Chambord City

Biodata

Power Progression

The kingdom’s formal rank and its military capabilities develop separately; comparisons with empires do not constitute independence from Zenit.

Geography and City Layout

Natural Defenses

• Three mountain barriers: Mountains protect the city’s left, right, and rear. Their outer slopes are nearly vertical and difficult even for Star-Rank Warriors to climb; their inner slopes are gentle enough for children and elderly residents 21.
• Zuli River: The river fronts the original city and separates it from the southern grasslands 10 21 651.
• Stone bridge: Supported by nine enormous piers, the bridge provides convenient peacetime access but restricts the number of attackers crossing together. Some large siege engines cannot pass over it 21.
• Endless Forest Sea: The forest behind the mountains supplies herbs, magic cores, and the creatures incorporated into Chambord’s Magic Beast Legion 876 949.

Districts and Landmarks

Reconstruction

• Architectural knowledge translated from Demon King’s Wisdom allows Best and Brook to launch previously impractical reconstruction projects 298.
• Magical streetlights, traffic lights, running water, sewers, and teleportation arrays become part of everyday infrastructure 583.
• Following the residents’ relocation, the old city becomes a dedicated military fortress. Former homes and public buildings are converted into magical bunkers and anti-aircraft posts 949.
• Rebuilt walls reach a hundred zhang in height and incorporate ancient construction techniques and magical arrays within their stonework 949.

History

Decline and the Black Armor Siege

Before Sun Fei’s rise, Chambord was a weak border kingdom frequently bullied by its neighbors. Bazel’s misrule and Alexander’s impaired intelligence left a backlog of unresolved affairs. Emperor Yassin’s protection had previously prevented the kingdom from losing its vassal status and being reduced to an estate 65 1044.

Approximately 2,000 black-armored soldiers attempted a surprise attack. Sentry Andrei spotted their approach after the fog lifted, allowing the gates to close in time. The attackers then camped beside the Zuli River and cut Chambord off from outside contact. A later account of the defenses records fewer than 400 guards supplemented by over 1,000 untrained civilian conscripts 10 30.

Sun Fei’s battlefield intervention and use of healing potions rallied the population. His suggestion that the God of War had restored Alexander’s mind helped turn fear into confidence. After victory, he honored Breno’s sacrifice, promised royal support for his family, and rewarded twenty-two warriors with the repaired weapons and armor they had used in battle 21 22 47 61.

The invasion was subsequently linked to a search for God and Demon Ruins associated with Chambord. The conspirators had intended to slaughter the inhabitants, occupy the city, and investigate the site before Zenit discovered what had happened 74.

Coronation and Consolidation

Chambord became the battleground for the struggle between Eldest Princess Tanasha and Paris. Their original calculations treated the city and its king as expendable. Paris’s assassination plan included plundering and destroying Chambord to eliminate evidence 133 138.

Sun Fei survived the East Mountain conflict and completed his coronation amid bloodshed and ruins. The downfall of Viscount Louis and other hostile noble households removed organized resistance to his rule. He then abolished hereditary nobility, reorganized the government and military, reassigned districts, and introduced a public legal code 134 138 139.

The defeat of the Nine Kingdoms Allied Army made Chambord’s rise widely known. Spies, merchants, adventurers, and foreign representatives crowded into the formerly overlooked kingdom 167.

Imperial Competition and Expansion

Chambord’s expedition displayed resources far beyond those expected of a sixth-tier state, including magical tents, enchanted equipment, and heavily defended camp arrangements. Its growing reputation attracted gifts and alliance proposals from other kingdoms and financial interests 223 255.

Alexander’s individual championship and Chambord’s team victory secured first-tier status. The subsequent incorporation of neighboring kingdoms greatly expanded its territory and population 350 571.

Wedding Crisis

Alexander’s wedding brought envoys from major empires, commercial organizations, mercenary corps, and the Imperial Capital Mages’ Union. The influx filled the lodging district and created a lucrative accommodation business for residents 620.

