Hallowed Bastion

Located in the heart of the mysterious dimension known as The Place Which Is No More, the Hallowed Bastion is an unusual city, virtually unknown to anyone outside Siranoire except in legend. It was founded by Tahran and Chrystalis, and serves as their home and base of operations. It is a beautiful place, a literal shining city on a hill, and has served as a refuge for the lost and the suffering of the entire Web for generations. It has recently fallen to a treacherous coup, however, carried out by Lord Dimetrius Xephalos, Royal Vizier. Since that coup, the occupying forces have called it the Hollow Bastion, as a repudiation of Tahran and Chrystalis' authority (it does not help that the Lord and Lady themselves have vanished). It is now a war-torn land under siege, the primary theater of what has come to be called the Bastion War.

Land

The Bastion, as it's more commonly known, is located at the precise center of Siranoire and runs neck and neck with the great city of Kupopolis for most metaphysically unusual spot in the Web. Every lay line in the Web of Worlds intersects at the Bastion, creating a nexus of dimensional crossroads. Because of this, it is theoretically possible to reach any location in the Web from the Bastion.

Hallowed Bastion consists of a fair-sized city, known as the Bastion Proper, located on a hill-strewn, grassy plain on the shore of the largest lake in Siranoire. Atop a waterfall on the largest plateau, at the northern edge of the city, lies the crown jewel of the Bastion: the Palace of Radiant Gardens, a magnificent castle of crystal and stone, which is the seat of power in the Bastion. Beyond the palace lies a rocky plain and a series of canyons, leading to a lush, tropical valley.

The Bastion's territory also includes the city of Traverse, located some miles to the south, as well as a number of small, allied villages.

Population

Due to the Bastion's unique position as a crossroads--both physically and metaphysically--its population is incredibly diverse. Nearly every species and ethnic group in the Web has a presence there. It is a haven of sorts for refugees of the Web's myriad's wars and upheavals, political, religious and magical, and as such no one is truly native. In spite of this, there are families who have been there for generations. The only group who can truly be called native to the Bastion is called the Kindred. The descendants of an offshoot of a nomadic race known as the Kildean Cetrai, the Kindred fled a campaign of ethnic cleansing in the fallen Empire of Ivalice. The Kindred stumbled upon gates to the Bastion, and Tahran and Chrystalis granted them asylum. They were the first humans to settle the the land, starting a long tradition.

Religion

In Siranoire, religion is not an abstraction that requires blind faith in the unknowable. The Gods walk and live there, having a day-to-day impact on the lives of believers. As a result, many faiths are represented, and nearly every mortal serves some God or another. The Bastion is no exception, and its dominant faith is the Shining Path, as it is the home of Tahran and Chrystalis. The other most prevalent religion among Bastioners is Cetrain Elementalism, also known as Bastion Elementalism. The Chrystalan sect is most popular, for obvious reasons, but there are scattered sects devoted to the other Ladies as well. These others wax and wane in popularity, though Tsukiyomi worship tends to be rare. Mullenkamp worship has been gaining a foothold since the coup; this is largely due to the influence of Sydney Losstarot.

Government

Though the Bastion "belongs" to Tahran and Chrystalis, and they are the ultimate authority there, they leave the day-to-day tasks of ruling to the Royal Family, which rules the Bastion in their names. This benign form of theocracy was instituted by Tahran in antiquity, when the first Kindred trickled into the realm. Traditionally, the Hierophant of Chrystalis is also the Ruling Prince, though this is not the law.

In the wake of the betrayal of Lord Dimetrius, the Royal Vizier, Hallowed Bastion became known as Hollow Bastion. It is currently controlled by Dimetrius, and occupied by forces led by the mysterious Superior. Prince Ansem Orphaeus, current Hierophant of Chrystalis and the rightful ruler of the Bastion, heads the government-in-exile essentially on the run. His Council of Advisors consists of his twin brother Xemnas Orphaeus, Oracle of Chrystalis; Lady Seraphine Regardie, High Priestess of Chrystalis; Lord Ashley Fiennes, Grand Steward of the Rota Fortunae; Lord Gabriel Crescent, Lord Preceptor of the Knights of the Bastion, and Professor Kenjiro Sakai, Master of Alchemy. Sydney Losstarot, Hierophant of Mullenkamp, is also advising Ansem, albeit informally.

Economy

The coup and subsequent Occupation has dealt a devastating blow to the Bastion's economy. The production of goods and distribution of services has all but ceased, save those needed to fuel The Superior's war machine. Alchemical and synthesis materials, always a popular export, have tripled in value as the clamor for ever greater volume increases, particularly since the areas richest in them are all under Occupation control.

Smuggling operations--once virtually unheard of in the generally law-abiding Bastion--have spread like wildfire in the wake of the Occupation. Resistance and allied forces have used them to fund their activities, and a number of them serve as fronts. Information itself is a highly valued commodity, due to the Occupation keeping the city on virtual lockdown, second only to weapons and magical tools in value among smugglers. Because Dimetrius controls all known gates, knowledge of "back doors" has become priceless.

Food is also scarce in the Bastion, thanks to the mysterious blight and subsequent drought that has plagued the land, destroying crops and livestock. Fresh meats, and grain, have almost become currency as a result.

Military

For thousands of years, the Knights of the Bastion stood as the valiant defenders of Hallowed Bastion, founded by Tahran Himself. Comprised of three sub-orders, one each for Paladins (the Sacred Rose), Dragoons (the Drakongaard), and Knight Regulars (the Heartsblade), it is sworn to the defense of the Bastion and her people, and its exploits on the field of battle against the forces of the Dark Gods are the stuff of legend in Siranoire. While each sub order has its own commander, the Lord Preceptor of the Knights of the Bastion was the ultimate authority, answering only to the crown and Tahran Himself. Preceptors have without question always been Paladins of the Sacred Rose, until Lord Gabriel's disappearance left Neesa Khazeni of the Heartsblade in charge.

In recent years, a separate, adjunct military organization known as the Rota Fortunae was founded to help the Knights deal with the rising threats to the Bastion in the years following the Great War's end. Unlike the Knights of the Bastion, Rota Fortunae agents are not explicitly bound by the Tahranic Code, and thus are able to perform tasks the Knights find morally distasteful but necessary for the Bastion's security. The order was founded and is still led by Lord Ashley Fiennes.

Because of the Bastion's critical location in the Place Which Is No More, and its standing as basically the headquarters for Tahran and Chrystalis and thus the Light Gods as a whole, it has always had the need for a strong, well-trained standing force ready to defend it against all comers, mortal or otherwise. And until the Dimetrian coup, it was just that.

However, the war has taken a tremendous toll on the Bastion's forces. Gabriel's disappearance was extremely demoralizing, and many Knights have deserted or otherwise joined the Occupation as members of The Superior's elite Praetorian Guard. The bulk of the occupying forces consists of driven slaves and monsters, including the terrifying, mysterious creatures only known as shadows, or nightmares.