The Harmonious Republic Of Arcadia

The Harmonious Republic Of Arcadia

It is the quintissential gated community
It is where laws are made for the common good
It is the first line of defense against the legions of Hell.

Arcadia thrives with streets of identical and perfectly lined houses, laser-straight streams, orderly parks, and perfectly laid out cities. Every mountain and skyscraper is unblemished by erosion and acid rain, and are placed just-so. Everything in Arcadia works towards the common good. Part of the common good, though, is to be ever vigilent against the lower planes. Of all the powers in the multiverse, only the Norse gods are considered more ready to fight an apocalyptic war.
The once seperate kingdoms that composed Arcadia have recently (the last 200 years) been unified under a single government. To the surprise of many, the legislative body that governs Arcadia's two (soon to be three, see next installment) layers has done a better job a determining the common good then the previous kingdoms. They have also avoided the traps of self-rightiousness that led to the loss of Menausus in past ages. The Arcadians see nothing surprising in this, because there is no better way of obtaining the common good than to create the perfect government.
Nevertheless, the pursuit of the common good is has been disturbed by thoughts of impending war. It is no longer as certain that the Blood War will continue on indefinitely. Not only must Arcadia be ready to withstand the first wave of a fiendish invasion, but be capable of launching a pre-emptive attack if it is at all necessary. The Harmonium and local einheriar are ever watchful for spies and enemy combatants (read: terrorists). Fighter jets remain on patrol continuously. And the nuclear shadow casts a pale over the search for perfect harmony.

ARCADIA TRAITS
-Normal Gravity: In Bruxeos, there are a few spots with a light gravity trait to boost IPBMs (Inter-Planar Balistic Missiles) to their targets, but these are the exception.
-Normal Time
-Infinate Size: Each layer of Arcadia stretches over an infinite, well-ordered landscape.
-Divinely Morphic
-No Elemental or Energy Damage
-Mildly Aligned Law: Chaotic characters on Arcadia suffer a -2 penalty on charisma-based checks
-Normal Magic: It should be noted that in many places in Arcadia, harmful spells (especially from the evocation or necromancy school) are illegal to cast without a permit.

ARCADIA LINKS
Portals to other planes are few on Arcadia, but they are permanent, clearly identified structures. Concrete arches with signs identifying the destination (as well as an approximate distance to the nearest location of interest) mark each gateway to another plane. Portals also connect far-flung locales in Arcadia, as well as the two layers. A number of these portals are big enough for two cars to pass under, and these often have highway turnpikes lead up to them. All of the portals connecting Arcadia to other planes are guarded by border checkpoints, who will be very interested in your business inside Arcadia. As long as you have nothing to hide, of course, the border police will give you no more trouble than necessary.

ARCADIA INHABITANTS
Many mortals from the prime material plane, looking for a safe, clean neigborhood with good schools to raise their families, come to Arcadia and live among such creatures as archons, aasimar, devas, and the ever-present Einheriar Armed Forces (EAF).
Arcadia is home to many peacable creatures. Many of them can be taken as pets very easily (+4 planar bonus to Handle Animal checks).
Formians have several hive cities in Arcadia. While most live above-ground with the rest of the Republic's citizens, a small number maintain the vast underground cities beneath Arcadia, in the hopefully unlikely event that the plane's population must take refuge in them.

Arcadia Petitioners
The petitioners of Arcadia are called einheriar. They appear much as they did in their previous lives, though they are markedly healthier and more robust. They are all fanatically devoted to making sure the common good is maintained.
Most einheriar are either members of the EAF or local police forces. Their treatment of those that don't conform to the views of the plane has changed little. Still, einheriar police are now required to take sensitivity orientation courses, so that they are not quite so rude to deviants (they still attack evil creatures on sight, however).
The Einheriar have the following special petitioner traits:
-Additional Immunities: sonic, poison, disease
-Resistances: cold 20, electricity 20
-Other Special Qualities: detect chaos, detect evil

There is nothing native to Arcadia that doesn't contribute towards peace and the perfection of the state. grain and fruit grows in abundance without tending or fear of infection. Combined with modernized harvesting techniques, food on Arcadia is so readily acquirable that for all practical purposes, its free, despite Arcadia's growing population.
Vision is normal in Arcadia. The ancient Orb of Night and Day is now divided into three segments ever since the Parliament of Arcadia passed the 8-hour day. One third radiats day-light, another third is dark, and a final third gives of dusky light. The transition between each three stages remains distinct.

Abellio
The first layer of Arcadia is mostly flat, with mountains and hills arranged to maximize the common good (any not native to Arcadia has no clue how this would be decided). Abellio has been carefully zoned, with cities, suburbs, parks, streams, and forest reserves placed for the good of all. Despite the urbanization of the layer, Arcadia's environment is not in the least bit polluted; even chemical reactions on Arcadia are dedicated to the common good.
When visitors come to Arcadia, they usually keep to Abellio. This is partly because the EAF is peery of anyone trying to enter Buxenus without permission from the government. Also, inhabitants of Abellio are more tolerant of non-natives.

