Closed Cities

Closed Cities are massive architectural structures that completely encompass and enclose an entire city or settlement. Every part of a closed city is "inside" and protected for the outside weather, as opposed to True-Air cities. Although they are referred to as cities, most closed cities are large enough that they are something closer to entire states, regions, or even entire countries of their own.

They arose in the Middle Era, and were at first an evolutionary progression from castles and citadels. In this age of frequent war and turbulence, castles continued to grow ever larger, more self-sufficient, and increasingly closed off. Additionally, the dimensional rifts of the Middle Era resulted in the dramatic worsening of storms, many of which razed entire regions. This eventually led to entire cities closed away from the outside.

Closed Cities are now common, hailed as one of the most influential cultural innovations in history. Living in protected environments allowed sentient-kind to flourish in ways that had not before been possible in a world of devastating, unpredictable storms.

Closed-City Terms

cloud-tiles: A manufactured form of forged-ground that feels pleasantly soft to walk on. Often colored or featuring artistic designs. Aesthetically pleasing and expensive, associated with luxury.

forged-ground: Manufactured ground present in all areas of closed cities; most commonly rippled stonefields.

forged-mountains: Mountains that were not naturally present and have been shaped and forged by mages, using natural materials.

luxstrades: Enormous vertical panels affixed to the walls of closed-cities, designed to let in and collect filtered light. Most are made from transparent crystals interwoven with magical properties, but some smaller or cheaper luxstrades are made of magically-reinforced glass.

paperheart: A classification of a constructed organism or creature that is designed to appear natural, but is actually manufactured. This term is known and used in true-air locations as well, but paperheart elements are most commonly found within closed-cities. The majority of paperheart structures are trees and forests. Far from being lifeless fakes, paperheart structures require great skill to create, and are interwoven with magic that ranges in varying complexities. Many paperheart forests or trees are quite difficult to distinguish from the real thing, especially to closed-city lifedwellers who have never seen the natural versions. The structures are crafted with "life" instructions, woven via magic into the being's core, written in the form of stories. The structure will act and "live" acccording to this core text. The mages who craft these structures are said to have written its lifeforce and heart into being, which is the meaning behind the term. Many paperheart element's core stories are available to the general public to read; they are a specific genre of literature especially appreciated by mages. When asked why paperheart constructs are written stories instead of instructions or rules, it was replied, "Life sticks to stories better."