Satsuma
The city of Satsuma is one of the primary trading ports for the northern Jakonian Empire, and is the first major Jakonian gateway to trading ships going down the San Jon River from the Endless Ocean to Corazon, Columba or Orrland. It is a prosperous community and features one of the most racially diverse city centers in the entire remnants of the empire. It is well known as a city with constant unrest and dissent against the Jakonian regime, surpassed only by Nasah itself. The Satsumans particularly pride themselves on their local industries, acting as the heart of many modern Jakonian endeavors.
Government
Unlike in other House Hayles territories, the new Lord of Satsuma has undertaken an ambitious task to completely revitalize the systems of government in the city. He has disbanded the old Jakonian Imperial bureaucracy, and established a new city system in its place. He has created new departments of defense and infrastructure, as well as appointed his own ambassadors to surrounding houses and nations. He has offered much flexibility to his new department chiefs, and the Lord of Satsuma has hoped that by streamlining the processes of governance, he can spur greater loyalty and profit from the populace. The courts have been similarly reformed and over the past year, nearly all local magistrates have been fired, and replaced with personal appointees of the Lord of Satsuma. The laws themselves continue to remain the same as the overall Imperial guidelines, but most of the discriminatory practices towards other races and women have been quietly abolished.
Defences
The land side of the city of Satsuma is surrounded by a forty-foot high town wall made of stone. The main city gates themselves were once taken from the dwarves as spoils of war, and are said to be partially made of adamantine. According to local legend, however, the admantine was stripped long ago for use in weapons and armor for the Imperial Army. The wall extends partially into the river to prevent outflanking efforts, and several fortified redoubts are positioned between the docks to watch out for water based attackers. Two Imperial Navy corvettes and one frigate are stationed full time at Satsuma, providing additional security, and the ability to stop and search ships suspected of attempting to smuggle goods upriver without inspecting them in Satsuma first.
House Hayles and a regiment of Imperial Marines provide the bulk of the city's permanent guard and defense. The majority of House Hayles forces are stationed here and at Hayleston in Palm. The taxes and tariffs collected by the Satsuma Ferry are deemed to be one of the highest priorities for the House's continued prosperity. Should the city come under direct attack, the town could muster nearly five thousand militia. The militia, however, is poorly trained and equipped, due to concerns about providing the Nasites with too much military training, and they are considered to be politically unreliable. In the case of a true emergency, House Hayles is also prepared to hire the nearly 600 veteran dwarf warriors belonging to the mercenary companies that offer their services in the Ferry Market.
Industry & Trade
Satsuma is the single largest location for iron ore and steel goods to be imported into Jakonia besides the Imperial City itself. Iron and minerals from the mines of the Badlands and Kiralyno enter into Satsuma on a regular basis, and from these resources of the earth, Satsuma's iron processing industry booms. Foundries and refineries are in constant production in Satsuma, as the smoke from their work belches into the sky. A thin layer of soot eventually settles down upon all of the buildings in the city, and the majority of people in the community work for either the steelworks or the docks. A single shipyard in the city produces small river craft and fishing vessels, but spends most of its time servicing and repairing the Satsuma Ferry from storm damage. Between the steel productions and the dwarven wares available for sale in the Ferry Market, it can be safely said that Satsuma runs on steel.
Infrastructure
The city of Satsuma, in its wealth, has completely paved roads and a system of oil lamps to provide light in the night. Within the city walls are modern infrastructure and development, providing clean runoff and even sewers in the wealthier parts of the city. The docks are spacious and an artificial harbor has been created to allow for ease of loading and unloading, with numerous cranes to help with the process. The Satsuma Ferry is one of the most important parts of the city's infrastructure, consisting of multiple ships constantly crossing back and forth across the San Jon River to the town of Atkeles in Kiralyno. It acts as the main facilitator of trade between the Jakonian Empire and Kiralyno and is owned directly by House Hayles.
Assets
The city of Satsuma has numerous well-stocked stores and facilities for intrepid adventurers. There are nearly forty different blacksmiths in Satsuma, some of them even dwarves who have been doing their craft for over a century. Although the trade of magic items is illegal in Satsuma, the Ferry Market is said to occasionally have some for stock, if you know where to look. The Ferry Market offers numerous fine goods for sale, many of which are expert products crafted by the artisans of Kiralyno. With passage into Kiralyno from the Empire carefully regulated by the dwarves, the Ferry Market offers the best chance for most Jakonians to buy dwarven made products. The dwarves also offer mercenaries for hire, as several elite dwarven regiments are occasionally hired out for security or exploratory expeditions. The mercenaries, however, do refuse to act as rebel suppressors or town guards, stating that they remain neutral in any internal political disputes.
