Birkirhen

Birkirhen

The bards say that the town was founded by a particularly eccentric man with a lion's mane of white hair and cackling laugh that could be heard from the other side of the northern mountains. This did not end particularly well for him, as he (and the other settlers) found out that there are plenty of monsters that the mountains and the forest their home. Many years after the settling of the city, it became a bustling mining and trade town. As one of the few gateways to the east, Birkirhen was known as a great route town leading into Ayashou.
Sadly, Twilight did not bode it well.

Demographics

Within the town, there were a menagerie of races. Being one of the closer towns to the northern nation of Ayashou, there were a fair amount of folk of the bestial races. The mostly humanoid races (human, dwarf, elf, gnome, etc.) were the most common still, although races like the dragonborn, goliath, leonin, and tabaxi are the more common beastfolk races, they are still fairly rare to see daily in comparison to the humanoid races. This caused some division within the community, but it's also known that there was a lot of work to be done in the mines. This helped the races *generally* get along. Even more rare yet, warforged are seen walking the streets every once in a while.

Government

Local Governing Bodies

Birkirhen was run by a bishop of the The Church of Sabrael and the council of priests elected in Birkirhen or Heisedeier, the capital city. If representatives are not available from Birkirhen, they were elected from a roster of eligible priests in the capital and then appointed to join the council within Birkirhen. This was very similar to the way it is done for most of the cities within Stotfield.

Laws

The region follows the laws of Sabrael Isda.

Criminal Punishment

There are various severities of punishment, but they can simply be broken down into three categories:

1. Minor Offenses
2. Major Offenses
3. Ultimate Offenses

Defences

The Birkirhen wall was of decent repair. Regularly attacked by monsters, the wall was always in a state of repair. There are various implements mounted on the rooks to ensure that anti-siege weapons have sufficient coverage, but those weapons have fallen into various states of disrepair. On the tops of the walls, there were also containers full of ammunition and other helpful implements to deal with oncoming assailants. Some of these implements are: spell scrolls, arrows, javelins, throwing hammers, and crossbow bolts. Within the barracks and weapon storehouses, there have been specialized weapons for various monster attacks, however monsters and looters may have taken these weapons for themselves.

Industry & Trade

The town functioned mostly as an outer mining city for the nation of Stotfield. Many miners, smiths, merchants, and other tradespeople came to Birkirhen to find their opportunities. Like many other mining cities, there was talk of gold and gems that led to greed. The mountains north of the town are not particularly know for their precious metals and jewels, but that doesn't stop the people from making claims and telling stories over the tavern table.
The mining trade was steady over the last few years as the need for replacement armor and equipment continues to grow with each passing year. The 80 day month of Twilight has pressured weapon and armor smiths to master their crafts as their tools were tested longer and harder than ever before. The skills of the years passed proved to not be enough to keep up with 80 days of warfare in the hands of mostly untrained combatants. This ultimately led to the fall of Birkirhen. Some of the craftsmen and craftswomen of Birkirhen escaped, and now they reside closer to the capital of Heisedeier.
Rumor has it that lodestone had been found just before the city was overrun. Naturally this stirs up lots of trouble in the mines and hills, and an increase in need for adventurers and professional monster hunters boomed. No one knows truly, but some think that it was the discovery of the lodestone that woke something much more dangerous that flushed out the goblin tribes that eventually flooded the city.

Guilds and Factions

Birkirhen is within the domain of a number of guilds.
The main adventuring guilds are: Homebound Heroes, Sorken's Band, The Holy Knights of Sabrael, and the Raging Angels.
The main smithing guilds are: The Rusted Tongs, Hilt Handlers Company, and Brightforge
Other guilds exist nearby the town, but in much smaller number than these.

Tourism

There is very little tourism in Birkirhen. The entertainment of the town is rather lacking aside from a few traveling bards occasionally.

Climate

Overall temperate, but cold for a few months leading up to the month of Silence. Similar to the rest of the world, fairly temperate during the month of Twilight. Rather warm and sunny around the month of Trade.

Natural Resources

Game, wood, and roots from the southern forest. Stone, minerals, metals, and lodestone from the northern mountains. The plains to the east don't offer much in the way of usable resources beyond hay if cultivated safely and occasionally game. The hills to the west are mostly overrun by monsters of various kinds, so any resources available in those hills are unattainable currently. 
The most abundant resource in the area though is undoubtedly monster parts. Particularly anything that goblins and kobolds manage to scavenge up as they are a constant nuisance to the town.

Population

500 n

Inhabitant Demonym

Birkies

Location under

Stotfield