(Often just called “the City” by the locals; “Djembo” refers to the city, island, nation, and the surname of the Founder.)
The city of feasts and a year-round cornucopia of agricultural bounty. Djembo is famous as the only place in the world where humans - not gods or random chance - control the weather. Legends speak of Tengva Djembo, the city’s esteemed founder, tricking a sky god and stealing his share of the Cloud Kingdom. More modern thinkers believe that the first mages to settle Djembo unlocked some secret to magical manipulation of the weather – a secret they still closely guard. Whatever the case, Djembo’s weather is clockwork-perfect; pleasant for visitors and optimal for all manner of tropical and subtropical crops. Djembo also sports the richest soils in the world, making it a renowned center for agriculture and a massive exporter of produce despite the island’s modest land area.
The city’s current culture is strikingly minimalist; its people live fun-filled yet simple lives. Stability is paramount here. Djembo does not shun outside technology and magics – they even have some researchers and tinkerers of their own – but they have little need of it, and they seek to limit disrupting influences. Adventure and fortune-seeking is seen as entirely unnecessary; Djembo’s people have everything they need. …Or so the elders say. The younger generation is increasingly seeking foreign distractions, which are rare on the island. They are often encouraged to join Djembo’s kraken-hunting navy, as an outlet for their restlessness.
The vine-encrusted earthen buildings of Djembo look fragile, and this may be true – but there is nothing here that can destroy them. Enemy invasions are swept out to sea by the weather mages, and winds inside the city never exceed a light breeze. Not to mention, when the buildings do finally crumble with age, they live on as vine shells. There is no need for firefighters; small drenching rainclouds immediately appear over any fire in the city. (If you want to make a fire, seek permission for an exception from the city’s weather mages. Otherwise you’ll just get soaked. The fire suppression magics are automated but can be deactivated briefly.)
Djembosan Heritage: 3rd Wave (Sunder), with some immigration from Fortuna (mostly Norrish & Ustrachi)
Djembo Stats: Population: 3 (45x)
Cultural Influence: 5 The Djembosan live simple lives. This was not always the case; the country was one a center of shallow materialism and frivolity, even worse than their neighbors in Fortuna. But nowadays most people (the older generations, at least) follow the teachings of Magister Sunar, who preached that simple, stable lives were the most worthy and healthy for the soul. Since she had a hand in saving the island, and was later betrayed and martyred, her words became “Founder-voiced”: as important as the writings of the Founder. (The Founder, Tengva Djembo, mostly wrote about sexual matters; unrelated and orthogonal to Sunar’s teachings.) Sunar’s teachings were wise and beneficial – and yet, a side-effect was isolation of Djembo from the international cultural mainstream.
The younger generation is starting to crave more complex entertainments. Parents frequently bemoan Fortunese influences in this regard.
The world’s last serious kraken hunters are based out of Djembo; anyone seeking to hunt kraken must technically join the Djembosan navy. This adds to the island-nation’s cultural profile.
Economic Influence: 6. If you can eat it, Djembo exports it. Djembo is the most agriculturally productive location in the known world; a combination of custom-tailored weather and remarkably fertile soils. Crops grow larger and taste better here – and outsiders pay handsomely for them.
Djembo’s emphasis on simplicity keeps their economy from being as influential as it could be. Of course, not all Djembosan hold to Sunar’s teachings, and many of the island’s merchants juggle complex financial dealings on the international stage.
