World Building:
So...this is the point where I put together a world to write my story in. If you will recall, the setting I put together here is that of a world where mortals—elves, dwarfs, and humans—are essentially considered to be completely powerless, to have no rights, and for there to be no real purpose to extending any kind of respect, courtesy, or honor to any mortal or mortal community.
Normally, I write my worlds to be at least as silly and lighthearted as my actual story, because that's basically who I am. But I want to try something a bit different with this story, so I'm going to shake things up a bit. I have noticed that Earthscorpion has consistently managed to achieve very good results by contrasting what are outwardly very dark worlds with characters and plots that really sort of...aren't. I am hoping to achieve something of the layered complexity to the humor he presents, so that things strike people as being funny on multiple levels, instead of my own more shotgun-like approach to humorous writing. Don't get me wrong, I have no intention of giving up my Shotgun of Funniness—but I am starting to think that I might be able to get results that are at least as good if I take a little bit of time to aim, first.
We shell sea...er...I mean, we shall see.
Setting the Tone of your World
The tone of this world should be one of adventure, surprise, hope, and glory....but I also need strong elements of hate and rage involved with this. This should be a
dark world, especially for mortals of all stripes, and it should be very obviously one where there is no hope that appeasing a local Dark Lord, or fleeing an advancing army, is going to get you much of a chance of saving your life. This should make the contrast to the characters, who are only sort of dark, and the plot, which really isn't, all the more dramatic—these characters are rising above the world around them, and doing so in a very dramatic and glorious manner.
As I mentioned before, I'm hoping to set a contrast between the world, and the rest of the story, in hopes of making the humor much more complex and capable of operating on many levels simultaneously. This is something that I personally have always struggled with, as one of the big issues with autism (from which I suffer) of any kind is that it makes it very difficult for a person to think on several levels simultaneously. This makes it very hard to write anything that is truly engaging for large numbers of people, which is something that I need to correct before I can become a serious author.
Are things getting better, or worse?
The answer is that things are generally improving, but only very, very slowly, and by very small amounts. How small an amount? Well, the situation as of two hundred years ago was such that most dragons, demons, and others like them were seriously debating whether humans were more pests who polluted good hunting grounds, or a convenient source of snacks whenever they could be caught out in the open...and while things
have improved since then, they haven't improved
much. Dragons, demons, giants, and other dangerous creatures still regard humans as either pests, or snacks, but by this point
most of them agree that there are so many humans that exterminating them all really isn't likely to be practical. Which is progress...sort of...I guess.
Overall, what improvements have been made are primarily coming at the hands of the elves, the dwarfs, and the handful of other mortal races, all of whom have evolved defense mechanisms to ensure that they are harder to drive out of their homes. Humans have simply grown in terms of population size...but this has engendered a tertiary world theme: namely, that as your population grows, so, too, do the chances of producing truly exceptional individuals, and sufficiently exceptional mortals
are starting to be unexpectedly capable of influencing the plans and actions of their betters.
So mortals in general, and humans in particular, are starting to become numerous enough to have garnered increasing levels of attention, and interest, from the various supernatural beings of the world. Whether this will be a good thing, or a bad thing, is unknown, but at least there are probably enough humans to make their complete extermination somewhat unlikely. This has come with some changes—it is becoming easier for human merchants, traders, and artisans to become wealthy, as they are becoming more and more able to at least snap up table scraps from the feasts being enjoyed by the truly wealthy and powerful of the world.
I'm generally a pretty cheerful guy, and a world where things are gradually improving, despite the best efforts of its inhabitants to the contrary, really sort of fits my worldview. But I'd like to emphasize here—while the world will improve quite a bit in the next several thousand years, it will still be pretty bad, by our standards. At this point, it's probably pretty bad even by the standards of failed nations—at least in nations that are being torn apart by warlords and civil war, you don't have to worry that the warlord is going to kill you because he's hungry, and you look tasty.
How long has this been the case?
While things have been improving for a long time, the change has only recently become noticeable, even to creatures that can remember thousands of years prior (most mortals still haven't noticed). This is starting to get to the point where it would trigger changes in how the low-level supernatural creatures do business and deal with each other (and with humans), but so far, these changes are minor, and relatively recent—any real shifts aren't going to take place for some centuries to come.
The longer a trend continues, the harder it is to stop...and the more you need something truly paradigm-shifting to change the direction of events. This is mitigated by the amount of effort required to keep things moving in that direction...but here, things are moving sort of absent-mindedly. Nobody is making any serious effort to push this trend forward, or to kick it back, meaning that the trend itself is probably going to be pretty hard to reverse. This isn't actually relevant to the story, I don't think, but it is
What kind of scale are you operating on?
I'm going to restrict my story to a single minor city-state. Frankly, the idea of a human ruling even a minor city state is going to be ridiculous enough to this world—having a human seize the throne to anything bigger is just going to be stupid.
Time-wise, the story shouldn't take long—no more than two or three weeks, at most, possibly as little as one week.
Thinking about it, I like the idea of one week—that would be long enough to make it sort of believable that this is happening, without requiring too
tight a sequence of alliances, but still fast enough to make it clear to the remaining city elders that things have changed, and changed dramatically. That said, I will probably find myself stretching it to two, or possibly even three weeks—certainly, it will take time at the end for the various groups to come to a decision, and there will be several events that need to happen for this to work.
How sophisticated is the society?
This society is not sophisticated in the slightest. Slavery is still a thing, and humans in particular are often viewed as a particularly tasty (and invigorating) snack. No ruler in the world has yet learned to base their rule on anything other than their personal ability to destroy their rivals, and their ability to control huge swathes of territory or major empires is thus basically nonexistent. So, basically, the sophistication level is about that of, say, Egypt under Ramses II or Ramses III, or even earlier. Life holds no great value—if it holds any value at all—and freedom is kind of irrelevant. Mortals are a bit more sophisticated, for what it's worth, but that isn't much—they don't yet have the firepower to reliably take on anything more powerful than they are, and they don't have the wealth to hire somebody who does.
Technology-wise, the society is still very primitive, although they do have the use of iron, mostly because I can't wrap my head around how rare and valuable metal weapons and tools were before people began to become able to work with iron instead of just copper or bronze. So mostly iron weaponry, but it will very primitive—axes, spears, clubs, and that sort of thing. Swords are
just being invented, and as of now are still largely evolved from axes or exceptionally long knives or spearheads. Bows are known...sort of...but they're still considered to be fairly simple hunting weapons, ones which are occasionally used when mortals want to fight each other, but which are rarely useful in other circumstances. Armor is still thought to be largely pointless, because so much of what you'd want to protect yourself against doesn't care about armor. Horse taming (and horse riding) is fairly new, and shows up only very, very rarely...and without stirrups, to boot. Overall tech is at early iron age stages, with oxen acting as the primary draft animals, and wheels still being made of solid wood, instead of spokes or other methods.
