Novgorod
Novgorod, or to give it the full name Новгород, is a major city & trading post of the Rus Norse / Varangian Norse. Also known to them as Holmgard or Holmgardr, the name of Novgorod is East Slavic in origin (Новъ and Городъ (Nov and Gorod)), meaning Newtown for the full title.
Demographics
The Rus are common here filling many roles within the city. Many of the nobles are Rus, as well as a few East Slaves of the Ilmen tribe. The rest of the population is a broad mix of these two peoples with a large merchant / slave trader class being present. Black smithing, woodsmen / carpenters / shipwrights being present (the latter find regular employment repairing the long ships of the Rus), helps to maintain the running of the city. Besides these a number of entertainers, food & drink services, local priests, hunters and explorers are all found in large numbers. Farming is one major community in the local region.
Most here are human totalling about 65% of the population or higher. The rest is a mix of Elves (including some Black Elves, as well as High Elves & Wood Elves), Dwarves, and the odd Hobgoblin. Each can be found carrying out any form of local business.
Government
The government consists of a Rus King along with three Jarls of which one must always be an Ilmen Slav, one a Rus, and the other usually a Dwarf or Elf. Below them rank a selection of Housecarls who any race or tribe can be, and more loosely armed & armoured depending on personal preference.
The king is at the top, making laws and taxing the people with the Jarls dealing with day-to-day issues and the minutia of the laws. The housecarls help enforce these laws & taxes as well as speaking on behalf of the common citizens in the council meetings. Taxes are generally levied on specific market days or on work carried out. Taxes on slave traders work slightly different, going by head count.
A town guard is overseen by the councils with a small body of about 20 to 30 professional soldiers at its core and a band of levies usually numbering 40 to 50 freemen. The latter only usually stay together for a year before others take over so there is little chance of outright rebellion or other such problems. At the same time, many locals have access to basic arms & armour and will band together if threatened.
Defences
The motte & bailie and the palisades are heavily built along with a few long ships on the Volkhov doubling as warships. Most of the free people are armed to some degree with a small core of hardened professional fighters making this a formidable force if provoked. The major Nordic & Andean Slavic clerics are present regularly here too for the region along with a few lower ranked individuals. This provides access to some magical prowess and religious devotion to be instilled in the army.
One unique aspect is the weather. This can help protect the city if an enemy attacks at the wrong time of year. From late autumn to early spring, the weather can be notoriously bad, with heavy rainstorms either side of winter being not uncommon. In the winter, there is usually sub-zero temperatures, leading to heavy snow & ice slowing down invading enemy forces, even stopping & killing off great numbers of them.
Industry & Trade
The main trade of Novgorod is one of two things: furs, timber, and amber on one hand, and slaves on the other. The Rus are experts in this business, and regularly travel on raids to get these goods or trade them with other Scandinavian tribes. They use their long ships to move these goods up and down the Volkov River and use Novgorod either as a stopover point and powerbase in the local region.
The industries around Novgorod revolve around the trade route. Many hunters, farmers and fishermen work the region around the city, and woodsmen & carpenters are present. Some of the latter specialise as shipwrights. Blacksmiths, bowyers & fletchers are also a common form of trade to take along with leather workers & tanners. Slavers and their guards are also present in large numbers.
Infrastructure
Besides the Great Hall, and various drinking / mead halls (found outside the central administrative heart), where the different trades or nobles meet, there is access to the Volkov River that the long ships of the Rus use for trading and raids. Some fishing boats are found here too, and docks are present designated to what type of ship can be berthed there. Some of these are modified so new ships & boats can be built.
Slave pens / markets are common outside the motte & bailie keep which is surrounded by a sturdy palisade with two gates (opposite each other) at the east & west. A Nordic temple to the gods sits in this space alongside a Slavic religious site inside the palisade. Smaller more personal shrines can be found throughout the city.
Near the docks, many specialist trades work along with warehouses for goods coming and going. This makes it easier for trading to take place and the transport of goods swifter.
Districts
The administrative heart is at the centre of Novgorod, and the trade / slave trade regions are primarily by the docks on the Volkhov River. Beyond these are a mix of general market areas, drinking dens & the odd whorehouse. In many cases the citizens are in housing in or near their place of work so there is no defined difference in these regions of Novgorod. A few slums are found in the east but are generally very small in size and only two or three in all taking in the poorest citizens.
Assets
The river is everything here allowing travel through Novgorod and access to the valuable trade goods and majority of slaves. The Volkhov River has plenty of fish, and both game & wood is easy to come by outside the city limits. Travelling down the river can help the traders reach Greece and Byzantia, while to the northeast it flows into the Baltic Sea allowing access to northwestern Europe in general.
Guilds and Factions
Slaver guilds are known to exist albeit loosely here. Many of the trades have loose guilds too, and a thieves / smugglers guild also exist hidden in plain view. A guild of sorts is present looking to end the practises of the slave trade but are regularly shunned by the authorities.
History
Settled years ago, by a mix of Ilmen East Slaves and Rus explorers, Novgorod has grown in size but still does not rival some cities in western or far eastern regions. Bustling with people using the Voltov River and the northern Silk Road for trade it is growing fast and is at present expanding.
It started as a small collection of buildings & temporary rest & meeting grounds for the Rus and the local Slavs. When the Slavs wanted to settle the Rus stepped in with money and a possible solution to intertribal warfare. They helped to organize the local tribes and acted as friendly mercenaries to the tribes. At the same time the leaders of both re-organized the nobility to cut down on potential conflict. With the Rus using the river to travel many of the Slavs took to running & helping to defend Novgorod.
Points of interest
The noble area in the raised centre of Novgorod attracts much attention as it is heavily defended and has a powerful clerical presence that extends outwards with many lesser priests visiting it regularly to get extra training in their religious training.
Architecture
The city is made up of primarily wooden structures backed up with some stone being incorporated in. A Nordic look is present in many structures with curved wooden details, and with the Slavic influence of horse details added. Dragon shapes can be seen in the buildings owned by the more powerful & wealthy.
Climate
The region is known to have long periods of rain and snowfall, especially during wintertime. It can appear cool if not outright freezing to outsiders. The Volkhov river regularly freezes over during this period making travel by boat impossible, and if the snow is too heavy then little can be done outside the city.
Natural Resources
The river and regions around outside Novgorod are rich in fish & game, and many smaller older horse-mounted tribes can be found around too. Many of these are targeted by the slavers both for the horses and the people who are regularly sold into slavery. Land here is rich enough to maintain farming for at least part of the year, and forests are present & plentiful allowing a lively trade in timber products. Sometimes there are raiding parties of Johan (giants) and trolls in the surrounding area that allows for warriors to make a name for themselves as well as bringing in rare carcasses or even specialist slave creatures if they can be captured alive.
Type
City
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