Military Influence: 8. Djembo’s navy doubles as its whaling and kraken-hunting fleet; it is the last of the big cities to continue kraken-hunting operations. And its operation is remarkable. The navy owns just three large ships, but these leviathans are among the largest ships in the world; the size of the City is doubled when just one of these ships is docked at home. The leviathans are made of thick, specially treated planks and are effectively invincible. They have few weapons, and tend to stay far from combat. The leviathans carry entire fleets of small, fast attack canoes and catamarans that can swarm enemies – whether they be sea monsters or enemy warships. The canoes are highly maneuverable, keep a low profile, are too buoyant to sink even if shattered, and can be reassembled on-the-water. These attack swarms carry no traditional anti-ship weapons, but they each have a single small ballista that fires grappling hooks into the rigging of tall enemy vessels. The Djembosan sailors can then either climb aboard the ship, or attach the hook to heavy anchors that temporarily pin the vessel. (when hunting whales and sea monsters, harpoons are used instead of grapplers.) Life in the navy is a common choice for restless young people seeking adventure, and it is an encouraged occupation for restless young men. Sea-monster hunting is so popular, in fact, that many foreigners serve in Djembo’s navy. They see it more as adventure tourism than an occupation – though they do still get paid a modest stipend for their efforts.
Djembo’s land-based armed forces have atrophied since the 100 year old civil war; a standing army has been considered a liability. But Djembo’s farmers have plenty of spare time to train, and in times of peril a large and fairly competent fighting force can be conscripted. Recently, some Djembosan volunteers fought in defense of sister-nation Fortuna during that nation’s war with Hegrund.
Defense: 7. There are few structures in Djembo that look like they could withstand the impact of a single ballista bolt, let alone a full siege. Luckily, Djembo is unlikely to face that problem. Its weather mages have absolute control over the weather over and around the island; ships are sunk before they land, and if an army somehow makes it to shore, winds with physics-defying power can throw invaders back into the ocean in pieces.
A civil war a hundred years ago revealed just how fragile Djembo was. It has little to fear from the outside, but power struggles internal to the island can almost literally tear it apart. Since then, Djembo has been rebuilt, and the teachings of Magister Sunar have helped to ensure peace.
Djembo Cultural Stats:
Government: Lord Protector. Traditionally (but not always) male. When the Lord Protector dies or retires, a new Lord Protector is chosen by the Defense Council from among the island’s top admirals & weather mages. Any citizen who has dedicated at least ten years to farming, naval service, or weather mastery can join the Defense Council.
Most Common Criminal Acts: serially gleaning crops, agricultural sabotage, attempted arson, misaligning the weather, failure to reveal kraken coordinates. (Some kraken hunters have been private, but the Lord Protector now demands that all citizens reveal the coordinates of any known kraken to the navy.)
Justice: Limited justice system; social shaming used to keep people in line.
Climate: Wet tropical/subtropical, and perfect in every way.
Nights: Night is dark and shunned. Citizens may stay up, but rarely leave their dwellings, despite the always-perfect weather. A century ago, before the civil war, night was filled with the sounds of revelry.
Food: Anything and everything that can be grown, especially fruit. Djembosan are so fond of diverse fruit platters that they pay good money to import the rare few varieties that can’t be grown on Djembo (anything requiring frost). Most meat is whale or kraken meat; some beef is imported. (Djembo will not waste its valuable agricultural land on ranching.)
Clothing: Simple, mostly white. White clothes become more obviously dirty - but this is an asset, not a liability. Dirt-stained white clothes are a sign of hard work and dedication to farming.
Festivals & Holidays: Solaria (Sunderland variant), Djembo Day, Sunar's Remembrance, Harvest Festivals (many), Dance of the Sea (a celebration of the year's kraken kills), Dance of the Wind (an incredible choreographed dance of flags, with weather-mages controlling the winds), Siblings' Day (to celebrate siblings, but also to celebrate their friendly ties with sister-city Fortuna).
City Appearance & Architecture: Nearly everything is vine-encrusted, and some buildings are literally giant swings. Buildings are stone and/or vine; overall a very fragile, crumbling, reclaimed-by-nature look. The architecture is not currently grand, but there are incredible vine-woven "structures" that used to house hulking buildings.
Common Sounds & Smells: flowers, fruit, sweet cocoa, whale and kraken meat, earth, grass, vinewood.
