Eastern Synk’maa: Cities and Towns
Eastern Synk’maa, the largest and most populated continent in the whole Synk’maa, and the base on which the throne of the Kingdom of Gallowmoor is seated. Since the unification of its people into one nation under the banner of Gallowmoor, the East has been, and most likely will be far into the future, the most functional and capable dominion ever seen in Synk’maa, having all the conquered lands and overtaken empires as one of their most marvelous proofs of success. Even in its unfathomable scale, it seems the East operates as one, like an almost incomprehensible hivemind.
It is a careful mixture of political flexibility, religious dominance and intimidating military presence that keep the rest of Synk’maa disciplined in the iron grip of the East. The royal family and the rest of the leading figures know how to keep petty leaders, commoners and other inferiors grateful enough, yet they also know how to handle any inconvenient insurgencies some self-proclaimed revolutionaries might try to stir. Gallowmoor trusts that the lesser kingdoms will stay under control forever and ever, and would never dare to form a union against the throne, and that perhaps could be their, and the whole Eastern dominion’s, downfall in the unforeseeable future.
Merivahti - Sea Watch
The Eastern Synk’maa’s gateway towards the west and the greatest port city in the whole Synk’maa, of which the surface area covers almost the whole island the city is built upon. The Royal Fleet of Eastern Synk’maa has its official headquarters in Sea Watch, providing great militaristic strength and presence in the city. Attacking Sea Watch, especially by water, would be a death wish of a madman.
Valopitäjä - Home of Light
Originally a small, more or less insignificant settlement of fishermen and seafarers, with a history now forgotten in time. During the Age of Gods, people came and went by, and when the First War began, the community was left behind for good.
The war ended and the Age of Woes came to be. The Children of the Eternal Flame had more members than ever and the white mages wanted to have a municipality of their own, outside the high walls of Gallowmoor. So did the King appoint the white mages an estate where they could establish their new high command. Soon the first bricks of Home of Light’s foundations were set to the ground.
Today, in the Age of Men, Home of Light is the religious center of worship of Tulikokko, where all the white mages around Synk’maa travel at least once during their lives as their pilgrimage. The city has the greatest Church of the Eternal Flame ever built and there lays the high seat of the Oracle, the chosen Holy Child and the messenger of Tulikokko. Around them the members of the Court of the Righteous buzz like flies, yearning for their favor, feeding with the light of their grace.
Pohjolan Silmä - Northern Eye
A port town where the shipping between the Eastern and Northern Synk’maa mostly happens. The Shadow Kin tried to take Northern Eye over many times during the First War, but all of their efforts were in vain. The cliff upon which the town is located is strikingly steep, almost completely vertical, thus making defending the town laughably easy if the attacker is approaching from the sea. On land are dozens of watchtowers, ready to inform the troops in the city about the coming raids. It is no surprise that the Loyalists never lost their control over Northern Eye during the years of war.
Lepola - House of Healing
House of Healing was originally the greatest and most capable of insane asylums, slowly transforming into a town as people started to build housing around the hospital area. There are also old, now empty and barely maintained sections where wounded warriors were treated during wartimes. Now, in the Age of Men, there is another immense building under construction, an institution which will be known as the House of Greater Healing.
Hirttonummi - Gallowmoor
The capital and the greatest citadel of all Synk’maa since the beginning of the Age of Gods. It is said that the Kingdom of Gallowmoor was the self-proclaimed sovereign domain of the Eastern Synk’maa even before the counting of years and measuring time began, and the few written documents from those times support these claims.
The city is built between the Twin Lakes, near the hills of the Hornskull’s Dwelling. The buildings, houses of commoners and high stone walls circle the main castle complex of Gallowmoor, while the mighty watchtowers keep an eye on the lands surrounding the city. The terrain around, as well as the city’s layout provide excellent defenses, making Gallowmoor practically unconquerable. Even if some attacker got to the castle in the innermost core of Gallowmoor, the relentless elite warriors and ruthless guardians would wipe out any foe rising against the crown.
A practice, on which the city’s name is based that still exists today, is to execute by hanging any captured enemy of the Kingdom of Gallowmoor publicly. Before the city grew to its current massive size, the gallows covered the land around the kingdom. Nowadays, the gallows decorate the streets of Gallowmoor itself and there are even dedicated avenues for public executions. The bodies are then left to be swung by the wind and eaten by the carrion birds, until the rope finally gives in, and the dried corpses fall to the ground. Such is the cruel nature of the Kingdom of Gallowmoor.