Religiously, there will be a mishmash of different faiths, with dozens of temples throughout the city, all of which tolerate all of the others with a sort of benign amusement. Beliefs are fairly simple, almost Conan-levels of simplicity, and center mostly around what must be done to placate the gods, and hopefully persuade them to go away. Religion has not yet started to serve as a focus for organizing a society, which means that it is not yet able to monopolize civic beliefs...which really tells you all you need to know about how brutal things get in the city and the countryside.
If I do other books in this setting, they will be set in a much more sophisticated society—perhaps something like the Roman Empire, or even Medieval Europe or China—but this is supposed to be set right at the very beginning of the period where mortals began to gradually overtake and overwhelm the much more powerful supernatural creatures that have so far dominated the world. This was the age before empires, when the city-state was all, and this is a fairly minor, unimportant, backwards, and somewhat isolated city state, so sophistication and complexity won't be massively apparent.
The religious bit is actually fairly important, although I don't know how well it will show up in the story proper. But initially, religion was all about how humans tried to exert some control over the world around them, and how they could understand something beyond just where the next meal would come from (this purpose hasn't really changed in the modern-day world). This was hampered by the fact that nobody really knew anything about anything, but experimental evidence gave early humans a few tools, and religion was used to make sure that those tools could and would be used as effectively as possible. This is a very important detail, and one that should be stressed: religion was one of the single most important discoveries in human history, because it is the only method we've ever found that allows us to consistently convey facts, attitudes, and mental and societal tools that cannot be proven or explained easily, if at all, to each new generation. The fact that the truths being passed on here are currently nothing more than"the gods want this, give it to them and they might stop bothering you" should convey a great deal about just how incomplete this society's knowledge of the world around them is, and how primitive its attitudes and beliefs truly are.
How like our own are this world's opinions and expectations?
This world has almost nothing in common with our own opinions and expectations. The fact that the main character has something vaguely similar to those values is going to be the driving factor behind his success, and behind his behavior.
Just to start with, the nature of a fantasy adventure realm is going to breed a heavy level of fatalism in its inhabitants, except for the most powerful (or phoenixes, but they're pretty strange), since they are all living in a world over which they do not have any control, and really cannot easily conceive of having any control. The idea that a being could improve its station in life through sheer intelligence, determination, and some degree of luck is going to be as alien to this world's inhabitants as...well, I can't really think of anything that alien. To make matters worse, the pecking order isn't just going to be fairly well set, it's going be cast in stainless steel, and then heat-treated to make extra sure it won't change, and our heroes will start at the bottom—this is why it will take such a spectacular series of victories before anybody takes them seriously.
One of the things I want to explore in this story is what a fantasy-style world would really
look like, once you stripped off the romantic veneer. Without a powerful reason to tolerate races like humans, dragons, for example, would have little reason and less need to consider humans to be sentient creatures, as deserving of life as they are. The same holds true for demons, giants, and all the other fantasy races. Humans, dwarfs, and elves are traditionally portrayed in most fantasy as sort of holding the short end of the stick, when it comes to things like strength, toughness, and so on and so forth. We assume that superior organization, wealth, and experience have made those three races reign supreme, and allowed them to prosper and dominate the world despite those weaknesses...but what would it look like, back in the days before that was possible?
Later stories will emphasize that there is a lot of hate brewing in this social system, but right now, that's not the case. Hating dragons for eating humans would be sort of like hating the mountains for being tall, or hating the clouds for dropping inconvenient rain storms. It's just the way things are. You don't hate nature for being natural. You don't hate time for not stopping at that perfect moment. This is just the way things are. In a thousand years or so, there will be enough examples of mortal ingenuity, defiance, brilliance, and determination that hatred will start to become possible, but right now, it's just the facts of life. Right now, only the truly desperate or the halfway insane would ever consider facing off against a demon, let along a demon lord. This is reflected in attitudes and values...as it would be.
What's the predominant religious faith like?
Right now, there is no predominant religious faith. Demons don't worship any god but themselves, most races, magical or not, have their own creeds, as do most mortals. The main character worships the Risen God, who is supposed to have been able to rise from the dead after he (or possibly she, since different sects hold different opinions on the matter) was killed, and the body was quite effectively and totally destroyed, but this faith is regarded as highly unusual, more than a little bit eccentric even for mortals, and basically as one big joke.
As for other gods, they're real, and they behave in much the same way as you'd expect, based on ancient mythology: they're always fighting, both within, and among their pantheons, and almost all of them seek supremacy over all the others. Their various followers reflect this, and part of the reason for the interminable conflict among supernatural creatures (even most gods don't see mortals as important) is because of all these deities seeking to depose each other, and reign as the supreme deity over all and sundry.
It wasn't until a bit later in human history that religions began to become unwilling to tolerate competition, and to try to actively suppress other faiths. Mostly, this began to happen because it became clear that other societies were now able to actively threaten the cultures that spawned these faiths in ways that had never really been possible before this. This isn't an issue here, so the religions will all get along. In terms of gods, the actual beliefs are widely varied, but one thing holds true for almost all religions—most of them don't have much use for humans, and won't intervene in response to human prayers. The Risen God is one exception, although there are a few others—but mostly, I'll concentrate on the Risen God for now, since this is meant to be an expy of Christianity (sort of), and that's something I am actually familiar with.
What themes do you want expressed in your world?
The big theme I want expressed here is going to be repression, and the kinds of behavior and feelings it spawns. Humans, in particular, are held in contempt, and are actively prevented from having any kind of freedom, or from holding any kind of meaningful job. This interacts with the Secondary Theme in that the repression and contempt has effectively removed any kind of freedom for anybody but the protagonist, and his few allies...which means that only they are truly free to act on their own behalf, and to achieve their own goals. This also means that not only humans are bound by chains of law, custom, and fear, but so are other races, including the supernatural beings that are nominally the humans' owners and/or rulers. The fear that others will not fear them, and thus will not treat them with respect or obedience, drives a lot of the power struggles, and the rulers' actions, in the story's world, even though the characters
probably won't see much of this.
Repression mixes very nicely with the secondary theme of freedom, especially in the inverse, which is what shall be the case here—the good guys don't have
any kind of freedom, as such, unless others don't care enough to take it...or unless they can prove that they're strong enough to keep it. They do so, but at a price, because they are required to take responsibility for what they have wrought. This, in turn, reflects one of the primary themes: with responsibility comes power. By claiming responsibility for the city (even if only temporary), they have claimed power, as well. The fact that nobody cares to contest this claim makes that assumption stick...and leaves them with a role they never really wanted.
What are the general details of the world involved in the story?
