Fladena

**FLADENA**
 Nation
 Size

A city-state of dragons, situated cleanly between the inhospitable Northern wilds to the north and the Kavorrite Mountains to the south, Fladena has a Frontier-Town-But-InThe-Roaring-20s vibe. The city-state occupies about 90 square miles and reaches right to the feet of the Kavorrite mountains, where the most expensive real-estate lairs are.

## Architecture

### Visual features/quirks

* Everything is massive- the whole thing is built for draconic creatures, but civilized. Roads that are wide enough for two dragons to walk side-by-side and so forth.
* The roads themselves are only ever single lanes one way and the next, with 2-wide smaller “humanoid” lanes on the outside edges
* Because dragons are “den-building” creatures, all the dragon homes and structures have been burrowed downwards rather than constructed upwards.
	+ The humanoids live above ground in typically sized dwellings, save that they’re spaced very far apart compared to normal societies. This leads to a strange, sparse, short skyline that stretches off seemingly
	+ indefinitely but only occasionally has an actual building to silhouette. As Fladena is at the feet of a mountain range, the city is generally flat land, and gives a great view of the mountains at it’s southern edge where one can see the massive Citadel that houses The Iron Talons.
* Every structure has a massive “landing area” next to it in place of a parking lot, for dragons to land in. These areas are 300 ft in diameter and typically overgrown with grass to create a nice soft landing pad.
	+ The nicer ones might be decorated with shrubs and flowers around the edges.
	+ It is common for affluent dragons to display prominent pieces of their hoard woven into the décor around their clearings, for visitors to appreciate and hopefully ask them about, giving them the chance to discuss at length the way they attained the objects. It is considered a sign of great disrespect to handle any of the artifacts on display at another dragons home, and often leads to fights.
* As dragons have varying levels of visual acuity and literacy, the purpose of a dwelling (when it’s not a den) is usually demarked with an object of some kind rather than writing or signage. For example, a draconic armorer might display a fine shield by the entrance to their den, or a merchant might display a stolen caravan-cart in their landing area with some flowers and other décor woven in.
* There is no wall or gatehouse - what use have dragons to keep out humanoids, and what wall could keep out the larger monsters? Rather, they have regular patrols that fly the borders of the city

## Prominent Buildings

### The Fladena Citadel

* **The Fladena Citadel** stands prominently atop one of the mountains at the base of the Kavorrite range. This massive stone amphitheater has a 1200-foot diameter base, with another 600 feet of inclined seating area wrapping around it.
	+ On 50-foot stone platforms that stretch out from the upper ring of this bowl, each of the 20 breeds of dragon is represented in a masterfully crafted statue incorporating their colors, materials, and breath weapon. At mid-day of the Summer and Winter solstice, all 20 of these discharge their breath weapons skyward, creating a beautiful display of color and power that kicks off a weeklong celebration in Fladena (see below). In times of emergency, the Iron Talons can be summoned by these breath weapons discharging into the night sky for a meeting the next day.

### Kavorre’s Lair

* Kavorre’s Lair overlooks Fladena from higher up in the Kavorrite Moutains. It is rare to see the Ancient Dragon come down to visit the city, but for matters of gravest importance the council still seeks wisdom from Kavorre by traveling to her lair and bringing offerings of high value in exchange for her wisdom.

### Several Draconic Guildhalls

* Several Draconic Guildhalls are carved into the mountains for those dragons of sufficient renown to have their own followers or worshippers. It is considered bad form not to house your worshippers, and so these dragons have created large dens with rooms carved into the sides so that their faithful can sleep safely within their protection.

### “Designated Combat Spaces”

* A number of “Designated Combat Spaces” exist throughout Fladena for the resolution of disputes in a controlled environment where everyone can spectate if they like. These are generally square, stone pits 300-500 feet long on a side (including their depth) and have a number of food vendors arrayed around the upper edges so spectators can enjoy a meal while they watch a combat.

## Demographics

* Demonym - Denizens
* Majority Race (or melting pot) - Draconic (varied), with a large population of half-dragons and dragon worshippers also.
* Common Language(s) - Draconic, Common.
	+ While many of the dragons could once shapeshift into a humanoid form to communicate with other creatures, the darkening has taken that ability away from them. In their draconic state, they are only able to speak draconic except for a few harsh, one-syllable words they can force through the significantly different draconic vocal chords.
* Socioeconomic Distribution of citizens
	+ Varies - Traditionally, the wealthiest live closer to the mountains (or in them) and the more modest live in the flatlands. However, there’s only so much mountain to go around before you encroach on Kavorre’s territory, so over time this has become diluted.

