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  1. - Top - End - #271
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Owrtho's Avatar

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    Lol. So could I. Course it is the saint of impartial justice. Wouldn't really be impartial if it made exceptions for its devotees.

    Owrtho
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    [creature]Shiny: Monster Competition XXXVI entry.
    [class]Wisp fire guide: Follow me. I have such sights to show you.
    [class]Ozodrin: A class to play as an eldritch horror.
    other hombrew

  2. - Top - End - #272
    Halfling in the Playground
     
    MindFlayer

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    Place of Interest
    Name: 1st Absolute Bank
    Other Names: The Bank, Tax-dodgers Paradise

    After the Dark City was annexed by the Ishka, very few Drow stayed. The martial law imposed by the Dark Army at all times made life there barely tolerable to it's once proud and noble people. The Drow spread out to the rest of the city, most settling in remote tunnels or darker districts, trying to return their lives to some semblance of normalcy. However, a group of Drow made their way up to the city proper, and saw an opportunity. They established a bank, but not just any bank, this bank had a strict "NO QUESTIONS" policy. With the Cut-Throat Alliance, The Wild, and a dozen other barely legal organizations, the market was perfect to set up a don't ask don't tell bank. The bribes paid to Councilmen to make this bank legal were massive, but by the end, laws were put in place to protect the bank, and it's privacy.

    The bank itself appears to be nothing more than a simple shop near the district of Stadel. It appears simple enough inside as well, a large lobby of marble and limestone, and several desks to service customers. But the shop is merely the public front of the business. The true nature of this bank is a closely kept secret, and wisely so. When the bank was founded, the Drow investors met with a powerful Arch-Devil. Little is known about the details of the arrangement, but from that day on, the Bank has been allowed to store its customers possessions in the deepest circles of Hell. Here they lie safe from the prying eyes of the Municipal Investigators or anyone for that matter (even the Arch-Devils are forbidden from looking as part of the contract with the bank).

    1st Absolute Bank boast an unbroken record of maintaining its customers privacy, but this is a lie. Fleet-footed Jack once stole a safe-deposit box from the bank, the contents of which are not known, and proceeded to make his way through the city. The Bank however, never publicized this incident, fearing the damage it would do to their reputation. They instead, assembled a squad of assassins to hunt down Fleet-footed Jack. They came very close to catching Jack on several occasions, and it's rumored that one assassin even discovered Jacks true identity. Obviously, this was simple not the fun Jack had been looking for, and he soon grew bored and miserable with the chase. He promptly returned the box, and washed his hands of the situation. The assassins however, never stopped hunting Jack, and some even say that the reason Jack disappeared was because the Bank finally caught up to him.
    Last edited by 50cr4t3s; 2009-08-27 at 02:12 PM.

  3. - Top - End - #273
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    IcarusWings's Avatar

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    I personally quite like the idea that the saints gain power from canonization, it gives the city a more official and administrative feel, which an urban campaign should have...

    Also, I realise everyone sees the city as buildings built on top of buildings, but I myself prefer the image of it being cut into the canyon, I also like the idea of actually having "gaps" between the districts e.g. 5 foot wide fissures which extend all the way down to the bottom layer.

    And personally I'd rather the steamworks were all clumped in one district, the groves likewise, it gives the city a more sprawling metropolis feel in my eyes...

    Merlin
    You gotta' let me know, are we human,
    Or are we dancers?
    My signs are vital, my hands are cold,
    And I'm on my knees, begging for the answer,
    Are we human, or are we dancers?

    - Human, The Killers


  4. - Top - End - #274
    Orc in the Playground
     
    Goblin

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    I like the Steamworks and groves spread out. the city is massive on a scale we can only imagine and wouldn't be able to survive if all the heavy industry were in one place. The rest of the city would be economically disadvantaged and the Steamworks would be dead from pollution. I would make a similar argument for the groves. The fact that they are spread out is what to me gives it the metropolitan feel.


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  5. - Top - End - #275
    Titan in the Playground
     
    PirateCaptain

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    Quote Originally Posted by merlin View Post
    I personally quite like the idea that the saints gain power from canonization, it gives the city a more official and administrative feel, which an urban campaign should have...

    Also, I realise everyone sees the city as buildings built on top of buildings, but I myself prefer the image of it being cut into the canyon, I also like the idea of actually having "gaps" between the districts e.g. 5 foot wide fissures which extend all the way down to the bottom layer.
    1) Dosn't make much sense. First of all, it invalidates Saints like Fleet Footed Jack, and the City Council is a governing body, nothing more, nothing less. It has politics and corruption and power struggles. By giving them the power to create a god with a piece of paper, they become almost supernatural.

    Mind you, since Saints arise through worship and adoration, the Council's official say-so goes a long way towards that.. It spreads the word that everybody should celebrate this person's deeds, establishes official holidays, gives them an official temple, ect.

