Much has changed since the death of the Trickster. Not all of it was predicated by the
glyphs. It is the intention of this treatise
to summarise the events that have occurred to bring about the dawn of the Metal
Age.
As it was written, Garrett defeated the Trickster in its own lair,
the Maw of Chaos. He exchanged the real
Eye for a counterfeit one the Hammerites produced, and so prevented the
Trickster’s nefarious plan from coming to fruition. However, despite the necessity of removing the Woodsie Lord, his
departure and resultant diminution of the Order of the Vine tilted the Balance
in favour of the forces of Order – and so the Metal Age emerged.
The emergence of the Trickster’s beasts from the portal into our
dimension caused widespread panic amongst the population, who fled from beasts
they thought only existed in myths. The
City Guard and the Order combined to attack and defeat these beasts, and drive
most from the City into the forests surrounding it. A few escaped through the portal back into the Maw, and the
expeditions that followed them to complete the eradication never returned. The population gradually returned as the
City calmed, and began to repair the damage caused by the brief battle.
But the traumatic events ensured that things did not return to
their previous course. The Order of the
Hammer had lost many of its most devout followers, and the focus of their
worship – like the Cathedral before it – had been desecrated and
destroyed. The Hammers took this to be
a sign from the Master Builder, and increased the strictness of their regime
and doctrine once again. Just as they
had before after times of crisis, the Order adopted a strict, ascetic,
introspective doctrine than was intended to purge the heretical and unbelieving
from their ranks. But some refused to
conform. There had existed factions
within the Order since before the events at the Barricades, but now they became
increasingly vocal. Following their
leader, Brother Karras, they began to push for development and improvement of
mechanical technologies, and research into newer developments. Many believed that the Order had suffered
defeat in their temple due to outdated machinery and beliefs, and sought to
update Hammerite theology and technology to better conform with the demands of
the modern world.
This was unacceptable to the higher echelons of the Hammerite
clergy, who felt that their predicament was served least by an attempt to
compete with the modern world. Altering
the technology the Builder had given was declared anathema, and the clergy
began to clamp down on the factionalists who they saw as threatening the
integrity and morality of the Order.
This heavy-handed approach angered these factionalists, and they began
to split apart from the reactionary Hammerites. Despite attempts to repair the ever-widening rift, the two groups
began to split further apart as they diverged in their interpretation of the
Master Builder’s word.
The recent events had awakened in many a renewed fear of the
Trickster, and a desire to join the Order to fight him and his minions. Many flocked to join the Order, but found
that they were having to choose between the ascetic conservatives and the more
liberal progressives represented by Brother Karras. Faced with the choice, many chose Karras’s order, which was
beginning to dispense with many of the trappings of the Order of the
Hammer. Falling numbers and reduced
support caused the old Order to consider desperate measures. The decision was taken to recall from the
battlefield the Order’s army, then on campaign against Blackbrook. All were devout, conservative Hammerites
untainted by the ‘corruption’ of Karras’s new teachings.
The withdrawal of the Hammer army proved tragic. Blackbrook had prepared for a major assault
that spring, and the departure of the City Army’s most feared fighting force
boosted the opposing army’s morale incredibly.
When launched, the offensive caught the City Army off-guard and
vulnerable. They were pushed backwards
incredibly quickly, and Blackbrook occupied much of the conquered territory,
which included most of the City’s coal mines.
This gravely threatened the City’s livelihood and prosperity, and the
Baron was dismayed by the speed at which his forces had fallen back before the
foe. He departed the City for the
battlefield, in order to take personal command of the offensive the City Army
was planning. To rule in his stead he
appointed a Regency Council – a committee of several powerful lords, such as
Bram Gervasius, who would administer the City and collect the taxes while he
was gone. The Council had the authority
to override the City Council, which had become corrupt and of little real
worth.
Meanwhile the Order of the Hammer had come apart totally, and,
although there was no physical conflict, enmity between the two groups was at
its height. Each professed to follow the
true doctrine of the Master Builder, and Karras’s star rose as those of the old
Order fell. Eventually the two became
totally divorced, and Karras renamed his faction. From henceforth, they were to be known as Mechanists. The new order had attracted much of the
mechanical talent of the Hammerites, and this was put to use for the
improvement of existing technologies.