## Economy

* **Major trade** - Cartography
* **Major imports/exports**
	+ Imports: livestock from Aspen to the West, refining services for their hoard from Geim to the east.
	+ Exports: maps, the occasional duplicate artifact that might find it’s way into a hoard, raw materials found as they create dens.
* **Overall wealth**
	+ Vast, but not liquid. The bulk of the draconic wealth is housed in their hoards and their bluster. The honest truth is that dragons don’t have to negotiate very hard with most creatures.
* **Taxation**
	+ None on residents with proof of residency (written grant of lands from the Iron Talons) - no dragon wants to part with it’s hoard, and so the mutually assured destruction of taxation prevents it from ever being implemented. One council tried, and found themselves fully dead and replaced within a week.
	+ Visitors are sometimes hit by “taxes” from corrupt dragons who might be the first to encounter them at the border. These dragons typically won’t bother unless there is a visibly interesting or storied artifact for them to “win in a contest of wits” and brag about later

## Government

* Leader(s)
	+ The Iron Talon Council is a council of varying number who meet to discuss mutual needs like infrastructure, defense, and livestock supply. Membership to the council is determined by wisdom, which dragons interpret as hoard size. The number of dragons on the council varies as dragons attempt to earn their way in or out in a very convoluted series of physical and verbal contests where they attempt to prove their power and wealth are superior to the others. Over time, most of the Denizens have decided it’s not worth bothering with, leading to a fairly consistent “core” council with a few who join and leave each century at the ceremony. The council has the power to assess penalties in the form of hoard seizures for transgressions against their authority or against the autonomy of other Denizens, however they use this power very sparingly in an attempt to avoid outright rebellion.

* Description of hierarchy
	+ Fladena is a place where pretty much everyone can do whatever they want as long as they don’t piss off the neighbors. There are only a handful of laws, and these are upheld by the vanguard that patrol the borders of the city when necessary:
		- No breath weapons outside of your own Den.
			* Penalty: 1/10th hoard seizure by the Iron Talon council, which can be reduced to 1/20th if the 1/20th is really cool.
		- Any physical fighting must take place in a designated combat space, and cannot involve armor or weapons besides your own natural ones, and at least 24 hours notice must be given to allow others to spectate on the fun.
			* Penalty: the winner of the unannounced fight must fight the newest member of the vanguard, who will be fully armored and armed as they wish, in the Citadel. Note: For humanoids, they will instead fight a Metallic Peacekeeper.
		- No slippery trickery, which the dragons interpret as unauthorized magic more powerful than a cantrip.
			* Penalty: Anti-magic den imprisonment for 24 hours, at the end of which a member of the vanguard shall discharge their breath weapon at point blank range into the offending creature, at the end of which the victim of the magic, if there was one, has the right to challenge the offending creature to combat. Note: If the creature should die, any other grudges held against them for their use of magic shall be considered resolved.
			* To be authorized to use magic, creatures may apply to the Iron Talon Council for a writ of permission. This process usually has more success if the creatures bring a tribute of high value to the council. Note: In matters of life and death unrelated to another law being broken, creatures may use magic however they see fit with the understanding that afterwards they shall need to justify their magic to a member of the vanguard who will judge whether the magic was warranted.
		- No stealing from someone else’s hoard.
			* Punishment: The victim chooses which half of your hoard they are given as compensation.

## Police/Guards and Crime

A vanguard of dragons flies regular patrols of the borders of the large city-state. These vanguards enforce the laws and also serve as an advanced warning system if anything dangerous should be approaching. In the event the vanguard is not capable of dealing with a threat themselves, a patrol will enter the fight anyway, sending their swiftest dragon back for reinforcements. This dragon will create an arc across the sky with their breath weapon, summoning all able-bodied dragons to join the fight.

Humanoids may also join the vanguard- these stay within the borders and act more like “local police,” helping to resolve disputes. This is not a role for the faint of heart, as resolving domestic problems between two adult dragons can be touchy territory at the very best of times. The humanoids have a several armories throughout the city, which have been reinforced with prismatic walls beneath the steel outsides to prevent angry dragons from breaking in.

Members of the vanguard apply to the council for a writ of defense. Writ is not really the right phrasing here, since the dragons typically don’t write things down, but saying “writ” makes them feel fancy. In reality, an iron model of a talon on necklace of sturdy leather is sized to the member of the vanguard and serves as their proof.

* Crime rate - Very low.
* Corruption - Very low.
* How organized? - Hardly any collective organization is in place, and there’s no real hierarchy.
* How well trained? - There is no collective training, so competency varies from vanguard to vanguard.
* How strict? - Very strict. There are only 3 laws - this is seen as a very simple thing to follow, because even the most stringently taloned dragon has can count to 3 on their talons.

## Religion

Majority Religion/Primary Gods

* Gomteus, who created the dragons in the second era, and gave them purpose as cartographers
* The more egotistical dragons worship themselves, or their echoes on other planes

## Culture

* Unique traditions/holidays
	+ Each solstice kicks off a weeklong, raucous celebration in which dragons have their scales painted bright white for the moon, or shiny gold for the sun, and engage in a number of games and sports that no matter how creatively named are usually just contests of strength or excuses to fight without offending anyone. At midday on the solstice, the 20 dragon statues in the Citadel of the Iron Talon Council fire their breath weapons into the air, which is followed by a great roar from all the dragons who can see it and which is rumored to be audible as far west as Aspen, and even within the deep-mountain cities of Geim to the east.
	+ Every century, there is a new selection of the Iron Talon Council. From time to time, members of the council have to defend their honor and position from challengers in a Designated Combat Space.

