The Borderlands: Mithvale (...so far)

South of the grey mists and black shores of Zholtovka, north-east of the cursed Lake of Gold, and just a sliver to the west of the Howling Mountains, nestled between the Mith and the Demorna Mountains sits the Mithvale. Mithvale was once a prosperous dwarven kingdom established shortly after the Wyrd Wars and famed for its craftsmanship, its industry, and its army of "tin soldiers". It stood as one of the shining kingdoms in the Age of Wonder, but dwarven prosperity never lasts and all that shines fades. Mithvale's wonders were nearly lost to the first dark age. Giants invading from the north demolished the defenses of the dwarves, crushing their armies, looting their treasures for their own vanity, erasing dwarven innovation and enslaving the survivors of the invasion. Mithvale would've faded into the stuff of legends if not for the recent reclamation of the ancient city of Mithrak.

 NEW MITHRAK: THE CITY OF PROGRESS

Two centuries ago, seven dwarven clans and thirteen gnomish familie left Rhyn-Durazar, fleeing from the draconic invasion of the Saesun Civil War, and took their combined fortunes and skills to rebuild in their ancestral homeland. These families were ambitious and industrious folk-- merchants, craftsmen, and investors, who after being failed by the leaderships of kings and priests, sought to build a new type of community atop the ruins of old Mithrak.

The twenty families formed powerful organizations, called The Urbzthrong in dwarven tongue or "clan conglomerates" in common tongue, that used their combined skills to craft and sell a number of cheaply priced but adequately produced & clan-branded products throughout Sublanarya. Each of these family corporations is overseen by Vithzars or, in common, "corporate lords". The city is structured to best serve the interests of the urbzthrong:

At the bottom of the city, the ancient dwarven ruins of old Mithrak have merged with the city's complex sewage system that transports waste out of the city. The sewer systems are operated by native ratfolk and other "undesirables" that are forced to live in the subterranean ghettos built into the ruined passage. On street level, the city is surrounded by a wall maintained by the urbzthrong's cooperation. Surrounding the wall are the outskirts, home to tent cities, cheap taverns, inns, stables and other basic services, resembling a border town that stretches around each side of the city, and provides for the needs of the corporate laborers and passersby. The gates of the city are guarded to allow and monitor the passage of laborers through the entertainment and business districts and into the industrial districts. 

The entertainment districts are home to bars, clubs, theaters, brothels that attract the coin of laborers and lords alike. This is district is commonly owned and controlled by criminal organizations & foreign guilds to act as a front for any number of unsavory practices. The business districts house smaller businesses that make their products and serve their customers on site. Most of these businesses do not own their properties and are either indebted or partially owned by one of the urbzthrong. The industrial district is home to a maze of massive factories and plants, with steam and smoke rising up and forming a permanent cloudy haze over the area, and is divided by the various urbzthrong. The laborers wear uniforms specific to the urbzthrong that owns their plant and each campus is guarded by corporate security.  These plants serve as the lifeblood of the city, drawing laborers from hundreds of miles away for the opportunity available, and producing everything from textiles to metalwork to food stuffs to weaponry for customers from Grand Saeffura to Undai.The wealthy management, the corporate lords, live in the central district. The central district, also called the Cloud District, is home to impressive "cloud scrapers', building that tower several stories above the pollution of the city. These elites look down upon the city below and rule with a golden fist.

There are no elected officials or laws in this city. Justice comes at the hands of corporate security, little better than mercenaries paid to represent the interests of the vithzar and wearing the colors of their prospective urbzthong, and but have little interest in the rights of the city's citizens. Their job is to maintain order, which means just as often tracking down thieves and apprehending murderers as it does cracking down on would-be unionization and unrest, and to serve as the personal army of the vithzar. Disputes between corporate lords or often resolved in shadow wars between these mercenaries that can end in literally hostile takeovers. Mithrak is a place where wealth and connections are power. But, recently, a revived ancient technology threatens the balance of power: the return of automatons.

Disputes between corporate lords are often resolved in shadow wars between mercenary groups that, in the past, end with literally hostile takeovers. Mithrak is a place where wealth and connections equal power. Recently, a revived technology of the ancient Mithrak dwarves has threatened the balance of power: automatons.

Automatons are artificial humanoids made of metal, wood, porcelain and magic. They were originally built to fight during the Wyrd Wars. each automaton is created by a combination of engineering, magic and a small spark of the divine: artificers build the bodies, mages concoct the the runic instructions that inform the automaton's programming, and the creators each add a little both of their souls to give the automaton life. Automatons are slaves built to do mundane, tedious and/or hard labor. They make excellent laborers due to their hardiness and their low cost of upkeep. They usually lack enough self-awareness or consciousness to question the commands of their masters or proests poor treatment. They can easily work in twenty hour shifts before needing a short four hour recharge. But not all automatons remain so simple...

