Ventimigla:

Before the Arrival of the Horde on the Northern Continent, Ventimigla was a fairly normal city-state of the era, wealthy and powerful for the region thanks to a powerful maritime fleet... one of the few capable of engaging the Reve on their own grounds and winning.  Ventimigla was wealthy and powerful, and they commanded tribute from the surrounding city-states and received it.  The Migla peoples were a short, saturnine people with prominently curly hair.

Seeing their tributaries broken by the Horde, the Ventimigla fought hard, but eventually determined the necessity of surrender. They hid much of their wealth (and their women) on ships far out to sea and negotiated with the leaders of the Horde.  Eager for a rich prize and a quick win over the entire region, they accepted the Ventimigla's offer... and the king of Ventimigla became a Satrap of the Empire, and only a few members of the Horde settled in the city itself, and so the character of the region was much less influenced by the Tenebrians than many other kingdoms. Due to the deception, the hiding of wealth and women out at sea, the Ventimiglians were able to preserve a large portion of their wealth, and they built their fortunes larger as the primary city from which to ship prizes back to the Empire, taking a small portion for themselves... thus Ventimigla grew in wealth and power rather than losing it from the conquest.

However, centuries of living with Tenebrian lords and bureaucrats did alter the culture of the Ventimigla significantly. During the Empire era, the upper classes of the city learned Old Tenebrian, while the old Migla tongue remained popular with the commoners and the more rural population. After the Empire, the two languages began to blend in a way that would have been unthinkable a generation earlier, and to this day the Ventimigla have a unique language unlike any other (blended between the extinct Migla tongue and the Old Tenebrian).

The Migla peoples had a weak noble caste compared to many Banality Era, and relied heavily on the common men to serve as armed forces.  The presence of Tenebrians did not fundamentally alter this, as there was no standing warrior class to be co-opted, though many of the military practices of the Horde were adopted as a matter of practicality. While the MIgla did have some horsemen, they had nothing to compare to the Horde's heavy cavalry or organized horse archers. Migla horses were smaller and more nimble than the mighty beasts of the Horde, and to this day the Horses of Ventimigla are said to be superb runners, favored by sport riders and said to be among the most beautiful in the world... though the horsemen of Southern Nornsa might disagree with that out of national pride (a debate over which were better light chargers might be more interesting... nornsan' horses tend to be much shaggier and with drab coats and muddled patterns. The sleek coat of short hairs and delicate bones of a Migla horse (now hopelessly mixed with Tenebrian steeds such that the original breed is unknown to modern scholars) are without question superior in aesthetic qualities.  The true question is this: A migla horse is undoubtedly the faster, but a Nornsan horse has greater endurance and strength, and can run longer on less, though the difference is not so great that there is not overlap... faster nornsan horses can outrun slower miglas, and so on...

Aside from importing a powerful cavalry tradition and breeding some of the finest horses in the world, the Tenebrians did fundamentally alter the Migla culture.  The larger, darker Tenebrians made their mark on the rural populations of the Migla and the southernmost cities, while the shorter, paler Migla remained dominant in the northern cities (and the seat of political power).  Instead of a single City-State with strong rivals nearby that fought over the right to demand tribute from one another, the entire region is a strongly unified kingdom, and the hereditary Satrap of Ventimigla (once simply the city of Venti... the ethic peoples of the Migla found their name added to the city by the conquering horde) has ruled unchecked ever since... an impossibly long running dynasty.  It should be noted, however, that the Satrap is largely a figurehead... his official duties are essentially ambassadorial (to the Empire... when it was out of contact... the current Satraps have sadly neglected to send word to the Empire that they are still around...) and ceremonial.

