Dogaska (Dominaria Supplement)
|
 | |
| Size | |
| Small City | |
| Power Center | |
| Unconventional (The Seven), Tier 4 | |
| Alignment | |
| Chaotic Evil | |
| Adult Population | |
| Permanent: 20,000; Transient: 55,000 | |
| Gold Limit | |
| 45,000-120,000 gp | |
| Language & Diversity | |
| Beldroni, Integrated (40% Lower Beldroni, 35% Upper Beldroni, 20% Westlanders, 5% Other) | |
| Beldron Menu |
|---|
| Lower Beldron |
| Upper Beldron |
| Other |
Return to Geography-Beldron |
Dogaska, the City of Swords, clings to the hills of Eposa Bay in much the same way its inhabitants and denizens cling to the Sword Coast. The three peninsulas that form the city run up the slopes to the ancient and crumbling barrier walls, which in turn look over the always crowded wharves and bay of Dogaska. The City is a constant hive of barely contained activity. Smugglers and pirates frequent the city, as do mercenary commanders and criminals of all types. At any given time the bay is a menagerie of ships and cargoes. Sights and sounds and smells from every corner of the Narrow Sea assault the senses and ships towing prizes clog the waterways on their way to the famous ship auctions and slave markets. The city that watches and endures this hive of activity is ancient and patched up, and a mess of activity at all hours. Some parts of Dogaska have been renovated and are well kept up by powerful merchants and captains, but these walled areas are islands of decadence in a sea of chaos and depredation. Almost all of the city is given over to apartments, inns, taverns, casinos, brothels, markets, and everything else needed for the care and feeding of a thriving underworld. The city produces literally nothing of its own. The farms and villages nearby are abandoned and overgrown, and those that are occupied are bases for some group or cult, or hubs of heinous activity frowned upon in this city of pirates.
The permanent inhabitants of the city fall into three basic categories. First there are the retired captains, power brokers, and spidery men that sit at the top of their webs of power and influence - these are truly dangerous men. The second group are those who make their living off of the men who frequent Dogaska: shop owners, casino barons, prostitutes, drug dealers, fences, and other merchants or movers of crime and vice. The third group is the lowest form of life: the cast-offs and 'retired' too poor to get out and not respected enough to find a place in Dogaska. These wretched souls live in gutters, shantys, and horrible projects in the parts of the city off the few roads and main canals. Aside form these permanent inhabitants, there are a multitude of transients and semi-permanent residents. Mercenary and pirate groups will maintain apartments between jobs and the constant shuffling of groups going to and from work or other ports keeps the city full.
Violence is a way of life for the people of Dogaska, and there is no law but the law of the blade and the word of the powerful. That being said, the city is not a constant bed of pandemonium and bedlam. The chaos of activity and villainous business is focused on two things: gold, and acquiring more of it. Most captains have strict rules against violence, and violate it only in time of need...or when the opportunity is just too good. Everyone knows that while violence is their nature, any outbreak of it in Dogaska could wreck their bottom line or spoil a deal. The web of alliances and shifting friendships make any deal precarious but everyone is in it for the gold. If there's profit to be had and no one feels cheated or outed then life in Dogaska continues. So murders are commonplace, and the reality of pickpockets has made pockets a vulnerable fashion, but huge bouts of violence or mobs picking ships clean are uncommon. Occasionally massive battles break out between ships or groups, but the knowledge that the victor stands to lose all the moment they show weakness tends to keep these engagements rare. Only completely assured betrayal or attacks are worth the cost.
Government: A shadowy but ironbound council of criminals known as 'The Seven' dictate what laws exist in Dogaska. These men, including the 'First Thief', 'First Sword', 'First Mage', and so on, make decisions on who can come and who can go. This list is invisible unless you are blacklisted, and then no power on Dominaria could convince the denizens of Dogaska to let you in. The Seven are also power and information brokers of great stature and renown. Much of what happens in the city flows through them, but they keep their power invisible and their influence and gains out of notice. These are canny men, not to be trifled with.
Guilds and Orders:
Military: Mercenaries form Beldron, Aryth, and the Dragonlands totalling 3,500 men live in the city on the dime of The Seven and patrol the highlands near the city to fight off knights and patrols from the rest of Beldron. The most fearsome of these are 1,000 of the incredibly vicious Companions of Fury.
Judicial System: N/a
City Relations: Reviled by the other cities of Beldron and the nations that border the Narrow Sea
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