This story takes place in the city of Wittin. Wittin is ruled as an absolute autocracy, with nothing in the way of any kind of governmental apparatus—Malor, the ruler is in charge, and it is everybody else's job to do what he says, or else. Because he is not the brightest bulb in the chandelier, this presents problems from time to time, but he is immensely powerful, so nobody dares contradict him. The city itself is a filthy mess, with mud or dirt streets, no paving, little plumbing, and little effort made to improve infrastructure, or make things better for the inhabitants. There is a significant sewer, although nobody knows why—it is a remnant of one of Malor's projects to "modernize"--that would catch the refuse and take it away, if the street were paved, or there were any kind of plumbing system. Instead, there are dung-carts, who pick up night-soil and take it away to do who knows what with it. Most of these dung carts are operated by humans, a few of which are paid for their service, but most of which make their money from the sale of the dung and other byproducts (although most of their supernatural clients don't think about this—there are even a few who think the humans eat the dung!).
A lot of mining activity takes place in the area, but this is a fairly recent development—there is no copper, no tin, and no gold or lead in the area, although there are signs that there might be silver a few days' journey away. Most of the mining in the area is of iron, which is a really new thing that there isn't a whole lot of market for just yet. What iron is sold abroad is typically transported via caravans, usually on the back of mules or donkeys—the city is located on a river, yes, but the river isn't deep enough for any kind of serious traffic. During the summer, the river level drops below five feet deep, although it gets to be as deep as twenty feet after severe storms.
The weather is extremely hot, and quite humid, meaning that clothes tend to be minimalist, and as skimpy as possible, just to prevent over-heating. Naked isn't really a thing, but...eh, let's just say that armor is avoided when possible. Worse, there isn't really a winter—just a less humid season—so the conventions of a hot-climate society still apply, although at least there is enough magic floating around to keep diseases minimal. Slavery is widespread, and most humans in the city are slaves of some description or another. The slavery isn't quite chattel slavery, because the slaves do have some minimal rights (like the right to only be eaten by their owners), but it isn't far from it...and the rights aren't real helpful, truth be told. Officially, having any humans that
aren't slaves of somebody who lives in the city is illegal, but since Malor has carefully made sure that there are no other powers in city, this law cannot really be enforced.
Wittin's primary trade is in salt, and in leather, meaning that its trade goods are bulky, but surprisingly valuable. The salt is produced from brine wells, which tap into salt water pools buried deep underground, to produce high quality and very pure salt. Wittin salt is known to be exceptionally valuable in the low country, and the salt-makers are a very powerful faction within the Merchants' Guild. Importantly, the people of Wittin can almost always get their hands on salt, despite it being officially a controlled substance, restricted only to the most needful of applications (Malor does not like to be around salt, and takes steps to make sure that he isn't). Wittin salt is visually distinctive, since it is a bright red in color.
I picked the city name from a list of randomly generated city names. I have found a very helpful name generator at City name generator, which does not just cover city names, but also generates random names for everything from aliens to Amazons to species of animals to dragons, to dryads, to dwarfs, to gorgons, to elves, to...well, pretty much anything you can imagine. It has proven to be extremely useful, and is one of the sites I visit more than almost any other.
Although this is not the case today, salt was historically a major trading good all through ancient times, and into the early Industrial Revolution. The practice of using brine wells to produce salt is ancient—in point of fact, this technology actually predates China itself (and yes, it was developed by the Chinese), and is known to have been practiced at least six thousand years ago. By way of contrast, written records of Chinese civilization only stretch back to cover four to five thousand years old, and the first recorded Chinese dynasty can only be traced back to 1700 BC—less than 4,000 years ago.
Vital Statistics:
Wittin has a tropical environment, although not quite enough to qualify as a tropical rain forest. Costumes tend to be minimal, which is in keeping with an extremely hot environment. The city itself is dominated by minor demons and other creatures of similar power levels—werewolves show up occasionally, but this isn't really their scene. The same holds true of vampires, who tend not to get along with minor demons anyway. Most of the city's population is made up of merchants and artisans, not warriors—there is little need for warriors, considering Malor's power, and an army would only entail expenses that Malor is both unwilling, and unable, to meet.
Currency is somewhat scarce in the city, and is mostly limited to coins from other realms, and the city itself does not mint currency, since it doesn't really have any precious metals to speak of. Thus, most of the population gets by via barter and trade in kind. There are a certain number of humans—both male and female, who get by via selling their bodies for goods and services, meaning that there is a thriving underground trade among those who don't have access to regular currency. This has also led to humans having a reputation for being willing to screw with absolutely anything and anyone...and there are rumors that, occasionally, a child is born who displays the traits of both parents, though in muted form.
Biology & Technology Basics:
Magic plays a rather extremely heavy role in this world, enough so that
most of the creatures living in the world rely heavily upon magic to make their bodies work (forget magic powers—most of them couldn't survive at all without magic to power their bodies). This is the defining difference between mortals, and supernatural creatures: mortals are beings who do not possess any innate magic to speak of, while supernatural beings have magic as a fundamental part of their biological makeup. The price for this is that any supernatural creature is limited in terms of what types of magic it can use, and what its nature can become, so that a dragon could not become a social creature, because the magic that sustains it will not allow that behavior to take place. Instead, it would have to evolve its own set of rules or standards to function in a social environment, and it would be unable to deviate from those rules, even when it knows for a fact that this is harmful to its ability to survive. A few dragons have worked out why this might be a problem, and have enrolled mortals to provide a limited form of assistance, in the form of the Dragon-Sworn Houses, which are gradually allowing dragons to at least communicate with each other on something approaching a regular basis, among other things.
Mortals, on the other hand, are completely non-magical in nature, but the advantage they get is that they can learn and use literally any type of magic in existence, assuming that they get the opportunity, including a few that correspond to the abilities of no known creature of magic or the supernatural. They are also cross-fertile (sort of) with pretty much anything, although only humans find this to be a somewhat regular occurrence, since only humans are in a position where they are forced to be so massively submissive.
Of the many,many, many supernatural creatures in existence, only a handful will appear in this story: phoenixes (but only indirectly), dragons, demons, demon lords, werewolves, vampires, hill giants, trolls, and basilisks.
Phoenixes are sort of split between Terry Pratchett's interpretation, the traditional interpretation, and a version I saw in Heroes of Might and Magic. They are typically seen as relatively smallish birds, no larger than an eagle, with unusual dark red plumage...but when they decide to unleash their full powers, they become a bird the size of a large building, who is capable of breathing fire (or ice), as well as using their magical body as if it were an extension of their real body. They are completely immune to any elemental-based magic, and are highly resistant to all other types of magic, meaning that a single phoenix is a real handful, even to a dragon or a demon lord, despite being much less physically and magically powerful than either one. Groups of phoenixes—for phoenixes are by nature social creatures—are
not tolerated anywhere in the world, and are typically hunted and scattered or destroyed by entire groups of dragons, demons, or other creatures, meaning that most phoenixes will avail themselves of Sworn members of various Houses, who serve as both companions, and as eyes and ears to give their master some kind of warning when a threat approaches.
