Population: 190,000
Ruler: The Sirine Curia (under Principe Marco Vestini)
Guards: The Curial Regiment, the Vestini Family Arms
The city of Sirine is divided into several major quarters. These are the Canal Quarter, the Ussuran Quarter, the Palace Quarter, the Curial Quarter, the Numan Quarter, the Banking Quarter, the Forge Quarter, and the University Quarter. It occupies a prime position along the coast of Vaticine Bay, protected by storms and possessing a huge deepwater harbor that is warded by arms of headland. Its anchorage was expanded by the digging of the Canal Quarter near the shore, allowing ships to reach deep into Sirine's heart. It is the seat of Vestini power, and boasts some of the finest craftsmen and tradesmen of Theah.
The Canal Quarter.
Networks of canals, all surrounding the Grand Canal artery, make their way inland, shadowing the banks of the River Arnot. The Sirine Bridge, a massive unadorned brick structure, overlooks the Grand Canal. Merchants gather there to bid on trade goods sailing into the city each day. On the south bank of the Grand Canal, the houses are stone and marble. On the north bank, they are brick and clay. Beyond the canal and the river Arnot, stands the Forge District. Touching it on all sides is the great Banking Quarter.
The Ussuran Quarter.
Surrounded by a brick wall with several gates (which must be shut at sundown), the Ussuran Quarter is the largest congregation of Ussuran Orthodox outside of the mother country. Originally founded by Ussurans coming to trade with the wider world, they have remained a germ of banking and merchanting since the early middle ages. The quarter is frequented by footpads because of its narrow and confusing streets.
The Palace Quarter.
The finest quarter of the city, this is that which surrounds the Palazzo Principe. Only nobility may hold townhouses here, and there is an opera house and theater which are both frequented by the Vestini well-to-do.
The Curial Quarter.
Surrounding the curial palace, which is singled out by its massive brick tower and astrological clock which faces four sides of that tower, the curial quarter is the heart of Sirine government. Most merchantile families have their holdings here.
The Numan Quarter.
Between the Palazzo Principe and the wall, there stands a stretch of abandoned Numan ruins that was once a bath house and fortress. These swarm with members of the Black Market, thieves guilds, and brigands.
The Banking Quarter.
The great Vestini banks, while they do not rival those of the other Vodacce princes, are all gathered here. The Banking Quarter is centered on a high hill that stands apart from the rest of the city. The Vodacce banks are all built with marble, stained glass, and vaulting.
The Forge Quarter.
Brick houses and craftsmen's shops make up the entire Forge Quarter, where there are cheap taverns and lodgings. The finest crafts in Theah come from this place, made of material from the Crescent Empire or Cathay.
The University Quarter.
Ruminations on fiction, roleplaying, and assorted irritants.
Showing posts with label Vodacce. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vodacce. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 2, 2016
Friday, June 10, 2016
Friends and Enemies: Dottore Luigi Vasso and the Carlo Estates
Doctor Luigi Vasso
The learnéd Luigi Vasso is a canon lawyer and a doctor of the church who has served Cardinal Ernesto Denzelli de Bernoulli at the various church Conclaves throughout his life. He was also appointed tutor to the young Fortunato Ernesto di Carlo. He grew up in Numa and was admitted to an order of monks in that city in his early life. He befriended the former cardinal Giovanni Orsini (who was in line to become the Vaticine Hierophant, with a plan to return the seat of the church to Numa all in place when he died), who sent him to be trained at the cathedral school of Numa. After the death of his patron, Luigi became the professional scribe and lawyer of the newly-appointed Enersto de Bernoulli and took up a position training the young Fortunato in the Vodacce countryside.
Luigi Vasso is a slight man, standing only 5'4". He was born in 1609 and is in his 59th year. He wears the black and white robes of a Vatacine priest and the pinched glasses of a man who has struggled overlong at the reading of small text. He usually has fingerless gloves to keep his hands warm but leave them free for writing. He is always seen carrying a leather satchel filled with inks, pens, and parchments.
Father Vasso has greying hair and goes clean-shaven. His one true love in life is a fine port and some time at the end of an evening to read a book before the sun sets. He is never more content than when in Vodacce, and never more harried than when forced to be on the road. He has a deep reverence for books, libraries, and learning, and has tried throughout his whole life to impart that love (unsuccessfully) on his ward, Fortunato.
