Caelester

The city of Caelester is the heart of one of the largest and most influential city-states in Asuria. Eight years ago, a devestating earthquake struck the region, bringing the city to its knees and killing most of the nobility, including the reigning Grand Duchess and her family, leaving the city leaderless and vulnerable. In the aftermath, Giles Baxter seized control of the city, proclaiming himself Steward until such a time as a member of the ducal house can be found. To this day, he rules the city with an iron fist, wasting resources that could be used in the city's reconstruction to strengthen his mercenary army while also neglecting the city state's rural holdings.
Nevertheless, the people of Caelester endure, rebuilding as they can while keeping the dream of the city's restoration alive. While many live in temporary housing that is far more crowded than what was once common throughout the city, very few live in the city without a place to call home. Some of the city's most noteworthy establishments, such as the grand Caelester Abbey have been mostly restored, as have the main dockyard and certain key parts of city infrastructure. Still, even after eight long years, the city is far from what it once was.

Government

Historically, Caelester was ruled by a Grand Duke or Duchess, with advice and guidance provided by relevant guildmasters and religious authorities. Officially, the Grand Duke or Duchess had final say in all decisions, but the guilds have occasionally opted to adjust official edicts on their own authority when the official decision was deemed unwise.
This unofficial and fragile balance of powers was shattered with with the Steward's ascension. Backed by an army of privately hired mercenaries and immense personal wealth, the Steward's takeover of the city was swift and quiet, having been completed before anyone could organize any form of resistance. The riots that followed were a brief attempt by the guilds to remove him and his forces, but that merely granted him the opportunity to prove definitively what would befall any who dared to oppose him.
Now the city is ruled under the Steward's absolute authority. Most guilds have been officially disbanded, though their leadership still operates in secret, having made an alliance with a criminal organization that now styles itself the Guild of Collectors. Religious authorities are granted some degree of freedom, but most attempts to organize ordinary Caelestrans are quickly and violently suppressed, for fear that it might turn its efforts against the Steward. This, combined with the high taxes required to pay the Steward's mercenaries and other abuses of power, has led to the haphazard reconstruction efforts that allowed Caelester to remain in such dire straits for so long.