Thunderhelde
With the Foerdewaith defeat of the Heldring army at Oescreheit Downs in 2802 I.R., the Foere pantheon was introduced to the Helcynngae Peninsula, particularly the worship of Thyr and Eostre. When the hledwalda himself was converted, the veneration of the older gods started a precipitous decline. Shortly thereafter, the worship of Hel, who had previously been the matron deity of the Heldring, was outlawed.
Not all Heldring willingly gave up the ways of the Lady of Pestilence. After several armed conflicts, the Hel worshippers were driven into the Cumorian Mountains where they built stone-walled forts in the heights and forested valleys. Several attempts to exterminate them ended in disaster, and eventually the lowland Heldring decided to leave their former kin alone in the mountains.
Today, perhaps 35,000 Heldring live deep in the Cumorian Mountains alongside allies consisting of goblins, ogres, troll-blooded, and half-ogres numbering in the thousands. Their largest settlement, and the capital of their realm in exile, is the fortress city of Thunderhelde. From here, the Helfolk of the Cumorians are ruled with an iron fist by their high thegn, a high priest of Hel, alongside a council of priests and nobles known as the Helite Council. The folk of Thunderhelde seek to spread the worship of the Lady of Pestilence to their humanoid allies in the mountains, and eventually to their lowland kin. They live for hardship, battle, and purity, dreaming of the day when they will sweep the entire peninsula free of the invader gods and return the exclusive worship of Hel to their ancestral lands.
Within Thunderhelde and any lands under its control, the worship of any deity other than Hel is punishable by death (preferably by fire). Nearly every building and structure in the city displays the grim visage of the goddess, her blue and white face glaring at all who look in her direction. Those who die gloriously in battle are given large tombs in a mountainside overlooking the fortress and bestowed with all honors and respect of one who went to willingly serve their goddess.
Due to its isolation and the laws of Kingsgardt that prohibit commerce with Thunderhelde, its folks are self-sufficient and independent, only rarely trading with outsiders. The one exception is a growing, underground trade with the miners of Oxwain, the nearest Heldring settlement. The High Thegn has spies among those miners and is said to have agents in Oxwain itself. While he doesn’t appear to be ready to provoke a general war with the Heldring, a rebellion by Oxwain would be an interesting — and likely useful — development.
Settlement
Thunderhelde, City of
Type
City
Owning Organization
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