Shadow Hand
- Intent: To expand the lore of Dromund Kaas underneath the rule of the Kainate, showcasing the progression of the world by creating a new city on the planet for people to write in.
- Image Credit:
- Click - ChatGPT by Me
- Headers - Teresa Zambrano | Darth Pellax
- Canon: N/A
- Permissions: N/A
- Links: N/A
- City Name: Moridahl
- Classification: Metropolis
- Location: Shâsot, Dromund Kaas
- Affiliation:
- Population: Heavy
- Demographics: Moridahl stands apart from many other Kainite cities in that it boasts one of the largest populations of Sith Purebloods in the Kainate. While much of the galaxy has seen the near extinction of this ancient species, the Pureblooded Sith have endured here, their noble lineages preserved through careful breeding and strict adherence to Sith traditions. Many of the ruling families, military officers, and arcane scholars who call Moridahl home can trace their ancestry back to the original Sith species of Korriban and Ziost, and they take great pride in their heritage. Though they are not the exclusive inhabitants of the city, Pureblood Sith form a dominant upper class, leveraging their lineage as a mark of power and prestige within the Eternal Rule. Their presence is seen as a symbol of Moridahl's connection to the ancient past, reinforcing the city's reputation as a bastion of Sith culture and ideology.
Beneath the Pureblood aristocracy, the city's population is composed of a mix of humans and select alien species that have long served the Sith Empire. Humans remain the largest non-Pureblood demographic, drawn from various backgroundssome descendants of Imperial officers, others indoctrinated servants of the Kainate's war machine. Alien species are present, but their place in Moridahl is rigidly dictated by the social hierarchy. Twi'leks, Zabraks, and certain near-human species that have historically served the Sith as warriors or acolytes may find limited acceptance, but the deeper one descends into the lower districts, the more alien laborers and indentured servants populate the streets. The Sith doctrine of superiority is deeply ingrained in Moridahl's culture, and while outright extermination is not policy, non-Sith are often treated as expendable assets rather than equals.
For those species deemed undesirable or lesser in the eyes of the Sith, life in Moridahl is one of constant subjugation. Alien workers, slaves, and those who do not conform to the rigid hierarchy are relegated to the Crimson Slums, where survival is a brutal contest of strength and cunning. The city's authorities do not concern themselves with the plights of the weak, and non-Sith who aspire to rise above their station must prove their worth through either exceptional service to the Kainate or sheer, ruthless ambition. Moridahl is a city where bloodlines dictate one's fate, where Sith Purebloods and their human allies wield unchecked authority while the rest exist to serve their will. - Wealth: Medium
- Moridahl's economy is largely state-controlled, with wealth and resources directed toward the maintenance of Kainite power rather than individual prosperity. While the ruling Sith Lords, military elites, and high-ranking officials enjoy luxury and privilege, the majority of the population lives under strict economic control, with limited personal wealth. The city's industrial and military importance ensures a steady flow of resources, but wealth is concentrated among the Sith and those loyal to the regime. The lower classes, including laborers and non-Sith citizens, experience a regulated existence where survival is ensured, but true financial independence is nearly impossible.
- Stability: Medium (Veiled Order Beneath Brutality)
- Moridahl is a city of rigid control, but one where the ever-present struggle for power breeds a constant undercurrent of tension. The city itself is not in chaos, law and order are enforced with an iron fist by the Sith rulers and their enforcers, but beneath the surface, ambition festers, and blood is spilled in the shadows. The Sith philosophy of strength through conflict means that internal power struggles are common yet carefully managed to avoid disrupting the city's greater purpose.
For outsiders, Moridahl can be both perilous and relatively stable, depending on their status and purpose. Imperial citizens, Sith loyalists, and those who serve the Kainate will find the city structured and navigable, though always under the watchful gaze of its Sith overlords. However, those who lack power, influence, or protection, especially travelers or the weak, may find themselves easy prey to the ambitious and ruthless. In the Crimson Slums, law is determined by strength, while in the Sovereign District, politics is a deadly game. The city operates under a clear hierarchy where deference to the Sith ensures survival, and defiance invites destruction.
