Aldurias

## **History**

Aldurias is the largest city in all of Nara by both size and population, The City was founded by Titus nearly a year before his death in 718 D.T.R and his sons finished construction of the city in 744 B.F. Aldurias is known as the "City of Knights' ', home to the Patriarch, and the trade capital of Nara only rivaled by Freeport and Teratime.

## **Foundation 718 D.T.R-744 B.F**

The city was founded on one of the largest islands within the Western Scattered Isles. The Island itself was positioned in between Chinika and Acrabia making it a frequent stop for traders, the island already had several small port villages within it. Titus had formally conquered the island without a fight years before his planned invasion of Chinika. Although the outer coast of the island was settled, the inner part of the island was relatively unexplored and exploration proved difficult due to the dense jungle. Nevertheless construction of the city commenced immediately. The Initial construction of the city started in late 718 D.T.R but was halted due to a rampant outbreak of jungle fever. Attempts to restart construction in 719 D.T.R were attempted but quickly called off after the death of Titus. It wouldn't be until years later in 739 B.F Titus Junitores, Son of Titus, resumed attempts at constructing his father's dreamed city. Titus Junitores opted to cut down the jungle as much as possible by using logging teams and controlled fires, with the help of nearly 25,000 workers and the Dragon Zardul the majority of the jungles had been cleared. With the jungles cleared, production continued without issue and the city had been completed in 744 B.F.

## **The Patriarch's Seat of Power 744 B.F-1009 A.T.F**

The city's population quickly skyrocketed, and within a matter of ten years the city had become the trade capital of the world. The City fell into a trade path starting with Kayata, positioning Aldurias in the middle, and Sultania at the end. All silk, spices, and Chinikan exotic goods had to pass through Aldurias before reaching Orbis. While the city's population skyrocketed, Zardul ordered for the construction of a gated keep in the center of the city. Inside this gated keep would be the Patriarchs Palace, the Council Chambers for the Council of Inquisitors, and The Barracks for The Knights of The Red Cross. Shortly after the completion of this inner keep, Zardul stepped down as Patriarch and the Council of Inquisitors elected the first human Patriarch.

## **Survival of The Crisis of The Tenth Century and The Orbisian Dark Age 995 B.F-1650 A.T.F**

By The End of The Tenth Century, Aldurias had expanded to encompass nearly the entire island. On both the east and western wings of the city were the Golden Ports of Aldurias, the largest port in the world. Aldurias had also built the largest Tournament Arena in the world, after the recent rise of feudalism and popularity of knights took hold. While Aldurias continued to grow, and the Patriarchy's powers along with it, the Three Empires began to crumble. The Romikkan Empire had begun suffering catastrophic defeats in the North, spurred by the Second Apocalypse. By the start of the Eleventh Century what remained of The Romikkan Empire was little more than a series of pretender kingdoms.

Although the city of Aldurias escaped the Crisis of The Tenth Century, The Fall of The Three Empires, and The Second Apocalypse unhampered, the Patriarchy did not. For some time during the forthcoming dark ages the Patriarch weighed little power over the successor states and kingdoms within Orbis. The situation worsened when The Acrabian Empire "De-Romikkanized" cutting all relations off with the Patriarchy. The Patriarchy would not regain power over Orbis until the end of The Age of The Five Conquerors. Towards the end of the Drazzanian reign over their empire, the Patriarch had called for a crusade against the "Barbarian Hordes". Soon tens of thousands of knights, tribals, and various other groups of people rallied at Aldurias. From Aldurias the first of 23 crusades was launched, the Drazzanians were already weakened from infighting and were quickly repulsed. This was the first successful crusade launched by the Patriarch. Soon several more would be hosted and launched from Aldurias throughout the years.

## **The War for Orbis 1650 A.T.F-1760 A.T.F**

Thanks to the efforts of the first Crusade, and the fall of The Palax Empire by 1650 A.T.F a series of new kingdoms had been founded. These new found kingdoms would immediately begin fighting amongst themselves for the title of "Emperor'' a title that hadn't been held in nearly 650 years. During this war for Orbis, the Patriarch's power over the petty kingdoms would begin to elevate as the Church of Titus had become a mainstream religion. Aldurias profited greatly from the conflict, importing Brettish and Franikan Armies, and being a hub for minor lords and kings to seek out knights. By the later 17th century the city was politically divided between the Merchant Families and the Knightly Houses who vied for control over the city.

