Centralia is a shining spectacle of whitewashed buildings and happy, carefree citizens who spend their days at artistic, scholarly and religious persuits.
Centralia is heavily class oriented and everyone is very conscious of the ranks of others and of themselves.
At the top of the society we find the Nobility. Nobility in Centralia is a matter of money and politics. The Nobility of Centralia exists entirely without restraint. Most are constantly under the influence of some drug or other. The nobility are a hedonistic lot that cares nothing for the woes and misfortune of the lower classes. The cruelty of some of the nobility is legendary.
Archer, Shaylyn, Wills, Cromwell, Veles
Dain, Trine
The nobility sponsor the artists and craftsman they take a liking to. These people tend to rise in their chosen field faster than a more talented associated who lacks the patronage of the nobility.
The priests are free to devote themselves to the worship of their god and to put aside worldly matters. This is possible, again, because of the patronage of the nobility. The most influential temple (at any given time) is that temple with the greatest number of nobles granting favor to it. This is a sublte and very political competition whose players are the nobility and upper echelon of each temple.
At the very bottom of the class structure we have the workers. These people don't live in the city but occupy two seperate cities nearby: menial workers in Prall, house servants in Pregada. Workers come to Centralia to work as they are scheduled. They have very few rights in the City itself, in fact they have no apparent rights at all.
The Solarium is on the southern edge of town. The location was chosen to prevent anything from blocking the sun from the eyes of its worshipers.
The solarium is always held in high regard by nobility and artisans alike. The temple is surrounded by a 9 foot wall to prevent random gawkers from interfering with the worship of those on the grounds. At the main gate is a lone priest who asks worshipers for their clithing and gives them a ring that may be used to gain their return.
Inside the solarium walls is a mostly open area where worshipers can bask in the glow of the ever-present Ra. Although there are some gaming areas inside (a small swimming pool, volleybal, badmitton and tables for board games) most worshipers prefer to just lay about and enjoy the cleansing warmth of Ra's light.
There is always at least one priest whose duty is to see to the comfort of the worshipers. He offers drinks, towels and tanning oils of various colors and scents.
The Solarium was leveled and left as a crater around the year 10048. The Nobles rushed to the aid of the temple and it was rebuilt in less than a week. Many workers died in the rush to get the temple rebuilt. A dedication to the dead workers was constructed by the Solarium (at their own expense) in the city of Prall.
There are probably 50 priests of Justice throughout the entire Rhine. They were never used for policing and operate as a religious order with no civil authority. They live lives of justice and spread their beliefs by being a model of behavior. They also practice weapons and combat a lot but do so more as a means of understanding balance rather than preperation for ass kicking. Centralia island has a civil police force. Smaller islands of the Rhine don't require dedicated police but do take the occasional hand from the main island.
The Enclave of Tor servers as a public center. People come to the Enclave to settle disputes over the punishment of crime (ie unjust or excessive punishment, lack of punishemnet, etc…) The priests (including Lay Priests) serve more as arbiters and Judges than the policing role they hold elsewhere. The Civil Police have been known to deputize T'orites on occasion (once the entire Temple) and some priests also hold positions within the Civil Police.
While most cities of the world look upon the Enclave as a policing force, and local governments eagerly back the priesthood to gain the use of their services, this is not so in Centralia. The nobility of Centralia (which are in reality its only law making body) are willing to back the priesthood only so far as it is understood that the nobility can still do anything they wish regardless of the right or wrong as viewed by the Enclave. The agreement exists but it could break if either side ever truly pushed the issue.
The laws in Centrala are kind of dim, there are no real written laws. If you see a crime, you punish it… if you can. If you can't you should notify the Centralia Civic Police. In Centralia it is a crime not to intervene in some manner. There also seems to be a general taboo against litter or anything that would give the city a bad look/feel. Your personal rights are determined by your station. Interfering with an artist at work could be a more heinous crime than murdering a street-sweeping Prall (providing that you did your buthering neatly and tossed the remants into a trash rescepticle).
Of late, the local enclave in Centralia has resurrected a tradition of providing body guards for persons that they honor.
For a sum of ten-thousand silver per annum any person with the demonstrated ability to cast spells may join the Guild of Wizards. Benefits include:
Owned by a half-elf with an eyepatch over a gouged out eye named Klepna Nester, this is a store that has a Old Western white-washed feel to it and sells mid-ranged and upper end adventuring and general store goods. If the party is able to, they might recognize a small pin with the heraldry of Scourgtide on it. Should certain trades or events come to pass, adventurers might be able to gain access to the black market and gambling pit underneath her shop1).
4/10079 - She and her crew would have barricaded themselves in the basement during the raizing of Centralia. The store front itself may be gone, but the black market is still there, but out of commission for the time being for the most part2).
About four miles outside of Centralia City and well off the beaten path one may find a cobblestone path that up to and around a massive tree with a canopy filled with autumn colored leaves. Opening up the door will find one in a large nomadic shop with an almost feral woodland aesthetic (see: Toadstools as tall as stools to sit on) and an even more feral yet buff elderly gnome woman with purple hair confined to a wheelchair with a voice that can only be described as Toad from the Mario franchise. Kara the Krazy (spelled with a “K”) is an extremely talented nomad and craftswoman that has a habit of grossly upcharging her wares. However, she is also willing to drop the prices significantly should anyone be willing to help her deliver her goods across Centralia for her since she is unable to anymore. It should also be noted that she always has an intense amount of Sago Weed available and has a deadbeat husband named Clive, who more information will be provided later about3).