Mistopia, the Pearl of Zherisia (Paridon Remake)

[WolfKook]

It was twelve years ago. A group of adventurers from a faraway land came into the city and managed to help us get rid of the infamous Bloody Jack once and for all. They disappeared that very day, but the doppelganger threat was once again exposed and, having been freed from their worst fear, and with the help of the recently published Van Richten’s Guide to Doppelgangers, the people of Paridon united to hunt down and destroy the foul creatures. Soon enough, they seemed to have been eradicated, and the people felt safe and confident again.
And it would seem like the curse that was hanging over this place had been lifted once and for all, for the people returned to the streets, and the joy and laughter returned to their faces. New industries and factories flourished everywhere and not long after the people were able to feed properly once again. We were blessed with a bunch of new devices which improved our quality of life, allowing the streets to be automatically lit at night, mist-powered boats to cross the Nodnal River, and mist-powered machines to make the work of 10 people. The change was so fast, and so dramatic, that we had to rename our city, so we coined a term that we wanted to use to represent this new paradise that was forming, power by the very mists that were trapping it. So we came up with the name “Mistopia”.

[WolfKook]

The Giant City of Mistopia
Cultural Level: Industrial (11).
Landscape: Sparse Ecology (Temperate Settled Area). The domain of Mistopia consists of a single bleak city steeped in mist and social division. Its narrow streets of smooth cobblestones wind between tight clusters of buildings. Dense mists, white as a shroud, perpetually blanket the city, severely limiting visibility. Dark figures and clattering horse carriages can emerge from the haze with startling swiftness. Horses are rarely ridden, but such black carriages are frequently used to get around, though some people of the upper classes use slower and cumbersome steam or mist-powered carriages, which are seen as symbols of status; common folk, on the other hand, usually conduct their business and errands on foot. The city has distinct neighborhoods with wealthy and poor residential districts, commercial avenues, a wharf along the Nodnal River, a huge industrial district, and seedy black alleys filled with streetwalkers and gamblers.
The estates of the wealthy of Mistopia are set back from the streets and surrounded by tall, forbidding gates and lovely tended gardens. Most other buildings are constructed to two to three stories, with gabled roofs and narrow doors and windows. Dressed stone blocks or plastered brick is used in most homes and shops, with heavy timbers for support. Roofs are shingled with thin wood or slate. Most structures are gray, unfriendly and sparsely adorned with severe stone faces or ornaments of black iron. The industrial district, along the Yellow River, is set apart from the rest of the city for its tall buildings, the strange, rusty iron structures and an unusual concentration of mist and smoke coming from the hundred chimneys, which make this area of the city much hotter than the rest of it.
A while ago, when the city was still known as Paridon, starvation was rampant among the city’s poor, though the city constables always saw to it that the gentlemen and ladies of the city were well fed. In recent years, however, things have changed, as city parks and stunted food plants have converted into meager but efficient plots of crops, and the factories of the industrial district have started to produce manufactured meals. This, along with a recent increase in security for the citizens, has reactivated the previously stagnated city life. Now, as dusk approaches, the iron streetlights that line the boulevards are lit by an automated system, and the pubs ring again with song and laughter.
Temperatures in Mistopia are normally cool and mild, a weak drizzle sometimes falling like salty tears. The mists persist through the muggy summer months and during the bitter winters, when silent snow blankets the city.
Major Settlements: None. Mistopia is a giant settlement in itself.
The Folk: Population – 442000. Humans 98%, Others 2%. Languages – Zherisian*. Religions – Divinity of Mankind.
Mistopians are proud and stalwart people, having gained confidence as a society in the last few years because of their cultural and technological accomplishments and the purge they managed to get done of the foul creatures that terrorized them. They are not easily discouraged, and possess remarkable tenacity and ingenuity. They are very sober and cold-mannered, however, the misty streets of their city reflecting their demeanor.
Skin color is fair and ruddy, sometimes freckled lightly on the cheeks and nose. Eye color is normally gray with a bluish or greenish cast, but nearly any color can occur. Their hair is straight or slightly wavy, and color varies widely, from bold to auburn to medium brown. Men cut their hair short, often slicking it back in a roguish style that women find attractive. Neatly trimmed mustaches, beards and muttonchops are popular. Women grow their tresses extremely long but pin them up in elaborate buns. While all have wide hips and athletic builds, the gentlemen and ladies tend to be portly, while the commoners are lean.
Clothing is somber and coarse: Men wear dark woolen pants, cotton collared shirts, high button boots, waistcoats and heavy cloaks or capes to keep off the ever-present moisture. Gentlemen wear black top hats, while men of the lower classes wear simple cloth caps, while women wear somber-colored long dresses, high button boots, and hats (It is considered indecent for a woman to reveal an ankle and improper for her to be outside without a hat). While outdoors, they wear capes to keep off the damp air. Women of the lower classes wear simple bonnets, but upper class ladies boast large-brimmed, elaborate hats. Jewelry is worn but seldom flashy, and usually limited to solitary rings, pins, cameos or necklaces. Clothing for the upper classes are usually hand made, and expertly tailored, while the outfits for the lower classes is mostly produced en masse in the industrial district.
