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Old 09-22-2018, 12:57 PM   #41
(E)
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
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Default Re: [GAME] Collaborative World Building Dwarven city as a start

Quote:
Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl View Post
Enough food to feed 30,000 people requires a minimum of 60,000 acres of arable land (fungi need a lot of biomass for production, so you really only gain diversity with mushrooms, never increased production), assuming two crops a year and a two field rotation (one acre fallow for every acre under production). In a mountainous area, you would be lucky to have 10% of the land being arable, and that is only with terrace farms, meaning that the city requires a minimum of 600,000 acres of territory. If we assume that they produce an excess as a hedge against poor crops to prevent famine, we increase it to 800,000 acres or 1,250 square miles.
The assumptions about the circumstances are listed further back in the thread. But quickly recapping, no crop rotation required for the type of grain used (Amaranth), for every pound of grain produced 10 pounds of undigestible biomass is produced, some of this supplies the fungal system. The potatoes are rotated and off the top of my head they produced 10 tonnes a hectare where grown in this example which has a terrible climate, irrigation, an intensive system, TL 5/6 fertilizer, very low pests and TL 2+1 genetics.

Question round up
Technical Question H: City's dimensions
How big is it?
What is its volume and floor area?
How large are Low Town, Mid Town and High Town, with what elevation between them?
How many levels do they each have, of what height?
What is the mountain's nominal diameter at those elevations?
Basically, what percentage of a mountain is it possible to hollow out horizontally and vertically before structural integrity is compromised?

Technical Question I: Demographics
What's the population then?
How does it compare to a medieval or pre-Renaissance city?
How does that work for the agricultural calculations?
What's the population density?
How many people do what jobs?
This site (Medieval Demographics) has some gaming related calculations.

Technical Question J: Dwarf Physiology
What's the life expectancy and reproductive rate of our dwarves?
How does that feed into Question I?

Question 9 (Continued)
Please provide names for:
- the mountain
- maybe the nearby lakes and waterways, particularly the mountaintop heated lake and the lowland lake which limits the city's lower boundary
- any other notable features

Question 10B
Are there more unrecognized guilds?

Question 12
Money. What is it, and who mints it?

Question 18
What goods is it necessary for the city to import? And are there any foreign luxuries that are particularly in demand?
(sulphur mentioned)

Question 19
What else can be said about these or other historic events, why are they important or memorable?

The living corruption (Dibbed by Daigoro)
The halfblood dominion
The quickening princess
The rise of the first empire of man
The fall of the high elves

Question 20
What nation shares Knurlkyth’s heavily forested southern border?

Question 21
What are current Twilight-Elf and Dwarf relations like? What are their friction points? How do they avoid pogroms and discrimination? How similar are their cultures?

Question 22
Can Dwarves interbreed with other races?

Question 23
Why is the spiral tunnel overbudget and delayed?
(Guild of the Plumb industrial action mentioned
)
Question 24
What does Knurlkyth do without a royal family to adopt Weirdwrights to directly serve the city?

Question 25
What was wagered on the outcome of knurl and Lornegei's bet?

Questions 27
Who are the city's uncultured enemies?

Question 28(2)
Given all that, which dwarves handle the sacred architecture/geomancy of Knurlkyth, and what secrets does that hide?

Question 30 - Guild of the Plumb's transgression
What's the historical reason for the guild losing its full status? And why are they usually denied reinstatement, especially when the Guild of Glassworkers - hardly even craftsmen!! - have a seat on the bench? And is there a compromise that could be reached to get them back to work?

Question 31 - League of the Boot's reputation
What opinion do most dwarves have about their far-trading mercantile brethren?
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Last edited by (E); 09-22-2018 at 09:35 PM.
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Old 09-22-2018, 08:59 PM   #42
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Default Re: [GAME] Collaborative World Building Dwarven city as a start

Quote:
Originally Posted by (E) View Post
Question 18
What goods is it necessary for the city to import? And are there any foreign luxuries that are particularly in demand?
(sulphur mentioned)
I think fine glasswork is implied, and books and paper for all this archiving and mapmaking would be necessary.
Quote:
(I'm presuming Question 28 (2) is answered)
Well, the Guild of the Plumb are the surveyors and cartographers, not the architects or designers, and nothing's been said about their handling or the secrets of sacred geometry. There could be a link between that though, and their loss of status. Perhaps the guild has a cabal of geometers who like to move survey lines around to make buildings match the Golden Mean.

