From the papers of Dunbart’s Guide to Telara, Droughtlands:

Though it did not boast the mages with the raw power of Catari, nor the brilliant machinists of Mkhai, Redoubt remained one of the most powerful of the city-states of ancient Eth. The Council of Thirteen held their meetings within its walls, because the sorcerer-kings of Redoubt, descendants of the tribe of Takhaat, were masterful diplomats and philosophers. This is not to say that they were not also masters of magic and technology. All of the city-states boasted masters of the eldritch arts, and it was the mages of Redoubt who created the great machines that would eventually trigger the Convocation.

Redoubt was sometimes chided by other city-states as being a place where the eldritch mages spent an hour thinking about what they were going to do for every minute they actually did anything, but they
contributed their fair share to the development of Eth. The city itself was built largely with money generated there by its central location. It was considered the gateway between the desert homelands of the Eth and their holdings in the territories beyond. As such, it was a popular trading location, as well as hosting many gatherings of scholars from the many lands who would come together to discuss matters of scholastics and industry.

All of this made Redoubt a prosperous city-state that grew and expanded quickly. Being at the heart of all matters, however, would ultimately lead to it being the heart of the Convocation, and the devastation it set loose upon the city can be still be fully appreciated by viewing its ruins in Droughtlands.