Aldhon

The burgeoning capital of Elturia, the founding of Aldhon marks the beginning of the calendar. Known as the Hearth City, it sits just within Wolf Head's Bay at the foot of the Star Reach Peaks. Its defensible location and connection to the surrounding settlements have caused Aldhon to grow far more than its neighbors, making it an excellent seat for the crown. The city is currently broken into 3 districts but it is expanding quickly. The three districts are the Mountain Spring District, The Salt Spray, And the Ridge District. The fourth unofficial district is known as the Hay Tops for the large shanty towns that are growing at the edge of the unfinished city wall.

Before the Wolf Queen was born to the Jarl of this settlement, Aldhon was still the largest village and boasted a small wooden wall that kept its inhabitants safe from the roving monsters. One of the Wolf Queen's accomplishments however was the construction of the Steelrock Wall that now encompasses the Mountain Spring district. Queen Elturandis II now seeks to wall further sections of the city since more people seek its safety.

Jarls and other lesser nobles have come to Aldhon to try to curry favor with the Queen. While she does not have much time for them, the arrival of these powerful individuals to the city is having a varied effect. Some seek to aid in improving the city to gain this favor, while others seek to undercut or even assassinate their rivals. The common folk do not fully understand why these people have come to their city but they welcome any improvement to the roads and other amenities.

The city streets are are busy with a variety of the peoples that can be found within Elturia. They go about their business seeking knowledge, peddling their wares, learning a trade, training to join the guard, or any number of other things. Most people look to Aldhon as a beacon of hope, however there are some that despise what it stands for. Those across the straight only see Aldhon as a symbol for a far off ruler that does not understand them.

Government: Home to the Wolf Throne, Queen Elturandis II rules this city and the surrounding lands. However, she is primarily concerned with the expansion of her kingdom and other greater things rather than the governance of Aldhon. The day to day governance of Aldhon is left to Steward Mila Quilkeeper. High Captain Muragar oversees the guard and enforcement of the law. Chief Arbiter Khirirr organizes the various courts within Aldhon.
Defense: The Varan Guard under the direction of High Captain Murangar patrol most of the city. There are large concentration of guard in the Mountain Spring District along with most of the queen's guard. There are also large contingent of guard along the constructions sites of the new outer wall.
Commerce: Aldhon is the capitol city of the Kingdom as well as the largest. Food, fine goods, and raw materials are brought to the city on a daily basis from the surrounding towns. This began with the previous Queen calling for each village to bring in a tithe to the crown, with a suggestion that they also peddle their goods while in Aldhon. Queen Elturandis II has removed the requirement of a material tithe from the outlying towns since commerce has begun to boom, now the crown only requires small taxes from each village in the form of whatever the village can provide for the greater good. Most goods and services can be found in Aldhon, and most guilds are young. There are a few hedge mages selling potions and minor scrolls but magical artifacts are not widely sold. However, adventurers in magical items can meet with the crown for them, or find a way to research their creation themselves.
Organizations: The Temple Towers within the Mountain Spring District is the primary place of worship. Shrines to each Deity can be found here, even the evil ones have shrines that collect tithes (the people pray to them here in hopes to stave off their wrath or attention). Guilds are beginning to crop up in the city but have not gained a deep foothold yet. The Illuminators have found newfound trust from the people due to inventing continual flames to keep the city alight, and the queen now calls them to aid in understanding the nature of magic, while the Snike steal valuables where they can.

The Wolf Guard

This city was once ravaged by a Werewolf tribe, but a powerful druid at the behest of the first Queen sought out the tribe and brokered a deal with them. It is not known the full details to most of the public but the druid was with them for a week before they emerged with the tribe transformed. This is when the first Arkine walked the face of Elturia and now a group of 13 Arkine still serve Queen Elturandis as the Wolf Guard.

The Developing Guilds

The crown has called for inspired individuals to come to Aldhon to help in developing the infrastructure of the city as well as become a hub for magical and mundane inventors. The Illuminators was formed a decade ago by a group of mages that sought to bring the mysteries of magic into the light. They recieved their name from the populace after they invented enchanted torches that will forever cast light. Now at night the developed parts of the city are lit by these arcane lights, and if some districts they have even been enchanted to shine different colors. The Illuminators act as a loose guild that govern the use of magic and inventions through the city. It is not required to join them to practice magic, but anyone with any sort of prowess is offered a place among them and it comes with some benefit. They usually have 3 to 5 members working with the Varan Guard at any given time to help deal with magical threats and aid in bolstering magical defenses.
Even though this is the most defensible city in the region, monsters still prowl the nearby roads and some get brave enough to attack the farm lands a few miles out of the city that feed its citizens. As such there is always work to be had for the brave to guard these farms, and hunt down particularly dangerous threats in the area. There is talk of the local monster hunters banding together to form their own organization but nothing has come of it yet. The crown does not necessary want another guild cropping up, but they cannot deny that monster hunters are needed.
There are some other smaller guilds, however the Mappers are the largest guild in Aldhon due to the last Queen's decree in putting so many of them to work. Many of these cartographers have been trained slightly in fighting to defend themselves on their travels, and they have made sure they are still needed since they know where all of the important raw materials are and they have the skills to find more.