The celebrations also became a confrontation with the Dragon Hunting Alliance. After Chambord’s victory, the Urban Management Brigade repaired the square and brought the surviving enemies before Alexander. A subsequent Black Warship bombardment was stopped by the city’s magical shield 678 682.

Overseas Campaigns and Barcelona’s Siege

Before campaigning against Anzhi, Sun Fei reinforced Chambord’s defenses and took 1,000 Three-Star warriors, leaving most Gold Saints behind. The expedition was celebrated as a historic departure from Chambord’s long experience of being invaded 879 880.

Barcelona later occupied the southern-bank new city but could not take the ancient fortress. Its commanders resorted to collaborationist troops, starving refugees, and infiltrators in an attempt to exhaust the defenders. Chambord admitted more than 200,000 refugees without suffering the internal collapse its enemies expected 1075 1076.

Old Arjen opposed an immediate mass puppet counterattack: surviving enemies could scatter, attack civilians, and expose the puppets’ limitations. During the assault by forty Battle Angels, he contracted the defensive barrier and raised its output above eighty percent, sacrificing protection of the outskirts to preserve the city 1076 1080.

The refugees driven into Chambord were subsequently transported onward by ultra-long-distance teleportation rather than permanently confined inside the fortress 1103. After defeating Barcelona’s forces, Sun Fei convened Chambord’s leaders and Behemoth Orc masters to prepare for unifying the Northern Region 1516.

Government and Law

Administration

• Royal authority: The military branches answer directly to the king 139.
• Civil government: Sun Fei introduces left and right chancellors, six ministries, and a Letters and Visits Office 139.
• Early staffing shortage: Best initially holds both chancellorships, while respected elderly residents temporarily head the ministries. The government looks to the university to train replacements 168.
• Noble privileges: Hereditary nobility is abolished during the post-coronation reforms 139.
• Later administration: A younger generation of promoted officials helps make Chambord exceptionally prosperous within Zenit 876.

Twelve Bronze Men Code

• The laws are publicly displayed on twelve bronze figures; three are initially left blank 139.
• Enforcement applies to foreign nobles and warriors as well as ordinary residents. Repeated punishments lead newcomers to study the code immediately upon arrival 168 876.
• Everyday regulations include keeping right on roads, obeying traffic lights, and turning off running-water taps after use 621.
• Alexander invokes the code to sentence a Villarreal official’s son to death for five crimes committed in Chambord. The execution proceeds despite an attempted rescue 737.

Citizenship

• Outsiders can earn contribution points and apply to the Ministry of Revenue for residency 880.
• Prospective citizens describe three years of military service as the route to bringing their families into Chambord’s protection 880.

Military and Defenses

Armed Forces

Fortress Systems

• Protective barriers: Shields withstand Black Warship bombardment; later defenses can reflect a Moon Class attack with increased force 682 1069.
• Worldstone power: A Nightmare-difficulty Barbarian Worldstone powers the city’s reinforced magical defenses 879.
• Weaponized walls: Activated arrays release ice arrows, flames, and stone spikes. Crenellations and watchtowers withstand direct magical or Dou Qi hits below Six-Star Class 949.
• Dragon-Shooting Giant Crossbows: Their magical bolts can kill an Early-Tier Moon Class master in one shot 949.
• Repeating crossbows: A thousand operators can produce a sustained volley of 100,000 arrows within a quarter-hour 949.
• Internal defenses: Illusion arrays, mechanical traps, bunkers, and anti-aircraft positions turn the old city into a fortified combat zone 949.
• Shrine statues: Statues modeled on Sun Fei stand roughly every hundred meters. Their runes heal and enhance Chambord’s people without benefiting enemies 949.
• Limits: The barrier only barely withstands forty Battle Angels after Arjen reduces its coverage and increases its power 1080.

Air Force and Navy

Education, Research, and Industry

Schools and Universities

The first Civil and Martial School occupies Bazel’s former residence, with Alexander as headmaster and teachers including Lampard and Brook 77.

Early University Faculty

• Akara — Potions and scroll-making 159.
• Kashya — Magical archery 159.
• Charsi — Forging and equipment enchanting 159.
• Cain — Magical principles and meditation 159.
• Warriv — Marching, ships, and wilderness survival 159.

