Cauldron is located in the Hellfurnace Mountains, just south of Sasserine region near the Mwangui Expanse. Sasserine capital city is the nearest real city, almost a full week's ride to the North. Sasserine has heavy economic ties to the sea surroundings, and acts as a jumping off point for expeditions into the Amedio Jungle (the area around Cauldron) and connection to the rest of the civilized world thanks to its relevant harbor. Sasserine and its attendant states form a very loose economic partnership, with little more than light taxation ensuring that Sasserine's military troops patrols the major roads and keeps the shipping lanes open.

The history of humanity in the region is sketchy at best, but most accounts agree that the famed wizard Sundabar Spellmason had an instrumental hand in founding the settlements of Redgorge and Cauldron. His connections with the city of Sasserine allowed the area to flourish after he had made his mark on the jungle.

These are few of the more widely known portions of Cauldron's history. PCs are assumed to be from the region, if not Cauldron itself, so they can be assumed to know, or have heard, of these one way or another.

680 Years Ago: Discovery of numerous profitable mines in the region attracts hundreds of prospectors and adventurers. Redgorge quickly outgrows its walls. Surabar Spellmason determines that the nearby volcano is extinct, and that its cauldron would make an excellent defense attack from demon armies. Many of Redgorge's inhabitants relocate to this region - Cauldron is founded. Over the centuries, the discovery of many large underground complexes and caverns below the city draws the attention of dwarves and gnomes from far and wide. Two of these regions become Jzadirune and the Malachite Fortress.

75 Years Ago: Jzadirune falls to the Vanishing. The gnomes abandon the stronghold and never return.

32 Years Ago: The rainiest winter in centuries results in massive flood damage to the lower reaches of Cauldron. The Flood Festival is founded the next year, and for the next several years the freakishly wet winters continue before the weather finally returns to normal.

7 Years Ago: A plague of filth fever strikes Cauldron. Several hundred die before the city's clerics can get the plague under control.

There are more pieces of information that will become relevant. PCs with ranks in Knowledge (history) might want to check with their GMs what other information they might know. Seemingly, different libraries along the city can be used to gain that less known information. Again, ask your GM about the possibility of visiting a library if you feel some history research might bring clues as the events start to develop.

Cauldron's buildings, tightly packed and built from volcanic rock and wood, line the inner bowl of a nameless, dormant volcano. Cobblestone roads form concentric circles around a small but deep lake of cold water which fills the volcano's basin. Although the town's sewage seeps into the lake, local clerics routinely purify the water for the citizens in exchange for charitable donations to their temples.

A 50-foot-tall fortified wall of black malachite encircles the city, tracing the outer rim of the volcano. Four roads descend the volcano's slopes, becoming major thoroughfares that lead to other towns and distant realms. The regions nearer the rim of the city tend to be occupied by upper class families and elite merchants. The closer one gets to the center of town (and the closer to the often pungent odors of the central lake), the shoddier the construction and the more dangerous its dark alleys become.

Most people get around Cauldron on foot, although the town has its share of wagons and carriages, most of them owned by merchants and nobles. Cauldron's major exports come from two sources: mines and plantations. Both industries are based in the hills surrounding the city,and are managed by the various noble families who live in the area. Obsidian and diamonds are the primary products mined in the region. Plantations usually produce sugarcane and coffee. Most of those who dwell in the city itself are either merchants, scholars, or workers in the mines and plantations in the lowlands. Water is never scarce in town, but most of the city's food must be imported from Sasserine since the local fishing and farming enterprises are meager at best.

Cauldron is ruled by a Lord Mayor, elected to his position every two years. The post is currently held by Severen Navalant, whose term expires in roughly 20 months. Other important individuals in the city include Terseon Skellerang, Captain of the town guard, the members of the noble families, and Cauldron's few wealthy merchant interests.

The people of the Cauldron environs are primarily either metalsmiths and craftsman who work the metals and stones that come from the mines around the area, or the laborers who mine the raw materials. The other major economic source in the region are plantations. Coffee, sugarcane, and cacao flourish in the warm and wet climate around Cauldron.

Local legal currency is entirely of Sasserine make, and utilizes precious few forms of coinage. The platinum piece (a “ring”), a gold piece (a “sun”), a silver piece (a “moon”), and a copper piece (a “star”) are the four most commonly used. Merchants and tradesmen who deal in large amounts of currency often use trade bars made of gold. A typical bar weighs about half a pound and is stamped with the official seal of the Sasserine crown. Bars come in 100, 500, and 1000 gp notations. Gems are also heavily used to ensure that weighty coinage doesn't become an issue for the well-to-do. Coins can be exchanged for bars and gems at Alameda Moneylenders, just off of Obsidian Avenue near the South Gate. Bars are also available from the Lord Mayor's office. No surcharge is levied for exchanging coins for trade bars or gems.

Taxes are fairly light in Cauldron. Citizens pay a modest yearly flat tax of 1 gp, while merchants and nobles pay a 5% income tax each year. In addition, a 1 sp gate tax is charged for non-citizens who enter the city by any of its four gates.

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