Negav
| Negav | |
|---|---|
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| Inhabitants | humans, nekos, elves, tinies, micrats, pteroks, mapets, shock beetles, warp roaches, swallower walls |
| Population | Officially 750,000. Probably much more. |
- General content: | Felaryan fauna | Felaryan flora | Races | Characters | Locations | History and Lore | Science and Magic | Culture and Customs | List of all available articles
- Negav content: | Negav main | Negav's Lower Tier | Negav's Middle Tier | Negav's Higher Tier | Negav's Underground | Negav's surrounding area | Negavian factions
Contents
For the humans living on Felarya, Negav is more or less their current capital. An oddity in the wilds, the seemingly impregnable fortified city has withstood whatever dangers the jungle has thrown at it. It has been partially destroyed, rebuilt, conquered, flooded, struck by fire and lightning... and yet it continues to stand. While most humans settlements in Felarya are tiny and secluded to avoid the hungry gaze of its ravenous fauna, Negav boldly lets its presence be known, like a challenge to the face of Felarya and its voracious inhabitants. Due to its perceived invincibility, Negav serves as a haven and oasis to the many travelers arriving in Felarya, usually through the dimensional gate located next to the city. Negav is like a magnet for mysterious planar travelers, shady vagabonds, slayers of mythical beasts, scar-covered swordsmen, heroes bearing magical swords, temple defilers, ruthless thugs, and intrepid explorers who, despite its incredible dangers, are drawn to Felarya by the prospect of fabulous treasures, glory and adventures.
The City
Negav is surrounded by massive walls, a marvel of craftsmanship and magic combined. They tower hundreds of feet tall, protected with powerful cannons and other weaponry. There is only two entrances to the city and both of them are heavily guarded not only by weapons, but also all manner of detection devices and identification spells, to ensure that nothing sneaks in that isn't welcome. The gates can also be sealed off in an emergency, with massive reinforced doors able to close very quickly. The architects chose not to reveal all of the walls' secrets, but one of them is that they appear to be covered by almost pure Xythium, a very rare and extremely hard metal.
Within the walls, the city of Negav is a sight to behold. It's not an especially beautiful city, but it's swarming with life. The nearby Ascarlin mines has caused the city to rapidly grow, covering over 110 square miles. An important community of nekos live there as well as humanoid species from many worlds. The congested and busy streets, full of noises, shouts, and buzzing with thousands of conversations offer a striking contrast with the rest of Felarya and its untamed wilderness. After the Great Destruction that took place under the reign of king Tonho, Negav has been rebuilt in all of its former glory, and excesses. All manner of gleaming towers, imposing temples, bustling markets, noisy taverns, mage academies, and exotic shops can be found within this busy city. There is even activity beneath the ground, with many levels of subterranean dwellings. The crime rate is high in Negav. It's a harsh place and in its poorest and most violent districts, where streets are dark and narrow, one's life expectancy don't go much higher at night than... say the calm parts of the Felaryan jungle, which means it's very dangerous. The city is largely protected from the local fauna though, and the only predators you will typically find in Negav are of the criminal type.
The Isolon Eye
In the center of the city, in the Square of Hope, on the top of a large marble tower, stands a large purple crystal, roughly 20 feet tall, known as the Isolon Eye. It was created by the Ps'isol magiocrats who currently rule the city, as a testimony to their formidable power. It's a little marvel of magic and very few understand how it works, but what matters is that it keeps many gargantuan monsters at bay, through some mysterious means. Some researchers have established that the Crystal effect is related both to the size of a sentient creature, and to which degree it regards humanoids as preys. To be more clear, the larger and the more voracious the creature, the more pronounced the warding effect is. For example, the naga Crisis or the succubus Menyssan, both infamous for their enormous appetite for humans, would be stopped at a large distance from Negav while a smaller, less voracious pantaur could venture closer to the city. That zone of influence is not like some sort of tangible force-field though. It's gradual, and if a predator stands at the minimum limit, they would still feel very uncomfortable, and not likely to hang around for long. Moreover if, for some reason, a predator was made immune to the Eye's effect, brought close to it, then their immunity removed, they would most likely die as a result. There is some exception to the Eye's effect though, and some rare beings seem to be much less affected than others. The reason why remains a mystery.
The crystal is, of course, guarded constantly, because should it be damaged, destroyed, or stolen, then the entire city could potentially be overrun by ravenous predators, especially flying ones such as harpies. So far, plans to expand the city toward the Ascarlin mountains to the west have been constantly delayed, as the ground is crumbly in this area. Projects have also been made of implanting several smaller versions of the eyes around Negav, in order to increase the zone of safety around the city. It raises some problems though, both practical and political as creating an eye is a long and complex process, and some of the magiocrats are nervous at the idea of over-expansion, worrying the city could suffer the same terrible fate that befell Ur-Sagol long ago. The question creates heated debates among council members, although the prudent faction is the clear minority.
The Eye is the key foundation of the Magiocrats' power and allow their rule to remain essentially unchallenged for as long as it exists. Should a better substitute be found though, their legitimacy would probably be seriously put into question.
