Orsturkirk

Orsturkirk is a key port town and academic centre on the island of Orsturejya in the Jarldom of the Eastern Isles. The capital of its Jarldom, this small city holds cultural importance for the Aedrinarian people due to its frontier with the Ice Elf islands. Amongst the oldest inhabited settlements in the islands, the historic town is dominated by its famous Eagle Library, a member of the secretive ‘Order of the Seven Skalds'.
Alongside its library, Orsturkirk supports the High Temple of the Seas – the grandest cathedral to Njord and Agir in the realm. Supporting the training of sea clerics and the education of the local population, this imposing Giant-constructed basilica is the town’s namesake and forms a prominent part of the island’s skylines, rivalling the smaller hills and mountains on the island for size.
The city is home to the ancient and proud House Dragontooth, a grand noble house who has held prominence in the city since the second age. Unlike other noble houses, the Dragontooths have few local rivals, with their stewardship and long history of honourable conduct and rule having earnt them the good graces of smaller local families.
As a centre of academic learning and history, those seeking higher education across Aedrinar regularly travel to the ‘city of scrolls’ to hone their craft and lore. The city’s industries are centered around their libraries and temples, using what natural resources are available nearby for their own use rather than export. It’s town’s docks do act as a commercial hub for goods passing between Asrinheim and Aedrinar, with its portside district dominated by large inns, brothels, and shipyards.

Demographics

Orsturkirk is a majority human city but reasonably diverse due to its frontier positioning and reputation as a learning centre. Alongside human Aedrinarans, Ice Elves and half-elves make up a notable minority. Families of halflings, gnomes, dragonborn, dwarves, and even a few rarer races such as tabaxi, Shapeshifters, and kobolds are known to live in the city.
The population's wealth is diverse, ranging from poor farm tennants and herders on the city's outskirts to a prominent manufacutring focused working class in the dock and temple quarters. the Religious class and academics make up a sizeable portion of the temple and library quarters, whilst the richest ruling class and military classes can be found in the Dragon Qaurter primarily. Overall, the city has a mostly even spread of wealth with only the dock quarter appearing as a 'poor' district.
The major professions of the city are as clerics, monks, paladins, academics, and manufacturors of cloth and scrolls. The agricutlutral workers live on the city's outskirts, with farms around its eastern walls and shepards coming from the mountainside to sell their goods in the city.
The major religion is the Honoured Gods. Alongside the impressive High Temple of the Seas, dedicated to Njord and Aegir, there are temples to Odin, Frigga, Frey and Freya, Odur, Tyr, and Heimdall. Seldarine worship is the next most popular, with the temples of Frey and Freya and Frigga having equal shares of Vaniri and Aedrinaran worshippers. A temple to Corellon can be found in the Dock Quarter to the north-east.

Government

The city has been ruled by House Dragontooth since the 4th century of the second age. They rule as not just jarls of the entire eastern islands, but as managers of the city itself. Their fair rule and proven reputation in protecting the city from threats through their extensive army and navy has kept them in power and earnt them the respect of the populace. The city is too small to utilize the Alderman system of cities like Kriegerholm and Odinsthrone, but there are minor houses who control major industries or land that act as nobles. The most prominent are listed below:

• House Blackfire: Miners and mettalurgists
• House Lightfeller
• House Frostbarrel

