I have given this some thought, and have come to the conclusion that there is a need to inform those Erudites who feel the urge to explore the wider world. I am all in favor of folk leaving the shores of Odus and visiting other places. After all, until one has tasted bile, how can one appreciate sweetness? I myself have travelled extensively and in all modesty feel that I have insights that may assist my fellow Erudites. To this end, I present here a humble document outlining the principal cities of Norrath, their modes of government, and the military strength available to them. Naturally, I have sought to be as impartial as possible in my observations, but at the same time one does have a commitment to the truth, unpalatable as it may be to members of the lesser races with which we unfortunately have to share this world.

Ak�Anon, city of the Gnomes. Dreary subterranean metropolis. The clockwork things are ingenious, except for the fact that they keep breaking down. The Gnomes would do better to bend their formidable intellects towards bettering their souls, rather than their physical comforts.
Civil Government: The machines are secretly running the show.
Military: Limited. Uniforms: Very silly.

Cabilis, city of the Iksar. Don�t know. Never visited the place. Have no wish to, except possibly as part of some kind of army. Civil Government: Don�t know for sure. They�re all evil types. Probably some psuedo-clerical military dictatorship that makes decisions based on examination of people�s entrails.
Military: Extensive. Uniforms: They all look the same to me.

Erudin, city of the enlightened of Erud. Ah. This is the greatest city in the world. Stupendous architecture, the buildings are feats of engineering that soar into the sky. Inside is stored the greatest collection of knowledge in all of Norrath. Gentle waterfalls spread tinkling water in glorious cascades. The air is sweet and clean, tranquillity reigns. The climate is superb, neither too hot or too cold. Rain is almost unheard of. Birds twitter sweet music, swans coast in the lakes, culture and learning are at their most prevalent and respected. It is a paradise. It is a definition of love. When you tire of Erudin, you tire of life itself. And when you visit, why not pop into the Vasty deep inn, a superbly located and well-appointed hotel in the very heart of the city. Excellent food, clean rooms at reasonable prices, and service that is second to none. Yes the Vasty deep inn is the premier choice for your vacation now!
Civil Government: The High Council of Erud runs the city, a fine body of noteworthy citizens committed to the greater good. Representing the very upper echelons of Erudite society, the council is wise, foresighted and gentle. They steer us around the many trials that beset up (principally Kobolds). This has forced an inevitable rise in taxes, which is affecting small businesses very adversely. My cousin Aggith, who works at the Vasty deep Inn (well partly owns it actually) says that at this rate he will be down to his last 10,000 platinum pieces in a year.
Military: The guards are all retired paladins, a worrying phenomenon for yours truly. Parading around Erudin is a grim prospect for a soul that has become used to action-packed living. The reason of course, is that crime is almost unknown in the fine city of Erudin. I don�t know if I will be able to take the change in pace. The only disturbances are from rowdy foreigners that occasionally enter the city limits. If you want to avoid these ruffians, I would suggest stopping at the Vasty Deep inn, a fine establishment that serves the very pinnacle of Erudite cuisine to the most discerning palate. The unwashed, beer-swilling masses won�t be seen there, I can assure you!
Uniforms: Blue and silver.

Felwithe, city of the High Elves. I must admit this is a very pleasant place. Easily the greatest city of Faywder, there are some genuinely nice buildings here, even though the best ones are tucked out of the way. Unfortunately, it�s full of strange folk with pointy-ears.
Civil Government: A monarchy. The current king is Tearis Thex. I have never seen him. I suspect he is an illusion.
Military: The High Elf guard establishment is not unlike the Erudite one. They have a strong presence in the city but are not too active outside it. Uniforms: Gold.

Firona Vie, city of the Elven colonists. Not so much a city as a front-line supply depot for the good forces striving to break the foul Sarnaks. Remnants of the great Combine Empire are all about, which tend to overshadow the humble efforts of the colonists.
Civil Government: Actually civil anarchy. No-one really runs Firona Vie. Officially, there is a committee made up of members from all the elder races. A committee, by definition, is an organism with four or more legs and no brain. Military: Firona Vie employs rangers to patrol the wild areas surrounding the outpost. They are neither numerous nor particularly effective. Mind you, they�re pitted against Drolvargs. Uniforms: Varies.