The class divide among Mistopians is deep and ironclad. The wealthy never associate with commoners, who are expected to mind their place and treat the nobles with respect and deference. The upper class consists of landowners, industrialists, partners in prestigious law firms and highborn nobles, who form an exclusive society of fine and delicate, but elitist and self-superior, gentlemen and ladies. Lower class residents of Mistopia usually work in various trades, as overworked employees of the factories and refineries or as servants for the wealthy. Although some own shops, their modest wealth does not allow them to associate with the upper class. Below the lower class are the destitute, which usually wind up on the streets as beggars or petty thieves. Alcoholism and domestic abuse are a common occurrence behind closed doors.
The vast majority of Mistopians do not believe in gods. Instead, most of them –especially the aristocrats –subscribe to a philosophy referred to as the “Divinity of Mankind”. Held to be far more civilized than a belief in anthropomorphic supernatural entities, this philosophy estates that humanity (including the vistani and half-vistani) alone among the sentient races is divine and should do all it can to achieve perfection –physical, mental and emotional. In practice, this philosophy encourages the study of philosophy, technology, arts and natural science among the upper classes, whose male members usually reunite in lodges to discuss these themes (along with alchemy and occult arts, as rumor goes), and effort and hard work as a means to perfection among the lower classes.
The Law: Aristocratic Republic. The government of Mistopia is firmly on the hands of the aristocracy, who chafe at the notion of sharing power with the unwashed masses. Male aristocrats elect a City Council of nine among their ranks every five years. The council is responsible for administrating most aspects of life in Mistopia, including collecting taxes, adjudicating disputes, overseeing the city watch, and organizing programs for urban farming and public health. The council watched out for the interests of the upper classes first and foremost, considering the welfare of commoners only when it reinforces their image. Vice and violent crimes are commonplace in the streets, yet the council is preoccupied with punishing debtors, regulating work schedules and seizing assets.
In late years, however, even the aristocracy presents signs of division, as many of the city’s nobles were exposed as doppelgangers and either killed or forced to flee during the purge, and at the same time a new class of industrialists appeared with new technology available for everyone to seize their vacant places. Currently, the struggle between both social classes is evident, as the nobles find these newly rich below their stature, and the business owners consider the nobles too uptight and resistant to change.
Professional advocates argue in civil and criminal trials, where the lack of a codified system forces decisions to be determined by a long history of legal precedent. Assault, fraud, murder, rape, and theft are all serious crimes, punishable by imprisonment or in some cases death. The civil law of Mistopia is extremely extensive, encompassing business practices, contract law, labor rights, libel, medical malpractice, negligence and slander. Punishments for civil offenses are often fines, whose proceeds go to the victim. The assembly of workers is always considered unlawful. The upper class is terrified by the prospect of organized laborers, so they do anything to keep that from occurring. There is an unofficial reward offered for any information leading to the arrest of labor organizers. There are few places where the workers are not so desperate as to pass up an opportunity to earn a hand full of coppers by betraying their friends.
Trade and Diplomacy: Resources – Beer, furniture, glassware, jewelry, designer clothing, steel and iron goods, usury, culture, technology and scientific knowledge, manufactured goods. Coinage – Pound (gp), shilling (sp), pence (cp).
Since Mistopia has no arable land beyond the city proper, food production is a serious concern. Although technology and contact with other domains has increased in recent years, allowing Mistopia to purchase and produce foodstuff.
Most merchants who arrive to Mistopia bring raw materials, which in turn are used in mass production, the excess of which are in turn sold at hefty prices in distant domains. Gradually, other realms have also discovered that Mistopia is perhaps the most advanced city in the land of the mist, and the interest in the city’s culture and scientific knowledge has grown accordingly.
Encounters: Aside from the people of Mistopia, it would seem that only pigeons, rats and vermin populate the city, along with the occasional pet animal living comfortably in a house of the upper class or in the streets. The truth, however, is that there’s much more in the mistopian’s misty streets than just normal humans and common animals.
Most mistopians believe the doppelganger threat has finally ended, but there are remaining survivors of the massacre, who have been regrouping in recent years, and are starting to use their special talents to infiltrate society once again and to take revenge against the humans.
There is also a growing number of jackalweres and wererats who have taken advantage of the end of the doppelganger supremacy, and have started to blend into the crowded streets on their own. In the meantime, there have been recent disappearance on the streets of the city, and urban legends have started to be told about a new breed of monsters which make their lair in the sewers of Mistopia, for which the Newsbill editors have coined the term “grimlocks”.
Finally, people who visit the slums around the industrial district or the garbage island of Nosos regularly have reported the recent apparition of giant rats, otyughs, rot grubs, carrion stalkers and geists, and though a rumor, it is said that some of the factories are run by ever-working zombies and protected by giant machines made of iron.

