THE CITY OF ELTABBAR

Appearance: Eltabbar is the hidden heart of a country that puts forth a hardened image.  The city is surprisingly beautiful in nearly every respect, from its glittering canals to its greenery and artworks.  There are many fine buildings with columns and marble, and while the greatest are public, a number of private noble houses are quite impressive.  The squalor of the slave quarter is negligible compared to the gondolas and the major thoroughfares.  This is where Thayans aspire to go on their honeymoons, or to find a suitable marriage.  It is also where all Thayan bards would like to perform.

Inhabitants

Leaders: Szass Tam, NE male lich Nec10/Red10/Acm2/Epic7 (zulkir of necromancy and the most powerful of the zulkirs); Dmitra Flass, LE female human Ill7/Red8 (tharchion of Eltabbar); Dipren Qarto, LE male human Ftr 16 (leader of the city guard)

Key NPCs: High Flamelord Iphegor Nath, LN male human Clr 13/Dis4 of Kossuth (leader of Kossuth’s faith in Thay); Kwinset Tanzirk, LE female human Wiz6/Red6 (administrator of the slave market); Bilhar Sentolan, NE male human Rog 13/Asn4 (master of the thieves’ guild)

History: Eltabbar was founded in 923, a year after Thay won its independence from Mulhorand.  Placing the new nation's capital deep inside seemed only natural, but was said to have darker motives.  It is near the Thaymount, where the nation's premiere wizards have secret laboratories and forges, and thus sometimes suffers from earthquakes. 

Reputation: It is known as the center of Kossuth’s worship, the slave trade, politics, and art; it is also the second largest city in Thay.

Relations: Eltabbar has a rivalry with Bezantur, the most populous city in the empire.

Religions: Bane, Kossuth, Siamorphe, Waukeen, with lesser gods in minor temples and shrines

Notable Heroism: Generals for Thay often hail from Eltabbar, but are trained at the military academy in Pyarados.  The Tharchion spends a good amount of time in the city.

Notable Scandals: Those who try to flee noble families and duties are looked down upon, and traitors to Thay are reviled.

Important Celebrations: Major holidays for the churches are conspicuously grand.

Criminal Element(s): The city is run by evil and vengeful wizards.  Any thieves in the area steal from visitors, not from locals.

Location: In the center of Thay, near the Thaymount, on the southern shores of Lake Thaylambar.

Climate: Like all interior Thayan cities, the weather is fair, with scheduled rainfall at night.

Geographic Features: The canals of the city are well-known but surprisingly orderly.  The lake is plentifully stocked, and the mountains rise steeply to the West.  The major road through Thay, known as The Slave Way, leads to Eltabbar from the coast.  The road is carefully kept and slaves are marched instead of teleported, so as to break their spirits by the time they arrive in the city.

Major Landmarks: The temple of Kossuth is one of the major structures of the city, and the temple of Waukeen is lavish.  The major slave market takes up a good amount of space.  The palace of the Tharchion is a well-known building, as is the wizard school/arcane testing center.

Notable Districts: The religious district, the slave district, the noble district, the arcane district, the theater district, and the makers district are all well known.

Major Industries, Products, Services: Art, drugs, foodstuffs, markets, mining, music, pearls, rope, ship supplies, ships, slaves

Major Imports, Shortages, Deficiencies: Slaves and goods of all kinds are imported.  The city does not tend to make its own weapons, armor, or other metal goods.  Animal products are beneath them, and food crops are imported so that drugs can be fostered along the inside of the country.

Technology: Magic is the order of the day but it is not squandered.  Slaves provide labor of menial tasks, such as cleaning, so that magic can be used for greater ends.

Three things that maintain unity: Relative wealth compared with most cities in Faerun, guarded location from spies and enemies, noble houses with heads that tend to keep some sort of order

Three things that cause strife: Rival noble houses (or rivalries within noble houses), rival wizards, political pressures

Content © 2002-2012 Patricia Willenborg