    2) No. The city as one big built-up block has been what we've been working under this entire time, and it flows much more naturally without "Gaps" between the districts. Why would they leave such gaps instead of filling them in? And while the idea of gaping gaps might make a nice mental image, it dosn't work nearly as well otherwise. Also, if the city was "Carved out" of the canyon, we would have to re-write a good deal of the city's history, since it would grow down instead of up.
    3) Once again, while the idea of one big steamworks and one big groves area makes more sense if you're just trying to draw the city, But it dosn't make sense from an urban planning standpoint. People work in the steamworks, they don't live there, they live near it. If you condense the steamworks into one district, there simply wouldn't be enough room nearbye for people to get to work from their homes and back again in a reasonable time.



    Really, what you're describing is kind of what Blizzard did with Azeroth in WoW. Putting a lush lake area right next to a badlands right next to a scorching volcanic wasteland right next to a pastoral countryside with just a mountain wall clearly dividing these zones. This makes sense for a video game like WoW, where you want to clearly define zones to players don't wander off into a higher-level zone, but we don't have that restriction, so we can make Ishka seem like a city with different parts, rather than several cities right next to each other.
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    My Homebrew:Synchronized Swordsmen,Dual Daggers,The Doctor,The Preacher,The Brawler
    [/Center]

  6. - Top - End - #276
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Owrtho's Avatar

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    Just a thought I had for an organization.

    The Ravens Eyes
    The Ravens Eyes is an organization that consists of people who worship the Stone Raven. While fairly widespread through the city, the membership tends to be fairly low. One reason is likely the lack of official recognition. Another would be the fanaticism of most members in their following of the Stone Raven. Not many care to join an organization that will turn against them as soon as anyone else.
    Despite this, it is recognized as having some power. Members tend to fall into one of two categories. The 'eyes', or the 'tallons'. The eyes are the members who usualy lack fighting skills, so simply observe the happenings of their part of the city and look out for any breaking of the law. Due to this they also are know for being among the better information brokers in the city as they refuse to lie. The problem is they also tend to be careful who they give information too, and refuse if they think it will aid in breaking the law. When the eyes note a crime, they will try to contact the local law enforcement and possibly the talonsusually. The talons will then see to it that the law breaker is properly punnished.
    The talonspunishedtalons are known for being rather ruthless when it comes to enforcing higher crimes as well. Often rather that trying to land killers in jail, they will just make them 'disappear'. Also due to their fanaticism they tend to hone their fighting skills beyond that of most other law enforcement groups. Largely this is to make up for their lack of members and thus the need to be able to take care of individual situation quickly.
    The common opinion of the Ravens Eyes is mixed. On the one hand they attempt to deal out justice in an unbiased manner. On the other, they almost entirely ignore context, and seek to follow the letter of the law rather than the spirit. They for instance been known to kill people who were responsible for an accident resulting in others deaths.
    Members of the Ravens Eyes will all tattoo their right arm with a raven in the style of the marks that criminals get on their left arm in Ravenshome. The most fanatical are even known to go to Ravenshome and intentionally commit a minor crime to get the mark, then leave and have an at temp made to dispel it so that they will get a stone raven mark growing out of their arm.

    Well, that sorta describes it. Ended up coming out badly once I tried to type it out. But basic idea gets across.

    Owrtho
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    other hombrew

  7. - Top - End - #277
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    jagadaishio's Avatar

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    Here's something I was wondering: does the raven tattoo grow if you're caught in an area of effect dispel effect whose original intention was not to remove the tattoo, ignoring context, or does it only grow if the intention of the dispel effect was to remove the tattoo? In the former case, individuals would be loathe to accept aid spells like Break Enchantment even to remove debilitating effects. If it was the latter, few adventurers or anyone else who might need the restorative effects of a dispel effect would ever risk crossing through Ravenshome.
    GENERATION 12: The first time you see this, copy it into your sig and add 1 to the generation. social experiment.
    ----------
    Fogmere City
    ----------
    Brute
    ----------

  8. - Top - End - #278
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Owrtho's Avatar

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    I'd say that it would only grow if the intent were to remove it or a portion of the body with the mark on it was targeted. Thus if an area of effect break enchantment was used, and the part of your body that has the mark on it was within the area, it would grow. Also if someone tried to dispel other effects such that they focused through the mark (such as being on that side of the person or touching where the mark covered), it would grow. But if they tried to dispel effects where the mark wasn't in the way it would be fine. Also effects that dispel everything on the person would set it off.