[WolfKook]

Sir Isaac Burney, Darklord of Mistopia
Languages: Zherisian.
Background: As the firstborn of an important merchant family, Isaac was the hope of his family, and his birth had been long waited for. His birth was not a happy event for his family, though, for his mother died at childbirth and the boy was born with severe health problems, which kept him in bed or on his wheelchair for most of his childhood, with an overprotective aunt as his babysitter and supervisor, and a father who was always away on business. He took charge of education, though, hiring the best teachers available to mentor his only child. The young Isaac received tutoring from the best of the best, and his mind developed beyond its boundaries. The boy devoured information, taking advantage of his teachers to learn whatever he could about whatever they had to teach, and performing small experiments to prove the principles he learned. He was fascinated with mechanics and engines, and before he reached teen age, he was making theories of his own, some of which went even beyond the theories of the time.
His brightness wasn't in line with his manners, though: Years of pampering in the hands of his aunt, who didn't allow almost anyone else near her nephew, had spoiled the kid, who believed that his every wish had to be granted. More than one of his father's employees ended up quitting because of his capriciousness, but things kept the same. The only thing he was afraid about was going out, for each time he tried, the bullies of the neighborhood would try to reach him and throw things at him, calling him crippled and weakling and baby. He soon came to despise those kids, and tried to avoid going out for as long as he could. But one day his aunt suffered from an accident, and he found himself alone.
His father tried to find him another person to replace his aunt, and he sent him several candidates, but he didn't seem to like any of them, and no-one seemed to tolerate the spoiled kid for long. Soon, he was yelling at them and making small fits of rage, and sooner or later they always ended up giving up on him. Then, one day, they stopped coming. There was one person who came and fed him. His teachers came and taught him, but there was nobody else to pamper him and to please him as before. With time, Isaac came to realize, for the first time in his life, that in order to survive, he would have to fend for himself.
By the time, his technical knowledge had grown to impressive heights. He had been making plans for impressive machines for a while, but he alone could not create anything bigger than a cat. To really make any of those plans come to fruition, he would need help. So, he asked his father for it, under the excuse that he needed someone to help him with the wheelchair. His father responded by sending him Reginald Gareth, one of his best employees. Once he came, Isaac asked him to help him build a strange machine, under his supervision. Reginald followed his orders, primarily because of the teenager’s threats with making his father fire him if he didn't, and before long he had the job done. It was some kind of vehicle, similar to a wheelchair, but with a steam engine, which allowed it to move on its own, and several control levers which allowed its "passenger" to control it, and spider-like legs instead of wheels, allowing it to go up and down stairs. Soon, Isaac was able to move around on his own, and that gave him the freedom to do as he pleased on the house and its neighborhood. His neighbors, a little older by then, were impressed, and soon the word spread about the technical genius of the Burney kid.
Years passed, and Isaac's fame as a talented engineer grew, so much that he was soon hired as chief engineer for an important landlord. There, he managed to get the financial support and the encouragement his family denied him. He started working on more and more interesting projects; but his budget was still somewhat limited. Then, the Great War came: Isaac's country entered a big conflict with one of its neighbors, and soon there was a great need for superior technology. Nicola's fame had kept growing, and he was requested to help the royal army. The budget and the number of men (And women, and children) at his disposal grew exponentially, and he became able to take his talents to the fullest.
He was an abusive boss, though, as he had always been. He kept his employees working around the clock in impossible schedules, continually harassing them to work harder, and punishing them at the slightest mistake. His men barely tolerated his treatment, because the pay was good, but there was always a certain amount of tension in the air. And things got even worse when the war ended and the coffers stopped being periodically filled with money. Isaac, oblivious of his financial downfall, kept harassing his men, even though he had no money to pay them properly. Eventually, they grew tired of mistreatment and lack of payment, and rose against him. Normally, it would have been a normal riot, and any other employer would have negotiated with his men, but not Isaac. He still saw this people beneath him, as little more than animals, but their threats terrified him as the bullies of his youth had. So, instead of negotiating, he closed the hatch that separated his office from the rest of the building, and pulled the lever that released the acidic fumes of the pipes into the rest of the facility. Beyond the crystal walls, he saw how his former employees were burned to death, their eyes and skin melting before his eyes. Consumed by fear, he waited for as long as he could before opening the doors and going outside, just to discover that the rest of the world had disappeared.
