Let's Go! Zora

Oren pyr, folks! Today, we head south from the Burning Dunes to the jungle continent of the Witherings, drawn toward the city of magnetism - Zora, capital of the Zorai and largest of the Cities of Intuition.

A portal from the southwestern regions of the Dunes of Exile, near Marmot Farm, takes us to the Great Outback of the Witherings continent. It's some of the least overgrown - and most dangerous - territory of the continent and is not exactly a safe road to travel. Feeling brave, I decided to try making the run down the Outback's legendary Ramp at the height of kitin feeding season.


It almost ended in disaster, as a pair of kirosta nearly slaughtered both me and my mount with one blow each. How we made it out of there I'll never know, nor do I recall much of the actual travel from that point until I hit the city gates - literally. I was fortunate to do so in front of the city's guard, however, and several towering blue-skinned Zorai guards carefully and quickly escorted us to the Medic's tent in the Daisha Estate section of the city.

The unique healing philosophies of the savage jungle

Thankfully, not the last thing I ever saw again.

The Zorai have adopted quite a unique take on the art of healing homins, using a combination of what they call "magnetic resonance therapy" in tune with the more traditional first-aid techniques of Atys to produce healers quite capable of handling most physical injuries solo... provided, of course, the patient does not mind the stupefying temporary mental effects such remedies tend to produce, as I found out firsthand in the recovery process. It took quite a bit just to recover the intelligence required to stand, and I've never had much more than that to boot.

Finally recovered, I thanked my savior and stumbled onto the city's streets, ready at last to explore the largest City of Intuition.

Magnetics Cartography quite an attractive field

Zora's Magnetic Cartography institute

Not far from the Medic's quarters was the home of Zora's other notable contribution to Atysian culture and technology - the magnetic cartography institute, where the nation's residents as well as foreign students learn the intricacies of magnetic mapmaking. The maps are prized by field commanders and transporters alike for their uncanny accuracy as well as their ability to "re-map" themselves in the event an area has changed around the map itself.

Following a class of students as they made their way back to nearby apartments in the Win-Cho Estate district, I wandered past a circle of the city's skill masters and down into a massive natural tunnel that led to the city's West Hollow district - a quiet, non-descript section of town that felt very peaceful and sheltered thanks to the large natural wall protecting the area. A number of small, empty shops, some housing, the odd cartographer taking readings or patrol of guards meandering past... it was an area that was nothing special, yet remarkably and memorably comforting at the same time.

Then I walked through the small tunnel leading to the city's two central districts - Highmart and Goo Chase.

A serene chaos

The chaos of Highmarket, just meters from the
serenity of West Hollow

Highmart has every bit of the hustle and bustle that West Hollow lacks despite being mere meters apart from one another. All manner of merchants stand outside of their shops, eager to be the first to catch the eye of the many travelers entering the city via the town's nearby south gate. The city's center of government is also located in Highmart, serving as administrative nexus as well as a meditation hall (which is located in the government center's basement and is open to the public).

Heading up the hill leads to the Goo Chase district proper, but the favored watering hole of the section isn't the tavern as it is in most regions. Here, the stables seem to see more traffic for some reason. This may have something to do with the fact that some of the city's military employers are located further away from the bar. Or, it could be that the Zorai simply don't like drinking. I don't know, because I have a rule about empty bars - there's a reason no one's in there, and it's usually fatal to find out what that reason is.

Or, at the very least, quite unpleasant. So I decided to take a cue from the locals and just bypass the area for the final leg of my Zora sojourn - a trip to its massive Temple.

Temple Hall - center of Zora in every sense of the word

The famed Temple of Zora

The Temple Hall district is very much a "city-within-a-city". It has its own housing halls for apartments and guilds, as well as a separate market area tucked into an alcove behind the Temple. The temple itself dominates the area and, ultimately, life in the city itself. All manner of travelers seem to pass through here, on their way to other destinations or stopping to take on work or even meeting with other adventurers to plan journeys or discuss social issues. It truly is the center of Zora life.

The city of Zora is a treasure trove of information for the science-minded Atysian with its medical and cartographic learning opportunities. Well-protected, serene and with ample space in its many subterranean housing locations, Zora provides an attractive travel or possibly even relocation option for the studying scientist, practicing healer and general intellectual alike.

Let's Go! is a weekly look at the various capitals, communities and regions that make up the world of Atys. It is published each Saturday on Ryzom Compendium.