Guilds and Factions
The lords of House Hayles are the directors of the city of Satsuma, and the current Lord of Satsuma faced pressure from multiple sides. At the moment he strangely seems to have sided with the Nasites, favoring progress and tolerance over the dictates of the Church of the One Sun. He has sought to lessen the controls over the lives of every day citizens and has been the first lord in Nasite lands to end a mandatory curfew. The Nasites are fully in favor of the legal and legislative reforms passed and hope that the Lord will continue in this direction, pushing the city to be a more tolerant place. Ultimately, they still wish for independence, but some have said that they do not mind the current state of affairs if the Lord is allowed to continue upon his course.
The Church of the One Sun, backed by the halfling community in Satsuma and the Fellowship of the Palm, have become the current Lord of Satsuma's most fearsome opponents. They seek the restoration of curfew and greater imperial authority inflicted upon the Nasite populace. Ultimately, they would like to see the dwarves and half-orcs expelled from Satsuma, and further immigration from Jakonian lands to help balance out the perceived rebellious threat of the Nasites. They believe that the emphasis should be on expanding local industry, rather than the free and open trade that takes place across the San Jon.
The final major faction within the boundaries of Satsuma are the dwarves and half-orcs. A strange alliance, they have found that neither the Nasites or the Church have their best interests in mind. The Nasites would just as soon see both gone, while the Church occasionally attempts pogroms against their people. They hope that tolerance will increase, but they do not view it as wise to push the Church too far, knowing that they would likely bear the brunt of any retaliation. They push for the expansion of trade and commerce with Kiralyno, and the opening of new ties and trade with other nations along the San Jon River.
History
Before the Last War and the end of the Nameless Empire, Satsuma was a small farming town with a minuscule population on the edge of economic collapse. The end of the world as they knew it actually was a blessing for the people of Satsuma. Suddenly the community was in a key strategic position, with the only intact way of crossing the San Jon River. The ferries remained running and proved to be an enormous boon. People were still needing to cross the river, and there existed few other locations of doing so, and none were as safe. The town began to swell and grow, and it soon became a major trading center. It became one of the cornerstones of the Nasite Kingdom, providing a powerful base of trade and commerce.
The Nasite-Jakonian War devastated the Nasite Kingdom, and the Satsumans were shocked at the speed with which the Jakonians captured the rest of their nation. According to legend, the Nasite leadership planned an evacuation to the north, and Satsuma was said to be the place of their last stand. The people of Satsuma fortified their walls and rallied their defenses, and held for as long as they could against the tides of Jakonian soldiers. It is said that the ferry ran constantly for a full month with no break before it was scuttled on the far side of the San Jon. Satsuma sacrificed so that their heroes and warriors could escape. This tragic last stand forms the foundation of the history of the city, as a final bastion against the Jakonians.
After their integration into the Jakonian Empire, the fortunes of Satsuma fell with the lack of a ferry. The town declined once more but became a place of pilgrimage for many Nasites, wondering where their kings and queens of old had fled. These pilgrimages were ultimately made illegal by the Jakonian Emperors, but they would continue nonetheless. Due to the threats of the Badlands and realms beyond, the Emperors decided to not restore the ferry for some time, using other crossings to continue their conquests. As the Empire reached its zenith, Satsuma was allowed once more to begin operating a ferry, to cross over to Atkeles and to help monitor river trade on the San Jon.
Though the fortunes slowly improved during the Empire's height, it was the Empire's fall that allowed Satsuma to surpass its previous glories. The creation of the independent Free Cities of Kiralyno and Augustin provided new trading partners, and the loss of the majority of the Imperial steelworks in other provinces allowed the workers of Satsuma to fill the gap. The industrial boom that followed made Satsuma one of the key centers of the Jakonian economy. These efforts are threatened once again, as recently the empire has attempted to open new steelworks facilities further south, hoping to establish these important industries in regions less vulnerable to invasion or rebellion.
Geography
The city of Satsuma is built within a natural bend in the San Jon River, along its eastern bank. The urban center itself is clustered within this bend, packed in tightly with grid formed streets, and the center being on a somewhat raised terrain. Surrounding the city is densely packed farmland, stretching towards Matanzas in the east and Corazon to the south. Only a handful of pockets of carefully maintained woods exist inside and around Satsuma.
Type
City
Population
38,000
Related Ethnicities
Inhabitant Demonym
Satsuman
Owner/Ruler
Owning Organization
Characters in Location
~29,000 Nasite Humans
~4,000 Hill Dwarves
~3,000 Halflings
~2,000 Half-Orcs
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