SigilStar
City, Population 26,000
Known for tea, commerce, textiles, arcane studies, and weapons manufacture.
Sigilstar is commonly known as the “crossroads of Thrane.” It is named after Eberron's pole star, because the rest of Thrane is centered on the small city just as the skies of Eberron are centered on that star. Almost everyone who travels internationally in Western Khorvaire has passed through Sigilstar at least once. The city not only connects several Orien trade routes and major lightning rail lines, but its docks are the birthplace of House Lyrandar. The city’s convenient location has made its residents prosperous and cosmopolitan; Sigilans have long enjoyed a reputation as being “not like those other Thranes.”
The city sits on the lightning rail line between Flamekeep and Vathirond, and Sigilstar’s merchants are always competing with those in Flamekeep to the north and Aruldusk to the east. A major trade route also runs through the center of town, making Sigilstar an obvious transfer point for cargo and goods moved on land, water, and rail.
Sigilstar contains some of the most striking displays of Flamic architecture found anywhere in Thrane. In addition, many of the city’s rooftops are lined with crystal spikes that capture the sun’s rays during the day and illuminate the city at night.
Citizens of Sigilstar call themselves Sigilans, and visitors often remark at how open-minded the average Sigilan seems. An impressive number (for Thrane) of wizards, sorcerers, and magewrights live in Sigilstar. In addition, the city has more than a few competent alchemists.
Sigilstar is also known for its tea. The city boasts several distinguished teahouses where patrons can sit comfortably, drink copiously, and debate politics and religion without offending anyone.
Government
The minister in charge of Sigilstar is Archbishop Lahira ir’Vanaisho (she/her), a venerable human administrator who’s governed the city for the past half-century. While she hasn’t announced her retirement yet, junior members of the ministry are intensely politicking for her position — appealing both to influential interest groups within the city as well as directly to Cardinal Kahlia Vanatar (they/them) who will make the decision.
Industry & Trade
Tea, textiles, weaponry, and cargo sea/land ports.
Guilds and Factions
The Silver Flame
The Church of the Silver Flame is divided into three types of organizations - Ministerial societies, Templar orders, and Friar fellowships. Each type serves a unique aspect of the Church's central mission, to protect the people of Khorvaire. Above all others is the Council of Cardinals, and within the Council is the Diet of Cardinals, the thirteen-member governing body of Thrane that rules in conjunction with the Keeper of the Flame.The Nobles
With the installation of the theocracy, all the nobles of Thrane lost their governing authority. This significantly weakened their power, but did not eliminate it, as the various nobles kept almost all of their land (Some was seized by the church to construct new cathedrals). For those whose personal holdings included rich farmland, lush forests, or mineral-filled mines, the transition to simply being wealthy went as smoothly. For those with smaller holdings without natural resources and thus relied on regional tax income, the transition was rough, impoverishing former noble families. Furthermore, the course of the war took its toll through families that lost all their heirs. In Galifar this land would have been transferred to another noble line, but in the theocracy that land would be turned over to the church. To deal with their loss of stature, deposed nobles pursued a number of different paths. Many simply stayed in Thrane as prominent, wealthy individuals, in some cases joining groups like the Aurum. Others adapted to the new power structure and merged with the church, even joining the ministry and regaining their lost local authority While the vast majority of Thranes consider themselves Purified, a small percentage are part of the "Host of the Faithful", the collective group of Thranish vassals. While Vassals in Thrane are certainly not persecuted, they find themselves cultural outsiders uncomfortable with the often strict flamic edicts. As such, most Vassals find themselves turning to Queen Diani for leadership, telling stories of the days before. Elves, dwarves, and other longer-lived races may simply remember the days before, when good king Thalin led the country before his death handed power to the Church. Support for the monarchy is not just limited to vassals - within Thrane, and especially outside of it, followers of the Silver Flame see the theocracy as a distraction from the true purpose of the church. The Diet's preoccupation with the administration of state - treaties, borders, taxes - move the church's purpose from fighting supernatural evil to managing its citizens. Prior to the war, faithful Purified were confident that their tithes supported the protection of communities against the horrors that lurk in the dark. Now, a Brelish worshipper who gives to the church knows that some percentage of those funds are going to supporting the army occupying Thaliost. Purified who believe this look to Jaela as the pure heart of the church, divested from ordinary politics. Despite all of this, the theocracy is still overwhelmingly popular within Thrane, and sufficiently tolerated outside of it. Procedural complaints about the nature of theocracy don't go very far when many people see the social charity enacted by the church, no matter how many semi-deposed nobles complain and grumble. It would take a massive scandal striking at the heart of the church to change people's minds...The Wizards
