Rant, Setting Details - Kopesh

Hokies.

I'm coming home next weekend for MIAD's fall break. I'm back from the afternoon of the 12th to the 16th. Any time within that span, we can convene to indulge ourselves in gaming.

You know... It'd be pretty neat if I had some way of contacting you all without having to resort to such static and infrequent measures as this. Oh, wait! We're in the information age! There exist such things as instant messengers. What a wonder, those IMs. With them, you can send messages back and forth between two computers connected to the Internet, almost instantaneously! It is truly a marvel to behold. Now if only I had some sort of catalogue of emails (E-mail being short for electronic mail, you know) that those I wish to contact using this fabled "Instant Messenger." Hmmm...

Seriously. I'm not joking here. I have Kyle and Cody listed in my contacts list, but two of you, and I'm not naming names, are suspiciously absent.

And it wouldn't hurt you guys to come down and visit me, you know.

Onward.



Setting Details - Kopesh
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The City

The city of Kopesh is situated on one of the many bends in the Eryes, one of the great rivers that meanders through the Wastes. This provides several benefits to its citizens, not the least of which is a constant water source. During the Wastewar the Eryes was the target of many attempts at sabotage from both sides of the conflict, but it has remained roughly the same as it was since over 14,000 years ago, when the lush jungles turned to the scraping dust of the Wastes.

Lining the shores of the Eryes is some incredibly fertile soil; in many eyes, the most fertile in the world. Foliage grows readily, almost eagerly, on the banks of the great river, making riverside accommodation very highly coveted land in the Wastes. The city of Kopesh was established roughly 300 years prior to the Wastewar, and is one of the oldest Guild-built cities near the Eryes. It's population is in the area of 20,000 people, but this number shifts with the seasons and the swiftness with which the Eryes flows. The city is built around an almost perfect grid of streets and corridors, looking much like a maze when viewed from a high vantage point. Kopesh has plenty of them, with much of the city resting on hewn tiers in a cliffside. In a sense, the city is much like a stadium.

Kopesh sports some of the best architects this end of the Wastes, making even the most mundane of structures a marvel to behold. There are three great bridges that span the Eryes, with many smaller bridges covering the intervals and across the smaller rivers that flow into it. Each one is spaced with great care and precision, so each one is almost exactly the same distance apart. The buildings are created with the river in mind, with many having doors that open toward the banks.

The People

The citizenry of Kopesh is composed of roughly 15,000 Humans from all across Caldera and beyond, about 2000 Wasteland Elves, 1500 Extra-continental Elves, with the remainder comprised of Therians and Orcs from around the globe.

About 75% of Kopesh's populace owes allegiance to a Guild, in one fashion or another. The rest are merchants, artisans, royalty with vacation homes, what-have-you. The Eryes is prime real-estate in the Wastes, and many people flock to the riverside cities in the hopes of eking out a better life. Kopesh is significant in that it has a lot of shore to spare, being built around and across one of the bends so near to the oceanic coast.

The city has expanded a great deal each passing year due in no small part to the Wastewar and reconstruction efforts. The recent uncovering of the city of Mahde has certainly aided in expansion efforts, generating a steady influx of travelers from up the Eryes and the inlands of the Wastes.