Columbach

Capital of Valshria

by William Marlow

Demographics

Population

12,000

Majority

Humans

Minority

Dwarves and Halflings

Enclaves

Dwarves, Halflings, Gnomes, and Orcs

Religion

Praverianism (Bornican)

Language

Common and Valic

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Nestled in a steep river valley of wooded hills, the city of Columbach clusters along the river-side of a rocky crag, topped by a nearly two hundred year-old stone keep (from the Second Invasion). The small but crowded city has begun expanding vertically in order to fit within the limits of its high stone walls. Two wooden drawbridges span the river meeting on a small island midway, and rising into stone gatehouses on either bank. The riverfront is a tangle of busy docks,

shipping goods up and downriver at all hours. Poking up a little higher than the roofline of steep gables is the wide conical crown atop the Temple of Valsha, dominating the lower end of the city. Balancing the skyline on the city's upper end, two slender, uneven bell towers mark St. Paltar's Cathedral, and the city-center for the Holy Church. Across the river, a ramshackle suburb clings to the gatehouse and the main road, dispersing quickly into steep hillside vineyards.

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Economy

Exports

Primary: Salt
Secondary: Timber and Wine

Imports

Flour, Iron, Marble, Beer, Mead, Fur

Government

Hierarchy

1. Baron of Columbach (Barony)
   Lord Ander Ravensong I
   
   
2. Mayor of Columbach (City)
   Mayor Eufemia Schulze
   
   
3. Head of Church
   Otec Egidius
   
   
4. Captain of the Guard
   Sir Fridolf Bergmann

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Neighborhoods

The Docks

Docks, Taverns, Brothels, Warehouses (Lower Class)

Imperial Quarter

Cathedral of St. Paltar, Baron’s Manor, Mayor’s House, Mansion Row (Extremely Wealthy)

The Grind

Blacksmiths, Butchers, Dyers, Red Light District, etc. (Lower Class)

Salt Ward

Meat Preservation, Salt Warehouses, Morgues, Guild Houses, Theatres & Gay Underground (Middle Class)

Merchant’s Row

Artisan Shops and Stalls, Temple of Valsha, Beer/Wine Gardens, Guild Houses (Middle to Upper Class)

The Piles

Tanners, Landfill (Squalor) All located on artificially infilled land, clinging to the walls of the city’s southern [downstream] tip

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Headquarters

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Castle Columann was first constructed as a simple square keep in 788 (following the successful Cytrian siege of 786) and has been continually added to over the last two centuries, now standing as one of the largest castles in the Empire. The fortress has never been occupied

A Walk to the Castle by Alexandre Chaudret

by anyone other than the Columann Earls (or "Grafs"), who renamed the city after taking power in 786. Resting atop a natural rock citadel, many say that the castle is impenetrable...

Type

City