Hath's Vigil

Hath's Vigil is a large city in the northwestern section of the snowy Alterac Mountains. Named for the famed Alteraci general, Hath, the city was the first in the Alliance's efforts to recolonize Alterac with a central location of power within the mountains following the destruction of Alterac City. It is known for having one of the few remaining bastions of the Scarlet Crusade, and is host to a large amount of Alliance-friendly Scarlets.

History
Hath's Vigil was the first of what was to be many efforts to recolonize and repopulate the war torn nation of the Kingdom of Alterac following the dethroning of King Aiden Perenolde. The construction of the city began after massive public outcry from Alteraci civilians who had been displaced by the war and threatened yet another revolt in the mountains, as most of the towns of Alterac had been destroyed and their capitol of Alterac City was razed.

In order to sate the Alteraci people's wishes, King Terenas Menethil of the Kingdom of Lordaeron ordered the construction of the city using a large amount of Orcish slaves. Seen as a sort of slight towards the Alteracis for reminding them of their King and nation's betrayal of the Grand Alliance, the Alteraci population could not complain lest King Terenas revoke the building of the city.

Construction
Five years after the end of the Second War and the subjugation of the Orcs, Hath's Vigil began construction with the House of Brand put in charge of it's development. With heavy amounts of Orcish labor used for the construction of the city, people flocked from around Alterac to what would later be their new home. Setting up camps and shantytowns on the outskirts, the first of which being Krastin. Repeated raids of the camps by wandering bandits and various Alliance members who held a grudge against the Alteraci people for their betrayal years ago led to Terenas sending a token force of soldiers to maintain order. The need for survival led to Krastin growing larger and eventually becoming a town on it's own on the outskirts of the city.

As the years passed and Hath's Vigil's construction continued, people began to move into the city, taking up jobs to help speed the construction as well as facilitate early bits of trade with Lordaeron and the rest of Alterac. Menethil guards ensured the populace remained out of the Orc's encampments while they built the large city, though the occasional dead Alteraci or Orc still popped up every now and again.

Mines were constructed in the area, as they found one plentiful with iron and other useful minerals within the borders of the city's construction point. From there, the city received most of the materials used in it's construction, orcish laborers working alongside human ones in order to pump out the useful ores and minerals to speed up the construction of the city and finally begin the re-establishment of Alterac.

Unfortunately, a riot broke out when several Alteraci workers were found dead, and though the culprits had not been found, most of the humans blamed the Orcish slaves. This led to a large fight that ended up killing several of the Menethil guards and the destruction of an entire district of Hath's Vigil and the construction of one district to go unfinished until the riots were eventually quelled by force. During this time, security was increased and curfews were instated so that another riot would not form again in the future.

Third War
By the time of the Third War, Hath's Vigil was nearing completion, the project's setbacks having been repaired over time and the city nearing the final end stages of construction, only for the Orcs to rise up in rebellion. Most of the slave Orcs in Hath's Vigil were of the Blackrock Clan, and when the blade master Jubei-thos rose up and called for his brethren to heed the call, they answered. Once again, a large portion of Hath's Vigil was raided, the town of Krastin was sacked, and then later the town of Strahnbrad was attacked by the very same Orcs as Prince Arthas Menethil and Grand Master Uther the Lightbringer of the Order of the Silver Hand rode out to meet the threat.

During this time, the Alteracis were left to their own devices as King Terenas recalled all troops stationed within Hath's Vigil to meet the rising Orcish threat in Lordaeron. With no Orc slaves left to finish the building, it fell to the impoverished Alteracis who had not the supplies nor man power to even fix the damage left by the orc's departure. With Krastin having been sacked, trade within the Mountains became scarce, as the whispers of plague spreading through Lordaeron discouraged import from their neighbors. It was during this time that Hath's Vigil reached it's lowest point, as harsh weather swept through the area, making the local farms unable to produce enough food to sustain the population.

Scores of citizens fell to weather or famine, many migrating out of Alterac to seek a better living in Lordaeron. The population eventually dwindled to the point where only half of Hath's Vigil was populated, and the rest was left abandoned or still unbuilt.

Plague of Lordaeron
When the plague began to sweep across Lordaeron during the Third War and the rumors of the dead rising again, Hath's Vigil responded with the creation of a local militia force. Arming themselves with weapons left behind by the Menethil guards and scavenged from the long abandoned armories of Alterac City, the people of Hath's Vigil were prepared to meet the undead threat head on, though it never came. Their inability and refusal to purchase grain from Lordaeron led to the city being spared from the plague hitting them, and as the undead swarmed throughout Lordaeron, Alterac remained mostly untouched, as did the foothills of Hillsbrad south of them.

Through a stroke of luck, their misfortune was their savior as the city was mostly overlooked during the entirety of the Third War as most believed the city to have been either abandoned or destroyed by then. When King Terenas Menethil was assassinated and Prince Arthas began the Scourge of Lordaeron, Hath's Vigil found it's self becoming a massive refugee hub. Staunch processes were put in place to ensure all those entering Hath's Vigil were healthy, and any who were not were either turned away or killed. The city turned their new refugees to the abandoned unfinished section of the city, and those able were sent to work within the mines and fix the fields. As with Hillsbrad and the province of Blackmarsh, luck allowed Hath's Vigil to continue on with little molestation from the rampaging undead hordes, and later demons, that destroyed Lordaeron.

Hath's Vigil remained in relative obscurity throughout the war, as many refused to believe the Alteracis would have survived where Lordaeron fell, and even fewer believed that they would survive the trek through the harsh mountains to even reach the supposed haven.