Current Sketch: Isaac spent years floating alone in the mists, being prisoner in his labyrinthine factory, being haunted by the geists of his former employees, and the shadowy creatures which stalked him from the corners of the realm –or, at least, of his imagination, but fascinated by the ever-present mists, in which he saw a power even beyond that of the steam he was used to employ in his engines.
So, he started designing a new mist-powered engine, and without a new source of labor, he saw no problem in taking the remains of his men, and attaching steam and, eventually, mist-powered engines to them, turning them into smoking dead, perfect slaves that could finally go on with their work forever and without question, needing only some water for sustenance.
But the strange creatures were still there, and one of them –a blind, scarred creature –scared him to death, convincing him of the necessity of some kind of protection, so he started working again on a bunch of hulking mist-powered iron giants, which would protect him against the creatures. But his protectors, being automatons, could not react to danger as he wanted them to. Luckily for him, there were visitors to his factory, brought to him by the mists. Already deranged by self-confidence, fear and solitude, he saw this people as a gift from the mists, so he could have access to a bunch of brains to provide his creations with, so, after learning all he could from them (Including a few very useful tips on the nature of the mists and the inner workings of the land, which his great intelligence managed to put together, increasing his knowledge of the land of the mists and his new condition as Darklord of his factory), he arranged their deaths, and gave their brains –properly washed –to his iron hulks, and he was alone again.
But his solitude was not long-lasted, for after some time he found that suddenly beyond his factory laid the domain of Paridon.
Unable to affect the larger domain directly, he started trying to get people from Paridon to his domain. He hid his “henchmen” in secret parts of the factory, and put pamphlets asking for help. When prospect employees started coming, he started using them both to help him with the factory and increase productiveness, and to send them to the outside to make contact with potential investors and customers. He began collecting past editions of the Daily Gazette, using his great smart to try to unmask the mysterious darklord of this land, and he soon learnt about the doppelgangers and the Bloody Jack killings, and when he discovered the elusive figure of Flickerflame, he knew that his search had ended.
And from the shadows, using his henchmen to spread propaganda against the doppelgangers, he started a war of opinion against them, using the fear of the common people, and their hatred of the established aristocracy, to force them to march against their former masters. Soon, people from all over Paridon were pointing fingers at real and imagined doppelgangers, and both the shapechangers and other nobles were hunted down and murdered throughout the city in a period now commonly known as the purge. When Isaac became able to walk (Well, to use his arachnid vehicle) freely in the streets of Paridon, and when the industrial district began to flourish, he knew that the hold of Flickerflame over the city had loosen up a bit, at the least.
But he had not been defeated yet. Desperate, Sodo traced the anti-doppelganger propaganda back to its source, and launched a series of terrible attacks against Isaac’s factory. But he underestimated his opponent, who used his brilliant mind and his superior technology to confront his attackers, and who ended up destroying even more shapechangers, and capturing some of them. Soon, Isaac had enough information to trace Sodo back to his lair, and then he launched a full attack against the master of Paridon.
Since then, the city changed, perhaps just slightly: Its technological level increased and its name was replaced by the name “Mistopia”. Its people suddenly forgot years of fear and paranoia, and became proud and self-righteous. The industrial district became the heart of the city, and contamination increased at the same time as a new social class emerged to seize the posts left by the aristocracy. The reign of the doppelgangers had reached its end, and they were hiding in the shadows as Isaac Burney, now named “Sir”, became the lord of the city.

