The One and Only Official Omrazir Preview Thread

Several months ago I waved the tantalizing notion of previewing some of the different areas in Omrazir, so that people could see what's being worked on and get a better feel for a place their characters had supposedly been. However, because MISTSPARROW IS TERRIBLE AND A LIAR, this did not actually come to pass. But now I am resurrecting this hope, and plan to do a series of short previews for the next several weeks as I get some Serious Omrazir Work done. I figure this will help keep me motivated and will also hopefully be exciting to everyone else!

To start with, though, I want to give people an idea of what to expect from alpha-version Omrazir at the time that their characters finally arrive there and the setting shifts. Just so that I can get the crushing of people's hopes and dreams out of the way, I will say up front that alpha-Omrazir will NOT be a fully complete map, with all areas of the city built in and finished, all interiors added, a full complement of astonishing wares, vast avalanches of tiny details, and all the many other things which I fondly evision one day. What it WILL have is:

 * All the major throughfares of the city. This includes the Via Magna, Via Maris, Via Aspera, Via Fortuna, Via Nubilis, Via Sanguis, Via Oscura, Via Columnis, Via Extranea, Via Lucis, Via Petra, and Vis Tenebris. Most of these thoroughfares will have various shops and lodgings located along them, besides allowing people to navigate the city naturally.

 * All the landmark neighborhoods of the city, either in part or entirety. This includes:
  - Full build-outs of the Wharf District, Ferenghi Quarter, Hospital District, White City, and Razmani Enclave.
  - Partial build-outs of the Bazaar of Nine Winds, Bloody Quarter, Dockside District, Elucidarium Complex, Kingfisher District, Palace Precinct, and Temple District. Some of these neighborhoods, like Kingfisher and Dockside, have two spatially separate blocks, one of which will be fully complete. Others, like the Temple District and Elucidarium Complex, are pretty large and complex areas, so they'll have a smaller subset of rooms that will allow people to hang out in these areas, but there will still be a lot left to add over time. The Bazaar of Nine Winds has its main level complete, but will eventually have upper and below-ground levels as well.
  - A few other smaller areas, such as some little side streets, the Wali Djabeli Cemetery, Fish Market, and the Dampstone Close neighborhood.
 - For clarity: A "fully built" neighborhood will have all the streets in place and some places to go, but I'll be continuing to add various interiors such as local shops, lodgings, mosques, HAMMAMS.

 * A few different lodging places, in different parts of the city and for PCs of different income levels and lifestyles. Also several eateries with different styles of fare.

 * An assortment of different shops, but with limited wares. People should be able to buy a variety of items similar in scope to what's available in St. Loomis now, but Omrazir style. Obviously there will be A LOT to add here as we go, but hopefully people will be able to equip themselves in a basic way. There will obviously be ample opportunity for PC crafters to help by creating their own offerings!

 * Essential organizations. Ones that PCs should be able to join include: the Omrazir Customs Authority, the Raziyan Lion Guard, the Poets' and Calligraphers' Guild, the Bardic Fellowship (that's Emmaline's org!), the Elucidarium, the Collegium of Mages, and the Temple of Storms. The Provincial Court of Raziya and Shining Court (of the White City) will also exist as orgs with SPC members that PCs can interact with, and eventually PCs may officially work their way into those too.

 * A few Omrazir Outskirts locations, including parts of: the Sidi Mircasset oasis, some of the sea cliff and Stormbreak Hills areas closest to town, the outdoor market and workshop area outside the south gate, and the Sharizaar Road leading south to the journey point that goes to the bandits' camp at the Sharizaar Massif. Probably a few other little miscellaneous bits here and there too.

 * Basic resources. As part of the outdoor areas above, there will be areas for timbering, foraging, hunting, and mining, once again probably on a similar scale to St. Loomis. Fishing will also be available, from the bay and the River Tamrasset.

 * Bissenke as a playable heritage. The next to go in will probably be Jalanit and Angrosh, but I'm not sure if they'll be ready in time for June or not.

 * Probably other small stuff I'm forgetting!

Obviously this leaves so many many things left to add to Omrazir, from new neighborhoods and shops, to expanded resources, to all kinds of little details like more room objects, day/night/seasonal differences, and "secret" areas to explore. The sad thing is that alpha-Omrazir will not be anywhere near as awesome as Omrazir properly should be. On the other hand, since everyone will finally be playing in the main development area of the game, you should all be able to see continual additions and progress.

