The Capuan Civitas

Wed Dec 30, 2009 9:12 pm

Nation Name: Capuan Civitas
Form of Government: Representative democracy. The Magistrate is elected by popular vote; this individual presides over an appointed Conclave of experts. Laws are the will of this body, but to modify the Basic Code requires a referendum.
Economic Form: Socialism, Infrastructure State.
Leader (Title): Markus Scipio Speris (Magistrate)
Unique Features:

Mountainhome
Internal Plumbing
Underground Fungi Farming
Luminescent Shrooms
Nightmarish Defence Systems
Foreign Acquisitions

Population: 50,000
Government Spending: Incidental with standing budgets; 30% of GDP
Alliances: Anumias, Elesaria, Utagan [Winter Pact]
Trade Routes:

Spoiler:

Diplomatic Deals:

Spoiler:

Social Programs: Comprehensive and inclusive. To go hungry requires a Dwarf to leave the city and vanish.

Available Resources: Lots of trees, stone, coloured stone, quartz, gems, metal ores, fungi (edible), crops, Lumison, silk, wool. Also willing workers. Dark Ore obtained from Anumias.
Resource Needs: Food, water, and much stone and wood; finer goods, such as gems, are required for luxuries. Magma is an industry requirement. Dark Ore is needed for unique projects.
Unique Projects: Mountain City, Internal Plumbing, Underground Farming, Causeway System, Nightmare Defences
Housing: Single room housing with public lavatories is available for citizens living on their own; families of varying sizes have other sizes of rooms (partition-able into multi-room dwellings) available.
Major Buildings: Listed. Bold italicized projects are in the planning stages; italicized projects are incomplete.

Infrastructure Projects:

Spoiler:

Entrance Shaft -- A long, straight pathway to the Great Hall is the first fixture visitors to Capua see. Though it is not as well-travelled as it once was, it is still a vital passageway, protected by multiple layers of gates and other defences, as well as checkpoints for Civic Guards. A Welcoming Chamber serves a trading depot for foreigners, as well as another method of impressing them--in equal measure, it serves as a massacre chamber for invaders, being designed for a devastating ambush. Only past another set of gates is the City proper.

Burrows Network -- A network of well-plotted large hallways throughout the fortress, which provide a feasible method of transporting large items and cartfuls of goods through Capua. A major central route is formed by the Great Hall. Each Burrow is known as a "Thoroughfare" for major arteries within the city, a "Causeway" for large highways to foreign lands, a "lift" for a vertical passage (usually formed by spiral ramps), an "avenue" for north to south passageways, and a "lane" for east to west passages. Each avenue and lift has a number, each lane a name; Causeways and Thoroughfares have standalone monikers (for instance, Foundations is the thoroughfare that is home to the Capuan Government, whereas Smelts is home to much local industry). The Hub, below the city, serves as the crossroads of all foreign Causeways. Generally, tunnels are smoothed and occasionally decorated; leaguestones offer measurements, and an intricate series of signs offers directions to travellers. The surface of the road is sometimes formed of cobbled stone, and in some locations this is taken a step further to full mosaics.

Causeway I Aeon Sea -- A long tunnel headed southwest to the coast leads to the port installation of Eclipse, named after the great ship that first landed upon the island carrying the first colonists. It is lit by Lumison colonies, and every league bears a single watchtower. It is a major trade link, being a safe and protected route to the Sea.

Causeway II Anumias -- An enormous underground highway, sent through to Capua's close Anumian allies, unwavering in its near-perfectly straight path north. It is lit by Lumison colonies and bears a great Dwarven military presence in the form of Fort Ironboot at its foreign end, as well as number of watchtowers. In this way it serves a dual purpose of also keeping watch over the River Ceres, which is responsible for Capua's water supplies. Virtually all northern trade goes through this safe method of travel, as does military assistance when needed.

Causeway III Elesaria -- The third Causeway heads south, underneath the forested plains towards Elven civilization. Fort Stronghelm protects its foreign end, and two great pipelins give it a similar arrangement to its northern brother. Fewer watchtowers exist here.

Miner's Tunnel -- Leading from the Olivebranch Complex to Fort Ironboot is a sloped underground tunnel, built to prevent Dark Ore shipments clogging Anumian roadways in the area and make transport more efficient. It links up to Causeway II Anumias below Fort Ironboot.

The Aqueduct -- An exposed stone bridge that guides water into Capua's extensive systems. It is a vital piece of architecture and is always watched over by City Guards and a military watchtower. It contains iron grates, preventing fish--especially carp--from finding their way into the city's water supply, as well as walls and tougher bars preventing invader entry. The Aqueduct undergoes expansion often to keep up with the burgeoning needs of the city population, but alternate sources of water are always sought after, for there is only so much water you can steal before there is no more to take.