Dragons are huge, immense, powerful, big, and very, very massive. They typically start out (for a fully grown adult) at about 50+ feet long, and weigh in at ten plus tons, even for a small adult. They get bigger as they get older, and there is no known upper limit for a dragon's age, although the growth does slow as they age, so that a dragon who is 10,000 isn't
much bigger than a dragon who is 8,000. They are intensely magical, as is witnessed by their fiery breath weapon, and they are incredibly powerful physically, but their size is such that they have severe problems when it comes to keeping themselves fed, often to the point where they will eat anything they can catch. The more a dragon eats when it is growing up (they're born only two or three feet long), the bigger it gets as an adult, although once they become an adult, this is no longer the case. Dragons have their own form of magic, although most don't take the time to develop it incredibly well, that revolves heavily around fire, and around the incredible potency of dragon blood. They prefer to live somewhat alone, but many have taken over the rule of this or that city or community, on the presumption that these communities can and will provide food for their dragon overlord. Many dragons are becoming increasingly fascinated by gold, gems, and other signs of wealth, which is starting to have some decidedly odd results. Stealing from a dragon is deadly dangerous, as dragons can track an individual across thousands of miles, even despite the best magic being used to try to break the trail. Nobody is sure how dragons do this, and the dragons aren't telling, but there you go. Dragons are not immune to any kind of magic, but given how tough a dragon is, using magic on one is typically ill-advised.
Demon lords are one of only a handful of creatures who have any hope of matching a full-grown dragon's power in a stand-up fight, and they are the dragons' chief rivals and principle enemies. This would be noteworthy, except that demon lords are known to hate pretty much everybody, and they're enemies to most really powerful races. Demon lords tend to vary wildly in shape, and sort of vary in powers, but they are all highly resistant to any kind of magic, and immensely resistant to any kind of physical attack. They utilize a wide variety of shadow and flame-based magics, as well as being able to summon other demonic beings to their side at will, but only if the demon is within a certain radius of the demon lord. Demon lords are harsh, cruel, and often capricious, but are also powerful enough to make it stick...and, thankfully, much less likely to treat a human as a random snack since, as far as anybody can tell, no demon of any kind actually needs to eat.
Demons are the nickname for lesser demons, who stand a notch above vampires and werewolves, but aren't really dangerous enough to be considered a serious threat. They have some degree of magic, and can often summon small lightning bolts, fireballs, ice cones, or other magical effects, but they really aren't all that dangerous, aside from being mostly immune to physical attacks. Warrior demons can be quite strong, and very dangerous to any creature as powerful as they are, but most of the demons in Wittin are more merchants and artisans (mostly merchants) than warriors, and so are much less willing to pick fights. Even most of the warrior demons are, frankly, more than willing to let a human who apparently kills dragons for fun have his way, and rule the city. Like dragons, demons don't seem to have a maximum lifespan, but unlike dragons, there is no such thing as a young demon—they all emerge fully grown, and will only change in their overall power level. Demon power levels go up and down over time, but it is very hard for your average demon to reach demon lord status, and only two are known to have ever managed it (and neither one could keep the position). Demons cannot normally fly, although there are a few who can.
Werewolves are standard werewolves—they change into wolves on every full moon, and can change in wolves or wolfmen at any time. While changed during a full moon, they are vicious and bloodthirsty monsters, but they are also easily distracted, and not all that intelligent. They can be killed with almost any magical attack, or with silver, but are highly resistant to normal attacks. Aside from their shapeshifting, they have almost no magic, and what they do have is almost entirely confined to spreading the curse by means of their bite. Werewolves can be born, but most are simply bitten, since the transformation does really bad things to pregnancies—you have to find a way to keep the werewolfess from shifting for all nine months for one to be born naturally. Those born naturally have more magic than those who are bitten, and many become something like druids or shamans, but even their magic is not especially powerful, and they are not widely respected.
Vampires are, again, traditional vampires, with their need for blood, their inability to withstand daylight, and their ability to command normal wolves, bats, and vermin. They have a fierce rivalry with werewolves, and their opinion of themselves is such that few other races are willing to tolerate their presence for long, but their ability to raise the corpses of the dead is enough to make them surprisingly dangerous to anybody operating at their own level. They are frustratingly hard to stop if you can't find a way to track them, and their ability to levitate can make that surprisingly hard. They can only be killed by sunlight, by fire, by a piece of wood through the heart, or by being attacked while in contact with garlic, although these last two methods require you to cut their head off to be sure. The more blood a vampire drinks, the more powerful it becomes, and if it can manage to drink the blood of something magical, it becomes more powerful still, so that they can become frustratingly powerful if left alone.
There are many sub-sentient magical creatures, as well, but I do not expect them to play any major part in the story. However, it should be noted that these creatures are gradually becoming more and more rare, as they are slowly being driven from their normal ranges, mostly by the actions of the various mortals who live nearby.
Technologically, the single biggest thing to know is that these people are at the same stage as late bronze-age, or early iron age civilizations. Composite bows, swords, and other slightly more technical primitive weapons are rare—clubs, axes, and spears are the norm, although javelins are used somewhat widely by some races, particularly mortals. Bows are rare outside of the most isolated country settlements, because most "civilized" humans and other mortals have learned the hard way not to go hunting in areas where there are lots and lots of creatures that might take offense at such actions.
The bit about humans selling themselves to get goods and services is an actual pre-currency practice. You'd think that people would just use barter, but recent studies have shown that, apparently, they didn't—somehow, sex served much the same purpose. Honestly, I'm not really clear how or why that worked (it CANNOT
be as dirty as it sounds, no matter what the anthropologists say), but it seemed to serve its purpose. Conveniently, it would also answer the question of how a society that is only half a step from outright slavery would possibly be able to offer anything to its "betters", as well as serving as an explanation for all the half-dragons, half-demons, half-angels, half-elves, etc. Humans, thus, would appear to be willing to screw pretty much anything, provided the attempt won't actively kill them. Perhaps as importantly, this, combined with the tendency to just eat random humans, is providing specific evolutionary pressure on the human population to breed for good looks, seductiveness, and a certain degree of kinkiness...not to mention cunning, agility, strength, and endurance. I have absolutely no plans to have this ever happen in the story, either in a plot-related way, or not, but it is important for me to know it, if only to make sure the insults are correct.
Currently poverty and malnutrition are preventing this Darwinian pressure from having much of an effect...but as time goes on, and the mortal populations start to accumulate more wealth (and get a better diet), this is going to become more and more apparent, especially as mortal-based autocracies arise, and start acting as if they were dragons themselves.
The attractiveness, and the willingness to sell one's self, is present for both males and females, by the way—I'm not actually misogynistic, and in this case, it makes complete sense that both sexes would take part in the practice.
Define the Community (or communities):
The community as a whole is the city of Wittin. Mostly, the story will be taking place in and among the city's lower classes, with the taverns, brothel-keepers, minor criminals, and day laborers playing a larger part in events than the city's elite (such as they are). The richer and more influential individuals in the city will show up—sort of—but won't really play a major part until the end, and the story
should never end up moving through their community. Most of the main characters will be drawn from the very small community of adventurers that is part of the city's night life, but a few may be long-term inhabitants.
