Jade
Jade is the southernmost of the Jeweled Cities, sitting close to the mouth of the South River, before it splits into the Horse Tail and the Red River. It originally served as a military outpost and trade port for the Old Iron Empire, making it one of the smaller walled cities, but the Jades have spread out from the old walls in recent years. The Last Legion has held the position of Prince (though the term for the Prince of Jade is 'Commander') since it first returned to Jade in 72nd year of the Age of Iron.
Demographics
Jade is made of about fifty-five percent Gemspeakers, thirty-five percent Southlanders, and ten percent of various other ethnicities.
Government
The Last Legion controls Jade in a way that is unique to the Jeweled Cities. Whereas in most of the other Jeweled Cities, the Merchant Families will elect the Prince, in Jade, when a commander resigns or dies, the Last Legion will appoint their own Commander, who will be accepted as the Prince of the City. The Commander does not, however, handle any administrative duties himself. Instead, the governance of the city, its people, and its trade is divided between Eight of their Merchant Families. The Patriarchs of these Eight Families are called the Council of Eight.
The Eight Families control all aspects of running the city with the exception of defense and policing, which falls on the Last Legion. Should one of the Eight Families be accused of abusing their position, following a tribunal, the Last Legion Commander may strip the family of their status and give it to a different family, not on the Council of Eight. The disgraced family must wait until another of their peers has made similar mistakes before they can regain their status.
Defences
Jade was built to be a fortress at the mouth of the South River, to protect the Old Iron Empire's trade interests with the Southlands. As such, its walls are smaller than most of the other cities (which had been intended to house more than a token population of farmers), yet they are tall and sturdy and there are multiple arrow towers on all sides of the wall, as well as battlements designed to be difficult for ladders or ropes to hook to. With the expansion in recent years, the Last Legion has erected a wooden palisade around the districts outside of the walls, though they have in some places already begun to erect new stone walls. Though Jade is not built across the river, it does control the bridge and can raise and lower the bridge to cross the South River, making it nearly impossible to ford without losing some men or horses in its fast current.
Industry & Trade
The Jadeites tend to make a proportion of their wealth from the fees that come for passage along the South River, but that is not to say they do not produce anything worth trading. They grow many food products that do not do well further north along the Gold Coast. They cultivate food like river spinach, watercress, and sweet red berries that are often sent north to be used in the making of wine. Most of the Lotus supply for the Gold Coast comes from Jade, to the point where if the Lotus is not specifically named as coming from another region in a market of a Jeweled City, there is a good chance it is either local or it is from Jade. They trade lumber to the more arid regions along the coast, as well as peat and obsidian that is collected from the marshes near the Demonspires.
Infrastructure
There is a watermill that rests along the South River that is used by the Jadeites to crush the Water Oats and plantains into flour, particularly for the plantains which tend to store more poorly in their fresh form. The Mill is controlled and maintained by one of the Eight Families, though the Commander exerts a firm hand over the price to use it, preventing whichever family controls it from raising the price too high. Due to the wet marshlands that surround them, the Jadeites prefer to cremate their dead, though there are caves nearby that are used to inhume particularly respected or venerated Jadeites after their death. The drawbridge that sits across the South River can be raised or lowered as needed, usually for defense but occasional for very tall riverboats.
Districts
The Old Fort
The Old Fort is the literal area of the Old Legion Fort around which Jade was built. It is surrounded by a high wall with only two gates for entry. It is aligned on a military layout, with two cross roads that break into different areas for shared barracks, supplies, hygiene, etc. The Last Legion commandeers most of this district for their members but there are some areas that have been designated for members of the Eight Families who wish to live in the most secure district of the city.The Mill District
This is the district closest to the South River where the Mill is built. Most of those who live here are farmers who work in the marshlands to grow and harvest the crops. The Family House in this district is built in the style of the Southlands, with tiered curved roofs and a wall around its garden that is patrolled by their family guard. The people here will rise early in the morning to go tend to the crops and so it is often quite quiet during the day.The Tannery District
Though it is called the Tannery District, it also is where many of the storehouses are, as well as other less desirable workshops. The Tannery is simply the oldest building that was built here. Lacking many dry fields to grow flax or for sheep to graze, the Jadeites make use of far more leather than many of their sister cities' citizens. As such, with the process having unpleasant smells, it was kept far from where most people live, though those who cannot afford other neighborhoods still make their residence here. The Family House in this District is actually located at the edge of this district, as far from the tannery itself as possible.The Lumberyard
The Lumberyard is in the southwest of Jade. It is busy almost all throughout the day, with people coming and going as water buffalo carry carts of lumber to be cut and prepared for use and trade. The Family House here is one of the largest in the city, partially due to the importance of this trade to Jade. This is also where what stone they gather from the Demonspires and carry back from the quarry is cut.The Temple District
The Temple District is where many of the people live, close to the walls of the Old Fort. This is considered the most prodigious of the districts for the Eight Families to hold and is often the one that sees the most changing of hands. Because this is where most of the people reside, it is the one that generates the most money for Jade through taxes, and the Family in charge will often find ways to enrich themselves, though eventually they are always caught. The Temple that the district is named for is one that houses places of worship for the Three Divine Patrons, but also the Divine Commander, which is their embodiment of the ideal commander. He is the 'first' Commander of the Last Legion, embodied now as a godly figure akin to the Patrons.The Market
The Market is located near the docks on the South River. It is one of the older districts and is as desirable a territory as the Temple District for the Eight Families. Most of those who live here are either farmers like in the Mill District, dockhands, or the proprietors of public housing for those coming along the South River.Guilds and Factions
The Merchant Families of Jade do control the industry of Jade just as they do in the other cities. There are Eight Families at any given time who are granted their administrative rights by the Last Legion. Should a Family be accused and found guilty of embezzlement, corruption, abuse, or any of the other charges that may be brought against them, they are stripped of their authority and a different Family is named in their place, the disgraced Family now forced to accept the rates and positions they are given, whatever scraps they may be.
Architecture
While the Legion's Fort is built in the style of the Old Iron Empire, many of the newer structures are built on stilts for when the river floods and the water rises. They are made of wood and use thin, yet sturdy, hollow grasses and a mixture of clay from the riverbed and dried grasses to create roofs that can withstand the rain, in the style of the Southlanders. Even the houses that are built in the style of the Gemspeakers, of which there are some, are built on stilts due to the flooding. Those inside the old fort, which is the highest elevation, do not suffer this problem.
Geography
Jade is near the mouth of the South River, sitting on the west bank. The rivers mean that there is plenty of fresh water from underground sources and wells. From the walls of Jade, the Demonspire Mountains can be seen, occasionally erupting and turning the sky dark with ash. As one gets nearer to the Demonspires, the water in the marsh becomes more acidic and the aquatic life becomes scarcer. The Jadeites usually know when the Demonspires are about to erupt, for the water of the marshes will drain as the ground rises. During this time, many go out to collect bog iron and bring it back.
Natural Resources
The land between the Horsetail and the Red River is very wet and creates a humid marshy environment. The Jadeites grow plantains and water oats (wild rice) and other crops that do well with shallow roots. The area is a subtropical marshland so there is a wide variety of animal life, including insects. Lotus is commonly found growing between the wild grasses around Jade. Jade sends peat to be used as a fuel source elsewhere in the Gold Coast, as well as obsidian from the area around the Demonspires.
Founding Date
72
Alternative Name(s)
The Gate to the Southlands
Type
City
Related Ethnicities
Location under
Ruling/Owning Rank
Owning Organization
