Atur
Atur is a large city in central Karrnath, south of the Karrn River between the Ashen Spires on the east and the Nightwood on the west. It is known as the centre of the Blood of Vol faith in Karrnath, and is the only major city where Seekers make up the majority of the population in modern times.
Also called the City of Night, Atur sits in the shadow of the Ashen Spires, near the great Karrn Falls that spill out of the mountains and flow into the Karrn River. The close peaks of the Ashen Spires, the constant mist rising off the swirling waters of the Karrn, and the oppressive brick buildings make for a place that has relatively short periods of direct daylight and consequently long nights. But the City of Night was named more for the fact that the place seems to come alive when darkness overtakes the land. With the city’s temple to the Blood of Vol (called the Crimson Monastery) and its massive Vaults of the Dead, where corpse collectors store the fodder for Karrnath’s undead armies, Atur has a definite connection to the twilight and midnight hours. A significant portion of the population follows the teachings of the Blood of Vol and attends the daily rituals in the Crimson Monastery.
Otherwise, the City of Night has a rhythm and pulse that seems to increase when the sun goes down. Feast halls, taverns, theaters, and bordellos of all descriptions open their doors after dark and stay active until the sun struggles back up and over the mountains. For many visitors, the city seems to operate in a way opposite to the other metropolitan centers of the Five Nations. Everything appears quiet and deserted by day, but by night the the various shops and businesses open to crowds of people.
The Seekers have no attachment to corpses and most are happy to donate their remains to serve the greater good. As a result, skeletons are found performing menial tasks and manual labor across the city, with artists often adding designs that give each skeleton a little personality. However, these are standard skeletons, possessing limited intelligence; they are managed by the Bone Wranglers, specialized magewrights who effectively program the undead.
The region where Atur now stands is one of the most powerful Mabaran manifest zones in Khorvaire, known in records as the Lake of Sorrows. The necromancer Duran dispersed the shadows of this “lake” and built a fortress for his followers here, and over the course of time this expanded to become the city of Atur. When the other warlords joined together to support the first Queen of Karrnath, Duran chose to stand apart: his loyalty was to his followers and to their faith. While some urged the Queen to destroy the Seekers, she remembered the horrors that once emerged from the Lake of Shadows, and preferred to keep those forces in check. So she negotiated an arrangement with Duran—one preserved to this day, granting Atur the status of a semi-independent palatinate. It was in Atur that Kaius I negotiated with the Seekers of the Divinity Within, and it holds the Vaults of the Dead where most of Karrnath’s undead forces are held in reserve, patiently waiting to return to the battlefield. Despite Moranna’s edicts condemning the Blood of Vol, the crown needs the Seekers to contain the Lake of Sorrows and to maintain the Vaults of the Dead. And so Atur remains a proud Grand Duchy and a stronghold of the Blood of Vol… and the Grand Duke Davian Karal is its ruler.
Government
Atur is unique in Karrnath - technically the Grand Duchy of Atur, it holds some independance from the crown. Containing the necrotic energies of the manifest zone is work that only the Seekers know how to accomplish safely, and historically this duty has led to a reluctant respect and freedom. The Grand Duke Karal is able to set some of his own laws, provide conscripts and taxes through undead militia and labour, and holds many exceptions from other duties.
Districts
The Great Hall of Feast and Fortune. Commonly referred to as the Feast Hall, it is one of the grandest temples of Olladra in the Five Nations; in addition to traditional services, it’s the finest venue for parties in the city, and the sounds of coins and dice can be heard at all houses in the gaming hall.
Karrnath as a whole is a stoic and austere culture; Atur is a place that celebrates all of the joys of life. Food, sex, art—all are enshrined and presented in a spectrum of delights. That spectrum means that there are definitely seedy elements in Atur, and if you’re looking for decadence you can find it. The City of Night is a place for a Karrn to escape their lives for a few days, and tourism is its primary industry. Outsiders often call Atur “seedy and decadent”—but that description fails to grasp how seriously Aturans take their duty of celebrating life, and the quality of the food, music, and other performances that can be found in the City of Night.
The Vaults of the Dead. A vast complex that served as the center of Karrnath’s necromantic war machine. Its fortified facilities include workshops for the production of undead, warehouses for storing bones and bodies, and the vast catacombs that currently hold the Karrnathi undead that have been sealed below since the Treaty of Thronehold was found. While the vast majority of the Karrnathi Undead are sealed in the vaults, the Atur Watch has a significant corps of these sentient undead, and they can also be found protecting the Ministry of the Dead, the palace of Nighthold, and other important locations. The Vaults of the Dead are maintained by the Ministry of the Dead, not by the Blood of Vol. While many Seekers serve in the Vaults, they serve the Crown and the Vaults are a separate entity from the Crimson Monastery.
Nighthold. A secondary seat for the royal family. As Atur is a Grand Duchy, it is semi-autonomous, but the presence of the Nighthold has always been a source of pride and a sign of the importance of the city. Kaius III has spent little time in Atur over the last decade.
The oldest tavern in Atur, The Old Bones, is maintained by Grethan and Talan Todar, two oathbound who’ve been serving Seekers for centuries.
The Palace of Shadows. Before the Last War, Atur was the seat of House Phiarlan’s Demesne of Shape, devoted to physical arts—painting, sculpting, ceramics—as well as to the creation of costumes, props, and other supporting goods. In the wake of the Shadow Schism, House Thuranni claimed the demesne, now known as the True Shapers Enclave. This is a center for production and education, but it’s complimented by the Palace of Shadows — one of the grandest performance spaces held by Thuranni.
The Crimson Monastery is Khorvaire's largest place of worship dedicated to the Blood of Vol and it is Atur's largest claim to fame. The monastery is a pyramidal building made of blood-red brick and black mortar. The building glows faintly at twilight of a seemingly magical radiance. Guards, both living and dead, watch the entryways into the sacred temple. Nearby on the grounds, the Atur Academy is an arcane institute specialising in teaching necromancy.
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