Hillside
Coalvein Mine
The Coalvein Mine is known for its large deposits of gold and platinum that have been found and harvested on behalf of the Empire. The mines were named for the noble who founded the mine, Teran Coalvein, an earth elementra.
Currently the Coalvein Mine is presided over by Pryla Coalvein, the most recent member of the family. Additionally, there have been several major advancements in the technology created by the mining company. This includes the use of magic and gear based machinery to develop an automated drill that can immediately start to refine ores as they are mined.
The War Merchant
A crowded and cluttered blacksmith owned by a dwarven former general known as Bhertio Rytanoli. Bhertio is known for crafting powerful and unique blades that are based on designs from across the realm. Some belive that the weapons in the shop are those of fallen warriors, stolen from distant battlefields by dark magic.
Society
Demographics
Orrak has a population of 8,873 as of 755 AR. While there are large dwarvish and elven communities in the town, the majority of its population are of human descent. 72% of the population is comprised of humans. The rest of the population breakdown is as follows: 21% half-elf, 10% gnome, 15% other ancestries.11% dwarven, 10% elven, 7% other ancestries/
Notable People
| Name |
Pronouns |
Description |
| Margrave Lorenna Torfield |
She/They |
Margrave of Orrak. Member of the Ossalimar family and first cousin to the Emperor. |
| Pryla Coalvein |
She/They |
Current owner of the Coalvein Mine and its linked mining company. Middle-aged earth elementra |
| Bhertio Rytanoli |
He/Him |
Dwarven owner of The War Merchant. Once a general for The Emprie, Bhertio is now loud and verbose. When not in the blacksmiths, he is often found in local pubs along the Hillside district. |
| Cardinal Moores |
They/Them |
A young member of the Veritas Convention. Halfling Wizard with a strong focus on enchantment magic. |
| Qi-na Tyal |
They/He |
Flamboyant and Loud Dracian owner of the Grand Tyal Inn. Current owner, despite several members of the family older being around. |
| Rya Lovanis |
She/Her |
Tiefling owner of several markets in the Quadmarket. Additionally a member of the Black Hand, a criminal ring focused on smuggling artifacts through the town. |
| Yllian Leafvein |
He/They |
High Elven owner of the Starlight Auction House. Often found among the upper echelons of nobility in the town. |
| NAME |
PRONOUN |
DESCRIPTION |
History
Founding
During the 6th Century, two families travelled as far as they could across
Ossalimar. Its been recorded that the goal of the two siblings at the head of the family was to find a location that they could settle that was entirely their own, independent from The Empire's control. They were somewhat successful in this endeavour, especially as Orrak was not recorded on imperial maps for several centuries. The two siblings who founded the settlement were Ava and Quince Goldborne, twins of
earthern elementran descent. As a result once knowledge of the settlement had passed on to the higher eschellon of the empire they passed over it as it was just a small domicile for a collective of elementra. Which they believed was linked to the
Ossaman Tribes and therefore respected its independence.
The majority of the population during the early years of the settlement was elementran in origin. There was a higher concentration of earthern elementra, records indicate that several felt that they were "drawn to" the location by a pinging or noise in the back of their mind. in 594 AR Councillor Marna Evernos, an earthern elementran member of the
Veritas Convention, left their post and joined the growing settlement.
A Mining Town
In the early 7th Century, Teran Coalvein arrived and started drumming up attention towards a mine within the town. Before arriving in the town Teran was a religious figure and they spoke of some great being for the earthern elementra beneath the
Lorena Range that would bring them all salvation. While the town was not initially prepared to follow the word of Teran, it was a disaster that made some form of mining operation necessary for the people of the town.
During late 603 AR there were a set of small wildfires and a tornado caused major destruction in the town. As a result the primarily wooden structures of the town were commonly destroyed. This led many townsfolk, including the Goldborne family to support the mining operation. Over the course of the next two decades, Teran and the Coalvein Miners spent time constructing a quarry and a mine. Both with the aim to find Teran's claimed figure and provide significant amounts of stone to the town. The Tarlock Quarry was named for the one in charge of the project, while the Coalvein Mine was named for Teran and his strange desires.