Defences

As the only major settlement on the island and the capital of the Jarldom of the Eastern Islands, Orsturkirk possess formidable defences and military capabilities. Ranging from its outward fortifications to internal defences and expansive military, the city has maintained its peace and independence for centuries thanks to these assets.
The primary defence of the city is its main stone walls. Tall, thick, and patrolled by warriors from The Dragontooths and other houses, the city walls enclose the Temple, Library, and Dragon quarters whilst forming an internal defence with the Dock Quarter. Boasting 9 defensive towers armed with balistae, catapults, and archery points, these walls are tough to crumble and grant an advantage for the defending army from all approaches. There are three gates within the wall. Only one, the Eagle Bar, connects outside the city. Leading to the Red Road, this gate has three portcullises, murder holes, and oil channels as well as wooden gates. The internal gates with the dockquarter have a single portcullis but still have murder halls and oil channels.
The temple and library quarters also border high cliffaces with a rocky crevice at its bottom. Puffins tend to roost in these cliffs, and the constant battering from the waves makes an attempted climb near impossible. Blacksalt tower also provides a key look out over the cliffs, giving the city a near impregnable natural defence.
The Dock quarter is defended by smaller wooden walls. Two gates lead outside the city and are manned by warriors who control the gate mechanisms. Only containing a portcullis and wooden gateway, the main defensive capability of this wall is for its archers. Notably, these walls also contain defenses facing inside the dock quarter to quell any naval invasion that breaks through, and they do not connect to the main stone walls bar for an easily removed wooden ladder at one of the towers.
Orsturkirk's most notable deterant is its impressive Dragontooth navy. Constantly patrolling its harbour and docks, the fleet has managed to deter invaders, pirates, and monsters from attacking the city. A powerful military composed of sworn dragontooth warriors alongside warriors of the smaller noble hosues also provide a highly trained permenant local militia and army. At any time, the town's populace are also capable of joining the fight.

Industry & Trade

As an academic and religious city its most notable industry is around religion and education. The Eagle Libary and High Temple of the Seas, alonsgide other temples, are the largest employers and the heart of the city's economy. The production of scrolls, clothing, candles, and stonework is all produced to support these temples and educational facilities. The city's production of sheep in its surrounding farms and shepard communities on nearby Mount Ornir allow for the production of parchment that is shipped throughout the Aedrinaran trade networks and Asrinheim. It is likely anyone who has ever touched a book or scroll made in Aedrinar has come into contact with Kirkian parchments.
Alongside its production of wool, parchment, and cloth, the next largest industry is shipbuilding. The Dragontooth docks create the impressive local navy but rely on imported wood and oils. Many see this, as well as the joining the Dragontooth army, as good and solid ways of regular employment. Sailing and fishing also form a strong part of the local economy.

Districts

Orsturkirk is divided into four quarters. Each named after the dominating feature of that quarter, only the dock quarter is divided via a wall from the other quarters, with the rest being divided by the natural sloping hills and mountainside of the city. There is the dock quarter, named for the large Orsturkirk docks owned by the Dragontooths, the Temple Quarter, named after the High Temple of the Seas, one of the tallest buildings in Prima Terra, the Library Quarter, named after the Eagle Library, and the Dragon Quarter, named after the Dragonhall, home of house Dragontooth.
Unnamed districts lie outside the walls to the east of the city, these are mainly farmsteads and fields. Sometimes called the Clayfolds or the Gutters, these farmlands hug the city walls and for the purpose of logistics are considered part of the Dock Quarter, but operate independently of the rest of the city outside of local laws.

Dock Quarter

Built on the coastline of the town, the Dock quarter is a bustling industrial hub with tightly packed homes, apartments, warehouses littered with inns and brothels. The town’s main markets are situated here that are open every day selling basic goods, travel supplies, food, and animals.
The Dock Quarter is tightly packed, smelling of fish and animals and filth. People bustle around and stagger from tavern to tavern, with the Dockyard Run being a popular tavern crawl for sailors and merchants. The Dock Quarter employs mainly shipbuilders and service employees. Breweries, meaderies, and warehouses built by wealthier families allow many to work for their coin. The least wealthy portion of the city, the dock quarter is full of aspiration and those seeking gold by axe or by cunning.

