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Architecture and Cities
Topic Started: 17 May 2011, 04:04 PM (91 Views)
Qen-Rae
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As previously mentioned, all of the cities of dwarven Alliance are situated in the underground.

How do they look? How can they function there?

Many of Aiekarian students who learnt about the dwarves mistakenly believe that these cities, just like underground tunnels connecting them, are encraved into the stones in the forms of labyrinths. In fact - they are built the same way as any other surface city.

Take, for example, Karak-Uh-Karin.

The dwarven capital is situated in a huge cave, a one that is about three times taller than the highest towers of the city. First, the cave walls were enforced to ensure the citizens that they will not fall, and just after that - a city was built. So - no network of caves, a carefully built walls and houses made of stone blocks. Not to mention that the original cavern, over time, got decorated by its inhabitans, so it no longer resembles a plain wet wall. Numberous rune symbols and statues of past kings and heroes look down on you from their terrible heights, ensuring you that you are standing in an area inhabited by developed civilisation, not a bat cave.

Another question the outsiders often ask a dwarf if they meet one is - how do you exist down there, without a light? Or do you carry torches with yourself? Isn´t that impractical?

...no.

If one would climb high into the Fingoa Mountains and got a huge piece of luck, he might discover the reason - long, narrow tunnels with polished surface, leading a standard, common sunlight deep into the underground realm. There, the light-carrying tunnels divide into numerous branches, providing enough light for everyone living under the mountains. Sure, torches or magical sources of light (such as either krystalline or rune-enhached tools) are used in a great part of the tunnels between the cities, but there is no dwarven city without a source of light from the surface.


The only real problem of living underground is - food.

Despite they have been living under the mountains for hundreds, if not thousands, years, dwarves never found out a way how to make their kingdom self-sufficient. Sure, some plants can grow in the sunlight brought to the cities, but that´s just a minor number to feed all the population. Thus, Fingoa Alliance is dependand on farming close to the surface tunnel entrances or trading with their Neeva allies.

Because of the lack of plants in their cities (the few people who mastered the art of raising plants in the underground are greatly priced), dwarven streets and gardens are often decorated by either sculptures, magnificent stoneworks, objects made of mithril, a special composition of various metals and minerals, glowing runes or plays of light coming from above. A typical citizen would also tell you that ever-present forges are decorations as well, but... for example neevaes never agreed to that.

Dwarven architecture in general is a bit... angular. You could barely find a single round house in the whole Fingoa. All of the buildings are made of stones, since there is no wood aviable in the underground, yet can be greatly decorated - either by encraved sculptures or ornaments made by metal. All summed up, a dwarven city creates an impression of strengh and endurance, just as its inhabitants.

The entrances to the underground realm are protected by gates bound with mighty rune magic. It is said that only a person without bad intentions can open them to pass, otherwise only a dwarf can. No ram nor magic ever broke through these gates, much to the distaste of the Dark Order and Teimzurr Empire.


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