Serraine
| Status | Free City |
| Government | Democracy (of a sort) |
| Location | Various, about 1.5 miles up |
| Area | 0.3 Square Miles or ~200 Acres |
| Geography | City on a flying island |
| Population | ~2,000 Sky-Gnomes ~400 Vanara |
| Urbanisation | 100% |
| Languages
Skycommon |
95% |
| Exports | Gnomish mechanisms, cut gems, magical training, knowledge |
| Imports | Food, leather, cloth, ore, uncut gems |
Overview
Behold the marvellous city of Serraine. If it is splendour you seek, look to the lustrous timbers, shimmering metals, and gleaming marbles of the Flying City. Serraine, wonder of the age! - Serraine Traveller’s Guidebook
A gnomish city build atop a floating island, the Flying City Serraine is outfitted with techno-magical devices that allow it to move around freely, and hover over places of interest. The city frequents areas where it has cultivated commercial agreements but occasionally heads further afield in search of new trade partners. The city imports raw materials and large amounts of food, and sells complex gnomish mechanisms and some of the finest cut gems and jewellery anywhere on Alusia. It also boasts a prestigious library, and a number of entertainments for visitors.
Despite its size, and the moderate height at which it floats, the city is virtually impossible to spot from the ground as the underside is enchanted with magics similar to illusory terrain and its supporting island is surrounded by clouds.
History
Details of Serraine's earliest history are not well known, or perhaps not shared outside of a select group.
What is known, is that the oldest parts of the city date back over 1,200 years and are not originally from Alusia. The floating island to which the city is affixed is Alusian, suggesting that the earliest incarnation of the city was entirely artificial in structure.
The first reliable account of Serraine in Alusian airspace comes from Alfheim and dates its first contact with the elves back nearly 800 years.
Serraine is known to have traded with the Old Western Kingdom but stopped visiting the region circa 500 WK as the political situation destabilized. For the last 300 years the city has treated Alfheim as its westernmost stop and traded extensively in central and central-south Alusia.
The city returned to the West briefly in 790 WK where its military was employed by a group of druids in a violent clash with the Vicomte de Vole. In the aftermath of the Vicomte's death Serraine was pronounced unwelcome in Bowcourt, an edict that still stands and the city again left western Alusia. In 823 WK a Guild party rescued a group of downed Serraine flyers earning the gratitude of the gnomes and marking a new attempt to reestablish trade in the west.
Places of Interest
General
- Customs
- Maybe not a place of great interested but the first place most of you will see as when you arrive and need to get a Visitor pass. Taxes will be levied on goods being brought in to trade.
- Information Centre
- Want to find something special on Serraine? Need to get in contact with a Master Artisan? Whether you are seeking training, trade, or tchotchkes the knowledgeable gnomes at the Information Centre can steer you right.
- Skychair network
- The fastest and funnest way to get around Serraine. Go up the elevator at one of the Skychair stops and wait for the next carriage to come swinging by. Pay your penny and go anywhere in the city, or just watch the sights and come all the way back to where you left. Please hold on tightly at all times and keep all limbs you care about inside the carriage.
- Plaza of Triump
- Miltary parade ground that is also used for fairs and celebrations. Pegataurs sometimes perform flybys and may joust in the air over the square.
- Council & Watch
- City Council chambers and City Watch HQ.
Merchantile Areas
- Merchants Row
- Goods to fit any budget and souvenirs to meet all tastes. Pre-made goods, generally on the less expensive end (for Serraine). Also sellers of fresh and preserved foods.
- Gemeye Market
- Higher-end off-the-peg items, also used as the trade outlet for some of the master crafters so some custom work can be ordered. Bring a comfortably large purse and be prepared for high prices.
- Artisan's Quarter
- Many master artisans work in the area and live over their workshops. This is the place to come if you are looking for bespoke items and the prices reflect the skills of the masters.
Living Areas
These areas comprise the living quarters of most Serraine residents. While there are walkways through most of these areas not all will be welcoming to tourists.
- Skyhold Estates
- Housing for Serraine's wealthiest citizens, some holdings even boast small gardens. A few very specialized artisans live and have workshops here. Most of the nagpa live here.
