Ardua Collis

Ardua Collis is a city in the World of Shaston, and the primary setting of Myths and Legends: Lost in Thought.

Layout and Citizenry
Ardua Collis is built into the side of a cliff, one of the two walls of a canyon created by a large river at the bottom. It can be found about a day's journey South of Endi. The road to the city follows a river that eventually ends up spilling over the cliff, with a waterfall therefore covering a section of the front of the city. On the surface, one can find a guard station protecting the city, as well as stables to keep one's horses (as they cannot easily enter the city) and a bridge across the canyon to continue the road.

A circular staircase on the surface leads into the city proper. The city is divided into various layers, with similar staircases connecting them together, eventually leading to the bottom of the canyon and the river. The top layer is home to most of the wealthy and upper-class citizens. A number of important buildings can also be found here, including city hall, where Lord Deeds lives, and a temple dedicated to the city's patron goddess, Sirona: goddess of medicine and snakes. A river flows out of this temple and over the cliffside, creating a second waterfall in front of the lower layers.

The second layer is home to most of the middle-class citizens. The city's market can be found here, as well as other commercial buildings, such as Mneme's Apothecary and Psychiatry.

The third layer is home to the lower-class citizens. Not much of note is here, except for the Broken Knife, curiously Ardua Collis' sole tavern.

Finally, the bottom of the cliff is mostly home to farms, gardens, and docks on the river. Very few people live here except for the poorest of the poor.

Much of the architecture in Ardua Collis is carved out of stone, neatly carved out of the cliff along with the overall structure of the city. Other buildings, notably the temple of Sirona, are made out of quarried stone blocks. Very little wood is used in the city, and usually only as roofing or for aesthetic purposes.

Ardua Collis is home to a variety of peoples and cultures, and as such there is little racial discrimination; although some more monstrous races may have troubles. Much of Ardua Collis' economy is based in agricultural and trading; it's location on the road to Endi makes it a commonly-used thoroughfare for traders and travelers of all kinds, and as such many rare and interesting goods can be found at its markets.

History
Ardua Collis is a very ancient city, possibly older than the nearby and much larger Endi. When it was originally founded is unknown, but there is evidence to suggest that people have lived there (or at least in the area) since before recorded history.

Mneme moved to the city in 1570 while on her personal journey of redemption. She currently lives in the city as its resident apothecary and psychiatrist.

In 1575, many of the city's citizens and visitors experienced widespread but temporary amnesia. The GARDE was asked to send adventurers to investigate, with the goal of finding the cause and, if possible, eliminating it. After interrogating several suspects, including Mneme and Scout, the Broken Knife's drow owner, the GARDE discovered the cause was the illitilich Insolfsab, acting through an enchanted coffin in the basement of the temple of Sirona. With the help of Mneme, the GARDE defeated Insolfsab and rid Ardua Collis of its plight.

Trivia

 * Ardua Collis is based off of real-world cliff dwellings, specifically those at Mesa Verde National Park.
 * Although the type of stone and intended architecture is different than that at most cliff dwellings.
 * "Ardua collis" is (roughly) Latin for "steep cliff."
 * As Latin is analogous to Abyssal, Celestial, and Infernal in the World of Shaston, this implies Ardua Collis was named in one of these languages.