Freeport, eastern city of the Humans. A corrupt, venal cesspit, Freeport is the largest city known, but that just means there�s a lot more of this bad civil and social engineering than there could be. And the fishing is lousy. All you get is �Freeport Sole� (i.e. tattered sandals).
Civil Government: A Fascist military junta, run on the principles of rampant, vulgar commercialism. They do not actually govern Freeport, at least not in the sense that they actually do things for people. Do things TO people, perhaps. The Guard is corrupt, the greedy merchants swindle everyone and unsavoury types roam the streets. There is rubbish and ordure littering everywhere. The eastern section is particularly bad. I would suggest demolishing it and starting from scratch.
Military: The Freeport Militia, an untrustworthy and morally bankrupt crew loyal only to the corrupt administration of the city. They pay but lip service to higher and abstract concepts of �goodness�, �justice�, �honesty� and so on. One day the Paladins of Freeport will prove the villainy of these miscreants beyond all doubt and wash the city in their blood. Uniforms: Scarlet.

Grobb, city of the Trolls. I was unfortunate enough to be able to enter Grobb whilst under an invisibility spell. It is a festering, mud-filled, fly blown heap of accumulated filth. The main exports are fertiliser and communicable disease. While I was there a major fire swept the entire city and actually improved it. I was so shocked I nearly dropped my oil-soaked rags.
Civil Government: Trolls practice a primitive form of democracy. Disputes are settled by a mass punch-up between the contending parties. The winners choose the course of action to be taken. The losers get eaten.
Military: Citizen army. All Trolls are in it. Uniforms: Dung with vomit stains.

Halas, city of the Barbarians. An ice-cold, snow-swept huddle of crude stone huts. Halas offers the barest minimum of life�s necessities, apart from a profusion of bars. Dirt floors, occupied by dirt covered, illiterate Barbarians reeking of rawhide, sweat and alcohol. Barbarians have a well-deserved reputation for generosity. A Barbarian will give you anything - food, drink, clothing and if you are unwise enough to get too close, lice, gingivitis and alcoholic poisoning.
Civil Government: I have visited Halas on numerous occasions and am still quite at a loss as to who actually governs the place, who pays the guards and who generally organises for the common good. I have come to the conclusion that no one actually runs it. Halas is a city that kind of � happens � to you.
Military: �The Wolves of the North�. Main functions: Standing still and grunting. Main attributes: Deep voice for grunting. Main activities off-duty: Drinking and grunting. A right pack of grunts. Uniforms: Brown leather.

Highpass Keep, beleaguered city of the Humans. A decadent gambling den. While the rich desport themselves in riotous living, the Gnolls and the Orcs gnaw at the foundations. A terrible warning to all of us of the dangers of self-indulgence.
Civil Government: Allegedly some kind of democracy. In fact the rich are out for themselves, to the ruination of those honest citizens who still bravely eke out a living in this city under siege.
Military: The guard is loyal and competent, but there simply aren�t enough of them for the work at hand. Uniforms: Green.

Kaladim, city of the Dwarves. They�ve hollowed out half a mountain and filled it with houses made from the spoilage. Kaladim is a mine! Worse, it�s an active mine! It�s dark, it�s dank and it�s noisy. How can one undertake a proper meditation on the finer nuances of existence when a gang of the ignorant and vertically challenged are banging rocks together just down the street? Civil Government: Kaladim is nominally a monarchy, the current �ruler� being Kazon Stormguard. Actually he is a figurehead. The city is really ruled by the miner�s guild (yes that�s right, the miner�s guild). How can a collective of earth burrowers be any good at running a city? Can you imagine the council minutes?
Q. �We have a proposal to make a new library.� A. �Passed! We can move lots of rocks!�
Q. �Education policy needs an overhaul.� A. �Put some more pit props in.�
Q. �The Elven ambassador begs for our aid against the Orcs.� A. �Give him a shovel.�
Military: Easy to overlook J Uniforms: Armor plate and fetching red soccer shorts, with stylish yellow and blue stripes down the sides (small sizes only).

Kelethin, city of the Wood Elves. I must admit, at first glance, this is a very spectacular place, in a rather superficial way. On close examination however, it fails on one of the main planks of city design � you just can�t find your way around it. It also illustrates the essential backwardness of the Wood Elf race. After all, monkeys still live in trees.
Civil Government: I cannot find my way around the place, never mind work out who runs it. It will be something inscrutable and esoteric and Elvish. Possibly telepathy. Possibly tic-tac-toe.
Military: Easily the dimmest in Norrath. Before qualifying as a city guard Wood Elves have to have a frontal lobotomy and fail a simple eye test. They fight well if you actually lead an Orc right up to them. Then get it to shout �HELLO I AM AN ORC AND ONE OF YOUR ENEMIES� very loudly. Then finally present the guard with a signed affidavit in triplicate attesting that this is an example of a tribe of evil beings that have been plaguing Kelethin for several centuries and it might actually be a good idea to kill it. Uniforms: Emerald green.

