Plank's Landing

Plank's Landing is a city in the eastern Shackles and the capital of that region. It is built on a cozy half-moon harbor that is divided into two sections and is traversable only by a sprawling network of wooden walkways. The harbor borders the deep Jeopardy Bay, an open bay lying to the south of Drenchport, and bordering the Western Mainland. In 3E 241, 43,270 people resided in the harbor, of whom around 22,000 live in the residential harbor. The harbor is protected from the middle by the island stronghold of Fort Hazard, which has acted as the seat of the Hurricane King's rule for several generations.
The name is derived from the ancient legend of the discovery of the Western Mainland by Patrick Plank in 2E 3. The city consisted of only a few families as most went to find more ideal living conditions, and only became a large settlement after its designation as capital of the Shackles in 2E 103. It was a major financial and maritime power during the Great War and Imperial Expansion, and a staging area for the War of Lunar Independence, as well as an important center of commerce—especially silk, grain, and spice. The city of Plank's Landing is considered to have been the first real international financial center, emerging in 3E 8 and reaching its greatest prominence in the last few decades. This made Plank's Landing a wealthy city throughout most of its history.
Plank's Landing has been known as "The Wooden City", "Levelled Hell", "Queen of the Fever Sea", "City of Planks", "City of Freedom", "City of Stairs", "The Floating City", and "City of Getting Really Really Lost". Parts of the residential half of the city are renowned for the beauty of their settings, their architecture, and artwork. 
Although the city is facing some challenges (including an excessive number of tourists and problems caused by rampant pirates, lack of law enforcement, and demon incursions), Plank's Landing remains a very popular tourist destination, a major cultural centre, and has been ranked many times the most fun city in the world. It has been described by the Imperial Sunrise Courier as one of the most capitalistic cities and by The Sun as "undoubtedly the most beautiful city built almost entirely out of wood".

Industry & Trade

Plank's Landing participates in enough trade that, despite the incredibly frequent piracy, it is still worthwhile for Luna and Sol to have business dealings there. Luna and Sol both bring in resources and luxuries Plank's Landing doesn't have. The dense forests outside Plank's Landing are too dense and dangerous to farm any normal cattle, so they largely depend on imports to survive. They get by from exporting the incredibly valuable flora and fauna from the jungle outside, such as the Man-Eating Sheep that produce the world's softest wool, or the Manatic Bellsprout Flower, which secretes a liquid used for decreasing the amount of time potion brewing requires by 90%.

Founding Date

2E 103

Type

Capital

Population

43,270

Owner/Ruler

Kerdak Bonefist

Ruling/Owning Rank

Hurricane King