Once the mine and quarry were constructed, the town of Orrak started to slowly thrive and grow in size. Houses became more permanent residence with more stone foundations and even stone buildings added to the town's borders. The settlement started to break down into two districts, each designed to serve as a hub for the closest of the mining locations. The Hillside DIstrcit was created to serve the Coalvein Mine and was the samller of the districts, it was primarily residence and amenities to satisfy the miners and different people in the town. On the other hand, the Coreside District was started to allow for stone to brought closer to the town without having to pull it through too far of the streets, it mostly contained residence but started to get some "luxurious amenities fit for our town" according to records of the time.
Economic Boom
For several years the majority of the growth within the town was natural with people travelling and settlling down within the town's borders. During 624 AR, the miners in the Coalvein Mine struck gold, both metaphorically and physically. The miners found a significant deposit of gold within the mine. This immediately caught the attention of the Ossalimarian Empire, particularly for its benefits within trading circles. As the land was within their territory, Crownsguard and Diplomats all gathered together and encroached upon Orrak. By 629 AR, a significant deal was set in place between the Empire, Goldborne, and Coalvein family. The town and precious metals would become property of the Empire. The Goldborne and Coalvein family would be risen to advisors of the appointed Margrave. Additionally, the Coalvein family would be given a significant percentage of profits earned from the Mine and precious metals. The delay of the deal was in part due to platinum also being discovered within the Coalvein Mine, for the Empire this drastically increased the worth of the mine so allegedly the town increased its demands for what they wanted out of the deal.
After the completion of the deal there was a vast influx of people into the town. This necessitated the creation of a new district specifically designed for these new people. It was named Lochside for the first Margrave of Orrak, Jarath Loch, who was the first resident of the district. The increase in growth also required the creation of more and more farms that would provide the necessary food and grain stores to help facilitate such large expansion. As a result, on the outskirts of Lochside are a collection of farms that provide for the town.
Edge of the Emprie
For the rest of the 7th Century, the expansion of Orrak declined but there has been a drastic shift in the demographics of the town. While once it was a haven for elementra, more human, dwarven and high elven families populated the region. As a result, the elementran familes became the minority over the years. Though there is still a large foundation of religious elementra, some of whom are following texts written by Teran Coalvein and maintained by their family.
Often Orrak is called the Edge of the Empire due to its geographic positioning. However, some scholars have written that the name is a symbol for the fact that the town wasn't conquered by the Empire and instead was acquired requiring a deal for said acquisition. However, the expansion from the empire was prominent particularly after the succession of the nearby Daunka Province. Orrak was the first settlement gathered after this succession, therefore the strengthening of the Crownsguard was considered vital for the expansion of the Empire and using the town as a resource hub allowed for people to thrive in the town showing nearby towns the success of the empire.
The Asharn Incident
In 741AR, the former Margrave, a fervent worshiper of
Goldhammer, discovered a small collective that were following what they believed was an unsanctioned deity. On the dawn of 16th Olind'i, the four families were found guilt of religious treason and sentenced to execution. Additionally, a further twelve neighbors and family members who protested the executions were sentenced to their deaths. The incident was known as The Asharn Incident as that was the name of the "unsanctioned deity" that the families were following.
Once the name Asharn came into circulation it was obvious to many who spoke the
Elvish languages that the families were using an ancient elvish tongue to worship Goldhammer. When this information was discovered, or released, publically, miners revolted and refused to go to work. For a year, this miners strike continued until there was some dramatic change. The Hand of the Empire,
Marisson de la Vonsick herself came to break down the issue and eventually worked out a solution between the two groups. As a result Margrave Lorenna Torfield, a direct family member of the Ossalimar family was appointed to overlook the town and provide support from the direct rule.
I love the different sections you've broken the article into - the notable people section is inspired. The Asharn incident is so sad.