- Life in the Desert-


Hasst - capital of Tahnn, trading center of the north and destination or starting point of most ships and caravans traveling in this region.

Bordering the Telgard Sea and backed by the suffocating Sarin Desert lies the City of Hasst. Here may be found a bustling port and all manner of strange people and beasts who are able to withstand the harsh conditions of this place. High over the grand archway leading into the city is the fanged snake, the symbol for the Kingdom of Tahnn.
 

Imports:
  • Lirynn:  wine, wooden furniture and musical instruments, medicine, fine fabric (linen, velvet, silk...), food
  • Korgarr: dwarven ale and sharp blades, Delfae: cloth like sheer spider webs, mushrooms
  • Korresh: wood, finery
  • Mirg: pelts, exotic animals, fabric


Exports:

  • The famous gems of the Ss'tiss' mines as well as sandstone, glass, glasswork and skssar.
  • Carpets and blankets, woven of the wool of fessal, interwoven with strange symbols, wool
Government
Missai Ssnipzz : "The Government of Hasst"  Vol.1 
A matriarchal council of five Ss'tiss governs Hasst. Every five years its members are elected by both female and male Ss'tiss. These five then have to decide which of them may be the 'J'issan' - the one who makes the final decisions. This council installs ambassadors and judges and decides about trade-politics.

(Vol2 coming soon)

Excerpt: Arlan Dafon - "The Capital of Tahnn: Hasst - Structure and Society" 

Hasst, the Jewel of the Desert: 
Hasst, the capital of Tahnn and trading center of the north has been built upon a rocky plateau to the border of the  Telgard Sea. It is almost impossible to approach the city without being seen. Guard/Watch Towers are placed at the edges of the ways up to the plateau Hasst is built upon and their light can be seen in great distance at night. A lighthouse down at the port provides ships from missing the secure passage between the cliffs which are guarding the city from the sea side. Incoming caravans take a narrow path up to the plateau where caravans and camel stables as well as the Western Market are awaiting them. There is another path leading up to the Misharr district in the northwest which is also heavily guarded. Rumor has it that somewhere in the city exits the entrance to a tunnel leading out of the city.
...
Lively people of all nations - well, almost as the Delfae usually aren't seen here,
crowd the docks, Sun Square and Palace as well as the market places. Lively
chatting and the declamations of town criers as well as the cries of water carriers and guides add to a turbulent, loud atmosphere.
...
Walking up from the port to the plateau one passes the residential area of the Ss'tiss population of Hasst before reaching the Sun Square in the middle of the city which is surrounded by all the official buildings like the Matriarchal Palace, the Towers of the Sun and the Library of Enlightenment.
...
The population of this city is divided into three groups. Ss'tiss and Misharr both have their residences upon the plateau, Ss'tiss live between 'down town' and palace while Misharr have their residences behind  library and temple. The district of the foreigners is 'down town', between storehouses and guard towers.
...
A colorful mix of people of almost every race crowd the lively streets in the residential area of the foreigners. They are promenading and chatting in the narrow streets which are shadowed by huge colorful pieces of cotton that are installed to the fronts of their houses.  Amidst their residences a small market place is located where all sorts of foodstuff can be bought.
...
The slums, also 'down town', are the home of the unemployed, the poor and all the other trash of the city that knows no such thing as welfare. It is home to whores and orphans, thieves, beggars and cutthroats. Even the thieves guild is rumored to have its headquarters here but though the slums have been searched for it more than once by the guards it has never been found.
...
The Ss'tiss usually live in one- or two- storied vast buildings, together with all the people belonging to their family, including aunts and uncles, nephew and niece, grandfather and grandmother... The interior of their houses is simple - in the middle of the main room stands a stone table which is usually covered by a thin blanket [wool or leather], stuffed huge cushions are used to sit down on. Smooth, painted pieces of leather, stretched in frames of wood decorate the walls and some houses of the rich have a courtyard with a small fountain and palms or other desert vegetation.

Misharr on the other hand live with their closest family members, usually mother, father and the children, eventually also grandfather/mother. Their houses are small, one-storied buildings standing alongside of narrow, rarely crowded streets. The facades of their houses usually aren't decorated but only painted in some pastel color. Inside ,wall hangings made of arrasa-wool which are  interwoven with strange symbols decorate the walls.  The floor is covered with carpets; colorful cushions made of smooth leather are an invitation to sit down."

Thssess S'issess- "A Lesson in Ss'tiss Architecture"

Our architecture is simple: 
Build up a sandstone house, paint the facade white or in some shade of yellow and decorate the whole with colorful stucco (if you can afford...). Sometimes our houses have courtyards and fountains which provide the household with water. Those are usually surrounded by palms or other vegetation like natuss. The houses have flat roofs with balustrades so that one can sit up there and enjoy the heat of the sunlight.