The council of Citizens, a much less stable body, has run Ventimigla, and by extension the kingdom of Ventimigla, ever since.  Each city has a Mayor, the ruler of the city, as do the smaller towns and villages of the region.  To vote in the council it is necessary to have risen to the position of Master in one of the various approved guilds of the city (The most powerful being the shipwrights guild).  Notably, while the guilds do attempt to coerce their Masters (or journeymen who appear to be approaching Master status...) to vote according to Guild Policy, this has proven difficult, not least of which because there is no means to actually censure someone who has been made a master in Migla tradition. Elevation is permanent, and Masters don't pay a tax to the guild, they do have to take on apprentices (to be future journeymen, of course).  However, it is important to consider the effect a vote would have on the profession in question when discussing politics.

The Council of CItizens is a fractious, tumultuous body that has managed to 'rule' through benign neglect rather than effective policy making. Even the Tenebrians at their height despaired of ever getting the migla to actually obey any laws or orders  when no one was looking.  

Women, regardless of station, do not get to vote in the Council by ancient holy law. However, to dismiss the women of the Migla as powerless would be extremely foolish. First, most Migla men fear their wives and mothers (and older sisters). Second, while women are often denied entry into Guilded professions, they absolutely dominate the non-guilded professions of the city... which includes common merchantmen (store owners), Innkeepers and so forth.  On several notable occasions the women of Ventimigla have shut down the entire city in protest of rulings that they did not favor, making further mockery of the Council's power.  

Note that each city has its own council, but are in theory subordinate to the council of Ventimigla and you get the sort of vague chaos that rules the kingdom.

However, the one power the Council has that 'trumps' all other powers is the ability to grant the Satrap the power of the Tyrant.  The Satrap may be empowered in case of emergency to either take command of the entire kingdom, ruling as an autocrat, or more commonly apportion his autocratic powers to subordinates (retaining effectively only the power to fire those subordinates). This is done in times of emergency (such as the wars again the Kra, major Reve incursions and more rarely in times of natural disaster).  It is done on an extremely limited basis when some issue or other can not be resolved by the Council, empowering the Satrap briefly to 'cut the knot'. Obviously one consideration is the temper of the current Satrap (though given their relative powerlessness (and frequently comparative poverty compared to contemporary kings), many of the Satraps have been quite reasonable individuals well aware of the tenuous nature of their 'power' and the distressing Migla habit of assassinating powerful men... exacerbated by Migla pride, which makes bodyguards a rare phenomenon, and men who take that work generally are poorly skilled at it. What sort of man offers to die for another, they ask?  

During the War of Three Tigers, the Satrap of Ventimigla appointed as General (giving military authority, naturally) to Huer of Koutla (ironically given that the only city of Ventimigla to be fully occupied by the Kra was, in fact, Koutla), whose personal emblem was a snarling tiger's face (he famously wore a cloak taken from the hide of a beast he had hunted with a spear, and violating the Taboo of his guides he ate the beast to take its strength.  Accordingly he was said to be cursed with a taste for manflesh... but if he ever felt the curse it is not recorded...).

Huer of Koutla was a rare Migla with a taste for battle... though many find the intellectual study of strategy to be pleasing, and Koutla is a land locked city, thus he was not a naval expert, making him an ideal choice for a land war. Huer is very well regarded historically, numbers were on his side but the Kra were most feared for their ferocity in battle. The Migla tell themselves that the Tiger of Migla, as he was known, fought so fiercely that the Kra are afraid to invade (prosaically, the Kra simply find fighting so far from home to be less glorious than fighting their closer neighbors. THe Kra were induced to invade due to a long standing treaty (at the time) with their southernmost neighbors and a rare truce with the Spada leaving them with fewer domestic enemies.  Rumors of the vast wealth of Ventimigla were used to lure them south to fight... and while they did take a great deal of treasure north with them, it was hardly enough to justify the effort. They do however consider the Tiger of Migla an honorary Kor in their history.)

