The House Militias

The House Militias are the primary source of Law & Order within Salt in Wounds. Each Meridian House is charged with ‘Paying, provisioning, and organizing’ no less than 1000 fighting men ‘to enforce the laws of the township and contribute to the general welfare of Salt in Wounds.’ However, interpretation and implementation of this edict varies greatly depending on house. On one end of the spectrum, there are houses who outfit their militia with the bare minimum and then leave the militia to its own devices: these groupings usually act like traditional city watches you might find in any large city. In the extreme opposite, Sixth House outfits a militia of 7000, armed and trained more for war than policing. Complicating matters further, many Meridians Houses also run House Guards who are distinct from House Militias; with House Militias having a duty to enforce laws while House Guards do not.

Basically, House Militias -while technically serving the city as a whole as opposed to their respective house- still often act as an extension of their house and instrument of its machinations.

Each Meridian House manages hiring, firing, and promotion within their militia. Meanwhile, House Militias are held to a code of behavior which includes -amongst other things- prohibitions against favoring one house over the law of the city with severe mutilation penalties doled out by the largely independent courts for failure to serve the law.
These twin influences leads to much secretive conflict, intrigue, sabotage, and checks & balances between the House Militias which is in part an extension of and in part distinct from the power games played amongst the Meridian Houses themselves.
Typical armament for a House Militiaman is studded leather armor, round shield, hand-axe, and crows-beak.  


Read more: The Monsters of Salt in Wounds Part 1 & 2


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The Beast Crown District

 

The Beast Crown is the posh district located in the northwest corner of the city, bound to the North by the city’s walls, to the south by Salzinwuun, in the south-west by the Throat and the south east by the Tail Stones.

The district is further divided into House ‘neighborhoods’ - each populated by members and those favored by each Meridian House. Each neighborhood is presided over by a Manor-Tower, a looming structure intended by its owners to display the wealth and power of their respective Meridian House. Most of these towers, intentionally or not, also reflect the character of its house in addition to featuring repeated instances of the house number. Even those unfamiliar with the district can fairly easily find their way around.

The streets here are clean and jealously patrolled. While any may freely access the district, individuals who lack an ‘aristocratic bearing’ (or -alternately- fail to produce a token of a Meridian House) face a veritable inquisition by the resident House Militias, a process that will be repeated every few blocks as a traveller passes into a different house neighborhood.

In addition to serving the the sprawling Meridian House families, the Beast Crown District is also home to numerous boutique shops, pricey entertainments & diversions (of which the world famous Salt in Wounds Opera is the most prominent) and most of the official administration buildings of Salt in Wounds including the courts, tax & trade offices, House Militia barracks and more.

 

Notable Locations

• The Salt in Wounds Opera - Owned and operated by 8th House, the Salt in Wounds Opera is known to attract skilled players from around the globe who perform to the haunting accompaniment of a custom built organ constructed from hollowed out finger bones.
• The Stage Courts - Constructed in the style of covered amphitheaters, each of the dozens of courts features seating for hundreds (which have been known to overflow during particularly captivating trials). When in session, each of these courts ring a sitting judge who listens to arguments of accuser and accused before passing judgement (for particularly prominent/important cases, a counsel of six judges will be assembled). Such courts process scores of cases a day, with judgement decided and punishment (usually some form of amputation, mutilation, flogging, branding, or even execution) immediately dispatched in front of the excited crowd. Watching trials is a popular pastimes of Salt in Wound residents from all walks of life, with most judges relishing their secondary role as entertainers.

 

Notable Residents

• 5th House Binder-Lady Keolemita & her husband Merrin Chyn

 

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Meat, Manufacturing & Alchemy: Making Use of the Tarrasque

The Tarrasque is utilized in a number of different ways to feed the populace and grow the economy of Salt in Wounds. What follows is an overview and common knowledge of some of the most common Tarrasque derived products generated by the city.

Meat

The most commonly used part of the Tarrasque is the meat; muscle and fat tissue cut out and consumed. Meat comes in many forms the most common of which is stringy basale which is boiled in bulk and practically (or in some cases, literally) given away. As such, it is considered the

Salt & Steam (Fan Contribution)

This is a fan contribution, suggested by reddit user 0thMxma (and expanded a bit by me).

He began his pitch by writing; I was thinking, let’s take this into the future a bit, where's this place gonna be in a few centuries…



In the nine centuries since the binding of the Tarrasque, Salt in Wounds has grown from a fortress, to a city-state, to one of the great empires that now rule the globe. Rail tracks run for miles in every direction; great locomotives made of carved bone and burning gasified tallow ship meat to conquered kingdoms, ship back

The Tail Stones District

Formerly referred to as the Hind Quarter, the Tail Stones District is the area north east of the fortress Salzinwuun, the central core of Salt in Wounds. The Hind Quarter was massively damaged during the 12th Meridian Crisis with thousands killed and many more wounded. The underfunded repair efforts for the homes, businesses, and critical infrastructure in this area is still underway (where it has not been completely abandoned).

By far the poorest district of the city, the Tail Stones is

Salt in Wounds Inspiration Collection

I made a new collection on Google Plus of work, images, music and more that I find inspirational to Salt in Wounds. If you're curious, check it out here.

The Throat

The Throat is the name for the (mainly commercial) district extending roughly from the outer portcullis of the fortress Salzinwuun to the main gate of Salt in Wounds proper; then spilling out further into the area outside the city in a tangle of merchant stalls, caravans, and brightly colored tents.



The Throat can further be divided into three main sections:

• High Throat - The first segment is High Throat which is located directly outside Salzinwuun; this is where the freshest cuts of meat are supposed to be had. High Throat also serves as home to a number of mid-list merchants.


• Core Throat - Core Throat is where numerous high end merchants resides, jewelers, slavers and a scattering of alchemists & wizards (though many of these can be found in Sage’s Row or clustered around 5th House’s Manor Tower). This section is sandwiched west of High Throat towards the front gate but spreads out further into the city as many of these vendors prefer not to conduct business along the main thoroughfare of the city.


• Low Throat- Finally Low Throat is the area around (and directly outside) the front gates. This more chaotic section houses sellers of everything else, and a little of everything.

Merchants are further organized into clusters; multiple blacksmiths opting to work near to one another, or multiple bakers, or coopers. Hence, while giving directions, a citizen might describe their second floor apartment as ‘Brown Building, Confectioner’s Row, Core Throat.’

 
Supposedly, the name for this section of the city comes from a joke told by one of the first dozen merchants to encamp around Salzinwuun. Between the intermittent roars of the Tarrasque, the constant sounds of work, and the barking of other sellers; the merchant quipped that ‘Success here has less to due with business acumen, and more to do with the strength of one’s throat.’





Notable Locations

• Twin Spikes Tavern

Notable Residents

• Helenie - (Former) Master God-Butcher and Hero of the 12th Meridian Crisis

Read more about Salt in Wounds here.


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