Porteui & Cirrinembis
by Giulio N CarolettiLocation: Endworld Spine, 200 kilometres east of the land of Szekesh, mount Porthe.
Area: 186 km sq
Population: 4,200 (3,000 gnomes, 1,200 giants) Languages: Gnomish (Hillik dialect), Giantish (Rondane dialect) Coinage: Zorki (sp) (Porteui) ; Mynt (ep) (Cirrinembis)
Government Type: Monarchy (giants), clan-structured monarchy (gnomes)
Industries: Unknown (giants), geothermic, engineering, agriculture -potatoes, wheat- (gnomes)
Important Figures: Akseel (storm giant king), Jebeck (gnomish king)
Flora and Fauna: Musk and lichens are the only plants to grow apart from the region cultivated artificially by the gnomes. The fauna in the region is sparse.
Description: The city of Porteui is located at the top of a mountain of the Endworld Spine. The city is built mainly at the side of the higher peaks of the mountain, and every house is connected to each other through bridges, a great example of the engineering abilities of the gnomes who live here. Porteui is home to 3,000 mountain gnomes, whose main activities are high-tech agriculture and engineering studies. They have built thermic machines who artificially provide the warmth needed by the plants to survive and thrive. However, the drawback of the machines is to create a thermic instability that results in the permanent clouds who stay over the city. So the gnomes had to build also machines who provide artificial illumination to the city. The engineering studies have allowed the gnomes to reach all these wondrous achievements, and moreover also to allow a group of cloud giants to live above the clouds, in the city of Cirrinembis.
Built on the clouds, Cirrinembis is settled by 1,200 giants (mainly cloud giants, but also some storm giant). An island of earth, covered by musk and lichens, but no other vegetation, floats on the clouds, like if they were a sort of sea. This is due to the "artificial" nature of the clouds, who are semi-solid and dense, and thus allow this incredible occurrence, unique in Mystara (but for those who know Mystaran gnomes, and thus Serraine and Earthshaker, this should not be a surprise!). The giants are ruled by Akseel, a storm giant king assisted by a counsel of priests of Hymir, the Father of Giants.
Relationships between the two groups border the zero. As long as the gnomes provide the city its cloud base, nothing will happen, as the gnomes are not overly curious about the giants, considering the past history of Porteui.
History: The Hillik gnomish clan arrived in the area around 365 AC. The Hillik clan was interested in geothermic and thermodynamics. They had made significant theoretical improvements and wanted to try the fortune in a well-suited area. They found it here and settled under the leadership of Zork Fireburner, who was following the Path of the Paragon. Zork's skills allowed the gnomes to build the machineries that led to the achievements in the illumination, cloud producing and farming that are typical of Porteui. Then, in 536, soon after the end of the main work, Zork disappeared.
In 546 AC, a band of cloud giants arrived from the northern Endless Spine, announcing to the gnomes that the land over the clouds ("Cir rì nebis") was their. They claimed that Garl, the Immortal Protector of Gnomes, and Hymir, Father of Giants, had agreed to build a new land for the giants, and that Garl had sent Zork to lead the gnomes here to prepare it for them. The giants were fleeing from Rondane [see Atlas of Hyborea], and told the gnomes that, if they had refused, they would fight for their right. An avatar of Garl arrived in Porteui, while the giants waited outside the city in a guise very similar to that of a siege. He spoke to the gnomes telling them to listen to what the giants said, because it was true. Excited by the presence of an avatar of their patron, the gnomes were eager to comply with his request, especially since no gnome knew what use they could make of the land over the clouds. After a day of celebrations, to which the avatar attended personally, the gnomes sent envoys to the giants, telling them to take possession of what would become known as Cirrinembis.