In fact, Huer did his part for Ventimigla by clever use of strategy and logistics... and not getting suckered into straight up fights against the Kra or the Huron from the West... and in fact allowed the Kra and the Huron to fight each other (for the right of plundering these soft Miglans, ironically), and frequently sweeping upon the winner  of those fights to destroy them.  This worked doubly well, for the Huron frequently chased the Kra from the field through superior numbers... and the Huron were a foe that his men would fight more eagerly than the feared Kra.   He also managed to recruit the Marsh Peoples to fight for him, despite a traditional enmity... their guerilla tactics and scouts allowed him to out maneuver the Kra and the Huron frequently, and to demoralize them with savage night raids that rarely inflicted much harm on either force but made Huer seem omnipotent.

After the war, Huer opened a distillery and died old and fat... with a Kra wife (sent as part of the peace negotiation. His son married the daughter of the Satrap that had appointed him and became Satrap himself... and the family still sells 'Tiger Rum'.  Their trade connections with the Marsh People give them greater access to the sugar cane than their rivals, and Tiger Rum is the most recognizable rum in Haven.


The Marsh People: When the Migla were building their cities, another people... said to be part fey, had already settled in the salt marshes of the southern part of the region.  Deep in the cyprus forests, hidden and protected they lived peacefully, hunting, trapping and fishing. THe Migla, who desired the wood for ships (and still do) fought with them since forever (The Banality at least), but the Tenebrians, who had no desire for ships, and whose massive steeds were useless in the marshes, ignored them... some even doubt the Horde realized that people lived there...

Until Huer, few Migla had made friends or allies with the Marsh People, and they remain a separate culture and ethnicity, though their language is a bastardized variant of their more numerous and powerful neighbors. The Salt Marshes are large enough to be an entire kingdom, but are sparsely populated. The Horde did build stone roads across the Marshes, and those who man the waystations and inns along the Tenebrian Roads are as likely to be Marsh Folk as anything else (though dwarves have recently begun taking up stewardship of some waystations, and they've proven resistant to the Marsh Ways).  

The wetlands of the Marshes do allow several rare crops to flourish, exotic grasses and reeds and canes. The Marshes are hot, unpleasant and dangerous to those unfamiliar with them (disease bearing insects vie with lurking predators for the most dangerous threats).  Marsh Folk cuisine is quite distinctive and unique. Culinary types occasionally attempt to import it to their homelands, with mixed results due to the difficulty of acquiring ingredients or suitable substitutes.  Rum was, at one time, unique to the Marsh folk, but the Tenebrians who encountered them found the potent liquor to their liking and many would raid the Marshes simply to acquire the stuff (for a time it was a mark of distinction to afford Rum in the Empire), but later the Kingdoms that border the Marshes began trading for rum and the cane necessary to make it. Dwarves hate the stuff, but have since invented a process to clarify it (not that it makes it any more drinkable to them), as well as a process to turn certain root stock into a passable rum for sale.  Dwarven Rum remains popular in the West (where it is much cheaper than Marsh Rum (Tiger Rum, for example), though connisuers still agree it is inferior. Tiger Rum, for those keeping score, is distinctive for being sold in dark and clear variations... though the Huer are said to prefer the Dark (which is why they still make it, as the dwarves improvement is vastly more popular).

Rum has since become something of an insult in some Dwarven clanholds (equivalent to swill in english), though a few Dwarves will drink it for fun.  

Elves and orcs will both happily drink Rum of either type. Of course, orcs would drink wood alcohol and declare it fine, and elves typically let their rum 'age' until its something else entirely.  It is a little known fact that two elder scholars of the Siti have been conducting a debate for over fifty years on the merits of dark vs light rums (using only unaltered Tiger rum as a baseline)... apparently for the right to declare which Rum is proper for Elves to drink.  The stakes are said to be that the loser of the debate will forswear the drink forevermore.  

