deadly, now decadent. Still retains its marshy roots. Elevated walkways and stilted estates tell a tale of survival and adaptation. Exclusive restaurants cater to nobles and their guests.

Noon Road

The artery of the city. Here, bards duel with verses, vendors peddle vibrant trinkets, and actors draw crowds to open-air shows. It's busiest at high noon.

Cloud Forge

The iron heart of Kursk. Fire, steel, and smoke rule here. Metal goods forged in this district are sold across the continent for their durability and elegant design.

South Road

Clean, cultured, and middle-class. This district contains libraries, parks, family-run restaurants, and boutique tailors. Lined with trees and flowerbeds, it exudes an air of tranquility, refinement, and quiet prosperity.

Applegate

Outside the walls but at the heart of the economy. Orchard rows roll over gentle hills. James, preserves, wines, and dried fruits originate here, making it one of the most productive food districts in North Chrysalis. Tours of the orchards and jammeries are given every so often.

A fortified port and harbor complex.

Aqueduct-fed irrigation systems for Applegate.

The Great Orchard Archives: A research center focused on fruit hybrids and preservation.

The Starlight Beacon: An ornate lighthouse with magically-enhanced optics.

An underground tunnel network originally built for flood control, now partially repurposed for smuggling and secret meetings.

Founded during the post-expansion age of North Chrysalis, Kursk began as a marshland outpost meant to support coastal defense and internal trade. It grew quickly due to its strategic location and fertile lands—especially once the bogs were partially drained. The Six Mires district was the site of both tragedy and triumph, remembered for the infamous “Sinking Feast,” where nearly an entire noble family drowned when their stilted banquet hall collapsed. Since then, safety and engineering have become cultural obsessions.

Kursk gained prominence during the Salt and Silk Accord, where trade agreements made it a central distribution point for the Duchy’s northern territories. Over time, shadow organizations, particularly the Shadowsong Order, rooted themselves in Nightstair, turning it into a district of whispers and quiet deals.

The Starlight Beacon (Lighthouse)

The Iron Rose Foundry (Cloud Forge)

The Hanging Bells of Six Mires (Memorial chimes honoring those lost to the marsh)

The Grand Market of Honey Song

The Inked Spire (A temple turned poetry house in Noon Road)

The city blends Kopolchian sunstone and bogwood timber, with stylized carvings of sea creatures, vines, and celestial patterns. Most buildings rise three or more stories, built with sloped red or black-tiled roofs. Six Mires and Applegate use raised, stilted designs. In Nightstair, stone and slate buildings are tight-packed and appear fortress-like.

Located on the southern coast of North Chrysalis, Kursk sits on a long crescent bay, surrounded on three sides by rolling hills and marshland. The Six Mires is a haunting reminder of the land’s watery past, while Applegate spreads westward over fertile, sun-drenched land. The coastline is dotted with reefs, limiting large ship access but offering excellent fishing waters.

Mild and wet. Winters are rainy, not snowy, with occasional fog. Summers are humid but not sweltering, and storms are frequent along the coast. The marshland retains moisture year-round, creating a damp microclimate in the city’s older and lower-lying areas.

Salt marsh herbs and sea fennel.

Fruit: Apples, plums, and pears dominate Applegate’s orchards.

Fish and Shellfish: Blue crabs, silver trout, and white mussels are local staples.

Peat and bogwood: Used for fuel and decorative items.

Clay and natural dyes: Found near the marshes and often used by local artisans.