Some automatons are "awake" and have become self-aware. Many of these automatons are immediately "decommissioned", effectively destroyed, upon discovery by their overseers but other owners allow these models to remain operational, giving them more complex jobs that fit their personalities, and some are even given some freedom to do as they please. But many oppose the use automatons wholesale.

Many laborers have found it harder and harder to find work as the workforce is automatized and believe this trend will just get worse. Others have ethical concerns about the creation of artificial life and fear an inevitable uprising from this physically superior slave class. Attacks on automatons and their creators have been undertaken by several groups but the corporate lords have crushed most rebellion and dissent. The vithzar do not believe they can continue to compete without taking advantage of the efficiency of automatons.

And despite all of the inequality, with the vithzar controlling everything and guaranteeing the continued success of their families, the city portends to be a bastion of freedom and equality. It does open its doors to everyone: goblinoids, half-orcs, and even kobolds can be found working in Mithrak. The best example of this is the Emerald Bank. It is most important banking institution of the entire continent, it is owned by a green dragon named Smaragdine and operated by goblins and kobolds.

The Urbzthrong

Of the 20 urbzthrong, gnomish and dwarvish "corporate clans" that rule Mithrak by controlling the various industries of the city of progress, some are more prolific than others. Here are some examples:

• The most powerful conglomerate in Mithrak is Forge Tech. This corporation is composed of the gnomish Tinktonk family & dwarven Brokenforge and Strongbeard clans. The Tinktonk and Brokenforge are the architects of New Mithrak. The Strongbeard were once a strong crime family and bring their skills in espionage, smuggling and security to strengthen the urbzthrong. They are also responsible for the innovation of incorporating automatons into their manufacturing and produce goods including: armor, building materials, tools, weaponry, and components such as wagon wheels and anchors. Their products can be found throughout the realm and are a favorite among merchants because, while low quality, they are cheap and widely available for restock.

• The Silver-Rings are a dwarf family that control a chain of mining operations throughout the northern continent and specialize in the crafting of high-quality jewelry. They have carried over these skills into the crafting of small pieces for clockwork and machinery. Their symbol, three interlocking rings, is a symbol of fine work respected by purveyors of luxuries and engineers alike. 

• The Button-Eyes uniquely earned a spot among the urbzthrong by being the only halfling family to earn the respect of the big families and controls much travel along the Ribbon River that winds throughout the valley. Impressively, they have managed to keep the city from building causeways carrying pollution into their river, often via sabotage, and have one of the cleanest waterways. The Ribbon River is a difficult river to fjord but they've managed to make it an invaluable route for shipping goods to and from Mithrak, Zholtovka, the Imperium and the dwarven holds to the west.

There are over a dozen other urbzthrong operating in the city today, competing to dominate their market, push out the competition and to expand their influence. And there are other forces at work in the back alleys and sidestreets that operate outside of the urbzthrong's influence.

Mithrak is the city of opportunity and progress. But it is not the only civilization to be found in Mithvale. 

THE MITH MOUNTAINS

The Mith Mountains stretch along the shores of the lake of Gold and serve as the southern border of the Mithvale. These mountains are formed of white and grey stone, tinged with green and red growth, and are a beautiful, wild but hospitable sight to the natives of Mithvale. Just over the mountains and past the passageways through it, are the temperate and jungle environments found in the Imperium, and all manner of exotic threat. Luckily, these threats are usually dealt with by the Imperians and dwarves serving at the Saint Gates.

In the shadow of these mountains, are numerous dwarven, human and gnomish settlements. While some exist as satellites or way points for the wagons and riverboats carrying goods from New Mithrak, others have managed to make a home here even before the reclamation of the city, and have their own storied pasts. Mostly agricultural or mining settlements, these small towns and villages have managed to survive and now thrive thanks to their remote location. They make good trade with the supply trains and merchants traveling to and from the city. Many of these settlements, much like Mithrak, are built on or nearby ancient settlements and ruins that are of interest to historians and treasure hunters alike.

But explorers should be weary of all manner of monster and goblinoid that have taken these ruins as their lairs.

 

THE LONELY MOUNTAINS OF DERMONA

Cold and lonely. Those are the words that describe the high peaks and deep crevices that form the land that the snow elves call "Demorna". The mountains of Demorna form the natural barrier between Mithvale and the Hold. They start in the foothills of the valleys that form the titular Mithvale and quickly steepen into the sides of the mountains that raise up and dominate the eastern horizon of the land. The mountains themselves are some of the tallest and most treacherous of Sublanarya, with frigid winds that quickly transform the slope into a canvas of white speckled with black stone that offers little refuge, and would seem inhospitable to all but the hardiest of creatures. And yet, some still manage to call these mountains home.