[The Arcanist]

Good ideas here, you are advancing paridon's culture by about a 100 years, just a few comments/questions.

*So Sodo is dead now? no more jack the ripper every 13 years?

*The mechanichal spider legs seem to me a bit too much, or perhaps it's just the dreaded memories of "wild wild west", if it's to make the darklord combat capable, there might be a better way to do so within his wheelchair or making the legs retractable and hidden within the chair.

*why replace the marikith with grimlocks?

*otyughs, rot grubs and carrion stalkers also seem a bit fantastic for the setting and people talking about them, having them share a corner of the marikith sewers could keep them hidden.

*cars are also very advanced, and you open the possibility of their exportation to the most advanced lands of the core... how long until a rich PC tries reinforce and plate one to make a tank?

*gardens still seem able to produce very little food for the amount of people you have there, specially with the bleak weather of the city.


Just let me give a suggestion, and tell me what you think.

the factory does not appear within paridon, but the mists part a little from the city revealing the coast and a small island near the paridon coastline, which is quickly incorporated by the local government for it's ability to quickly build docks and ships to send trading for food, building materials, medicine and other necessities.

Still this food would likely be too expensive for the common folk but (un)luckily for them the mists also parted inland, revealing the land known as Nosos a source for cheap (and terrible) food for the masses while the rich and powerful can keep importing the good stuff. From Nosos could also come timber and the metals and rough jewels paridonians use for their crafts.

This would leave you with a more expansive city...

*divided in two districts, Paridon inland and built over the marikith sewers and perhaps some caves for the grimlocks you liked for Mistopia and Nosos as a nearby source for materials. (4 domains in one, there's a cluster for you) and...

*that works and functions as a whole and has a bit more of the feel of victorian London (or in this case more like industrial London) with no "farmlands" within the city.


Finally if you think the industrial London now looks more like an industrial New York, instead of an island, Mistopia could appear beyond a new and large river that reaches the sea, probably severely polluted by Nosos, farther inland, but good enough for trade with the core.

So what do you think?

[WolfKook]

Good ideas here, you are advancing paridon's culture by about a 100 years

Really? I just thought I was "advancing" it from a strictly historical victorian england to a fantastic-steampunk victorian england

*So Sodo is dead now? no more jack the ripper every 13 years?

Not necessarily. Nothing is said about what happens to the fang of nosferatu, and the timeline as such only advances 12 years on purpose. And the fact that the people of Paridon got so overconfident in that time just makes thing more interesting, if the Bloody Jack killings were to start again.

The mechanichal spider legs seem to me a bit too much, or perhaps it's just the dreaded memories of "wild wild west", if it's to make the darklord combat capable, there might be a better way to do so within his wheelchair or making the legs retractable and hidden within the chair.

The idea was to make the darklord lazy: He was everything done for him. He doesn't use the wheelchair because he has to, just because he prefers not to use his own legs. I prefer the spider legs to a normal wheelchair because they are scarier, cooler, and more appropriate to a steampunk domain, IMO.

why replace the marikith with grimlocks?

Again, for consistency. I don't know where marikiths come from, but the grimlocks are clearly a reference to the morlocks from the time machine. Besides, they are a great metaphor to the social divide of the city (As was intended in the original novel): The former employees of Burney turned into de-evolved monsters.

otyughs, rot grubs and carrion stalkers also seem a bit fantastic for the setting and people talking about them, having them share a corner of the marikith sewers could keep them hidden.

I just took them from the encounter list in Nosos from DoD, but you're right. Otyughs shouldn't just show up in the middle of the street during the day. Have to clarify that.

cars are also very advanced, and you open the possibility of their exportation to the most advanced lands of the core... how long until a rich PC tries reinforce and plate one to make a tank?

Hehehehehehehehe. Again, lack of precision on my part. These "Cars", as I see them, are smoky and cumbersome pieces of junk, barely able to keep the pace of a horse-pulled carriage at a slow pace, and completely unable to go any faster. They are used more as a symbol of status (For their novelty and the fact that they represent the pinnacle of human achievement) than as an effective transport system.

And it would be nice to make one of them into a tank. Perhaps that would need some extra creativity on the DMs part.

gardens still seem able to produce very little food for the amount of people you have there, specially with the bleak weather of the city.

Right. The problem of having just a single city... Any suggestions?

I promise to tell you my thoughts on your suggestions later... I'm kind of in a hurry right now, RL has just caught up with me.

