Shield Space 4 of many

Life in Rockport

The standard of living is very high, with indoor plumbing, safe streets and
a wide variety of foods and services.  School is mandatory from age 5 to 15
for all citizens.  Truancy is not tolerated, as youngsters will get an
education (graduation rates average 95 %, which is much better, then any
country in the world today! Though to be fair, we don't have clerics to cast
spells to get rid of dyslecticia, ADD and the like)

 English reading & writing, math, Earth history, local history, geography,
map reading, swimming, morals & Gnomish speaking among other subjects are
taught.  Students are also taught some "electives" usually chosen by the
parents.  Kobold, swordsmanship, music are popular choices among the other
subjects such as biology, chemistry, physics, advanced mathematics, etc.
After the first ten years of school the student will either go on to more
formal training (for a mage, priest, trade school or university, etc.) or go
to the Militia for two years where they will learn and do what it is that
military people learn and do.

  All will learn to use the short sword among other things.  The ones that
excel here may be asked to join the marines.  Upon joining, the student will
receive a short sword and leather armour that is theirs to keep.  Once
students that skipped the militia for higher education are done, they will
be required to take their tour of duty.  At this point, being around 17
years old, these children are deemed adults and can set out to fulfill
whatever destiny awaits them.

 Females are encouraged to have children and for every Human or Human-Elf
child born a grant of 100 GP ($10,000 dollars) is given to the mother.
Citizens are free to come and go as they please with the following in mind.
It is considered treason to trade or do business with the Neogi or anyone
doing business with the Neogi.  Revealing any non-public details about
Rockport's security or military can be considered treason.  Much of
Rockport's light industry is located within the cavern system, making it
easier to protect from threat or theft.

Except for the very rich, farmers and such, most people live in decent to
very decent apartment buildings.  Many people do not have kitchens and just
eat out all the time, as this is an accepted norm for almost all single
people.  The size and condition of the apartments, the building as a whole
and the services provided rank buildings.

 Such services can include doorman, garbage chutes, laundry services or
facilities, gym, pool, sauna, roof top park, communal kitchens, private
kitchens, party rooms for rent, running hot water, private kitchens, private
bathrooms, elevators, on site daycare, balconies, cleaning and laundry
services etc.

 Most people tend to aspire to live in the better buildings of course.
These building can be found in both inner and outer Rockport and can be
freestanding structures or built into the cavern walls and stalagmites.
Windowless apartments and rooms can be rented or bought as well.  These tend
to be below floor level or deep into the cavern wall.  These tend to be
cheaper, smaller, etc.  Most would rather live elsewhere.


Elsewhere:
There are several towns dotting the surface of Shield.  Most are the result
of resource gathering efforts such as Crude Oil, Coal, Copper, Tin, Nickel,
Gold, Silver, Iron, titanium, Chromium, Bauxite, Asbestos, Lime, Phosphates,
tungsten, gems and much more.  Due to the distance, huge difficulty, and
cost in creating and maintaining safe roads through the jungle, many of
these resources are transported by airship.  To increase efficiency, most
towns have the proper equipment to smelt or refine these resources before
transport.  Though the costs of these goods still remain high, for the most
part they tend have a lower market cost year to year.

There is a small Dwarven stronghold in Mount Nevermind about 3 miles up the
mountainside and 20 miles to the East.  This was established about 30 years
ago (AE 51) when the Scro destroyed the Dwarven Citadel of Zizus during the
In-human wars.  The population is currently about 20,000 Dwarves strong.
Zizus produces mostly high quality optics, parts, and pieces for the
shipyards and of course the more traditional wares.  As a note, the
population of Zizus is growing from immigration and from birth.  This is one
of the few known Dwarven enclaves where more dwarves are born than die.