Neriak, city of the Dark Elves. Doctrina unfortunately found himself unable to enter this city; therefore I, Gallius, will comment upon it. The Dark Elves, or Tier�Dal, run one of the greatest cities in Norrath. Their library is the third greatest in Norrath, behind Erudin�s and Paineel�s. A distant third, but third nonetheless. The Tier�Dal are the second most intelligent race of the world. The entire city of Neriak, however, is buried underneath the Lavastorm Mountain Range, and is thus far too dark for civilised taste.
Military: �The Dread Guards,� very organised within the city. Outside the city, in the darkness of the Nektulous Forest, is the training ground for their young guards, and often becomes a training ground for slightly less young Elven Rangers.
Uniforms: Ringmail with plate helmets and cloth adornments.

Oggok, city of the Ogres. This is the closest you can possibly get to saying �go away� in stone.
Civil Government: Force majeur runs this place. For the uncultured who don�t know what I am talking about, this largely comes down to �I am bigga than wot u iz. Therefore give me alla yuz things now�.
Military: �Bouncers�. Uniforms: I have never been in a calm enough state of mind to be paying close enough attention to this detail to be able to give an accurate answer, actually.

Qeynos, western city of the Humans. The first city of Antonica. Qeynos is a pale imitation of what is possible to the Human stock. It lacks grandeur, and good layout, but our principal allies have tried, bless them.
Civil Government: The noble and possibly soon to be canonised Antonius Bayle II rules the fair city of Qeynos. He was forced to assume control to prevent the city from sliding irrevocably towards evil and ruin. His enemies dare to suggest he is a tyrant but I can personally testify this is not so. His wise rule has saved the city and ensured a forthcoming golden era of prosperity. Military: The Qeynos guard is an impressively large force that maintains security not only in the city itself but also in the hills to the north and even into the Karanas. There are rumours of corruption in the city guard, and some of them are a little shaky in the weapon-handling department, which is only to be expected (they are only common Humans after all). Having said that, I�ve never had any problems with them. Uniforms: Gold with Qeynos crest.

Rivervale, city of the Halflings. It�s OK, I suppose. It has a kind of quaint rustic charm. Basically though, Rivervale is a collection of primitive wattle and daub huts with turf roofs. It�s like a shantytown.
Civil Government: Rivervale has a mayor, chosen by an annual eating contest. The current incumbent is one �Gubbin�, who ate an astonishing forty-six pies in only eighty-three seconds, followed by twelve rhubarb tarts in twenty-two seconds, all washed down with a gallon of custard. His second in command is the sheriff, who allegedly controls the guards. He has a team of advisors drawn from the local merchants and guild leaders, who attend a parliamentary meeting, rather incongruously called �the diet�. Intelligence is optional for all these individuals.
Military: Ridiculous. Uniforms: White and Brown, with stupid broad-brimmed hats and burglar type masks. They look like a bunch of highway robbers. Perhaps they are � I wouldn�t put them past moonlighting. They certainly steal lots of kills from me.

Sanctus Seru, city of the followers of Seru. A well-ordered, well-laid out city that offers spectacular views of Norrath. The people are a bit antisocial. You rarely see anyone on the streets and they all scurry away if you try and talk to them. Very odd - you would have thought they�d feel particularly safe with soldiers on every street corner.
Civil Government: Very ordered. What a wonderful thing the Combine Empire must have been!
Military: Various folk, various styles.

Shadow Haven, city of Everyman. That�s what�s wrong with this place. Everyone has had a hand in building it! A city should grow out of the inner spirit of its creators, and be a reflection of their innate character. What you have here is a mishmash of styles, most very bad, held together by mutual suspicion and sheer greed.
Civil Government: Organised chaos. Ruled by mammon.
Military: I shudder to think where these folk come from.

Shah Vahl, city of the Vah Shir. It is, literally, a hole in the ground. The architecture is surprisingly adequate, suggesting plagiarism. The only monuments the cats have are to their own efforts and folly, the godless heathens. Having said that, you can do well with your fishing rod here, especially if you also own a herd of dairy cows.
Civil Government: There is a king, who gets to sit on the comfy basket in the sun and eat the best fish. He sleeps most of the day, but in his conscious moments he can be uncommonly lucid. Has recently cracked down heavily on the illegal importation of catnip.
Military: None really. There are beings called �armsmen�, but they are not really a military force as such.

Surefall Glade, �city� of the Druids. The druids reckon this place is �close to nature�, which means it consists of a few draughty wooden shacks populated by wild-eyed primitives into archery and tree-hugging. Pathetic really.
Civil Government: Give me a break.
Military: Qeynos provides the guards for Surefall glade, but the druids and rangers employ roving bands of eco-terrorists who roam the hills, splitting people in two for glancing twice at wolves or bears. Their debased philosophy places such things above intelligent life. Uniforms: Brown leather.

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