Quote:
Originally Posted by (E) View Post
Revised food calculations, High altitude terraces
5,000 tonnes of animal protein (fish...
Was this meant to be fish only? Are the other animals not part of the high terrace system?
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Last edited by Daigoro; 09-22-2018 at 09:05 PM.
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Old 09-22-2018, 09:42 PM   #43
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Default Re: [GAME] Collaborative World Building Dwarven city as a start

Answer 12
Money. What is it, and who mints it?

There are two main classes of currency used in Knurlkyth. Most dwarven cities and nations use a similar system.

The first class of currency is somewhat typical coinage using gold, silver, copper as well as a few alloys. Some rarer coins are also made of more than one metal. Dwarven coins all have the shape of a golden rectangle and their thickness is 1/10th their width. This makes checking for clipped coins relatively simple provided you have other coins to check them against. There is also a variety of milling styles used on the edges that mean is it possible to identify a coin by touch. These features and the generally high quality of dwarven coinage have made the currency quite valuable throughout the world as it is trusted more than other currencies. To maintain this perceived value the higher value coins are manufactured by craftmagi goldsmiths if they are available. In Knurlkyth a First Coinwright is appointed by the combined vote of all the benches of government with the Guild of the Smelter overseeing the nominees. The First Coinwright is responsible for dealing with counterfeiting and operates with support and soldiers from the Guild of the Gate.

The second class of currency is rarer and is closer to an annual share issue than a true currency. Each of the tokens originally represent a small percentage of a mines output. For the last several centuries the use has become more widespread and the tokens are used by other industries and trades. Disputes and issuing are handled by the Guild of the Gate within Knurlkyth.

Alterations to the alloys of the coins mean each coin is 1/5th the value of the next larger coin, with the highest denomination coins being of impeccable purity.
Bryn (large gold coin) = G$1000
Urim (large Silver) = G$50
Izor (large copper) = G$5

Question 32

Who is the current First Coinwright? Is there anything else of note about them?

I've cleaned up my earlier errors, the animal protein was the total for the high altitude terraces and related indoor production
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Old 09-24-2018, 07:55 AM   #44
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Default Re: [GAME] Collaborative World Building Dwarven city as a start

Quote:
Originally Posted by johndallman View Post
Question 27
Who are the city's uncultured enemies?
Uncultured Enemies
Answer 27a - Cowerbolds

Cowerbolds (sometimes called Cowerbolts, Koerbolts or Kebbelts, leading to vibrant discussions of correct terminology; also called Skaierbats in older texts), while rarely encountered, are considered the traditional foe of dwarves. They live in deep, deep subterranean complexes and worship their King Cricket.

Their terrier-like faces are black around the snout and eyes, changing to a yellow to brown fur across the rest of their faces. Their bodies are partially hairless, with a bluish, leathery skin, but with crests or manes of hair running along their shoulders and limbs, and down their spine and tail.

Cowerbolds speak in tongue trills, clicks and chirps, sounding much like crickets with a phlegmy cough. Cowerbold weird-shapers are said to be able to shapeshift into other humanoid races, and they often get the blame for mining mishaps, miscast swords or when the forge fire splutters out.

They are variously considered to be afraid of water, have an aversion to it or be harmed by it. Thus, a common response to being treated unfairly or maliciously is to splash your interlocutor in the face with the nearest available water or ale to "check you waisn't no unfeckled kebbelt!"

-----
By the byes, question 7 is also still standing:
Quote:
Question 7
Like Knurl, the elven warmaster Lornegei founded a community to prove his side of the argument, namely that a perfectly trained but poorly armed warrior was superior to a poorly trained but perfectly armed warrior. What was the nature of this community, and how did it perish?
-----
And thence,
Question 33
Whereof dragons in the realm?

