Calava: The City of Cups

Following their crushing defeat in the Grain War of LN561, the Princedoms of Yunhai found themselves in desperate need: they had ceded a quarter of their territory following the conflict, which contained vital farmland as well as a large span of their border with the Coast. At the same time, the local governments of lands known as the "Bowl of Piraan" sought reprieve from constant annexation and disunion as a result of conflicts between Pira and Alman.
With one party a wealthy Territory seeking relief from impending famine and the other a population of agricultural states seeking refuge from millennia of warfare, a decade-long series of negotiations began in LN563, with architect Haoken Zenshima of Ashimachi hand-picked by the binational council to oversee the proposed city’s planning and construction.
With almost 600 years of human history in the Coast and the now-widespread study of magic, techniques and technologies useful for construction had evolved considerably. At the time, Ashimachi was the center of innovation for such advancements and Zenshima was chosen based on his role as professor of geomancy at Ashimachi’s Mahoga University. After an exhaustive series of letters consulting architects and planners from other city-states, Zenshima and the council chose a location near Chamatkaar and Kansujian.
A surveying crew was dispatched, striking out south from what was then Alman’s southern border and into previously unexplored territory. Inadequately prepared for the snowy landscape they found despite their origins, the survey team courageously continued their mission despite losing personnel and pack animals to the bitter chill of what would come to be known as the Calavan Frontier.
The expedition sought shelter in the foothills of an active volcano wreathed in glacial ice (known now as The Throat), discovering a tunnel that led to a series of cavernous geodesic domes carved into the stone with perfectly temperate interiors. Messengers were dispatched to Zenshima and the council, who after brief discourse made the bold decision to discard all of their original plans and settle within the mysterious vaults.
The City of Cups was thus founded in LN575 - primarily funded by the Princedoms of Yunhai in exchange for guaranteed food imports from the Bowl, where its main body of settlers came from - with an immediate focus on agricultural pursuits and unraveling the secrets that lay beyond the walls and floors of the domes. This new endeavor in the field of magical excavation caught the interest of Drachenkrone, beginning a centuries-long exchange of information and expertise that has in the modern day evolved into a close sisterhood between the city-states.
Calava consists of a network of interconnected underground vaults, each ranging in size from a small village to a large town. Each dome has been zoned for specific use, with some primarily residential and others dedicated to industry and education, but the lion’s share is reserved for agricultural pursuits. Clusters of domes are grouped into six districts, each with two elected representatives who together form the Popular Assembly which reports to a Council of Sages led by the Grand Sage.
Colloquially, districts are referred to using the word Regio (plural: Regiones) followed by a cardinal number or preceded by an ordinal number, e.g. Regio 1 or First Regio; Regio 6 or Sixth Regio, etc.
Each dome is lit from above by massive quantities of Lichtstein imported from Drachenkrone and heated by a grid of underground pipes through which magma flows from the Throat. This magma displays mystical properties, chief among them that it never cools and thus never solidifies. Thanks to these properties, Calava’s domes are held at a constant temperature indefinitely and the city is able to grow produce year-round.
Because of this, Calava has become the proverbial breadbasket of the Coast. Every city-state and several territories pay gladly for its harvests, and rich citizens from both swear a trip for the express purpose of experiencing the City of Cups’ cuisine is worth every shilling. Its tranquil, isolated setting and great advances in magical construction and agriculture help Calava grow crops and raise livestock faster and more consistently than anywhere else on Qarna. Its central location and close proximity to a nonpartisan territory has seen it take Ashimachi’s place as the center of trade for mundane goods on the Eastern coast.
Calava’s success contributed directly to the Coalition of Kingdoms’ declaration of sovereignty in LN 1016. For four hundred years prior, the Bowl of Piraan had remained provinces of Pira and Alman. Calavan food exports allowed the provinces to amass considerable wealth and turn their attention toward endeavors not related to agriculture, and when the Cataclysm occurred in LN 1013 the decision to finally break away from both major superpowers in the Territories was set into motion.

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Additional Info

Calava: Map and Physical Layout
Calava: Notable Factions
Calava: People of Note
Calava: Places of Interest
Calava: Resources, Technology, etc.
Calava: Flora and Fauna

Head of State: Grand Sage Jean Taillevent

Founding Territory: Coalition of Kingdoms

Language(s): Lykos, Lowen (unofficial)

State Religion: None

Theme Song: HanniXie - Isabella’s Lullaby (Violin)

Editor's Note: The YouTube video for this song was taken down on copyright grounds. Click the above link for a copy of the song on Google Drive.