Ashimachi: The City of Reeds
Founded in LN 1 by the Princedoms of Yunhai as Wěitīng, the small settlement was conquered by the Shogun of Unkai in LN 62. Acting independent of his state, the Shogun divested himself of his home Territory and changed the city's name to one in his native Toran tongue.
Ashimachi began as a holy site situated on a river delta near a bottomless, perfectly round great lake called The Fingerprint. Thirteen centuries later it has grown into a major metropolis spanning the flooded delta and perched upon the rim of the Fingerprint.
The foundation of the city proper is composed of millions of interwoven trees grown out of the water with the assistance of a long-forgotten local goddess known then as the Reed Mother, Miravi. The lakeshore and its surrounding forest are home to a dozen vassal townships united under the city’s banner. It is the oldest city-state and the foremost nexus for the acquisition and distribution of magical goods on the Coast due to its age, close proximity to the Threshold, and a huge Explorer's Guild presence. The lake upon which the city sits is fed primarily by the Ari River and itself feeds two other rivers. In total these flow to five other city-states on the Coast, giving Ashimachi unrivaled trade access.
Fresh water is routed to the city and its surrounding townships via aqueducts, and a unified sewer network ferries wastewater around the edge of the Fingerprint and into a smaller southbound river.
Ashimachi displays the greatest ethnic diversity among the city-states (possibly among all of Qarna) having started out as a popular destination for travelers, merchants, clergy, adventurers, and pilgrims.
When Wěitīng was first founded it followed the Yunhainese Dreamswallowers religion but, following the First Shogun’s subjugation of the city, changed to the Unkaian Chains Faith. Though Ashimachi remains far from a secular state, a democratically-elected parliamentary court known as the Yihui was established in LN 645 in order to give non-majority citizens a voice in government. While the number of people practicing the Yunhainese Dreamswallowers faith is a small fraction of what it used to be - many of them appearing in the ranks of the Woodcutters, an ancient order of woodsmen and harvesters - a small and increasingly radical population has in recent years begun to clash openly with the city's law enforcement. Led by a mysterious and powerful individual known only as Birdcatcher, the Chosen of the Reef revolt against a thousand years of marginalization and oppression by a corrupt and prejudiced government.
Ashimachi's paramilitary police force is dubbed the Order of the Chains, and is tasked with patrolling Ashimachi’s entire metropolitan area as well as its harbors, with a small navy for the latter. To this day, the city still retains quite a bit of Yunhainese culture. Long remains the official language of the city-state, with Tora taught in schools but not widely spoken. Some ethnic groups in the city have clustered together in areas like our Chinatowns today, including a significant Loewen-speaking demographic descended from refugees who fled from Drachenkrone during the Coast War of LN 972. The Chains Faith, originating from the practices of militaristic Unkaians in the era before the first settlement of the Coast, is austere in nature. Ashimachi’s government and military police force follow suit: their laws are quite restrictive compared to other Coastal states, and enforced via martial power. With the exception of extreme acts of crime (which typically result in beheading, hanging, or death by scourging), most criminal cases in Ashimachi are guaranteed a trial through a military court system headed by the Shogun's Daimyō.
Corporal punishment, community service, and indentured servitude are common forms of punishment, with garnishment of wages a close second. Due to the relatively sparse population of the Coast, long-term incarceration is as rare in Ashimachi as it is for the other seven city-states; banishment is far more common. Despite having a population in constant flux due to tourism and would-be adventurers flocking to its gates, Ashimachi enjoys a rather low rate of violent crime.
The foundation of the city proper is composed of millions of interwoven trees grown out of the water with the assistance of a long-forgotten local goddess known then as the Reed Mother, Miravi. The lakeshore and its surrounding forest are home to a dozen vassal townships united under the city’s banner. It is the oldest city-state and the foremost nexus for the acquisition and distribution of magical goods on the Coast due to its age, close proximity to the Threshold, and a huge Explorer's Guild presence. The lake upon which the city sits is fed primarily by the Ari River and itself feeds two other rivers. In total these flow to five other city-states on the Coast, giving Ashimachi unrivaled trade access.
Fresh water is routed to the city and its surrounding townships via aqueducts, and a unified sewer network ferries wastewater around the edge of the Fingerprint and into a smaller southbound river.
Ashimachi displays the greatest ethnic diversity among the city-states (possibly among all of Qarna) having started out as a popular destination for travelers, merchants, clergy, adventurers, and pilgrims.
When Wěitīng was first founded it followed the Yunhainese Dreamswallowers religion but, following the First Shogun’s subjugation of the city, changed to the Unkaian Chains Faith. Though Ashimachi remains far from a secular state, a democratically-elected parliamentary court known as the Yihui was established in LN 645 in order to give non-majority citizens a voice in government. While the number of people practicing the Yunhainese Dreamswallowers faith is a small fraction of what it used to be - many of them appearing in the ranks of the Woodcutters, an ancient order of woodsmen and harvesters - a small and increasingly radical population has in recent years begun to clash openly with the city's law enforcement. Led by a mysterious and powerful individual known only as Birdcatcher, the Chosen of the Reef revolt against a thousand years of marginalization and oppression by a corrupt and prejudiced government.
Ashimachi's paramilitary police force is dubbed the Order of the Chains, and is tasked with patrolling Ashimachi’s entire metropolitan area as well as its harbors, with a small navy for the latter. To this day, the city still retains quite a bit of Yunhainese culture. Long remains the official language of the city-state, with Tora taught in schools but not widely spoken. Some ethnic groups in the city have clustered together in areas like our Chinatowns today, including a significant Loewen-speaking demographic descended from refugees who fled from Drachenkrone during the Coast War of LN 972. The Chains Faith, originating from the practices of militaristic Unkaians in the era before the first settlement of the Coast, is austere in nature. Ashimachi’s government and military police force follow suit: their laws are quite restrictive compared to other Coastal states, and enforced via martial power. With the exception of extreme acts of crime (which typically result in beheading, hanging, or death by scourging), most criminal cases in Ashimachi are guaranteed a trial through a military court system headed by the Shogun's Daimyō.
Corporal punishment, community service, and indentured servitude are common forms of punishment, with garnishment of wages a close second. Due to the relatively sparse population of the Coast, long-term incarceration is as rare in Ashimachi as it is for the other seven city-states; banishment is far more common. Despite having a population in constant flux due to tourism and would-be adventurers flocking to its gates, Ashimachi enjoys a rather low rate of violent crime.
Additional Info
Head of State: Shogun Man-ta Roku
Founding Territory: Yunhai
Language(s): Long, Tora (understood but rarely spoken)
State Religion: The Chains Faith
Theme Song: 12 Kingdoms OST - Getsumei Fuuei
Founding Territory: Yunhai
Language(s): Long, Tora (understood but rarely spoken)
State Religion: The Chains Faith
Theme Song: 12 Kingdoms OST - Getsumei Fuuei
Comments