* For reasons nobody has ever been able to explain, there is a huge blues and big band jazz scene in Fladena. Dragons have masterwork instrument crafted and will take pretty much any excuse to jam with the neighbors, leading to many late-night musical parties. It is in vogue to ornament your instrument with a single item from your hoard, which can be attached however is practical.
* This musical love extends to street musicians, and often you’ll see bands of humanoid dragonkin or dragonborn mixed with full size dragons, with others dancing nearby.
* The Denizens think breathing out smoke is really cool but don’t understand why you’d actually smoke something when you can just use your breath weapon a tiny bit. This is of course, illegal, but it’s also super cool looking, and generally they can talk their way out of it with the vanguard because they didn’t actually “USE” the breath weapon, it’s more like a burp or a sneeze.

## Factions/Organizations

* The Solarcrawl is a cartography guild employing the finest mapmakers in Fladena. They are well-travelled, articulate, and have exceptional handwriting skills.
* The Vanguard are the defense force for Fladena.
* Skail and Sons
* The Iron Talon Council

## Inns and Taverns (1 village, 2 town, 3+ city)

### Inn (denoted with a huge mug outside)

A wide, deep single room den with a storage room dug out of the back.

* Innkeeper: Arnold Campoli, a blue dragon who loves to hear stories and often gives out free drinks in reward

* Menu:
	+ [15] Pure Snowball | Served in an orb of glass, straight up poison from plane of fire. Tastes like pure mint.
	+ [17] Cloud Drop | Burns like alcohol but tastes sweet like cotton candy. If you crit fail your save you fall unconscious. Kind of milky looking. Served in a raindrop-shaped glass.
	+ [19] Unholy Volcano | Mix of everything strong lit on fire, served in a miniature volcano that erupts when you touch it. Tastes kind of like spiced apple cider.
	+ MEAT. From, you know, something or other.

* Rumors:

#### Inn (denoted with a large pillow in it’s landing area)

A tunnel dug downwards at 45 degrees with dens dug off to the side large enough for adult dragons, and a suite of smaller rooms for medium and smaller creatures, accommodated nicely.

* Innkeeper: Zane, a top hat wearing brass dragon
	+ [Ideal: Every word I say is worth hearing, so I speak loudly and eloquently to make sure I get my point across. Also fascinated by intelligence with no brain, such as a sentient item]
	+ Zane likes to play his trumpet before going to bed, serenading the whole inn with a lovely tune at the end of each day.
* Menu:
	+ Bread, cheese, MEAT OF SOME KIND
	+ [7] Cinnamon Pearl | whiskey (v smooth drinkable)
	+ [7] Twilight Berry Whiskey | (standard whiskey, not much bite)
	+ [10] Citron Ver Fantaisie Koolet | The master’s take on Key Lime Koolet

* Rumors

#### Inn (denoted with a fork, but it’s actually a giant pitchfork sticking up)

A large dining room with several smoking pits and holes above for the smoke to leave through for fresh cooking meat.

* Innkeeper: Clara “Dough Girl” Albuquerque, a Faerie Dragon who loves gossip and makes great pastries.
* “You know I’ve never met a vegetarian I liked, except that one who was real tasty”

* Menu:
	+ [10] The Duchess | Served in a glass boat (drink is similar to gold schlager, it’s a money flex) It’s very minty
	+ [12] Maiden’s Riddle | Gin + Tonic + Prestidigitation (roll random mental effect), fail spread = rounds of presti effect | served in an inverted question mark with a cork as the dot
	+ [13] Silver Snake | Tequila based drink (bitter tasting drink, has a bite as soon as it hits your stomach) served in a clear/pristine glass that lets you see the red with a silver “snake” of dye. Meant to be chased by Citron Ver Fantaisie Koolet.
	+ SO MUCH PASTRY:
		- Boysenberry Griffin-claws
		- Fried Crème Pastry
* Rumors

## Shops

### Summit Banking Guild

* Exchanging gold and Wingeldigits

* They all go by the name “banker” because dragons can’t be bothered to learn human names
	+ Willingness to haggle (0-10): 0
	+ Exchanges at the standard exchange rate of 1 standard WD for 10 GP

### Decorator’s Shop

* Have your den decorated in a way that shows off your hoard to it’s maximum effect!

* Shopkeeper Name - Lilac, a gem dragonborn who weaves flowers into her horns
	+ Willingness to haggle (0-10) - 3, typically just performs the service for a flat fee of WD she can use to spruce up her own den with a variety of cyphers

### Smith’s Shop

* Custom armor and metalworking from an Ancient Gold Dragon

* Shopkeeper Name - Smith, employs a staff of 3 Dragon Chosen (a dwarf and two humans)
	+ Willingness to haggle (0-10) 10, wants something for his hoard of good value, doesn’t have much of a head for numbers and gold, prefers artifacts and items