Daraqadim
Overview
The ancient adamantine fortress of humanity, Daraqadim stands as a symbol both of Calishite and Human dominance of the continent, its walls never falling and the city being unconquered for 1200 years. Originally functioning as the fortress created to defend human vaults during the Calamity, it now performs key functions for Calimshan as its secondary shipbuilding port and the primary mooring point for the Nallojal (navy) of the syl-pasha. While respectful of military titles and other traditions, this seaside port has little time or patience for the usual pomp and preening of Calishite titles. For all intents and purposes, this town is controlled by the Nallojal, and everyone and everything in it is focused on the sea and the navy.Major Exports
Fish, ships, shipwrights, nets, cords and ropes, and ships' equipmentDaraqadim's Underworld
Most underworld activities in this town are run by el Rhimod through intermediaries. Only one such guild is of note, though several other rogues are of independent distinction. Burglars and Thieves - Normally, el Vitendi/el Gahrat. A trusted nephew and unofficial vizar of Sultan Vitendi, the clever young Edif el Gahrat from Calimport has used his street smarts and wizard training to weasel his way into power. Using the wizard skills he was taught in Gusthaven, Edif has unified the scattered thieves of Daraqadim into a thieves' guild under his control. With them has his eyes and ears, he gains way more money and information than others in the town, and uses it all for political advantage. While the sultan seems amused when Edif manages to trip up rivals to Sultan's power base, he is naively unaware that Edif is biding his time until he can make enough friends to become Sultan himself. The Red Rysal is a local rogue and legend who has plagued the city for 45 years, making fools of the corrupt navy personnel and avenging indignities to the people of Daraqadim. He has slashed the sails of slaver ships, exposed key sailors and officers as pirate collaborators, murdered abusive shipmasters, burned warehouses holding contraband goods, and revealed the existence of evil cults stealing children from their cribs, leading to the destruction of hidden dark cults to Babylon, Goena, and Xaanke. Assumed to be a man, this figure is consistent in his harassment of the city. Amhir Oadif el Wajin has been many things and played many roles in his young life. He is a former jhasin who long ago escaped the harem of an aged and bitter pasha's wife in Memnon, where his name was Kamal adh Nadjar. Now an amlak officer in Daraqadim, he wishes to make his town happy and safe (which it is, relative to other places in Calimshan) but believes himself powerless to stop much of the Nallojal corruption embraced and supported by the sultan. Still, having once been an abused victim of the slave system, he wishes he could do more to save the others he sees suffering this fate.Points of interest
Important Areas in the City - The Nallojal Sabbans cover the westernmost arc of the city and dominates more than half of the waterfront and docks. In these sabbans, the ratio of nonnaval buildings to those of the Nallojal has shrunk, and nearly every building in these sabbans is owned by or caters specifically to the navy and its personnel. In fact, military personnel have started buying out some of the other buildings abutting this sabban, and if the growth continues at this same pace, the adjoining Sabbans will also become a Nallojal-dominated sabbans within another five years. Some shopowners, while technically still the owners, are public suppliers of goods directly to the Nallojal, and they thrive on stipends from the Ralbahr and Sultan Vitendi to support this system. All taverns and inns within the sabban are owned and operated by retired sailors and naval officers. While nonnaval personnel are not banned from this sabban, they do attract far more attention from the amlakkar and others here than in other parts of town.
The Yanatralbahr, or admiral's estate is the centuries-old palatial estate of the Ralbahr Mond el Vitendi and his family. Its gleaming marble walls rise above the sabban walks and its six buildings dominate the skyline of the northern Qeldan Sabban.
Since recently, the Penitent's House, a two-story white marble building once used as the Vitendi family's private shrine to their gods, has also served as the seat of government for Daraqadim. The Ralbahr Vitendi has ruled this town for all that time. Over the past 10 years, a small retaining wall has been erected around the Penitent's House to shield the rest of the estate from the goings-on herein.
