| Duchy of Ashfall | |
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Rebuilding |
Ashfall is a duchy within the realm of the Kingdom of Stormwind. Located on a spur of land jutting eastward from the Redridge Mountains and the Burning Steppes, it dominates the coast of the Forbidding Sea.
The duchy is currently under reconstruction, with a rapidly growing population in the city of Bel Lonn.
Geography[]
The duchy occupies a spur of land on the northern shores of the Bay of Lonn, opposite the Swamp of Sorrows, and extending northward along the Forbidding Sea toward the Badlands.
The geography of Ashfall is varied, given its peculiar location and the upheaval in the wake of the War of the Three Hammers; these variations create a natural division between the four counties that comprise it.
County of Redgold[]
Redgold, the southwestern quarter of the duchy, is considered the gateway between the Redridge Mountains and Ashfall. It takes its name from the iron-rich rock that also gives Redridge its distinctive coloring. Here, the land makes a gradual upward slope into the northern plateau.
The Snowborn River cuts through the midst of Redgold. It begins as a rather swift and rocky river on the north border of the county, and ends at its mouth in a wider, shallower, more placid flow.
During the First War, Redgold was the first county to fall when the Horde swept northward into the region. Scouting reports since Reconstruction began indicate that there are some ruins, but many signs that humans ever lived here have been obliterated.
Cinderwatch []
An aerial image of Cinderwatch's forward camp, as of the Knights of Ashfall's initial arrival.
At the border of the Redridge Mountains is Cinderwatch. Its most prominent features are defensive: a palisade recently reinforced, a new stone wall under construction, and a watchtower that looks out over the rising hills into Ashfall. It is primarily a checkpoint, manned by a force of Ashfall men-at-arms; however, a suburb is rapidly growing outward and northward into the region, to support businesses that supply (and sometimes take advantage of) the settlers moving into the region.
Cinderwatch was, until recently, a ghost town, built upon the ruins of a former city and home only to a handful of soldiers manning the watchtower that has protected the Redridge Mountains from infiltration.
The noblemen on the Redridge side of the border have occasionally sought to lay claim to Cinderwatch, as they have been forced to maintain this outpost at their own expense. However, Lord Jeremaias' arrival in the outpost has relieved them of this obligation.
Bel Lonn[]
Seated at the mouth of the Snowborn River, the city of Bel Lonn serves as a supply line and port once more under Baron Auromere's command. Before the First War, it was one of three major ports on the Bay of Lonn, but as with every other human settlement, it was destroyed by the orcish Horde. The city is medium-sized, though some of it still lies in ruins, and its walls and gates are being restored by dwarven masons.
Bel Lonn is home to a foundry that processes many different sorts of metals, supplying the forges that have sprung up around it. Ore from the Candlemar Mine is shipped downriver to here, where it is prepared for good use. There is also a small lapidary academy that makes the most of the precious gemstones found in the ore, and gnomish tinkers who make the most of metal and gemstones alike.
Bel Lonn was recently occupied by naga, from which they marshaled their murloc minions and sent them north along the Snowborn. This was brought to an end by a daring attack on the ruins by the forces of Ashfall, which drove the naga out; however, the keep was destroyed due to a magical explosion caused by summoning a water elemental and infusing it with Void energies. The elemental was unbound and returned to Neptulon, and the city now belongs to Stormwind.
Ironwall[]
Ironwall Keep is located on (or very near) the line between Counties Redgold and Emberwind. It sits low, between two rises, and fills the valley between, straddling the Snowborn River; with very little construction, it could come to control the flow of the river southward into Redgold and the Bay of Lonn.
Ironwall is typical of orcish architecture: massive iron spikes that serve no purpose but to intimidate, heavy walls that appear to be built on the principle of "more is better", few creature comforts and no grace. Before its gates, an entire forest has been sheared away--either to clear visibility, or to feed the massive fires that no longer burn here. But not even grass has grown back in this space; the ground is all dust, dry and sterile.
Ironwall Keep is now securely in the possession of the Kingdom of Stormwind, and serves as the northernmost stronghold in the controlled region. It has undergone refurbishment, including the removal of the ornamental spikes, improvement of heating and forge technology, and reinforcement of its fixed gun battery.
Anvilstead[]
The first of the benefices bestowed upon a Knight Militant by Lord Auromere, Anvilstead is under the guardianship of Sir Baelthane Anvilmar. Its primary purpose is to support Ironwall Keep, but plans for its development include a wind farm, and a harbor town to expedite commerce up and down the river.
Candlemar Mine[]
The original name of this mine is lost to history. At some point between the First War and the Conquest of County Redgold, a group of kobolds known as the Dirtgrubber Tribe migrated to and occupied the mine. However, their work attracted the attention of Blackrock orcs, who incited the local gnolls to enslave the Dirtgrubbers and force them to dig for ore.