The ruling leadership consists of powerful Sith Lords, with a dominant governor or high warlord overseeing the city in the name of the Kainate. This individual wields absolute authority, though they must constantly reinforce their rule through displays of power, cunning, and strategic alliances. Moridahl is not a place of peace, but of enforced stability, an empire of shadows where the strong thrive, and the weak are forgotten.
- Moridahl is a city of rigid control, but one where the ever-present struggle for power breeds a constant undercurrent of tension. The city itself is not in chaos, law and order are enforced with an iron fist by the Sith rulers and their enforcers, but beneath the surface, ambition festers, and blood is spilled in the shadows. The Sith philosophy of strength through conflict means that internal power struggles are common yet carefully managed to avoid disrupting the city's greater purpose.
- Freedom & Oppression: Life in Moridahl is defined by absolute control and unwavering obedience to the Eternal Rule. Every aspect of existence is dictated by the strict doctrines of the Kainate, where personal freedoms are sacrificed for the greater strength of the Sith. The city's streets are lined with banners bearing the insignia of the ruling order, their presence a constant reminder of the rigid hierarchy that governs all who dwell here. Surveillance is omnipresent, with hidden monitors, droids, and informants ensuring that even the faintest whisper of dissent is swiftly identified and crushed. While outright brutality is not an everyday occurrence for those who comply, the fear of sudden reprisal keeps the population in line. Life is regimented, orderly, and devoid of frivolity, every citizen is a cog in the great Sith machine, with no tolerance for weakness or self-indulgence.
For the common citizen, individuality is a forgotten concept, replaced by a rigid expectation of duty. Work is assigned based on the needs of the state, and all efforts are directed toward the production of weapons, warships, and resources to fuel the Kainate's conquests. Traditional vices, gambling, drinking, and indulgent entertainment, are outlawed, and deviation from the prescribed way of life is met with severe consequences. Yet, despite these suffocating conditions, rebellion is rare. The populace has been conditioned through relentless propaganda and generational reinforcement of the Sith ideology. Those who step out of line vanish without a trace, reinforcing the understanding that compliance is not merely expected, it is the only means of survival.
However, for the Sith and the high-ranking aristocracy of the officer corps, the rigid laws imposed upon the lower castes hold little weight. These elite few, descended from the ruling families of past Sith Empires, live in decadent fortresses above the suffering masses. While they, too, are expected to maintain absolute loyalty to the Kainate, they are afforded luxuries and freedoms denied to the common people. Within their shadowed halls, dark experiments are conducted without oversight, and grand feasts of excess and indulgence take place beyond the reach of the ever-present surveillance state. For those at the top, Moridahl is a paradise of power, while for everyone else, it is a prison where even one's thoughts must remain in line with the will of the Sith. - Description: Moridahl is a city of looming obsidian spires and endless storm-lit avenues, a place where the very air crackles with the energy of the Dark Side. Built upon the ruins of past empires, it stands as a testament to Sith dominance, its skyline dominated by towering citadels and fortified strongholds. Lightning from Dromund Kaas' perpetual storms strikes the city's lightning rods and arcane conductors, funneling raw power into Sith laboratories and war factories. The streets are lined with crimson banners bearing the sigils of the Kainate, and the ever-present glow of control panels and surveillance systems reminds all who walk here that every action is watched, every movement accounted for.
Beneath its imposing exterior, Moridahl is a city where power and ambition rule above all else. The strong thrive while the weak are trampled underfoot, and nowhere is this more evident than in the Shadowed Quarter, where Sith Houses and their retainers scheme and maneuver for dominance. The Crimson Slums, a wretched hive of crime and desperation, serve as a reminder that even in a city as tightly controlled as this, corruption and vice find ways to flourish. The city's vast underground catacombs house the honored dead, powerful Sith Lords whose lingering spirits whisper to those who dare to seek their secrets.