These rising tensions would further ensue as all across the world, Knights were slowly being replaced in favor of professional armies. With nowhere to go, and many without land, knights would flock to Aldurias in staggering numbers hoping to seek employment under a lord or king in need. Tensions would arise after a Skirmish Erupted in the Western Golden Port of Aldurias between several of the Knightly Houses and Merchant Families. The Skirmish was put down by The Knights of The Red Cross, but only after nearly 20 had died. The City's status as a home for Knights would make it the keen brewing grounds for a Rebellion, and in 1688 A.T.F The Knightly Rebellion Began. Several thousand knights gathered together, and raised enough funds to sail to Danika. They hoped that by besieging the city of Londa, they could bend the Brettish Government into reinstating knights in the Brettish Army and Bureaucracy causing a domino effect to other nations. This plan was quickly thwarted when the nights landed ashore in 1688 A.T.F and were massacred at the Bell Tower Massacre.

Decades later the second female Patriarch Sarah Cortes Maximus would align the city with the renowned Warlord known as Karkos, in an attempt to reunite Orbis the city would formally join what was later referred as "The Dominion of Orbis' '. After this formal declaration of support for Karkos, Sarah Cortes Maximus hosted a feast in Aldurias with the hopes of convincing the other leaders to join this Dominion. The feast quickly turned into a disaster after William Boomica and Arthur Paxton refused to accept Sarah as the Patriarch, and William claimed he had more right to the title than her starting The Civil War For The Patriarchy. During the Civil War Sarah Cortes disbanded the council of inquisitors after a plot to remove the Patriarchy was discovered, following the purge of the Council of Inquisitors the Knights of The Red Cross were also disbanded. After Sarah Cortes Maximus and Karkos had won The Civil War they moved to establish peace talks, reinviting William Boomica after his exile, in hopes of bringing peace.

Aldurias hosted the peace talks, and in attendance was William Boomica, Kelmujin Eastmoore, Karkos, Arthur Paxton, Sarah Cortes Maximus, and General Ryan Dust. The meeting proved to be successful and on March the 8th 1760 U.O Orbis was united under The Dominion of Orbis. As a part of the agreement for the Unification of Orbis, Sarah Cortes Maximus was to step down from the position of Patriarch and to end the Patriarchy.

## **Disbandment of the Patriarch Temporary Independence 1760 A.T.F-1764 A.T.F**

After the end of the Patriarch, Sarah Cortes Maximus retired from public life and politics altogether. The City of Aldurias still remained the trade hub it once had for centuries, but was finally over taken by Teratime upon the discovery and colonization of Casca, Northern & Southern Nova, and Queenston. By 1761 U.O the Wesley War had started, and Aldurias never officially joined any one side. The City remained independent in function, and would later rejoin The Dominion of Orbis after the Wesley War had ended.

## **Notable Locations**

**The Western and Eastern Golden Port**

The Western and Eastern Golden ports were the largest ports in all of Nara. The ports were so large in scale that at max capacity 5,000 ships could be docked at one time, the ports were patrolled by The Knights of The Red Cross and were administered by the various Merchant Families and Merchant Companies.

**Patriarchs Palace**

The Patriarch's Palace is centered in the middle of the city, with the Council Chambers of The Inquisitors positioned to the left of it and the Knights of The Red Cross's Barracks positioned to the Right. The Patriarch's Palace was four stories tall, with the first story being dedicated to religious ceremonies, the second being dedicated to feast and meetings, the third dedicated to a meeting place for the Inquisitors, and the forth being the personal chambers for the Patriarch. The entrance held a large door that separated down the middle, the door being made completely of gold. The steps leading up to the door are lined with 4 foot tall miniature statues of adorned Romikkan Emperors. The Outside of the palace was made entirely of Marble, with the roof coming into a dome made purely of gold. The structure was massive being evenly shaped with a grand total of nearly 3,000 feet long and 900 feet wide. To support its four story height, pillars were erected around the structure with 30 in the front and back, and 15 on each side. Inside of the palace were all sorts of lavish carpets, curtains, and other exotic decor.

