Post by Elric on Jan 30, 2015 17:13:11 GMT
Description
Mistwatch, the Capital City of Mallaston rests at the base of the Bluemist Mountains and is a steam-powered city centered on knowledge and engineering. A fleet of airships patrol the skies above the many skyscrapers and factories. It is not uncommon to see automatons walking the streets here. In fact many of the ruling council have had their minds transferred into mechanical bodies.
History
The Dominion of Mallaston was originally formed by Fredrick Mallast as a colony of Espladar. Mallast ran a small mill on the southern edge of the Kingdom of Espladar. Tired of attempting to hold back the wicked drow elves he sought a new life for his family. They traveled north until they reached the edge of a great lake in the shadow of the Bluemist Mountains. Fredrick considered it the perfect place for their new colony but some of the other clans insisted on continuing north. They stayed and built a small colony and began attempting to farm the land. The first few years they were only able to grow enough to sustain their population as the ground was quite dry but soon a messenger from Espladar arrived insisting they pay tribute to their homeland.
They claimed independence nearly 600 years ago when the Old Kingdom began to crumble. This separation incited a war between Mallaston and their sister colony of Brance. The people of Mallaston were supremely intelligent but their military strength was far less than that of Brance. The Mallastonians fled from the approaching army taking refuge in the Bluemist Mountains. However, they soon found the mountains were not necessarily a better option. The forest was full of dangerous beasts and poison berries, not to mention the jagged rocks and as the name suggests dense fog. They continued making their way through the dangerous mountain pass thinking the Brancians would hesitate to follow them. This is when the Dominion of Mallaston made first contact with some unlikely allies.
They came to a lake that stood in the shadow of a great mountain. High up and just barely noticeable several doors and balconies were carved into the rock. They made camp be the lake and after several days dwarves appeared and offered them sanctuary. The fortress of Dhem Kolduhr became the Mallastonians home for the next several months. There was a great exchange of knowledge between the technologically advanced and mathematically minded dwarves and the Mallastonians with their limited knowledge of the arcane and mastery of alchemy. Eventually the Brancians came after them and were lured into traps set by the Mallastonians that were rigged with dwarven demolition explosives. The Mallastonians were able to keep the Brancian army at bay until the kingdom of Espladar fell and brance too declared itself independent.
The Mallastonians made their way back to the colony and rebuilt it keeping everything the dwarves of Dhem Kolduhr had taught them in mind. They built irrigation systems to increase their usable farmland and a condensed city that was filled with tall skyscrapers and surrounded by a large wall.People
The ruling Council of Mallaston is made up mostly of inventors and leaders of industry. Many have chosen to become automatons in an attempt to extend their appointment to power far beyond the intended limit. While the elected president is supposed to have veto power over them this is currently not the case as President Watts is constantly under threat of assassination.
The Dwarves of Dhem Koldhr are a technically advanced culture that live in a keep hidden deep in the mountains. These allies were the source of much of the Mallastonian's knowledge although the innovative nature of the people of Mistwatch is unrivaled.
Technology
Many spectacular inventions occurred over the next few hundred years. The most notable was the invention of the automaton. The first automaton was a metal body created by engineer and given an artificial mind by a powerful mage. These first automatons were considered to be property as they were not truly people. In the last one hundred years mages discovered how to place a human mind into a mechanical construct allowing a person to live indefinitely. This process was very expensive and only the most elite businessmen and inventors could afford the process. this has resulted in a president and ruling council that is made up almost entirely of automatons. These council people rarely change seats. Most humans in Mallaston would consider themselves to be middle class with the artificial automatons serving as factory workers and soldiers.