A detachment from the Order of Ashfall, led by Baelthane Anvilmar, assaulted the mine and routed the gnoll slavemasters. When Anvilmar and his party showed pity to the kobolds, and offered to exchange food and candles for the fruits of their labors, the kobolds renamed themselves the Candlemar Tribe in his honor.
The mine is rich with mithril ore, with a smattering of truesilver. Its product is sent overland to Ironwall Fortress, and then shipped downriver to the foundry in Bel Lonn.
Fort Varian[]
Fort Varian is the last stop before Seabreach County. Constructed initially as a cavalry border outpost, at the end of the first push into Ashfall, it almost immediately was forced into a different role. It is now a checkpoint, a stop for travelers moving east to Pinehold, and responsible for the protection of the region against threats coming from Highplain County.
Trundleton[]
A settlement of about three dozen Gilnean settlers, Trundleton is a farming community. At first, they mostly wished to be left alone, but after they were abducted by Legion forces and nearly sacrificed to create a weapon, they are much more willing to accept aid from Auromere's forces.
Dunhaven (or Dun Haven)[]
Due to an ancient misunderstanding unearthed in the dwarven province of Dun Vor, Clan Stoutcask was forced to relocate. Dun Vor's thane, Ghanan Steelbeard, requested of Lord Auromere that the Clan be allowed to start over in Ashfall, and Auromere agreed, on condition that the Stoutcasks pledged fealty to King Anduin and Stormwind. Dunhaven became their new home.
Wesrill[]
A town and farming community, it was destroyed during the First War. It is now the benefice of Sir Peryn Crowson.
County of Seabreach[]
The southeastern quarter of the duchy is one of the farthest eastward points on the continent of Azeroth. The land slopes southward from the northern plateau, and then drops sharply, coming to just above sea level on the southeastern spur. At the foot of the sharp decline is a swamp, which is fed by a bend in the Willowswift River.
Unlike other parts of the coast, the beach on the spur is open, and a lighthouse stands high up on a spire of rock. Here, there was once a thriving port city; this was razed to its foundations when the orcish Horde swept through the duchy. Only the lighthouse remains--and it is said that lights can sometimes be seen issuing forth at night, though the land has been abandoned for years.
Pinehold[]
Overlooking the Willowswift is the fortress of Pinehold, the seat of the Barons de Stopham. Until recently, it was believed that the settlers who reclaimed Pinehold were lost, but it has been discovered that some of these settlers have survived for almost two decades in the face of Blackrock hostilities. The current Baroness of Pinehold is Isobel de Stopham.
Halimar[]
At the mouth of the Willowswift River lies the port town of Halimar. Constrained by two sheer cliffs on either side of the mouth, and lying below sea level, Halimar had long had challenges before the First War even happened. Recently, it was occupied by pirates, but was retaken by Lord Auromere and his forces. It is now the benefice of Sir Sauldrik Thelenmore.
Forbidding Reach[]
Formerly a fishing village on the point of the Ashfallen peninsula, Forbidding Reach was recently used by pirate bands as a meeting place. However, it was attacked by the minions of a lich, and the smuggler band occupying it was slain save for its captain, Jiang Saltpaw.
Two Hills[]
Seabreach rises gradually to the plateau of Highplain, and upon that rise, Sir Ghanan Steelbeard and the dwarves of Dun Vor have built the fortress of Two Hills. It has recently served as the base of operations for expeditions into Highplain County.
County of Highplain[]
The northeastern county of the duchy is primarily a plateau, standing some hundred feet above sea level. Wide and arid, the plain is devoid of vegetation larger than grasses and low shrubbery, except around Willowswitch Lake (which is a widened bend of the Willowswift River, rather than a proper lake).
Once a rolling grassland whereon many herd animals grazed, Highplain is now mostly barren of large fauna, due to the Blackrock orcs' incessant hunting.
One outpost was recently been constructed--by the Legion. Invasion Point: Iniquity was intended as a "port" for a Legion command ship; the area, however, was overthrown and eradicated by the Knights' efforts, and the command ship seized and recommissioned as the N.V. Leviticar. The outpost is now known as Retaliation Point, and efforts to clean up the fel contamination are underway.
Ashenlode[]
The Ashenlode Mine is a mithril mine, located in the southwestern corner of the county. It boasts, in particular, a large deposit of black diamonds. The mining village was temporarily occupied by goblin miners, who were killed or driven away by a rock borer; the Order slew the rock borer and reactivated the mine.
