New Orleans

New Orleans is a major port city in the United States and the largest metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The population was cited as 343,829 by the 2010 U.S. Census but Domehead The Wise, widely regarded to be a more accurate source, placed the population count as "somewhere between 400,000 and 100 Billion". Of course, the U.S. Census only takes in account human beings, whereas Domehead The Wise takes in account former humans such as ghosts, horrible mutants, disgusting hybrids, eldritch beings, and many other non-human species and creatures.

The city is named after the Duke of Orleans, who reigned as Regent for Louis XV from 1715 to 1723 and won countless victories against the Spook Duke in the Creepy War. His sacrifice in the Battle of Chilling Way in 1723 inspired many in the colonies, which led to them honoring the Duke of Orleans by naming the city (previously named "The Swamp Gut" as the area was ruled by a creature with the same name until 1719).

The city is famous for its cuisine, music (particularly as birthplace of Jazz and Spunky Music), extravagant festivals (such as Mardi Gras), and for its being a hotspot for kooky things like The Alligator Man and the Drum Sickness of 1803.

Origins
New Orleans was founded on May 7, 1718 under the name The Swamp Gut, in honor of the being named The Swamp Gut who was currently the ruler of the Lower South. The Swamp Gut had wished for a glorious city to be made in his honor which he intended to be the capital of what would become a sprawling empire which he hoped would one day stretch across the globe. He began work on a grand palace in which he would live but his death on September 12, 1719 caused work to be halted on the construction of the palace as the whole South mourned his passing. His kingdom quickly fell apart due to various aides and magistrates attempting to gain control of the kingdom for themselves.

The initial architecture of the city was ornate and costly, but the death of The Swamp Gut caused it to soon fall into disrepair. Indeed, what had been made of the palace itself sank into the ground in 1725 and remains underground to this day. Dr. Gerard Colinswonk, the original city planner, had planned for the town to be the grandest metropolitan area in the world and became distraught when funding vanished after the death of The Swamp Gut. As a result, Colinswonk threw himself from The Temple of The Swamp Gut in 1727, a building that also sunk into the ground, in 1731. Many of the original buildings, in fact, have sunk beneath the ground and it is rumoured that hideous creatures reside in them.

In 1724, The Swamp Gut was renamed New Orleans in honor of the great Duke of Orleans, who had sacrificed himself a year earlier during the Battle of Chilling Way. He had quickly become an inspirational figure in the colonies and the people of The Swamp Gut petitioned to rename the city in honor of him. The city name change came on August 1, 1724 when the Parliament of The Swamp Gut voted in favor of the name change, also voting to reorganize into The New Orleans Council of Elders, creating an oligarchy that ruled the city with an iron fist for many years.

The New Orleans Council of Elders
The New Orleans Council of Elders, upon establishing themselves, immediately set about maintaining as much power as possible, causing great discontent among the locals. The Council, with the help of City Planner Urban Gibswitch, began building walls through the city in 1734, dividing the city into distinct districts. In 1737 they began relocating citizens into various districts based on economic standing and the degree of loyalty one had towards the council. In 1740, the Council formed The New Orleans District Guards, who were tasked with keeping everyone in their district. The Authoritarianism of the Council greatly upset many of the citizens, especially the poor.

By the mid-1740s, riots had begun to spring up around the city, alarming the Council. Desperate to regain control, in 1746 they created The Bronze Peacekeeper, a 10 foot tall bronze golem-like robot being which was powered by coal and breathed fire. The Bronze Peacekeeper began quelling the riots in violent manners, killing hundreds. This caused even greater outrage and by 1749 several rebellion groups had formed, meeting in secret for fear of The Bronze Peacekeeper, who continued to terrorize the streets.

The Chaos of 1753
During the 1740s, a group of magicians known as The Order of The Swamp Gut formed. Disgusted by the actions of The New Orleans Council of Elders and wishing to restore the Kingdom of The Swamp Gut, they began work on creating a portal to the spirit realm in the hopes of raising an army that the Council could not defeat. By 1753 they had finished this portal and agreed to open it on Halloween night. However, somehow the word got out and the Council was determined to find the portal and destroy it. Several rebellion groups also caught wind of the plan and worked to sabotage the investigations of the Council.