Research led to the development of the oil lamp, which shone as bright
as a powered light, but cost less and did not require expensive cables and
conduits. The Mechanists produced the
new invention themselves, and sold it to the middle classes, who were eager to
improve their quality of life.
The profits from this spurred further innovation, and great
advances in clockwork led to the development of a whole new range of inventions
and technologies. Objects such as
spiral lamplighters attracted the nobility, who possessed the wealth to buy
these novelties at extortionate prices.
The Mechanists gained increasing power and influence among the nobility
from this, as they competed with each other to obtain bigger, better and more
complicated novelties.
Some of these technologies filtered down to the secular
industries, which, free from the supervision of the Order of the Hammer, were
able to improve their products. Trade
picked up, and income began to increase as more and more products began to be
sold overseas. The Regency Council
levied new import taxes to take advantage of the upturn in trade, and was able
to afford the repair and renovation of the most damaged sewers and power
conduits. Individual landlords effected
repair on damaged tenements and apartments, although some proved beyond repair
and were sealed up.
However, all was not satisfactory. The discovery of several new trading cities led to the appearance
of spice in the City, a potent addition to meals that was immediately subject
to great demand by the rich. Sensing
profit, the Regency Council levied a large tax on spice that rendered it
uneconomic to import. Smugglers began
to tranship the forbidden condiment illegally, and soon a large
spice-trafficking ring was in existence.
The City Wardens were quick to enter this new market, which soon began
to comprise a significant proportion of their incomes.
The City Guard were unable to cope with the City Wardens, and were
mired by justified accusations or corruption, greed and incompetence. Many of the officers were on the payroll of
the City Wardens, some even on more than one.
Corruption reached to the very heart of the Guard – Commissioner de
Navan was taking ‘donations’ from Ramirez to ignore his tough boys, and many of
the Sheriffs were greater criminals than those they arrested. The situation became intolerable, and there
was widespread discontent, especially as the Hammerites were too weak to guard
the streets, and the Mechanists showed no inclination to do so.
Eventually the situation changed, through a surprising but
well-concealed series of events. A
certain Sheriff Truart of Shoalsgate was in the pay of several of the City
Wardens, each of whom was unaware of the others’ involvement. Truart managed to obtain through them
compromising information about the criminal dealings and possessions of most of
the members of the Regency Council. He
went to them with the information, and made a blunt offer: he would destroy the
information if they would effectively cede the City to him. Well aware that the proletariat would
probably revolt if they found their rulers were as corrupt as they were, the
Council had no choice.
Truart was given control of the City, under the cover of a reform
of the City Guard. The Commissioner,
the Baron’s appointed representative, was sidelined and rendered
powerless. The City Guard was
amalgamated into a single unit, renamed the City Watch. Its headquarters were at Shoalsgate, and
Truart set up several departments to deal with the rising crime rate – the City
Wardens, confident that their presumed pawn would play into their hands, felt
it safe to increase their power and influence.
However, they were in for a rude surprise. Truart betrayed his paymasters, and launched
an offensive on them. The new Warden
Affairs Division at Shoalsgate collected information on the Wardens and began a
process of rolling up their organisations.
The City Watch targeted the clerks and administrators of the Warden’s
organisations, rendering it impossible for them to control their diverse and
tangled wards. Vassals and
semi-independent guilds began to break away, but with no one to fence their
loot they too experienced problems.
Gradually, organised crime in the City disintegrated as the criminals
were rounded up and the remaining Wardens attempted to protect themselves by
paring their organisations to the bone.
Despite the assault on the Wardens, crime remained relatively
high. The Wardens had been superseded
by a new criminal organisation – the Watch itself. The holdings of the Wardens were forfeited to the City Watch, and
most of its lieutenants and Sheriffs helped themselves to the profits. Arrested criminals were often enrolled in
the ranks of the City Watch, and there was increased disillusionment amongst
the populace and the few honest Watch Officers that the new City Watch was no
better than the old City Guard.
