Valtkos Wingo
Valtkos Wingo is both a thriving capital city, and a somber monument to the lost mountain dwarf citadels of the Apps Mountains. Established originally as a prison facility and labor camp managed by the Crysos Mining Company, what was once Wingo Mine has since turned into a center of craft and trade. Having swelled in size, Valtkos Wingo is now one of the largest cities west of the Apps Mountains outside of the Shin Empire and is now known as being a magnet for the diaspora of mountain dwarves who have been forced out of their ancestral homes in the east.
Demographics
The majority of population of Valtkos Wingo consists of mountain and hill dwarves who have migrated here over the decades since it was established as Wingo Mine. Since the end of the Wingo War, thousands of dwarves have made their way here from Alsona and Recfrere, anxious to make their mark on what is said to be the resurrection of an old way of life. Despite the mass migration of dwarves, well over a third of the city's population are Alsonan humans, who live in the above ground town which had been formed to house relatives of the prisoners within. They are welcome members of the community, but are typically uninterested in living underground with the dwarves.
Government
The governance of Valtkos Wingo is directly from the retainers of the High King. The king has appointed delegates from the dozens of clans that have emerged in the city to oversee all operations within. Clan Grimboot is the ruling clan, that of the king. Clan Fusemail is known as the clan maintaining the judicial courts, constructed along human lines. The Council of Clans is the form of participation for most people, as each clan elects a representative from among its ranks to act as an advisor to the king himself, and to bring back dictates from the throne.
Defences
The defenses of Valtkos Wingo are impressive, but hardly the most elaborate in the kingdom. They are watched over by three full time regiments, staffed with professional soldiers, most of whom are veterans of the Wingo War. The city itself also can muster over four thousand citizens into a militia to defend if they came under attack, and many of these individuals have also seen combat in wars across Emicara. The difficult with the defense of Valtkos Wingo is that they must protect themselves on two fronts.
The Outer City is protected by a tall stone wall with a single gate that runs in a semi-circle, using the mountain cliffs to anchor its flanks. The mountain cliffs possess several fortified bunkers and outposts that prevent flanking, as even a small group of well-armed individuals could defend those approaches indefinitely. The cliff face of Wingo Mine marks the entrance into the Inner City, and from there, a multitude of siege weapons and devices have been assembled, allowing ranged warriors to provide support to the walls from an unassailable unground.
Even before Valtkos Wingo was created, it was being constantly undermined by a less traditional threat. A giant ant hive has riddled Wingo Mountain with tunnels, and layers of gates and defenses have had to be created in the depths of the Inner City to prevent a breach by these creatures. Devious devices and weapons have been set up in fixed positions, and patrols through the deepest tunnels have to be made common, as if the ants were allowed into the city itself, hundreds could be killed before the breach was sealed. The three regiments of the army in the area are constantly on patrol in these tunnels and occasionally launching preemptive forays into the depths to deal with large clusters of ant soldiers.
Industry & Trade
Valtkos Wingo has become a center of trade and industry in the northwestern part of Emicara. The massive amount of stone and metals being hauled out of Wingo Mine in a day is staggering, and the dwarves have no need of much of it. Therefore, some is sold to the Tenashi Kingdom, others make their way to the Sypi Confederacy, and still other even are sold all the way north to the barony of Highveldt. Dwarven artisans buy raw materials cheaply and the superior tools they produce are frequently bought by the humans residing in the kingdom, and then sold abroad. The only item not produced in sufficient amounts locally is food, much of which has to be imported from Efimiros.
Infrastructure
The tools and equipment used to delve into the mountain by the Crysos Mining Company have since been turned towards excavation of new living quarters, in addition to the expansion of the mines. The inner city, or the Deep City, has been dug out of the rocks itself, and a multitude of clan quarters and complexes have been added, with the passages filling up the mountain with each passing day. The mines themselves have also been expanded, as the clans discover new types of materials and minerals within. The Great Wingo Hall itself used to be the primary mining chamber and common area of the prison, but has been turned into an ornate throne room, decorated with the trophies of the Wingo War, and is reminiscent of the most magnificent halls of the Apps.
The Outer City, or Wingo Town as it is town to the humans, has numerous paved roads and an elaborate aqueduct system that draws in water from the top of the mountain into the Deep City and Outer City, providing clean drinking water that is invulnerable to outside sabotage. The town is well lit with braziers that provide vision for the humans at night, and ample infrastructure has been added to allow caravans to encamp. The multitude of warehouses in the Outer City are used to store the numerous raw materials dug out of the mountain, before shipment to Tinnt or Efimiros.
Assets
Valtkos Wingo has everything that a wandering adventurer would desire, especially dwarves. The halls of the kingdom are open to dwarves of every origin, and there is always space to make for new immigrants and those seeking a traditional life underground instead of in service to a primarily human nation. The hospitality of the Great Hall is boundless, and ample feasts and foods are provided to anyone who chooses to be a guest within the Inner City. In the human parts of town, dwarven goods are regularly sold and traded in the marketplace, and there are three more traditional inns that welcome traders from far away lands. The Tenashi Kingdom and Sypi Confederacy also maintain embassies in the Outer City.
Founding Date
933 AF
Alternative Name(s)
Wingo Mine
Type
Capital
Population
28,300
Related Ethnicities
Inhabitant Demonym
Wingoan
Location under
Owner/Ruler
Owning Organization
Characters in Location
Comments