The Mourning Mast rests on the cliff's edge at the southeastern end of town. This spot is the traditional site where the wives of deceased sailors and sea captains mourn their lost mates. A ship's mast is set directly into the ground here, and within its crows' nest is the statue of a lookout peering anxiously out over the sea. This memorial was built in the late Eighth Age after storms at sea destroyed more than half of the ships that hailed from Daraqadim. A more recent addition is the petrified form of an anguished woman a few paces from the base of the mast. The unknown woman received word that her husband had died as she stood watching the seas for him. Her heartrending cry to the gods echoed over the city, and her grief was so great that she turned to stone on the spot. Her hair and silken dress frozen billowing in the wind and tears still streaking her face, the Lonely Widow kneels beneath the Mourning Mast, her face a legacy of the suffering shared by so many over the years.
Places to Stay
The taverns of Daraqadim provide most of its interesting hospitality options. Two of note are Bold Jack's and the Roving Rune. Bold Jack's - This tavern is the closest thing to a northern roadhouse to be found in the region. The establishment's flagstone floor and low-beamed ceiling lend it a deliberately rustic look, which is heightened by its perpetually dim lighting, a boar or other large animal always turning on a spit in the hearth (no fewer than six wheeled spit racks are kept in the smokehouse, so a succession of beasts can be cooked and the hearth is never left empty), and a collection of massive, battered furniture. This is a place where groups of patrons really can dance on a single table if they want to—and if they are very short! Its premises are favored by adventurers and folk who want to pretend they are having a bold adventure. Jack Whittlewood, an ex-adventurer himself, is very old now, but he has hired two much-scarred mercenaries to spin wildly embroidered tales of their days of daring to any patron who cares to listen. When real adventurers stop by, the yarns can be truly spellbinding. Quality/Price - Good/Moderate. The Roving Rune - A former wizards' tower and school, this tavern and inn in a four-story minaret provides some of the best food and entertainment found in Daraqadim, and many folk frequent it as it is a diversion from the nautical themes of all other life in this town. The cellar is the largest room, and this taproom acts as the communal area. The first floor is the brewery for the tavern, the second and third floors are private rooms for rent by the hour or night, and the top floor holds the rooms of the owner, and his family. Nephew and sole heir of the last wizard to adorn this tower, Atiq inherited the tower and moved here from Memnon to claim it but has always been unclear about many of its secrets. His wife and daughter, Raisa and Oma, have discovered a magically hidden sixth level below the taproom that they use with Atiq's blessing in Oma's arcane education. The women keep quiet their skill in magic, just as Raisa's mother secretly taught her, but Oma is anxious to complete her training and venture out of Calimshan on adventures. The tavern gets its name from a wandering magic within the mosaics that cover every surface of the tower's interior. The stone chips shift and weave at times, though the movement is only seen out of the corner of one's eye rather than when the patterns are looked at straight on. When a glowing blue-green rune appears and someone touches it, that person is bathed in turquoise faerie fire for an hour. There seems to be one other effect to the roving rune: Those persons touched by the rune brighten considerably in spirits, and any malaise or grief they have suffered fades. For this reason, many farewells to departed friends or family occur in the tavern the hopes of some relief for the grieving. Quality/Price - Good/Moderate.Notable Locations and Churches
Samahl's Cords is a rope and netmaker shop that is also the informal meeting place for the Guild of Cordwainers and Netmakers since the dock fires of a few months ago. The owner, Samahl el Cahrad is a drunken former Rysal of the El Nallojal, who retired rather than serve a Syl-Pasha he doesn't respect. Samahl has a deep hatred for capital citizens and anyone from Calimport, and often gets in shouting matches and fights with far younger sailors from out of town. Some pieces of the Adamantine Walls, especially near the sea shores, have been set aside for historical tours in order to bring gold in for the Sultan. On the northwestern edge of the city, one of the best tours in town is run by the Iron Shore Company. As a major sailing port and city, it is obvious that many temples to Umberlee are common, with the largest being The Shipsgrave Tower. It is a three-storied dark tower with windows on each floor. It rose above the western part of the city, near the Sea Gate. The temple moaned when sea winds touched it and continued its ominous lament afterward, even on clear days.
Founding Date
Unknown (Pre-Calamity)
Type
Large city
Population
126,000 citizens and 8,000 rural citizens
Owner/Ruler
Additional Rulers/Owners
Owning Organization
Characters in Location