The Council named Sir Thomas Weatherson as the lead detective in June of 1753. Due to the constant interference of the various rebellion groups, Sir Weatherson requested use of The Bronze Peacekeeper, which the Council granted in mid-July. Concerned by the investigations, The Order of The Swamp Gut opened the portal on the night of July 19. They quickly found themselves unable to control the creatures they had summoned, which spread quickly across the city causing mass panic. Seeing an opportunity, three of the rebellion groups (The Blue Group, The House of Rats, and The Diamond Rebels) began to attempt to take over the city.

Sir Weatherson, unable to control the chaos with his police force, called for the local military to get involved, resulting in a battle in the main square in front of the Grand Government House. With all the local authority forces converging in the square, riots began across the city, with various small rebellion groups claiming sections as their own. Sir Weatherson, attempting in a last ditch effort to bring some semblance of order back, took The Bronze Peacekeeper into the sewers in search of the portal in the hopes of destroying it and banishing the strange creatures back to the spirit realm.

Deep in the sewers, Sir Weatherson and The Bronze Peacekeeper were confronted by members of The Order of The Swamp Gut and members of The House of Rats and killed in an intense skirmish that brought several city blocks caving into the sewers. In the chaos of the fighting across the city, a fire started sometime in the early morning of July 20, leveling much of the town and killing thousands. By mid-afternoon on the 20th the Grand Government House had been gutted, and what authority figures remained alive attempted to flee the city. For several weeks, there were lynchings in the streets and widespread looting until Louis Vanderton, one of the few surviving members of The House of Rats, began gathering support. By November of that year, many of the citizens supported him and he rose above all the others vying for control to become the first official Mayor of New Orleans.

The Vanderton Era
Louis Vanderton formally became Mayor of New Orleans on January 1, 1754. Under his leadership, within the next decade the city began to rebuild under the guiding hand of city planner Francis Duddlywick. Duddlywick was determined to make New Orleans more beautiful than Paris and began constructing many of the great buildings of the city such as The Swamp Gut Cathedral, the New Orleans Arcade, the Grand Conservatory, and the University of New Orleans.

By 1765 the downtown area of the city was becoming one of the most ornate areas of the modern world, but slums began to form on the outskirts. The poor became outraged, seeing very little difference between Vanderton and the former Council. In 1768, a small rebellion was crushed in the outskirts of the city. Alarmed, Vanderton began at once to try and improve the living standard of the lower class but also became immensely paranoid and formed a secret police who terrorized the citizens of the city. Outrage grew until 1770, when Louis Vanderton was assassinated just after a speech addressing the many issues of the city.

Soon after, Jacques Bootswell became Mayor of New Orleans, but proved to only be more paranoid than Vanderton, creating a stronger police presence in the city. In 1774, Bootswell began a secret investigation into the location of The Bronze Peacekeeper; however, Bootswell died under mysterious circumstances later that year, leaving the results of the investigation unknown. Louis Vanderton II, promising to bring peace, stability, and equality to the city somehow managed to win enough support to become mayor in 1776.

Amazingly, Vanderton II proved to live up to his word and the quality of living in the city increased significantly, ensuring that Vanderton II remained mayor until his unexplained disappearance in 1789. Soon after, his son Vanderton III took control of New Orleans, continuing the policies of his father.

The Early 19th Century and Growth
In 1803, New Orleans became part of the United States of America in the Louisiana Purchase. Thomas Jefferson, displeased with the Vanderton family, deposed Vanderton III and named George Williams the new mayor. Despite this, the Vanderton family continued to have great influence over the city. As a result of the Louisiana Purchase, the population of New Orleans began to increase exceptionally with large plantations being formed around the city.

During the final campaign of the War of 1812, the British sent a force of 11,000 soldiers, marines, and sailors, in an attempt to capture New Orleans. General Andrew Jackson, despite great challenges, managed to create a makeshift militia with the locals and nightmarish creatures which still roamed the city. On January 8, 1815, he staged a huge battle that resulted in a crippling loss for the British, with a high number of British casualties due to the aggressive nature of General Jackson's use of eldritch beings.