Turin

Location: The Eastern edge of the Air continent, on the coast between Eriatarn and Draenor.

Description: Turin is, for all intents and purposes, the cultural center of Valanthus, outside of the Elven kingdom. It is a relatively young city, but in the years since its founding it has grown quickly. Almost every significant industry is represented within its borders, although the arts are by far the strongest. A high percentage of Fou Lu's artists live in Turin or spend a lot of time there. As a result, Turin's architecture is some of the greatest and most beautiful in all of Fou Lu, and while most of it is inspired by the religion of Volkain, it also reflects a wide variety of other cultures and religions. Education is highly valued in Turin, and it has many large schools, ranging from magic and medicine to chemistry and literature. Some may say that Turin's preoccupation with art and culture has stunted its technological growth, as it has very few of the modern technological conveniences that have become common in many other major cities. This is also a result of how highly magic is valued within Turin, and a lot of important magical advancements have been made by its scholars and wizards. Turin is a port town, so it is also a big trading site. Many of the goods that end up in the other major cities of Valanthus come off the boat at the Turin's docks.

History: Turin did not become what it is today until almost 350 A.R. Its founders were primarily rich families that had fled the turmoil that was threatening so much of the rest of the world. The most prominent, and powerful, of these families were the Carims, and from the beginning they had a hand in almost all aspects of Turintine life. The government set up was democratic, and it was very little surprise when the first official leader was a close cousin of the Carims.

Turin grew quickly. The rich families commissioned the best artists to design their city, and the best architects to build them. The labor was done mostly by dwarves and ogres that had been hired from all around the world. By 450 A.R., only 100 years since its founding, Turin had become the largest independent city-state in all of Valanthus, though they kept good trade relations with the Elven Empire. Things went this way in Turin for many more generations, and all the while the Carim family's influence became more and more obvious. In 500 A.R. the first member of the Carim family was officially made Head of the Turintine senate, formally securing their control over Turin.

For four generations Turin was ruled by the Carim family, despite its formerly democratic values. Each generation that passed became more and more corrupt, until the line came to Somo Carim in the year 596 A.R. Up to this point there had been feelings of resentment within a large percentage of the population for the Carim family, but Somo was by far the worst. Under his leadership, trade withered and the prosperous city went to shambles. In the year 607 A.R., the population of Turin felt its first real stirrings of revolt.

It was led mostly by idealists, who were disgusted with the Somo's fixation with worldly pleasures and demanded a return to the ideals of art and culture that Turin had been founded on. The first few dissenters were executed, but Somo quickly discovered that the Carim family had very little support left within Turin. Revolution happened overnight, and was almost bloodless. Even most of the city's military had sided with the revolutionaries. Somo and the other members of the Carim family in senate were beheaded, the rest banished from Turin forever.

Since then, Turin has entered a period of renaissance. It continues to grow year by year, and has become a Mecca of sorts for young artists looking for work. As the area's political climate stabilized, many traders have found Turin a convenient port, and many of the trade routes around Valanthus include a stop in Turin. Since Turin is one of the only cities on Valanthus not controlled by the Elven Empire, it has become a refuge of sorts for those looking to avoid the Empire's control. This was especially true during the time that the Empire was taking back many of Valanthus' cities. Many non-elves who'd been forced out of there homes looked for work and shelter in Turin.

In recent years, another large industry has been developing in Turin: banking. Many of Turin's rich families needed a place to secure their vast amounts of wealth, and there was no shortage of opportunistic merchants ready to make a fortune off of them.

Government: Turin is governed by a senate of thirteen men, each elected for a term of 10 years. Every 5 years the senate elects one of its own to be named the Head of the Turintine Senate. He is the primary ruler of Turin, and can be reelected as many times as the senate sees fit.

Empire: Turin is an independent city-state.

Military: Although military might is seen as far less important as furthering the ideals of arts and culture, Turin does have a standing army of about 30 thousand men, mostly volunteers, including a sizeable navy. Also, most of the petty criminals tried in Turin are given the option of serving their time in prison or doing a term in the Turintine army.

Population: Turin has a population of about 600,000 men, women and children. About 40% of them are humans, 30% are elves, 20% are dwarves, and the other 10% are a mix of half-elves, ogres and goblins.