Under Construction

Aldhon grew faster than anyone could have expected, and much of the city is under construction to compensate for the influx of people. This means that there is a lot of work to be had for the common folk that do not wish to join the military to defend the lands. The current large project that is underway in the city is replacing the wooden outer wall of the city with a stronger stone wall. There are also many projects to dig irrigation lines as well as the sewer system. All of this going on at once is quick a nuisance for much of the populace, and it has caused much of the city to stay in their respected neighborhoods as much as possible so that they do not need to deal with the construction.

Government

The second queen of the realm is Queen Elturandis II. She is still relatively young and so heavily relies on her advisors, but she has shown to be a good queen who cares for her people. The steward still manages much of the commerce within the city as well as the criers that spread news and collect taxes. however this is quickly becoming too much for one person as the city grows. Even though Steward Mila Quilkeeper sees to most of the day to day governance of the city, the Queen still makes sure to have one day a week that she sees her subjects with the right to vote. In order to gain the right to vote a citizen is required to serve the crown for two years in some capacity, whether that be in the military, aiding the cartographers guild, helping with the infrastructure, or for the wealthy paying a truly hefty sum of gold to the crown. The Queen also requires her vassal cities to send a minimum of 20 youths every year to serve in the military for two years. After this service those conscripted gain the right to vote. Few towns refuse this requirement except for some of the Freeholds across the straight.

Crime

The Snike started as a small group of petty teenage thieves, but now that several decades have passed they are a growing problem within the city. No one knows who truly runs the Snike, but they have begun infiltrating other guilds and even layers of the government to lay the seeds of corruption. As such the guards and the crown have begun taking the Snike very seriously and any crime is heavily punished. This is leading to some of the less well off to find sympathy for the Snike, and at times they are even glorified since a select few members of the organization make sure that their home neighborhoods are taken care of with enough food.

Geography

Aldhon first sprung up around a font of fresh mountain spring water at the base of the Star Reach Peaks on the northern end of the city. The city has since grown to encompass the town that had grown at Wolf Head's bay to the immediate south. Many boats come in and out of the harbor, and fishermen feed a great deal of the city. To the west lie many small farming communities that provide more food and other goods for the city. The city is sectioned into 4 different districts: the Mountain Spring District at the top, the Ridge, The Salt Spray, and the newest district is the Hay Tops. A few important locations include: Longfang Hold, the Temple Towers, The Illuminators Repository, and The Compass.

Aldhon, The Hearth City

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Mountain Spring District: The highest district of the city is home to the heart of the Elturian Kingdom. On this mountain landing Longfang Hold can be found where Queen Elturandis II and the myriad of officials the run the kingdom make their home. The small lake known as Godreki's respite is also found here and supplies much of the city with fresh water. The new cobbled roads are in good repair in this district and the building, while new still reflect the heritage of its people. Also contained within this district are the Temple Towers, The Diond Stage and Academy, Hordin's Forge, and the main entrance for the Hall of the Dead.
The Ridge:Placed among the ridge just below the Mountain Spring District, the Ridge is home to many of the members of the guard, working class, and craftsman. A majority of the construction is underway in this district, and the citizens are currently unhappy with it, but hopefully in the next year or two they will be elated at the new wall and sewer system. Many goods and services can be found here along with several inns. The prominent shops and locations include: The Reliquary home of the Illuminators, the Clockwork Market, Mynol's Tinctures, Gloivin's Handy Items, as well as the two inns like the Longfang Inn, and The Craft.
The Salt Spray:Place along the shore, and at the bottom ring of the city, the Salt Spray hold the docks that are the gate way to Wolf Head's Bay. This district is one of the busiest since so man of the citizens of Aldhon work on the docks and its boats. The docks hold the Queen's fleet, and a slew of fisherman's vessels. The Salt Spray is also home to The Compass and Hlera's Row. The younger members of The Snike cut their teeth by trying to pull off crimes within this district, so crime is slightly more prominent here.

Aldhon Adventures

The Snike Surprise (Any Level) A member of the Snike has noticed your group. If the party is largely lawful, then they attempt to steal something of value from the party, if the party is largely neutral they may approach them to aid in a job, of the party is largely evil then they will observe the group and report any evil acts anonymously to guardsman they trust. The motivation behind this particular member of The Snike is up to you, perhaps they are trying to raise money to cure a sick family member, they are trying to prove themselves in the organization, or they want to make sure the party does not disrupt their community (too much).
A Reliquary Disaster (Mid-Level) Members of the Reliquary have unknowingly opened a small portal to the Eternal Dark (Shadowfell), and Nebri's shadow creations are entering the city at an alarming rate. Several members of The Reliquary have already fallen, and the monsters are beginning to rampage in the eastern side of The Ridge. Several Wraiths and a Bodak have been seen on the Reliquary grounds. If the characters do not close the portal soon Sorrowsworn will begin to come through the portal.

Demographics

70% Human, 8% Dwarves, 7% Halflings, 5% Elves, 4% Goblinkin, 6% Other Races

Alternative Name(s)

The Hearth City

Type

City

Population

125,000

Inhabitant Demonym

Aldhans

Included Locations

• Diond Theatre
• Solmithra's Grace

Owner/Ruler

Queen Elturandis II

Related Reports (Primary)

• Session 5, Shadows in Aldhon
• Session 8, Swirling Onward

Related Plots

• The Staff of Bones