Derkaz

**Derkaz**, the Black City, the most dangerous settlement in the province of Skáney, is located in the Lowlands. The city is filled with bandits, thieves, and other manner of criminals. It was built in 48 of the Imperial Calendar, as a promotion of development in the southern area of the province.

## History

Originally planned as a military city-outpost, Derkaz had to be re-purposed while still on the drawing board. This was due to the number of people living in the region in encampments in the wild, who needed to be placed in a secure location. The change of plans came at a heavy cost to the builders, as the budget for construction was halved, and creating a fully functional city is much more expensive than a utilitarian outpost with basic accommodations.

This decision was made by the unnamed political body of the Empire of the time, which no longer exists and has been replaced with the Chamber of Magistrates. Although the Legion's commanding officers were not happy with the decision, in the end, it was made to strengthen the outlook that people had towards the somewhat newly-formed Empire(only 45 years old at the time of the decision).

The construction was made hastily, without much care, as the builders were severely underpaid. And within just three years, the entire city was built from scratch, a record time for such a large project, and such a small team of constructors. Twenty years later, the Empire decided that the city required another influx of innovation in order to attract wealthier citizens and convert the city into a possible market for jewelry and other expensive assortments(something akin to Varod's high-merchants). This was when the sewer system was proposed and immediately accepted. Construction barely took a few months, as the tunnels were designed with great expertise and the local earth was very stable. Sadly, within just a few years of it´s intended use, the sewer system was shut down by the local rulers and quickly turned into the haven of bandits it is known as today.

## Layout

The construction of the city is simplistic, with narrow streets and short buildings, only two small plazas, one of which is a merchant hub. Underneath the city there is an vast unused sewer system, which was converted into a sort of haven for wrong-doers. The sewer system was built twenty years after the founding of the city, heavily subsidized by the Empire.

A general goods shop can be found in the northeastern corner of the city, right next to the palace. Fifty paces in front of the shop, there is a herbalist; the women in charge tend to a medium-sized stall with all kinds of unusual plants & ingredients. Other important buildings within the city are the inn, and the Temple of Luba. The sewer system can be accessed by various points around the city, but none of the citizens speak about this.

## Architecture

Claustrophobic people should not remain long in Derkaz, though the outside streets are clear enough, the inside of buildings and the underground sewer are cramped spaces. Almost all the buildings are made with weak wood, hence the so-common city restoration projects which take place every few months. The Lowlands don't provide high quality wood, and it would be too expensive to import it in the amounts required for the whole city.

The city's inn only has four meager rooms for accommodation, without any windows and cold stone stools. The local palace, which tries to impress with it´s outside stonework, is mostly made of wooden panels inside. As the locals say, it is truly a façade. But this is not seen as a negative in Derkaz, as the people maintain an attitude of carelessness.

## Crime

The city guard, is not a plentiful as one would expect in a place where crime is rampant. Most guards have been completely bought or bribed. There is an informal understanding between everyone who lives there: those who keep their nose out of everything, will not be bothered, at least not much. Although one would think that the shops would be the biggest target of the thieves, this is in fact incorrect; all vendors pay a fee in an illegal scheme in order to maintain their business unharmed by (almost) all criminals.

Certain people have moved to Derkaz with the sole purpose of helping protect the city, these people are usually well-rounded adventurers or golden-hearted mercenaries. Of the ones who have tried, some end up dead, others leave when they realize the task is too big to handle by themselves, and even some have turned to the other side of the law and became criminals themselves.