Question 34
Describe 5 important figures in the city.
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Old 09-24-2018, 09:07 AM   #45
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Default Re: [GAME] Collaborative World Building Dwarven city as a start

Quote:
Originally Posted by Apollonian View Post
Question 7
Like Knurl, the elven warmaster Lornegei founded a community to prove his side of the argument, namely that a perfectly trained but poorly armed warrior was superior to a poorly trained but perfectly armed warrior. What was the nature of this community, and how did it perish?
It was set up as an elven forest community, but hit problems early on with the number of inhabitants that were too busy with training warriors and supporting the trainers to help manage the forest. Forced to import metals, and some of its food, the community struggled to make a living, since the only thing it had to export was marvellously trained, but overconfident warriors. Eventually it developed schisms over the nature of "perfect training," and disbanded. However, its warriors had given significant credibility to Lornegei's theory.

Last edited by johndallman; 09-24-2018 at 09:09 AM. Reason: Additions
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Old 09-24-2018, 09:08 AM   #46
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Default Re: [GAME] Collaborative World Building Dwarven city as a start

Answer 34 (a)
Kruknik "Elf-Heir" Donk. This middle-aged dwarf isn't particularly fond of elves (don't ask why unless you want to face his warhammer) and therefore resents his nickname, although it is a name well known and respected in and around Knurlkyth. He is a weaponmaster, and a guild member of high standing in the Lodge of the Untrained, which some people find ironic due to his philosophy that it while it may be good to be supremely equipped, you should know how to use your gear. It was his outspoken adherence to this philosophy that gained him the nickname. He has spent most of his adult life as a teacher of weaponcraft.

Answer 34 (b)
Gold-Caller Tonna Gobbak. She has barely reached adulthood, but has already made a name for herself. The Guild of the Auger, of which she is a member, knows her as an exceptional Weirdwright with a particular talent for finding ore veins deep in the rock. Outside of the guild, she is primarily known for her political ambitions. She believes that the Weirdwrights should have their own seat on the Workers' Bench (and that she should be the one to occupy it), and spends most of her time campaigning for "The Cause". She is very charismatic, and is adept at vividly describing her grand ideas for Knurlkyth, which makes her a star among the general population. There are rumors that the powers-that-be are trying to silence her. That may or may not be true, but she knows how to use the rumors to gain popularity.
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Old 09-24-2018, 09:23 AM   #47
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Default Re: [GAME] Collaborative World Building Dwarven city as a start

Quote:
Originally Posted by johndallman View Post
It was set up as an elven forest community, but hit problems early on with the number of inhabitants that were too busy with training warriors and supporting the trainers to help manage the forest. Forced to import metals, and some of its food, the community struggled to make a living, since the only thing it had to export was marvellously trained, but overconfident warriors. Eventually it developed schisms over the nature of "perfect training," and disbanded. However, its warriors had given significant credibility to Lornegei's theory.
While I also envisioned their school ending in various philosophical divisions, note that they survived long enough to be incorporated into the city's power structure, with a seat for the Lodge of the Unarmed on the Workers' Bench. Unless that was only an honorary title right from the beginning?
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Old 09-24-2018, 09:30 AM   #48
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Default Re: [GAME] Collaborative World Building Dwarven city as a start

Answer 34 (c)
Truthkeeper. Truthkeeper owns one of the largest inns in Knurlkyth, situated near the middle level entrance to the external highway to the upper level. He requires all of his guests to make an entry in his "Book of Truth" if they want to spend the night. The entry must be a Truth, a sentence or short paragraph stating some fact that the writer must believe he doesn't know. In addition to the book at the bar, he has an extensive library of filled ledgers that patrons may peruse at their leasure. Mostly the Truths are uninteresting, like "Howal bought new shoes today", but there are some gold nuggets as well, like scientific facts and cooking recipes. Once, a few years ago, a criminal was convicted based on a confession someone had found in the Book of Truth. Not many people know Truthkeeper's birth name, but it's probably in the Books somewhere.
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Old 09-24-2018, 09:30 AM   #49
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Default Re: [GAME] Collaborative World Building Dwarven city as a start