Inns and Taverns

Name	Location	Notes
The Sweaty Sailor	Near the Docks	A grand brothel ran by Madame Sillibane and currently under the protection of Fjandmar
The Mastview Inn	Near the Docks
The Cornerpost
The Two Doors
The Winking Badger	South-east, near the southern gate	A popular inn ran by a ranger, holds flyting contest on Thorsdays.
The Gatehouse	South-West of the district, near the southernmost gate with the temple quarter

Shopping

Name	Location	Type	Notes
Lower Markets	East	Markets	Sells common and general goods alongside a specific animal salesman
Burning Alms	South	Alchemists
The Ratticators	Markets, east	Poisons/Exterminators
Fisherman's Tackle	Docks	Sailing supplies	Has a wheelchair accesible ramp
Mark of the Harbour	Docks	Tattoos

Religion

Name	Location	Gods	Notes

Civic and Guilds

Name	Location	Types	Notes
House of the Swift	Betwixt the gates of the inner walls with the temple quarter	Skallen Syndicate
Orsturkirk Docks	Shoreline	Dock

Landmarks

Name	Location	Type	Notes
Wyrmcliffe Lighthouse	Corner of the walls between the docks and the temple quarter	Lighthouse

Temple Quarter

The Temple Quarter is the largest district of the town and the longest inhabited. It has some of the nicest homes and shops, and is dominated by the massive High Temple of the Sea, which on the few sunny days casts its shadows across vast swathes of town.
The Temple Quarter is dominated by tall, neatly aligned buildings with steeped rooves of tile. Carved wooden pillars adorn most of the buildings of dragons, warriors, ancestors, gods, or monsters. The roads are paved and drained, and this area has its own sewage system built by the Skalds that drains into the sea, giving it a clean and organized aesthetic with pleasant smells of incense, scrolls, and candles.
The majority of the temple quarter are the wealthier families and specialists. Middling and lower-middle class families still live here. The population are more human Aedrinaran compared to the docks.
The temple quarter is centered around the temple and religion. Learning, education, and workshops to support the temple are the major employers.
The Temple of the Sea is the most important faction in the quarter. As one of the three major factions in the town, they are basically the lords and masters of this quarter with their temple supporting all the major businesses. The Stonehands are a minor house who run the stonemason workshop. Members of the Order of the Triangle lodge also live in the district.

Inns and Taverns

Name	Location	Notes
The Lighthouse Inn	Bellow Wyrmcliffe lighthouse	Contains an attic suite and is the home of House Lightfeller.
The Stumbling Monk	South of the High Temple	a popular but expensive inn notable for its academic gatherings.
Aleyard	West

Shopping

Name	Location	Type	Notes
Dockgate Tomes	North	Books
Temple Markets	Central, west of the temple	Markets
Hut of Healing	Central, west of temple	Alchemists
Three Pins Smith	Central, East of temple	Blacksmiths
Clericgate Shops	North	Mixed	A row of shops containing a tailors, holy symbol makers, spell components seller, and tea shop
Ruby of the Kirk	North	Gems
Shop with Dead	North of the High Temple of the Seas	Occult	The storefront operations of occultist and plane traveller Darlynn Darke

Religion

Name	Location	God(s)	Notes
High Temple of the Seas	Large building in the centre of the district	Njord, Aegir	by its spirepoint the cathedral is 512ft tall, making it one of the tallest structures in the world. It is also home to the Oracle of Aegir, the speaker of salt and krakens.
Temple of Odur	North of the High Temple	Odur
Temple of Heimdall	North	Heimdall	Mysterious visions are said to occur deep within the temple's bowels.

Civic and Guilds

Name	Location	Type	Notes
Cattlegate Springs and Baths	East of the temple, near the southernmost gate with the dock quarter	Bath house

Landmarks

Name	Location	Type	Notes
Blacksalt Tower	North	Ruin

Library Quarter

The library quarter is on a raised hill known as Eyriehill. It is dominated by the grand fortress of the Eagle Library. Although open to the public as of the end of the second age, the library keeps most of its interior secret. It is surrounded by staggered, detached homes with private gardens often full of herbs or small animals. Largely fully of civic buildings and homes, the Library quarter is quiet and peaceful, with wooden oil lamps dotting its streets.
The library quarter is on a raised hill known as Eyriehill. It is dominated by the grand fortress of the Eagle Library. Although open to the public as of the end of the second age, the library keeps most of its interior secret. It is surrounded by staggered, detached homes with private gardens often full of herbs or small animals. Largely fully of civic buildings and homes, the Library quarter is quiet and peaceful, with wooden oil lamps dotting its streets.

