Post by EriChar on Oct 22, 2013 12:20:06 GMT -5
Created by Radieclipse
Inhabitants:
Prominent Organizations, Groups and Establishments:
Trends:
NPCS:
Town(s)/Village(s)/City or Cities:
Island Map:
Missions: N/A
Island History:
Name of Island: Dauntaun
Society: Yolers - Everyone from the Fishmen to the elite greet and refer to each other with "Yo", hence the name.
Size of Island: Very Large
Location: South Blue
Log Pose Time: N/A
Climatic Type: Fall
Climate: Overcast
Island Appearance: Most apparent as you approach is the aura of smog and industrial filth that hovers over the island and drains into the horizon. Even on beautiful days the island rarely gets much sunshine thanks to the screen of smog in the air. As you get closed it becomes apparent that the island is covered in steel towers and skyscrapers multiple stories high.
The island is shaped like an acute triangle, with the central point facing west and the other two points due east The just offset of the center, closer to west point of the island, is where most of the city is while fifty miles east towards the wide base of the island becomes more rural and ultimately woodland areas. The "city zone" is about two-thirds of the island's length, but starts at the tapered point of the island and works east towards the wider "mouth" of the island. As a result, the "country zone", while only taking up one-third of the island's length, covers nearly as much space overall.
Flora and Fauna: Aside from the aviary in the center of the city, as well as designated areas such as parks, all wildlife and plantlife is restricted to outside of the urban area, or the eastern third of the island.
As for the particular types of plants or animals, the flora is typical for a fall island, with lots of trees typical in both warm and cool climates. Don't expect flora from a particular extreme; there are no pine trees or palm trees here.
Animals are fairly normal, with everything from house pets like dogs and cats to foxes, wolves, bears, mountain lions, horses, cows, crows, etc. Expect to see larger, more intimidating dogs in the slums and ghettos while finer breeds may be witnessed near the heart of the city. The exotic animals like foxes and wolves are kept out of the urban area near the country zone, but they do encroach on those that live near the border.
Unique to the island is its aviary, which doubles as a small zoo for some of the more extreme exotic animals. Here you can expect to all types of birds from all over the world in unique simulated habitats as well as ferocious crowd pleasers in the zoo like lions and polar bears or even family-friendly animals like penguins or dolphins!
Inhabitants:
Inhabitants:
The heart of the city is filled with only humans, and even then only the most elite of them. The steel mills may possess fishmen as the greed of the corporations overrides their xenophobia. Fishmen are capable of working harder and faster, and if they're staying on Dauntaun despite the conditions, they're desperate, so they work for less.
There are clear social classes:
Elite - The elite are the wealthiest of the island. These are going to be the royal families like the Melons and the Steeles. They control the island itself with a trickle-down effect through the other classes.
Upper - These are the bankers and doctors and lawyers, or who you'd expect to be upper class. Some of them are landlords or run businesses, but few interact face-to-face with anyone outside of their class.
Middle - Modest success stories, these folks are the average citizens that do well for themselves. Perhaps they run their own business or were born into modest wealth, or simply work hard and save their funds.
Lower - These are the folks who spend most of their day in the steel mills, slaving away to fill the pockets of the preceding classes and hopefully put food on their table.
Fishmen - Like most human-controlled islands, Fishmen are separate caste treated with racism and xenophobia on a day-to-day basis. They are usually side-by-side with members of the lower classes, so it's not uncommon for low-class folks to sympathize with the Fishmen. They may even overlook their natural intolerance, but when it comes down to it the two do not stick together.
Prominent Organizations, Groups and Establishments:
Most important to mention are the Melon and Steele families. These two royal families are industrial giants, having both had stakes in the steel industry of the island since its inception, with roots in the community dating back even further than the steel of its modern era. Both families run a family conglomerate funded by the steel their mills create, with Melon focusing more on the industrial applications of it (buildings, ships, equipment) and Steele focusing on the militant use of it (armor and weapons). As rivals, each claims to have been more important to the island than the other:
Melons claim they built the island as it is now, while the Steele family claims the island would be nothing without their weapons defending it. Spectators observe that the industrialization of the island, as well as the hiring of immigrants working for lower and lower wages, have lead to a lower quality of life for everyone but the elite. The lower class works its fingers to the bone in an economy where their job security is at risk day-to-day and the cost of living is constantly escalating, while at the same time their lives are physically in danger thanks to the risky and damaging business of being in the steel mill all of the time, as well as the sailors, pirates, and marines the steel weapons bring to the island.
The Melons have built a large Marine base on the island to gain their support while the Steeles legitimize mercenaries and thugs at their behest. If you're on the island to do some work, legitimate or otherwise, either group will have something for you to do.
Trends:
Fashion
In the mild habitat of Dauntaun, what you wear is decided by who you are and what you do. Farmers from the country zone wear overalls if the weather permits while those from the heart of the city typically dress in suits. Just about anything goes, as the very population of the island is a confluence of immigrants from over the years, so many different cultures and inspirations have come together as one, making it hard to define their fashion as a whole.
The culture was always based more around what it produced than what went into it. Unlike neighboring islands the people weren't and still aren't easily defined by their way of speaking or what they wear or how they look.
Politics
The political control of the island is unanimous in its support for the World Government, especially as one of the main producers of steel in the seas, which goes right to the Marines as part of a massive contract.
Criminals are typically dealt with on a local level as there is a Marine station on base and the soldiers of the island are well-equipped with weapons and armor. Factor in the mercenaries and pirates working for both royal families and you rarely deal with the same trouble-maker twice.
There are, of course, dissidents who hold the wealthy elite and the cruel employers in contempt, but everyone is too afraid and unorganized to speak up against it. Rest assured, rebellion is not far off. It's just waiting for the right catalyst to inspire the people to action.