Checkpoints After crossing a portal entering Arcadia, the first thing a planewalker is going to run into is a checkpoint guarded by the Harmonium Border Patrol. The size of each checkpoint depends on the usage of the portal they are guarding. Some checkpoints are little more than metal detectors watched over by a half-dozen hardhead. Others look like gargantuan toll-booths that are a hundred lanes wide or more. Each checkpoint is wide enough to allow a thourogh inspection of anyone entering Arcadia without slowing up traffic. The Harmonium Border Patrol are commisioned to check over anyone entering Arcadia. In practice, they tend to hold up certain visitors depending on their initial impression of them. Still, if they can't find anything illegal being brought in (and the visitor in question isn't evil), they'll eventually let them them through. Be warned, though: trying to bribe the border police is a sure-way to land yourself in jail.
Most planewalkers see these checkpoints as merely a nuisance. Closer inspection, however, reveals that they are actually heavily fortified. Even the smaller checkpoints has a bunker or two with a sniper ready to put a hole in the head of anyone trying to force their way in. Moreover, each checkpoint is in close proximity to at least one EAF army base. Anyone who looks up will also notice that fighter jets patrol this area more frequently than in other parts of the layer.
Researchers of Planar Evolution predict that creating a markedly different environment from the rest of the layer around each of the portals will lead to the creation of a new layer that sits between Abellio and the Astral Plane. Of course, this is exactly what the Arcadian government is trying to accomplish. By creating a buffer between the Great Highway and their major urban centers in Abellio, the Republic hopes to minimize potential civilian casualties if Arcadia is attacked.

The Silver Bridge: The most-used portal into Arcadia is in fact a part of the Great Highway. The Silver Bridge connects Abellio with Lunia, the first layer of Celestia. The bridge is several miles long, with one half in Arcadia, the other in Celestia. A bank of mist represents the division between the two planes. The hardheads at this checkpoint are not quite as strict because they recognize that most of the folks coming from Celestia are quite agreable enough to warrent only a quick check. Thus, traffic on the bridge is usually clear.

Civilopolis: Civilopolis is the political center of Arcadia. Here, the laws of the state are written and the angencies that implement them make important decisions for the common good of the Republic. Every building in this city (which is larger than most small states) is either dedicated to the purpose of government or provides for the needs of government officials. A clean and efficient mass transit system ensures that politicians and bureaucrats can get wherever they need to go.
The buildings in Civilopolis are a perfect blend of neo-classicism and modern achitecture. Larger agencies are housed in huge buildings that look like a crossing of a modern skyscraper with a deity's main residence. Colossal public monuments such as Columns, Arches, and Obelisks can reach miles into the sky. These monuments and office buildings are always placed so that they never have the effect of crowding the inhabitants. In fact, most buildings don't have more than one level (although many have extensive basements to compensate).
Anyone expecting to find a Kafkaesque bureaucracy is in for a shock the first time they enter one of Civilopolis' administrative buildings. A large staff of astral devas is on hand to assist anyone who needs to deal with the Arcadian bureaucracy. No matter how complicated the request is, the devas can always find the agencies and forms needed to carry out the request, as long as it is legal and for the good of the community.
The Temple of Sovereignty is the meeting place for the Parliament of Arcadia. It is a surprisingly modest building, located in the center of a park-like forum. Inside, Parliament decides the laws of the Republic. The members of the Parliament of Arcadia are usually petitioners who were either uncorrupted politicians or philosophers seeking out how to best achieve the common good in their past lives. While they are unified in the desire to uphold perfection and harmony, they have nonetheless divided into two parties on how the common good should be reached. These parties are the Reformers and the Crusaders. Debate between these two parties is always civil and respectful, but nevertheless heated.
In addition to passing laws, Parliament also appoints all of the government ministers, including the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister is ultimately responsible for enacting the laws passed by Parliament. He is also responsible for Arcadia's military, and is commonly viewed as the leader of the Plane.

The Court of St Cuthbert: About an hour's drive from the Temple of Sovereignty is St. Cuthbert's ancient mile-high basilica (though the surrounding walls are no longer present). In addition to watching over his own followers, St. Cuthbert has taken responsability for Arcadia's judiciary. He has created tens of thousands of local courts, civil courts, and appeals courts. St. Cuthbert himself serves as Arcadia's Chief Justice and final arbiter on all cases. Most court cases are never brought before him, however, and so Chief Justice Cuthbert can keep his energies focused towards his faithful.

