Pelantule

Name: Pelantule (Pelan-tool)
Aliases: Platinum that Burns
Type: Drow city-state
Size: Large network of volcanic caverns
Government

Capital: Pelantule
Government Type: Matriarchy
Ruler: Valsharess Shri Evedriirn Orlyett
Emblem: The emblem of the city is a black spider web woven over a platinum disk.
The emblem of First House is a black spider poised over a flaming orb.
Monetary Unit: Standard underdark currency, ingots.
Imports: Anything the drow need.
Exports: Precious metals, gems, fire opals, poisons, drugs, slaves, fine weapons and armor, fine jewelry, magical paraphernalia, osquip hide.
Inhabitants

Population: 30,000+
Demonym: Pelantan
Races:
Free (55% of population)
Drow 97.7%
Human 1%
Orc 1%
Other 0.3%

Slave (45% of population)
Kobold 42%
Duergar 27%
Sverfneblin 11%
Human 10%
Other 10%

Duergar minors are particularly valued as slaves by House Orlyett, for they are used the sziinj mines.

Religion: Lloth
Recognized Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Language: Primarily drow and undercommon.
Culture: Life in any drow city is difficult. But in Pelantule the drow have found some stability because of the fear that House Orlyett has instilled in the population. The top houses rarely find themselves in conflict, leaving fighting to the ambitious that wish to control the merchant houses. Day in and day out, the merchants vie for control of the fluctuating market.

The average Pelantan child can expect to have some education in fire magic. Magic schools are primarily run for profit, giving additional power to some of the merchant houses.
Geography

Climate: Little fluctuation exists in the cavern’s warm, humid temperature.

Environs: In the lower caverns and mines, the air is dry and warm. In the upper regions, which includes the large cavern where the city is built, a subterranean lake lends humidity to the atmosphere, but doesn’t cool it much.

Flora and Fauna: Various algae and fungi are farmed by primarily kobold slaves. Mushrooms and other nutrient rich mosses are grown in large chambers, for use as food for the city proper. Shvraath, an odorless, luminescent crimson lichen, is cultivated throughout the drow city. It absorbs and feeds on the poisonous fumes of magma streams. Elsewhere it is found wild, growing inside live volcanoes. Herds of rothe are kept for meat, and a number of caverns contain breeding populations of osquip. The osquip are kept as food for slaves as well as for the numerous fire lizards that are used as both pets and as the city’s defense. Flame spiders are also kept as pets and are allowed to roam wild in the surrounding caverns.

Known Dangers: Magma pools, hot steam geysers, and cave-ins. Fire snakes, salamanders, subterranean fire lizards, and flame spiders. Duergar and drow patrols.

Locations of Interest:
Sziinj mines: Szjinj is a peculiar metal found only in this area of Auvrynon. Difficult to mine, it has no more magical value than any other precious metal, although when tempered it is harder than silver. The value of it is in rarity and appearance; when in its natural form, sziinj is a dull grayish white. After smelting and tempering it develops all of the vivid, opalescent colors of fire.
History

The drow of Pelantule claim that it was they that were first upon the realm now known as Auvrynon. That the only reason that the surface breathers even discovered the lush land at the mouth of the Mistroil, was because of a slave uprising. According to drow lore, all native born humans are actually descendants from slaves.

The city was founded by Valsharess Lythrizass Orlyett. Through ambition and her will, she lead her people from a world where they had little power to a land at the center of the known universe. She brought with her priestesses who specialized in fire magic, and, with the aid of her people, they found an area on Auvrynon that would be suitable to hone those skills. They discovered within the dark caverns of Auvrynon, a nexus of Stone Fyre. Upon this raw power source, they built their city. Tapping this nexus and offering considerable sacrifice to Lloth, House Orlyett created the six great Flame Orbs.

To this day, the city’s First House maintains control over three underground magma fissures through the use of these Flame Orbs. By this, The First House not only protects the city from a fiery end, but it also controls the city itself. The secrets of the Flame Orbs are a closely guarded House secret. It is believed that if the First House is deposed through any means, the sudden loss of the controlling orbs could very well cause all three fissures to erupt simultaneous.