Hardby
Hardby (also known as the "City of the Scorned") is a city in the Central Flanaess, in what is now known as the Domain of Greyhawk.
Hardby was founded in -278 CY by Ena Norbe, a Safeton wizard of Suel extraction who established the town (originally known as Norbe Harbor) as a gynarchy, to be forever ruled by women. The town has only ever had one official male ruler, Zagig Yragerne, who ruled as Despot from 339 to 351 CY. The town has been ruled by the City of Greyhawk since 582 CY, the Despotrix reduced to the status of figurehead, and resentment simmers.
Hardby is built around a deep port called Hard Bay, at the foothills of the Abbor-Alz hills. For many, Hardby is the gateway to the south and to the Bright Desert. In its heyday, Hardby's claimed land as far north as the Neen River.
Hardby is still ruled in name by the Despotrix Illena Norbelos, though in practicality the town is ruled by Greyhawk's Directing Oligarchy through Military Governor Wilbrem Carister, the captain of the Hardby Marines. Behind the scenes, Hardby is controlled by Retep Mandel. A lieutenant of Vesparian Lafanel of Greyhawk, he controls much through his network of assassins, rogues, and spies.
Hardby is protected by the Mountaineer Militia and by the Hardby Marines, both of which are controlled by the City of Greyhawk. The Marines have six war galleys and a total of 80 men, most of them lawful neutral or lawful evil. The Mountaineers have installed a garrison of about 300 men. Day to day order is maintained by a City Watch.
Hardby has evolved over centuries almost in parallel with the Free City. its major role is as a sea port, where seagoing deep-draft vessels unload their cargoes and the cogs and barges of the local people (Hardby has a population of some 3,800) load them.
Although termed a Despotrix, Hardby had been ruled by an alliance of merchants and rivermen, relying on brute force for their rule. During the war years, however, the Free City eliminated this form of rule by introducing first its Mountaineer Militia, using Hardby as a base for operations in the Abbor-Alz, and then the Hardby Marines. Now, Hardby is effectively ruled by a military council of Greyhawk men; it always paid tribute to Greyhawk for protection, and now, that protection has taken over rulership.
Native Hardby folk are not too bothered about this, for the most part. The soldiery from Greyhawk brings in money, is very well disciplined, and its presence has driven away some of the more ruffianish elements of the city. It has attracted others (the presence of Marines attracts the presence of many ladies of dubious virtue), but these are not as anti-social as the muggers and thieves who formerly infested parts of the city. The Dock District is still a very dangerous place to go after dark, and rivermen razzled with drink regularly get into vicious fights.
Outside of certain well-known districts, Hardby is peaceful and quite a pleasant city, with much open space and wide roads, although without anything as grand as the High Quarter of Greyhawk. The bulk of Hardby is a sprawl of inns, hostels, boarding houses, and small artisan’s shops. The city has a wooden palisade wall, and its docks and wharves are extensive.
The Mountaineers are described in the section on the Cairn Hills and Abbor-Alz. The Hardby Marines operate a group of six war galleys that patrol the waters of upper Wooly Bay; at any given time, one vessel is in Hardby, one in Safeton, and the other four sail the bay. Thus, in Hardby, at any given time there is one full crew of marines plus a group of spare men, a total of around 80 men. They wear leather armor and wield cutlass, club, and knife (25% use light crossbows experts include ballistamen, specialists with grapples, harpoons, pikes and burning missiles, and the like.
Each crew always includes a wizard of level ld4+5 and usually a priest of a suitable deity (Procan being most favored, but St. Cuthbert also has his devotees here) of similar level. The Marines are 25% 1st-level, 40% 2nd-level, 25% 3rd-level, and 10% 4th-level. The Captain of each ship is a fighter of level 8-1 1 (ld4 + 7) with two mates of levels 6-9 (ld4 + 5, always lower than the Captain). Alignment is important: Captains and mates are always lawfully-aligned 70% LN and 30% LE. Other personnel may be of any nonevil alignments, but tend strongly to pure neutral and lawful neutral.
The morale of these men is high (15) because they are paid well by Greyhawk. Their specific brief is to watch for incursions from the Pomarj, to investigate any vessels they deem to be suspicious, and to provide information about weather, sea monsters, ship travel, and suchlike. This doesn’t usually include watching out for smuggling. That is the province of the grim-faced riverman-bureaucrats of the Hardby Pilot’s Office (who combine piloting services with a thorough inspection of holds and cargoes).
A final important note is that some 20-30% of the Hardby Marines are men freed from slavery in the Wild Coast cities. Since they owe their freedom to Greyhawk‘s new alliance with Narwell and Safeton, these men are very loyal to their new employer and most state their occupation with real pride.
All Hardby Marines have the following minimum stats: Str 16, Dex 13, Con 14. A Marine Captain can, at a glance, size up the physical condition of anyone hoping to serve. The term of service is in multiples of a year and a week, with a minimum of three years and three weeks.
Without doubt, the most renowned of the Marine Captains is Wilbrem Carister.
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