The Compact

When the Archon called Veleiuri began her rampant abuse of elemental magic in response to the existence of Archon Jaxeite's hellcreeper, a strange phenomena occurred. Children within her ward, always human, were born imbued with elemental essence. Genasi, they were called. As the story always goes, they were feared. Treated lesser, or like threats. They fall into lines of work that even Veleiuri's most horribly treated slaves wouldn't be allocated. Handling waste, salvaging equipment or components from hellcreeper ridden wastes, and many more awful tasks. In time, the genasi began to learn how truly great in number they were. They learned there was more to life than being a second class citizen doing third class labor.
There were many uprisings, all spontaneous, without plan, and quickly snuffed, until one evening. A number of genasi managed to send through the grapevine a message, with the help of an outside force still not known to this day. All at once, thousands of Genasi across all of Veleiuri Ward stood, and fought together. They took what was theirs, and left, fleeing east into the mountains between the dangerous hives of Ts'tchkta Pass and the Planes of Ís to an unclaimed valley, protected on all sides by the elements. Truly a fitting home. Blizzard ridden arctic duskward, unstable and monster ridden earth sunward, deep caverns that lead into the ground where molten lakes awaited wyrmward, and the Chasm Sea and it's deep blue sourceways. Protected from all sides, the refugees of Veleiuri's oppression founded The Compact.
The Compact is split into five districts, each lead by a different member of the Five Key Council. The air district, the fire district, the earth district, the star district, the water district, each with it's own role within the city, and surrounding territory. The districts control reached out past the boundaries of the Compacts walls, and made almost small states within the Compact's territory.

The Air District

The genasi of the air district are the second most powerful of the Compact's districts, with their roles being transportation, exploration, cartography, and public service. They handle the mail, any sort of transit like large wagons that provide free passage between towns or ships between cities. They own the rights to the maps, they draw borders, and they hold a full monopoly, as any district does over their tasks, over land distribution. Though this has caused conflict in the past, the Air District has always had the largest amount allocated to them. With larger properties per citizen than any other district, and the second highest income, there is a constant air of elitism that seems to radiate from any Air District resident.

Alexandria by Raphael Lacoste

The Fire District

The fourth most influential district of the Compact, the Fire District. Responsible for manufacturing, military operations, and law enforcement, the genasi of this district often find themselves defined by those traits. Hard workers, but violent or easy to anger. "They're always seeing red." you'll hear people say. On the contrary, this tends to rarely be the case. With some of the Compacts best musicians and artists hailing from the Fire District, as their burning passion fuels their every move. The Fire District makes nearly all of the crafts that the Compact uses. Every piece of clay, porcelain, metal, leather, and stone was at one point refined within the forges of the Fire District. Even wooden manufacturing, mostly the manufacturing of lumber for the Air Districts vehicles or the Earth districts tools.

Sentinels by Raphael Lacoste

The Earth District

The lowest district on the food chain, the Earth District. The district responsible for agriculture, the collection of raw resources like lumber or minerals, and physical labor. Service workers, deckhands, assistants, and so on. Besides the Fire District which goes without saying given their responsibilities, the Earth District is the only non-military focused district who's citizens are included in drafts, and are required to respond to conscription. With strict quotas from the other districts, the citizens of the Earth District is constantly working. Tilling fields, harvesting crops, clear cutting trees then replanting, and hollowing out the mountains for rare minerals. Some say being born an Earth Genasi is a curse, but the Earth Genasi need the extra hands, so having children is a must within the district.

Farm Town by Virginia Palomeque

The Star District

The newest district, and the district in the middle of the power spectrum, the Star District. The district responsible for magic, education, and law. Due to heavy Archon pressure, the Star District has magic and it's use pretty limited, with few able to learn it, and even when people can it's use above 2nd level is incredibly closely watched. Permits are required in any district for the individual casting of any spell above 1st, and everyone who can cast spells at all must wear a visible pin or band marking them as a mage. As much as the revolutions of the past have made them free, the Compact, and specifically the Star District leaders know fully well what the Archons are capable of. When it comes to education, the budget given to it by the Water District is dependent on district. Though the Star District controls every school and attempts to make them equal opportunity, with the Earth District receiving very little budget, only so much is possible. On the other hand, the Air and Water Districts both have an abundance of resources at their disposal and academics leave those districts on the regular.

The Water District

The wealthiest, most influential, and overall most powerful district of the five, the Water District. Bearing the financial and political responsibilities of the Compact, the Water District has the most allies, and controls the wealth and it's distribution among the districts. They don't gloat about their status like the Air do, but they make it no secret that the others are below them. Each bank bears the symbol of the Water District, and every home within said district is built like a castle in comparison to, say, your average Earth District home. Where others can barely afford their livestock or a plow, those of the Water District rather commonly own their own watercraft, purebread horses, or in some cases even magical beasts like griffons or pegasi as status symbols.

Persian Market by Tori Vergara

Culture

The culture of the Compact is widely varied depending on where you go, with little bleed besides within the Water and Air Districts. Given their nature, those two particular districts interact with the outside world a lot more than any other district, leaving the Compact and it's great valley. Where most genasi never have the chance to see a city outside it, the Air and Water have free reign to travel as they will.

Demography and Population

Given the freedom socially, Air and Water district residents tend to put less thought into the future. The genasi type ratios of the Compact tend to be around the 15% Air, 25% Fire, 5% Star, 35% Earth, and 20% Water. Despite this and despite the districts being named after the genasi breeds themselves, not all genasi are tied to their heritage district. Some half breeds find themselves in the upper class of their two districts, and others find themselves, through hard work or luck, in districts entirely different than their genasi subtype.

Territories

Though it all started as a single settlement, the lands known as the Compact take up a large circle of mountains which makes a valley of sorts, though massive, and holding other pillars of land within, the Compact and it's valley has never had it's border expanded since it's founding. It's unique geological positions makes it easy to defend, and difficult for any sane person to consider attempting to settle in anew.

Founding Date

1681

Type

Geopolitical, City-state

Capital

Central

Alternative Names

The Elemental Valley, Home of the Four

Demonym

Compite

Currency

The Compite Shard (Symbol: ♦) Worth approximately .05 standard gold pieces.

Location

Sear

Neighboring Nations

• Veleiuri Ward

Housing Mechanics

Demand: Neutral
Land Quality: Squalid - Wealthy
Possible Docks: Air, Planar, Water
Special Rules: When you purchase land here you must choose which district your purchase the land in. Structures built in the Water District can roll an additional d10 per license rank to a maximum of 3 on profit rolls for Boutiques built there, structures built within the Air District have the cost of docks built their reduced by 75%, structures built within the Star District have the cost of libraries built their reduced by 50%, structures built in the Fire District have Crafting Workshops built their reduced by 25%, and structures built in the Earth District have no additional benefits. Land owned in the Earth District cannot be more than Poor in quality, and land owned in the Fire District cannot be more than Modest.