Governance Building, Iconic Structures & Landmarks: Castle of Vines, The Great Swing, Stormflute (Conclave of the Weather Mages), House of Happy Wives (Tengva Djembo's old Palace), Garden of Winds, Temple of Dance, Shrine of Sunar, Palace of Harvest, Krakenhunter's Lodge, College of Bounty, the Bombards, Fortuna Pillar of Sisterhood.
Districts, Sectors, Zones, Regions, Wards, and other big places: Krakenhunter Docks (three massive piers to accommodate the three massive leviathans), Shipping Docks, Cold-up (large warehouses on a plateau kept just above freezing; for preserving agricultural exports), the Vineway, the Ascendant Homes (ancient structures, collapsed, now vine skeletons), the Fringe Farms, Feasting Square, the Outer Delta (northern fridge of the city; barrier islands), Bombard Bay (between the Outer Delta and the Docks), Harpoon Isle (like Ellis Island for foreign Kraken hunters).
Produces, Exports: coffee, chocolate, sugar, cassava, nuts, vegetables, breadfruit, clocks, ships, carriages, magic carvings, armor, whale meat & oil, kraken meat & ink, spices. Surprisingly, sweet fruit is not a major export, since so much is consumed locally.
Demands, Imports: top-notch timbers, copper, platinum, financial products, tin, coldweather fruit, beef
Satellite Cities & Towns: None, but the island of Djembo has very high population density throughout.
Highly optional game-related or story-related material:
Important People: xxxx
Plot Hooks:
-xxxx
-xxxx
(Typically just called “the Capital” or “Fortuna City” by the locals, to distinguish it from the nation of Fortuna.)
A font of wealth, an ocean of prosperity, a sea of luxury, Fortuna is a city blessed with unquantifiable riches. Legend speaks of Fora Djembo (the city’s founder, and sister to Tengva Djembo) tricking an earth god into releasing all her metals and gems to the surface world. Though this is probably apocryphal, it is true that the mountains around Fortuna hold great riches, including metals which exist nowhere else in their pure form. (Pure mithril – native aluminum – and earth-forged steel. These exist in pure form nowhere else, though they can be made from their ores by accomplished metallurgists, with great difficulty.) This mineral wealth has been the foundation of Fortuna’s prosperity – but the industrious nature of its people, the rich quality of its soils, the know-how of its alchemists, and the strategic location of the city itself (on a narrow isthmus criss-crossed with bridges and canals; a meeting point for overland and oversea trade) have all contributed to the land’s (and especially the city’s) unprecedented affluence.
Fortuna is not just prosperous, it is also very large; the second- or third-largest city in all of Terra Trema. (Largest, when satellite cities are included.) Hulking towers and impossibly tall bridges define the city’s impressive skyline. Curiously, the lower a person’s class, the higher they live in the tall buildings; this stands in stark contrast to most other cities, where the wealthy and powerful tend to inhabit the upper rooms of the tallest towers. The ultra-wealthy of Fortuna prefer living on the ground, since the ground is seen - symbolically and literally - as the source of all riches. (And, perhaps more importantly, living on ground level is more convenient in a vertically-oriented city lacking elevators.)
The city’s poor have a surprisingly decent quality of life, as the city’s vast wealth and the fertility of the countryside allow the Regent to provide a social safety net and stipend. (And some wealth does “bubble up” to the sky-cursed classes, so to speak.) However, citizens who accept the Regent’s stipend are required to dedicate two days a week to public works and maintenance projects. Due to mandatory work, the many many stairs and ladders that must be navigated daily, and the breakdown of the family unit in Fortuna’s competitive culture, this is not a friendly city for those who are disabled or impaired. (Unless they’re rich, of course. This city is always very friendly if you’re rich.)
Justice in the city is financial: crimes are punished by large fines, and the only prisons are debtor’s prisons. This is, understandably, another issue that disproportionately affects the poor. Though to be fair, many fines are adjusted for income level.