The Carlo Estates
In the central regions of the Vodacce peninsula, some 45 miles from the great city of Numa, there lies the estate known as Carlaterre. Eisen barbarians once settled this region as Numan soldiers and its name comes from an Old Eisen word meaning man (cearl). The sleepy hamlets of the region eventually give way to the di Carlo manor and its estates where Fortunato grew up to manhood. It is not far from the land of the Orenza, just over the next rise.
Upon the old half-forested estate there stands a crumbling stone manor of ancient provenance. Still mired in the ancient structure of the middle ages, the di Carlo have made minor updates to it, but it never entered the great golden renaissance of the rest of Vodacce. A single tenant farmer named Alfonzo and his family till the soil beyond the park.
There are five servants in the house—the seneschal and major-domo, decrepit Augustino, the stablegirl Olivia, and a handful of domestics who keep the manor up. Rare has been the day that Fortunato has returned to this slumbering place, preferring instead to have Augustino forward the receipts to him wherever he is staying.
The learnéd Luigi Vasso is a canon lawyer and a doctor of the church who has served Cardinal Ernesto Denzelli de Bernoulli at the various church Conclaves throughout his life. He was also appointed tutor to the young Fortunato Ernesto di Carlo. He grew up in Numa and was admitted to an order of monks in that city in his early life. He befriended the former cardinal Giovanni Orsini (who was in line to become the Vaticine Hierophant, with a plan to return the seat of the church to Numa all in place when he died), who sent him to be trained at the cathedral school of Numa. After the death of his patron, Luigi became the professional scribe and lawyer of the newly-appointed Enersto de Bernoulli and took up a position training the young Fortunato in the Vodacce countryside.
Luigi Vasso is a slight man, standing only 5'4". He was born in 1609 and is in his 59th year. He wears the black and white robes of a Vatacine priest and the pinched glasses of a man who has struggled overlong at the reading of small text. He usually has fingerless gloves to keep his hands warm but leave them free for writing. He is always seen carrying a leather satchel filled with inks, pens, and parchments.
Father Vasso has greying hair and goes clean-shaven. His one true love in life is a fine port and some time at the end of an evening to read a book before the sun sets. He is never more content than when in Vodacce, and never more harried than when forced to be on the road. He has a deep reverence for books, libraries, and learning, and has tried throughout his whole life to impart that love (unsuccessfully) on his ward, Fortunato.
The Carlo Estates
In the central regions of the Vodacce peninsula, some 45 miles from the great city of Numa, there lies the estate known as Carlaterre. Eisen barbarians once settled this region as Numan soldiers and its name comes from an Old Eisen word meaning man (cearl). The sleepy hamlets of the region eventually give way to the di Carlo manor and its estates where Fortunato grew up to manhood. It is not far from the land of the Orenza, just over the next rise.
Upon the old half-forested estate there stands a crumbling stone manor of ancient provenance. Still mired in the ancient structure of the middle ages, the di Carlo have made minor updates to it, but it never entered the great golden renaissance of the rest of Vodacce. A single tenant farmer named Alfonzo and his family till the soil beyond the park.
There are five servants in the house—the seneschal and major-domo, decrepit Augustino, the stablegirl Olivia, and a handful of domestics who keep the manor up. Rare has been the day that Fortunato has returned to this slumbering place, preferring instead to have Augustino forward the receipts to him wherever he is staying.
Thursday, June 9, 2016
Friends and Enemies: Baldassar Orenza
In the marshy and malarial lowlands of Vodacce, where the ancient city of Numa still stands and waits for the Princes to meet in its hallowed ruin to speak of peace, and of Vodacce power, there are two rival families, both alike in dignity, who have hated each other since the time of Emperor Corantine. For the Orenza and the di Carlo families, the past is very much the present.
The origins of the feud are lost in the distant past, but it seems to have been a matter of horseflesh: the Orenza patriarch, a minor noble in service to the Caligari, sold to his neighbor the Barone Theodoro a sorrel roan. That horse threw the baron's son, killing him. The baron had the horse killed and demanded restitution from Patricius Orenza, who denied him. To this day, the families remember their dislike.