Mount Clangeddin: A perfectly conical mountain, standing apart from any range, rises at least thirty thousand feet above the suburbs below. This ancient abode of the dwarf god Clangeddin Silverbeard has gone under massive renovations, both inside and out. The seemingly smooth flanks of the mountain are now covered with great titanium portals that hide powerful cannons and missiles. The mountain's peak has been adorned with antennae, radar domes, and anti-air defences.
Inside the mountain is all that is needed to create and run a modern dwarf war-machine. A great dwarven metropolis in the heart of the mountain is home to the best weapons manufacturers in the multiverse. Clangeddin guns, tanks and artillary pieces are sought everywhere. The gathering clouds of war has only increased the production levels in Mount Clangeddin. As a result, the mountain accounts for 15% of Arcadia's GDP.
The dwarves of Mount Clangeddin make up Arcadia's most elite fighting force, and are usually the first ones to be sent to intervene in matters important to the Republic. The presence of Clangeddin's legions are often enough to quell any hostilities.

Buxemus
The second layer of Arcadia has not experienced the same urbanization that is easilly visable in Abellio. To be sure, the modern world has left its mark on the layer in the form of great concrete highways and modern military installations. However, aside from Heliopolis, there are no towering skyscrapers or massive urban centers. Instead, most of the layer looks just as it has for millenia: forests of perfectly lined trees, circular lakes, and lawn-like grasslands. There are a number of small towns dotting the layers, which serve as way stops between places of interest. Each town is symmetrical and identical in layout. Each town is policed by a small posee of Harmonium State Troopers, but the townspeople themselves are ready to maintain order as well. In fact, the locals are usually more suspisious of non-natives than even the hardheads, and would rather such folk move on as quickly as possible.

Military Bases: Exiting the highways around any of the small towns leads a traveler to a road that eventually takes them to a large concrete moat and barbed wire fence that can only be entered at a single well-guarded checkpoint. Signs around the enclosement warn the curious that unauthorized entry will be met with lethal force. Anyone foolish to test this warning will find themselves the target of a Solar's .50 cal sniper rifle of slaying. Within these confines, the bulk of Arcadia's military might is kept, ready to be called on if the Plane ever goes to war.
There are three types of bases in Buxemus. The first and largest are army forts. Here, the EAF trains new recruits and sets up mustering grounds for its reserves. Tanks, artilary, helicopters, army transports, weapons, and munitions are stored in deep underground bunkers that can withstand a nuclear assault.
The second type of base is the strategic air force fields. Thousands of astral bombers sit ready in hangers so they can be called on in a moments notice. A number of them are always in the air at all times. Some patrol all the way out to the astral plane, and can quickly reach their targets in the lower planes should they need to attack.
Finally, there are the missile silos. No one knows how many IPBMs Arcadia possesses, but the number is easily in the tens of thousands. It is also unkown how far Arcadia's IPBMs can reach, although the Republic has hinted that their missiles can hit targets as deep as Nessus. The devils are very interested in confirming the validity of this claim.

The Minerva Test Range: Far from any of the major highways is a arid, rocky desert fenced off from the rest of the layer. The EAF uses the desert to test its nuclear weapons. Surprisingly, the desert seems to have altered itself to accomodate this use, drawing much of the radiation from test detonations deep into its soil, where it can't reach the outside world.
In the past, the EAF tested their weapons above ground. Perfect hemispheres thousands of feat wide carved into the ground mark the blast sites of these tests. Today, however, all tests are carried out underground. Tremors are usually the only indications that a test is going on.

The Strait Road Cafe: Not a single cafe, but a franchise formed by a group of entrepreneurs that seem to be otherwise unknown in this layer. Strait Road Cafes are the perfect place to stop for those who would rather not deal with the annoying harmony esposed by most of the natives.
The Republic of Arcadia quickly put an end to the Harmonium's efforts to "retrain" chaotic beings when it was realized how much harm such practices might cause to the layer. Most of the former inmates fled for less rigid areas. A few decided to remain, however, and opened a cafe for visitors in search of a stop where hospitality was still appreciated. The cafe quickly turned into a small chain of cafes lining the highways.
The government has put severe restrictions on how large the cafe chain can be, but they recognize the value of having something to counter-balance the organized militarism on Buxemus. Since they aren't breaking any laws, the natives are tolerant of these way-stops and even use them in their travels.