Fortuna has many smaller cities nearby, themselves also important sources of wealth and trade - though not nearly so large and lavish as the capital. However, as one travels away from the city and toward the hinterland, life becomes more rustic and down-to-earth; the locals are mostly simple farmers, lumberjacks, and fishers. Much of this hinterland region was devastated in a recent war with rival Hegrund; once a mighty military power like Neven, but now laid to waste with some sort of magical superweapon. Hegrund was winning the war before a mysterious magical event killed everyone in its capital. Fortuna’s great prosperity has spurred a rapid rebuilding effort.
Though the (human) racial makeup of Fortuna is different from that of Djembo (lighter skinned Norrish & Ustrachi vs. Djembo’s darker Sunder), their founders were siblings, and the two nations are sibling-states and allies. It is said that Tengva Djembo (founder of the city & nation of Djembo) and his wives populated their land by sheer force of breeding, while Fora Djembo rallied and organized her land’s existing tribespeople (mostly descendants of shipwreck victims from Old Norraine and Old Ustrach) into a unified nation. (She is said to have accomplished this thanks to both an impressive level of charisma, and her newfound god-like wealth.) Like most siblings, Djembo and Fortuna have many quarrels and disagreements, which serves to hide a deep-seated respect and fondness underneath.
Fortunese Heritage: 2nd Wave (Norrish & Ustrachi; initially shipwreck victims) but nation founded in the 3rd age by a woman from Sunderland (sister of Djembo’s founder). There are also some recent immigrants, especially from Djembo (Sunder) and Hegrund (Ustrachi)
Population: 18 (410x) Fortuna is the 2nd largest city in Terra Trema, after New Harmony. When satellite cities are included, it is the largest. (The heartland of the nation of Fortuna is more populous than any other nation’s heartland.)
Cultural Influence: 12. Fortuna has a lot of people, and a LOT of money. Its fiscal soft power bleeds over into cultural soft power – often by way of patronage. (Rich Fortunese investors can dictate which artistic endeavors get funded.) Any cultural product meant for export (e.g., mass-produced literature) must keep Fortunese tastes in mind. That being said, Fortuna’s culture looks down on art and writing as “professions of passion”, as opposed to “professions of production”; they are seen as lesser, at least by the upper and middle classes. Being an artist, writer, or other creative type in Fortuna often means being poor and unsuccessful – at least, in comparison to wealthy middle-class Fortunese. Furthermore, Fortuna’s art houses and publishers are owned by profit-obsessed investors who dictate mass-production of formulaic drivel, focus-group-filtered pablum, lowest-common-denominator slapstick, and uncreative-but-low-risk sequels. Thus, Fortuna’s cultural output is only passing fair, especially considering its resources and population.
Economic Influence: 20. Fortuna is rich, rich, rich, rich. Anyone who makes anything seeks to export it to Fortuna, or get an investment from a Fortunese banking house, to grab a small piece of Fortuna’s incalculably large money pie. While Fortuna’s wealth originated from rich mineral deposits, it didn’t grow into Terra Trema's economic superpower thanks to privileged resource distribution alone. Fortunese culture emphasizes productivity and economic prowess; its bankers, investors, and industrialists know how to take their vast fortune and make an even vaster fortune. Even the poor tend to be fairly well-versed in financial matters – and generally bitter about being surrounded by so much wealth. (To be fair, they have a more comfortable life than the upper-class of some nations.)
A significant percentage of Terra Trema’s wealthy travelers (we might call them tourists) hail from Fortuna. Fortunese in general rarely live up to their pampered, obnoxious, privileged stereotypes – but Fortunese travelers in foreign lands almost always do.
(Contrast with the runner up in terms of economic influence: Yozai’s travelers are very good at blending in and being pleasantly invisible in foreign lands. Fortuna and Yozai are technically rivals, but their relationship is very synergistic, with Yozai functioning more like an economic “nervous system” vs. the raw economic muscle of Fortuna. Peloria’s newfound mineral wealth could pose a significant challenge to Fortuna as the value of gold begins to plummet.)
