“A city that exists alongside but separate from Canal City, Basalt City lives in mutual symbiosis with its older cousin. Basalt City contains exceptional power generation facilities, and trades these for a wealth of food. In all other things, it is neutral. Any vice or virtue can be found, purchased, or bartered for in Basalt City. Just never, ever, go against the laws in place. The Basalt City Nobles ensure that their rules are always followed. Always.” —From “A Guide to Basalt City”
Basalt City is the second large city in the underground. It champions itself as the Neutral City, and is a place where anyone can get what they want with enough money. The rules are strict and decorum is enforced, but in return there are few other places safer for any kind of dealing—whether between city leaders or amongst the most unsavory (or some untoward combination). The outskirts of Basalt City are less inviting, and somewhat more of a slum then other cities might be; the action is all inside.
Basalt City is the power generation capital of the underground. It also offers recycling and waste processing services. The latter is the cause for the pall of toxic haze that surrounds the city. Of course, the official routes are kept clear and safe, but it further strengthens the city’s defenses.
Inspiration: Fallout: New Vegas.
City History #
Basalt City was founded as part of an expedition to secure additional power sources for Canal City, led by several nobles including the Silvermore family. The expedition eventually settled on the cavern where it currently lives due to the relatively simple path back to Canal City, the location of a series of underground magma channels, and an abundance of scheelite that could be refined into the incredibly heat-resistant tungsten metal.
The early days of Basalt City were very colonial, with regular shipments of materials and exchange of workers from Canal City. They mined, processed the scheelite, and built the immense boiler tubes that would eventually link to turbines to drive Basalt City’s great generators. The southern canal of Canal City was re-routed through a morph-made aqueduct to feed fresh water to the new city as well. The cave system between the two cities was smoothed out to ease travel.
Once the turbines began to spin in those generators, Basalt City itself started to grow around them. Maintenance quarters and worker dorms were built, and around those grew the Outer City. With the main goal of Basalt City underway, it was time for the nobility to turn their sights to improving their own living situation. The Inner City was planned and built using information from the nobles’ ancient libraries.
This planned inner city was designed by nobles, for nobles. Most of the population lived in the outer city. For a time, it was good. When Canal City started its industrialization, Basalt City found a new use for the magma channels. The haggling over this additional service, however, did not go as well as Basalt City had hoped, and their side left with a lasting raw feeling.
The relationship between the two cities slowly degraded, even as infrastructure between the two improved. A radio link, and even a suspended train were built between the two cities, but the Basalt City nobles found the Canal City nobles to be less and less attentive to their needs—in fact, downright ignoring them as time went on.
This came to a head in the Canal City and Basalt City war, which saw the two cities go at one another in earnest. For Basalt City, this was a war of independence, so that their nobility could retain their noble control of the city. For Canal City, this was an attack from a vassal state.
Quite a lot of blood spilled and a blackout later, a treaty was signed: Canal City would provide food and water, Basalt City would provide electricity, recycling, and garbage services.
Architecture #
TODO: Get architecture information.
Social Life #
The social life of Basalt City is two-sided. For most of the common people, the social life is the bars, meeting houses, and gambling halls that dot the Outer City. Bar hopping is a very familiar after-hours activity. For the most part, life is fairly simple.
Once you get into the Inner City, though… the whole world is different. There are also bars and gambling halls here, but they are all fancy, well-to-do establishments that a noble wouldn’t feel underserved in attending. Fancy hotels dot the landscape, and meeting halls and vast auction spaces are also available to rent. Those who are not nobles in the inner city either work for the nobility, or are renting facilities from the nobility—if you can pay the cost, there is very little that isn’t available to be done here.
Technology #
Basalt City isn’t shy about using what technology they have access to. Their metallurgy and material refining technology is some of the best in the underground, able to handle more exotic materials like the tungsten that is used for their water heating systems. While they may not be into industrial levels of goods production, their raw material capacity is a sight to behold, even though they themselves don’t have many other mineral veins around.
The Outer City’s technology is very rural. Power lines are hung overhead and tapped off as needed to provide for lights and appliances, which for most amounts to an electric stove and probably a radio to receive the local (or Canal City) broadcasts. Some even have another electrical device or two. There’s plenty of power for it.
Most of the Inner City is akin to a luxury hotel or, in some cases even, a theme park. Electricity is readily available, and mopeds and even motorized carriages can be seen within the city proper. Climate control and filtration both deserve specific callouts. They’re needed to manage both the slow toxification around the trash recycling areas, and the intense heat in the nearby magma channels.
Politics #
Basalt City bills itself as the “Neutral City” and holds fast to this. It has a treaty with Canal City in order to receive water and food in return for its vast power generation, but it is otherwise independent.
In fact, Basalt City is the destination for anyone, noble or not, who’s in need of neutral ground. The rules are specific and enforced with draconian fervor, but are fairly applied all. Break them, and you lose access to the services. Follow them, and privacy behind closed doors is almost fully ensured.
Because of this, Basalt City enjoys reasonably good political favor with Canal City and many smaller settlements nearby. It is a public secret that Basalt City is also the best destination for Black Market and Restricted Good sales, although actually knowing when and where these are happening without being told is, well, best left to those of exemplary wit.
Basalt City is well known for “sponsoring” smaller mining towns in return for a cut of the ore. They’ll also contract mercenaries or even Guild adventurers to pry into mystery dungeons to bring them interesting things for the noble’s collection.
Education #
Basalt City Nobles are educated to the same level as Canal City Nobles. Even those that are not in the line of succession have access to a full suite of subjects to study provided by their family.
For those outside of the nobility, a basic secondary or high school level of education is provided—with a fairly hard slant towards skills that would best serve the nobility: Law, Mathematics, Metallurgy, Reading and Writing, and trades are all available for those from the inner city.
Once you get to the outer city, there is a base level of education provided, much like Canal City. Education through primary school is provided at no cost to children, as part of a childcare initiative to free up ‘morphs to ply their trades during the day. This also gives the young ‘morphs a taste of what they might learn, if they can impress a noble well enough to be invited into the inner city. Of important is arithmatic - there isn’t a child on the street that isn’t taught to know how to properly make change or understand quantification.
Security and Military #
Basalt City has both a standing Security Force and a small Military Force kept in reserve. The Security Force’s presence is well felt within the Inner City, but they rarely go to the outer city unless someone a noble has their eye on might be in trouble.
They wear standard uniforms made for each member, and are authorized at all times to do what they believe is needed, short of outright killing—exile is the worst punishment to be levied for getting in trouble with the Security Force.
Basalt City’s military is a well-kept secret in terms of numbers and capabilities. They were able to go toe-to-toe with Canal City without losing, so it’s assumed that those capabilities are quite high. Since then, the military has rarely been seen or heard from, but Basalt City never forgot the reason behind the war, and keeps itself ready just in case.