[Creepy Old Woman]

This is going to sound really petty, sorry, but I don't like the name "Mistopia". It sounds like a theme park ride to me.

The other details sound good to me. One question though - why not make this a separate domain instead of a Paridon remake? I wonder about this because darklords, in my opinion, shouldn't be weak and that easily killed unless they encounter another formidable foe or are caught flat-footed (which should be rare, given that they tend to surround themselves with minions). Sado has better put up a good fight!

Given that you have created a new government, a new environment, a new culture, and even a new breed of monsters to replace the many-armed insect critters that live under the sewers, it seems a waste to call it a remake of a domain when there are so many inventive things about the new domain.

[High Priest Mikhal]

"Mistopia" is a play on "Mists" and "dystopia," if I'm right. But it does have a silly sound to it. At least give Wolfkook credit for originality and creativity.

Also a question on CL. Why "11" for Industrial? Isn't 10 more appropriate? After Renaissance (9) it logically follows that Industrial would be 10 (the Industrial Age actually began in the Mid-1700's).

[WolfKook]

This is going to sound really petty, sorry, but I don't like the name "Mistopia". It sounds like a theme park ride to me.

"Mistopia" is a play on "Mists" and "dystopia," if I'm right. But it does have a silly sound to it.

"Mists" and "utopia", to be precise. At least I think it is what its inhabitants think it is. I didn't know it sounded silly... Maybe its because I lack some experience actually using the english language in day-to-day life. Perhaps I should just leave it as "Paridon", and forget about the name change. Or...

The other details sound good to me. One question though - why not make this a separate domain instead of a Paridon remake? (...) Given that you have created a new government, a new environment, a new culture, and even a new breed of monsters to replace the many-armed insect critters that live under the sewers, it seems a waste to call it a remake of a domain when there are so many inventive things about the new domain.

Not really. I just wanted a steampunk domain, and most steampunk seems to revolve around victorian england, but the "Victorian England" slot was already taken by Paridon, so I use Paridon as a prime material.

Does it seem like something new??? I really thought it would pretty evident that I was drawing upon the previous descriptions of Paridon and Nosos (From RCS, DoD and QtR2), and twisting them to reflect the changes of a steampunk society.

Well, I have to say that I like the Arcanist's idea, adding my domain as a district of Paridon, making Zherisia a bigger cluster, with Paridon, Timor, Nosos and Mistopia (Looking for name suggestions here), kind of what was done in QtR2 with the Shining Bay cluster. But I fear that the cluster would get too oppressive, claustrophobic and overpopulated.

Perhaps I should just forget about Victorian England and start thinking on "Gangs of New York" with the steampunk elements... Better? (Or, better yet, base it on "Wild Wild West", hoping that there are more people who draw dreaded memories from that).

Also a question on CL. Why "11" for Industrial? Isn't 10 more appropritate? After Renaissance (9) it logically follows that Industrial would be 10 (the Industrial Age actually began in the Mid-1700's, a century after the end of the Renaissance).

I was drawing upon the CLs found in QtR2. I don't remember what was CL10 in that list.

[The Arcanist]

The other details sound good to me. One question though - why not make this a separate domain instead of a Paridon remake? I wonder about this because darklords, in my opinion, shouldn't be weak and that easily killed unless they encounter another formidable foe or are caught flat-footed (which should be rare, given that they tend to surround themselves with minions). Sado has better put up a good fight!

Given that you have created a new government, a new environment, a new culture, and even a new breed of monsters to replace the many-armed insect critters that live under the sewers, it seems a waste to call it a remake of a domain when there are so many inventive things about the new domain.

I agree completely here, specially if you are thinking about a steampunk domain, no need to trash the victorian city by excellence when it could be a new domain.

I still think Paridon would work better with Nosos attached to it in a cluster. Steampunk Mistopia could still fit into that cluster, perhaps beyond Nosos if only to avoid having the now different (in style, critters and cultural level) cities wall to wall.

[High Priest Mikhal]

I was drawing upon the CLs found in QtR2. I don't remember what was CL10 in that list.

Whoops. Looks like I was wrong, too. Industrial would be 12, Absolutist following the Protestant Reformation would be 10, and the Age of Enlightenment where democracy was reborn would be 11.

Personally I find it rather cumbersome to begin breaking down time periods in such detail. "Renaissance" in Ravenloft seems to be roughly 1400-1750 AD in terms of real world history and technology development.