Question 19.1
What else can be said about these or other historic events, why are they important or memorable?
The rise of the first empire of man


Almost two thousand years ago, in the eastern expanse, the first Human cities flourished. Along the fertile rivers, slaves toiled to provide the cities with food, who in turn provided their rulers with gold, silk, and other riches. From their commanding spires, armed with bronze and their own weird powers, the immortal god-kings ruled their cities at turns with an iron fist and benignly. They fought wars for their own unguessable purposes, distributed grain in famines, put down slave uprisings brutally, cured plagues, and slowly wore away at the nomads who roamed the expanse.

One day, in the city of Khrendrell (its original name has long since been forgotten), their ruler died. The priest-bureaucrats, terrified at what would happen because of their failure, hid this fact for many years. Cracks began to form, as they were unable to properly improvise and could not address the growing crises that faced their city. Emboldened by their failures, the Khren took the city after a three week siege.

Under Khren rule, slavery was replaced by a form of serfdom, and a code of laws was created. The nomads began to settle into rule over the city, and things began to normalize. The decay and rot was undone, and the city began to return to a relative prosperity.

The other god-kings were terrified by the development. They made numerous anemic attempts to retake the city. All failed because they lacked experience in siege warfare. However, the Khren were unable to sally forth themselves, and standoff ensued.

This was broken when a small cadre of dwarves of the guild of smelters came to Khrendrell. The dwarves had discovered a rich vein of iron nearby, and offered to provide with quality iron weapons and armor for a small fee. They were paid their price, and soon, the Guard of the Horse were given some of the finest weapons they ever saw. This pleased Ketren Tem Jin. His armorers claimed they could produce comparable weaponry, so he sent the dwarves away.

The weapons were not comparable in the slightest. They were in many ways inferior their previous bronze weapons. However, the weapons were very, very cheap, allowing a much larger army to be raised for a far lower price. Using human wave tactics, the Khren were able to sweep across the eastern expanse, taking city after city. In the wake of this great threat, the god-kings panicked and fled.

Having conquered the whole of the Eastern Expanse, Tem Jin was proclaimed Surketren, king of kings, ruler of rulers and pushed onwards to conquer all the lands that surrounded the expanse. The petty cities were reorganized under an imperial banner, named the Empire of Man, man ruling mankind, and never again others ruling mankind. When the Imperial armies came to Knurlkyth, Tem Jin remembered how his life was saved by his Dwarven chest plate in a number of battles, so it was left alone.

Question 35
Where did the God-kings go?

Question 36
Did the Empire of Man fall? If so, how? If not, how did it prove so enduring?

Question 37
Are relations between dwarves and man all that cordial?
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Old 09-24-2018, 10:24 AM   #50
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Answer 34 (d)
Gronn Arkan. There lies a small inn deep inside the poorest quarter of Knurlkyth, a three-storied building standing crookedly where three roads meet. Each floor has exactly three rooms, and Gronn Arkan (the innkeeper) and his two serving girls decorate the inn with all sorts of bad omens. Nobody in their right mind would dream of going for a drink there, let alone stay the night, but somehow the inn still stands, and Gronn is able to pay the staff regularly.

Gronn claims to represent a small group of fixers, called The Nine, whose slogan is "we square away your bad luck". Most people don't believe in The Nine, but the stories about them are widespread. Some stories claim that they are a group of Weirdwrights who move about Knurlkyth in secret, destroying the bad energy that accumulates around places of three. Others say that The Nine are a group of assassins. What all the stories agree on, is that if you feel cursed with bad luck, you can go to Gronn Arkan for help. That is, if you dare enter The Third Curse Inn.
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Character sheet: Google Drive link (See this thread for details.)

Campaign logs: Chaotic Pioneering / Confessions of a Forked Tongue
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