Assets

Name	Location	Type	Notes
The Morning Song	North	Inn
Bard's Row	East	Shopping	Contains a tome maker, ink maker, instrument maker, and fine tailor
Orsturkirk Presses	East	Printing Press
Juthor's Enchantments	South	Magic Items
Temple of Frigga	South-west of the Eagle Library	Temple
Eagle Library	Heart of the Library District	Library
Orn's Grove	Heart of the library district	Park	Strange singing can be heard in the nighttime hours
Gallant Field	South	Park
Defender of the Gate	West of library	Landmark	A brass depiction of Dolf the Defender, a legendary Kirkguard knight.

Dragon Quarter

Sitting on Castle hill, the Dragon Quarter is the noble and military quarter of the city. Impressive, grand manorhouses, barracks, and stone buildings line lanterned streets with tidy, neat cobblestone roads and plazas. Dragontooth soldiers frequently patrol the neighbourhood, and the green spaces make for amble walking grounds, leisure, and duelling facilities. The Dragonhall, the home of the Dragontooths, sits as a proud and impressive fortress over the district, its grand Dragontooth banners flying for all the city to see.

Assets

Name	Location	Type	Notes
Soldier's Spear	North	Inn
Dragonhall	South of the district	Keep	A forboding walled fortress, this is the home of House Dragontooth and the civic centre of the city.
Courtyard of the Dragons	Outside the Dragonhall	Plaza	A grand stone courtyard leading to the Dragonhall

Guilds and Factions

Ysgard's Warriors

Ysgard's Warriors maintain a permanant outpost in the Dock Quarter. Ran by the half-elf Brothir Ironside, this small, walled, stone longhouse was seen as a punishment roster for unruly warriors by Underchief Steinar under the warrior's previous administration but since Erika has taken over the guild it has seen more lucrative bounties and missions sent its way. Contracts for warriors and their associated members are available from within.

Swift Syndicate

The Skallen Syndicate also operate a small cell of robbers and theives in the Dock Quarter. Known as the Swift Syndicate, these catburgulars can be found in an old house betwixt the internal gates of the Dock and Temple quarters.

Eagle Library

Part of the Order of the Seven Skalds, the Eagle Library is one of the three main institutions of the city alongside the High Temple of the Seas and House Dragontooth. Open to the public, this bardic college/library/secretive society predate the foundation of the city and curate knowledge from across the realm. Although bards are welcome to come and train at the library, membership of the Skalds is by invite only and involves a secret ritual to be joined.

Order of the Triangle

The secret society of the Order of the Triangle is rumoured to have a lodge somewhere in the library quarter.

Charitable Sister's of Freya

The Charitable Sisters Freya , a care-giving religious order of monks and clerics, has a small presence based at the Temple of Frey and Freya in the dock quarter.