Population:
Overall, the city of Wittin has about 2,000 "citizens", for whatever that is worth. Since only the head of household is counted as a citizen, that equates to about 4,000 to 6,000 supernatural inhabitants, plus anywhere from 6,000 to 12,000 human inhabitants. The city's hinterland (the area of land that supports the city and provides it with food, a captive market, etc) probably comes in at about 100,000 souls, possibly as many as 120,000.
Community relationships with others:
The city of Wittin doesn't really have many relationships with other cities. There is another, somewhat larger city named Ziq located about two weeks' journey to Wittin's east, with which it has regular trade, despite the sporadic wars that spring up between the two every century or so. There are also a few other towns to the south that Wittin has semi-regular trade with, but right now, the town of Wittin is largely isolated. Malor has designs on all of these cities, but he doesn't really have either the resources to carry those designs to fruition, or the intellect to make up for his lack of resources, so those designs amount to little more than occasional annoyances towards the other cities' rulers. To the north, somewhere in the mountains, the dwarfs are rumored to have their own settlement, which is supposedly named Nen Buldor, but nobody in Wittin is quite sure where it is, nobody really cares, and there is basically no communication or link between the two.
Within the city itself, the city's merchants are fairly resentful of the ruler's occasional random edicts for or against them, not to mention the occasional decision to just randomly torture one of their family members for no particular reason. They dare not display this resentment, of course, and basically just try to keep their heads down, and away from their lord and master's attention, trusting in the gods to keep the city's ruler occupied with other concerns. The humans who live in the city are even less willing to push their thoughts, and are basically trying to keep out of others' way, so that they don't get caught in the occasional anti-human purges that Malor commands of his subjects. Despite Malor's edicts, and purges, at least half of the humans in the city don't have actual masters or owners—instead, they're either basically contract workers (sort of), or they answer to one of the city's criminal chieftains, who are known as the city's Thieves. There are six Thieves known to live within the city, five of which are humans. The sixth Thief also claims to be a human, but considering that she has been a Thief for over a hundred years now, there are those who doubt the validity of her claim. The Thieves act as a sort of ersatz government for the city's human population, and what few things humans can take care of, are taken care of by the local Thief.
Define the Area
The story's area is focused mostly in the eastern, western, northern, and southern quarters of the city, which basically covers the whole city.
Heh. Okay, so you got me. I don't expect the southern quarter of the city to enter into the story in any meaningful way. But overall, the story takes place entirely within the city's primary walls, particularly within the city's relatively low-income neighborhoods. As the plot progresses, the action will be taking place in successively wealthier, and less human-oriented districts, to symbolize the escalation of the main characters' quest, and just how far it is taking them from being seen as entirely mortal.
The symbolism here is something I would like to think will be important—the main characters are moving steadily farther and farther out of not just an ordinary mortal's comfort zone, but outside of what the various supernatural creatures in the story understand mortals to be. Yet, at the same time, they're still able to survive, to find aid and comfort (to a point), and even to thrive, even as the shared experience binds them closer and closer together.
Important locations
Obviously, Malor's "palace" will be important, as will the sewers under the city (they're pretty much the only good way to move undetected). Otherwise...within the city, there are the granaries, in the northern quarter, which hold the city's grain supplies/taxes are collected; there are the city's temple complexes, which are dominated by the six pyramid temples of the Crown Gods in the Western Quarter; the Grand Market, in the Eastern Quarter, which also serves the city as its primary Trade District. The northern quarter holds most of the city's artisans—it's close enough to the supplies of raw materials to get what it needs, and far enough away from the Palace in the Northern Quarter to keep Malor from interfering.
Critical sub-locations:
I don't have any specific sub-locations yet, aside from there being a handful of taverns involved. I will have to come back to this after the next few sections are complete, but I don't really anticipate much in the way of sub-locations being necessary—the plot will be moving, to a large extent, as the fight(s) go through a large chunk of the city.
That said, the granaries
will be important, if only because there are limited numbers of ways to kill something that big and powerful.
Culture(s)
I don't actually know anything about the cultures, yet. I know low-ranking demons try to avoid fighting, and they're lousy artisans...but that's about it. I also know that the merchants, and the artisans, are organized into guilds—there are seven guilds in the city—but that the guilds don't
really have that much in the way of power. Nor, honestly, do they know about –or even care about-- humans and other mortals, for all that most of their activity has originated from human-derived technologies.
The seven guilds are: The Merchants' Guild, the Magicians' Guild, the Smiths' Guild, the Priests' Guild, the Tanners' Guild, the Weavers' Guild, and the Masons' Guild.
The Merchants Guild, obviously, deals with merchants, both those who operate entirely in and around the city, and those who deal in long-ranged trade. Eventually, it will start to split off, with one group specializing in banking and money-lending, another in assaying, and so on and so forth, but for now, it's all merchants. They focus on things that typically require practical knowledge of people and products to achieve. In about three or four centuries' time, the Merchants' Guild will get together with the Thief Azura Meyer to create a systematic set of laws and regulations for money-lending—the first real banking regulations in existence, and the birth of an industry that will power the economy of the city of Wittin for tens of centuries to come.
The Magicians' Guild, so far, is just a handful of individuals who are particularly good with their races' unique forms of magic. Right now, they're not so much a guild, as a proto-guild. Someday, they'll be able to organize enough to be a major power player in the city—indeed, someday, the Magicians' Guild will be forced to split into several smaller guilds, to maintain the ablance of power within the city, but that won't come to pass for several thousand years. Right now, they're just an old boys' network who want to be big. It does include the alchemists and the enchanters, though, so it's not quite useless.
The Smiths' Guild handle pretty much anything and everything having to do with gold, silver, copper, and bronze (there aren't enough iron workers in Wittan to be counted as smiths yet). They are probably the second-richest guild just by the nature of what they work with, but they're also the least respected guild, because the nature of their work means that humans and mortals play a much larger part than they do for other guilds. The Smiths Guild will be the first of the Guilds to split into multiple guilds, and will ultimately disintegrate under the pressures of accelerating change, forcing the Crown to take over many of the regulatory duties the Guild once handled, but other than that, the city gets along quite well without the Smiths' Guilds, even if they are still the most mortal-centered of the guilds.
The Priests' Guild is the guild that controls not just the priests, but also the scribes, the lawyers, the doctors, and all the people who make their living by means of knowledge and laws. Only the magic-users exist outside of their jurisdiction, and that's just because, basically, nobody really cares about them. While they will play relatively little part in this story, they are and will remain one of the most powerful and influential of the guilds.
The Tanners' Guild is currently one of the richest (if not
the richest) of the guilds, and it controls...well, it controls the making of leather. Right now, that's one of the primary activities of note in the world, and it borders on being almost cutting-edge, but it is an art whose influence will gradually wane as time goes by. They play a big role in the story, though, so they'll be important—more on how they're important will be covered under Characterization.
