The 500 Mile City
Grand Nostridan
Cities in the Sky,
Battlemaps set in this location
1st District: Jalova
1. Sovas Palace. The palace district 2. Decon river Basalt canyon
3. Sanroko Grand Station 4. Nim Skiff race arena 5. Red Lantern Theater
6. Entertainment district 7. Saltstreet Endless Riot 8. The Peaks,
9. Industrial area 10. Font water treatment reservoir
11. Morarmar Prison island 12. Pelton Skyterminal airship hangar tower
12. Forsaken Anarchist Cartel
2nd District: Prossporo
1. Ahdieah's Font. 2. Mummers cartel circus 3. the Teirs 4. Goldbridge
5. Castle Prossporo. 6. Dor Bhanish the flying University.
7. Smoke and Silk club. 8. Rabbitrun. 9, King Toska memorial 10.Godswall
3rd District: Culltower Bluff
1. Culltower. 2. Skyfiser cartel hideout. 3. Garag Pits
4. Petra Greatfinch Hatchery. 5. Mouth of the Mountain. 6. Scalerock.
7. Rosewood Family Estates 8. Fangs
4th District: Dorian Acadmey
1. The Dorian Acadmey of Invention.
2. Melbrone Socitey cartel lodge. 3. Stoneheart Radio.
4. Aerocarne Labratories. 5. Buldain's Spine. 6. Dorian Parlament.
7. Gauge Market. 8. Wicker Medow. 9. The Emerald Market
The earthy Highlands and unforgiving cold winds prevent much more than the occasional pine tree from growing. Yet out of the rocks and dirt shoot massive spires reaching to the skies. Steep slopes and cliff faces pose daunting challenges to seafaring trade, but Meldwyn boasts perfect conditions for airship travel. The city's population is largely human, Pross, and wood elves, but its coast is the nearest face to many nearby islands, reflecting a diverse array of immigrants.
Much of the power not provided by the Dorian Academy is generated by the Wakeost water wheel and the snowmelt from the spires.
The Emerald Market
Named after the emerald blue drapes embedded with an alchemical property developed in the market itself, the drapes perfectly regulate the temperature below them, regardless of the season. The Emerald Market is considered the forefront of boundary-pushing technology, serving as an endless swap meet where races and cultures combine ideas to develop technology, arcana, and alchemy.
The Dorian Academy of Invention
One of the most famous landmarks of Meldwyn is the Dorian Academy, named after what is popularly believed to be the first engineer, Crimley Dorian. Most, if not all, engineers can trace their roots and teachings back to Dorian, and the first collection of his work became so popular that it was decided an Academy of Invention would be opened in a prominent, forward-thinking city. At that time, Meldwyn was only blossoming in Everspring, and when the Dorian Academy planted its flag, that blossoming transformed into rampant growth.
The academy now hosts those its delegates deem worthy, and it is said to hold many secrets. Some claim that Dorian's ideals were mad, that his studies lacked a moral code or ethics. Many believe he is still alive and is planning something behind the scenes within the many walls of the Academy of Invention. Rumors of its workings are almost as widespread as its influence.
"The day will come when all things are the invention of the intelligent humanoid, and our view of the gods will be one of fellowship in place of envy."
~Crimley Dorian, father of the warforged.
5th District: Guldel
1. Sovas Palace. The palace district
2. Decon river Basalt canyon 3. Sanroko Grand Station
4. Nim Skiff race arena 5. Red Lantern Theater 6. Entertainment district
Saltstreet Endless Riot
The Peaks, Industrial area
6th District: Capital Cross
1. Sovas Palace. The palace district
2. Decon river Basalt canyon 3. Sanroko Grand Station
4. Nim Skiff race arena 5. Red Lantern Theater 6. Entertainment district
Saltstreet Endless Riot
The Peaks, Industrial area
Font water treatment reservoir
Morarmar Prison island
The Motes
The Lands of the Motes are unique across Crudilex, distinguished primarily by their namesake. These floating islands hover in clusters above a dusty purple barrens.
A mysterious magical substance called Iari—resembling a purple quartz-like crystal—defies gravity, remaining immovable in the air. Iari’s traits change depending on the other substances it interacts with, and the various effects are still being discovered. The known interactions have already transformed the world of Crudilex significantly, and the Motes are perhaps the most abundant reserve of Irari. Each of the countless floating islands contains a substantial geode at its core, which keeps the island afloat. Nearly all of the power of the isolationist nation of Nostradan is drawn from mining and exploring the Motes. Despite this, the floating islands remain a wild frontier. Climbers and aeronauts call this place home, carving out a life amidst the untamed wilderness.
No day in the Motes is easy, but the rewards are great for those willing to seek adventure.
Mote Islands
There are many islands in the Motes, each populated by unique cultures of their own.
Moteport
The ruler of Grand Nostradan is called a Lerin, a combination of king, general, and religious leader. It is believed that the Lerin was gifted this power from Dormis, making their rule unquestionable.
It is also believed that when the Lerin dies, they are reincarnated somewhere in the world. A sacred group of covert agents is always ready to infiltrate the three other nations to find the infant Lerin and return them to High Edorin.
Crownroost
The highest of all the Motes, nearly three miles above the undermote, the air here is thin and frigid, unsuitable for most life. However, the Arakocra find it perfectly suited to their lifestyle. They lead a tribalistic life, protecting eggs and hatchlings while using Iari in spiritual ceremonies that they believe bring them closer to the mysterious nature of the Motes.