Starting later this week, the first preview will be for that place that is everyone's last and first sight of Omrazir: the Wharf District!

Preview #1: The Wharf District

The Wharf District is located in the north-central part of Omrazir and occupies the lowest point in the entire city. It actually lies below the level of the lowest escarpment of the Rassine Hill that the city is built on, which drops off in a sheer rock face about 30 feet or so above the level of the sea. So instead of being part of the shoreline, the Wharf District is a long umberstone quay constructed so that it abuts the base of the escarpment.

(Side note: Umberstone is the native rock of which most of the Rassine Hill is composed. It is most commonly a medium reddish-brown color, but depending on the formation can range anywhere from a very deep purplish-red to a light peach. A little like cement, its chemical composition tends to make it harder when continually exposed to water, so it's a very durable building material for the shoreline parts of Omrazir in particular.)

Due to the relatively small size of Omrazir's harbor, most ships dock at the nearby town of al-Sakhna just to the east, which serves as the city's main port. The Wharf District chiefly serves as the point of arrival and departure for passenger ships, along with merchant vessels carrying smaller and typically more expensive cargoes. Also, most of the city's book and manuscript trade comes through the Wharf District.

The two main piers are the Pier of Stars, which serves especially passenger traffic, and the Banu Shoureh Pier, which serves more merchant vessels, though obviously these two lines are often mixed. (The Banu Shoureh were a prominent family in the city during the time of the Tifrid line of caliphs, when Omrazir was the capital of the caliphate, but have sharply declined in eminence over the past 150 years or so.) A smaller pier, the Fisherman's Pier, comes off the far east end of the wharf near where the Fish Market is located.

Some of the main landmarks of the Wharf District include:

* The Plaza of a Thousand Tongues. This plaza lies at the far west end of the quay, where the Via Magna descends to meet it. This is where most ship travelers enter and exit the city, and is a place where many people hire porters and guides. It is also the location of the Pillar of Tongues, an umberstone column that is used for the posting of all kinds of notices. PCs can post things on it too!

* The Wharf District Administration Headquarters. This structure houses the Port Authority and keeps records of incoming and outgoing ships as well as passenger and cargo lists. There is also limited warehousing space and a store of materials available to carry out simple repairs of seagoing vessels.

* The Omrazir Customs Authority operational headquarters. Most customs staff work out of this building and have offices here, though there is a higher-end administration center up near the palace too. Many arriving goods are inspected in the central courtyard of the customs complex, and there are jail cells as well.

* The Jolly Osprey. This is a pub and hostel near the center of the quay, which provides cheap lodgings and warehouse storage as well as food and drinks. Catering especially to sailors and foreigners, it serves a range of alcoholic beverages along with mostly seafood dishes.

And finally, here are some actual room scenes from the Wharf District:

[City of Omrazir, Via Magna, Plaza of a Thousand Tongues]

[City of Omrazir, Wharf District, Outside the Customs Authority]

[City of Omrazir, Wharf District, Banu Shoureh Pier]

[City of Omrazir, Wharf District, Fisherman's Pier]

That is it for now! Next up will be The Via Magna!

The Via Magna is the main north-south thoroughfare of Omrazir, which traverses the whole city from the Wharf District to the Bazaar of the Nine Winds, and most of the city's other major streets intersect or branch off from it. It begins at the Plaza of a Thousand Tongues, proceeds all the way up the Rassine Hill, passes through the Bazaar, and terminates at the southern Nthanda Gate which opens onto the plain that lies south of the city. Like all the other major throughways of Omrazir, the Via Magna has kept its old Ruvan name but is occasionally referred to in translation as the Great Way.

Despite a few small curves the Via Magna is by far the straightest street in the entire city, as well as the widest. Along most of its length it is paved with pale peach umberstone flagstones, quarried from the cliffs just west of Omrazir. It is paralleled on its east side by the River Tamrasset, which rushes down the hill alongside the street as far as its junction with the Via Sanguis. Along with the river, the Via Magna serves as the dividing line between the eastern Dawn and western Dusk sides of the city.