Industry
Steel! Steel weapons, steel armor, steel girders, steel bridges, steel towers. The island exports steel of all shapes and sizes, whether you want parts for your boat, a new weapon, or even one of the island's new and unique devices: automobiles. These simplistic machines are used by most middle-class and above citizens, with the elite using very expensive models. They're loud and hard to maneuver, and, without illegal modification, don't go particularly fast. Factor in the damage they do to the environment and they aren't the most appealing, but for the people of Dauntaun, with its winding hills and distances between destinations it makes perfect sense.
Cuisine
Dauntaun Steak - This is more of a style of serving a steak than any particular meat or seasoning. Due to the melding-pot style of its heritage you could taste a dozen different variations of this meat in Dauntaun. The process to make it is simple: cold or raw meat (typically beef) is cooked on a surface so hot the outside is seared black while the inside remains rare and tender. Such extreme heat was originally found on the white-hot steel of the mill, so the roots of this meal, like most everything else on the island, come from the steel mill.
NPCS:
Melon family members
Steele family members
Marines
Steele Mercenary leaders
Mercenaries
Merchants
Citizens
Town(s)/Village(s)/City or Cities:
The Heart of the City - This is where the most elite of the city live and operate. There are four massive towers in this area, with each at a different corner of the same intersection. Two towers belong to each of the royal families, with one being their housing complex and the other being where they work. Around these towers are the best business: high-end clothing, equipment, weapons, and even ship parts. This area also has the only import shop on the island, as most inhabitants are too poor to even affor what originates in Dauntaun, let alone the rest of the world.
Melon Mill - Built along the northen shore of the island, this was originally a watermill that, over the course of decades has evolved into one of the largest steel mills in the seas, complete with smoke stacks and warehouses that cover substantial land.
Steele Mill - Mirroring the Melon Mill, this was built along the southern shore of the island and is now a towering mass of smoke stacks, milling equipment, and warehouses.
Royal Port - This is the extravagant base that any elites leaving or arriving on the island use. Northeast of the aviary and upstream from the Marine Port. Heavy Marine presence here.
Marine Port - Built by the Melons as part of their bid to sway the marines to their cause, this is near the Melon Mill on the northern shore and a few miles east of the Royal Port.
City Zone - Technically, nearly the entirely island is a city controlled by the Melon and Steele families. From shore to shore to the country zone border, everything is a road, house, or building that makes up part of the urban sprawl.
Country Zone - Beginning at the edge of the city zone and encompassing the eastern third of the island, the country zone is also under control of the Melons and Steeles. Expect woodlands and farmers here, as this is where the livestock and produce is grown.
Marine Base Alpha - Built in the eastern section of the Heart of the City is the main marine base on the island. This is where the strongest officers are stationed. It also posseses their armory. Underground tunnel system that connects to the Royal Port, Marine Port, Civilian Port, Marine Base Bravo and Marine Base Charlie.
Brig - Sitting on the inside of the city zone at the city/country border is the brig, where criminals are detained. Outside is also where public executions take place. It is a straight shot from the brig to the marine base in the Heart of the City, albeit with miles in between.
Marine Base Bravo - A smaller outpost in the southeast corner of the island, this base is located in the country zone and has access to a port, as well as views of both the south and east borders of the island. Underground tunnel system connects directly to Charlie and Alpha.
Marine Base Charlie - Like Bravo, Charlie is a smaller outpost in the country zone. The location of this base mirrors the placement of Bravo, with an outlook on both the northern and eastern shores and access to a port. Underground tunnel system connects directly to Bravo and Alpha.
Civilian Port - This port was built by the Steele family to compete with the Melon's Marine port. Any merchant, pirates or elites/marines dock here. Heavy pirate/mercenary presence here, under the (lax) control of the Steele family. Expect recruiting for the Steele family's thugs and high criminal activity here, though most of it is silenced or covert.
Island Map:
Missions: N/A
Island History:
The indigenous people of the island were welcoming to the original pilgrims and immigrants centuries ago. Since then the two eventually became one people that supplanted with the sporadic arrival of other immigrants.
Technological advancement took place at a fair pace, with two clans at the forefront: Melon and Steele. The two families built villages at opposing sides of the island and worked to outdo the other while staying relatively neck-and-neck. As decades became centuries the land filled out with the ever-increasing population of individuals, with farmers and botanists preferring the east side of the island due to its position towards the sun while the more technological individuals moved further inland, always racing to beat the other clan to the next advancement while at the same time influencing their styles, resulting in two similar styles of architecture, art, and civilizations.
Each year the greatest warriors and scientists would meet in the heart of the island to compete in battles - both traditional combat and testing their technology. The tools are easily traced from the most basic and archaic, like spears to slingshots to catapults to crossbows and finally munitions. The same type of development took place with sharpened rocks, obsidian shards, bronze, iron, and finally steel.
The location of these competitions became known as the "heart of the island" and eventually "The Heart of the City" as their capital increased in size to include almost the entire island. All the while, the two major families continued in their competition. Now based out of the Heart, the two continued to make advancements to outdo the other. Their ingenuities attracted others who built more of the sprawling city out around them.
These two societies ultimately melded into one with very distinct social groups, but overall their progression can be traced as linearly as their technological advancements. Politics, family rivalries, racism, and social sects have been bred into the island's very nature for centuries, creating the unique atmosphere the island now exemplifies.
Once steel was discovered amongst the locals (with the Steele family going so far as to say it's named after them, or vice versa) it didn't long for the competing families to work on mastering its properties and production. As their assets increased they were able to reach more customers through traveling merchants, and eventually the demand outweighed the supply, giving them an economic boom about fifteen years ago from present day.