    Owrtho
    Last edited by Owrtho; 2009-08-29 at 04:19 PM.
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    My Homebrew
    [creature]Shiny: Monster Competition XXXVI entry.
    [class]Wisp fire guide: Follow me. I have such sights to show you.
    [class]Ozodrin: A class to play as an eldritch horror.
    other hombrew

  9. - Top - End - #279
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    Silverscale's Avatar

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    I was under the impression that the Raven Tattoo only grew if someone specifically tried to remove it. If they have an effect on them besides the tattoo, they can recieve a dispel on that effect but if they are hit by a general Dispel Magic then yes i'ld say the Tattoo would grow....though ultimately it's up to the DM to decide what make the tattoo grow and what doesn't.
    Meddle not in the affairs of Dragons, unless you brought someone bigger and tastier along with you.


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  10. - Top - End - #280
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Owrtho's Avatar

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    I'd agree with Silverscale on that. Also it is true that when it comes down to it the DM has the final say.

    Owrtho
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    [creature]Shiny: Monster Competition XXXVI entry.
    [class]Wisp fire guide: Follow me. I have such sights to show you.
    [class]Ozodrin: A class to play as an eldritch horror.
    other hombrew

  11. - Top - End - #281
    Halfling in the Playground
     
    MindFlayer

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    New Holiday
    The Day of Little Demons
    In a city the size of Ishka, it's easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle, and lose sight of what's important. Scholars which studied human behavior thought that this would have an overall negative effect on the city. So a day was set aside where the traditional rules of the city no longer apply, a day when you can tell your boss he's an (insert expletive), run down the street naked, and generally do whatever you want.

    Of course, the laws of the city do not vanish on this day. Murder, theft, and assault are all still very illegal and will have the guard on you in no time. The purpose of the day, is the total suspension of social inhibitions (within the confines of the law) without fear of the social repercussions. Telling your boss to pull his head out of his ass would get you fired on any normal day, but on the Day of Little Demons, you can tell him to go (insert expletive) and you'll still have a job the next day.

    Over the years since it was started, the holiday has become a day of practical jokes (much like april fool's day). With escalating prank wars covering the city, sometimes even between two whole districts, it's only natural that Fleet-footed Jack has a history with this holiday. He would stage a new and daring heist every year in the early more of the Day of Little Demons and would run through the streets to the cheers and whistles of fans till the sun set.
    Last edited by 50cr4t3s; 2009-08-30 at 04:50 PM.

  12. - Top - End - #282
    Orc in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    I imagine certain districts will not allow the Day of Little Demons to be celebrated there. However, the citizens can still travel to a nearby district and celebrate there.

  13. - Top - End - #283
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    jagadaishio's Avatar

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    I would also imagine that the Day of Little Demons would have especially strong followings in certain districts and, even more specifically, on certain streets. Some parts of the city would see people going about their daily lives and maybe telling their boss to sod off. Others would see people having orgies in the street and a generally crazy, exultant time. It would vary.

    Holiday Ideas:

    Day of Life:
    While originally started as a holiday by the Holy Hands, it currently resembles what it once was very little. Originally, it was a day when healers who were not of the Holy Hands would join up for a day and walk into the poorest parts of the city and stand on street corners healing sickness, curing blindness, and healing injuries. Many such healers, however, took to standing in the Necropolis, offering "healing" to every undead resident that passed. The undead took offense to it but, rather than complaining about it, they decided to go in a whole new direction with it.

    The undead started celebrating the lives they once had and what was left of them. It became a day of gluttony in the necropolis: those that were still physically capable of it would eat food they couldn't digest just for the hell of it, vampires would drink whole kegs of blood while ghouls would feast on body after body, saved up for the celebration. Those still physically capable of it would host orgies and have other pleasures for the senses. The entire Necropolis would have bright paper lanterns and colourful decorations strung up, and undead would wear colourful costumes as they marched about, dead things celebrating life.

    To this day, the Holy Hands continue with their holiday as per their original intentions, even standing and offering final death to smiling necropolitans dancing past in bright dresses and suits. Most people, however, know it as a festival of ecstatic undead and bright colours, where food and drink perfectly suitable for living consumption is plentiful and free in the necropolis. Poor people and people who love to party flock to the necropolis on this day and slowly filter back out over the next few weeks as the food and drink suited for human consumption is eaten or goes bad.

    Solar Eclipse:
    Though I don't think that they would necessarily have any sort of official names, I think that various eclipses would be very short, small-time holidays in the city. On these holidays, creatures with a sensitivity to bright light or a weakness to sunlight would flock up to the surface of the city, forming small, celebrant flash-mobs which would dance and sing in the heat of the day and the dark of the night. They would only last as long as the eclipse, or shorter for those that can only be out during the full eclipse. At the end of that time, they would flood back into the under-levels of the city as if they had never been there at all.
    GENERATION 12: The first time you see this, copy it into your sig and add 1 to the generation. social experiment.
    ----------
    Fogmere City
    ----------
    Brute
    ----------

  14. - Top - End - #284
    Titan in the Playground
     
    PirateCaptain

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    Organization: Fresh Start!