Reservoirs -- These six enormous rooms store water in vast amounts for civic consumption in manners ranging from the absolutely vital (sewers and drinking), to the conspicuous (city baths), to the outright decadent (feeding the enormous statue gardens). Water is circulated occasionally to prevent its stagnation, and all of it is boiled by enormous coal furnaces. It trickles down through the city, free of disease, impurity, or cost to Capua's citizens. Fed by the enormous Aqueduct, they are a critical item in the city's defencive strategy--at least two reservoirs are kept full at all times in case of siege.

Refuse Room -- Essentially, the junk of Capua finds its way here, provided that said junk does not bear disease. Periodically, it is went through for recycling purposes, or to find a use for various items here. Items stored here may be retrieved by any citizen for private use, and so the Guard presence is relatively light. Sometimes, great finds have been made.

Immolation Chamber -- Despite it's sinister name, this simple chamber serves to heat the fortress during winter (being situated next to a nexus of water channels), and does double-duty as a sterile and no-fuss method of destroying objects that no longer need trouble the dwarves of Capua--including disease-carrying animals or garbage, rubble, or invaders. It works by burning vast amounts of magic-assisted coal, and has its own special ventilation shaft for this reason. A much less celebrated use of the chamber is as a crematorium; Capuans being the rational bunch they are, bones of the dead are fed through the same iron munchers as tougher waste. It is mysteriously closed on occasion.

Dwarven Services:

Spoiler:

Living Quarters -- Housing is guaranteed to every citizen as a basic right. Rooms in apartment and condominium style are carved from the rock, in varying sizes. The differing needs of each citizen are taken into consideration--the crippled are given specially equipped rooms to accommodate their mobility issues, and larger quarters are given to families. Generally, a larger room will be equipped with partition walls to offer privacy to its residents--a great deal are also equipped with plumbing--but the smallest living spaces will combine all faculties into one room (relying on public lavatories and plumbing). Decoration occurs as the resident dwarf would wish it, but all rooms are equipped with small white Lumison colonies by default, as well as basic furniture (beds, tables, dressers, and other simple items).
Dining Hall -- A large communal dining hall in cafeteria style, with attached kitchen. It is a sub-room of the Great Hall and serves three squares a day to every last dwarf, using a voucher system. Certain snacks, as well as water, are free. Cuisine tends to be simplistic, but well-made and hardy, including game meat, spiced mushrooms, and some alcohol. Every week, there's a Leftovers Day to conserve food, which often results in very creative and nutritious (though not always popular) concoctions, including the highly controversial, though occasionally sworn-by, Mushroom and Peanut Butter Tuna Delectable--which sounds much worse than it is, and is often referred to affectionately as "Surprise!". For special occasions, including random occurrences (which could be translated as "when the kitchen staff feels like it"), finer meals are served to the masses; finer food is also served to those awarded for good works or to those experiencing a personal celebration, such as a wedding or birthday.
Nosocomias and Apothecaries -- The healthcare system of Capua is facilitated by nosocomias, or general hospital, which treats all manner of disease; apothecaries help with minor ailments and problems, and their attendants often help with other community problems, providing counselling services among other things. Though apothecaries are set up in the manner of any local shop (though they are state-run), nosocomias are set up with isolation in mind; each disease has its own hallway.
Tribunal Complex -- In accordance with the Rule of Law, as established during the City's founding, citizens accused of a crime are to be tried by a fair process. The courtrooms are crafted of white stone, the colour of Saint Cuthbert of Justice; before the court he stands, sword in his left to represent the power of law, with a crystal ball in his right, symbolizing truth. He has no eyes; this stands for the impartiality of justice, for it does not see its subjects, merely decides on basis of fact. The statue, though immaculate, stands upon raw stone, representing the reality that rulings of the Tribunal must be grounded in. Trials are private, and this room is soundproofed.

Industrial Works:

Spoiler:

Lumber Yards -- The furniture-making industry unfortunately relies upon wood, which must be gathered from the forests near the mountain; these camps are typically watched over by militia at all times, as they are open to immediate attack, unlike the interior of Capua. Dwarves work steady eight-hour shifts with iron axes and the promise of a good meal, but few like this 'elven' line of work. Accordingly, it's a rotating duty, and often a disciplinary punishment for petty criminals, who can be identified by orange uniforms.

Workshops Complex -- The industrial needs of the City are met mostly by workshops producing some sort of good; reporting for work, Dwarves build tables, chip at statues, smelt weaponry, make paper and other such menial tasks, until eight hours have passed and they're free to wander to the local theatre, pub, or whatever else strikes their fancy. Work and craftsdwarfship is a big part of Capuan culture; the especially innovative or productive are rewarded handsomely in food and money, and their contributions admired and aspired to. Indeed, the Order of Creativity is an award given to the Dwarf which has provided the most useful and revolutionary advancement that year.