Though its populace lives under the iron grip of the Eternal Rule, Moridahl is not without its purpose. It is a center of war, industry, and dark knowledge, its forges producing weapons and machines for the Sith war machine, while its archives safeguard knowledge that could shatter the minds of the unprepared. It is a city that embodies the Sith philosophy in every aspect, oppressive, grand, and utterly ruthless. To walk its streets is to feel the weight of countless generations of conquest and ambition, a place where only the strong survive and only the cunning truly prosper.
Moridahl is built upon the ruined foundations of an ancient Sith city, its architecture blending Sith-Imperial modernism with traditional Sith temples and pyramidal structures. The streets are lined with towering statues of past Sith Lords, their gazes casting judgment upon all who walk below. Red-hued lights bathe the city, while the omnipresent glow of holoprojectors displays propaganda and the latest proclamations from the ruling Sith.
The city is also deeply integrated into the vast planetary fortress network that crisscrosses Dromund Kaas. Hidden beneath its streets lies a massive subterranean stronghold, connecting to fortified bunkers, military installations, and underground transit routes that allow Sith forces to move unseen. These tunnels link Moridahl to the planet's larger citadel network, making it a crucial hub in the Kainate’s defense and war machine.
The city is divided into four primary districts:
The Sovereign District: The heart of Moridahl, where the elite of the Sith Order reside, including high-ranking Lords, Imperial aristocrats, and the ruling council. This district is the pinnacle of Sith authority, where the air itself seems charged with the Dark Side. Its broad avenues are lined with towering monuments of ancient Sith Lords, and only those of considerable status may walk freely here. The Sovereign District is heavily guarded, with patrols of Sith warriors and elite Imperial forces ensuring that no undesirables breach its sanctity. Power is an ever-present force, and politics in this district is a game of cunning, treachery, and dominance.
- The Black Ziggurat: A monolithic structure carved from blackstone and alchemized metals, serving as the seat of Moridahl’s ruling Governor or high Sith Warlord. The Ziggurat is both a command center and a temple of Sith doctrine, overseeing the city's administration and its connection to the planetary fortress network. Beneath it lies an extensive network of fortified tunnels, linking it directly to Moridahl’s underground strongholds and the greater planetary defense grid. These tunnels allow for the rapid movement of elite Sith warriors and military personnel, ensuring the Ziggurat remains a secure bastion of command even in the face of planetary invasion.
- The Onyx Spire: A colossal tower where the ruling elite of the Sith Kabal and high-ranking officers of the Imperial government reside. It serves as the nerve center for planetary operations, fortified with advanced security measures and hidden passageways known only to the most privileged. The interior is a labyrinth of opulent chambers, war rooms, and private sanctums where dark plots and military strategies are devised in secrecy. At its peak, a grand observation deck allows its occupants to survey the city below, a constant reminder of their dominion over Moridahl. Rumors persist of concealed vaults within its lower levels, storing ancient Sith artifacts and intelligence too dangerous for lesser minds to comprehend.
- Fortress Nexus: A heavily fortified military installation beneath the district, linking Moridahl’s security forces to the vast planetary stronghold system. This underground command center allows rapid coordination of planetary defenses and can mobilize Kainite forces at a moment’s notice. Vast databanks store tactical records, battle strategies, and contingency plans for planetary warfare, ensuring Moridahl remains an unbreakable bastion. Hidden transit corridors allow elite Sith strike teams and military leaders to move unseen, striking at enemies before they even realize the battle has begun.
