Well I like to understand people and I know you meant well. We’re all here to have fun and that’s important to me.
Don’t fool yourself, the whole election’s "Jenny against the Contrarian and Bishop" thing is pretty much a civil war in good spirit. A very cheery civil war without hard feelings, but one nonetheless.
I’m fairly certain the Neath has walls though, at least on the west and south ends it seem to have them. It is a cave, after all. If the Neath didn’t have a western boundary I’m fairly certain there’d be a lot more left from the previous cities, as well as maybe some Londonish settlements. The Northern Zee seems to twist the perception of crewmates until they get lost and find themselves back south, so it’s either infinite or it’s not, that does’t even matter. The uttermost east is beyond considering.
edited by Infinity Simulacrum on 7/14/2016
Maybe people begin in Newgate for the same reason that people ended up in Sydney - lawbreakers in England get transported. Only instead of going 'round the world, you go into a very very deep hole.
One might even arrange to be transported on purpose in order to get to the Neath, if one hasn’t the money for a ticket down (after all, everyone starts the game broke.)
Everyone ends up in Newgate because it’s the easiest way to immigrant when you don’t know anyone in London - seriously escaping out of prison takes less time and effort then filling out all that paperwork.
My friends, what is the damned great game?
The great game is a collection of warring spies, assassins, and other shadowy figures doing the bidding of powerful countries.
Worth noting the Great Game is the real world term and not a Failbetter invention, although Wikipedia informs that the Russians had a much cooler name — tournament of shadows (toornirui tenei).