Mine Shafts -- The Mines are the very reason for Capua's existence. The ores extracted from here feed the hungry mouth of local industry, not to mention an emerging trade machine; beyond this, it provides gainful employment to hundreds of men and women. The Mines may be dangerous to work, but safety protocols are legendary in their effectiveness and comprehensive coverage. Minerals typically extracted include large amounts of quartz, iron ore, and several types of decorative stone and gems. An extremely unpopular aspect of Capua's ties to Rume are that it delivers a portion of mineral revenue to the Homeland.

Olivebranch Mine Complex -- Located in the Anumian Dark Ore deposits, the Olivebranch installation is a massive, intricate series of tunnels and mining operations aimed at the extraction of lucrative and useful Dark Ore for Capuan purposes--with a stipend paid to the Anumian government, of course, on the basis of how much ore is extracted. The land it sits upon is under Civitas sovereignty and law, and workers live in a small, miniature town, complete with lodgings, shops, and other amenities, to avoid disturbing the locals. This special assignment is guarded by a small number of troops.

Recreation and Monuments:

Spoiler:

State Faculties:

Spoiler:

Military Installations:

Spoiler:

High Command -- A set of military offices across the lane from the barracks complex houses paperwork, the Military Conclavist's quarters, and room for an eventual command staff, in anticipation of the Civitas' growth. An isolated and secret tunnel heads from the office of the Magistrate directly to the central planning room.

Proving Grounds -- The military of Capua sleeps, lives, and trains in the Proving Grounds installation; its purpose is to provide space in which to practice, as well as train new recruits. The militaristic part of Capuan culture, however, goes much deeper than that. The Ruman Legions conquered much of the barbarian world; so, accordingly, this infantry tradition is in the blood of the Legions.

Project Omega -- The core of the second Mountain is a magma tube. Seeing the defence opportunity presented by this, thinkers in the Engineering groups decided to bore out chutes and gates, leading to the ability to ferry magma to reservoirs, and from there to industry and, of course, out the front gates.

Fort Eclipse -- Serving as a guard to the port of the same name, but also as a trading place, Eclipse is technically the first area of settlement on the island for Dwarves, as the site of first landing. It is mostly underground, and unfortunately can freeze during winters where Arctic magic is afoot. This allows for mineral fraud, preventing the Empire from seizing minerals that season, so really, it's all good.

Fort Ironboot -- An above-ground outpost near Anumias, built of sturdy logs with stone reinforcement. It's manned by a few units at any given time, and serves as a watchtower, diplomatic outpost, and trade depot--not to mention the entrance to Causeway II Anumias.

Fort Stronghelm -- A similar situation to Fort Ironboot has recently popped up in Eleseria; manned by a small garrison, it watches over the exit to Causeway III Eleseria and serves as a diplomatic outpost. It is equipped with a magma reservoir of its own.

Eyes of the Civitas -- So as to keep tabs on the surrounding area, watchtowers are maintained at all entrances and exits of Capua, as well as occasionally on high points along Causeways. Manned by two or three Dwarves each, they send back runners if problems occur; far-away watchtowers send one message daily to confirm a lack of threats, using fire and mirrors to relay messages very quickly across the Plains. If they are disabled, problems are assumed, and most likely assured.

Military Spending: 10% of Capua's budget
Training: Exemplary; Capua inherits its techniques from the Ruman Empire with its own variations and creativity added. The militaristic part of local culture has deep roots.
Conscription?: Illegal except in cases of siege; Capua fields a professional volunteer army supported by voluntary citizen's auxilia during desperate times.
Military Units:

Spoiler:

