City of Brass
Medina Mudii'a, aka the fabled City of Brass is the capital of the Dominion of Flame, the nation of the genies known as the efreet, and is found on the Plane of Fire. The efreet themselves call the city Fommok Madinah.1 It is a city of majestic palaces, tall towers, and wide boulevards that provides some respite to visitors of this otherwise wholly inhospitable plane. Even though many efreet are happy to trade with others, their inherent racial prejudice means that most feel little compunction in taking advantage of, or even robbing and enslaving outsiders who show weakness. Those visitors who can convince the efreet that they are not to be trifled with, or acquire an official status such as trader or diplomat, have access to the grandest markets that the Plane of Fire, and some even say the Great Beyond, has to offer.234
Districts of the City
The city is divided into eight quarters, excluding the Great Bazaar, and two major regions: the Inner Ward and the Outer Ward.5 The Inner Ward is a divided into a series of circle-like regions separated by rivers of molten lava. It consists of The Great Bazaar, the Temple Quarter, and the Noble Quarter. The Outer Ward is made up of dive sections divided by huge obsidian walls. Here are located the Burning Quarter, the Mages' Quarter, the Commoners' Quarter, the Slaves' Quarter, and the Galley Quarter.6
The Inner Ward
The Great Bazaar
Referred to as the Suq al-Azzmir Marketplace by efreet, the Great Bazaar, or Grand Bazaar, is one of the largest trading hubs in the Great Beyond, so large it classes as one of the districts of the Inner Ward of the city. One can find almost any good imaginable here, from the mundane, like metals and spices, to the magical. The principal stock of this great market, however, is the slave trade that flourishes here. Gold is not the main currency that exchanges hands, that being instead magic that the efreet covet. The only items that are rare to see are anything related to water, which is strictly regulated, and items that could be used in the binding of genies. This district is among the most diverse of the whole city, consisting of many fire-immune creatures like efreet, azers, salamanders, and fire elementals.7
The Noble Quarter
The wealthiest of the city's districts, the Noble Quarter, or Noble District, is part of the innermost section of the Inner Ward with the heart of it being filled by the Grand Sultana's palace. The Noble Quarter lies at the bottom of the basin that is the City of Brass, though its towers peak high above the city proper, particularly the palace's towers. Beneath these towers, flow marvelous pools of raining sulfur and quicksilver, while haughty palanquins carried by armies of slaves crowd the streets. The Noble Quarter is where you can find the scheming genies plotting amongst sycophants and vying for the Grand Sultana's favor. It is in the heart of this district that the governance of this great nation takes place.8
The Temple Quarter
Despite being largely lawless toward any deific power, the efreet nonetheless construct buildings in the Temple Quarter, or Temple District, of the city honoring many powerful beings of flame, including images of the grand sultana herself, and her predecessor, the grand sultan. As an effort to ingratiate themselves with divine beings, this section of the city seems to constantly expand with new great temples as well as ancient treasures to fill them. Among the temples here you can find the palace of Ymeri, the Elemental Queen of the Inferno, one of the most powerful beings on the whole Plane of Fire. Despite the grandeur of her temple and the semi-frequent visits, Ymeri has visited the palace only a handful of times since its construction; doing so twice to wreak havoc on the efreet.9
The Outer Ward
Burning Quarter
The Burning Quarter is a peculiar place within the City of Brass as its one of the few places you are unlikely to see an efreet. Instead, this quarter is made up of many different fire elementals. There is little architecture here and, instead, the primary focus of this district is a pillar of flame. Rumor holds that if ever there is a slave revolt the fire elementals here will simply rain down upon them, incinerate them, and leave nothing but ash behind.10
The Mages' Quarter
The smallest quarter, the Mages' Quarter, rests on a hill surrounded by powerful guardians and magic that act as a barrier to all outsiders. Here, practitioners of the mystic arts hone their craft in attempts to bind elementals, mortals, and even other genies. Two sorcerers stand out, Grand Vizier Abdul-Qawi and White Mage Yndri Ysalaa, the former being one of the major political powers in the City of Brass, and the latter being possibly the most powerful sorcerer in the city. It is said that Yndri Ysalaa is the power behind the wards that protect the district.11
Pathfinder Society
Volume 14 of the Pathfinder Chronicles includes a map of the City of Brass and the Plane of Fire immediately surrounding the city, drawn by the famous Pathfinder cartographer, Insitha Avari.12
References
Paizo published a major article about the City of Brass in the Plane of Fire chapter of Planes of Power.
For additional resources, see the Meta page.
- ↑ Nathan King. (2016). Cleansed With Fire, p. 4. Paizo Inc.
- ↑ Wolfgang Baur. (2009). The City of Brass. The Impossible Eye, p. 54. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-179-4
- ↑ Erik Mona et al. (2008). "Religion". Campaign Setting, p. 179. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-112-1
- ↑ James Jacobs et al. (2011). "Religion". The Inner Sea World Guide, p. 241. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-269-2
- ↑ Tim Akers, Judy Bauer, Jim Groves, Chris Lites, Dale C. McCoy, Jr., and Cassidy Werner. (2014). Blood of the Elements, p. 26. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-60125-654-6
- ↑ John Compton, Paris Crenshaw, Eleanor Ferron, Thurston Hillman, and Jessica Price. (2016). Planes of Power, p. 37–39. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-60125-883-0
- ↑ Wolfgang Baur. (2009). The City of Brass. The Impossible Eye, p. 57. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-179-4
- ↑ Wolfgang Baur. (2009). The City of Brass. The Impossible Eye, p. 58f. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-179-4
- ↑ Wolfgang Baur. (2009). The City of Brass. The Impossible Eye, p. 59. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-179-4
- ↑ Wolfgang Baur. (2009). The City of Brass. The Impossible Eye, p. 56. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-179-4
- ↑ Wolfgang Baur. (2009). The City of Brass. The Impossible Eye, p. 58. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-179-4
- ↑ John Compton & Mark Moreland. (2013). Pathfinder Society Primer, p. 27. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-534-1