The Weavers' Guild is a relatively poor guild, one that will grow richer as time goes on, but it is respected, as weaving is one of the few arts that did not originate in some way with mortals. That said, mortals
are known to be rather good at it, although many swear that the cloth produced by supernaturals is somehow superior. Like the Tanners' Guild they play a relatively big part in events, especially in the later half of the story, mostly because they don't get along with dragons, and never really have—reptiles and weavers just don't mix, to be honest. They're a lot more important as one gets farther from the equator, but here, they're just not all that important—nobody really needs to wear clothing to stay warm, so it's just not as important a guild as they are elsewhere. Again, though, they're still respected, so their words carry weight...and boy, do they know it.
The Masons' Guild controls building...and also pottery, for reasons that nobody really understands. They make heavy use of brick, rather than stone, and are really big into baking (this also explains why the Bakers are part of the Masons Guild, although there is talk of the Bakers splitting off into their own Guild.
This is really too early for guilds to start forming...but Malor's approach to governing the city is so...well...inept, that the city's artisans have had to organize themselves, and set up their own government. Malor has allowed this, because all he cares about is taxes, and having enough slaves to make sure that he has hot tomangoes, or whatever he wants to eat, at the end of each day. At the end, with all other forms of government exhausted, the city is left with no choice but to turn to the Guilds, and the Thieves, to form a new government, or dissolve into anarchy...which nobody wants, to be honest.
In the Balance
This world is one that quivers on the brink of someday changing enough to perhaps experienc a dramatic power shift of some description. Although the supernatural creatures still reign supreme, the world is starting to shift—mortals are beginning to be able to think about doing something about the magical world around them. Well...at least the smaller parts, like minor magical animals. Heroes are starting to arise, although as yet, they aren't able to really do much—they just hunt things like cave bears and dire rats, slowly clearing out minor threats, nuisances, and pests so that mortals can start to expand, and become more and more of a thing.
But all of the actual tension of this aspect is a little bit in the future. For now, the tension is much quieter, and a bit bleaker. Right now, the tension revolves around the fact that nobody gives any respect to anybody who doesn't have their own innate magic...and even then, if the magic isn't, well, magical enough, then it isn't respected. Even when the main character provides proof, the supernaturals don't believe them—it takes the testimony of a Phoenix-sworn to get them believed.
Normally, I like my tension to be a bit more blatant, but right now, it's not. The world's theme is such that I have plenty of room to make it blatant, you understand, but this is one of the few themes that I prefer not to make blatant. Growing up in the American South, I have seen a fair bit of racism, but one of the things I want to emphasize—seriously emphasize—is that racism takes many different forms, and can be just as damaging and dangerous if it is quiet and understated. Because of this, I don't want the racism to be showing up as hatred, or fear. Instead, I want it to show up as disbelief, denial, rejection, and incomprehension. This will show up, and have a pretty impact, later on.
My mother likes to say, and I think that she's on to something, that racism—even in its ugliest, most brutal form--takes on several different flavors. There is one that says that a group of people is awful, but all the individuals you know are okay. This is the form commonly found in the American South—even the most racist of Southerners will typically have one or two people they consider friends from the offending race (and these will typically be the only people of that race who they know). The other flavor that commonly crops up in the USA these days is the idea that a group of people is okay...but a steadfast refusal to have anything to do with any individuals
of that race. This, I think, is the more damaging form of racism, since it masquerades as open-mindedness, and does so well enough to fool not just the racists, but the people they are being racist against. To a person like myself, who does not have the neurological wiring to make that kind of distinction, this is especially infuriating, especially when people who are the second kind of racist accuse me of racism for not agreeing with their opinions on the subject. We will see both types of racism on display here, along with a third type, which actually has been mostly wiped out (or at least reduced) in America: the belief that a group of people are somehow less able to do a certain job, just because of their skin color, religion, etc. Although I typically detest the notion of using broad strokes laws and legal actions to resolve problems of this nature, I have to admit that, in this case, it seems to have worked, allowing us to at least consider the other kinds of racism, and maybe someday even resolve the issues behind it.
Basis for tension
Simply put, there is no reason for anything supernatural to give any respect to anything mortal. Mortals have no real power, aside from the ability to reproduce, and no innate abilities, aside from the ability to learn...and right now, all that mortals can learn is how powerless they are. This is not the point where that changes, however. Rather, this is the point where humans, at least, start to think that perhaps it
may change...and there are many people, throughout the world, who will not be willing to accept that possibility.
Right now, humans (and elves, and dwarfs) cannot really get a job. They may work as domestic servants, or as day laborers for tasks that don't require huge amounts of strength, but if they do, they work for peanuts, at best. Outside of the city, things are somewhat reversed—humans do most of the farming, and provide something like 90% of the city's total food supply (and they do the majority of the cooking, but most supernaturals don't realize this).
The fact that humans are effectively barred from so much of the city's economic life means that the chronic labor shortage that any society suffers from (I am convinced that this is the case, even if, in most societies, the shortage is so acute that people cannot see it as such) is vastly exacerbated, to the point where even the merchants and the nobles live in what can only be called wretched poverty. Were it not for these beings' powerful magic, the situation would be much, much worse...but as it is, the power they wield is only a fraction of what they could wield, were they to use that power for others' benefit.
Additionally, the shortage of ways to make a living means that the crime syndicates in the city wield a great deal more power and influence than they really should. The city's Thieves are a shadow government in all but name, and their gangs, small as they are, give them disproportionate influence within the city. Those who cross them might not necessarily have to worry about finding themselves suddenly coming down dead...but if the humans refuse to do your laundry, cook for you, and so forth and so on, it can certainly make things inconvenient. Still, the Thieves aren't really powerful, as such—instead, they've got influence, and they're actually pretty skilled (for the time period) at using that influence. Outside of the mortal districts, the Thieves mostly wield soft power, rather than hard, which is quite different from our own world...but it also means that the main characters have a ready-made support network, especially for the second half of the story.
- Who does it affect the most?
This is something that affects pretty much everybody, and always in different ways. The supernatural creatures are heavily affected, because they don't have enough labor or intelligence to do everything they want. The mortals, because they can't get access to money, or to paying jobs. Even the ruler of the city is affected—there are plenty of people who could provide him with the intelligence resources, and even some of the skills and the manpower he would need to carry out his schemes...but because he doesn't respect anybody weaker than himself, he will never really avail himself of those talents.
Note: this may turn out to be the world theme, instead of racism...but if so, the labor shortage will come from the racism, so this will most likely be the theme effect within the world.
- Where are its effects most apparent?
The effects of this pervasive racism are probably most apparent in the human-populated neighborhoods, where poverty is rampant, and, tellingly, the only laws that exist are those made and enforced by the humans themselves. This is a situation that no government in existence would willingly tolerate, as it makes for an independent form of authority that does not answer to the government officials...but Malor tolerates this, because he doesn't know it happens. And the reason he doesn't know it happens is because he, like all supernatural creatures, believes that humans are beneath his contempt, and are nothing more than animals (or, occasionally, vermin).