The Syndicate
In the wake of Lordaeron's destruction, the Syndicate rose to begin their crusade against the former oppressors of Alterac. Lord Brand immediately declared that Hath's Vigil would support the prince Aliden Perenolde, for they believed he would fix the mistakes of his father. However, as time went on and the Syndicate became more and more focused on revenge than the re-establishment of Alterac, Hath's Vigil began to pull away. In addition, the sizable population of Lordaeronian, High elven and other miscellaneous populations of refugees within the city opposed the Syndicate due to their blatant desire to take down anyone who once put Alterac down for their betrayal, even in this desperate time of need.

Hath's Vigil spurned the Syndicate, causing a large amount of fighting to occur in the area between the two factions on the fringes of the city, especially within the ruins of Krastin. Eventually the Syndicate turned away from the city, seeking to focus on their revenge first.

The Scarlet Crusade and the Forsaken
In the years that followed the fall of Lordaeron and the quieting of the Scourge, Hath's Vigil became the host to a large amount of staunch supporters of the Scarlet Crusade. An order founded to re-establish Lordaeron and it's people and purge the Undead threat, Hath's Vigil reached out to these believed noble crusaders in an effort to facilitate a mutually beneficial alliance. In exchange for protection, the people of Hath's Vigil would aid with arming and supplying the Crusade's noble cause, an offer that was too good to deny on either part.

In this time, the Forsaken rose to power in Lordaeron. Their frequent skirmishes with the city's allies led the city to develop a strong hatred for the supposed "freed" undead. In Hath, many people believed that the Forsaken were no better than the Scourge, and they all needed to be purged within the purifying flames of the Light. Though, as whispers went on about corruption within the ranks of the Crusade, the people of Hath began to become ever distrustful of their allies, choosing to section off a portion of the city for their defenders. While masked under the veil of "rewarding" their allies for their continued support, it was mostly to ensure that in the case of the Crusade turning on them, they would be able to quell the issue quickly.

When word reached Hath's Vigil that the Grand Alliance had reformed and was issuing a call for humanity to unite once more, Lord Brand pledged the support of his people to the Alliance. Delegates were sent out to the city, where they observed the city was barely functional, most of the area had fallen into disrepair, the people were paranoid and frightened, still scarred from the fall of Lordaeron, and the areas surrounding the city were inhospitable and filled with hostile forces. Once more, the people of Hath were forced to rely on themselves, as their new Alliance allies not only still held old hatreds against the Alteracis, but felt that the city could not last forever against the Forsaken, who had aligned themselves with the Horde.

As the years went on in the north and the Scarlet Crusade fell into decline, Hath became one of the few areas where Scarlet power could be observed. Despite whispers of corruption, the Scarlets in Hath considered themselves after such a long time to be a part of the community, and in turn the community accepted them. Captain Jacob Falsinmere of the Crusade was made captain of the city's guard, and they accepted their role within the city gladly.

The Second Shattering
When the Black Dragon Aspect, Deathwing, returned into the world of Azeroth and brought with him the second Shattering, Hath felt the world tremble beneath his might. With their allies becoming fewer and fewer by the day, thanks to the Forsaken's continued campaigns against the remaining denizens of the Alliance in the north, and now the mountains heaving with Deathwing's return, the people of Hath were faced with even more struggles. Avalanches were common during the initial portions of the Shattering, destroying roads in the already beleaguered county of Alterac and killing many who attempted to brave the mountains in this time. Once again isolated, Hath's people preserved until help arrived from the most unlikely of places, Gilneas.

Having recently rejoined the Alliance and reviving the front against the undead in the north, Gilneans flocked to aid the people of Hath in order to gather more aid in their cause. Finding the city in disrepair from age and weather, the Gilneans provided much needed aid to revitalize the city. In this same period, Hath's Vigil finally received Alliance recognition, as the weathered city could provide a vital base of operations in the coming war against the Forsaken and their new Val'kyr servants. Battalions arrived from Stormwind to aid the rebuilding effort in Hath's Vigil, and trade routes became safe for a time in the mountains.

Pandaria
Once more, Hath's Vigil was left to it's own once the warfront in Pandaria took up most of the Alliance's focus. With the Lordaeron front having fallen back once again to a secondary pursuit with the loss of Andorhal and the Stormpike legions, Hath's Vigil's only remaining contact in the area was Gilneas. Refusing to even consider aid from the Argents due to their Scarlet denizens, the area once more heavily relied on it's self.

Before their departure, the Stormwind legions did help with fixing the heavy structural damage suffered by the Shattering, as well as leave the area well stocked to become self reliant once again.

Currently
The city of Hath's Vigil continues to stand as one of the few remaining areas of Alliance power in the north. They have been lucky to not yet attract the ire of the Forsaken, who have gone on crusades across the north to add more bodies to their counts. Many thank the cold of the mountains and the cliffs and ledges that the city was founded around for that, though many more believe it is only a matter of time before Hath is forced to face yet another struggle to survive.

The city boasts a large amount of mixed cultures, the dominant ones being Alterac and Lordaeron. Much of the city is segregated, with the people of Lordaeron living in one half of the city, while the people of Alterac live in another, the smaller demographics mixed throughout the city. This has caused racist tendencies to run rampant amongst some of the population of the city, which has led to attempts to desegregate the community to be rare.

The city has been led by the same man since it's inception, the aging Lord Jameson Brand. An Alteraci who tossed his lot in with the Alliance over Perenolde and benefited greatly in return, even if he was passed over for consideration of who should rule the Kingdom. The man has led the people of Hath's Vigil through many a hardship, and has made controversial decisions throughout his reign. Regardless, the people look to him as a capable leader, even as his health fails him.