Cities
From SteelStorm
Contents |
Settlement Types
Fortress Cities
In response to the growing and ever-evolving threat of Legend's nonhuman creatures against human towns, many of Legend's larger towns have become "fortress cities," in that they are enclosed, either by large walls or magical constructs. Inside, these cities have advanced technologically, safe from the ever-present cycle of destruction and rebuilding that was common before the barriers were constructed. Even now, creatures will on occasion be able to break into the cities, but are usually repulsed quickly.
These cities maintain some of the town structure, but with significantly bigger buildings. Technological labs and magic workshops now occupy large steel buildings, which are interspersed with guildhalls, inns, and residences, some of which ahve maintained the old style or architecture, but many have shifted to the intricate, organic-looking, and most improtantly, fire-resistant construction done by alchemists. It is not uncommon in these cities to see wood-and-thatch dwellings abutting stunning creations of metal, stone, and meticulously sculpted glass.
These cities usually have a booming commerce, and are the hubs of human activity. The cities are also where the clans and guilds, including the powerful Order and the influential Technomancers' Guild, are situated.
Small Towns
However, that is not to say that towns no longer exist. There are many more towns than there are cities, scattered throughout both the core and the fringes of the usual areas of human control. These towns harken back to the old days of Legend, with houses and buildings usually arrayed along a main street, or clustered around a marketplace or center square. Towns are more vulnerable to attack by roving bands of creatures, and so usually give significant benefits to adventurers who agree to take up permanent residence there, in exchange for an understanding that they will defend ther towns from attack. Additionally, some towns array themselves around the larger fortress cities, acting almost as suburbs, and supported by the usually sizable garrisons that the cities maintain. Things tend to be more laidback in these towns, but some of them, through commerce, are slowly developing into major cities.
Outposts
Towards the fringes of the human-controlled areas, and throughout Legend, small encampments can be found - usually small enclaves of makeshift buildings. These are mainly staffed by adventurers rather than civilians, and are primarily used as places to rest and recuperate while exploring. However, services can usually still be found, and are usually transacted by barter among the group of adventurers in residence. These enclaves are very transient, and are regularly wiped out by attacking creatures, only to spring up in a different location. Some of these are more permanent, and are permanently staffed by dedicated members of the Order as observation posts or ememrgency frontier posts for stranded travelers, always on the lookout for potential invasions and other "natural disasters." The Guild has been known to set up some outposts as well, although these mainly focus on trade, and occasionally training.
Precip Ruins/Facilities
There are also Precip geodesic domes and myriad underground facilities scattered throughout the lands of Legend. Many were abandoned by the Precip even before the Cataclysm, as the bulk of their population left for parts unknown, and there are rumors that some bands of humans and... other creatures have set up cities within them. Still others are still inhabited by the remaining Precip, and only a rare few adventurers are ever admitted into these cities. Those who have visited them tell tales of both astoundingly developed technology, as well as almost incomprehensible and terrifying rituals, some of which there were barely able to escape from with their lives. Additionally, the Precip are suspected to have facilities located underneath the great ocean that surrounds Legend's main continent, although it is a very rare adventurer that has ever set eyes on them.
Unexplored Territories
Of course, much of Legend is still wilderness, and many adventurers still work to explore its furthest reaches. Many of the larger tracked vehicles and power armors also double as mobile living quarters for the most intrepid explorers, and you can often see the solitary fires of small groups or individual adventurers while traveling across the reaches of Legend.