- Gnome Quarter / Artisan's Quarter
- Both of these areas are populated mostly by Sky-Gnomes and although the Artisan's Quarter has more workshops and the Gnome Quarter fewer there is little else to differentiate the two. The population also includes some vanara, humans, and elves.
- Suncrest Spires
- Tall buildings, many with doorways above ground level. The Spires are home to the city's pegataur population and are difficult to navigate without wings.
- Emberhold
- Crowded lower-end housing for less wealthy "working class" gnomes along with some humans, harpies, vanara, and ogres.
- Shadow Reach
- The closest the city comes to slums. If you are down-and-out in Serraine this is where you end up. Up to six stories of Shadow Reach buildings are underground. The city's gremlin population lives here as does most of those nagpa not in the Skyhold Estates; nagpa tend towards either the top or the bottom of the social heap.
- Cloudhaven
- Home to the Vanyarami and a few elves.
- Riddles End
- Secluded and fortified home of the handful of Sphinxes that make Serriane their home. Visitors are warned not to enter this area without invitation.
- Mistclad Tower
- Over 100 feet high this enormous tower is home to the city's sole Cloud Giant resident.
Education
- Science Park
- "Pay a six-pence to see the marvels of the age". The indoor-outdoor Science Park is a showcase for gnomish tinkering masterworks and boasts working examples of hundreds of gnomish contraptions ranging for small (but working) scale-models up to full-sized industrial machines. Exhibits include a fully automated barber's chair, shoe shine machine with (usually) optional leg shaving, and a fully operational disintegration chamber - kept behind a safety rope and with a sign advising against its use. There are rides for children including air-slides, individual tumbling columns, and a miniature steam train. Gnomish assistants are on hand in case of malfunctions.
- Museum of Gnomish Crafts
- A rather tired collection of older examples of artisan masterworks now overshadowed by the Science Park. As there are still some very good examples of gem-cutting and jewellery crafting security is kept up-to-date.
- Museum of Culture
- A small museum devoted to the history of Serraine itself.
- Onyx Tower
- Serraine's magical training academy.
- The Great Library
- "Serraine's Glory". The top of the library is soars hundreds of feet above street level and the centre section has 14 stories above the ground floor. The east and west wings only have 8 stories above ground, but the whole building has another 4 stories below ground, and there are rumoured to be other sub-basements that only the senior librarians know. Most of the ground floor is taken up by the library's vast and ridiculous complicated catalogue. Visitors are welcome of browse and even copy texts (the library sells pens, inks, etc, or full copyist services if desired) but only residents who have been issued a library card are permitted to borrow volumes.
Entertainment
- The Glittersteps
- Rising 80 feet above street level with flat areas at the east and west ends, visitors to the Glittersteps don't need to climb, but only will themselves to ascend or descend. The flat areas offer a place to rest, and watch younger and more energetic companions in the Tumbling Fields.
- Tumbling Fields
- A large area of variable gravity with a ceiling of 200 feet. There are reverse and null gravity areas and any impact with the ground, walls or other visitors is gentle and harmless. Many young gnomes and vanara can be found here climbing, diving, swooping, and shrieking with delight as they practice flying in a safe environment. Doors are located at the east and west ends, and it is possible to walk out slowly after touching down. Admission is 1 penny with no time limit.
- Hanging Gardens
- Examples of many plants that can live at Serraine's one-and-a-half mile altitude. There are also unusual plants that live in the air. Gnome, pegataur, and vanara druids work here, and some vanara live in the area.
- Picnic Fields
- A gently scented flowering meadow where visitors can find a quiet place to relax from the city's more energetic pursuits. Many ready-to-eat food vendors can be found at peak times.
- Lake Glitterlode
- Water runs uncharacteristically uphill on the east side of the lake before reaching 80 feet and then coming back down as a waterfall. The lake is part of Serraine's water supply and the waterfall helps keep it fresh. Pedal boats can be hired and fishing licences are available from the Council offices.
- Wind Organ
- Air is funneled through the Wind Organ by the placement and shape of the Cloudhaven buildings. Complex stops and valves allow the Vanyarami to create haunting and ethereal sounds. Multiple organists are required and public performances are well advertised and attended.
- Crystal Colonnades
- When the Wind Organ is playing these tall columns of translucent crystal vibrate with the sounds. Touching a crystal causes one's bones to resonate in addition to hearing the sounds providing an unusual and visceral to experience music.
