New Crystal City

[Erol of Backford]

Does anyone have a map of this city?

I'd like to tie it into my Backford Campaign either on a trading trip or perhaps a pilgrimage to the Earth Temple in Ezel via Nochet after Getting of Wisdom but what would tie Notchet to New Crystal City?

Mr. Richard posted:

New Crystal City is an odd place. 

NEW CRYSTAL CITY (SMALL CITY)

After Belintar dug the New River, he constructed this city using a fragment of the Gift of the Sun Crystal. Belintar grew the fragment into a huge crystalline building with spires of green, blue, yellow, red, and white. Around the crystal palace, he laid out a city to guard passage along the New River. New Crystal City has around 5,000 residents, and it is an important offloading point for trade going into Dragon Pass. 

New Crystal city has major temples to Ernalda, Orlanth Thunderous, and a local variant of Yelmalio, minor temples to Argan Argar, Orlanth Adventurous, Chalana Arroy, Engizi, Issaries, and Lhankor Mhy, and shrines to Babeester Gor, Maran Gor, Humakt, Esrola, and Ty Kora Tek. 

So of course there are trade caravans that go from New Crystal City - and I suspect most are Grazelander pony caravans. Rich Post is only about 40 km away after all. But the volume of that trade is dwarfed by the caravans that go from Karse to Boldhome to Alda-Chur to Furthest.

Spoiler

Does anyone know the year Bluebird and Halcyon had their misadventures there? Are the PC's curriers for the Knowledge Temple? Do they end up escorting Bluebird from Notchet and then part ways as he flees north following Halcyon's death?

[Joerg]

38 minutes ago, Erol of Backford said:

Does anyone have a map of this city?

I haven't seen any claiming to represent this city, even less so since Jeff made the above statement on Facebook.

I am not quite clear how much NCC is the successor of Elmalvo, one of the first Esrolian cities to get into contact with the Adjustment Wars if I recall that correctly. (Not that there would be any authoritative maps on Elmalvo, either.) The local variant of Yelmalio does seem to imply some continuity from Elmalvo.

 

Spoiler

Halcyon and Bluebird would have left New Crystal City around the same time Thane Dronlan's daughter entered Balazar.

Joh Mith's family and Dronlan's daughter create the rough temporal anchor to Apple Lane and Jonstown. Halcyon really gets back into the main storyline when Sor-eel gets relieved from his Pavis posting in time for the Windstop. (I wonder how many Pavisites or Praxians blame the Cradle incident for the Windstop...)

[jajagappa]

1 hour ago, Erol of Backford said:

Does anyone have a map of this city?

@MOB was doing some work on New Crystal City some good while back, but don't know if he ever put together a map?

Clearly it is a "planned" city and should draw upon the magics of the spires to focus elemental energies in different sectors.

[Erol of Backford]

  

With all the spires and colors maybe he was making it to emulate a dragon newt city?

[MOB]

18 hours ago, jajagappa said:

@MOB was doing some work on New Crystal City some good while back, but don't know if he ever put together a map?

Clearly it is a "planned" city and should draw upon the magics of the spires to focus elemental energies in different sectors.

 

Edited September 28, 2022 by MOB

[AlHazred]

39 minutes ago, MOB said:

 

Clearly, they've misunderstood the rules for the Tournament of Luck and Death, and just put to death anyone who reaches the age of 30 in a spectacular Vegas-style show!

[Brian Duguid]

Actual photo of the New Crystal City, taken a few minutes ago.

[Squaredeal Sten]

My own mental image runs to a very large crystal building which will accommodate hundreds or thousands.  While it would have spires it would not be a spire.

[Erol of Backford]

Can't stop laughing. Belintar was a Post-Metabolist bordering a Fractal-Linealist?

Maybe he was actually one of the long lost King of the Sun Wheel Dancers who was used as a giant fishing hook by Gonn Orta back near the Dawn after being reunited with his essence from when he appeared off the shore of Kethaela in 1313 due to a fishing heroquest?

On 9/27/2022 at 2:51 PM, Erol of Backford said:

he laid out a city to guard passage along the New River

 

On another note, when I see that he made the city to guard the river maybe it actually spanned over it as in the clip above? Understood that the river is in a deep gorge with the city being at the western end opposite the Styx Grotto. Why couldn't this city be built over the river as he also made the city of winders, fish roads and the magical bridges?

[Baron Wulfraed]

8 hours ago, Brian Duguid said:

Actual photo of the New Crystal City, taken a few minutes ago.

Just follow the yellow brick road...

 

[Erol of Backford]

I've been looking more into the area near New Crystal City, specifically for the Ruins of Elmalvo. I was thinking to place the ruins where the Runnel and New Rivers meet but am not sure.

Does anyone have a more detailed map of the area southwest of New Crystal City and placement of Elmalvo?

Additionally I am thinking to use old Constantinople with something like the the hagia Sophia for the crystal center city?

https://glorantha.fandom.com/wiki/Elmalvo

 

[jajagappa]

51 minutes ago, Erol of Backford said:

I was thinking to place the ruins where the Runnel and New Rivers meet but am not sure.

Bear in mind that the New River (and that whole canyon) was cut by Belintar after defeating the Only Old One - it did not exist before 1318. And it is quite feasible that the earth around there is filled with debris from the collapse of the Palace of Black Glass. 

Elmalvo does not appear on the Dawn Age maps in the Guide, so clearly comes later. The Guide entry on New Crystal City notes: "This city near the ruins of lost Elmalvo" which suggests the ruins are not far (i.e. likely within the same hex (or an adjacent one) on the map.

[Erol of Backford]

2 hours ago, jajagappa said:

likely within the same hex (or an adjacent one) on the map

To be honest I am looking for a place to locate the Impenetrable Shield of Kiahn which was lost on the way to new Crystal City from Nochet - the shield has rested there near the Haunted Lands, on the road between the cities of New Crystal and Nochet which in my YGWV view puts it in Elmalvo...

Close to New Crystal City, within a hex away still gives options. Placing it on the east side of the Runnel would have the ruins potentially filled with debris from the making of the New River.