The Sigilstar Academy is one of the few formal institutions in Thrane turning out arcane talent. In a nation preoccupied (and ruled by) faith, the secular academy influences the culture of Sigilstar, helping the city to think differently from the rest of the nation.The Aurum
The Aurum in Thrane is very strong due to many deposed nobles having joined its ranks over the last war. Norah ir’Marktaros is the largest landowner in Sigilstar, with more than half the city paying rent to her. Sigilstar’s continued success has left her one of the wealthiest women in the continent. She channels a large portion of her wealth into charitable works through the city’s Aurum chapter, of which she is a Platinum Concordian. While certainly an advocate for a system that has allowed her to maintain her wealth and the influence that comes with it, Norah is not up to any particular nefarious schemes.The White Hand Guild
This “thieves guild” is a criminal organization that brands itself with a respectable kind of racketeering, promising to keep the streets clean. The White Hand Guild really took off early in the Last War, when its then-guild master Branthus “Rooftop” Corawall came up with a plan to smuggle contraband across the borders closed by the war. Allying with other urban criminal groups such as the Boromar Clan of Sharn and the Ghost Walkers of Metrol, the Black Highway was formed—an international cartel that snaked its way into many halls of power by providing anything for the right price. Nobles paid for foreign luxuries while corrupt military commanders sold military supplies for personal profit. With the opening of borders post-war, the Black Highway has fewer angles to work, but they still work with independently minded captains to evade tariffs or the few import and export bans remaining, such as Breland’s ban on Aundairian wine.History
Sigilstar’s advantageous location is nothing new in the history of Khorvaire — human settlers built on top of Dhakaani ruins when they colonized the region. Convenient access to the waterway now known as the Thrane River made the location a natural home for successive civilizations, whether for fishing or trade.
In what was then the Kingdom of Daskara, about 1000 years before the founding of Galifar, a pair of river elves from Sigilstar named Lyran and Selavash developed the Mark of Storm. Five hundred years later, another important marked individual arose near Sigilstar — the girl who would grow up to become the Lady of the Plague. After her abilities wiped several villages off the map, Lyran’s descendants organized a purge of aberrant-marked individuals, initiating the War of the Mark.
The city’s relationship with magic is important to the city. When Sigilstar was still part of Daskara, Aureon was considered the city’s patron deity, and the Arcane Order of Aureon was founded about 700 years before Galifar. Vowing to use magic in the support of law and order, this early wizard circle became extremely popular with the ruling elite. One of Galifar’s great diplomatic coups that enabled the bloodless absorption of Daskara was persuading the archmages of the Arcane Order to side with him, promising that the united empire could provide even greater resources to support their pursuits.
The order’s downfall was the year of Blood and Fire, when its masters in Sigilstar zealously persecuted everyone they suspected of worshiping the shadow and harboring dark magic. Countless innocents died in magical inquisition, as zones of truth were abused to “prove” all sorts of absurd crimes, each of which was accompanied by capital punishment. When Tira and her companions freed the city, the damage to the Arcane Order’s reputation was already done—its leadership tarnished, the mages of Ghalt became new leaders of the order.
While Sigilstar has remained a center of trade and fashion, the Last War brought a new industry to the city — weaponry. Sigilstar’s wizarding groups applied arcane science to divine magic to produce many of Thrane’s innovative weapons, such as the coastal beacons that seared ships with intense rays of light. This made the city a prime target for saboteurs, but it escaped direct siege simply due to its distance from the borders and the defensibility of the Thrane River.