    Fresh Start's cheerful offices are a common sight throughout the city, especially in the Necropolis. Since any more-or-less intact corpses may rise as undead, it was only a matter of time before somebody figured out a system for what to do with them. Fresh Start is very well funded by the government of the Necropolis, and offer a reward for people to turn in newly-awoken undead. Once these undead are turned in, Fresh Start assesses how much they remember from their life, what skills they have, the resources they have available, ect. Since most reanimations take place within a week or two of death, it is traditional for a will to remain sealed for three weeks after a person is declared officially dead, in case they come back with enough sense of self to claim their possessions. Fresh Start does it's best to take the newly risen undead and find some use for them in society, setting them up with a home in the necropolis, finding a job for them, and essentially helping them acclimate into society. Oddly enough, most Fresh Start staffers are living, as they find having locals run offices in various districts cuts down on violence and vandalism perpetrated against the offices. Actually, with some exception, most people, even those who dislike undead, look kindly upon Fresh Start, even if they simply like it because it gets the undead out of their district. In the temple district Fresh Start offices are mainly run by the Holy Hands, who offer the undead in question "True Rest", if they refuse, they are sent to a Fresh Start office in a neighboring district for processing.
    Quote Originally Posted by Dsurion View Post
    I don't know if you've noticed, but pretty much everything BRC posts is full of awesome.
    Quote Originally Posted by chiasaur11 View Post
    So, Astronaut, War Hero, or hideous Mantis Man, hop to it! The future of humanity is in your capable hands and or terrifying organic scythes.
    My Homebrew:Synchronized Swordsmen,Dual Daggers,The Doctor,The Preacher,The Brawler
    [/Center]

  15. - Top - End - #285
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    jagadaishio's Avatar

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    Quote Originally Posted by BRC View Post
    Organization: Fresh Start!

    Fresh Start's cheerful offices are a common sight throughout the city, especially in the Necropolis. Since any more-or-less intact corpses may rise as undead, it was only a matter of time before somebody figured out a system for what to do with them. Fresh Start is very well funded by the government of the Necropolis, and offer a reward for people to turn in newly-awoken undead. Once these undead are turned in, Fresh Start assesses how much they remember from their life, what skills they have, the resources they have available, ect. Since most reanimations take place within a week or two of death, it is traditional for a will to remain sealed for three weeks after a person is declared officially dead, in case they come back with enough sense of self to claim their possessions. Fresh Start does it's best to take the newly risen undead and find some use for them in society, setting them up with a home in the necropolis, finding a job for them, and essentially helping them acclimate into society. Oddly enough, most Fresh Start staffers are living, as they find having locals run offices in various districts cuts down on violence and vandalism perpetrated against the offices. Actually, with some exception, most people, even those who dislike undead, look kindly upon Fresh Start, even if they simply like it because it gets the undead out of their district. In the temple district Fresh Start offices are mainly run by the Holy Hands, who offer the undead in question "True Rest", if they refuse, they are sent to a Fresh Start office in a neighboring district for processing.
    Please let this be the prelude to another piece of the Graveyard Shift.
    GENERATION 12: The first time you see this, copy it into your sig and add 1 to the generation. social experiment.
    ----------
    Fogmere City
    ----------
    Brute
    ----------

  16. - Top - End - #286
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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    Oooo Yes! When are we going to get another installment of "Graveyard Shift"? It's a really good story that is just begging to be continued.
    Meddle not in the affairs of Dragons, unless you brought someone bigger and tastier along with you.


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    Go HERE for a look at the Ishka (CWBP) Wiki.

    Go HERE for a look at the Dragon-World (CWBP) Wiki.

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    I hereby give you the title of Wiki Editor SilverScale. (in deep booming voice)

  17. - Top - End - #287
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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    Quote Originally Posted by Silverscale View Post
    Oooo Yes! When are we going to get another installment of "Graveyard Shift"? It's a really good story that is just begging to be continued.
    Well, I'm working on the 100th Rob and Jack right now, but I could sit down and do some Graveyard shifting when I'm done with that.
    Quote Originally Posted by Dsurion View Post
    I don't know if you've noticed, but pretty much everything BRC posts is full of awesome.
    Quote Originally Posted by chiasaur11 View Post
    So, Astronaut, War Hero, or hideous Mantis Man, hop to it! The future of humanity is in your capable hands and or terrifying organic scythes.
    My Homebrew:Synchronized Swordsmen,Dual Daggers,The Doctor,The Preacher,The Brawler
    [/Center]

  18. - Top - End - #288
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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    Well, I love this setting. It fascinates me moreso than any setting on the forums has so far.

    However, this is really, really unorganized, and that can be what kills a project.

    So, the opening poster should probably start a compilation on the first post, or designate someone to compile everything here so far.