History

Early Settlement

Orsturkirk has been inhabited since the mythic age, when a ‘coven’ of forgotten god cultists were ‘purified’ by the God Heimdall, and the land given to the Eagle Library in lead up to the ascension of the Honoured Gods. Smaller villages would come and go as larger settlement of the island began in the early first age, but no full settlement would exist outside of the library and its grounds.
The town itself can date its formation to two feuding clerics of Njord and Aegir. Haakon Seawhistler and Murag the Fury. The two’s feud, regarding which sea deity was more supreme, brought them to the Orsturejya during the ‘age of 1000 clans.’ In their battles and arguments, they threatened to destroy the Eagle Library when their High Skald – Vidar the Wise, brokered a peace between the two. Sharing mead and stories, the two clerics learned they shared more in common than not and put aside their rivalry to found a temple to both Agir and Njord.
Local clans would set up farms and a rudimentary dock near the temple, calling the area Orrsturejya’s Kirk, eventually getting shortened to the city’s current name. The growing settlement would face attempted raids by nomadic clans and brigands, with a local family of warriors becoming known as the Kirkguards for their defence of the temple and its surrounding township, eventually building the town into a small fortified settlement by the time of Second Kingdom of Aedrinar.
The Kirkguards would be amongst the signatories of submission to Ragnar I The Great's formation of the th Third Kingdom of Aedrinar, and Orsturkirk’s dockyards boomed with trade and travel. The library and temple grew throughout the third kingdom, and saw the town expand into a small city. It would also prove as the launching point for a larged invasion of nearby Vanaheim and the rest of the Eastern Isles under the rulership of High King Haarold I Seasnake.
The history of the fall of the Kirkguards it unknown. Since numerous Kirkguards are listed in other surviving chronicles as having fallen at the mythical ‘Battle of Adar’ against Soulthek at the end of the first age, it is believed they went extinct following the conflict. Other theories suggest they were ousted during the Age of Iron and Blood by local rivals.

Vaniri Occupation and House Dragontooth Arrival

In the fourth century of the second age, the eastern islands were retaken by the Vaniri great houses. Answering the call to liberate their people, the Eastern Jarldom house of Dragontooth led by their warrior jarl, Magnar, left their ancestral halls of Drakehall and retook the island, crowning themselves as Jarls of Orrsturejya, vanquishing the Springfast invaders at the Battle of Feather Caves.
The Dragontooths rebuilt the town and established a new keep on Castle Hill and kept the island in peace against the Vaniri for centuries and established permanent dockyards and shipbuilding industries that kept them in power.
A second invasion led by a combined host of the Springfasts and Salinir’s would burn the town in the Arson of the Kirk in 810, 2e. The Dragontooths and many other prominent Orrsturkirk families were driven from the town. Ragnar III The Wintersheart sailed theWintershield  fleet into the ruins of Orsturkirk and retook the island in the Battle of the Ashes in Endstarre of 810, incorporating the islands into the Fourth Kingdom and Aedrinar and brokered an enduring peace between the Elven and Human settlers of the islands called the Treaty of Vanheim or the Winterspact that allowed duel rulership of Vanaheim and permanently determined Orsturkirk and its island as human territory.
The Dragontooths remained firm Wintershield loyalists and Orsturkirk became a key holding during the Wintersrevenge war against House Coldstar at the end of the kingdom. By the conclusion of the conflict, the town became independent and the capital of the Orrturejyan Jarldom.

Fifth Kingdom

The town’s height came during the fifth kingdom as the Aedrinaran people expanded to invasions and larger raids on the mainland continent of Prima Terra. Increased travel across the islands saw expansions of the Temple of the Seas and the Eagle Library to support additional apprentices and trainees. A massive shipyard was built in what is now the edges of the Dock Quarter to fuel Dragontooth invasions of the mainland.
Returned treasure and loot saw the wealth of the town swell. To the city’s current inhabitants the period between 1947, 2e and 2130, 2e is the ‘Golden Age of Orsturkirk’ due to the massive deposits of gold and treasure accumulated by raids on the mainland. Many Orrsturkirkians became petty rulers of land in the continent and sent resources back to the city, again furthering its wealth and grandeur. Artistic depictions of the city during this period show large gilded homes and an abundance of rare metals and magical items. A supposed statue of a dragon made from pure gold was constructed in the city, and later looted or melted down depending on the story.
The town remained wealthy following the collapse of the fifth kingdom and the lesser interregnum, peacefully reintegrating with the 6th kingdom. Its fortunes began to turn after the city’s major houses were defeated in battle by King Knut, although it was not folded into Knut’s realm. The town began to fade from glory and simply became the staging ground for feuds with House Stormbarer, facing occasion raids by the Sharklords. It is during the Greater Interregnum period that many of the great landmarks of the city were lost, including the burning down of their great dockyards.