(Side note: After its conquest by the Ruvans, the east side of Omrazir -- originally the only side there was -- continued to be the place where most of the city's native population lived, while the Ruvans tended to construct fortified dwellings and administrative complexes in the steeper hills above the west side of the Tamrasset. Despite the impracticalities of living in a smaller area with a steeper slope, the west side of the city grew rapidly as Omrazir expanded into a major hub of Ruveran imperial commerce and regional administration, with most of Dusk's population originating from outside Idiri. Dusk remained the center of governance after it became part of the Sirdabi Caliphate, and the west city's population still comprises a larger proportion of non-native heritages than the east side.)

Even after centuries, the Via Magna retains some of its character from the days of the Ruveran Empire. Its very straightness is partly a product of the Ruvan predilection for building everything to be as linear as possible, even if it might perhaps have been easier on the road's users to have built gentler switchbacks or followed along the natural curves of the hill. Although it was originally just a well-traveled dirt track, the Via Magna was greatly improved during the reign of Emperor Rufus (Rufaz in his own Razmani), who as a native Raziyan initiated many construction projects to improve his home city. During this time it was paved, straightened (naturally), and lined with arcaded porticoes and lime trees. A short section of the Via Magna retains the original porticoes.

Now the street is lined mostly with shops and stalls for most of the way from the Grand Gate all the way up to the Bazaar. Since the Via Magna ascends the full slope of the Rassine Hill, traversing it can be a somewhat arduous experience. Where the hill is particularly steep it ascends in steps, though these are shallow and broad enough for the city's various beasts of burden to navigate without much difficulty. Whenever anyone grows too fatigued, they are of course encouraged to stop and buy refreshments or some other enticing bit of merchandise from one of the streetside stalls, or to sit on a bench and watch some entertainment provided by the avenue's many street performers.

Some landmarks along the Via Magna include:

* The Grand Gate. This monumental golden granite arch was one of the Emperor Rufaz's constructions to honor and adorn his hometown, and it is one of the few that remains in much its original state. On the north side of the gate is the Grand Gate Plaza, and on the south side is the Grand Gate Junction, where the Via Extranea (leading west) and the Via Sanguis (heading east across the river) intersect.

* Taklit Park. This small riverside park sits sandwiched in between the Via Magna and the Tamrasset, and is shaded by clumps of lomombi trees. It's a favorite place for the ordinary folk of town to come fish or picnic by the water, or play simple games with dice or marbles.

* Al-Qadi and al-Shaykh Bridges. These are the two fine bridges leading across the Tamrasset and into the genteel neighborhood of the Kingfisher District. Both of the bridges are popular places to sit, socialize, fish, view the pretty waterfalls, and even do laundry.

* Night Winds Caravanserai. This is probably the best-known caravanserai in Omrazir, given its extremely prominent and advantageous position along the main road of town and just north of the Bazaar of the Nine Winds. It caters to people of middling means and up, and serves some simple fare along with having a public bathhouse. Classy! Those who followed our Reddit previews will remember this as the place where Emmaline first stayed when she came to Omrazir!

* The Bazaar of the Nine Winds. Although technically a district unto itself, the Bazaar is bisected by the passage of the Via Magna, which runs indoors beneath the high vaulted ceiling of this immense covered market.

* The Nthanda Gate. The largest and perhaps the most beautiful of all of Omrazir's city gates, the Nthanda Gate opens south onto the Sharizaar Road that roughly follows the course of the Tamrasset across the Plain of Storms. Eventually this road reaches the desert town of Orabi, and even more eventually, the Razmani city of Alheri (alas, not in the game until some far-flung future date). On the side leading into the city, the bronze gates are worked with the image of feathery tree boughs and trailing vines, as if they were opening onto the Eternal Sirdab itself, which is of course not at all a show of total hubris on Omrazir's part.

Now, scenes from the busy world of the Via Magna....

[City of Omrazir, Via Magna]

[City of Omrazir, Junction of the Via Magna and the Via Maris]

[City of Omrazir, Via Magna]

[City of Omrazir, Via Magna, al-Qadi Bridge Intersection]

[City of Omrazir, Via Magna, Gate to the Bazaar of the Nine Winds]

The Via Fortuna is one of the oldest streets in Omrazir, leading from the Nomads' Gate in the southeast corner of the city to the centrally located Bazaar of the Nine Winds. Its course likely closely follows the route of the ancient road that led to the original Razmani city of Elam Rassi, the heart of which is today the White City. The Via Oscura branches off from it, skirting the western edge of the Shining Hill that the White City rests upon, and so does the Via Sanguis that leads north to the Bloody Quarter of the Yehani. At the street's westernmost end it links to the Via Magna via the Bazaar.