Willowbank[]
On the site of the old town Waterhole, a group of goblin entrepreneurs built an archaeological colony they called Willowbank, appropriately on the bank of the Willowswitch Lake, shortly after the reopening of the Dark Portal. There, they exercised increasingly unfavorable economic pressures on the racially diverse colonists, until the colonists became prisoners in their own home. An ancient troll artifact, located in the dig, began to exert a powerful draining effect on the people, turning the elves and trolls into Wretched, and the colonial governor into a hobgoblin. The Knights destroyed the artifact and liberated the colony, which joined Stormwind by acclamation.
County of Emberwind[]
Ashfall borders on the northwest with the Burning Steppes, the site of Blackrock Mountain. The active volcano continues to burn, sending plumes of ash into the wind, which flows across the upper reaches of the duchy.
The county of Emberwind is dominated by the fallout zone, known simply as the Drift. Long-term occupation of the Drift is impossible due to the near-constant precipitation of ash, but until recently, there were outposts along the border with the Burning Steppes. These outposts were not only watchtowers, but harvesting centers for the ash, which farmers prized for enriching their lands.
The eastward limit of the Drift is set by a chain of mountains that serves as a sort of windblock for the Snowborn River. Along the inner curve of the mountains is the lush Greenbelt, a thick tangle of thriving forest that enjoys the benefit of the ash and the rains that the mountains block.
The Snowborn River's waters, shielded from the fallout by the mountains, run pure from the snowmelt of the mountains to the north, and flow south to the fork where the Willowswift branches away to the east. The northern headwaters of the Snowborn were once guarded by the Count of Emberwind; as without the river, the duchy would dry up and perish, Emberwind is often a subsidiary title held by the Duke of Ashfall.
Currently, Sir Tolath Barthalomew is the Knight-Commander over the region, as it is not open to civilian occupation.
History[]
Early Years (before the War of the Three Hammers)[]
The Duchy of Ashfall, when it was first established, was known as the Duchy of Gaunt, so named because unlike the other territories of Stormwind, it was only able to support subsistence farming due to its poor and thin soil. It did a brisk trade in various iron ores, and a gold vein in its southwest permitted the import of what the population needed. Highplain also boasted fine cattle, which were grazed on the plateau.
Due to its richness of resources but poverty of cereals and produce, more opportunistic nobles of the Redridge Mountains frequently attempted to annex parts of Gaunt.
The War of the Three Hammers to the First War[]
The catastrophic eruption of Blackrock Mountain at the end of the War of the Three Hammers, however, changed a great deal. Not only did it lay waste to large portions of the Redridge Mountains--including the lands of House Morgan to the west of Gaunt--but the constant volcanic plume thereafter began to rain down ash upon the northwest corner of Gaunt.
It is said that the Duke of Gaunt was inspecting the results of the fallout some months after the end of the War when he noticed the forest that would become the Greenbelt, growing almost before his eyes. He took back some of the ash to his own lands and experimented in mixing and watering it into the soil--and after a bumper crop, he ordered the ash to be harvested from the Drift and shared with his vassals. Soon, the Duchy of Gaunt boasted generous agriculture, and became known as Ashfall instead.
First War to Reconstruction[]
Ashfall carried on in its humble way until the First War. Cut off from the rest of the world by the orcish invasion of Redridge, the people attempted to flee to safety through the Burning Steppes. Unfortunately, the way was too hard for most, and there were very few survivors.
When the reconstruction of Stormwind began after the Second War, however, those survivors resurfaced. Led by Baron Alistair de Stopham of Pinehold, they struck out into their homeland, intent on re-establishing themselves. However, as the raids of the Black Tooth Grin clan (and later, the Blackrock clan) intensified, communication was cut off, and Pinehold was assumed destroyed. Ashfall would remain (assumed) unoccupied, as Stormwind devoted most of its resources to rebuilding the nearer, more productive, and more defensible territories.
Currently[]
The defeat of the Black Iron offensive drove the remaining orcs back into the depths of Blackrock Mountain. King Varian’s advisers recommended that this opportunity to retake a long-lost territory be availed, but the Legion invasion forced the plan to be laid aside temporarily. It was not until his son, Anduin, ascended the throne that the matter was taken up again.
More pressing was the possibility that, due to the duchy being unpopulated, the Burning Legion might use the opportunity to establish an outpost for further invasions of the kingdom. The person selected to reclaim Ashfall would need not only to be a systematic thinker and able to address the ordinary threats the region could present, but also have a strong tactical understanding of the Burning Legion, its structure and races.
The potential candidates to retake the duchy were assessed, and most dismissed for various reasons. Finally, King Anduin selected, with the advice of his councillors, Jeremaias Auromere, and elevated the young Lordaeronian immigrant to the rank of Baron in-chief, giving him lordship over “all of the lands you reclaim in our name”.
Lord Jeremaias has begun recruitment of his levy forces, and is building the Knights of Ashfall as part of them. As of the beginning of the War of the Thorns, he has secured the entirety of County Redgold, County Seabreach, and County Highplain, with outposts in County Emberwind.