Keeptown

The blue lit fog covered the main street of Keeptown, as the first people made their way towards their workstations. The first up were usually the shepherds, followed by the miners and farmers. The last street cats had already made their ways to their hiding places and were replaced by the busy hustle and bustle of the human inhabitants.

Demographics

The population is almost exclusively human. They are often divided among merchants and workers. Since the town is highly dependent on trade for wood and crops, apart from rye, with other settlements, the merchant class is held in the highest regard.

Government

Status is measured in access to goods not available in the town. This includes wheat, wood, salt, charcoal, water, beer, gold and parchment. Hence, the richest merchants are usually the ones running the town and paying the workers in precious metals, building materials and food.

Defences

The town itself is not very heavily defended, with some stone walls and a small town militia. The mining facilities and their storing spaces, however, are defended by highly trained and armed mercenaries and enforced with powerful stone walls and brick buildings.

Industry & Trade

Most people engage in mining or farming. Especially mining is very important, since Keeptown holds one of the largest deposits of silver, which is held in high regard. Farmers get by with the trade of milk and wool. The town militia and blacksmiths are heavily dependent on trade with coal from far away places.

Infrastructure

Atop the highest hills, windmills stand to make bread from rye and imported crops. The sewers are fairly primitive and consist mainly of cesspits, which are then emptied into Darion Keep. The main road is in decent condition, but the rest is just mud and dirt.

Assets

Although Keeptown doesn't have much, they do have extensive deposits of silver and iron ore at the walls of Darion Keep. Silver is regarded as precious and highly valuable and iron is essential to make steel. In addition, they also engage in trade with rye, hay and sheep products.

Guilds and Factions

Imported essentials determine status. Whoever owns essential resources is in charge of the people below them. Theft is not uncommon from desperate workers and farmers. In an attempt to stop this, the rich upper class has been supplying the town militia and foreign mercenaries to enact fairly rigorous punishments, ranging from the removal of limbs to execution.

History

Keeptown was founded as a mining community, after the silver and iron deposits were discovered. They were the largest deposits anyone had ever seen and thus people began to flock to this small place, turning it into a mining city. The infertile environment, however, made it impossible to sustain a large population, however. Mere 40 years after the city's foundation, famine began to set in and Keeptown was abandoned. Only a small number of poor miners remained to attempt to stay afloat by trading resources. These poor miners quickly established themselves as the leaders of the failed city and established a class system based on the possession of imported essentials.

Architecture

The architecture is fairly simplistic. The houses are made from wood and reinforced with local stones and iron and rarely have more than 5 rooms for an average of 5 people. Even the largest and most elaborate buildings are little more than a three story wood house. Two stories (not counting the cellar) is already considered a luxury.

Geography

Keeptown is wedged between Darion Keep, the deep abyss in the west, and the Eastern Hills, the grass covered hills in the east. The rest is fairly plain covered with some short grasses and rocks. The only source of fresh water is a well connected to an underwater lake approximately a mile to the east.

Natural Resources

Rye is farmed from the few available fields and the sheep deliver wool, milk and meat. Iron and silver is mined from Darion Keep and access to water is strictly controlled by a commission elected by the public, but in the pockets of the upper classes. Wood, clay, gold and many other resources are imported and traded for.

RUINED SETTLEMENT
The exact date, when the city fell, is not clear. It was more a gradual decline as a result of lack of resources after a sudden sprawl.

Alternative Name(s)

Keeptown

Type

Village

Population

Approximately 2,000

Inhabitant Demonym

Keepmen, Darionis