Chatoon
In its glory during the Classic Age of Khitus, Chatoon was
the envy of the region, a bustling city of tall marble and
ruby spires. Its Makadan inhabitants enjoyed a reputation as
a place to visit to see wonders of architecture and magic with
colorful buildings and incredible vistas anywhere the gaze
fell. Now it is a dark bloodstained shadow with death stalking the streets at any hour. Like shattered dreams, its oncemighty towers now stand or lie broken and ruined. Most
marauders and monsters alike give Chatoon a wide berth,
for in the depths of the city lurks a Daragkark sorceress.
Shagnathrix whispers to the dark walls, conjures fell
magic, and makes pacts with sorcery that she hopes will
make amends for her troubled and murderous past. Her
people know better than to cross her, and the city has
been turned into a nightmare by her constant conjurations. Undead abominations walk the streets and seek
to return to the desert sand; the still-living population
cowers by day and hides in terror by night. Worse than
the walking dead are the powerful psychic monsters
that lurk in Chatoon’s streets. They flit among the alleys,
ever watchful for unwary travelers whose minds they rip
apart in an instant and feed on their souls.
Chuma Zor
(Chukka Zor)
Many years ago, Chukka Zor was merely a single Watu
shamaba, one of the many enormous slave-tended
farms overseen by extended pachyesh family groups.
The bwasana (matriarch) Chukka managed her shamaba so well that the region prospered for the Watu Pachyaur. It grew like a flooding river in the rainy season,
overwhelming local farms until the central buildings
and the combined plantations became the city of Chukka Zor. All other Khitan races called it the Slave Circle.
A few years into her city’s prosperity, Chukka died mysteriously and a cunning creature called Chuma became
the new bwasana. She renamed the city Chuma Zor and
increased the amount of slave farms by a third, sending agents across Khitus to capture more workers for the
farms. She and her ruthless overseers made sure that
Chuma Zor’s combined eight shamabas—all Chuma’s
daughters by blood or marriage—each focused on one
of the crops that were needed.
The city now looks like a mix of stone and wood, broad
block trade roads leading to and from important parts
82
Top Khitan Cities by
Population
1. Pacheodon
2. Wani Chereet
3. Torqal
4. Alos
5. Aleothkka
6. Chuma Zor* (#4 if the Watu counted slaves in
their population numbers.)
7. Gathush* (#2 If all encamped & nearby refugees
counted as citizens)
• Pavouk would exceed Torqal’s population if its
spiders were counted as citizens, as they outnumber humans there more than 100 to one.
of Chuma Zor and high hedges separating the various
farms from each other. There is a centralized urban
region at the center of all the farmlands that encircle
it. The city appears to be in harmony with the natural
world, its urban core far greener than other Khitan cities, with slaves by the hundreds tending all kinds of
crops in and around the city.
Estica
The strong rock of the nearby Deepshadow Mountains
to the northwest protects Estica, as it has for centuries.
This Makadan city also sits a stone’s throw from the Serpent Hills, whose caverns and creatures provide the city
with its many unique trade goods such as gemstones,
perfumes, and oils. Estica dominates much of the trade
around this region and prospers for it. They roof their
largest buildings with deep red rock tiles fired to reflect
a sun-like sheen, visible for miles across the horizon in
any direction.
Before the marauder scourge came to the Old Countries, Estica protected itself by its prime location in the
mountains. With the escalating threats of slavery or
violence from many savage tribes, city leaders, its krals
and sovetniks, want to build a defensive wall against the
growing darkness. This wall has not yet been started
and many believe that it will lead to later problems,
from interfering with trade to hampering population
expansions. Time will tell if the city’s population wins
the battle of the wall, or the government decides to construct one regardless of popular opinion. Regardless,