    (I'd offer to do it myself, but school's just starting to get rolling, and I've been pretty busy.)


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    Founder of the Oracle fanclub. To join put this into your sig and give yourself a title.

    Court sorcerer of House Kato.

    Tuna-preparer of the Mr. Scruffy fanclub

    78% of DM's started their first campaign in a tavern. I didn't.

    Magioth made my avatar!

    The SECOND member of the fanclub!!!

    Sequinox

    And the Dark Lord on his Dark Throneitp, where the shadows lie.


  19. - Top - End - #289
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    PirateCaptain

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    Alright, at popular demand.
    Graveyard Shift!
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    Jack the Nimble, Jack the Quick
    Help me flee, help me trick.
    Cloud their eyes and damp my noise
    trip their feet and take their toys

    Tommy “The Rat” Lemmor muttered the prayer and hoped the smiling saint was listening, and would intervene before his pursuer, whomever it was, caught up with him.
    The man had entered the Squeaky Wheel and instantly started approaching Tommy’s table. Tommy thought he smelled something off about him, but this close to the East Steamworks, even a wererat’s smell was only of limited use.Tommy didn’t start to worry until he spied a gleam from the man’s coat pocket, Silver.
    At this point Tommy, who made a point to always know the fastest way out of wherever he was, bolted for the door, the man in hot pursuit. That was ten minutes ago. Tommy considered himself pretty fast, but this guy was relentless, while Tommy scrambled and jumped and climbed his way through the tangle of backstreets, the guy just ran, keeping up a steady pace, never tiring. What was up with this guy. If he didn’t lose him soon he’d have to run into the copper junkyard, and while he could doubtlessly find him there, he could easily break a leg and be lost forever in that mess. Tommy turned to look back, to see if he’d shaken his relentless pursuer, only to run headfirst into what felt like a wall of iron. When the stars cleared he felt himself in the firm grip of a burly man in the uniforms of the Merchant Agents.
    The guy, his pace slowed to a jog, approached, pulling out a pair of silvered handcuffs and a badge.
    “Detective Gordon Tordely, Municipal Investigations. I’ll take it from here”.
    -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    “Thanks for lending me a hand here Ollie”
    “No problem Gordon, besides, since it looks like our cases have some overlap here”
    “You mean Jonny Quickfinger”
    “Yeah”
    “We don’t even know if either your corpse or my safecracker WAS Quickfinger”.
    “It fits though, and don’t pretend it doesn’t. Dorkal got sketches from all three Streetbuilders that matched the archive’s description of Johnny Quickfinger. He pulled the bank job, then somebody gave him a new knife. We just have to figure out who and why”.
    “Which brings us to our friend. A contact of mine says he’s an information broker, got ears everywhere in the underground. The Allies use him to spy on each other, but since all he does is ask and listen it’s nigh-impossible to actually pin anything on him”.
    “So, what’d you drag him down here on?”
    “Resisting Arrest, I chased him between the Commons and the Steamworks, ergo, it’s multiple districts, and our jurisdiction”.
    “What were you going to arrest him on?”
    “Nothing, I just wanted to talk”
    “No judge in Ishka will let that fly and he knows that”
    “How about murder? A Wererat was implicated in a stabbing near his stomping grounds”
    “We caught that guy didn’t we?”
    “Tommy doesn’t know that”.
    Oliver grinned “You know what, I take that back. For the next ten minutes, I’m pretty darn sure we’re still looking for a wererat who stabbed a guy on Gramer Street”
    “I agree, let’s squeeze us a Rat”.
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The Guy (Gordon, that was his name, right?) and a gnome entered the room (a Gnome, that explained the little high-chair on the other side of the table).
    The Guy spoke first “Just so you know Tommy, this is a formality. We could get you into the Vault in no time”.
    The Gnome spoke next “It was your bad luck really. You decide to stab some guy, happens to be a bureaucrat from the treasury. Which makes that Murder of a City Official, we can send you to the Vault a good long time for that”.
    “WHAT, I never stabbed anybody”.
    “Do you have an Alibi we couldn’t arrest you for?”
    Tommy thought. Meeting with several wanted Alliance members wasn’t exactly the type of thing you wanted to talk about in this room, especially with the anti-lie runes his chair was covered with.
    “Alright, what do you want. I know you’re playing games here, you don’t want me in the Vault, you want information. So, what do you need to know?”
    “Johnny Quickfinger, that’s what. What jobs was he pulling recently”
    “Johnny? Lessee, he broke in the Warehouse, stole a crowbar from the Streetbuilders, got some help from some guys. In exchange he’d do some work for them”.
    “What sort of work, what guys!”
    “I dunno, I just heard rumors, no facts!”
    “I like rumors”
    “Alright, rumor said that Bloody Jack had some of his boys give Johnny a hand with the Warehouse job, and in exchange Johnny would help work the Graveyard Shift”.

