Luccini

Nestled on the coast, along the southern reaches of the Tilean Peninsula, stands the city of Luccini. The city of Luccini is the oldest city in Tilea, founded upon the ruins of an ancient elf-city in the year 1 IC by the legendary twins, Lucan and Luccina, king and queen of a tribe of nomadic shepherds who settled on the famous elf-built Acropolis and built their palace at its summit. Ever since the founding of the city, the twins have been regarded as divine, which tends to make the residents of Luccini even more absurdly boastful than most Tileans, as they regard themselves as kin to the gods. Needless to say, the worship of the twins is not widespread outside of Luccini territory.

For over two thousand years, the city has been ruled by descendants of one of the two founders, the Lupo clan, descended from Prince Lucan and the di Lucci, descended from Queen Luccina. These two clans have fought each other for the throne constantly, such that the throne has passed back and forth between them innumerable occasions, and the hatred that each feels for the other is in no way lessened by the fact that both are massively inbred between and amongst each other.

Given its proximity to the island kingdom of Sartossa, the Princes of Luccini no matter which clan, have made it a firm policy of the city to have one of the strongest navies in the world to keep their shipping lanes free from piracy. However, like most cities, the Luccinians also field strong regiments of pikemen. Up until recently, the elite troops of Luccini were the Leopard Company of Leonardo di Lucci, heir to the throne. These soldiers were distinctive for wearing brightly polished brass armor, fresh laurel garlands on their pikes, and decorative Leopard skins draped over their shoulders, the Leopard of Luccini being the guardian animal that protected the divine twins during their youth. However, the Company was exiled from the city in 2505 when Lorenzo Lupo seized power.

The Princes of Luccini have a strong hold over their population, and were the least troubled by the great uprisings of 2321, restoring control in that same year. However, their control is dependent on a truly unusual characteristic for a ruler - their sense of humor. The people of Luccini long ago decided that it is better to be ruled by a pleasant prince if one must be ruled at all, and any prince who fails to display the traditional jollity of the city's rulers is promptly assassinated to popular acclaim. This has something to do with inclination to laughter being a family trait of the ruling houses - something no doubt associated with their inbreeding - such that a dour prince is deemed a fake. This being the case, the Prince of Luccini makes it a point to be a patron of la commedia del'arte, often participating by having his rivals publicly assassinated in some humorous fashion - slipping on a banana peel being a favorite method.