- The Red Forum: A vast assembly hall where Sith Lords, Imperial governors, and military commanders gather to dictate the future of Moridahl and the Kainate’s war machine. Towering obsidian pillars and crimson banners set the stage for heated debates, where power is asserted through rhetoric or raw aggression. Here, alliances are forged, decrees are issued, and challenges to authority are often settled with a duel before the assembled elite. Blood spilled on its stone floor is seen not as a stain but as a testament to the Sith way, only the strong have the right to rule. Those who leave the Forum victorious solidify their dominance, while the defeated are swiftly forgotten.
- The Catacombs of Moridahl: An ancient network of tunnels where the remains of powerful Sith Lords are interred. The deeper one ventures, the more the spirits of the dead whisper, eager to ensnare the minds of the unworthy. The air is thick with the lingering presence of Dark Side energy, causing shadows to writhe unnaturally along the cold stone walls. Some tombs are sealed with Sith sorcery, their occupants imprisoned even in death to prevent their restless wrath from spilling forth. Hidden chambers contain relics of long-forgotten Sith, guarded by spectral sentinels who test those who dare seek their knowledge. It is said that those who enter unprepared may never return, their minds shattered by the voices of the dead or their bodies claimed as vessels for spirits long denied life.
- The Sepulcher of Faces: A chilling monument to the Sith philosophy of power and legacy, the Sepulcher of Faces is a vast subterranean hall where the visages of long-dead Sith Lords are carved into obsidian walls, their expressions frozen in grim authority. Each face is more than mere stone, some contain the trapped essence of their former owners, bound through ancient rituals to whisper secrets, offer cryptic warnings, or attempt to ensnare the minds of the weak-willed. Sith who seek forbidden wisdom venture here to commune with the past, but those who fail the test of will may find their own essence added to the collection. The deeper one walks, the older and more alien the faces become, stretching back to the forgotten progenitors of the Sith Order. At the heart of the Sepulcher lies a sealed chamber, said to hold the visage of a Sith so powerful that their mere voice can shatter the minds of those who listen.
- The Obsidian Docks: A colossal landing zone built to accommodate the relentless war machine of the Kainate, the Obsidian Docks serve as the primary hub for Kainite warships arriving and departing from Moridahl. Towering gantries, reinforced hangars, and sprawling refueling stations line the district, constantly abuzz with the movement of personnel, droids, and cargo. Grand Army soldiers and elite Sith warriors patrol the area, ensuring absolute security, while automated defense turrets and planetary shield generators stand ready to repel any assault. The docks connect directly to underground transit systems, allowing for the rapid deployment of troops and supplies to the planetary fortress network. Beneath the surface, hidden vaults store experimental starfighter prototypes and reserve fleets, kept in stasis until the Dark Lords decree their use in war. The ever-present hum of engines, the crimson glow of navigational beacons, and the eerie silhouette of capital ships looming overhead give the district an atmosphere of constant, disciplined preparation for conquest.
- The Flesh Markets: A nightmarish sector within the War Foundries, the Flesh Markets are where Sith geneticists, slavers, and dark alchemists conduct their most forbidden work. Here, Sithspawn are bred in towering containment tanks, Force-sensitive thralls are auctioned to the highest bidder, and cybernetic or alchemical augmentations are tested on the unwilling. The air is thick with the scent of burning incense and the metallic tang of blood, while the distant echoes of growls and screams serve as a constant reminder of the horrors within. Enforcers, both sentient and monstrous, maintain brutal order, ensuring that transactions proceed without interruption. Whether procuring bioweapons, elite thralls, or forbidden knowledge, those who enter the Flesh Markets leave forever changed, if they leave at all.
- The Infernal Assembly: Buried deep beneath the War Foundries, the Infernal Assembly is a vast, hellish factory where the Kainate’s most formidable war machines are forged. From legions of advanced battle droids to towering siege engines capable of razing entire cities, the assembly line never ceases, its operations fueled by the relentless demands of war. Rivers of molten metal, siphoned from the planet’s depths through massive conduits, flow through the facility, providing both raw materials and an almost ritualistic ambiance to the industrial inferno. Sith overseers and dark technosorcerers walk among the assembly lines, infusing select machines with the power of the Dark Side, creating weapons that are as much sorcery as they are engineering. The entire complex is connected to the underground fortress network, ensuring that newly constructed war engines can be rapidly deployed to any battlefield on Dromund Kaas, or beyond. The air is thick with the scent of burning metal and the rhythmic pounding of mechanized hammers, a constant symphony of industry and destruction.
