(Archive) Numali

Template:Settlement Infobox (Fixed)Homeworld of the Kin'alei, Numali is a metropolis taken to the extreme. From north to south pole and everywhere in between, sprawling cityscapes have overtaken the once-iron grip of nature. Natural life still exists upon its surface in titanically vast forests and incomprehensibly deep oceans, but it has been almost completely tamed and bent to the will of the Kin. Beasts of infinite shapes, sizes, and colors frolic and feed upon one another behind the carefully maintained force walls that ring their miles wide enclosures. Seeing themselves as caretakers of Numali, the Kin outwardly look to be a thriving metropolitan utopia. However, a closer inspection reveals inherent corruption and strife born of a millenia long civil war.

## Geography

Surrounded by its own personal shell of space debris, Numali is an island of serenity adrift in a massive asteroid field. Spacefarers are uncertain as to how the field came to be and how the planet stays so untouched by what would typically mean a constant barrage of meteors. The Kin maintain that it is their innate mastery of the arcane that shields them from harm, despite never offering any proof as to the truth of this claim. The ability to come and go from their ancestral home that only they possess does lend some credibility to the tale, however. Regardless of where the reality of the matter lies, the result is a nigh impregnible planet that only the most skilled or foolhardy attempt to visit, much less besiege.

The surface of the planet, in stark contrast to the empty space for light years around it, is a bustling beehive of constant activity. Continual flames light every street corner, lending a warm glow to the immense slabs of every type and hue of stone imaginable. Homes, apartments, suites, and penthouses stretch from the surface all the way beyond the reach of the clouds into the thinning atmosphere above. Streets and thoroughfare layer atop one another linked only by polychromatic arcane bridges, leaving immense chasms every other block so that even the most lowly beggar may still see the sky. Architecture knows no bounds within the world-city of the Kin, leaving only the preferences of the Houses and the individual to determine how closely one home will mirror its neighbor.

## Economy

Though money is still widely used, the primary currency on Numali is information. Every Kin has a skeleton in their closet and the higher up the echelons of high society one goes, the closets only grow larger to fit more bones. With every man, woman, and child keeping an ear out for something juicy, gossip reigns supreme among these elves. One is just as likely to be able to pay for their meal with a trinket or coin as they are with talk of a new scandal. Or, in the more academically inclined halls, the formula for a new spell works equally well.

## Inhabitants

### House Gethard

Perhaps one of the most famous houses, it only contains one member. King Gethard possesses unrivaled power even beyond that of the other kings and queens. In a brutal loss of life, he perfomed the song of extinction combined with a high magic ritual to extend it's range far beyond the normal limit during a gathering of court and military. The ensuing magical backlash consumed the entirety of his own people and added their lifetime to his own, effectivly making him immortal. His lifetime now extended infinitely, he set off into the depths of space in a quest for ever more power, returning to their homeworld years to take his throne, alone with what he had done.

### House Besothu

The house of dreamers and bon vivants, known for having the best music and bards of any house. It was from House Besothu that King Gethard stole the secrets to the song of extinction. Besothu enjoys the aesthetics and beauty of their world, and tend to be the least aggressive of the houses. They do, however, have the most strict rules on etiquette and behavior of any house. Defended primarily by their summoners and bards, they are able to bring in armies at a moment's notice wherever they are threatened. Besothu's military is known to incorporate the largest amount of Magitech.

### House Krimthar

The Warfire House, House Krimthar is renowned for their pyromancers and have perfected a secret way of learning the art. The Warfire House has been known to employ scorched earth tactics wherever they go, bearing no interest in claiming new lands, merely in removing it from others. Krimthar also holds the most powerful starships of any of the houses.

### House Lylap

An estranged house favoring eccentric behavior and styles, they tend to encourage their people to follow their hearts desire, rather than dedicate themselves to an idea they do not believe in. Most of House Lylap gravitate to enchantment and illusion magics, as they seem to best exemplify the ideals they hold in highest regard. While once the most aggressive house, they have in recent years shifted to a reactionary stance of passive defense, enjoying their lavish lifestyle.

### House Parsaz

The most dedicated to knowledge, they believe that knowledge is power and with unparalleled magical knowledge, House Parsaz shall reign supreme. The least likely to adopt magitech and other sciences, House Parsaz instead grows their magical superiority by adhering to draconian methods of learning to bring their mages to the highest levels of spellcasting circles. Once a mage feels they have nothing left to learn, they are sent off to twist their magics into the most powerful they can be. The foremost authority in matters of the raw arcane, they are the leaders in high magical research.

## Locations of Interest

### House Territory

Each noble House hosts an expansive territory that reflects both its own personal values and the varied preferences of its people. Few houses bear territority smaller than a medium-sized continent, though some are far more concerned with conquest than others. Despite the regular shift of borders as a result of the near constant skirmishes, House Lylap typically has the smallest territory at any given time, while House Gethard has the largest. The former due to their almost constant revelry and lux lifestyle, and the latter due to King Gethard's apparent omniscience within his domain.

### No Man's Land

The desolate stretches between the territories of each house were once thriving neighborhoods and marketplaces thrumming with life. In the millenia since the start of the civil wars between houses, these streets and alleyways have become the focal point of savage border skirmishes. Dust, debris, bone, and worse litter the empty homes here, leaving it a place where only the truly desperate or unsavory roam. In the years that these forgotten places have been left to rot, nature has slowly begun to retake the landscape. It is common to find bits of grass and small flowers poking up through the cracks left in the street, or the occasional beast that has strayed far from its broken enclosure.

### The Infinite Ocean

While the Kin love to cultivate and shape their world to their whims, not all of Numali has been so receptive. Vast oceans once spanned much of their planet's surface and no amount of terraforming has been able to completely get rid of them. The largest sea that stubbornly clings to Numali is the Infinite Ocean, a vast expanse of unforgiving water that spans nearly a quarter of its surface. Perhaps in defiance of its insubordination, the Kin simply built their cities atop the ocean, caging it within walls of impenetrable force. Unfortunately, not every predator is content to be caged. Learning of its apparent imprisonment, their long-forgotten foe, the Aundelaeshu, reared its ugly head for the first time in ten thousand years. The carefully laid magical foundations shattered under its onslaught as it rent a hole in the center of its prison and cast those Kin arrogant enough to dwell in its domain into the depths. Then, just as quickly as it appeared it was gone, leaving untold destruction in its wake. The Kin never built atop the Infinite Ocean again.