Citizen's Militia -- As a desperate emergency measure, the citizens of Capua have been known to take up arms and fend off enemies by themselves. This is a leftover from the early Colonial days, during which there was no professional military, and is no longer as necessary as before; Capua, of course, is paranoid, and still trains those of fourteen years in martial pursuits and expects those of sixteen years to respond if a call to arms is announced. This, however, may only happen during an attack on the fortress proper. Every household has short spears, shields, and helmets in reserve; thus, Militia serve as an impromptu phalanx. They are not professional soldiers, and do not maintain that level of discipline; but perhaps there is no better motivator than the defence of your home, family, and children.
City Watch -- Though not soldiers per se, the Watch can be a martial presence when necessary. Usually, they are tasked with police duties: enforcing government mandates and generally maintaining public order. When the need strikes, they also serve as firefighters, search and rescue personnel, bodyguards for officials, emergency medics, and disaster relief. Each is equipped with good leather armour, a maul, and a shield, as well as special equipment related to their assignment. They are expected to hold fast in a phalanx when charged, but are not especially good as soldiers; this rarely comes to pass, however, as the respect for these authority figures is extremely strong in Capuan society.
Legionary Cohort -- The Legionary is the standard soldier of the Capuan military, a stalwart fighter instilled through his training with untold discipline, courage, and loyalty to the Capuan state. They swear allegiance to the Basic Code and the Sovereign Will, not a particular Magistrate or earthly institution. Each Legionary is, aside from a valuable member of an army, also a tough personal fighter, equipped well with a suit of segmentata armour, a maul, and an arm-mounted shield. Their armour and public image has gained them the affectionate nickname of "redshields"; military parades are met with great attendance.
Legionary First Cohort -- Those Redshields which display conspicuous bravery, ability, and resilience in combat are admitted to the higher echelons of the Legion--the First Cohort. Bearing the golden Pheonix-standard, they inspire their comrades in battle, improve morale, and provide a tough backbone that any general can rely on in the thick of it. They are equipped similarly to their lower-ranking brothers in arms--it is the Dwarf inside the armour that counts!--but they often do receive the best of what is available at the time. Their helms are decorated with the feathers of the Phoenix.
Hastati Cohort -- The phalanx is a formation of soldiers equipped with long spears, who fight in a tightly compacted group to ward off enemy cavalry (or anything else that happens to be in front of them). Hastati Cohorts are groups of Redshields, of the same ceremonial and institutional importance, equipped with the "hasta", or a spear roughly six feet long, as well as a large shield and full segmentata; deployed in a phalanx formation, they form an impenetrable barrier to direct attack, but should not be left to withstand arrow or bolt volleys. On the attack, they can roll right over opposing infantry, but can not be expected to withstand a flanking manoeuvre. They tend to form the centres of lines to aid with minimizing this weakness, and can be supplemented in this role with stationary tower shields on the defence and marksdwarf support on the attack.
Pavise Marksdwarves -- An evolution in the strategy employed by Capua's ranged warriors has resulted in the Pavise Marksdwarf, a curious hybrid of several concepts. For one, a concession was finally made to the diminutive stature of Dwarves, and therefore their shorter arms, resulting in a switch from a conventional bow to what may appear at first to be a comically large crossbow, drawn by its user's Herculean strength. It is far less amusing on the other end of things, as the bolt can very easily pierce steel armour! The weapon's user is protected by a heavy shield mounted on his back (the pavise), allowing him and his unit to defend themselves from volleys by turning away from them when reloading. Drills are held to discipline this unit and improve its firing intervals between volleys; in smaller numbers, they can also be useful as actual marksdwarves, as the crossbow is an accurate weapon when aimed.
Mine Cavalry -- The cramped interior of the mines, combined with the need for muscle no Dwarf could provide, has resulted in the breeding of the Moria pony. These horses, of particularly short stature and amazing strength, form the basis of conventional Capuan cavalry units. Military Moria horses are bred for greater speed than their mining counterparts, and so they and their riders serve as basic cavalry, performing scout duties, some charging headlong into combat, and helping more than a bit with combat engineering. Their riders are equipped with long lances, mauls, shields and full segmentata armour--armour that the horses share. Mine Cavalry are tough and disciplined, but slow compared to the cavalry of other nations.
Fury Cavalry -- Though Dwarves are known worldwide as poor riders of the horse, Capuans have staunchly refused to give in to their short stature and instead ride tamed Wulves into battle. This gains them some disdain from others, but they serve nobly--and whilst maintaining parity to, and perhaps superiority over, Orcish Warg-riders. Cavalrydwarves are equipped with a maul and shield, using charges and trample attacks at high speed for shock effects and impetus. However, once combat is initiated, the pure savagery of the Wulf comes to the forefront, as the Rider is expected only to prevent friendly-maulings and ensure that the Wulf is kept safe. Lances are totally unnecessary, as the Wulf is too mobile. Warning: this might eat children!
Arcani-- Irregulars may not be the most disciplined or indoctrinated warriors that can be fielded, but they are sometimes useful for political purposes, or in places where conventional armies are unable to travel, such as marshlands or the mountains. They are guerrillas, serving in sabotage operations, assassinations, and sometimes "public relations"--winning the hearts and minds of other populations. In combat, they serve best in rough terrain, where cover and stealth can be properly used; they are equipped with light, high-quality mythril armour, a crossbow, maul, and lead-weighted throwing darts, as well as whatever they can jury-rig or scavenge; these armaments make them fearsome ambush or night troops. They are ruthless, cunning, mobile, and loyal additions to the Legions.
Hospitallic Order -- "Whitecloaks" or "stitch brigades" are responsible for medical aid on the battlefield. Often, they help both sides if possible, assuming the opponent is civilized enough to appreciate this. They are forbidden from fighting, except in self-defence, for this reason; accordingly, they serve far behind the lines, rarely emerging. In civilian life, they serve as disaster relief.