- The Sanctum of Blood: A bastion of Sith martial perfection, the Sanctum of Blood is more than a training hall, it is a crucible where only the strongest survive. This temple is where Sith warriors, assassins, and enforcers are forged through relentless combat trials, brutal duels, and merciless training regimens. Overseen by Sith Blademasters, acolytes are taught the deadly intricacies of lightsaber combat, Force domination, and assassination techniques designed to eliminate enemies with ruthless efficiency. The walls of the Sanctum are carved with the names of those who perished in their training, a grim reminder that failure is death and only the worthy endure. The training chambers are designed to push warriors beyond their limits, combat pits lined with scorched stone, meditation halls where Sith hone their hatred into power, and arenas where initiates fight to the death under the watchful gaze of their masters. To train within the Sanctum is to embrace pain, sharpen one’s instincts, and emerge as a weapon of the Dark Side.
- The Endless Archive: Buried deep beneath Moridahl, the Endless Archive is a vault of knowledge so forbidden that even most Sith are denied entry. The Endless Archive is a repository of suppressed history, lost doctrines, and forbidden research deemed too volatile for common study.The halls are lined with towering obsidian shelves, holding relics and texts that radiate with the Dark Side. Some records are inscribed on flayed skin, others contained within holocrons that require mastery of ancient Sith tongues to unlock. The deeper one ventures, the more the Archive seems to resist, texts that shift their contents, vaults that require sacrifice to open, and chambers where the echoes of long-dead scholars still whisper their discoveries. Only the most trusted Sith scholars and the ruling elite of the Kainate may access this labyrinthine archive. Even then, knowledge here does not come without a price, many who enter find themselves haunted by the weight of what they uncover, as the Dark Side ensures that nothing learned here is ever truly forgotten.
- The Black Maw: A brutal fighting arena hidden deep within the Crimson Slums, where gladiatorial combat, blood duels, and executions are held for the entertainment of crime lords, rogue Sith, and the desperate masses. Here, warriors, slaves, and prisoners are pitted against each other in battles to the death, sometimes facing monstrous Sithspawn or experimental war droids for the amusement of the bloodthirsty crowd. The arena is run by a shadowy cabal of Sith and mercenaries who profit from the endless cycle of violence, taking bets on combatants and offering lucrative rewards to those who survive long enough to earn a reputation. The screams of the fallen echo through the grimy, torch-lit corridors, ensuring that in the Black Maw, only the strongest walk away, if they walk away at all.
Maximum
Perimeter Defenses
- Massive City Walls & Shielding: Reinforced durasteel and permacrete walls enclose the city, equipped with overlapping defense turrets and anti-personnel measures. A planetary-grade energy shield can be deployed in the event of an attack.
- Perimeter Artillery & Anti-Air Batteries: Heavy turbolaser emplacements, flak cannons, and anti-starfighter defenses ensure no unauthorized approach from the air.
- Security Checkpoints & Garrisoned Entry Points: Every entrance is heavily monitored, requiring biometric scans, ID verification, and Force-sensitive patrols to prevent infiltration.
- Patrolling Sith War Beasts: Bioengineered creatures bred for security prowl the outskirts, attacking any who attempt to breach the city unlawfully.
- Omnipresent Surveillance System: Every street, building, and public space is monitored by hidden holocams, listening devices, and biometric scanners. Security droids and Sith overseers track citizen movements at all times.
- Elite Sith Enforcers & Saaraishash Agents: Trained in counterinsurgency and public order enforcement, Sith enforcers patrol the city, while the Saaraishash, the secret police, root out dissenters before rebellion can take hold.