LionHeart
The biggest visible object in the sky is LionHeart.  This is a hollowed-out
asteroid space station in geosynchronous orbit.  (LionHeart hangs over
Rockport 3600 miles up)  It looks more like a rock-covered can of tuna than
anything else.  Lionheart is about 5000 feet across and about 2000 feet
high.  The entire middle section is a circular dry-dock 4600 feet and is 500
feet high bisected by the asteroid's gravity plane.  (Giving the dry dock an
effective floor space of 39,250,000 square feet with 16 levels to the top
and bottom of the dry-dock.)  The first levels to either side of the
dry-dock are 30 feet high and house all the support equipment and supplies
for the dry-dock.  The other levels house the workers, a marine garrison of
500 troops, and other needs.  The surfaces of LionHeart are ringed with
weapon emplacements and non-fleet ships are not allowed to land without
permission.  There are 2 projections on opposite sides of the asteroid along
the gravity plane extending beyond the primary air envelope.
 Each projection is 200 feet long by 80 wide by 80 high and is connected by
a spar or tube 2000 feet long and 60 feet in diameter (plus guy wires).
These projections are docking areas for non-air breathing species to conduct
trade.  LionHeart station was completed in AE 69 and took 10 years to build
with over 10,000 Kobold, 3,000 Gnome, 3,000 Dwarf and 2,000 Human workers.
LionHeart is still growing within and will do so for many years.


The Cube
The biggest object in the sky was Lionheart. Now it's the Cube.  Moved into
position in AE 76, the Cube is a 2 mile cube shaped nickel-iron asteroid
that has been well, terraformed on it's six sides as light forest and
farmland by a reportedly dead race.  The Cube was actually intended as a
huge colony ship and has a hundred levels within. It has 5 working
artificial suns over each cube face and the six face where the artificial
sun is gone has been placed to face Shields sun.  Unfortunately the engines
used to move this asteroid are burned out and thus far have proven
impossible to repair, or understand..

 Currently, the cube is still being studied and will most likely be the
successor to Lionheart, as it will provide a bigger, better facility.

Currently:
Rockport is thriving, the population grows each year by birth and by
immigration.  It seems that Humans have been around after all, just in small
numbers and scattered about known space.  Rockport has a population of about
375,000 Humans and there are about another 275,000 Humans in the various
settlements on Shield.  These numbers are constantly growing as more and
more Humans and half-Elves find their way to Shield along with a very high
birth rate. (The natural birthrate is currently just over 4 per couple which
will double the population every 22 years alone) The median age is currently
29

The methane breathers trade just as any other race but only at the orbital
station.  They leave piles of potions and drugs, rare metals etc, and pick
up food, liquor, art, and pelts, the amounts are always different.  They
dock, unload, take differing amounts of product and leave, seemingly with
neither rhyme, nor reason to it.  Their ships are also strange, seamless
metal cubes that can make right turns at any speed or go from a dead stop to
faster than anything we have to dead stop again in the blink of an eye.
For the most part, you have seen pictures and have been learned in school
about the wonders and the problems of Earth and how Humans first
"immigrated" to Shield.

Thus, you know the origins of your species but aside from the Event on Earth
how and when Humans came to this universe is a mystery.  (Assume you would
know of Earth what you know of another country you have never been to but
have had an interest in.)

At this point, there is a strange and somewhat wondrous mix of technology
and magic.  Some technologies have been totally forgotten or at least
dropped, such as advanced medicine.  There is simply no need as magic
healing is a much better, faster, and safer alternative.  Blindness, cancer,
and cavities can all be readily cured.  Ageing can be delayed or even
reversed and the dead brought back to life, so much for a career as a
doctor, dentist, or nurse.

Assume that what was possible in the 1930s is more or less possible on
Shield.  There are guns, typewriters and pianos as well as electric items
including toasters, flashlights, refrigerators, radios and record players.
Though there are cars, trucks, tanks, construction equipment, etc, they are
not widespread as the cost of raw materials is still high, the supporting
industries that allow the manufacture of such items still small, and the
people that have the knowledge base to do so is limited.  Electronics (and
not much of it) are limited to vacuum tube technology, as transistors simply
do not work.  Power tools are available but tend to be pricey.