Ventimigla: The city: It has been said that the people of Venti are the only people who would spit in the eye of the Sea. She has been drowning the city for a millennium, and yet the refuse to move. Venti (as she was originally called) has no city walls and no roads, only the Sea, and the towering, tottering structures that rise above her, always climbing higher than the last high tide.  Indeed, the city is nearly a quarter mile from dry land of any sort, though once in the city one tends to forget that fact, taken in by the stone walk ways, the bridges, the canals that serve as streets. There are horse carts in the city proper, if only a few, and the Venti (they refuse to accept the bastardized name for their city) like to act as if the entire state of affairs is deliberate.  On those occasions where the city is expanded it is generally done so on the landward side, but such is the temper of the Venti that a few dare the Sea, and build away from land. Of course, a number of Migla live aboard ancient Galleons, some so old they have not left the city for open water in living memory, others are more impermanent, heading to sea for war, trade or even amusement of the Captain-Owner before returning to a new berth. There is no longer a harbor, ship moor along the outer reaches of the city, some even nosing into the wider canals as deep as they dare.  The wealthiest Venti all own ships, and trade is still the life of the city. The World comes to Venti, they say, and many refuse to leave her under any circumstance.

The poor of Venti view themselves as wealthy, yet they maintain gardens and chickens and even goats to feed themselves (goat cheese is a specialty of Venti, and several types are only produced in Venti).  Aside from the local cheese, there is no distinctive Venti cuisine (not even the normal cuisine of the Migla on land...), as befitting their 'City of the World' attitude, the Venti pride themselves on 'eating foreign', doing their best to eat food from distant nations as closely as possible to native.

Despite all the trade, there are few Dwarves in Venti, who find the entire 'spit in the Sea's eye' thing too foolish for their tastes. However, recently dwarves 'engineers'... those fabulous wizards of the bearded ones, have been hired by wealthy citizens to build 'better' buildings.  The Venti are proud of their ancient, traditional architecture, but the fact is that buildings are sinking or simply falling over all the time, and death by falling building is frightfully common.  While a few 'Engineered' buildings have been constructed, it has been agreed by the Dwarves that a piecemeal process of shoring up the city will simply fail slower... and it is said they propose something far more radical... something involving all the Dwarves working together... surely a grand sorcery.


The MIgla traditionally worshipped 'higher gods', in the form of abstract virtues. A few more 'common' gods were worshipped by the common folk and remain popular in places. The Horde largely did away with the traditional worship, bringing with them the Thousand Gods of the Empire.

This rather resulted in the Migla giving up on Gods all together. While hardly atheists, they simply feel that if their Gods were not up to the task, and the foreign Gods don't like their ways, they'll do without.   Of course, by then Venti had been cursed by the Sea for many centuries, reputedly because she was unhappy with a particular sacrifice performed... so they may have already been inclined to 'not care' what the Gods thought anymore.  

However, the Migla still favor 'Fortune', who protects the bold (and every Migla likes to think he is bold!).. while most people consider Fortune to be a cognate of Luck, the MIgla swear Fortune is a distinct goddess.  To worship Fortune one must regularly hand off a decision to Her hands (flipping a coin, betting on the winner of a race, etc...). Some Migla will only marry if the 'coin toss' is in favor of it (seeing it as a very important decision there is no better time to 'check in' with the Goddess). Aside from these demonstrations of 'piety', most of her followers are quite decisive... viewing it as impious to 'check in' for 'minor things'.  Many Migla also take a shine to Death, though without the cultic fashion popular in other lands.  The traditional 'call' is that Death will Decide what Fortune turns her Eye from.  Death is seen as a friendly rival by many Migla, particularly those who find the thrill of battle. Migla duelists are renown for begin particularly bold and daring, and rely on no rules or honor, only skill, to ensure fights are 'fair'.  The Migla Duellist trusts no ally and least of all his Enemy... only Death and Himself.