Military Influence: 6. Fortuna’s military might actually be effective if it didn’t gold-plate everything, and promote officers based on financial standing. The Fortunese army is fairly large and well-equipped, but the soldiers are pampered and lack proper discipline.
Fortuna’s military fared embarrassingly poorly against the invading armies of Hegrund during the recent war. It is often claimed that Fortuna would have been sacked or conquered by the Hegrundi if not for the mysterious, inexplicable destruction of the City of Hegrund two years ago. (Or, more accurately, the simultaneous death of all its people; most of the structures were left intact.) It is not known if this event was caused by some superweapon under Fortuna’s control, a one-time miracle, or some other natural or supernatural event – but the nations of Terra Trema couldn’t help but take notice. A shameful embarrassment and rout of Fortuna’s military turned to total victory in the space of a few seconds. Could Fortuna threaten other cities with this unthinkable, civilization-erasing power?
Defense: 8. Fortuna (both the city proper and the nation) is home to many mighty castles and thick walls. Yet Fortuna is infamous for poor planning and form-over-function decisions. For example: large, low windows on castles that look more like cathedrals, moats filled with beautiful koi fish instead of dangerous piranhas, decorative ballistae and catapults placed in locations where they can’t be fired or even accessed, bolts and spikes tipped in soft gold instead of hard steel, walls made entirely out of giant sculptures of the city’s wealthy elite, magnificent banners that hang near ground-level and can be easily climbed by invaders, canal gates made of beautiful but insubstantial ribbons, and so on. The most egregious example was the Tower of Gilded Might, which was cast entirely of lead and plated with gold. The tower toppled over as soon as it was struck by a Hegrundi ballista bolt.
Fortuna Cultural Stats: (average of all classes)
Government: Token monarchy / benevolent corporatocracy. The Regent, leader of the Kingsguild, is elected by the leaders of all accredited guilds. The rich can buy positions in the legislature.
Most Common Criminal Acts: corporate espionage, tax evasion, embezzlement, identity theft, burglary, default
Justice: Most penalties are financial; rich spared. Debtors prisons common.
Climate: mild subtropical/temperate; Mediterranean. Weather along the northwestern coast of the Nation of Fortuna is under Djembo’s control. The weather here is perfect at all times… for a nominal fee.
Nights: Great night lighting. Most go to bed early, but plenty of nightlife & some crime.
Food: Anything & everything. Fortuna has its own productive agricultural belt - plus vast wealth - plus a close association with hyper-agriculturalist Djembo. Portion sizes are criminally large. More food is wasted than eaten.
Clothing: As expensive-looking as possible, with ever-changing fashion. Typically gilded or flashy. (Very “Capitol District” from The Hunger Games.)
Festivals & Holidays: Goldenrain (a distorted Solaria celebration featuring a literal, and occasionally lethal, rain of gold), Siblings’ Day (a day to celebrate siblings, but also friendly ties with brother city Djembo), Fora’s Birthday, Materia Mori (a somber, week-long holiday when Fortunese contemplate what really matters: material things). Additionally, Fortuna “celebrates” nearly all major holidays from elsewhere in Terra Trema, in a corrupted and materialistic fashion. (Marketers use them to drive sales.)
City Appearance & Architecture: Elaborate, impressive, the very definition of lavish overkill. One unique quirk: the slums are at the TOPS of buildings, and the penthouses & wealthy districts are at the BOTTOMS. The Regent mandates that all windows and walkways above the 4th story stay barred shut and sealed, so the filthy poors can’t toss their refuse downward on the esteemed rich. From a distance, the sealed tube-bridges that connect the lofty slums make the city look just a little like an elaborate hamster terrarium.
Note that the meanings of “up” and “down” (and all synonyms) are similarly reversed throughout the culture. “Down” equals “increase”; stocks and values going down is a GOOD thing. Upward is toward the cold, uncaring sky; downward is toward the loving embrace of Fora’s Good Earth.
