Geography

Allanak is a large city-state located to the south of a vast, nameless desert, and north of large, dusty flatlands. The city itself is situated within a narrow band of rocky wastelands in between. East of the city are huge salt flats, beyond which nobody has had the vigor to travel. Beyond the dusty plains in the south is the Sea of Eternal Dust, whose various surrounding villages provide the backbone of Allanak's economy. North of the desert is a huge mountainous cliffside known as the Shield Wall, beyond which few people, aside from desert merchants, have passed.

The city itself is divided into six main "quarters" -- The Middle Quarter, the Commoners' Quarter, the Merchants' Quarter, the Nobles' Quarter, the Templars' Quarter, and the Labyrinth. The Middle Quarter contains the bulk of the city -- the elemental temples, the main gate, the Arena, the library, and His Gloriousness Highlord Tektolnes' Holy Temple. The Merchants' Quarter, which will be described in more depth later, contains a large bazaar and various merchant estates within. The Labyrinth is a crumbling network of alleys in the northern end of the city, originally a new merchant district, but has since been abandoned and turned into a haven for the city's thieves and smugglers. The Templars' and Nobles' Quarters, located on the south and east sides of the city, respectively, each contain residences of the city's rulers. Lastly, the Commoners' Quarter contains houses belonging to the city's common people.

Economy

Allanak's economy, though still strong, is currently under much stress. Some years ago, the city's "divine" ruler, His Gloriousness Highlord Tekolnes, issued a city-wide ban on most types of mind-influencing spices in what some have (quietly) called an insane attempt to "purify the minds of His subjects", as His Senior Templar (and bastard child) Cohran Tektolnes put it. Allanak is still one of the richest civilizations on Zalanthas, however, with two major Merchant House bazaars, and a main bazaar for other trading. The Houses are Kadius, a House based in Allanak which trades (for the most part) in furs, skins, jewels, and other rarities and Salarr, a "nomadic" House, having emporiums in many small villages as well as cities, which deals in weapons, armor, and other tools of war. Allanak receives its imports from a variety of sources. Spices, while illegal, are often smuggled into the city from southern villages and distributed on the black market. House Salarr usually brings its wares from the northern agafari forests, an expensive journey, but still a very profitable one. House Kadius, a rather disorganized Merchant House, gathers its wares from all over the world, but is still fairly centralized in Allanak. House Kurac has recently been allowed back into the city, but only to sell desert gear, as the ban on spice is still in effect.

Society

The life of an Allanaki citizen is one of strife--expensive and degenerate living conditions, a nearly omnipotent ruler and His Templars watching your every move, and no place to hide except the burning wastelands outside the city gates. Highlord Tektolnes inspires a silent paranoia in all of his subjects, and thus has remained unchallenged during his multi-millenial reign. Most Allanakis are slaves belonging to the nobles and Templars, and the commoners are usually of the merchant class or soldiers in Tektolnes' army. The rest of the population earn their living in less honest ways.

Templars are His Gloriousness's elite soldiers and spellcasters. Their power comes from Tektolnes Himself rather than from the elements, more deadly but with few applications aside from destroying people who pose a threat to Him. Templars basically have the power to do anything they want, and don't hesitate to use it when threatened, intimidated, or annoyed.

The nobles are the Highlord's puppets, their "careers" spent gathering popular support and serving in a senate whose decisions are dictated by His Gloriousness. Nobles are trained in battle as children, but later in life become accustomed to a very lax lifestyle. They are usually very ignorant about the way Allanak is run (sometimes they are even chosen because of that specific trait.)

Government

While the Allanak Senate, a gathering of nobles, meets yearly to decide matters of policy and law, the real power in Allanak is the Highlord. Every whim of His Gloriousness Highlord Tektolnes becomes Allanaki law immediately, through the actions of His Templars. He never goes out alone into the city's dirty streets, because of His distrust of the commoners and desire for seclusion. Instead, the Templars orchestrate His plans to the letter. He trusts them no more than the people of His city, but He realizes that they fear His powers too much to act against Him.