- When does this matter?
In overall life, there is no point when this does not matter. It is directly important primarily for humans, and those who actually use them, but it matters at all times.
- How does it affect the attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions of events?
The racism here is so deep-set, and so pervasive, that it doesn't even really show up as racism—instead, it simply appears as a set of universal understandings, including the understanding that the only things mortals are really good for is to be farmers, or to have sex with. The main characters will display a degree of this racism themselves, without ever realizing it—it's just so widespread, and so common, that they've picked it up without ever thinking about it.
- How much of an impact does the problem have?
Well over eighty-five percent of the known world's population is mortal by now, and they are all locked out of pretty much any job including anything but the most basic of farming tasks, and the sex trade. This has resulted in a permanent underclass that is starting to grow to the point where it can no longer entirely occupy itself with providing food for its "betters", and is starting to look around for something else to do...with the slight problem that there is nothing else they can do right now. Or, at least, nothing that is strictly wholesome, which is causing some interesting problems all over the known world.
One of the things I've found to be true is that, even once you have the world theme and the basis for the world conflict/tension laid down, there are additional strands that show up, some of which may be able to successfully masquerade as the theme. One of these, in this case, is that of a labor shortage...or, to be more precise, a shortage of critical types of skilled labor, and how that affects the society in which it exists. Even if you solve the first problem, that of widespread racism, the second will remain for a long, long time, because all societies suffer from a shortage of the labor needed to accomplish everything the society aims to achieve (in point of fact, one of the things that will really seal the deal on mortals taking over from supernaturals is that the mortals find a way to reduce that shortage to something that can conceivably be managed by conventional technological and magical means). Any economic system ever created has centered around a society's efforts to resolve this problem—that's basically why business, and economics, exist--even back in ancient times, when the shortage was so acute that it could not be perceived as such. I mean this literally, as the amount of effort required to, say, feed the population was so great that leaders and visionaries simply could not visualize a world where that amount of effort was reduced, and were thus constantly terrified that someday, something might come up that made farming much less manpower-intensive, leaving hundreds of thousands of people without work, and, ultimately, starving. The idea that there would be or even could be other things for those individuals to do simply did not, and could not, occur to them.
Here, this problem is magnified by the artificial split across racial lines, which dictates that human, elven, and dwarfen labor is not as important as supernatural labor. This, in turn, means that nobody cares about the value of mortal lives, and, thus, that nobody really cares about the presence of mortal laborers, either.
History of tension
NA—this tension has always been there. The supernatural creatures may have shown up after mortals, or before (smart money is on before), but the end result is the same: mortals cannot and never have been able to defend themselves against any kind of supernatural creature, and so are still considered to be nothing more than animals by those that have magic as an innate part of their very being.
Popular opinion of tension
Again, not applicable. The ant does not ask the opinion of the 18-wheeler that just drove through its nest, and vice versa. If the ant has built its nest in the middle of a parking lot for a warehouse, these things will happen from time to time. It's just part of life. Likewise, with mortals, and supernatural creatures—if a mortal has elected to live near a supernatural creature, these things happen. Mortals accept the status quo with a sort of fatalistic attitude, and the supernatural just assumes that this will be the way things always are. Obviously, proof that this might not be so will be met with some degree of fear and revulsion.
Current status of tension
See above. Right now, things are pretty much set in stone, and will be for quite some time, unless something really weird—like a small group of humans killing two ultra-powerful supernatural creatures in a short span of time—should happen. I should emphasize again, however, that right now, the racism and prejudice against mortals is still, and will still be set so deep that it doesn't even show up as such. Instead, it simply shows up as a belief that of
course mortals can't accomplish anything notable, because they don't have the lifespan to really learn a skill, and/or they don't have magic suited to the skill.
Power Blocs
The power blocs here are limited, primarily because Malor is so reluctant to share power. By and large, they are formed of the most important individuals in the city, plus the guilds, who form a quasi-legal power structure that actually runs the city. These power structures have very little impact on the actual ruling of the city, but they're not just social clubs, either. They have real power within the city, and can legitimately dictate what king the city will accept to rule over it.
Malor
Who are they?
Malor is the demon lord who rules the city/town of Wittin. He is one of many demon lords, although not a particularly powerful one, mostly because his refusal to share power means that he cannot avail himself of many of the more traditional means for demons to gather power (like amassing armies of easily disposed-of-minions who can be sacrificed to raise power quickly and cheaply). His refusal to accept the service of others, who he is convinced will betray him at the first opportunity, also means that he has little ability to enforce his edicts outside of his immediate presence, although his existence as a sort of limited genius loci within the city limits means that he
will know when one of his laws is being flouted, and may choose to take action upon that knowledge, so every breach of one of his edicts is most definitely a major gamble.
All of that said, Malor is a single entity, and his local omniscience does not extend to people or beings who are not inhabitants...which means that he is automatically suspicious of any newcomers, even when he
knows that they can't hurt him, simply because he doesn't know what they're doing.
What do they wish to accomplish?
Malor, like all demon lords, wants to rule the world. He would prefer to do so via stealth and guile, but he's not above using raw power to do so. Because he is not a particularly strong or intelligent demon lord, however, he is sort of shit out of luck on this front, and he knows it...and resents it.
What does their power come from?
Malor's power comes from his status as a demon lord, and his status as a genius loci, which grants him limited omniscience within Wittin's city limits.
How do they relate to the world problem?
Malor (and his few supporters) are regarded as being unusually paranoid even by demon lord standards, to the point where he regards humans without masters within Wittin to be an active threat, and will attempt to execute them whenever he finds out about them. Because of the extreme difficulty humans have in finding work, this has tended to limit the number of humans in the city, and made it much more difficult for human farmers to sell their crop within Wittin...which has greatly limited the potential population, both human and non-human.
How do they (or will they) relate to the characters?
When Malor finds out about the main characters' presence in the city, he confiscates their property, and orders them to leave on pain of death. Since this is equivalent to starvation for all of the main characters, they take offense at this, and decide that if they're going to die, they're going to die on
their terms.
Who opposes them, and why?
Malor is opposed by every known demon, demon lord, and other power that is not specifically one of his citizens. Like most (but not all) demon lords, he takes particular offense to phoenixes, who are pretty much the only beings not on his level who are willing to challenge him, mostly because phoenixes are legendarily hard to kill.
Malor is one of those characters I really hate to write, but in this case, nothing else really fits—to indulge in racism of any kind, in my mind, is nothing but pure stupidity, no matter how well disguised it might be by structures of logic or emotional conviction that it is no such thing. At the end of the day, there are only two things that really matter: wisdom, and compassion. All else is, at most, a temporary handicap, and one that can be usually dealt with by anybody willing to expend a little effort. Perhaps this is simply a function of my autism—to me, it is a person's deeds and actions that set them apart, not their race, and most certainly not their religious beliefs or country of origin.