Research and Production

• Madman’s Laboratory: Works with the university to design, test, and finalize weapons and magical devices 774.
• Underground factory: Produces standardized equipment on assembly lines. Trained Urban Management soldiers can salvage components from several damaged devices to assemble a functioning replacement 774.
• Shrine research: Deciphering Diablo shrine runes makes citywide healing and combat-enhancement systems possible 619 620 949.
• Research leadership: Cain and Akara concentrate on magical experiments and device development, while their disciples and Deisler assume more operational responsibility 1329.

Economy

• Paper production: Oleg supervises the conversion of accumulated refuse into paper. The process removes a source of disease and makes a former luxury affordable to poor residents 168.
• Forest commerce: Restraining the strongest forest beasts opens the Endless Forest Sea to adventurers collecting rare herbs and low-level magic cores 876.
• Trade and taxation: Caravans and mercenary groups gather outside the city, helping Chambord develop into northern Zenit’s commercial center. Agriculture is not its principal industry because farmland is limited 876.
• Visitor revenue: Residents rent accommodation and sell legal guides, while Victoria collects gate and river-crossing fees 620 621.
• Expansion constraint: Despite its wealth and strength, limited territory and insufficient strategic depth eventually slow development. Further expansion is constrained by its obligations as a Zenit vassal 1132.

Important Figures and Foreign Relations

Leadership

• Alexander / Sun Fei — King and principal architect of Chambord’s reforms, military expansion, and magical modernization 139 586.
• Best — Chancellor and senior civil administrator; initially fills both chancellorships 168.
• Gordon Brook — Senior military officer who oversees defense and selects the Anzhi expedition’s troops 879 1132.
• Old Arjen — Strategist entrusted with forming the Wolf Fang Legion; later directs critical siege decisions 351 1076 1080.
• Angela — Princess Consort whose management of the Magic Beast Legion gives Chambord access to a vast reserve of beasts 949.
• Frank Lampard — Longstanding protector of Alexander, early schoolteacher, and leading Chambord warrior 77 850 1043.
• Victoria — Handles gifts, treasury documents, and visitor toll collection 351 579 621.

Foreign Powers

• Zenit Empire — Suzerain. Yassin protects Chambord’s status and repeatedly shields Alexander from political punishment 22 1044.
• Laisi and Black Rock — Former hostile neighbors later incorporated into Chambord’s enlarged territory 170 571.
• Behemoth Beastmen — Allies won through Sun Fei’s victories over their challengers and Chambord’s genuine acceptance of other races 993 1017.
• Dortmund Empire — Bitter enemy following Black Warship attacks, the deaths of Dortmund princes, and the loss of forty-three Chambord warriors 694 879.
• Barcelona Empire — Besieges Chambord and covets its magical technology, puppets, and suspected ancient inheritance 1075 1076.
• Alania — Its resistance and civilians come to trust the Chambord Army because of its strict prohibition on looting or accepting local gifts 902.
• Elf Clan — Sends an envoy seeking an audience during preparations for the Northern Region unification campaign 1516.

Culture and Traditions

• God of War worship: The city maintains a shrine on East Mountain. Sun Fei’s apparent divine connection becomes an early source of confidence and loyalty 21 645.
• Royal observances: Before his wedding, Alexander pays respects to former rulers, the God of War, and fallen defenders in a private ceremony 645.
• Care for military families: Royal support for the fallen soldiers’ dependents helps warriors serve without fear for their families’ futures 61 694.
• Racial tolerance: Chambord’s people show sincere friendliness toward other races, a major reason the Beastmen consider it a suitable ally 993.
• Religious allegiance: The Black-Robed Holy Temple gains widespread belief in Chambord under Sun Fei’s support 1031.
• Song of Chambord City: A song frequently hummed by Alexander becomes a shared expression of civic pride. Residents sing it together during his wedding 651.

“When friends come, there is good wine; but if jackals and wolves come, bows, crossbows, and spears will welcome them!” 651