Quartz 5

Frozen Furnace

3 min read

History & Lore

The Frozen Furnace is one of the most important cities in the history and culture of the Republic. It was the first city the Republic ever built, and in a sense it marks the founding of the Republic itself, for it was raised at almost the same moment the final accords were signed that united the great tribes. It was established by the expedition of the leader who unified those tribes, and was literally hewn into the mountains, in a region so perilous it was extremely hard to reach.

Most of the city lies underground, yet it stands taller than any other city in the world, because the mountains there are colossal. As the capital, it holds all the great seats of government, and the Stone Laws - the central code by which Lexalian justice is administered - are carved into many of the very rocks that make up the city. The whole place is threaded with tiny tunnels that vent furnace-smoke, for the entire city was once a single great smithy and mine; it is therefore always relatively warm, and it is almost impossible to escape the din of furnaces and smiths.

It is the single largest weapons-manufacturing centre in the world, and beyond weaponry there is also a great deal of artistic smithing - though that craft earns comparatively little social respect in the culture. The city is held sacred to the Norse gods of the forge, Eitri and Brokkr, which is unusual, since they are not especially powerful gods - in truth they were never gods at all, but were granted that station by the other gods in thanks for the gifts they crafted for them.

The Frozen Furnace keeps a largely symbiotic relationship with the surrounding tribes: it provides shelter, equipment and magical services, and receives food, information and trade in return. As a rule the city is hard to find without guidance, and it carries a genuinely legendary status. It is said that the heat within it comes from its having been carved into an ancient dragon; that monsters roam the branching corridors and winding tunnels that make it up; that the heat and the metals seep into the very food; and that those who grow up in the city grow up immune to injury and to cold.

General Information

Etymology

Size and Structure

Demography

Furnaceborn

On rare occasions (0.03% of births), children of Children are born as Red Dragonborn. This is due to the presence of the World Dragon the city is built into, whose sheer presence alters the bodies of those who live in the city.

Economy

Income Routes

Taxes

Imports and Exports

Rulership

Guards, Laws and Military Presence

Crime

Organizations

Religion

Culture

Inns, Shops and Magical Services

Inns

Shops

Magical Services

Points of Interest

Important People

Settlements

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Backlinks

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