Free City of Murshid

Perched among the hills in the lawless Borderlands, the Free City of Murshid is the most prominent feature of this region. Precariously situated in the disputed border area of two powerful kingdoms, Tayyib Turay and Khulli, neither kingdom has complete control of the region and as such powerful warlords rule with violence, raiding any and all trade goods that pass through this important trade route.

Murshid is ruled by a Doge who is elected to his or her position through a convoluted process designed to prevent one guild from acquiring too much power.

History
A couple centuries ago, tired of the ceaseless bloodshed, a few different clans banded together and established defensive fortifications on the coast. Primarily looking for a safe haven for themselves and their families they quickly realized this could double as a safe checkpoint for trade and sent emissaries to the nearby kingdoms and trade companies to secure funding. Year by year the city grew and was able to fend off attacks by rival clans who were jealous of their wealth. As their population and wealth grew so, too, did their Protection Guild - the organization set up to ensure the defense of the city.

35 years ago, tired of paying the high fees to trade through Murshid and seeing an opportunity to raise some much needed funds, the kingdom of Khulli launched an invasion to try to seize control for itself. The war lasted for 4 years and was a massive disaster for Khulli. Their elite military was unable to penetrate Murshid's defenses so they set up a siege. Their navy blockaded the port by sea and their army surrounded the city by land, hoping to starve the city out. However, their supply trains were plundered by the warlords of the Borderlands and it was their forces who ended up being starved out.

As their army slinked back home, stung by the very public and very humiliating defeat, the Doge announced he was tripling the fee for goods traveling northward as reparations for the cost of the war. Dealt two huge blows back to back, the Khulli leadership has stewed in anger as their already weak economy falters even more.

Government
The Free City of Murshid is quite different from its Dwarven neighbors, who are typically ruled by a king, as they elect their leader - known as a Doge - to 5 year terms. The Doge is selected by a majority vote of the Great Council, consisting of 9 members. The Doge has wide power but can be removed from office by the Founders' Council at any time if they feel he has exceeded his authority.

The Assembly consists of 261 members with each of the city's 29 districts electing 9. These Assemblymen serve 3 year terms and 3 of them are up to election each year. Any citizen of the city that lives in the district and meets certain age requirements (varying by race) is eligible to run for office or to vote. It's not unusual for elections to have dozens of candidates competing and the voters are tasked with ranking each candidate in order of preference, with the bottom candidate being eliminated and his or her votes being reallocated. This process continues until there are 3 candidates remaining, who then take their seat in the Assembly Hall.

The Assembly elects a Leadership Board of 40 members and who then draw lots to reduce the number to 13. This Leadership Board is in charge of guiding the Assembly's day-to-day proceedings and every 5 years nominates 10 Doge candidates from among the Assembly members (a maximum of 5 can be from the Leadership Board). These candidates are submitted to the Assembly and to the Founders' Council - a 6 member council with one representative from the family of each of the original 6 clans who founded the city - who each approve 2 candidates. These 2-4 candidates are then submitted to the Great Council, which selects which one will become Doge.

The Great Council is an amalgamation of the various levels of government in Murshid. Each district's representatives select one among them who will join the heads of each officially sanctioned guild in an initial pool. The Assembly and the Founders' Council take turns eliminating members from that pool until 19 remain, the first 3 eliminated by each entity are permanently eliminated from selection but the incumbent Doge selects 2 members who had been eliminated 4th or later in that process to be reinstated. If the incumbent Doge is up for re-election, the Captain of the Guard and the Collector of the Port each reinstate 1 member instead. With the Great Council now at its full 21-member capacity, it begins deliberations over the candidates submitted to it until a candidate reaches the requisite 15 affirmative votes. If the Great Council is unable to make a selection within a month, it is disbanded and the process starts over with the 2-4 candidates under consideration by the Great Council ineligible for consideration. This process repeats itself as many times as necessary until a candidate acquires 15 affirmative votes in the Great Council.

If this process extends past the end of the incumbent Doge's 5 year term, the Doge steps down and the city is ruled by majority vote of an Advisory Board consisting of the previous Doge, the heads of each of the Founding Clans, the Captain of the Guard, the Collector of the Port, the Exchecker, the Administrator of the Universities, the Grand Wizard, the Archbishop, and 10 members of the Assembly drawn by lots.

Once elected, a Doge is expected to bolster trade and provide adequate defenses for the city, allowing the citizens to live in peace and make an honest living.

Culture
Since the Khullian invasion, the people of Murshid have been very wary of outside forces having too much control over their city. The gates to the city are locked and are only opened for those who have a letter of introduction from the head of a trade league or government. Each entrant to the city is carefully logged and if they get into any trouble the reference who wrote the letter of introduction is held responsible. Traders from the small kingdom of Adeeb were once banned from entering the city for 10 years after a trader from that kingdom was found guilty of murder and executed. The trading company of Yketr was banned indefinitely when it was discovered their Khullian employees were spying on the city and sending reports back, hidden among mundane goods.