Meanwhile, the Mechanists continued to gain power. Advancements in the field of clockwork
mechanisation and several unknown arts resulted in the development of the
Mechanical Eyes, while the exploration of the much-ignored science of chemistry
produced gunpowder. The influence of
the Mechanists in the fields of architecture and interior design gained
pace. Mechanist styles became popular
in order to display their mechanical innovations in their proper setting, and
the materials of tile, metal, marble and plaster became increasingly favoured
over stone and wood.
Like the Order of the Hammer before them, this increasing wealth
and acclaim convinced the Mechanists that they needed a new place of worship
worthy of their magnificence. They had
already occupied, and renovated considerably, the old Hammerite Cathedral in
the Old Quarter – now actually part of Eastport – as well as constructing the
Mechanist Tower, called Angelwatch, at Dayport. But the Mechanists wanted something more. Their new Cathedral became called Soulforge
Cathedral, and was a massive building that sprawled over the remains of
Wayside. The Mechanists demolished many
of the structures in this ancient district, and razed the rest, in order to
find enough space to construct their Cathedral. When finished it was an impressive construction, containing a
massive space for worship as well as several items of machinery that allowed
the production of their latest invention: the Builder’s Children, developed by
Friend Coltus. The demolition of
Wayside, and the construction of the Cathedral, revitalised the former slum
district, and led to the building of many new warehouses and factories to
supply the Mechanists with machined components or transport their finished
product.
Thanks to their growing wealth, the Mechanists were able to take
over Markham’s Isle, and install new subterranean and submarine structures in
the caves beneath it. There they
developed the Cetus Amicus, intended as a demonstration of Mechanist prowess
and construction ability. However, on
its maiden voyage it made a highly unusual discovery. On a cruise around the coastline of the City a stone building was
discovered, torn by time but still recognisable as a structure. Further investigation, spurred by the presence
of Karras on board, revealed a faint network of buildings and a beckoning
cavern. There was growing excitement
aboard the vessel, made greater when the Cetus Amicus ground on a gravely
shore, and scouting expeditions found several tunnels that led to an abandoned
city.
The Mechanists had discovered Karath-Din, the legendary Lost City,
and the treasures within it. They also
discovered burricks, fire elementals, and a strong encampment of Mages from the
Brotherhood of the Hand. They had
remained down there in their quest for further relics of their past, and
fortified certain areas to withstand attack.
The Mechanists were cut down, but survivors returned to the Cetus Amicus
to tell the story. Karras was incensed,
and appointed a certain Brother Cavador to eradicate the Mages, and find
whatever treasures they had been digging for.
This was accomplished after several months shuttling men and
equipment to the site, with the rust gas taking out most of the Mages and a
large proportion of the burrick population as well. Some of the relics recovered greatly excited Karras, for reasons
unknown to us, and he gave orders for as many of them to be collected as
possible. Meanwhile, Mechanists
engineers had found the exit to the City we had used, and installed machinery
to make it possible to enter and exit Karath-Din without having to come via
water. However, the need to be
circumspect to avoid arousing suspicion, as well as the precariousness of the
precautions taken to avoid flooding, meant that passage through it was
restricted to important personages.
Above the subterranean tunnels of Karath-Din, the City became
increasingly dominated by both the Mechanists and the City Watch. Truart continued his crackdown on crime, now
targeting all found disobeying even the most minor of offences, as well as
those guilty of serious crime. Many
lauded the City Watch for these remarkable efforts, despite the climate of fear
that began to prevail amongst the innocent, but the more cynical wondered at
why some of the ‘criminals’ arrested were among the Watch’s most vocal
opponents – before they too were arrested, imprisoned, and never heard of
again. The regency council could do
nothing to prevent this, nor could any of the lesser nobles. Truart, with his lieutenants Hagen and
Moseley, gradually eradicated almost all crime from the City, with the
exception of the best, and assumed almost complete control.
Yet, at the same time changes were noticed in Truart’s
behaviour. As clockwork cameras and
watchers appeared in City Watch stations around the City, people observed that
increasingly beggars and vagabonds began to be rounded up, sometimes in
preference to criminals.
We, of course, know why this is.
The Metal Age is upon us, and only Garrett, the one who is both brethren
and betrayer, can act where we cannot
Keeper Angustiae
Treatise,
‘Dawn of the Metal Age’. Keeper
Library; City, Recent Events - 3856