However, this feud is like many of those that brew on the Vodacce mainland. That is, every Vodacce nobleman can recount a reason to despise any other. However, in recent years it has come to the forefront again in the figures of Signore Fortunato and Signore Baldassar.
Baldassar Orenza
Once a dashing and handsome young man, Baldassar Orenza and Fortunato di Carlo where unusually close for members of dynasties that found each other distasteful. While Fortunato's father, Signore Domenigo, spent most of his time on the islands attempting to improve his fortune, his mother, the Signora Lucretia, stayed on the estate. There she formed a long-time friendship with Guiducci Orenza. During their childhood, Fortunato and Baldassar were boon companions, only banished to their own houses when Signore Domenigo returned.
However, a long-lasting rivalry developed between the two boys. Baldassar was taught hard work and study, and has spent his life adhering to that rule. He worked on Syrneth digging expeditions when he was a young man, spent years building up his shipping companies (by proxy of course, no self-respecting Vodacce would engage in work), and managing his father's fortune. He is a devoted child of the Numan philosopher Cicerus and a rather staid man. His popularity is moderate, but his influence is something slightly more.
At each turn, Fortunato seemed to be given opportunity. Where Baldassar struggled and strove to better himself, Fortunato never cared much—and yet, was betrothed to a Fate Witch, and, in his usual way, vanished to go "make himself a fortune" in the north. Baldassar's despite of his one-time friend has only grown over the years.
The Barone Orenza was once slender and handsome, but is now somewhat heavyset. He wears his dark hair clipped short, and his beard well-trimmed, and is fond of red and dark purple. It is said that he drinks too much, but only when he has no work to do. Like everything else in his life, Baldassar Orenza has studied very hard at swordwork, and is a passable fencer of the Bernoulli school. He has also come into possession of a number of strange Syrneth artifacts, and has a network of merchants and informers throughout southern Theah. His one drive is to show up his childhood friend-turned-rival, Fortunato Ernesto di Carlo.
The origins of the feud are lost in the distant past, but it seems to have been a matter of horseflesh: the Orenza patriarch, a minor noble in service to the Caligari, sold to his neighbor the Barone Theodoro a sorrel roan. That horse threw the baron's son, killing him. The baron had the horse killed and demanded restitution from Patricius Orenza, who denied him. To this day, the families remember their dislike.
However, this feud is like many of those that brew on the Vodacce mainland. That is, every Vodacce nobleman can recount a reason to despise any other. However, in recent years it has come to the forefront again in the figures of Signore Fortunato and Signore Baldassar.
Baldassar Orenza
Once a dashing and handsome young man, Baldassar Orenza and Fortunato di Carlo where unusually close for members of dynasties that found each other distasteful. While Fortunato's father, Signore Domenigo, spent most of his time on the islands attempting to improve his fortune, his mother, the Signora Lucretia, stayed on the estate. There she formed a long-time friendship with Guiducci Orenza. During their childhood, Fortunato and Baldassar were boon companions, only banished to their own houses when Signore Domenigo returned.
However, a long-lasting rivalry developed between the two boys. Baldassar was taught hard work and study, and has spent his life adhering to that rule. He worked on Syrneth digging expeditions when he was a young man, spent years building up his shipping companies (by proxy of course, no self-respecting Vodacce would engage in work), and managing his father's fortune. He is a devoted child of the Numan philosopher Cicerus and a rather staid man. His popularity is moderate, but his influence is something slightly more.
At each turn, Fortunato seemed to be given opportunity. Where Baldassar struggled and strove to better himself, Fortunato never cared much—and yet, was betrothed to a Fate Witch, and, in his usual way, vanished to go "make himself a fortune" in the north. Baldassar's despite of his one-time friend has only grown over the years.
The Barone Orenza was once slender and handsome, but is now somewhat heavyset. He wears his dark hair clipped short, and his beard well-trimmed, and is fond of red and dark purple. It is said that he drinks too much, but only when he has no work to do. Like everything else in his life, Baldassar Orenza has studied very hard at swordwork, and is a passable fencer of the Bernoulli school. He has also come into possession of a number of strange Syrneth artifacts, and has a network of merchants and informers throughout southern Theah. His one drive is to show up his childhood friend-turned-rival, Fortunato Ernesto di Carlo.
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