Almanac: About the Streamstrider people

Starting from Bruck, nestled in the heart of Isdraia and defying the current of the Elendar, a council of several dozen scholars works tirelessly to gather and document both historical knowledge and contemporary events. Thanks to generous patronage of the mayor, ample resources are available, allowing for an unprecedented scale of archiving. Thus emerges the greatest and most comprehensive repository of knowledge in all of Isdraia. From this endeavor arises an institution that shall henceforth be known as The Omniscient Archive.

On behalf of the chief cartographer, a wide variety of historical writings and travel reports from the past 100 tides have been compiled and researched. The local record is intended to provide a contemporary overview of the peoples, groups and creatures of Isdraia. This chapter deals with the Streamstrider, as the inhabitants of the river town of Bruck are known. This is also where the Omniscient Archive is located. You will search in vain for travel reports about Bruck in the following, but there are a lot of observations that serve as a basis. Nevertheless, it will be impossible to avoid looking at the obvious with blind arrogance without recognising it.

Bruck is known throughout the land as the city that defies the mighty Elendar, the river of rivers and the main artery of Isdraia. Not least thanks to its central location, Bruck is likely the most important city in the entire country. Here, in the heart of Isdraia and in close proximity to the thorn, which provides orientation throughout all of Isdraia, live the Streamstriders. They are the people of this city. Bruck lies on an island and is completely surrounded by the waters of the Elendar. It is unimaginable to think of island and city separately from one another. When the Streamstriders speak of Bruck, they usually mean both. In any case, there is hardly a patch of land left on the island that has not already become part of the city.

In the more distant past, no known attempts were made to determine the population. As a result, a few darkenings ago the mayor commissioned the Omniscient Archive to conduct a census. Scholars used the count, carried out complex calculations, and concluded that currently an estimated 34,000 to 69,000 inhabitants live in Bruck. The inaccuracy is explained in particular by the lower city. There, activity is too lively to make an exact determination. In the future, censuses of this or another kind are to take place more frequently in order to come as close as possible to a precise result. In particular, the mayor strives to gain a deeper understanding of the composition of his citizens.

The outward appearance of the Streamstriders cannot be reduced to a single common denominator in any way. The residents settled here originate from the most diverse regions of Isdraia. Accordingly, representatives of all peoples live in the city. Fenn, Goblins, humans, as well as Wolbies and Scheeba, are inseparable from Bruck. Any attempt to reduce the Streamstriders to a few central physical traits would fail to do justice to the diversity of the population. In many respects, the Streamstriders are simply too multifaceted for that. For a more differentiated characterization, reference must once again be made to the upcoming censuses, which promise to yield helpful insights.

The people of the Streamstriders are relatively balanced in their disposition, especially in direct comparison to the surrounding peoples. Where the Fenn are too skeptical, the Warrior Elite too vain, and Skuhuks too primitive, Bruck presents a well-balanced mixture. Singular exceptions naturally exist everywhere, and thus also among the Streamstriders, yet the broad majority shines with nearly impeccable conduct. Not least the mayor of Bruck is regarded as an inspiring idol for the inhabitants. Since the beginning of his term, crime and corruption have, according to his statements, decreased significantly. The black market is said to be more under control than ever before. Among the gangs of the lower city, crime is at its highest, yet the mayor will soon have taken care of this entirely as well.

This has a positive effect on the mood of the Streamstriders. Even among those who stand rather at the margins of society, living destitute in hardship instead of working toward a better life (what a foolish thought it would be to point a reproachful finger at something one must not grasp), there prevails an atmosphere that is consistently cheerful and communal.

Yet not all can be comforted over their precarious circumstances with good spirits. Our great mayor employs all means and possibilities to bring the underground of Bruck into order. In conversations with the population, it becomes clear that the black market in particular is regarded as a problem: some take offense at the exotic animal trade, others at rising prices. The regulation of trade in Bruck already takes place at the point of import. Life amid the Elendar is formative—in many respects. The harbors are crucial for the import and export of every conceivable good. Without shipping, the entire population of Bruck would be at a loss. Therefore, the harbors are treated with a particularly vigilant eye.

With a pronounced sense of meticulousness, it is examined which ship cargoes are brought ashore in Bruck. The Streamstriders place great value on what enters and leaves their city. This thoroughness appears to provoke trouble. Since the last east wind phase, eight shipwrecks have been documented, all due to snapped towlines. Presumably, this is a form of sabotage originating outside the territory of the Streamstriders. All the more important, then, that the mayor initiates regulatory security measures. He himself has appointed new guardians oft he peace for the protection of Bruck’s society.

In recent times, the city of Bruck has undergone significant changes. The Omniscient Archive, as an institution permitted to benefit from the mayor’s goodwill as well as financial support, is among the most impressive of these developments. It is a revolution of knowledge that seeks to create something magnificent. The mayor proclaims that an archive can only remain a force for good so long as it serves its people. Yet no archive may rest upon a throne, simply close its gates, and rob the world of truth. Therefore, not some vague greatness, but the Omniscient Archive itself shall henceforth be the city’s emblem. And the Omniscient Archive is growing to enormous proportions.