This makes it doubly infuriating when somebody accuses me of racism or sexism, since I really don't care about any of that. I've met black people who fit into WASP society far better than I ever will (and I was born into it), I've met white people who would not be out of place in any inner city gang culture; I've met people with an IQ low enough to qualify them as retarded who can hold informed and well-reasoned discussions with people who border on genius-level IQ—I don't get into arguments with one of my aunts, because she always wins, and it is humiliating getting out-debated by a woman with a measured IQ of 72—and I've met people with all kinds of problems both mental and physical who are perfectly capable of operating in a world that is almost designed and built entirely for people with no such limitations. There are no limitations, save for those that for those that we choose to impose. There are no barriers, save for those that we choose not to overcome. This novel is meant to explore that reality, so while luck will play a part in this, mostly, it will be all about the fact that the main character is willing to just keep trying.
Alagash the Horned
Who are they?
Alagash is a relatively young dragon, who has taken the unusual step of securing the allegiance of a small House of Dragon Sworn. He mostly uses them as spies, and to cause trouble for his rivals, of which Malor is considered to be one. Alagash is a fairly young dragon, who is as yet unable to challenge any of the larger, more established dragons for their domains.
What do they wish to accomplish?
Alagash desires to rule Wittin (it will be a step up for him, and won't require him to spend several centuries securing the allegiance of an equivalent number of subjects). Once he has accomplished this, he hopes to spend a few hundred years letting the city grow, before thinking about moving on one of his neighbors, and maybe adding their realm to his own.
What does their power come from?
Alagash is a dragon, which grants him a certain degree of power in his own right, plus he has secured the allegiance of several Dragon Sworn. He cares absolutely nothing for these mortals, and regards them as potential weaknesses, but is willing to accept their basic utility...for now. Of course, if it were to turn out that one of these Dragon Sworn were to be able to pose a threat to him, that might change....
How do they relate to the world problem?
Alagash and his followers are a textbook example of the world problem—he doesn't respect humans, he doesn't care about humans, and he doesn't think humans are worth his time or energy...and when they prove that they can be, his first reaction is one of fear, and loathing. Secretly, he knows that humans pose a threat, if they can ever figure out how, and the realization that they might have figured out how makes him react in ways that are truly counterproductive. This mirrors the reactions of many southerners to the slave rebellions that reared up between 1810 and 1830—many Southerners who opposed slavery came to feel that freeing the slaves was a death sentence, which led directly to the slaughter of the American Civil War thirty years later. Of course, when a dragon reacts this way, you've got a whole different problem on your hands than how a bunch of white southerners act....
How do they (or will they) relate to the characters?
Alagash will try to kill the characters, once they've proven that it is possible for them to be a threat. Even before then, he has no plans to support any of his followers, and will take no steps to protect them if they are found out for any reason.
Who opposes them, and why?
Alagash is opposed by Malor, and the main characters. He has gained a mild reputation for eating unfortunate underlings, so other beings within the city also oppose him quietly, but dare not act openly.
As nature abhors a vacuum, it is inevitable that, as soon as Malor falls to the main characters, there will be a replacement (or several). Usually, this would be the cause of either internal stress, or external invasion, but Malor made sure that there was no one local who could replace him, and the city is relatively isolated enough that nobody he fought with cares. Thus...Alagash, who is not yet strong enough even to challenge Malor, but who is still powerful enough to be rated amongst the greatest and the most powerful. His faction is a little more willing to include others than Malor, and they're more intelligent than Malor and his supporters. They are sort of groping their way towards the bureaucracy that would eventually become an early empire, but they'll never really get the chance. Still, this group is very much focused almost entirely upon Alagash, which will cost them dearly.
Merchants' Guild
Who are they?
The Merchants' Guild is a loose association of traders, merchants, and artisans whose primary business is associated with long-ranged transport of goods. The Wittin Merchants' Guild is unusual in that the guild master is a werewolf (and not a particularly powerful one, at that), who holds his position primarily because Malor has historically killed anybody more powerful who took the position. The guild master has managed to maintain the guild has a coherent, unified force, simply by means of delegating important tasks to more magically or supernaturally powerful members who support that particular task. Currently, their activities as the richest and most organized guild in the city mean that they often move to deal with minor problems that Malor does not care about, like putting a bounty on a vampire who is being particularly troublesome in an effort to persuade some of the city's mercenaries (or at least more powerful creatures) to hunt down and destroy the problem. This has garnered them a fair amount of unofficial power, influence, and respect among the city's inhabitants, including a few who would ordinarily have nothing but contempt for a bunch of minor demons, werewolves, and other such (relatively) powerless beings.
What do they wish to accomplish?
The Merchants Guild is just trying to survive, in a city where their ruler is openly suspicious of them, and his immediate replacement seems to regard them as nothing more than a particularly annoying group of food animals. This is ultimately why they end up throwing their support behind the characters—they have come to the conclusion that, based on their own experiences as a guild, the characters' lack of power will provide them with a good reason to practice diplomacy, politics, and management skills over just sheer raw power, and, as a bonus, the characters and their descendents are highly unlikely to try to kill and eat them.
What does their power come from?
The Merchants Guild's power comes from its relative wealth, and the fact that it is the most coherent and best organized guild in the city, thanks largely to its very unusually low-powered Guild Master.
How do they relate to the world problem?
The Merchants Guild actually sort of inverts the prejudice—or, perhaps, uses it to their advantage—by using less powerful, but more intelligent beings to run the guild, while the more powerful beings simply act as support and/or counterweights. The less powerful beings garner more political support because other less powerful beings see them as understanding the plight of the less powerful, while the more powerful can tell themselves that they can manipulate freely, even though they know that the balance of power is such that this is not possible.
P.S. One of the results of this is that the Merchants Guild considers mind control of any sort to be highly "illegal", and will automatically execute anybody they catch using mind control (advertising and marketing are one thing—mind control is something else entirely).
How do they (or will they) relate to the characters?
The Merchants Guild gets along pretty well with the characters—not well enough to risk their necks, but well enough to lend some support, and to offer their contacts with those who are better protected from the city's overlords and would-be overlords.
Who opposes them, and why?
The Merchants Guild is sort of opposed by the Smiths Guild (the Smiths will work with the Merchants, but not publicly, and any charge that they agree with the Merchants will be vigorously denied and disproven), who see the Merchants Guild as getting away with things that the Smiths are reviled for, and the Weavers Guild, who actively dislike the merchants, and anybody who does anything like direct business with mortals. The fact that some of the better weavers and dyers are mortals, and that this gives the Merchants Guild a distinct advantage when it comes to selling cloth and garments is only icing on the cake.
When I first started writing, it was because I was creating worlds in my head, and wanted to be able to do something with them. The center of this was the power blocs, and the history behind them. Learning to curb this tendency was one of the big lessons I had to learn even to start learning how to write effectively. The worksheet was a critical part in learning to do that, while still retaining all the important elements.