Pakaysacha (Pah-kuh-eye-sah-chah)
Other Names |
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Canopy Town |
Den of the Huntsmen |
Demonyms |
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Pakaysachian |
Nkua Pakaysacha |
Pakaysachapa Runa |
Demography |
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Ruling Organization |
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Within the lush and diverse rainforest of the Isthmus of the Huntsman, a city stretches across the branches of the canopy. The forest floor is rife with dangerous predators and, in recent years, soldiers of the Kingdom of Accia. Utilizing their kaithur and working alongside nature, the Bakongo of the Isthmus and their Tawantinsuyu benefactors constructed their city into the branches of this vivacious forest, the resulting city carrying the fingerprint of both cultures. But perhaps the most unique quality of the city is attributed to the trees themselves--sentient and fully mobile!
Wood platforms and rope bridges link together and blend seamlessly into the treetops, not harming their verdant hosts. Raw stones are plastered together with thatch or leafy rooves, painted in a vibrant range of colors. Other buildings and even bridges consist instead of living branches and woody vines, carefully guided into place as they grew or reshaped by magic. Even before the arrival of the huntsmen, Pakaysacha has had their own peculiar protectors--the trees themselves. A tribe sometimes referred to as tree shepherds communes with the sentient trees of Musi Kongo, tending to their needs and leaving offerings in exchange for their cooperation!
While there are still a number of nomadic tribes and smaller settlements throughout the rainforest but this is their largest city and the base of Supay the Huntsman and his Chakuqpa Runankuna allies. The Tawantinsuyu Empire is based further south in the Continent Beyond, as the Kingdom of Accia calls it, but as far as the kingdom is aware, this enemy settlement is at the edge of their known world. The same can be said of the Tawantinsuyu Empire, Pakaysacha located at the frontier of their lands. Accia has yet to locate this mysterious village, unaware of its atypical construction, and Chakuq Supay is cautious in maintaining its concealment. Their settlement has also seen considerable expansion since the kingdom set their eyes on the region, many nomadic tribes or smaller villages fleeing to this city to evade conflict or even as refugees. Supay, his chakuqpa runankuna and the Tawantinsuyu Empire are fiercely protective of this last stronghold, determined to halt Accia's advance south into lands yet unknown to their northern neighbors. |
Demography |
Those residing here are a mix of Tawantinsuyu migrants, merchants or soldiers and local Bakongo and other Abantu locals. Many of these locals fled south as the kingdom claimed their homes while others were in Pakaysacha from before the war. Whether Bakongo or Tawantinsuyu, citizens are generally untrusting of any outside races, especially Eluzians. Until Accia's expansion, they were relatively insulated from their northern neighbors only interacting with those living in Mexica or the pirates based along the coast. Despite the vast differences in culture, the people of Pakaysacha have come together under duress and created a city with a unique harmony between both the people and the rainforest! |
Most pakaysachians living within the city possess kaithur from Fliral, Lunil or even Dalyeric. Its these abilities that enabled the unique construction their city, blending so seamlessly with the rainforest, and how they are able to continue to safely reside here. Most if not all of the chakuqpa runankuna, their protectors, are instead blessed by Banalkar. In fact, their leader is suspected by the kingdom to be a divine descendant of Banalkar! |
Geography |
The environment here is humid and hot, rain constantly pattering over the roof of the canopy and a diverse ecosystem all around them. The floor of the canopy is extremely dangerous and life above competitive. Yet this region is also quite verdant, diverse and abundant! Pakaysacha is built into the branches of a lush rainforest along the southern end of Musi Kongo. The landscape is defined by this rainforest and the abundance of rivers running in from the northwest. There is no shortage of water or plant life. In fact, this region is especially known for its sentient, mobile trees! The isthmus itself, a narrow strip of land with sea on either side, forms a link between two continents and is a choke point between Eluziar and the Continent Beyond.
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Infrastructure Because the city is built into the branches of the canopy, they needed to be extremely resourceful, unconventional and crafty with their infrastructure. An example is their source of clean water. A system of troughs lays above the trees akin to aqueducts, camouflaged into the canopy to catch fresh rainwater before running down into various reservoirs throughout the city--a resource available to all citizens! Excess water simply runs down into the forest below and the constant movement of this water assures it's freshness. |
Defenses |
The greatest defences of Pakaysacha is the secrecy of their location and their position above the forest floor. Every structure and plaza is carefully screened with canopy branches or vines and all rooves are similarly green, camouflaging the city from above. Additionally, only a handful of hidden ladders lead up into the city from the forest floor and a number of concealed platforms are scattered around the perimeter of the city, chakuqpa runankuna stationed at these in shifts.