    I've got some airplane rides today, so I might just get some more done later.

    Edit: Since Fleet Footed Jack is an unofficial saint, there are probably countless different prayers to him (it's not like the more centralized religions where everybody is quoting from the same prayerbook). I took the liberty of making one up, it's kind of a silly rhyme, but considering Jack's playful nature it seemed appropriate.
    Last edited by BRC; 2009-09-02 at 02:00 PM.
    Quote Originally Posted by Dsurion View Post
    I don't know if you've noticed, but pretty much everything BRC posts is full of awesome.
    Quote Originally Posted by chiasaur11 View Post
    So, Astronaut, War Hero, or hideous Mantis Man, hop to it! The future of humanity is in your capable hands and or terrifying organic scythes.
    My Homebrew:Synchronized Swordsmen,Dual Daggers,The Doctor,The Preacher,The Brawler
    [/Center]

  20. - Top - End - #290
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    Quote Originally Posted by BRC View Post
    Alright, at popular demand.
    Graveyard Shift!
    Spoiler
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    Jack the Nimble, Jack the Quick
    Help me flee, help me trick.
    Cloud their eyes and damp my noise
    trip their feet and take their toys

    Tommy “The Rat” Lemmor muttered the prayer and hoped the smiling saint was listening, and would intervene before his pursuer, whomever it was, caught up with him.
    The man had entered the Squeaky Wheel and instantly started approaching Tommy’s table. Tommy thought he smelled something off about him, but this close to the East Steamworks, even a wererat’s smell was only of limited use.Tommy didn’t start to worry until he spied a gleam from the man’s coat pocket, Silver.
    At this point Tommy, who made a point to always know the fastest way out of wherever he was, bolted for the door, the man in hot pursuit. That was ten minutes ago. Tommy considered himself pretty fast, but this guy was relentless, while Tommy scrambled and jumped and climbed his way through the tangle of backstreets, the guy just ran, keeping up a steady pace, never tiring. What was up with this guy. If he didn’t lose him soon he’d have to run into the copper junkyard, and while he could doubtlessly find him there, he could easily break a leg and be lost forever in that mess. Tommy turned to look back, to see if he’d shaken his relentless pursuer, only to run headfirst into what felt like a wall of iron. When the stars cleared he felt himself in the firm grip of a burly man in the uniforms of the Merchant Agents.
    The guy, his pace slowed to a jog, approached, pulling out a pair of silvered handcuffs and a badge.
    “Detective Gordon Tordely, Municipal Investigations. I’ll take it from here”.
    -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    “Thanks for lending me a hand here Ollie”
    “No problem Gordon, besides, since it looks like our cases have some overlap here”
    “You mean Jonny Quickfinger”
    “Yeah”
    “We don’t even know if either your corpse or my safecracker WAS Quickfinger”.
    “It fits though, and don’t pretend it doesn’t. Dorkal got sketches from all three Streetbuilders that matched the archive’s description of Johnny Quickfinger. He pulled the bank job, then somebody gave him a new knife. We just have to figure out who and why”.
    “Which brings us to our friend. A contact of mine says he’s an information broker, got ears everywhere in the underground. The Allies use him to spy on each other, but since all he does is ask and listen it’s nigh-impossible to actually pin anything on him”.
    “So, what’d you drag him down here on?”
    “Resisting Arrest, I chased him between the Commons and the Steamworks, ergo, it’s multiple districts, and our jurisdiction”.
    “What were you going to arrest him on?”
    “Nothing, I just wanted to talk”
    “No judge in Ishka will let that fly and he knows that”
    “How about murder? A Wererat was implicated in a stabbing near his stomping grounds”
    “We caught that guy didn’t we?”
    “Tommy doesn’t know that”.
    Oliver grinned “You know what, I take that back. For the next ten minutes, I’m pretty darn sure we’re still looking for a wererat who stabbed a guy on Gramer Street”
    “I agree, let’s squeeze us a Rat”.
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The Guy (Gordon, that was his name, right?) and a gnome entered the room (a Gnome, that explained the little high-chair on the other side of the table).
    The Guy spoke first “Just so you know Tommy, this is a formality. We could get you into the Vault in no time”.
    The Gnome spoke next “It was your bad luck really. You decide to stab some guy, happens to be a bureaucrat from the treasury. Which makes that Murder of a City Official, we can send you to the Vault a good long time for that”.
    “WHAT, I never stabbed anybody”.
    “Do you have an Alibi we couldn’t arrest you for?”
    Tommy thought. Meeting with several wanted Alliance members wasn’t exactly the type of thing you wanted to talk about in this room, especially with the anti-lie runes his chair was covered with.
    “Alright, what do you want. I know you’re playing games here, you don’t want me in the Vault, you want information. So, what do you need to know?”
    “Johnny Quickfinger, that’s what. What jobs was he pulling recently”
    “Johnny? Lessee, he broke in the Warehouse, stole a crowbar from the Streetbuilders, got some help from some guys. In exchange he’d do some work for them”.
    “What sort of work, what guys!”
    “I dunno, I just heard rumors, no facts!”
    “I like rumors”
    “Alright, rumor said that Bloody Jack had some of his boys give Johnny a hand with the Warehouse job, and in exchange Johnny would help work the Graveyard Shift”.