Roian Mining Operation
The main Nostrdian mining operation in the Motes, Roian's powerful Rendcresk-class skiffs are constantly seen heading to and from Roa, carrying massive loads of Iari crystals and equipment.
Kingmaker Outlook
At the cliffside of the southernmost mountain range of Deitzeil lies a fortress surrounded by a small town. This is the last stronghold of the Kingmakers mercenary guild. Once a thriving city, the group was disbanded after the War of Red Sands in Deitzeil, leaving only its most zealous members.
Today, as in its glory days, the guild accepts any member who successfully collects a bounty put forth by the guild of no less than 5,000 gold. This practice has made it possible to rebuild the powerhouse of fighters that the guild once was.
Cirrus On High
Cirrus Casino, The floating island playground of the World’s most wealthy, hand selected patrons! This “Impenetrable haven of decadence” is literally above it all and protected from the drab woes of the unwashed masses. So- lets rob it!
The Cirrus Casino, constructed in the cloudy valley of floating island motes, hovers miles above the sandy purple wasteland dunes below, backlit by hundreds of magical Illusionary symbols and light shows. The Cirrus Casino is the playground for the most famous and influential figures in all of Crudilex.
Cirrus is known for more than just its eccentric clientele or glamorous architecture. Its tyrannical master chef, Grelofishal, produces food sought after across all 4 nations. Its master Humunculmancer, Jakacoru Peel, creates prized familiars for the
world's preeminent mages. Most of all, the casino's mysterious owner, the Gorgon Enchante’ Cirrus. The Casino was commissioned by Enchante who serves as hostess and proprietor of all future events including the Monoskiff classic airship race, Sky Yacht shipshow, and the Premier Auction where all the greatest and most valuable artifacts of Crudilex are collected and sold to the affluent and hand-selected clientele of the world's most notable figures.
Citadel Vale
The secretive outsiders known as the Pith also inhabit the Motes. None are sure how they managed to erect the massive purple citadel in the barren undermote, yet it stands there, deep in a crag surrounded by a constant nebulous cloud and home to nearly 5,000 Pith.
This race, possessing intelligence two or three times that of a normal human, remains behind the walls of their city. The landscape around Pith settlements often mutates into an alien-like twist, which is why they frequently settle in remote locations like Vale. Over the last 20 years, this crag has transformed beyond anything recognizably Cruidlexian.
Its jagged, rocky outcrops are filled with coral-like plants and motesprites that float about like flying jellyfish. Navigating this terrain is extremely difficult for anyone who cannot change into a less substantial form, as the Pith can.
Dustwind Barrens
Beyond the motes to the southeast, the winds blow sand and spent powdered irai, spreading as far as the eye can see into the horizon. Nothing grows here, and only the occasional mote can be spotted in the sky; more frequently, huge jagged boulders poke out of the dunes like knives. The geodes at their cores have spent their internal energies and plummeted from the sky.
Nothing thrives in the Barrens—no normal desert life can gain a foothold here. The further one journeys into the Dustwind Barrens, the rarer life becomes. At a certain depth, those who venture in find that reality itself seems to shift into something supernatural.
The Barrens drain life away, slowly pulling vital energies from any living thing that ventures within. After a point, mortals cannot tread further without constant healing magic to negate the strange effects. It is said that something waits out there, but to know for sure seems impossible. An old necromancer once known as Regent Woodrow has taken residence at the absolute edge of the Barrens, seeking whatever secrets lie undiscovered in the purple dunes.
Deacon Prison
Constructed from the rare alloy known as black iron, Deacon Prison is perhaps one of the most fortified keeps in the world. A massive iron door serves as the only entry point to its interior docks, which are defended by more than 1,000 cannons, harpoons, and other formidable weapons. No one has ever escaped the clutches of the Deacon family once they are interred inside.
The prison houses a small fleet that acts as a secondary defense for Cirrus on High, remaining moored in the internal docks and ready to repel any ill-conceived direct assault.
What occurs within the prison remains largely a mystery, as very few prisoners ever serve less than a life sentence. Those who do manage to leave speak of unbelievable and often conflicting experiences. The only persistent accounts involve the arcane experiments performed on death row inmates, with some claiming these experiments go as far as memory alteration and mind control.
Deacon Prison serves as the home base for the Deacon family mafia, one of the six criminal powers of Nostridan known as the Cartels.
CULTURE
Rulership
Food.
Holidays
Taboos
worship
Turmoil
Vogchoga the Flying Tyrant
Cruidlex is home to some legendary horrors and monsters, many of which roam the untamed Northlend. Across the world, there are pockets where civilization has yet to take hold, and such is the case on the Mote of Vogchoga. This massive ape leaps hundreds of feet between the motes and can pull whole airships out of the sky. The herald of its coming is always a cloud of swallow-like birds that swarm around Vogchoga. These creatures are extremely rare, and as far as anyone knows, they have never been seen beyond the mote of the Flying Tyrant. Vogchoga isn’t entirely animalistic. In fact, its attacks beyond its own mote seem to be carefully considered and measured, effectively preventing any great settlement from gaining a foothold in the motes. Thus, the legendary beast has earned the name "the Flying Tyrant."
Grand Nostridan Region
Lesser Location
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