Basically, all the notable factions have their headquarters, or at least a major department, in Gallowmoor, such as the Children of the Eternal Flame, various sects of black mages, Fighters Guild, Spellblade Mercenaries and so on. Individuals looking for work of varying kinds will find something when visiting Gallowmoor and those who wish to join a group to feel like belonging somewhere are not falling short either.
The still ongoing wealth and prosperity of the Kingdom of Gallowmoor is a mystery to many, and it is proposed that eventually Gallowmoor will fall, since no man-made empire can be eternal. Yet there is no end to Gallowmoor in sight by any means, no force to stand up against them, no goal unattainable. Some scholars now believe that the much fabled Holy Chalice of Sacrifices and its underground domain, the Altar of Power, are real and before the Age of Gods, the then ruling king found them and made an offering so magnificent, that it still keeps the Kingdom in its terrifying might. Whatever is the case, the iron grip of Gallowmoor holds the throat of the rest of the Synk’maa and its status as the great capital remains untouchable.
Suursatama - Great Port
Probably the oldest and originally the most important port city in Synk’maa before the establishment of Sea Watch. While not the busiest one since the development of other harbor cities around the globe, Great Port is the most prevailing one in the Eastern Synk’maa because of its location and significance to the Kingdom of Gallowmoor. It hosts the most organized, most notable in numbers, group of sea witches, as well as the stunningly glorious Sanctuary of Waves ever seen or built.
Eränkävijän Kylä - Wanderer’s Hamlet
A small and modest, and quite meaningless in truth, town serving as a place for rest and refueling for those traveling between the east and west of the continent.
Aaltokoto - Wavehaven
One of the many cities residing on the coast, located downstream of Serpent’s Tongue Rivers. Before the First War, the city was just a mere puny town, but as the demand for lumber grew during the war years, the earnings of Wavehaven rose extremely quickly and the city expanded along with the incoming wealth. After the war, the demand, as well as the need for workers, declined, and so did the city start to wither slowly back to its former state. That being said, Wavehaven still has the best carpenters in the Eastern Synk’maa and most of the white mages prefer to hire them when in need of a brand new custom scepter.
Kielenkanta - Serpent’s Root
A town sharing a similar story from the times of war to its neighbor Wavehaven. During the times of apparent peace, Serpent’s Root has been favored as a place for socializing and trading by the wanderers, hermits, rangers and woodland witches. Some rumors say that the real reason is the abundant supplies of psychedelic drugs manufactured in the town, but all the locals deny these claims consistently.
Kajo - Aurora
The one and only city in Synk’maa that doesn’t have any kind of appointed leading figure, except the King of Gallowmoor, of course. At the end of the Age of Woes, the people of Aurora wanted to have a true municipal council, which would have members chosen triennially by voting. Much to surprise, the King accepted this suggestion, maybe out of curiosity or perhaps to see if ordinary folk could make important political decisions collectively. Some officials believe that the people of Aurora act as a positive example to the natives of the Middle Synk’maa, and the current King of Gallowmoor should take tighter control of Aurora once more.
Pohjattoman Reuna - Gulf’s Edge
A town on the southeastern shore of the Bottomless Gulf, while being a rather typical coastal hamlet on a larger scale, it still has curious moments in its own history. During its whole existence, Gulf’s Edge has been favored by smugglers and traffickers, since the majority of its officers have been a part of the criminal underground through the ages. It is also suggested that the town holds a special guild, where the most efficient spies and assassins of the whole Eastern Synk’maa are being trained, and Gallowmoor allows all of this to happen, since the royals supposedly hire the best of the outlaws themselves.
Lastly, there is a unique sect of sea witches at Gulf’s Edge who believe that the sea goddess Aallotar has her abode in the dark depths of the Bottomless Gulf. Whether Aallotar sleeps there or not, it is a known fact that the monsters under the gulf’s surface are of the most dangerous kind, and no ship will ever sail across the gulf, taking the safe route around the coastal lines.
Katuvainen - Repentance
A city originally devastated and completely ruined during the First War, rebuilt as a massive prison complex to host any surviving and captured members and supporters of the Shadow Kin. There they would wait for the transportation to Gallowmoor to have a fixed and pre-arranged trial before being hanged on the capital’s streets. Nowadays, all the prisoners from around Synk’maa are sent to Repentance, whatever their crime even was.
The village surrounding the prison is inhabited by the various prison workers, whereas any outsiders are prohibited from having a house of their own. Only a few travelers stray to Repentance and are treated with unpleasant antipathy by the locals. Repentance is a place that everybody knows exists, but no one really knows what is going on in its own secluded reality.