'This Further and No More': A Venti Duellist, who had sworn himself to a young lady he fancied, found himself facing bravos hired by her family's enemies to kill her.  They offered him the chance to walk away, but he refused, for he had given his word and could not bear to back away from it.  She could not flee, for they were trapped. The Duellist drew with his sword a line upon the stones of the city and swore that Death would claim any who crossed that line.  It is said that he set his feet (which any Duellist could tell you is a death mark. THe duel is a dance, to be enjoyed!), and proceeded to slay every bravo that came at him, until he had slain a dozen men, and had taken a dozen wounds.  The leader of the bravos then in a rage shot him with a crossbow through the heart, killing him and leaving the way clear to reach the lady.  WHen that man crossed the line, cut into the stones of the very city as it was, he was struck dead instantly and his men fled.  

Thus every Duellist must acknowledge that Death is always at his right hand, and many will swear themselves the Duellist's code (the actual principles of which change with every telling) at the very spot where this occurred. Indeed, there are several places in the city of Venti that are marked by such lines, traditionally in blind alleys, and all are accorded respect and only crossed by the wise with a careful nod to Death, in case He watches at that moment.


Kraken Watch: An annual festival in the city of Venti, purported to be held on the very anniversary of the ancient sacrifice to the Sea that resulted in the curse. Certainly if the Sea was ever of a mind to relinquish her hold on the city, the continuing of this festival holiday changes her mind back every year.   Kraken Watch is a deliberate perversion (or at least at one time it was) of the ancient and forgotten rituals to placate the Sea.  It was traditional that a high born child (generally quite young, to spare them the horror of developing hopes and dreams that would then be lost to them) would be set to sea on board small wooden boat, to be ritually devoured by a monster sent by the Sea for this ritual.   During the Festival, a low born commoner is 'exalted' for the week of the festival, and every evening makes a great show of boarding a small boat or ship, only to leave while laughing. This starts an evening feast (once held at the harbor, now held in smaller groups throughout the city), while everyone laughs with the 'sacrifice'.   At the end of the week the Sacrifice is sent inland, laden with goods traditionally 'sacrificed' to the sea... many of them treasures wrested from her grasp over the year. The traditional feast is always some beast taken from the depths... the city eating the 'Kracken' that used to eat their young.

The 'Sacrifice' generally is quite wealthy by the standards of a commoner as a result, but only the foolish would tempt the sea ever again, even among the Migla, and so the Sacrifice generally takes up farming (it is expected, in fact... so much so that generally a land based farmer's son is brought to Venti to take this role, and is sent home.


Strangely, the Venti have no dread of a sea burial.  Their belief is that the Sea can not claim their souls regardless of where their body lies. There may be some truth to this, as Venti corpses are notorious for washing ashore (most sea burials are more permanent...), and the land based Migla and especially the Marsh People will burn such corpses to avoid the Sea's wrath. The Reve view raiding the city as a particularly blessed occurrence, and any Reve who successfully torches any part of the city (and, naturally, loots it) is said to fated to die peacefully in his bed. His ship will never sink, etc.

Of course, the Venti, despite their aquatic city, are one of the hardest targets a Reve could pick. They are no less masters of the Sea than the Reve, and they are very very familiar with Reavers.  Clashes between Reavers and Venti Captains are always to the death.. and many Reve prefer to favor the Sea in less absolute terms.


There is a very slowly growing rift among the Venti, however, between those who do sail aboard ships and those who never leave the city.  To be a  sailor or sailor's wife/husband is to put oneself in a different caste than the rest of the city dwellers.   Over the last hundred or so years, the Venti Sailors have found themselves increasingly isolated from the city politics and culture, yet without them the city would quickly die to Reve.  Native ship captains especially find the lack of favoritism for native captains over foreign ships in matters of trade particularly egregious, and the strictures against piracy particularly hard to swallow... as Venti increases its trade with foreign powers, they increasing do not want the reputation for piracy to hinder their deals... while the Captains view it as a right of their caste to prey on ships they find in the open ocean that are not prepared to defend themselves.   As the merchants of the City increasingly refuse to accept goods they suspect of being gained by piracy (but, note, only from local captains... the provenance of cargo from foreign ships is never suspect.)