Each individual chakuqpa runan carries a whistle which is inaudible to human ears but easily picked up by other chakuqpa runan inside the city. This is because each chakuqpa runankuna has a magic form with extreme bestial features, many of which include superior animal hearing. If a whistle sounds, rather than engaging with an invader they will activate a protective enchantment designed to mask the presence of the city from those below (sights, sounds, smells, etc.) Accian patrols have wandered underneath the city multiple times, totally unaware. If this is to fail and the city falls under attack, citizens retreat to the fortified garrison within the central plaza while Supay and his men fend them off! |
Architecture |
Most of the Tawantinsuyu empire lays further south, totally unknown to the Kingdom of Accia. Intricate and impressive stone architecture with geometric patterns, clusters of kancha and high walls are the mainstay of their typical architecture. However, the isthmus is as much of a frontier to the Tawantinsu as it is to the Accians. They have had to drastically adapt their usual designs for this their furthest outlying city, draped in thick rainforest rather than jagged mountainsides. |
Pakaysacha was reconstructed alongside the efforts of local Bakongo and following agreements with the trees themselves--no damage to be caused by construction. A mixture of stone and mud mortar or simple wooden structures are capped by thatch or leafy rooves supported by living trunks and branches! Similar to the Tawantinsuyu's kancha, most structures are rectangular and cluster together into groups of three or so. These clusters center around the trunk of a single tree, some built onto platforms while others are nestled into the branches. Their leafy, often living rooves blend in perfectly with the leaves of the canopy, the gentle embrace of the rainforest camouflaging the village from the vision of aerial scouts. Flexible bridges of rope and woody vines link the patios of these clusters together, crafted by guiding the growth of branches into the desired shape or by communing with the trees. |
Most of the buildings in Pakaysacha are rectangular with one entrance and a single room. Open buildings with no closed walls are also common, appearing as geometric awnings in public spaces. Some structures, depending on purpose, might be long with multiple doors or even circular or u-shaped. Single story buildings outnumber larger counterparts in order to evade unnecessarily heavy structures. But as the village continues to expand, multiple verticle layers spiral up the trunks of larger trees, ascending or descending the trunks. Exterior walls of buildings slope inward as they rise, giving buildings a trapezoid form to make the walls seem higher and thicker than they are. This motif is repeated in doorways, windows and interior walls.
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Larger buildings in Pakaysacha imitate Tawantinsuyu kalanka, trapezoid faced structures having several doors which face a large open space. These are most often used for public spaces and gatherings. Another structure from the Tawantinsuyu is the ushnu a viewing platform from which the Huntsman can observe important ceremonies and judicial proceedings. This is located on one side of their main plaza, attached to his home. The central plaza of Pakaysacha is the largest in the city, appearing to hover over the forest below and suspended by massive woody vines. It is these living Iliana vines and a number of branches beneath the plaza which enable it to be suspended so high above the forest floor, living plants far more sturdy than dead wood! Their primary market lines the main plaza and smaller ones while their Chakuq's personal home overlooks the entire open space. |
Government |
Since Supay took up his role as defender of this region, none have contested his leadership. He found he was unexpectedly suited to city planning. He has those he trusts amid his men but otherwise, all decisions and leadership defaults to this mysterious but fearsome warrior. However, they do have an appointed governor who handles the menial day to day tasks and organizes public events when Supay is busy fighting the kingdom. The chakuqpa runankuna and those amid the village clearly revere their Chakuq but his true identity remains a mystery to the outside world. |
Resources and Trade |
While ill suited to agriculture, this city still has an abundance of resources within their reach. The rainforest is lush and thriving with life. Whether foraging fruit and wild greens or hunting the animals calling the forest home, there is no shortage of food as long as they continue to respect the forest they call home. As the city has expanded, taking in more refugees, they have come to lean on the aid of the Tawantinsuyu Empire as a benefactor and trade partner. Despite this heavily weighing in the city's favor, this is because the empire views them as an investment in their own security. They regularly send both supplies and more men. But their largest expenditure is that which secures their arrangement with the trees! These benefactors require a considerable amount of resources to keep them healthy and satisfied, a good deal of offerings (usually foodstuffs) needed to persuade them. Much of the game hunted by the chakuqpa runankuna ends up tangled in the roots of these collosal trees! |
History |
 This city was not originally built or occupied by the Tawantinsuyu. This was actually a very recent occurrence. Pakaysacha was once a small, peaceful unnamed village constructed by local Bakongo as an adaption for evading predators below. However, as Accia continued it's conquest south and refugees continued pouring into the Tawantinsuyu Empire, they became wary of this expansion. Supay the Huntsman appeared amid this uncertainty from among their own people and had his chakuqpa runankuna ready to follow him into battle. They swept into the region, resisting the kingdom at every turn and successfully curbing their advance.  As it became obvious this conflict was far from its end, he and his men settled onto this once small village as their base. They began acting as Pakaysacha's guardians in exchange for safe haven. They also expanded the village under his guidance, receiving resources and men from the Tawantinsuyu Empire which became invested in their activities. They view Supay and his warriors as their best barrier against the kingdom. Many locals also fled to the burgeoning city, seeking their own sanctuary from the Accian invaders. What started as an unsteady and uncertain blending of these two cultures gradually fell into steadfast cooperation as they fought, built and thrived together, unified in purpose and enemy. Supay himself saw to the balance between these residents, hosting and overseeing cultural events himself. It is under these circumstances that Pakaysacha, the village of hidden tree, secret sight, secret forest or simply the secret, morphed into the thriving city and Den of the Huntsman! |
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