Points of interest
River's rest Station
This Orien-run lightning rail stop features multiple layers of shops and restaurants on top of the actual train platforms. These range from cheap options for thrifty travelers to many of the city's finest selections in dining and commerce. While the options for traveling in and out of the city were somewhat limited during the war, the Treaty of Thronehold has revitalized River’s Rest Station by restoring international travel and commerce. The station is well-staffed with Medani inspectors who actively monitor for criminal activity.Storm's Landing
While Sigilstar lacks the deep harbor necessary for the full range of seafaring vessels, it is nonetheless an important port of trade for Scions Sound. Despite being the historic home of House Lyrandar, plenty of independent captains call Sigilstar their home port. The river elves especially have a presence here, remaining proudly independent of a house that they feel has gone too corporate.Imperial Gallery of Textiles
Sigilstar is the fashion capital of Khorvaire. While Cyre once had the manufacturing base for textile production, the greatest designers have long lived in Sigilstar. Before the war, the industry had a clear annual schedule—outfits had to be ready in the spring, as feudal lords got ready to leave their holds and venture out for the summer court season. The best of these designs were accepted into the Imperial Gallery, a formal preservation effort started by monks of Kol Korran who wished to keep a history of the changing styles. Powerful abjurations protect the gallery’s exhibits from the ravages of time. While the exhibits do have a bias towards the styles of the wealthy and powerful — attempts to document the clothing of Khorvaire’s everyday citizens are only just starting — their collection of imperial wear from the courts of Galifar is unrivalled. Collections from beyond Thrane are limited, but the monks of Kol Korran who run it still have some international donors.Grand Gallery of the Firstborn
Nominally the House Lyrandar headquarters in Sigilstar, the Grand Gallery of the Firstborn is primarily a museum celebrating Lyran and Selavash. Various documents and objects showcase all the places the legendary duo traveled to, from pieces of their first ship that were recovered from the depths of the Bitter Sea to their family lineages. The museum has a religious bent consistent with the pre-Silver Flame religiosity of Sigilstar, holding that the Mark of Storm was a gift from Arawai and Kol Korran.Sigilstar Academy
The Arcane Order of Aureon founded the Sigilstar Academy in the years before Daskara was absorbed into the Kingdom of Galifar and became Thrane. Though the order is today primarily an Aundairian institution, it was once headquartered in Sigilstar; the order’s depredations during the Year of Blood and Fire are still a black mark on its history and significantly contributed to the people of Thrane turning away from arcane magic. While the school is still affiliated with the arcane order, it has largely shed its religious trappings and become a primarily secular institution dedicated to arcane education. Today, Sigilstar Academy teaches the future mages of Thrane, offering a rigorous magical education for youth with arcane ability. It’s also home to the Chronepsis Institution, the foremost center for research into divination and astromancy in the Five Nations. The institute’s head, an elf named Nyllestra Tarravan (she/her), is a wizened mage of ancient but indeterminate age.Ir’Marktaros Estate
King Thalin’s husband, Sercyl ir’Marktaros, was the duke of Sigilstar before marrying into the Wynarns. As Thalin’s husband, Sercyl became the last Archduke of Thrane — without monarchical governance, let alone the kingdom of Galifar, the title was deprecated. Today, Norah ir’Marktaros is the largest landowner in Sigilstar, with more than half the city paying rent to her. Sigilstar’s continued success has left her one of the wealthiest women in the continent. She channels a large portion of her wealth into charitable works through the city’s Aurum chapter, of which she is a Platinum Concordian. While certainly an advocate for a system that has allowed her to maintain her wealth and the influence that comes with it, Norah is not up to any particular nefarious schemes.War of the Mark Memorial
Maintained by the dragonmarked houses for over a thousand years, this simple stone slab bears ten dragonmarks in a ring around its edge, missing just the marks of finding and warding (and death). The face commemorates the victory over Halas Tarkanan while also honoring the sacrifice of those who stood against “the corruption of Siberys’s gifts.” Nearby, a House Phiarlan-manufactured device recalls the story of the Lady of Plague, a woman born not far from Sigilstar who brought death wherever she went.Architecture
The city is notable, at least among Thranes and architects, for its impressive examples of Flamic architecture. Many of the spires of the city are capped with crystal spires that glow with the captured light of the sun, creating a beautiful nighttime illumination across the city.
Geography
It sits astride the lightning rail line between Aruldusk and Flamekeep, and on the Orien trade road between the southern and northern parts of the nation of Thrane. Its position on the northern bank of the Thrane River allows it access via a waterway to Scion's Sound as well. The city is the primary transfer point for cargo that is switching modes of transport between land, water and rail.
Climate
Temperate
Alternative Name(s)
The crossroads of Thrane
Type
City
Population
26,000
Owning Organization
