City of Turia

The grand city of Turia is located in the southern hemisphere of Gor, amidst the huge prairies claimed by the barbaric Wagon Peoples. It is sometimes called the Ar of the south because its grandeur is thought by many to equal or even rival that of Ar. It is a high, white-walled city with nine gates. Until the events of Nomads of Gor, Turia had never been conquered.  Turia received its name from the Tur tree, a large trunked, reddish tree. A wanderer found a Tur tree, near a spring, on the prairies of the Wagon Peoples. The tree must have been planted long ago by some passer by. People decided to begin a city at that point and Turia was born.      The city is ruled by Ubar Phanius Turmus (though there is an error in Nomads at one point when they refer to him as an Administrator). He has been in power since around 10109 C.A., give or take a couple years. Phanius has two daughters who have not yet been joined. But, the true power in Turia lies with the Caste of Merchants, as it does in many cities. Hundreds of caravans and thousands of merchants come to Turia each year to vend their wares. Almost anything can be found here, including many rare items.      Turians have a reputation of being a lazy and luxury-loving people. Obviously this cannot be fully true as Turia had been able to survive for many generations against the might of the Wagon People threat. The Tuchuks, in Nomads of Gor, were eventually able to conquer the city and much of the city was burnt at that time. But, Kamchak, Ubar of the Tuchuks, chose to leave Turia and hand it back to Phanias Turmus. The city was permitted be rebuilt.      Turia had always been important to the Wagon People. Trade between the two was common as the Wagon People acquired manufactured items that they could nto make themselves. Very few Merchants visited the Wagon Peoples so they needed someplace where they could trade. Kamchak also claimed that the Wagon Peoples needed an enemy and that Turia was to be that enemy. Kamchak wanted to keep his people from becoming too lazy and secure. In addition, Kamchak's mother was Turian.      There is little water closer to Turia than over a thousand pasangs away. Thus, they have many great wells in the city. Their wells are deep and tile-lined, some extending hundreds of feet deep. A well does not have a raised wall, only a rim of abut two inches. But, they are kept in enclosed yards surrounded by sixteen-foot walls with a defender's catwalk inside. The Turians also maintain siege reservoirs that are filled with the melting snows or the rain.      Like many cities in the books, Turia is not fully described. Instead, small items about the city are spread around. The rest of this scroll shall simply explain a number of these items concerning Turia.      Turian Calendar: Turia calculates years from summer solstice to summer solstice unlike most other Goreans that use the spring equinox.      Turian alcohols: Turian wines are syrupy, flavored and sugared heavily. They use wines in which spices, sugars and almost anything else can be stirred into. The liqueurs of Turia are regarded by many as the best on Gor. There is a famous Turian saying: "To give you something to stir in your wine." It basically means adding something to a situation to increase its complexity. As the Turians add much to their wines to enhance or complicate the flavor, they also do that in their lives.      Turian baths: The Turian baths are considered to be second in luxury to Ar. Because of these baths, almost all Turians can swim. Like Ar, there is a wide variety of baths, ranging from simple public baths to luxurious private facilities.      Turian feast: These feasts consume most of the night. There may be as many as one hundred and fifty courses. In between courses, guests may use a tufted banquet stick, dipped in scented oils, and golden bowl to induce vomiting. Proper etiquette requires you to at least taste each course. This is similar to what the ancient Romans once did. Turians also use an eating prong, similar to a fork. It is generally unique to the city though the idea has been spreading.      Turian Kaissa: Kaissa is very popular in Turia. They hold a major tournament there though it is unknown how often it is held. In ninth year of the Ubarate of Phanias, Scormus of Ar wins that tournament. Turia has its share of famous Kaissa Players including Sabo, Boris and Timor. Sabo once beat Centius of Cos at the Tharna tournaments. Boris played against Hobart of Tharna at the same En'Kara fair as the Centius against Scormus match. Timor is a very large man and of indisputable integrity.      Turian slave bar: This is a metal bar with a collar at each end. There are also manacles that fasten the hands behind the neck. Two slaves or prisoners can thus be confined with this item.      Turian collar: This is a round, hinged ring, that lies loosely on a slave. If someone holds the ring, the girl within it can turn in it. It is harder to engrave though than the more common flat collar.      Turian message collar: This is a high, thick leather collar. A message can be sewn into the lining. Unless you are familiar with these items, a secret message could be present on a slave girl and you would be unaware of it.      