General

Almasuan is an ancient city located in the deserts of Almanat. It was destroyed by a flood centuries ago.

Description

Almasuan was considered a paradise, a massive town constructed on an ever filling lake which provided a respite from the deadly sun. It was one of the first permanent settlements in the desert and certainly the greatest, much of the architectural styles and culture that would form the basis for Almanat, began here.

Society

Demographics

The people of Almasuan were a blend of nomadic desert tribes and settled artisans, living in the safety of the lake's life-giving waters. Their clothing would be simple yet beautifully crafted, with flowing robes of deep indigo, gold, and crimson, each color reflecting the colors of the land and the water. They would wear long shawls to shield themselves from the sun, and delicate silver jewelry, often inset with turquoise and lapis lazuli.

History

The story of Almasuan began with the exile of Dirlagrauna. After the archfey's sealing in the dagger, it was tossed aside into a lake, by the Queen of Air and Darkness. It's blade would tear through the barriers between the planes, creating a hole through which it fell in to the Material Plane. It found itself in the middle of the desert of Almanat. The dagger, was not the only item to come through. The hole, small as it was, was large enough that water from the Feywild began pouring in. It was eventually noticed by a nomadic traveller, who stopped to gather water. As he did, he noticed the dagger and took it. The voice of the Dirlagrauna reached out to him an told him it could make him a king. That man was Imar Al Sharif and he would found the city of Almasuan on the shores of the lake, which was being formed by the waters coming through the rift to the Feywild.

For centuries, Imar would rule over the city. He created a system of succession, where the king would choose their successor instead of passing it to their child. This, he claimed, would ensure that the right person lead the city, instead of it being a matter of birth. In reality, Imar would use the power of the dagger to perform a ritual, embedding the blade in to his successor's body and possessing them. As for the victim's soul, it would be devoured by the being residing in the dagger - Dirlagrauna.

This would continue for generation, until Dirlagrauna's growing power drew the attention of the Queen of Air and Darkness once more. Noticing that the archfey was consuming souls to regain its old power and worried that it may eventually break free from the dagger, she decided to intervene. The Queen closed the rift between the planes from which the waters of the lake of Almasuan flowed. In a few years, the lake began to dry up and with it, the glory of the city. This was not the end of the Queen's plan however. Allowing for water to build up over the years, she suddenly unleashed an even bigger rift, causing a huge flood to strike the city, destroying it, before sealing the hole once more.