The Radiant Citadel
The Radiant Citadel is a city of immigrants. Several of the explorers who reclaimed the Citadel were refugees who escaped hardships that plagued their lands. They chose the Citadel as their home, despite its strangeness and the surreal surroundings of the Deep Ethereal, as it presented an opportunity to start anew. Most of the city’s current inhabitants are descendants of the fifteen founding civilizations active in the Citadel, but all are welcome.
Some find living in the Deep Ethereal too disquieting to stay or chafe at the confines of the Citadel. Others depart out of fear that the Keening Gloom will destroy the Citadel. Their numbers are replenished by new arrivals who seek a different life, want to study the city’s lore or find solace in the city’s peace and safety. The Citadel’s society is shaped by this ebb and flow. Traditions, customs, and values are a mix of old and new; while some adhere to rituals no longer followed in their homeland, others create their own novel practices.
Government
The Radiant Citadel is governed by a council known as the Speakers for the Ancestors. Each Speaker is a descendant of one of the founding civilizations currently known to the Citadel. They are chosen by their community and affirmed into office by the wise and ancient Dawn Incarnates. The Speakers for the Ancestors meet openly in the amphitheater in the center of the Preserve, and Citadel residents often watch their debates. All laws and major decisions of the city are decided by majority vote of the Speakers. Debates can become heated; because each Speaker represents very different constituents, consensus and compromises might take days or even months to reach. Those citizens of mixed ancestry or unconnected to the founding civilizations can choose a Speaker for the Ancestors to represent them. They register with the Speaker’s office, and from then on, participate in future elections for that Speaker.
Governance is public, transparent, and participatory. Laws are not static but evolve to meet new challenges and needs. Subcouncils and committees manage the city under the guidance of the Speakers. Complexities persist in governing a highly diverse city with varied customs, beliefs, and social norms, but robust civic engagement helps the city overcome adversity.
Public safety and peacekeeping are administered through a variety of councils and organizations designed to address specific issues. The House of Convalescence helps those living with mental illness, while inspectors investigate nonviolent crimes and use nonlethal methods of detainment. Theft is uncommon in the city, and rehabilitation and restorative justice are preferred methods of addressing wrongs. Highly trained local guards mobilize to handle the rare incidents of violence, and citizens are expected to proactively intervene if needed. The worst offenders are sentenced to a controversial Djaynaian punishment wherein the criminal is subjected to a ritual that prevents them from repeating their crime and then is banished from the city.
Defences
The Radiant Citadel’s location within the Deep Ethereal makes it difficult to assault. It keeps no standing army, but its council for defense has contingency plans it frequently refines based on intelligence from the Court of Whispers.
The city’s primary protection is a powerful ward that can be activated by the Speakers for the Ancestors. When all fifteen are assembled in the council room at the center of the Preserve, by unanimous consent they can erect a diamond sphere that envelops the entire city. The diamond sphere resembles the Auroral Diamond in texture and color and deflects all attacks. Nothing can pass or teleport through it.
If the diamond sphere cannot be erected for any reason, the Radiant Citadel is not helpless. Due to its many mysteries and its magical properties, the city attracts an unusually large number of powerful adventurers and spellcasters. If the citadel is attacked, no fewer than a dozen archmages and twenty mages led by Sholeh rally. If required, Arayat, commander of the Shieldbearers, also mobilizes his Shieldbearer veterans, while the other Speakers for the Ancestors call on the citizenry to bolster the city’s defense.
The Auroral Diamond’s illumination also provides strong protection. It radiates bright light throughout the city and dim light 1,000 feet beyond the city’s borders. This light is akin to sunlight, which many natives of the Ethereal Plane and evil Undead abhor.
Type
Large city
Included Locations
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