Sschindylryn

For every Lolthinnúr living here, there are at least three slaves, but the true number is known only to House Avithoul's bookkeepers. To list out the species that are forced to call Sschindylryn is an excercise in futility. Notably, the Grey Orc of Orisinnium form a sizable minority, none of which are slaves. The drow have a lusture for the green steel these orcs alone know how to forge.   Beyond that, other elves are prized among the slave population, an assertion of domination. Humans and dwarves of Rusulka and the High Sanctuaries are also frequent here. Most often brutish and stupid creatures such as goblinoids, ogres, and other monsterous races are used for everyday tasks. House Avithoul's crucial task of breaking the slave population keeps the overwhelming number of slaves from flirting with ideas of rebellion.   House Szind hosts another dread population metric with its large population of undead. It allows many of them to walk the streets, some of the intelligent ones even performing errands. But a terrible thought is how many House Szind holds in reserves in its vaults outside the public eye.

Sschindylryn occupies a large cavern, more tall than it is wide. The city itself is confined to the central rock that is separates from the cave walls on all sides. An immense deep gorge surrounds the outer edge of the city, acting as a bottomless moat. A few black iron bridges cross the pit into carved caverns outside of the city, where some districts such as House Avithoul's Slave Market reside. Additionally, it is only by one heavily guarded bridge that one can enter or exit the cavern.   Walls of stone and iron rise along the edge of the precipice, with towers that point sharply with an axe's sharpness along its edge, concealing the arrow slits along its height. The spines of the walls give the city a cruel fell look to those approaching, bereft of the ghostly glow that illuminates many buildings on the interior, eclipsing them in its blackness.

Each district is owned by a singular ruling house, which defines its purpose. Some are named after the House itself, some after the House's purpose, or some other reference. They are as follows:   The Eternal Chains District. This district is to the south-west of the city proper, carved deep into the cavern wall. It is ruled by House Avithoul, with Matron Balbaste at its head. House Avithoul are prolific slavers, and their raids of the surface world and elsewhere bring back only the finest of livestock. If enslavement is to be a punishment for a drow, Avithoul are those tasked with imprisoning and breaking them before either listing them for sale or returning them a shell of their former selves. The Eternal Chains has a distinct coloration of its faerie fire of ruddy orange.   The Vaults of Night District. House Cay'Vorim rules this district, and it is the location of the warehouses of Sschindylryn. These buildings are humble on the exterior, but descend into the rocky core that the city is built upon. Not only is the warehouse used for the storage of merchandise and precious artifacts, but also used as the banking district of the city. Despite being near the center of the city, no faerie fire glows here, giving the place a distinctly cold exterior especially to those relying on darkvision.   The Ward of Blades. Occupying the west border of the city, House Dun'Robar's district is comparatively small. However, it is designed as a castle within the already fortress-like city, harkening to their task as the blademasters of the city. Those that wish to learn swordplay are sent to the barracks of Dun'Robar. The swordsmen of this House are also available for hire as mercenaries, either individually or en force. The House consists of only males, with the exception being the Matron Mother Jyr, and her eight daughters, who act as the ruling force and the priesthood. All other females are quickly disposed of. The Ward bears the crimson glow that is House Dun'Robar's colors   The Bazaar District. Headed by House Sparskrael, this district encompasses the central ring of the city interior where the markets, taverns, and lodging can be found. This house is among the wealthiest due to their responsibility over the commerce into the city. Their tithe to House Ty'ainadr and reliance on House Dun'Robar and House Szind for magi keeps them subdued, as they host some of the least inclination for martial or magic power. For House Sparskrael's power is in their charm, both in schmoozing and their flesh houses.   This is the brightest district with their green and white light, and even warm hearths in the taverns. Additionally, the portal to the City of Brass can be found here, a direct link between the two great interplanar marketplaces. As such, efreeti and ifrit are common visitors to this district.   The Groaning Bones District. Occupying the entire eastern section of the city, House Szind rules over its original holdings and those of House Xorlarrin that it recently annexed. The eerie ghost green glow brings a dread presence as House Szind's servants shuffle through the streets. For House Szind is the most powerful arcane house, having mastered the art of necromancy and the undead, using zombies and ghouls as its everyday servants and its swarming army. Lich Queen Zhivsha rules, having taken Lolth's favor through arcane dark magic.   Lolth's Finger. The centerpiece of this district is the towering adamantine rock that rises like a spike from the very center of the city, the spoke around which the city wheels around. Walled around the exterior, the majority of the buildings are built onto the sides of the rock, with sharp spires and halls latched on and coiling around it. However, portals are used on the interior in order to move around the House, forcing anyone wishing to ascend to push through several teleportations. The spider and webbing motifs dominate the architecture here, being the closest to Lolth.   This is where the ruling House sits, and that is House Ty'ainadr, headed by Matron Nerltyrr. This place is not open to the public, as it is the temple where Lolthite Priestesses are trained. Demons gifted to the Ty'ainadr serve as the guards of the walls and winged fiends stalk the rooves of the dark tower. At the very pinnacle of the Finger is the Temple of Lolth, which is dominated by the immense gate that leads directly to the Demonweb Pits.   The Abyssal Call District. Formerly the home of House Xorlarrin, this district was instrumental in summoning extraplanar creatures. It is now part of the Groaning Bones District, with most of its inhabitants turned into the undead.

Sschindylryn is located deep in the Underdark, the dark tunneled underworld of the World. It is beneath the Volhynia Mountains. It is located somewhere between the Parvos Glacier and the High Sanctuaries.   There is only one way to reach the city without the means of a portal, and that is through the Parvos Road. First one would head north from Orisinium and cross the Lands of Green Steel. From there, the Parvos Road is a well maintained trail cutting steeply into the mountains before arriving at the foot of the immense Parvos Glacier. A hole is bored into the side of the glacier, descending beneath it until it becomes the twisting tunnels of the Underdark.    This entrance tunnel is the lair of the great white dragon Nidhogrym the Exile, so named for his abandonment of Vyin'denar during The Convergence. He is the powerful guardian of the road to Sschindylryn, and extorts a toll of those wishing to pass, as well as a tribute from the drow of the city. This is acceptable to the drow, for having such a powerful guardian blocking any undesired visitors. The choice between portals controlled by the drow or a white dragon renders the city rather well defended.    After braving this dangerous path, one would find themselves at the outer caves of Sschindylryn, having to cross the Iarruh d'Ta'chelle, the most heavily guarded place in the city after the pinnacle of House Ty'ainadr.