Turian camisk: In Turia, this is simply called the camisk. They refer to the common camisk as the "northern camisk." The Turian camisk is like an inverted "T" in which the bar of the "T" is beveled on each side. It is fastened with a single cord. The cord ties the camisk at three points, behind the neck, the back, and in front of the waist. The garment is first fastened at the neck. It then passes before her, between the legs and then the sides fold about the hips. This camisk covers the common brand spot on the thigh but leaves the back bare. It can be pulled tight on the body and the cord allows it to be adjusted to fit any girl.      Harl rings: These are named for the slaver Harl of Turia. They consist of four portions. First, there is a metal ankle ring that snaps on a ankle. Second, the back of the ankle ring is welded a closed loop. Third, at the front of the ring there is fastened to another closed loop about a yard of chain. Fourth, the chain ends in a locking device which can be locked on the back of a second ankle ring. It is very versatile and can be used to chain a girl to almost anything. A common use of the rings is to form a segment in a slave chain. One key works for all of the rings of this slave chain. A closed Harl ring means locking the chain on its own ankle ring around a tree, pole or simialr item.      Turian dagger: Unfortunately, this item was mentioned but not described in the books.      Ear piercing: Ear piercing was long a custom of Turia. After Turia was invaded by the Tuchuks, many Turians fled from the city to avoid death or enslavement. They brought their customs and ways to the cities they fled to. Ear piercing is one such custom that spread to the north after the Tuchuk invasion. At first, many slavers, scandalized by ear piercing, originally refused to do it to their girls. But in time, it became very popular so that many northern girls acquired them.      Turian knee walk: This is another item that is not fully described in the books but there is some information that can be extrapolated concerning it. It is a type of floor movements. Floor movements are basically a form of dancing where you never rise above a man's knees. It can consist of turning, twisting, rolling and crawling. She can do it on her hands, knees, or stomach. It may include kneeling, sitting, lying, or half sitting, half lying, or half kneeling, half lying. The name may be descriptive in this case so it likely includes a lot of kneeling and movement on the knees.      Poison teeth: Some Turians have emplaced in their mouths special fangs that contain Ost venom. It is likely used more by merchants who do not commonly have expertise in the sword or other martial skills.      Turian Shields: The shields of Turia tend to be oval rather than round.      Clearchus: He was an immigrant to Turia who brought a number of his followers with him. He is now remembered as a patron of the arts and a philanthropist.      Turian silk: A famous product of the city. In the Silk War of 8,110 C.A., a war was fought for the control of certain caravan routes. It was called the Silk War because at that time Turian silk first began to be imported in bulk to the Tahari.      Stones of Turmus: This was once a Turian outpost, merchant fort and trading station. It was located about two hundred pasangs from Ar, and then a two to three day on a side road off the Vosk Road. It had high white outer walls, over eighty feet high. There were six towers on the walls, two at the gate. The garrison contained one hundred men, five officers and twenty ancillary men. It was burnt by raiders of Treve and its fate after that point is unknown.      Tur-pah: This is a vinelike, tree parasite which lives on Tur trees. It has curved, scarlet, ovate leaves that are edible. They are one of the primary ingredients in the soup called sullage.      Yellow pool monster: This was a bizarre creature so far unique to the city of Turia. Its origins are unknown. It is most likely not indigenous to Turia and was imported from some other land. It makes its appearance in Nomads of Gor. The merchant, Saphrar, has this creature in an indoor pool area. This pool area is a spacious chamber decorated with numerous exotic floral designs representing the vegetation of a tropical river. The room is hot and steamy. This may mean that this creature comes form the jungles near Schendi. The creature occupied an entire inground pool area. At first glance, it looks like a pool of yellow water that sparkles as though filled with gems. But, it is much more.      It apparently breathes by releasing gases or steam. It also contains filamentous strands and spheres of color. The creature can thicken and gel around someone within it. A victim's flesh will tingle and burn due to the corrosive elements within the creature. Saphrar would place men into the pool and the victims would find themselves unable to escape the creature and they would slowly be killed. It might take hours for a victim to be fully digested by this beast. A few men have lived as long as three hours. Slashing or cutting it generally does no harm to it. But, it has a collection of threads and granules in a transparent bag, imbedded in a darkish yellow jelly. This is walled off by a translucent membrane. This area is vulnerable to attack and it reacts violently when this area is threatened. It may then solidify and push out someone irritating until you are standing on its now hard outer shell.      Tarl Cabot was fed to this creature but learned how to irritate it. Once he found he could not escape its clutches, he swam within it towards its center. He attacked the darkish bag and it reacted by expelling him. The creature would then later be killed by being burnt to death once the Tuchuks had taken the city.