Negavian People
Negavians form a very cosmopolitan society, coming from worlds from all around the universe. Curious adventurers, greedy treasure hunters, foolhardy warriors, ruthless thugs, stranded travelers, self-proclaimed heroes... they all came there with the prospect of becoming fabulously rich, retrieving legendary artifacts, becoming stronger, living a peaceful and eternal life, or simply ended there by accident. Even with so many varied origins however, living in a world such as Felarya gave Negavians some commonly shared traits. They form a hardened and rather fatalistic people, practical and quite cynical. They frown upon wastefulness and will often try to take what is apparently broken or damaged and either repair it or turn it into something useful. They are not very easy to impress and difficult to cow. Wise Magiocrats know their rules on Negav cannot be too tough and must remain bearable, unless they want to have their heads on a pike. Negavians have revolted many times in the past, and have gone trough many catastrophes but, like their city, they are still there.
Negavians tend to complain a lot about life on Felarya, but in the same time they hold a sort of pride in being there, on what is widely recognized as one of the most dangerous known worlds for humans. Moreover living in Negav feels like being in the center of things, with so many different people passing through, carrying with them rumors, epic tales and, sometimes, fantastic treasures. Negav is the city where adventures and legends are born. Many people who have lived in Negav for several years but decided one day to leave Felarya find themselves irresistibly drawn back to the city a few years later. They say that life does not have the same flavor outside Negav. As the saying goes: "Once a Negavian, always a Negavian."
Negavians are naturally cautious of non-humans. With so many beings coming from other worlds, they have developed at least a certain tolerance toward them, but they aren't welcoming them with open arms either. For example many taverns and bars would refuse entry to creatures with too many arms or inhuman features. The situation is even worse for tauric beings. Simply entering Negav is very difficult for them, and the few who are admitted in can feel an acute and unrelenting latent hostility all around them.
Language
One can hear a multitude of different languages and dialects around when walking the streets of Negav. The Translation spell would allow you to understand them with ease when spoken. However when they are written, you are on your own! The dominant language in Negav is the Mexhyli, a liquid and vowel-rich language from the home world of Lord Thelandros, the founder of the Ps'isol magiocrats. It's the one taught in most schools, and used on every important informations and signs in Negav. In some of the northern and western districts the more musical Palayam has taken roots, while in the Cremona maze and other southern areas you hear a lot of Dogrish, a complex, dense and fast sounding language that quickly convey a lot of informations. With it's wide range of inflexion and tonality, the Kalil is the preferred language of many merchants and storytellers alike, allowing to quickly catch and captivate the attention of an audience.
History
Education
Health
Infrastructure
Under construction
The Galfam-Abh MURCOWIH describes Negav as a thriving type7 pre-industrial society, although some would argue it's evolving rapidly. Technology in Negav is often closely intertwined with magic and make good use of the special properties found in lot of the resources of Felarya. For example, a small Scintilla stone can make a very convenient lighters and Boraloupes are a type of box coated with Boralite used to keep food cool and conserve it. actinite is used to power many things such as lamps, with Mazhir gems providing an excellent catalyst to make it works. Once depleted, the gems can be taken to a Mazirite; a mage specialized in recharging them.
This provides a virtually endless source of energy to Negav, although the downside is that the amount of energy released, while steady, is still quite low and extended to a relatively long period of time. Mages and scientists are searching for a way to make the gem release its stored magic instantly. There is no electricity network in Negav. Some buildings are linked to a power grid of sort but they are typically rare and few and limited to small areas.
Worth mentioning is the network of portals linking various districts between them. It completely redraw Negav's map and the notion of what it means to travel inside the city.
Economy
Policing and Factions
The city is currently governed by the Ps'isol magiocracy, a council of very powerful mages. An intricate power struggle exists however, between them and a part of the military which remains in the hands of the Vishmitals, an advanced race that arrived in Negav shortly after the Great Destruction. For more, read the list of the different Factions and groups of Negav competing for power.
Criminality
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Districts
- Negav's Lower Tier : The lower tier of Negav is the one closest to the walls. It thus has many buildings and constructions designed for defense, as well as Police and military buildings. It has also the largest number of inns and taverns and is the part of Negav where adventurers usually meet and congregate. Some say that the number of adventurers here often surpasses the number of actual Negav citizens. Negavians who do live here rely mostly on adventurers and explorers for their livelihood, with many shops selling weapons, magical scrolls, artifacts, and various items an adventurer may -or may not- need in their quest.
- Negav's Middle Tier : Slightly higher than the lower tier, the Middle Tier is where the majority of actual Negavians live. The markets, banks, temples and most other such public buildings can be found in this tier, as well as public squares, parks, and entertainment places.
- Negav's Higher Tier : The Higher Tier is smaller than the other two, though significantly elevated, having been built on a hill in the center of the city. This is where the Magiocrats and Vishmitals have their headquarters and hold council. It is also where the mansions of the very wealthy and influential Negavians are built. At its centre is the Isolon Eye, around which are the administrative buildings of the Magiocrats, and their university.
- Negav's Underground : The "other" area of Negav. This includes houses for some of the more lower class citizens, as well as cheaper markets and shops. Those too poor to even afford an underground house live in the Pit, the slum of Negav. Lots of the functions of Negav, like handling of the dead, sewage and wate are managed in facilities in the underground.
- Negav's surrounding area : The immediate surroundings of Negav, within the Isolon eye range.
Negav can be divided as such :
- credits to Servomoore, Jaette-troll, Veeshan 123 for their ideas to develop Negav and to Shady-knight for rewriting the entry.
