Middle World

Katchari
A city in Darsen

-by Wesley Quadros
January 2004

Katchari is an ancient city that is famed for the quantity of its metal work and the quality of its fruit grobes. Katchari traces its roots back the time of Daxdarius when the swordsman Katchar built his first forge upon the banks of the River Keth. Now Katchar did not choose this place lightly. The hills around his forge were laden with metals and they were easily mined and more easily worked. It is said that in the early days one had only to step outside and look at one's feet to find ore.

The coming of Katchar and the flood of eager students and smiths that followed did much to disrupt the village and the Darseni Crones frowned but welcomed the wealth that came along with them. Through the ages that have followed, the city has been part of Dara Happa, Darsen, Dikoria, Karasal, Naveria, Spol, various Pentan kingdoms and now the Lunar Empire - but in that time has retained its uniquely Darseni culture. The Circle of Crones rules the city but unlike most Darseni cities, The Maker¹ has replaced Bright Face as the leader of the Men's Circle and the Sword-priests of Katchar have replaced the Iron Man. Tensions between the two circles usually run high - the men see their crafts as the life-blood of the city and believe that they should rule. The Crones have ruled for thousands of years and see no reason to change now. Great Sister supports the Crones' point of view and that effectively ends the argument.

Katchari is in places one of the most beautiful cities on the Keth with sprawling groves of oranges, tangerines and dates. The Crones maintain expansive gardens and tall hedges that hide the sooty smithies and desolate slag heaps of the Guilds' quarter. Within the Guilds' Quarter, the hammers never stop. Massive water wheels turn in the canals powering mighty trip-hammers and heavily laden wagons rumble from the mines to smithies to docks.

The only hill within the city that has not been reduced to rubble is Sword Bluff where Katchar founded his Ebon Academy, the home of the famous Blades of Katchar. The warrior-smiths that work these forges make exceptional blades for those that can afford their prices and train elite swordsmen to follow their god's example. Many noble houses send their most promising sons to the Academy to be forged into the most skilled bladesmen under the Red Moon.

1 - The Maker is their name for Lodril.