Common Sounds & Smells: At ground level: all manner of alchemical perfumes. Perfumes designed to layer in a heavy haze, so their wondrous scents never loft upwards to be wasted on the poor. Scents among the towers & high tube-bridges are arguably still pleasant, but the perfumes here smell more artificial. (Lots of fake vanilla, synthetic coconut, and bleach.)
Governance Building, Iconic Structures & Landmarks: Prosperity's Promise (Regent's Palace, Bribery Exchange, and shopping mall), Legislative Exchange (for buying and selling positions in the government), The Bidding Stage (crowdfunded improv), The Servants’ Project , The Mirror of Fountains, the Fountain of Mirrors, The Apex (bridge/canal at the Pinch), the Laborers’ Project, and the Secretaries' Project (huge towers full of relatively poor people), Debtors’ Prison (huge tower full of illegally broke people), Temple of Materia (shopping mall), Temple of Consumption (shopping mall), the Gilded Temple (high-end shopping mall) Indulgence Cathedral (shopping mall, and also a place to bribe the gods), The Terra Trema Commodities Exchange (beating heart of the World Economy), Fiscal Funland (money-themed theme-park), Fora's Promise (statue/monument), Djembo Pillar of Brotherhood.
Districts, Sectors, Zones, Regions, Wards, and other big places: Ladders Ward (poorer), Grounders Ward (richer), Fountains Ward, Temple Ward (actually commercial/shopping), South Harbor Ward, North Harbor Ward, the Pinch (the narrow isthmus at the very center of the city, crowned by the Apex), the North Bridges (floating bridges / harbor barriers that are inhabited by poor foreigners; the only part of the city not fully repaired since the Hegrundi bombardment), the South Bridges (large stone bridges and bridge-towers inhabited by poor to middle-class locals), the Hulks (floating ship hulls in the harbor). Secret area: the Crypts of the Chosen, beneath Prosperity’s Promise. An ancient, reality-defying, non-euclidean dungeon of glowing stone and empty coffins. Probably not worth investigating.
Produces, Exports: financial products, platinum, mithril, food (pumpkins, fruit), chemicals, potions
Demands, Imports: meat, furs, ivory, luxury goods, adamantane, granite, marble, jade, amber, ships, clocks, tea
Satellite Cities & Towns: many large nearby cities that could be keystone cities in their own right, if not overshadowed and controlled by Fortuna. They’re grand enough, but they have nothing that Fortuna doesn’t have. Farther from Fortuna, these cities become less grand and take on a more frontier-ey character.
Highly optional game-related or story-related material:
Important People: xxxx
Plot Hooks: Anyone down for a heist? Alternatively, is anyone up for a heist?
-So. What is the Fortunese superweapon? And does it have anything with the Crypts of the Chosen?
-The Lost Batallions: what are the scattered remnants of the Hegrundi Machina Belli up to?
The Hegrundi are descendants of the fiercely independent northern tribes that rebuked Fora Djembo’s call to unification, many centuries ago. They founded a bleak and powerful city-state in the cold, wooded wilds far northeast of Fortuna.
Called The City of Giants for its oversized but simple architecture, Hegrund was a city-state of ORGANIZED WAR. Essentially, it was Sparta. Its mighty Machina Belli was winning the war against Athens- er, Fortuna – handily until it was hit by some sort of impossible superweapon or divine judgment. It now sits mostly empty; the buildings and infrastructure largely undamaged, but the citizens just... gone. It was considered a Keystone city until the superweapon ended the war and erased its populace. It's been partly resettled by Hegrundi soldiers and country folk, so it's not quite a ghost-town. Yet it feels eerily empty – and the oversized architecture only makes this worse. It is currently administered by the Fortunese military, and its territories (still full of thriving small villages) are being auctioned off for no-holds-barred economic exploitation.
(Though Hegrund functions something like a ruin, its icon on the map is not that of a ruin, since almost all of its structures are in perfect condition.)