Balmoth

Placed at the southern tip of the great northern mountain ranges most of Balmoth as a city is placed upon a tall mountain, making it hard to besiege, attack, or sometimes even reach.
Balmoth has had a tumultuous history. It was the origin of the titular Balmoth Crusade. Their royal family was wiped out by an ambitious noble who named himself Lord Regent and pinned the blame on the Paladins, this would lead to the Paladin Purge across Kalin in the Late Second Age. Later the city fought a pseudo-civil war that saw the Church of the Mantle take full control of the city from its civilian government, only for the city to be nearly totally destroyed during the Return.
While the city did well under the leadership of the Church, in the mid-sixth century of the Third Age the city determined it no longer wanted to be a theocracy, a spiral that led to it coming under the banner of the Kingdom of Aurelia, with the exception of about a square mile of the inner-most city, which remains the sovereign territory of the Church.
Today Balmoth is the most stable it has been in many, many centuries. Efforts to modernize the city have been slower than in some places due to the difficulty of getting rail-lines up the mountains, but an abundance of natural resources in the area such as silver, gold, and the all important saltpeter, used for gunpowder.

Demographics

The city is mostly made up of miners and supporting industry, with some refineries and factories. But the inner parts of the city act as support for the Church in the form of priests, servants, guards, and more. This has led to steep income inequality between the lower-middle class miners and factory workers, and the upper class Church staff.
Racially, the city is mostly Humans, with a lot of Norse, Olark, Dwarf, and even Drow representation.

Government

The city and its surrounding Allod is ruled by an elected Nadzorca.

Tourism

The city attracts a lot of faithful tourists going to see the Basilica Maxima and the various religious artifacts and religious sites in the city.

Architecture

The city of Balmoth has a lot of stone, only behind the Dwarves with how much stone they use. This makes the city very hardy, if a bit drafty. To combat this Balmoth has a large amount of carefully maintained coal and magical furnaces beneath the city to keep the inhabitants warm, on top of large hearths and fireplaces being common.

Geography

Balmoth rests on the Southern tip of great mountain ranges, and is built into those mountains. Paths to Balmoth are well paved and cared for, but going even a little off of the main roads is rocky and dangerous.

Natural Resources

Balmoth is well known for its large amount of mines, especially for valuable minerals like gold and silver, as well as saltpeter, needed for gunpowder.

Alternative Name(s)

City of the Gods

Type

Large city

Population

758,000

Inhabitant Demonym

Balmothian

Owning Organization

Kingdom of Aurelia