The Nameless City
Table of Contents
General Information about the City
Kiborus, the Cold Master
Irzuk Orcs, Inhabitants of the City
General Information About the City
Who Rules: Kiborus, the Cold Master, chancellor of the city.
Who Really Rules: The Dweller in the Wintervale.
Other Power Centers: Hoth Dorak, oluk orc captain of the docks, who oversees security and transport into and out of the dock area.
Hai Urg, who secures the eastern Steppe Gate.
Captain Khalid Hammerhand, commander of the Black Fleet, who commands the armada of black-sailed attack ships that guard the icy harbor and serve as the navy of the Wintervale.
Master Yen Keng, the Cold Master's wizard, who heads a contingent of dark mages from Yrrkune and Budum-ishi.
Lord Rand, tiefling leader of the importers guild, who arranges the city's business dealings.
Yellsh, goblin leader of the guild of assassins, based in the south-eastern area of the city.
Population: About 20,000 in the city itself. The population is three quarters orcish, with the rest consisting of other dark folk. This does not include undead residents.
Major Products: The Nameless City exports nothing except war and death.
Armed Forces: Hoth Dorak can marshall multiple thousand orcs in a quick span of time, and he always has 1000 heavy oluks at his command, who serve as city guard and defense. The Cold Master, never trusting anyone, maintains his own independent contingent of highly trained oluk shock troops as well as a legion of hobgoblins. The undead of the city, a vast number of evil wandering spirits, also can be summoned by the Cold Master or the Dweller.
The City
This ruined necropolis was once a thriving city whose name is now lost or unspoken. The place always had an evil repute among the Elves, however, and it is now more than ever a reputation that is deserved, for the place is in large measure truly a city of the dead. Almost all of the buildings of the city are in ruins, destroyed during the Battle of Sorrow. Some of the outer buildings in the city are still functional and here the unique living residents of the city dwell and work. These are the Irzuk, the Red-Skinned Orcs of the Vale, who are known for their large noses and keen sense of smell. These strange orcs are actually a breed of dark folk that comes out of the spawning pits of Gorug, but most have taken up residence in the Nameless City, as they have a natural hearty resistance to cold. Thousands of these orcs swarm over the ruined docks of the frozen harbor and through the streets near the Eastern Steppe Gate of the city, conducting the business of their master, the Chancellor of the City, Lord Kiborus, who is called the Cold Master. The orcs never venture into the inner city, however, for there the ghosts and corpses of the old inhabitants of the city--and their victims--still walk. Lord Kiborus also holds the power of command over these shadowy inhabitants.
Hoth Dorak and Hai Urg, both dour oluk orcs, serve as high general and under-general, respectively, of the city's armed forces. These troops are tasked to defend the city from external threats-- of which there are very, very few for fear of gaining the fell attention of the Dweller. The Hoth and Hai are also tasked with keeping order within the city. This latter job is where they spend most of their energy, for there is much intrigue and in-fighting within the city. The Irzuk orcs war with the orcish immigrants from the orc cities to the south, and the important personages in the city (such as Khalid hammerhand, captain of the Black Fleet, and Yellsh, leader of the assassin's guild) are constantly scheming to kill each other in order to gain the favor of the Cold Master. It seems that the city's chancellor encourages this backbiting, for it keeps any upstarts from threatening his own power. He spends his time keeping the Wintervale's hold over the lands to the east and the south.
The Dweller in the Wintervale, who is the real ruler of the city, leaves its ruling, and indeed the ruling of most of its subject lands, to the Cold Master. She never leaves her abode, the Frostspire, the sight that dominates the city. The Frostspire is a huge and featureless tower that rises up hundreds of feet into the mists that perpetually cloak the cold, damp necropolis. The tower is indeed made of pure, translucent ice, ice that seems impervious to the hottest fires, for this spike resisted all attempts by the Leagued Armies to destroy it. There is only one visible means of access to this horrible structure--a great dark opening like a toothless maw that gapes, doorless and seemingly unguarded, in the base of its western face. An intractable, bitter cold emanates from this tower, blanketing the city in a layer of snow and ice that never melts. Here, deep within her frozen tower, the Dweller's hooded eyes are turned ever west. Her attention is bent on the remaining Lords of Sin and the freed kingdoms of Farland. She will stop at nothing to reconquer them.
The Cold Master
Kiborus, the Cold Master is the terrible "mayor" of the Nameless City, taking care of the day-to-day operations on behalf of the Dweller. Read more about the Cold Master here.
Irzuk Orcs
Irzuk orcs are a sub-breed of orcs. They are the Red-Skinned Orcs of the Vale, who are known for their large noses and keen sense of smell. These strange orcs are actually a breed of dark folk that comes out of the spawning pits of Gorug, but most have taken up residence in the Nameless City, as they have a natural hearty resistance to cold. Irzuk tend to be more industrious than other orcs, though their industriousness does not quite get to the level where it rivals that of the oluks. These orcs are also quick tempered, and their strength tends to be fueled by their rage.
