Marphin

Marphin is an Ayciel city in the Zyphen Peninsula Region of the Thyrenis Mountains. Just under 80% of the city is underwater, owing to isostatic sea level change, though few ruins can be found off the coast as many of the buildings were salvaged before they fell into the sea.

Pre-Dawn
Many records regarding the city of Marphin before the Dawn of Aycilon were retrieved and relocated to Ekkeris Fell at the end of the Aycilon War. The Amarphegs were the last ruling family of the village of Amarph, spanning five generations and three centuries leading up to the Dawn of Aycilon. During this time, the city consisted of a boarding house, a manor and between eight and ten smaller houses (the exact number varied over the years), with no services available for the locals. The village was connected to Okenmeer City by a single road and paid tithes to the ruling caste in the city. Its main source of income was trade, particularly selling obsidian trinkets from expeditions into the mountains.

During the Subjugation, Amarph was largely untouched. In the later years of the Subjugation the village was abandoned as the forces of Battlemaster Atraxis destroyed Okenmeer City. Most refugees traveled north and were ultimately captured by the invaders.

Post-Dawn
Following the Dawn of Aycilon, Amarph remained uninhabited for forty years whilst Frostwell Citadel was constructed. The last generation of the Amarpheg family returned to the village after its completion and, over time, the city grew as displaced citizens of Okenmeer City resettled in Amarph. For just over 100 years, Amarph remained an independent city-state as a republic until it was finally absorbed by the Frostwell Hegemony and, 200 years later, by the Kingdom of the Ayciels.

Under the Frostwell Hegemony, the city eventually came to be known as Marphin, roughly meaning "the Lowland City of the Marph". Between its admittance into the Frostwell Hegemony and the Kingdom of the Ayciels, Marphin's influence over surrounding villages grew significantly, eventually becoming larger than Okenmeer City (which, at this point, had been partially rebuilt).

As Okenmeer City would not join either the Frostwell Hegemony or the Kingdom of the Ayciels, Marphin was frequently involved in small-scale conflicts with its old liege-city. It claimed victory over Okenmeer 80 years before the beginning of the Aycilon War, but left very little of the city to be of use.

Aycilon War
The forces of Marphin were not largely involved in the war against Skycaller Kiranor, however the hostilities by the Vanguard of Eclipsion against Frostwell Citadel - who it had owed sole allegiance to in relatively-recent history - brought the city and its garrison into the conflict under the Mathalas Treaty. Marphin, mostly isolated from the rest of the Kingdom of the Ayciels, eventually suffered great food shortages as the Vanguard raided supply routes. The city's garrison relied heavily on forces from Ekkeris Fell, who were using the Aldrim Rift to safely move forces north ('south' in present-Aycilon). For most of the war, Marphin's garrison fought defensively, patrolling the Zyphen Peninsula and the Southeast Peaks to ward Vanguard forces.

After the Return of Aycilon, the sudden inundation of Aycilon's lowlands brought the Pacific Ocean with a kilometer of the city. The maritime lifestyle forced upon its people was an unexpected change and one that put great stress on their garrison as the Vanguard moved in to clear them off the peninsula. Forces of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation provided relief for the city and evacuated citizens several months after the Return of Aycilon.

The Aycilon War destroyed large swathes of the city's northern edge which were later rebuilt by the International Red Cross.

Post-War
Repaired during the opening years of the 22nd century, Marphin was left to its own business once again after decades of constant war. The city quickly adapted to its newly-enforced location and a harbour was built, with flooded fields and trees being cleared out of the ocean. A sea wall was constructed in 2114 on the southern and eastern edges of the city, prompted by the dramatic isostatic sea-level rise that had been taking place since the Return of Aycilon. The sea wall ultimately failed, and by the 24th century 78.5% of the city's buildings were deemed uninhabitable due to extensive flooding, the sea water up to 10 meters in depth in some places. New Marphin was built as a result, using some materials scavenged from roof tops in the old city.

Sea-level change no longer effects the remainder of the city, and the large area of submerged buildings act as an offshore reef, sheltering the coastline from erosion. Many of the ruins are still safe for exploration, and as such the city is a popular site for scuba divers.

In 2160, the United Nations constructed a Class-II Capacity Spaceport southwest of the city, on the tip of the Zyphen Pensinula. Marphin Spaceport is largely used for commercial space- and aircraft, particular Class-I spacecraft. In 2234, the United Nations Aerospace Defense branch requested permission to upgrade the spaceport to Class-III Capacity, but the request was denied on grounds that the spaceport received no Class-II spacecraft.

Local Government
The Marphin Administrative Area, part of the Zyphen Peninsula Region, is governed from Marphin despite the majority of services being moved to New Marphin. The Amarph Manor serves as the head office for the administrative area and the peninsula as a whole.

Marphin currently consists of 2 wards: the North Marphin Ward and the Olren Fields Ward. These two wards contribute to the 18 wards which make up the Marphin Administrative Area. Each ward is governed by a Magistrate; the currently elected Magistrates, respectively, are Castell Wyvernguard and Santern Obramac. In addition, the North Marphin Ward is governed by the Provincial Paragon of the Zyphen Peninsula, Salrephen Okencaste. The Magistrates of the wards are elected by their representative citizens every three years.

National Government
The city of Marphin contributes a total of 2 Magistrates and 1 Paragon to the National Assembly. It also contributes an additional fifteen Delegates, making it one of the least represented region-capitals.

Geography
Marphin is built on a series of brooks which feed into the Pacific Ocean. The city was built on the bluffs at the edge of the River Okellig long before the Great Displacement. Over time, the city extended down onto the lowlands, and as such was flooded by the ocean during the Return of Aycilon.

Generally, the terrain around Marphin is flat and sparsely populated by trees. Most of the native coniferous forest around the city was felled after the Return of Aycilon to fuel pyres. The remainder of the forest has since died due to the increasing salinity of the groundwater in the new coastal environment. Almost all other native (ie. pre-Return) vegetation has died and been replaced by more salt-tolerant plants (esp. ryegrass and wheatgrass).

Demographics
As of the 2363 Demographic Survey conducted by the UN Office of Statistics, Marphin is almost entirely populated by Ayciels or Aycilon-born humans, owing to its location far away from industry. Many of these are Ayciels who have not been effected by tidal flooding.

The city is an attractive place to live for Europeans and Americans (esp. from more temperate, northern regions of this continents) as well as Outer Colonists.

Services
Marphin has historically had few services, primarily serving as a garrison close to the Vanguard territory and as a midway point between Ekkeris Fell and Frostwell. The Albestere Forge ran a workshop in the city which was lost during the Return of Aycilon.

Since the return of Aycilon, services in Marphin have adapted to tourism, especially heritage and wildlife tourism. The creation of its spaceport in 2160 boosted the tourism industry in the city. The spaceport receives almost five times more traffic during summer months, when temperatures can reach a mild 25 Celcius, than during winter months.