Asaria
"Ships transfer goods back and forth, and those that come to Asaria tend to stay a while, thus it is where many things come to settle."
Nearly forgotten in the southwest reaches of the Veridian continent lies the colorful and rich city-state of Asaria. Isolated from the political strife of the rest of the continent and accessible only by sea through the Osmad Gulf, Asaria has established itself as a destination for the most daring of merchants, for Asaria offers good not seen anywhere else in the world. Asaria's harbor sees many ships come and go each day. Many of then end up staying for a while, thus Asaria is where many merchants come to settle.
Demographics
Asaria is quite racially diverse, given its history of mercantilism. Most of its citizens are either merchants, sailors, or work to provide goods for the merchants.
Government
Asaria is unique compared to other governments in that it is ran like a business. Overseeing the day-to-day operations are the Daoshi, a collective of wealthy individuals who make the laws and regulate trade. Each Dao often supervises a specific task, such as trade regulation or tax collection, to help with the micromanagement of the entire city-state.
Industry & Trade
Trade is the lifeblood of Asaria. Each day, dozens of trade ships enter and leave the harbor, and hundreds of gold worth of items are exchanged. This is because Asaria has access to many goods that are otherwise inaccessible to any other nation in the world. This includes, but is not limited to: rice, bamboo, special teas, almonds, shrimp, medical herbs, copper, and gold. Asaria is also known to produce and export fine quality silks, inks, paper, gunpowder, and pottery. Some less-than-legal substances also make their way through Asaria's port, despite the Daoshi's best efforts to stop them.
Infrastructure
Asaria has one of the largest harbors of any city, rivaling that of Starlight Bay's. This is to accommodate the dozens of merchant ships that come and go at once. Asaria also developed special cable-cars to move large amounts of goods efficiently through the city and up and down its constant elevation changes.
History
By the end of the Chromatic War, the dragons that once ruled over mankind were rebelled against and driven out of the lands they once ruled. Even the benevolent metallic dragons were believed to be tyrants and were overthrown. A wise gold dragon by the name of Asarius and his relatively small but loyal clan of people feared the violence against his kin would spread to him, and so, he led his people far to the southwest reaches of the continent, over the crescent mountains so that no army of man would dare traverse. At the edge of the mountains, they came across the ocean - the Osmad Gulf.
The people constructed their new home there - a city of order and balance, isolated from the rest of the world, and named it after their lord. Wise Asarius, however, knew that if he were to continue to lord over his people, they might overthrow him like what had happened with the rest of his kin. Asarius came to an agreement with the people of Asaria - the people shall be able to rule themselves and live how they decide, independent of Asarius' influence. Asarius would still come to the city's defense, and if asked, he would offer his advice for the city's development. The gold dragon would instead live within the mountains alone, vigilant against invaders. About once every two years, Asarius would check in on the populace and offer his wisdom, but also to admire the work that the people have done. This went on for centuries, through many generations, yet Asarius never grew tired of seeing the beautiful city Asaria had become. He thought of it like a child that has grown to maturity.
As Asaria grew, its presence on the global scale was also noticed, when sailors from what is now the Empire came to Asaria and discovered numerous precious goods that they had never seen. As rumors spread of an "exotic city with alien goods," Asaria's ports filled up with ships from all over. The port grew in size to accommodate the ships, only for even more ships to come, which required yet another upgrade.
All of this occurred under the watchful eye of Asarius, concerned of the foreign influence, but ultimately confident in the people's ability to govern themselves and embrace these other cultures. Asarius had never missed his two-year checkup on the city... until very recently that is. For the second time in a row, Asarius had not shown up to the city. People speculate as to why he hadn't shown up - perhaps he is dead? Is he upset? No, obviously this must be some kind of test? The citizens of Asaria fear the worst...
Tourism
On the first full moon of the year, the people of Asaria hold the Lunar Remembrance Festival, and people from all over who know of this event flock to the city to catch a glimpse of the floating lanterns.
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