As may be expected from its age and history, the Via Fortuna runs through some of the oldest parts of the Dawn side of the city. The Via Fortuna's name suggests something of the many people who have come to seek their fortunes in Omrazir across the centuries, as well as the route's association with luck and fate. Although somewhat poor and shabby in places, this is one of the most storied routes through Omrazir, with a number of significant landmarks central to the history of the city and the Azadi faith. Pilgrims and other travelers come from a great distance to visit places such as the People's Plaza and Wali Djabeli's tomb and mosque. It is one of the most vibrant and culturally diverse streets of the city, where many of the native heritages of Idiri mingle with those of Ruleska, and wealthy pilgrims bump elbows with nomads, traveling entertainers, and beggars.

Some landmarks along the Via Fortuna include:

* The Nomads' Gate. The southeast gate of Omrazir shows its age, both in its construction from monumental carved blocks, and in the strange beasts carved on its pylons which have been nearly worn away with the centuries. The road running east and south from it leads to the nomads' camping grounds on the north side of the Sidi Mircasset Oasis. (Fun fact: The room just outside the Nomad's Gate is the oldest extant room in the game!)

* Wali Djabeli Cemetery. This is the chief burying ground of Omrazir, spread out across the hillside at the southeast corner of the city and reached via a path just west of the Nomads' Gate. Although the cemetery itself has likely existed for far longer, its modern name comes from the favorite companion of Adwa, the holy man or wali Djabeli, whose resting place is the mosque at the cemetery's lower north end. Wali Djabeli is widely revered in Omrazir for being Adwa's first convert to the Azadi faith, for his wisdom and bravery, and also for the humility that led him to choose to be buried among the common people in a fairly modest tomb, rather than having a lavish tomb constructed for himself within the Elucidarium district -- despite the fact that he founded the Elucidarium mosque!

* The Sign of the Simurgh. This somewhat down-at-the-heels caravanserai sits on the north side of Simurgh Plaza, whose centerpiece is a bronze fountain featuring that mystical creature. Its clientele is mostly made up of the genteel poor, people of limited means who would nevertheless feel out of place in the city's slums. Although it has seen better days, the Simurgh is known to have occupied this same spot for countless generations.

* Salwan's Eatery. Omrazir's premiere outdoor dining experience! (Or so says the legend on its menu.) Salwan's caters to the many travelers and pilgrims along the Via Fortuna who are looking for a quick meal and a place to rest their feet, and is also popular with the locals who live along the street. Salwan himself is known to have picked up fluency in a host of languages from the many travelers who stop by his eatery and prides himself on being able welcome newcomers to the city in their native tongue, whatever it may be.

* Plaza of the People. This is a long plaza that lies along the central portion of the Via Fortuna, extending in either direction from the Alabaster Gate that leads into the White City. This is the spot at which Djabeli assembled with a large number of other Azadi converts to accompany Adwa back to Rahoum to help her people who were then still embroiled in the Women's War. The walls along its east end are decorated with a lifelike mosaic representing travelers along the Via Fortuna, and legend tells that even these people stepped out of the wall to follow Adwa in her mission. This is one of the chief pilgrimage sites in Omrazir, and one of the major destinations for Azadi all across the caliphate.

* Bardic Fellowship Hall. Founded by that adventurous soul Emmaline du Marais and her merry band of misfits, the Bardic Fellowship Hall is of course a brand new institution in Omrazir. It occupies a multistory building on the west side of the Plaza of the People.

* Outdoor Street Markets. Commerce from the Bazaar of the Nine Winds spills out onto the Via Fortuna at the street's western end, so that the landings along the steps leading up to the Bazaar are crowded with vendors whose goods are displayed on blankets and beneath colorful awnings.

And to conclude, scenes from the... currently very flooded Via Fortuna, because it has stormed A LOT in Omrazir lately. o_O

[City of Omrazir, Via Fortuna, Chileidu Plaza]

[City of Omrazir, Via Fortuna]

[City of Omrazir, Via Fortuna, Nesrabi's Elbow]

[City of Omrazir, Via Fortuna, Plaza of the People]

[City of Omrazir, Via Fortuna]