- Kainite Soldiers & Droid Patrols: Units of highly trained troopers and automated droids provide rapid response to any disturbances, from minor infractions to full-scale insurrections.
- Restricted Districts & Curfews: Certain sectors, including the Shadowed Quarter and military installations, are off-limits to unauthorized personnel, with lethal force authorized against intruders.
- Massassi Shock Troopers: Elite, genetically enhanced Sith warriors who serve as frontline enforcers and temple guardians. Their sheer physical prowess and brutal combat training make them a formidable force.
- Kainate Grand Army Garrison: A permanent military presence of elite Kainite troops stationed throughout the city, maintaining order and ensuring the Eternal Rule is upheld.
- Underground Command Center: A fortified subterranean facility beneath the city links Moridahl's security forces to the broader planetary defense network, ensuring immediate coordination in the event of an attack.
- Rapid Deployment Garrisons: Multiple military compounds within the city house Kainite forces ready to mobilize at a moment's notice.
- Orbital Defense Coordination: Moridahl is linked to the broader planetary defense grid, with orbital weapons platforms and Kainite fleets providing additional protection from spaceborne threats.
- Dark Side Warding Runes & Rituals: Ancient Sith rituals empower the city's key locations, repelling Jedi influence and bolstering Sith forces within Moridahl.
- Sith Blademasters & Sorcerers: Some of the deadliest Sith warriors and Dark Side practitioners reside in the city, ensuring any direct assault would face overwhelming resistance from the Force itself.
- The Catacombs of Moridahl: These ancient burial chambers contain restless spirits bound by Sith sorcery, acting as an unintentional but highly effective deterrent to unwelcome intruders who stray too deep.
Moridahl stands as the greatest embodiment of the Kainate's rule, a city forged in the image of its Sovereign, Darth Prazutis, Dark Lord of the Sith and Shadow Hand of the Kainate. It rose in the aftermath of the reclamation of the Sith Holy Worlds, when Dromund Kaas was brought under the dominion of the Kainate. Under Prazutis' command, the world was reforged in darkness, reshaped into a bastion of absolute Sith control, where every breath drawn serves the will of the Sith. Moridahl is no mere city, it is a monument to the triumph of the Dark Side, a citadel where strength is cultivated, and weakness is eradicated.
Governance in Moridahl is inseparable from war, its entire society molded to serve the Kainate's relentless ambitions. There is no division between civil and military authority, for all who rule do so by right of power. Sith Lords, handpicked by Prazutis himself, oversee the city from the Kaas Spire, their authority enforced by the entrenched military aristocracy. These are the scions of the great families who have served the Sith since the days of the Tenth Empire, their loyalty forged in blood and conquest. Beneath them, the vast populace is conditioned into rigid social strata, soldiers, laborers, and bureaucrats, all instruments in the vast Kainate war machine. Productivity is not measured in wealth or individual success, but in service to the state and in the perpetuation of its strength.
Yet Moridahl is more than a city of structure, it is a crucible of endless struggle, an engine of self-renewal where obedience is maintained through terror and ambition. The people live beneath the ever-watchful gaze of the Saaraishash, their every word and action scrutinized. Revolutionary committees and ideological brigades are the enforcers of purity, rooting out sedition and punishing deviation with swift brutality.
Public tribunals, purges, and trials of loyalty are not anomalies, they are necessities, ensuring that only the worthy persist. There is no complacency in Moridahl, for to live here is to be tested, to endure, to prove one's devotion to the Sith cause. It is a city where peace is a lie, where only passion, strength, and the will to dominate carve the path forward. Those who falter are cast down, and those who rise do so through sheer power, proving that Moridahl is the ultimate realization of Sith dominion, an eternal monument to Darth Prazutis and the Kainate's unbreakable will. The entire city was named in honor of one of the greatest Sith Emperor's in modern history, Darth Moridin.
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