I, Strider Al’Terra will humbly attempt to enlighten your reading with my words and my wisdom. I cannot claim to be right, but as a member of House Toevass I can tell you that all information to follow is as true as I can verify. I have interspersed my own journals and impression of these lands alongside as much factual information as needs to be conveyed in an attempt not to bore you.
June 993
At long last the shining city of Silverthorn lies ahead of me. I cannot believe the size and granduer of this place. The clear blue waters of the bay etched against the stark black volcanic rock of the seashore, with pillars of obsidian rising like grasping claws from the still waters will forever be ethced into my memory. Not to mention the dazzling splendor of the castle, her white marble towering hundreds of spans into the air before the great silver falls.
She is magnificent and utterly beautiful, and I think that no city in the world could now campare to this majesty. It is truly the silver city and a great pride to our nation.
May fate grant that I shall someday see the inside of her palace and even meet the royal family. Such would be a proud day for any orphan and myself most of all.
There are so very many people here. The press of the crowd makes me feel confined and trapped. I have twice lost my purse, woe to the poor thief who discovers it empty of all save a few stones that I collected in my travels.
I was accosted by a guard bearing papers of litigation, who claimed that as a member of the city guard he outranked me and could order me to a post here. I informed him that I was carrying post on the behest of the great Duke Kendal, and the man sneared at me and called me a liar! To think that anyone could be so unfriendly in the midst of such splendor.
This place with all its people and conflicting interests is getting to me. I know now what is different about these people from those at the frontier. Here there are not the physical dangers to keep a man occupied so instead he creates mental ones. They intrigue and politic, eating away at the fabric of their own society. I much prefer an honest fight, at least then I know my enemy.
Location
The capital city of Silverthorn is situated on the volcanic slopes of the Bay of Thorns where the great Silver River makes its way into the ocean from the distant inner sea. Pillars of black volcanic stone rise in hulking monoliths from the bay, or lurk just beneath its surface, making navigation a treacherous and fearful profession.
Appearance
The great city itself rises in several tiers set back into the stone walls of the black cliffs on the West side of the silver river. Each tier is consecutively more elegant and rifined than the one below, ending in great towers and palaces near the cliff’s rim. Several thousand years of evolutionary empires and various races have all left their mark on the cityscape, leaving buildings, devices and artwork behind after they have long vanished. The city is dotted with numerous statues and relics of times long before the humans who occupy her slopes now.
On the opposite side of the bay from the city rises the great citadel of Silverthorn’s hereditary rulers. Built more than two hundred years ago by gnomish engineers, the graceful towers loom high into the sky, rising to overshadow all others and peak above the cliff rim and into the upper kingdom.
Connecting city and citadel is a great span of glittering metal, joined with alchemical bonds by the same gnomes who built the castle. The bridge spans the entire two mile width of the Silver River and its great falls in a single arch. This miracle of engineering has stood for over a hundred and fifty years as a symbol of faith and goodwill between Gnomes and humans.
Ecology of the Great City
Here in the capital, bureaucracy reigns supreme. Each guild, house, noble and family has its litigator, and everything from moving to joining a trading company requires the proper paperwork and seals. The underworld element is largely controlled, and consists of several ‘families’ of criminals. Some say a secret police is responsible for keeping the violent crimes down, by killing the criminals.
Much of Silverthorn’s survival relies on trade. The city has grown to enormous proportions over the last two hundred years and requires large amounts of food and trade to support itself. As such the merchants house has been growing steadily in influence.
Important People
The below people are not generally landed or well landed, their rank is for court purposes. In general a landed noble of equal rank will hold more sway though there are exceptions.
Line of Graymere, Thanes:The line of Graymere has long been responsible for the maintenance of customs and watching over the comings and goings of the city. It is said not a cricket can enter the city without the Thane allowing it. However, unless the person is under warrant, Silverthorne is a free city and even peasants may come and go as they choose.
Line of Durack, Thanes:For one hundred and twelve years the line of Durack have been producing the chief heralds for the court of Silverthorne. The children are trained from birth in languages, literature, memory skills and recitation. Generally well respected and treated, because one does NOT see the king without his permission.
Line of Linfen, Baronial: The Baron Linfen is currently chancelor of the court and responsible for arranging all sessions, schedules, and audiences. He also supervises court finance and etiquette.
Line of Kormazon, Baronial: The Baron Kormazon is in charge of the royal guard and the security of Silverthorne. Kormazon has been granted title to lands beyond the Crescent Mountains providing he can hold them against the orcs. As of yet this hasn’t happened.
Line of Tebedier, Thanes: The Thane Tebedier is Admiral of the Kings fleet, small though it may be. Currently consisting only of a few galleys and coasters, the fleet is kept busy repelling pirates from the valued coastal baronies.
Important Facilities offered by the city
The great library of Silverthorn: The library situated in the city proper is the largest known public repository of knowledge in the world. It contains several floors of texts available to public use as well as numerous subterainean levels of archives and relics kept for official use by authorized people (House Toevass). All citizens of the country are permitted to use the library, though there are a few prerequisites before obtaining texts. All people must wash their hands and dry them before leaving the anteroom. No text may be taken from the library, and any future works based on library texts must contain the proper recognition for the previous text. The librarians are very stringent about these rules and have even been known to press charges against nobles who violated them.
The Royal Academy: Here any man or woman of noble birth may receive training at the king’s expense in the arts of peace and war. Several languages, arithmetic, navigation, and strategy are all counseled for a modest fee.
The Great Locks: During the construction of the city and its magnificent castle a second great work was undertaken. Excavation lasted nearly one hundred years and the foundries of the fledgling Kingdom were busy for a decade more in preparing the massive system of floodgates and channels that enable ships to be raised the hundred of vertical feet above the bay and into the silver river. The locks stretch several miles upriver in order to avoid the devastating pull of current that could easily send even the most seasoned crew to their doom.
Though they are carved through the solid rock of the volcanic rim, in great tunnels which tower high enough to avoid even the tallest masts, added precautions have been taken to ensure the security of the city from above. The locks can be fully flooded, locking any within inside a watery grave. They also are constructed with mirrored glass and crystal to provide adequate lighting at all hours of the day to those who seek trade from the Inner Sea to the Bay of Thorns