**The Inquisitors Council Chambers**

The Inquisitors Council Chambers was positioned to the left of the Patriarchs Palace. The Building, much like the palace, was Romikkan in design with an exterior completely made of Marble. Though unlike the palace the inside was substituted with Romikkan Concrete. The roof of the building was covered with clay overlapping tiles that formed an umbrella formation around the roof. The structure itself was octogonal in design, being round in shape with eight straight sides and eight straight angles. The inside of the building was dull, as the Inquisitors were encouraged not to grow fond of materialistic things or indulge in a lavish lifestyle. Within the Inquisitors Council Chambers were seven rooms for the Inquisitors to stay, a training course behind the Chambers, and in the center a series of chairs centered in a circular formation for Council Meetings. Underneath the Chambers was a library that possessed thousands of books relating to the history of Nara.

**The Barracks for The Knights of The Red Cross**

The Knights of The Red Cross's Barracks were positioned to the left of The Patriarchs Palace, the barracks itself was large with several hundred rooms each sharing four beds for the knights to sleep in. Much like the Inquisitors Chambers, the Knights of The Red Cross were encouraged to not possess materialistic items, decorate their rooms, or try to differentiate from one another. The Knights Chambers were positioned on the second and third floor while the first floor possesed equipment storage, mess hall, and a smithery. The entire structure was rectangular and sat vertical next to the Patriarch's palace. The structure was 600 feet wide and 5,000 feet long being massive in length. Due to its length and layout, the building did not require columns to hold it up. The Barracks was hollow in the middle which hosted several training areas for the Knights. The Barracks was made entirely out of Romikkan Concrete.

**The Imperial Lighthouse**

The Imperial LightHouse was a tall structure that stood nearly 250 feet high, the structure was shaped like a normal lighthouse made of marble, except for the top which was decorated to look like a crown. The lighthouse had oil pools stored inside of the walls that could be harvested to start a fire in the light house.

**Tournament Arena**

The Tournament Arena was divided up into three sections. The Jousting Arena, The Dueling Grounds, and Archery Grounds. The Jousting Arena was oval in shape, with stands open for anyone to come in and go. There were shaded stands available for the rich and the nobles while the unshaded stands were typically free of charge. The Jousting Area was about 240 Yards in length and had a long wooden fence going down the middle to separate the two jousters. Unlike other jousting arena, this Arena could hold well over 10,000 viewers albeit packed in tightly. Next was the dueling grounds which was positioned in an open field directly to the left of the Jousting Arena. The field held twenty fenced in Dueling Grounds, all 35x35 feet in length and width. Surrounding these boxes were stands that covered all four sides that could hold 30 spectators, with doors underneath that allowed for the knights to enter the Dueling Grounds. In Between the pathways leading to the dueling grounds, venues would be set up selling food, goods, and souvenirs. Finally at the end of the Duelling Grounds was the Archery Range, where several targets were positioned out in a field. Large wooden stands sat to either side of them to get the best view, and the targets differed in distance.

## **Demographic Makeup**

The Population of Aldurias was primarily Romikkan, followed closely by Acrabians. The city also had a fairly large population of Brettish Danikans, Franikan Danikans, Zorians, and Chinikans. The city was very multicultural, having entire districts of the city populated by different peoples. The main religion of the city is The Church of Titus followed closely by Acrabian Zelstari.

## **Geography and Architectural Design**

The City was positioned on a tropical island in the Western Scattered Isles. The climate is temperate, and oftentimes the weather could be described as being humid and wet during the spring and summer months. Although rare, during the winter the temperatures have fallen to freezing but only on rare occurrences with most winters remaining in the 60-70 Degrees Range. The City was built in the center of the island, but has expanded to encompass the entire island. The City is regarded as having excellent infrastructure, with marble roads, and cobble roads in the poorer districts, that are well maintained and a mix of Romikkan/Acrabian architecture. The Cities slums are positioned more North where the original villages were, and the slums are littered with tens of thousands of thatched huts or structures strung together out of leftover building materials. The walls around the city are in good condition, but have some noticeable cracks forming in them as late as 1640 A.T.F. The position and geography of the island allowed for the construction of two massive ports in The Eastern and Western sections of the city due to its natural harbors. And the currents of The Chinikan sea bring in large quantities of fish in the Western Port.

## **Government**

Aldurias was ruled by the Patriarchy from 744 B.F-1760 U.O. Following the reunification of Orbis and the dissolvement of the Patriarchy, Aludurias would later be governed by The Dominion of Orbis from 1760 U.O-1761 U.O, but would unofficially become self-governing during the Wesley War. After the Wesely War concluded, Aldurias rejoined the Orbisian Dominion.