Heliopolis: The home of the pharaonic pantheon is the layer's sole major urban center. Heliopolis is located on the banks of a great river in the middle of a vast desert. This ancient city joins together the past with the present. At one end of the realm, ancient stone-cut temples, sun-dry houses, and magnificent stone pyramids line the cobbled and mud-dried streets. Moving through the city is like moving through time, until one finds himself in downtown Heliopolis. While cars have replaced chariots and concrete has replaced stone and brick, the downtown district still clearly reflects the tastes of the pharaonic pantheon, the clearest example being the massive steel-glass pyramid that is the home of the sun god Ra.
In fact, Ra is rarely to be found in the Solar Pyramid. Instead, he spends most of his time commanding the Armada of the Sun, a massive fleet that guides the sun through the skies of Heliopolis (which replaces the 3-sided orb as the primary source of light in Heliopolis). The Solar Pyramid is instead occupied by Horus, the god of kings and vengence. Horus is the ruler of Heliopolis and head of the pharaonic pantheon, although he shares power with his parents, Osiris and Isis.
Although the old city remains intact, it is hardly used by most of the petitioners living in Heliopolis. Instead, the houses and shops have been converted into tombs for the ever-expanding city. Thus, the oldest sections of the city have fallen under the perview of Osiris, king of the dead. Petitioners who worshiped Osiris have been transformed into good-aligned mummies (immune to turning), who are now responsible for keeping the old city in pristine condition. Osiris is also served by more typical divine agents that deal with anyone who gets the wrong idea when they see undead walking the streets.
A highly sophisticated irrigation system brings water to the desert regions surrounding Heliopolis, which allows the nearby suburbs to keep gardens that used to be unimaginable this far in the desert. These suburbs are of a markedly different style than the ones common in Abellio. This reflects the specific tastes of communities that worship the pharaonic pantheon. While shrines to Isis, goddess of magic, marraige, and technology, can be found through out the Heliopolis area, the largest temples are located in the suburbs. Isis also keeps her main residence in the suburbs-an expansive but unimposing suburban flat that would be difficult to distinguish from other large residences were it not for the soothing presence of her divine aura. Surprisingly personable for a deity, Isis is an active participant in her local community, though she avoids using her divine power to upstage others who desire to serve the community as well. Spectacular time-management (in both a normal and divine sense) allows Isis to juggle her responsibilities as a god and her participation in the community without sacrificing either.
Unknown to most visitors, the river flowing through Heliopolis is in fact a planar pathway. Taking the river upstream eventually leads to the river mouth which empties into the Silver Sea of Celestia. From here, a traveler can access the River Oceanus via a massive canal that runs through Bytopia. The Republic of Arcadia leaves it to the pharaonic pantheon (which has in fact been granted semi-autonomy over Heliopolis) to regulate traffic on the river, and the River Police can be just as discriminating as the hardheads at the borders. Still, the River is perhaps the best ways of getting into Buxemus, as long as a traveller knows where to look.

The Mandible Commune: The formian hive-city of Mandible (now grown to the size of a continent) has always been peaceful and open to visitors. Recently, however, a number of nonformians have come to Mandible seeking to live there as a full member of the community. The formians are amiable to these requests (although at first they weren't exactly sure how to respond, as no one had ever before willing wished to join the hive), and give the newcomer a place to stay and a job to do. Such members are expected to work towards the good of the hive just as they were formians themselves. Some find the formian way of life to be more than they expected, and move back to more humanoid communities (the formians never stop anyone from moving out; if things aren't working out, its best to get a more reliable worker to do the job anyways). A few nonformian residents, however, stay and even try to raise families. Much to their surprise (and delight), their children somehow bonded to the Mandible hive-mind at birth. As a result of this bonding, it seems that Mandible now has a permanent population of nonformians. While biologically unchanged, these nonformian residents have the same mindset as Formians, and it would be very difficult to distinguish a formian and nonformian mandiblan if you were only listening to their voice.

The Lost Layer of Menausus
Only the most dedicated researcher of planer history knows that Arcadia once had a third layer: Menausus. Ages ago, this layer apparently slided into Mechanus for reason that are now obscure. These researchers have hypothesized that many of the military bases on Buxemus are in fact built over the portals to the lost layer.
For the most part, though, there is little trace of Menausus, both on Arcadia and Mechanus. Public records in Civilopolis carry no mention of it. If the military bases in Buxemus are hiding portals to Mechanus, no one is saying. A search on "Menausus" turns up precious few references on the databases kept in the Fortress of Disciplined Enlightenment. And without further information on why Menausus joined Mechanus, searching for the layer itself would be like trying to find a needle in a haystack while blindfolded. Many have dismissed Menausus as a fable the Arcadians tell to their young about the need to not forget goodness in their pursuit of order.
Recently, however, a section of Acheron (on the layer of Ocanthus) apparently blinked out of existence after a battalion of Harmonium special forces was seen entering the area carrying what looked like lots of medical equipment. Soon afterward, Harmonium elite strike teams have been spotted moving up and down the River Styx. The hardheads strike quickly and decisively before slipping back into the murky river. No one knows how they managed to navigate the treacherous Styx, but it is clear that the hardheads have somehow managed to gain easy access to the river, and many believe that they are using the missing section of Ocanthus for this end.