Seventh Kingdom

The Seventh Kingdom of Aedrinar period saw the town re-enter national prominence. A bastard member of House Dragontooth, Olaf Falurssen, had been exiled by his half sister Erikjya Dragontooth and founded a notorious mercenary and jomsvikingr guild known as The Wyrmlings. Erikjya’s granddaughter, Rejya Dragontooth, assumed the Jarlship of the Eastern Isles in 489. She would initially come into conflict with Olaf when he was responsible for invading neighbouring Valkyrie and installing a member of his mercenary guild as thane.
Olaf would arrive in the Dock Quarter with a small escort of his Wyrmling warriors and met to parley with Jarl Rejya. During the “Night of the Dragon” a supporter of Olaf, Kolar Dragontooth the Ambitious, would betray Jarl Rejya and assume control of the house and Jarlship – with Rejya’s supporters being murdered around the city including the destruction of the minor house Sailguard in the Dock Quarters, which were heavily burned and damaged in the conflict.
Orsturkirk, now aligned with Olaf would prosper with Vanaheim under its full control again. Kolar would be deposed by Rejya’s son, Erik Redhair, who briefly waged a war against Olaf from 513-16. Despite dominating navally, a failed invasion of the southern hold resulted in Erik and his loyalist’s deaths, putting a Olafist jarl in the form of Hogmar back on the throne.
The Dragontooths remained closely aligned with Olaf and prospered as their realm expanded to encompass the Corellites and Kastaland during Olaf’s reign as High King Olaf III Kingmaker. Olaf’s son and successor as High King, Karl III  would end up losing all the new territories and Orsturkirk’s initial bloom in wealth and status quickly faded.
A new peace treaty was installed in 601 3e by High King Haarold V The Great Uniter of Lastlight that renewed much of the last treaty but ensured additional protections and compensation for the I Ice Elves. This peace saw a new Vaniri minority grow within Orsturkirk around the temple quarter.
The majority of the city’s leadership would be decimated by the Calamity of the Terrasic in 789, 3e and led the town into a century of downturn in the aftermath of the 7th Kingdom’s fall. The city was also sacked, with around 2/3rds of its population being killed by the Stormbarers. The aftermath of this destruction saw the Eagle Library and Temple of the Sea rise as more prominent leaders of the city, helping to rebuild the destroyed portions of the now reduced city.
Their expansions saw new libraries, schools, temples, and centres of learning established. Within a century, that town had been restored from near rubble and was becoming known as the capital of academic in the islands.

Modern History

Their expansions saw new libraries, schools, temples, and centres of learning established. Within a century, that town had been restored from near rubble and was becoming known as the capital of academia in the islands.
Orsturkirk peacefully followed the other eastern houses into the Eighth Kingdom of Aedrinar in honour of Sigrun IIIs acts of devotion to the god Thor and her sending of offerings and gold to the Temple of the Seas in the city.
Since the start of the 11th century, talks and plans for the establishment of more education buildings in the city have become. Discussions of building Aedrinar’s first ever university had reached promising ground before the outbreak of the 40-year war. The plans were halted for the duration of the war, but some factions within the town are keen to continue with the idea that would firmly set the small city as the most prestigious educational centre for centuries to come.

Founding Date

Unknown, During the Age of a 1000 Clan (1721 1a - 2760, 2a)

Alternative Name(s)

The City of Scrolls

Type

City

Population

19,824

Inhabitant Demonym

Kirkian

Location under

Orsturejya

Ruling/Owning Rank

Jarl

Owning Organization

House Dragontooth

Appearances: 6

• Session 131: The Speaker of Salt and Krakens
• Session 132: Darke Night, Lightfeller Days
• Session 133: Moons and Dragons
• Session 134: Redharbour
• Session 135: Sweaty Sailors, Exiled Sons
• Session 136: Eagles and Moons