    I've got some airplane rides today, so I might just get some more done later.

    Edit: Since Fleet Footed Jack is an unofficial saint, there are probably countless different prayers to him (it's not like the more centralized religions where everybody is quoting from the same prayerbook). I took the liberty of making one up, it's kind of a silly rhyme, but considering Jack's playful nature it seemed appropriate.
    Looking good as usual, BRC. Every new installation of the Graveyard Shift that you post just leaves me itching for more.

    Holiday Ideas:
    Carnival of the Theatre, Carnival of the Arena, and Carnival of the Gallery

    The three biggest holidays in the Entertainment District are their three annual carnivals, each dedicated to a different aspect of the district at large. Carnival of the Theatre focuses on musicians and stage performers, Carnival of the Arena focuses on the gladiators, fencers, any any other individual who entertains through false or real combat and athletics, while the Carnival of the Gallery focuses on crafted pieces of art. During the Carnival of the Theatre, whole acting troupes and musical groups put up make-shift stages decorated with colourful paper decorations and give free performances to the people. Many troupes first get spotted by owners of theatres on this day; they tend to scope the scene for new talent. Theatres that charge money always give a hefty discount on this day, and usually choose this day to run any sort of new or risky material that they've come across over the course of the past year.

    During the Carnival of the Arena, spectators crowd the streets of the Entertainment District. Bedecked with wooden swords and wearing shirts and jerseys in the colour of their gladiator or athletic team, their raucous cheers fill the streets on these days. People fence across the roof-tops with safety foils, bedecked in brightly-coloured sashes to please the people below. Wrestlers grapple in chalked-in circles and people following in the tradition free-run through the streets, across the walls, and over the roofs.

    The Carnival of the Gallery is a somewhat more sombre affair than that of the Arena, but is no less gorgeous. Amateur artists (or professional artists without a patron) erect makeshift works and build small shrines around older ones that never sold. The art galleries open their doors on this days for free, and people who would never be caught dead in one of those galleries on a normal day are seen wandering the halls. As in the Carnival of the Theatre, the artists on this day hope that by showing off their chalk drawings, paper and wood sculptures, and hastily-painted canvases they might find for themselves a patron. Unlike the Carnival of the Theatre, only the best of the best do; most are forced to go back to working their normal jobs the next day.
    GENERATION 12: The first time you see this, copy it into your sig and add 1 to the generation. social experiment.
    ----------
    Fogmere City
    ----------
    Brute
    ----------

  21. - Top - End - #291
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Silverscale's Avatar

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    I have a question about the Lake District. Is it completely covered by buildings with more underwater, or do the surface buildings merely ring the lake, perhaps coming in over the water about 50 yards, and then there is an Underwater section of the city that sits at the center of the lake?
    Meddle not in the affairs of Dragons, unless you brought someone bigger and tastier along with you.


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    Go HERE for a look at the Ishka (CWBP) Wiki.

    Go HERE for a look at the Dragon-World (CWBP) Wiki.

    Quote Originally Posted by newD&Dfan View Post
    I hereby give you the title of Wiki Editor SilverScale. (in deep booming voice)

  22. - Top - End - #292
    Orc in the Playground
     
    Strawman's Avatar

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    I imagined the buildings covering part of the lake in a triangle formation. Maybe half buildings, half water surface. The underground part varies from location to location as to how much of it is buildings.

    Of course, that sort of thing would be easy for DM's to alter for their own campaign. The "official" version could be kept intentionally vague.

  23. - Top - End - #293
    Halfling in the Playground
     
    MindFlayer

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    The image I had when fleshing out Mere (the lowest district on the lake that isn't underwater) was that from above, it does look like the entire lake is covered in buildings. However, the first layer is actually at least 100ft above the lake's surface. The layers above the lake are supported by massive pillars which reach from the bottom of the lake, to the highest layers. On the surface of the lake, surrounding the pillars, are man-made islands, which serve as harbors for both local small ships, and large ships Gated in and out of the lake to some other body of water (perhaps a nearby ocean). During the day, a daylight spell keeps these islands in the light, but in the evening the spell deactivates, and the magical light-show I mentioned in the description of Mere begins. The pillars are large, and there are quite alot of them, but the lake is also massive, and most of it's surface is exposed.

