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Geography & Harbors

"Cadwallon lies across a vast peninsula. For strategic reasons the city occupies the whole stretch of land to allow for better surveillance of the waters lying on either side of it."

How the Free City sits on the land and water. Cadwallon spans a peninsula at the far north of Cynwäll / Lanever territory, deliberately occupying the entire stretch so it can watch the seas on both sides — and so it can shield the lands of Light from invasion by water.

The Lay of the Land

  • The peninsula — Cadwallon covers its whole width. West, the rocky windswept coast opens into a wide bay of sand and silt. The surrounding lands are fertile; harvests are abundant; magical groves grow year-round (and become scarce only beyond the [[Watching Tower]]).
  • The "little sea" — the Upper City engulfs the northern part of a lake the Cadwës call the little sea, next to the Garden of Desire. Recently a [[Marina]] was built; the wealthy keep piers and pleasure-boats; there's perennial talk of a regatta.
  • Dyrsin's Tower — the colossal Cynwäll spire that dominates everything. The upper city is built among its pillars; the lower city sprawls at its feet.
  • Beyond the walls — the Outskirts: Darkshore, the [[Watching Tower]], the Fangs of Vile-Tis, the Smoky Wisps funeral grounds, the Infinite Wisdom, the Wall of Earth, and the road south to Lanever.

The Three Sea Approaches

Cadwallon is reached by water three ways:

  1. Kraken Harbor (north) — the continent's biggest merchant port. Open-sea vessels dock here, "protected" by a squadron of goblin pirates. The main commercial gateway. From land, you walk, take a carriage, or ride the Tractor.
  2. Port of the Ondine (west) — small, posh secondary harbor. Reached by ferry. Favored by the extremely wealthy who want to admire the city before landing in Soma.
  3. Shipwreck Bay (east) — guarded by an Akkylannian fort on a small island (Fort Griffin). Ways-of-Light naval forces anchor here. Requires clearance, strict instructions from the garrison, a cutter transfer to the upper city, and "a generous donation."

Getting Around

The Cadwës, pushed by dwarven and goblin innovation, built an unrivalled transport revolution. But travel still demands either courage and health, or enough wealth to pay for expensive transport. Many immigrants joke the real motto is "In Cadwallon, everything can be bought."

On Water

  • Ferries between the harbors and the upper city
  • The Marina's pleasure-craft on the little sea
  • Goblin and Barhan-built extravagant lake vessels

On Land

  • On foot — often the fastest option in the choked lower city
  • Carriages — for the rich; slower than walking through the crowded alleys
  • The Tractor — the gigantic steam machine. After three years of construction, it now runs Kraken Harbor ↔ Ogrokh, four round-trips daily, pulling five wagons (four freight, one passenger). Reaches the speed of a trotting horse; the trip takes an hour. It cannot enter the upper city — goods transfer at the gates to the warehouses of The Stock. The passenger wagon, built for 40, now crams in ~100 of all sizes.

In the Air

  • Hot-air balloons — aristocrats hop between the standing Cynwäll towers; coastal winds limit the practice
  • Airships — the Ferrymen sky station in the Pillars; the Var-Nokkt family's Senex III
  • Lanever dragons — glide across the sky to visit their titanic kin in Dyrsin's Tower

The Bridges

The Upper City is a web of suspended bridges linking the feet of Dyrsin Tower. Many are too narrow for wagons. You walk or ride them carefully — mounts are discouraged. Navigating the upper city is, more than anything, a matter of hiring the right guide.

Why the city occupies the whole peninsula

The official reason is "surveillance of the waters." The deeper reason: the peninsula is the surface above Desire's prison. The Cynwäll, the Sphinx, and the Ophidians all built here for the same buried reason. Occupying the whole peninsula isn't only military — it's custodial. The Duke is, whether he advertises it or not, the warden of the most dangerous site on Aarklash.

See Also