Becoming a Free Murshidian is a long, expensive, and arduous process involving extensive investigations of your past and your family history. The Citizenship Guild can deny a petition at any time without giving a reason and your fees are not refunded. The names of those who gain approval from the Guild are submitted to the Assembly who examine the investigations and vote on each individually. Those who pass a vote in the Assembly are presented to the Doge for final approval. If approved, the Doge presents the new citizen with official identification papers. Traditionally this ceremony is done once a year as part of the Independence Festival but exceptions have been known to be made.

Despite the extensive lengths they go to to ensure their independence, the people of Murshid are very laid back. The tavern and leisure industries are booming in the town as many citizens enjoy comfortable wealth and look to spend it. The city boasts two universities that are among the most prestigious on the Island as intelligence and business acumen are among the most respected attributes in their culture.

Founding Clans
In the beginning, the 6 clans who began this journey were the Jehom, Shekod, Runqa, Usmid, Osti, and Ebbiza families. Once upon a time they had been led by warlords like the other clans of the Borderlands, pillaging trade and living a life of bare subsistence. These families are revered to this day for breaking the status quo and allowing a more prosperous future to blossom.

Each of the 6 clans select a representative to represent their interests on the Founders' Council. This council has veto power over all legislation passed by the assembly and all imperatives issued by the Doge but typically this power is reserved only for the most extreme situations and now serves mostly a figurehead role in government, aside from their role in the Doge elections. Due to this figurehead role and because a member of the Founders' Council cannot serve in the Assembly or as Doge the families typically select malleable family members who can be easily influenced or family elders who have retired from their other responsibilities.

Jehom
The Jehom clan runs the Protection Guild, ensuring the city will never be conquered. They see to the city's fortifications, facilitate the training of their defense militia, and explore contingencies for every foreseeable situation. As many Murshidians value their city's defense above all else, the Jehom clan is among the most respected of the Founding Clans and has had the most Doges during the city's history.

Shekod
The Shekod clan runs the Trade Guild, ensuring the city's stream of wealth continues unabated. They are in charge of levying and collecting trading fees, certifying and logging the information of all visitors, and keeping records of every person and good that enters or leaves the city. The Shekod clan has had the second-most Doges over the course of Murshidian history, typically during times of security.

Runqa
The Runqa clan runs the Diplomacy Guild, fostering and maintaining relations with the various kingdoms, trade leagues, and power players throughout the Island. The clan is mostly unheralded as good relations are taken for granted and relationships turning sour are viewed as a failure but have had two members serve as Doge: Rifat and Popal, each of which gained fame for their skillful negotiations in bringing trade companies to their port.

Usmid
The Usmid clan runs the Banking Guild, looking after the city's money in a safe and responsible manner and searching for worthwhile investments that benefit both the city and the coffers. The richest of the clans, they are typically viewed as shady and greedy, unliked by the general populace. Due to this, the clan rarely controls a significant bloc in the Assembly and only one member has served as Doge: Muntafa, who rose to prominence after her investment in a magnificent library. The project was seen as costly and vain at the time but upon completion the dazzling building became a source of pride for the city and attracted scholars from around the Island. The Usmids are typically on good terms with the Assembly and Doge as they work very closely together and need support from each other.

Osti
The Osti clan runs the Adventuring Guild, ensuring that there is always a supply of young adventurers available when an important task comes up. One of the more populous guilds in the city, many young people join up as a way to get some travelling and excitement into their lives before settling into a career. In exchange for a yearly fee and their service on three guild missions a year, these young adventurers enjoy free supplies and develop connections throughout the Island, particularly in regions where the guild has outposts.

Ebbiza
The Ebbiza clan runs the Wizardry Guild, overseeing the training and conduct of the city's wizards and those training to join their ranks. This is a relatively new Guild, established when the Assembly decided unregulated magic in the city was too dangerous to allow. Previously, the Ebbiza clan had been the least important Founding Clan as they ran the Performing Guild, managing the city's taverns, music and dance halls, and so on which was seen as far less important than the other Founding Clans' guilds and even below some guilds run by non-Founding Clans in stature. Their rise from punchline to among the most respected families in the city was punctuated two years ago when the very first Ebbiza was elected Doge.

Demographics
The city is mostly Dwarven as the inhabitants are naturally skeptical of outsiders, including fellow Dwarves. As a major trade hub, a good number of Gnomes and Halflings have immigrated to work on the docks and in the trading houses and races of all types are sprinkled throughout the city.

The Assembly is exclusively Dwarven, though not by rule, and people of other races have entered the elections.