City-State of Caryatis
The City-State of Caryatis is a predominantly-caryatid city-state located in the center of the Bracaran Peninsula.
In Fate
Aspects
- High Concept: Caryatid City Of Unfettered Relief
- Trouble: Untested by History
- Relationship: Trades Generously with Kobold Tribes
- Seen Enough of War for Several Lifetimes
Overview
Structure
The governance of Caryatis is managed by its Figurehead, a volunteer position occupied by a caryatid. The Figurehead is advised by whatever advisors choose to attend them on a given issue, among them the Speaker. The Speaker governs the mortal inhabitants of Caryatis, and represents them to the Figurehead.
Culture
The caryatid inhabitants of the city, being functionally immortal and post-scarcity, live largely self-determined, duty-free lives. They pursue whatever ends interest them, ranging from providing for the city—via agriculture, government, etc.—to passtimes such as sculpture or poetry.
Mortal inhabitants of the city are relieved of the majority of their day-to-day concerns, but not to the same extent as the caryatids are: they are still vulnerable to harm, but they live in a walled city surrounded by stone bodyguards; they still need to eat, but caryatids help them tend the fields and require no sustenance of their own. By and large, they consider Caryatis to be a refuge from the rest of the world. Fear of the golems is the primary factor that keeps the city's immigration down; that fear extends within the city as well, leading a fraction of the mortal citizens to treat the caryatids with constant suspicion.
Public Agenda
The power and resilience of caryatids makes the city an incredibly difficult problem to deal with, but the city is not so powerful as to be able to contend with the full might of, say, the Patrian Empire. Moreover, the caryatids have little appetite for war after centuries of it. As a result, Caryatis very deliberately maintains a neutral stance in geopolitical affairs.
History
Caryatis was founded in 4 BR by newly-volitional caryatid refugees from Patria and the River Kingdoms. It has grown some over the subsequent century, but not changed in any substantial way.
Geopolitics
Demography and Population
Caryatis is predominantly populated by the vast majority of Aedes' caryatids, which comprise over 70% of its population. Of the remaining population, roughly 20% are human, 8% are Therian, and the remaining 2% comprises a mix of other species.
Religion
Roughly half of all caryatids take the sudden, inexplicable granting of volition to the first caryatid as definitive proof of divine intervention. Among the faithful caryatids, belief has coalesced around the concept of a benevolent god whose intervenes rarely in small ways that have great effect. This deity is colloquially known as the Blackstone God, deriving its name from the single black stone used in games of Blind Beggar that represents a chance to "cure" the eponymous beggar of their blindness. Around a fifth of the mortals in the city also worship the Blackstone God in the same manner as the caryatids.
The remaining inhabitants of Caryatis hold to different faiths. Among the remaining humans and Therians, it is not uncommon to view the caryatid miracle as evidence in favor of their respective faiths; for instance, Therians with ties to the River Kingdoms credit Sarru with the miracle. The other half of the caryatids, meanwhile, have no faith in the divine, believing that no god would have permitted them to endure centuries of slavery without intervening.
Foreign Relations
Caryatis quite deliberately maintains a neutral stance on the geopolitical stage, for a variety of reasons. Predominantly, this is out of self-preservation. The power and resilience of caryatids makes the city an incredibly difficult problem to deal with, but Caryatis is not so powerful as to be able to contend with the full might of, say, the Patrian Empire. Were a full-blown war to arise, the city would ultimately fall. Moreover, the caryatids have little appetite for war after centuries of it. While many caryatids maintain a strong grudge against Patria and the River Kingdoms, the prevailing sentiment is that peace at all costs is preferable.
As a result, Caryatis trades with everyone, and is enemies with none. Both the Bracaran Territories and the Kingdom of Acatha are on friendly terms with the city, and Caryatis has long traded generously with nearby kobold tribes.
Caryatis' relationship with the dwarves is by far their strongest, thanks to the major role the dwarves played in the city's creation.
Agriculture & Industry
The caryatids emigrated to the former city of Telemon for two reasons: its proximity to the dwarves, and its importance to Patria as by far the primary source of new caryatids for the Legions. While new caryatids are seldom if ever created in Caryatis, the mines and quarries still see active use, making stone, gems, and metal the predominant export of the city.
Caryatis also produces several times more crops than it needs to feed all of its citizens, as the vast majority of them do not eat. This excess food is also traded—often to the kobolds, as their villages rarely have much in the way of arable land.
Education
Certain River Kingdoms caryatids, thanks to centuries spent in and around temples, came to Caryatis knowing quite a bit about magic. Combined with the teachings of the Lightbringers, this has led to a great deal of magical knowledge being available throughout the city, as the caryatids—themselves incapable of magic and reliant on it for self-repair—have strong incentive to educate the city's mortal inhabitants.
The caryatids of the city are often fonts of very specific knowledge gained through their many centuries.
Infrastructure
Caryatis has a strong outer wall that nearly encompasses the entire used city, and is protected from the north by the Srydari River. The river is also commonly used for trade and transportation.
Unfettered Relief
Founding Date
4 BR
Type
Geopolitical, City-state
Capital
Predecessor Organization
Demonym
Caryatans
Head of State
Major Exports
Stone, gems, and metal; excess crops.
Major Imports
Animal products, curiosities, finished goods, salt, spices.
Location
Related Ranks & Titles
Controlled Territories
Comments