The Olossar
The snow elves of the lonely mountains made their home here during the first dark age and have isolated themselves ever since in the frozen peaks. They've adapted extremely pale white skin and hair to better blend into their environments and are shorter, stockier and hardier than their iaurdin cousins. They are known to spend their time focusing on survival and occupy themselves by crafting objects of beauty. Perhaps no peoples are better adapted or more knowledgeable of the secrets of these mountains.

They are known to hunt the orcs and other evil-doers who invade their mountains with extreme prejudice, help lost travelers indirectly and fiercely defend their mountains against under-elves who would enslave them.

Morgana La Fey, The Terrible and Magnificent
Lesser gods are known to walk among the borderlands of civilization. The goddesses of witchcraft, far from zealous priests and meddling mages, play out their feuds, wrestling with forces natural, divine and magic alike for power are not to be trifled with lightly. Their petty vengeance is legendary and perhaps, save Baba Yaga, none are more infamous for their inscrutable pettiness than Morgana La Fey.

Morgana was once a fey princess of some long-lost civilization that settled between the planes in the valley. There was a great calamity and that civilization, like so many civilizations of antiquity, was lost to time. Morgana remains as an immortal and terrible artifact of the Tuathans. Legends say the tuathans could take the form of animals and wielded great power. Some legends, spoken by the snow elves, say that tuathan refugees hide among the peoples of Mithvale. From what do they hide? Morgana.

Morgana makes her lair in the Raven Tower, high in the peaks of the lonely mountains, and looks down upon the Mithvale with a jealous interest. Her goals are indiscernible but her every action sends ripples throughout the realm. She commands a great host of orcs, goblinoids and barbarians that have fallen under her thrall and sets them to all manner of terrible tasks. Entire villages are wiped out by her army for refusing her requests, families are hunted down by mercenaries to be dragged back to her ebony tower for gods know what, and, to remind any who would forget who truly rules the realm, she takes the form of a great black feathered dragon and casts shadows over the homes of those that would call themselves lords and gods. Only a fool would refuse her.

UZKOLGAZT: THE NIGHT FOREST

To the north, bordering Zholtokva and Mithvale, is the dark and gloomy forest of Uzkolgazt. It is also called the Night Forest and stretched for hundreds of miles. The name comes from the density of the trees and the Northern winds that sweep storm clouds from the Dead Sea, across the neighboring swamplands, that perpetuate cold, damp and darkness in all but the height of the summer months when the forest becomes steeped in humidity. It has a notorious reputation thanks to its proximity to the supernatural horrors of Zholtovka and the orcish tribes that call it home. It is mostly avoided by humanoids but it would be foolish not to keep an eye on this contested region.

The Boarshead
Nago, the pig-headed demon prince of brutality, is known to manifest through the children of his worshipers. A scion, with a boar's head, was born and quickly rose to prominence. He slew all chieftains that opposed them and butchered their children until so many tribes fell under his thrall that he formed the largest orcish horde the continent had ever seen. Nago would've lead the horde on a path of destruction but he was challenged & slain by the orcish folkhero Smalldog (Smagund). But that did not completely stop the threat.

Nago's worshipers, his dark priests, salvaged the head and, using necromancy, manage to preserve and commune with the demonic boar's head. The Boarshead Cult manages to maintain a strong hold over the orcs of the region and stand as a threat to civilization should they ever mobilize past small raids.

 The Red & Blue Company
The goblins and bugbears that have settled into this region are often little more than scattered tribes scraping along from their cave and ruin homes. The Red & Blue Company, led by hobgoblins, stands as a prolific mercenary band that has taken the old dwarven fort of Azramidgal as their base of operations. The Red & Blue mostly engages in raids on the communities of Mithvale and into the Hold but do send small bands of warriors to seek employment as mercenaries. Their leader, Fulgrass, hopes to legitimize their services and looks for opportunities to build their reputation and warchest.

Otterlings
Even in the most hopeless places, there is hope.

These natives of the swamps of Zholtovka are a small race of aquatic muskelid humanoids resembling river otters. They have managed to survive in one of the cruelest environments of the realm by a mix of caution, cooperation and good fortune. They carefully monitor their waters for threats, quickly spreading information via their musical language, and avoid the prying eyes of would-be predators with ease. Many fisherman can spend years in the same waters without knowing they share them with entire communities of otterlings. 

Most people know otterlings from the few that get jobs aboard the Button-Eye trade-ships as navigators along the Ribbon River.