The Sunset Citadel
Overview
The Sunset Citadel guards the western end of the Thunder Road and provides a launching point for trips into the Shielded Lands. More city than simple fortress, it's also the only real point of contact between the dwarves and the friendlier denizens of the Shielded Lands.
History
Although seen as less important a defensive structure than it's eastern counterpart, the Sunset Citadel has stood firm against millenia of attacks from savage orcs and their ilk, providing a safe place to launch expeditions into the Shielded Lands.
Before the Serpentfolk
The counterpart to the Sunrise Citadel, the Sunset citadel has guarded the end of the Thunder Road since it's construction. Goods flowed through it from the various dwarven settlements within the Shielded Lands, and mighty tamed Thunder Lizards moved through it on their way to other dwarven holdings.
Reign of the Serpentfolk
Once the serpentfolk took the Thunder Road, the Sunset Citadel fell quickly, never having been designed to defend against a serious attack from within dwarven lands. The Serpentfolk didn't make much use of it, however, constructing their own city deeper within the Shielded Lands and simply treating the Sunset Citadel like a gatehouse.
After the Cataclysm
When the dwarves set about reclaiming their territory, The Sunset Citadel was largely intact, unlike it's eastern counterpart, but the dwarves were dissatisfied. The Sunset Citadel had fallen remarkably easily, and was therefore flawed. Their solution was built an inner citadel facing the thunder road, defending The Citadel and the Shielded Lands from attack from the inside.
Modern Times
Today, the Sunset Citadel stands as the only actual settlement the shield mountain dwarves maintain outside of the Shield Mountains. It serves as their main point of contact with the friendlier residents in the Shielded Lands, a place to tame, train, and process Thunder Lizards, and a bastion against the savage orcs which infest the Shielded Lands
Construction
While less focused on pure defense than the Sunrise Citadel, the Sunset Citadel is still a formidable defensive structure, and the settlement around it is no exception, surrounded by tall walls and strong gates.
The Tunnel Bastion
The newest portion of the citadel, the tunnel bastion was built in response to the citadel having been taken from the inside of the Thunder Road so easily. Whereas previously the Thunder Road lead right up to the gates of the citadel, now impressive defensive structure guards the doors. The tunnel bastion runs from floor to ceiling and into the walls on both sides, and controls a long section of the tunnel via it's many siege engines. Once an enemy has reached the bastion, there's no easy way inside, the bottom twenty feet being solid stone, and the only access inside being from within the keep itself. Enemies are then funneled into a passageway between the outer wall and the gates where they are subject to further bombardment from arrow slits and siege engines.
The Inner Bastion
The Sunset Citadel is nestled into the corner of a pair of cliff faces, made perfectly perpendicular by the dwarves in ages long past. The Thunder Road emerges in the corner, with the keep to one side and the cliff face to the other. Another change made in response to the taking of the citadel was the construction of fortifications along the cliff face opposite the keep. Travellers exiting the tunnel must cross nearly a thousand feet of open ground between the keep and the cliff wall forfitications, and then another thousand feet between the keep and the front wall of the inner Keep before reaching the gatehouse or the entrance to the keep.
In the middle of the Inner Bastion stands a mighty keep, around nine hundred feet on each side and four hundred feet tall, covered in siege engines and battlements and able to project power to every inch of the Inner Bastion. Around the outside of the Inner Bastion is a wall, a hundred feet thick and a hundred and fifty feet tall, looking down over the rest of the Sunset Citadel. The ground outside of the wall slopes down rapidly, dropping fifty feet in a hundred fifty feet, and is kept meticulously cleared, with the buildings of the outer yard beginning at the bottom of the slope.
A gatehouse sits in the opposite corner of the citadel from the entrance to the Thunder Road, and is large enough to qualify as a keep in it's own right by the standards of most races. It is L-shaped, standing two hundred feet tall, and each wing is over four hundred feet long and three hundred feet across. The main passageway through the gatehouse runs diagonally through it, emerging from the end as a stone ramp which cuves until it's pointing towards the main gates and gently slopes downwards for four hundred feet before it levels out into the main road. A second set of gates run straight through one of the legs and into the northern end of Thagspar, again exiting the gatehouse as a gently sloping stone ramp.
Thagspar
The settlement of Thagspar sits inside of the outer walls of the citadel, and exists primarily to support the gathering of resources in The Shielded Lands, and to process said resources. Within thagspar are lumber mills, smithies, tanneries, leatherworkers shops, and the shops of a number of other craftsmen and tradespeople. The tanneries and other industries which produce stink and effluence are relegated to the northern end of Thagspar, with the other industries to their south, and the residential areas against the southern wall.
The main road runs from the gatehouse of the inner Bastion south to the courtyard around the main gates of the citadel, gently sloping downwards for four hundred feet before leveling out. On the other side of the road from most of Thagspar stands a row of inns and taverns, backed up against the wall separating Thag's Folly from the rest of Thagspar
Thag's Folly
Separated from the rest of the settlement by a wall that would be considered substantial if it weren't dwarfed by the citadel walls, Thag's Folly is where the Shield Mountain Dwarves tame and train the mighty thunder lizards which they are famous for. A substantial gatehouse leads into a massive open yard divided up by imposing wooden fences whose posts seem to be made from entire trees. Massive barns line two of the walls, and large warehouses full of hay and other feed line the third.
