Chrastlin
Demographics
The people of Fasach are predominantly human, and this is true of Chrastlin, as well. There are also populations of orcs and elves here, but these mostly keep to themselves. Even so, there is a somewhat significant population of half-elves and half-orcs that call this place home, as well.
Chrastlin, as the largest Fasachan settlement also has a higher population of travelers than anywhere else in Fasach. These are still rare compared to other lands, however, and usually consist of adventurers searching the wilds for forgotten magic. This population is to small and too diverse to affect Chrastlin's population in any meaningful way.
Government
Chrastlin, itself does not have any specific government. All of the clans of Fasach have some holdings here, but even enemy clans don't attack one another. They recognize that fighting one another in this neutral space, no matter their hatred, would only cause more problems.
The day to day life in Chrastlin lacks any sort of order. They don't have any formal laws, or anyone to enforce them. Attacks against people tend to be that person's responsibility to take care of on their own. The Fasachans don't take such offenses lightly.
Chrastlin is also the home of the Moot, an annual meeting between the clan chiefs which occurs during the spring equinox. These chiefs are often accompanied by a large number of their clansmen, as a way to showcase their clan's power. During this time, there is a sense of comraderie and community, but this is also a sacred time, and the peace is enforced far more heavily.
Defences
Chrastlin is curious for a Fasachan community. Almost all are centered around a clan's walled fortress. Chrastlin, however, entirely lacks walls. Instead, its greatest defenses are the wilderness surrounding it and its lack of wealth. Few forces have the inclination to attack Chrastlin for such a paltry reward, and those that do have several days' travel through deep wilds.
Its next greatest defense is the population. Local foes such as the orcs or dark elves have a difficult time mustering the numbers to attack a community the size of Chrastlin. Even if they did, such threats are hardly new for the Fasachans, whose martial culture makes means a large number of the population is willing and able to fight them.
Industry & Trade
The Fasachan people generally don't value trade as much as many other cultures do. That being said, Chrastlin is, in many ways, the center of the Fasachan world. If something can be found for trade anywhere in Fasach, it is likely to eventually find its way here. This community is one of the few in the nation to have anything resembling a market, where all manner of simple goods are traded one for another.
Craftsmen of all sorts come from all across Fasach to learn their trade. As such, all of the land's best craftsmen tend to be found here. Generally, the most sought-after crafts here are tanners and woodworkers (especially bowyers). Experts of other crafts, such as smithing are serviceable, but not exceptional in skill.
Infrastructure
Chrastlin is, in many ways defined by its geography. On the eastern edge of town, on a hill unlittered by buildings and trees lies a very impressive array of standing stones known as the Henge of Time. It is used by the druids both as a timekeeping tool to mark the holiest times of year-- the solstices and equinoxes. It is also used as a meeting point for both the druids and the Moot.
The town, itself is divided by a gentle, but relatively narrow river known as Afon-Dyner. This river is lacks the space for large docks and is flanked by small cliffs, but there are plenty of boathouses on both sides of the river near steep ramps leading to the water. A series of four small suspension bridges connect one side of town to another.
As a town, Chrastlin's society is very disorganized, and that is reflected in its layout. There are no districts to speak of, as there might be in other lands. Homes are built wherever is most convenient, and craftsmens' shops are built wherever best serves the community. This has led to a chaotic web of unpaved streets, left bare by foot traffic.
History
Strangely for a land as rustic as Fasach, Chrastlin's founding began with a market. With the vast wilds between the fortress homes of the clans, clans attempting to trade with one another found a central location to make this that much simpler. Centrally located in the lands of the Tuatha De was where Chrastlin would one day be built.
The first permanent structure built there was the Henge of Time, created by the druids to help track the passage of the seasons. The druids were the first to meet in the location regularly. While the site of the Henge of Time is still sacred, the druids have largely taken to meeting somewhere else, far from the prying eyes of the rest of Fasach.
The people of the Fasachan clans didn't wait long to build an inn, meant to cater to the traders and druids coming to the site of the henge. After this, the settlement grew little by little, becoming something unique in Fasach: a settlement belonging not to one clan, but them all.
When the orcs invaded the whole of Skogsmark from another world, one clan fell after another. The survivors fled to Chrastlin for shelter, causing this population to grow unbelievably quickly. One of these survivors, the bard Cinniah Mac Lainne eventually convinced all the clan chiefs to meet in Chrastlin and take the fight to the orcs as one-- a fight they won.
Once the war was over, Cinniah refused to exert her will over the clans, but they saw the benefits of unity. They continued to meet here once a year, creating the Moot. Since that time Chrastlin has been in the center of Fasach in more ways than the physical, caught in the middle of the clans' conflicts yet oddly sheltered from them.
Architecture
Fasachan architecture is very simple and practical. They are usually made of lumber, often with a wooden or sod roof. In Chrastlin, more of the roofs are sod, rather than wood due to the open, mostly treeless countryside. These buildings tend to be warmed by a central fire and tend to be small, but are surprisingly comfortable on the inside.
The structures, themselves are very plain, but that doesn't mean they are all devoid of decoration. Many have designs painted on one of the outside walls, sometimes in bright colors. These often bear natural motifs, but also includes religious images as well, such as the god Cernunnos, or Lugh slaying Balor.
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