Sometimes people who have done special services for the good of the city or our race are granted a dozen colorful shells to decorate the space above the door or the windows. This way they can decorate the house AND show the shells to everyone else. Originally these shells have only been used to decorate our famous Matriarchal Palace. It's facade is covered by thousands - probably even MILLIONS - of colorful shells, arranged in mosaics. Only our priests know how to prepare the shells so that their colors never bleach in sunlight. Creation of these colored shells needs a lot of time therefore, after finishing the Palace, no more shells have been created for decoration purposes.

Ssliss Czissezz, guide

You need to find an inn?
Well, wherever you are coming from and whatever race you belong to, go and get a room at 'Misseths Inn'. It's cheap and cozy, quiet in the eves and you certainly won't have to fear small hands lightening you of your money. Misseth cares about his guests and their safety...

You wish to trade your goods or do purchases? 
No problem, i can guide you to the market places! You probably wish to visit the Eastern one when interested in selling goods coming in by ship or the Western one if you're importing by caravan... you just need foodstuff and such? Oh well, then you better head to the small market place in the foreigners district.

Headhunter you are?
Very well, then you surely wish to visit the guard's headquarters at the Palace... here you will be informed of any tasks that are to be fulfilled...Though simple information about IF there are jobs you might perform can also be given by the town criers who wander the crowded places.

Our famous architecture you are interested in?
Now, then don't stay here at the docks, follow me, i'll show you our wonderful residences as well as the beautiful Palace and its special shell-decoration. Or perhaps the Sun Square and the Towers of the Sun, our temple? The statues in front of library and elite schools may also be of interest for you...

Knowledge is what you seek?
Hmmm... practical (and expensive) knowledge you might gain at our Elite Schools - though as a foreigner you might find it hard to be allowed to attend... The Library of Enlightenment will be a good place to study old, dusty tomes and scrolls, containing both Ss'tiss and Misharr knowledge as well as anything else that has been collected over the last several hundred years by our librarians.

In need of a good weapon smith?
You wish to have a fitted armor suit? Special furniture you need? Just searching for an artist to care about the decoration of your house? Hmmm... then you probably already noticed that the craftsmen and artists have their shops and forges behind the Palace? Not? Now you know...

Planning to settle down here'n still haven't found a residence?
Fellow Ss'tiss, you are the lucky one who finds a home in the relatively quiet part of the city, which is located in the midst of this vast city. The residential area between docks district and Matriarchal Palace! Foreigners, you better start searching in the foreigner's residential area, right left to the storehouses when entering Hasst by ship. Misharr - catman, if you're planning to settle down here in Hasst you will wish to try the Misharr area, yes, at the skirts of Hasst, in the
north, you'll surely feel welcome there...

The Crimson Rose: 
And anyone who has plenty of money to spend but wants an... open minded companion will surely sooner or later find himself visiting the 'Crimson Rose'. You needn't worry, both the women and men may be expensive but in return they are in good health, clean and at least good-looking. The Ss'tiss ones that is... the others? Go and have a look yourself... how shall I judge?

Ssszzth... you're one of those roughs, a sailor maybe? My friend, to the right of the docks, almost in the slums you can spend time with all sorts of cheap amusement - women as well as ale and gambling dens...

You don't need my services?
A good day to you then, find me here if you need help though.
 

Definitions:

*skssar:
Nuts of palms, brown, thick shell filled with a sweet liquor that looks like water mixed with milk. Within this the core is 'swimming'. This light green core one splits up in quarters before eating it. Its consistency is like that of an apple but a little fibrous. In opposite to the sweet taste of the liquid the meat of the core tastes a little like citron and sore apple and is usually eaten AFTER taking the liquid. This combination of sweet and then sore is highly refreshing though one who has never tried it will surely need some time to accustom to the sore taste.

*natuss:
Green, thorny plant, height varies - tallest natuss ever seen was of about the size of a human. Their thick skin hides moist meat that is colored like a pale egg. The flesh of most sorts can be eaten though there exist one or two [the 'assatuss' f.ex.] sorts of natuss whose flesh - if eaten - causes stomach-ache and diarrhea. The Misharr and probably also the Ss'tiss healers know that some natuss' flowers can be boiled and their tea helps against fever. Others can be used to 'draw' an inflammation out of a wound.

Warning:
Special warnings go to mages... don't even THINK of using any sort of magic in this city - well, at least not against a Ss'tiss that is. As much as the Ss'tiss hate magic they hate the ones who use it even more - especially those who use it against them. 

--Be careful or you might find yourself ripped apart by a pair of strong claws... 

--Or your bones crashed by a hit of a strong tail... 

--Perhaps your head will find itself on the street beside a bleeding body? 

--Our swords are sharp....Various possibilities to find a sudden death...