  24. - Top - End - #294
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    Quote Originally Posted by 50cr4t3s View Post
    The image I had when fleshing out Mere (the lowest district on the lake that isn't underwater)...........
    Hmmm this does make one wonder......What effect has the lack of natural light had on the ecosystem of the lake? And the valley Ishka was built into for that matter?

    EDIT: Although that's probably part of the problem that The Wild have with Ishka in the first place.
    Last edited by Silverscale; 2009-09-04 at 08:30 PM.
    Meddle not in the affairs of Dragons, unless you brought someone bigger and tastier along with you.


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    Go HERE for a look at the Ishka (CWBP) Wiki.

    Go HERE for a look at the Dragon-World (CWBP) Wiki.

    Quote Originally Posted by newD&Dfan View Post
    I hereby give you the title of Wiki Editor SilverScale. (in deep booming voice)

  25. - Top - End - #295
    Orc in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    That is interesting. We don't have any Earth counterparts that inhabit both light-depraved and fresh-water areas at once. Not that I know of, anyway. Sounds like a great place for new monsters to be invented. Giant goldfish with glowing eyes. Seaweed that gets energy by entangling and eating creatures.

  26. - Top - End - #296
    Ogre in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    I think there are a number of subterranean fish aquatic creatures that do, but still can be interesting.

    Owrtho
    Tables
    Want them to look nice? Have a guide

    My Homebrew
    [creature]Shiny: Monster Competition XXXVI entry.
    [class]Wisp fire guide: Follow me. I have such sights to show you.
    [class]Ozodrin: A class to play as an eldritch horror.
    other hombrew

  27. - Top - End - #297
    Titan in the Playground
     
    PirateCaptain

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    It's almost midnight, and I need to be awake in the morning, so i'll make this quick. The Great Lantern
    The Great Lantern is one of the few completed Streetbuilder construction projects, it's a cube that takes up four layers, and the entire thing is a rune-carved three-dimensional maze that makes up a magical pattern. Essentially, it's a magical engine of massive power all dedicated to casting one spell, Dancing Lights. These lights are spread throughout the entire city (Well, most of it) keeping it lit. Individual building either have to light themselves or have windows open to the street to let light in. The government of each district can alter the ambient light levels as they see fit, which is why the market district is always bright, while the Necropolis is very dim.
    Quote Originally Posted by Dsurion View Post
    I don't know if you've noticed, but pretty much everything BRC posts is full of awesome.
    Quote Originally Posted by chiasaur11 View Post
    So, Astronaut, War Hero, or hideous Mantis Man, hop to it! The future of humanity is in your capable hands and or terrifying organic scythes.
    My Homebrew:Synchronized Swordsmen,Dual Daggers,The Doctor,The Preacher,The Brawler
    [/Center]

  28. - Top - End - #298
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    On the topic of natural light and the aquatic environments, I would suggest that the fact that, as 50cr4t3s mentioned, as long as daylight spells are cast during the day, the fact that normal sunlight doesn't actually reach some areas shouldn't matter.

    As for other districts, the industrial nature of the Steamworks would mean that little would grow there anyway, the negative energy pollution of the Necropolis means that anything that tries to live there long-term would sicken and slowly die, and the Groves would see the sort of perpetual night at the floor that all primordial forests see. The Temple, Mages', and Entertainment districts would all have manicured gardens and parks, but probably little natural life. The Mage's District especially would have some bizarre, unnatural things living there.

    Mithral Heights would probably have private gardens, the four elemental outposts would be unable to support any non-elemental life, and Gulliver's Heights would probably see "small" gardens and lawns the size of city parks. Smallville would probably have few plants, and Ravenshome would have few people willing to risk breaking the law by growing something illegal or growing it in an illegal way.

    What else am I missing?
    GENERATION 12: The first time you see this, copy it into your sig and add 1 to the generation. social experiment.
    ----------
    Fogmere City
    ----------
    Brute
    ----------

  29. - Top - End - #299
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Owrtho's Avatar

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    The hunting grounds would likely have a cycling day night system using the daylight spell set up before the were closed.

    Owrtho
    Tables
    Want them to look nice? Have a guide

    My Homebrew
    [creature]Shiny: Monster Competition XXXVI entry.
    [class]Wisp fire guide: Follow me. I have such sights to show you.
    [class]Ozodrin: A class to play as an eldritch horror.
    other hombrew

  30. - Top - End - #300
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    jagadaishio's Avatar

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    Default Re: Community Worldbuilding Project [Ishka: Urban and Urbane]

    Is anyone willing to index this thread at this point, and has everyone else run out of ideas? Just wondering about the posting hiatus.
    GENERATION 12: The first time you see this, copy it into your sig and add 1 to the generation. social experiment.
    ----------
    Fogmere City
    ----------
    Brute
    ----------

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