The Outer Walls
The Sunset Citadel is surounded by massive walls, a hundred feet thick and a hundred twenty-five feet tall, with immense stone bastions spaced out along them. Siege engines dot the walls and battlements run their entire length, scars on the wall telling of past attacks from overly ambitious orcs. In the center of one wall sits the gatehouse, again nearly a keep in it's own right. Six hundred feet across and over four hundred feet deep, it houses massive gates at both ends of the passageway through it, a hundred feet across and seventy feet tall.
The bastions along the walls are each at least a hundred fifty feet across, and their angled faces are designed to deny as much cover from the adjacent towers to an attacker as possible. They stand fifty feet taller than the surrounding walls, and are designed to break the walls into sections so that if one section is taken, it doesn't compromise the whole wall, and the towers can fire down the walls to sweep them clear of enemies.
Notable Locations
The Thagged Orc
The sign outside of this bar depicts an orc being lifted into the air by a set of four spikes protruding from to the tail of some great beast, posed grotesquely with comical X-es as eyes. Inside, it's a dwarven bar the likes of which you could find in any dwarven settlement, although the orc skulls mounted on the horns of various thunder lizard skulls are a unique touch. One particularly large horn has a row of five orc skulls mounted on it like a Jumhirran kebab. The bartender is a friendly brown haired dwarf with a missing eye and an impressive scar running diagonally across his entire head named Trynt Coalhammer. His namesake, a massive warhammer with a jet black head so dark that it seems to absorb the light around it is mounted on the wall behind the bar(druchite). This establishment is particularly popular with the local garrison of Shieldbearers.
The Drunken Thunderjaw
The sign outside of this tavern depicts a bipedal lizard with comically small arms staggering to the side, it's legs crossed as it tips to the side and swirls in place of it's eyes. Inside, the main room has a high ceiling, and the centerpiece is an immense skull hanging from the center of the room, over five feet long with foot long serrated teeth. The tavern is run by the Quartzmane brothers, Reizick and Keizick, a pair of blonde haired twins, one of whom is missing his left arm, and the other his right leg. This establishment is particularly popular with the local thunder lizard hunters and tamers.
Opalhand's Scrimshaw
This business has a rather unconventional sign hanging outside. Rather than carved wood and paint, this sign appears to be made from a large bone plate of some sort, with an intricate border carved around it's edge, and "Opalhand" carved in dwarven script in the center. Inside, Haroum Opalhand offers bone and horn carving and inlaying services, charging a premium to add extravagant decorations to armor, weapons, and clothing. Haroum is a coal haired dwarf with elaborate bone and horn pieces separating his beard and hair into braids.
Notable NPCs
Trynt Coalhammer
Proprietor of the Thagged Orc, a popular bar in Thagspar. Has brown hair, a missing eye, and an impressive scar running diagonally across his whole head. A friendly fellow, he's always happy to gossip, and is surprisingly knowledgable about the movements and activity of the local orc tribes.
Reizick Quartzmane
Co-owner of the Drunken Thunderjaw along with his twin brother Keizick, Reizick is a blonde haired dwarf who is missing his left arm above the elbow... or was he the one with the missing leg? His beard is tied off with an impressive ornament, a six inch serrated tooth with a leather thong wrapped around it. Reizick is always happy to discuss the movements of the local wild Thunder Lizards, and is particularly knowlegable about the herbivores.
Keizick Quartzmane
Co-owner of the Drunken Thunderjaw along with his twin brother Reizick, Keizick is a blonde haired dwarf who is missing his right leg just above the knee... or was he the one with the missing arm? His beard is tied off with an impressive ornament, a six inch serrated tooth with a leather thong wrapped around it. Keizick is always happy to discuss the movements of the local wild Thunder Lizards, and is particularly knowlegable about the carnivores.
Haroum Opalhand
Haroum is a coal haired dwarf with elaborate bone and horn pieces separating his beard and hair into braids. Proprietor of Opalhand's Scrimshaw, Haroum has contacts with the local tribes that he sources exotic ingredients from. He's a good source of information and current news about the local tribes.
Mordus Slatecloak
The master of scouts at the Sunset Citadel, Mordus is a grizzled dwarf with a burn scar running across the entire right side of his head, just missing his eye and leaving that side of his head bare of hair. The rest of his exposed skin is covered in an array of scars, and his black hair is streaked with gray. In addition to drilling and supervising his scouts, he regularly makes his rounds through the local businesses, taverns, and inns to gather information.
Thulgrim Argentbrand
The commander of the citadel, Thulgrim is a paladin of torag and an experienced veteran of campaigns against the local orcs. He's a proactive commander, making active use of his scouts and often ordering pre-emptive strikes against bands of orcs which grow too large or become too active. He's dismissive of the local elven population as savages.
The Player's Perspective
Approaching from the end of the Thunder Road
The western end of the Thunder Road ends in a gatehouse which stretches from floor to ceiling. A set of massive gates is set back into the structure, with a hundred-foot wide fortification on each side.. The gates themselves are a hundred feet wide and seventy feet tall, stretching all the way to the roof of the tunnel. The bottom twenty feet of the fortifications are unbroken by windows or arrow slits, but above that point are multiple tiers of battlements, with siege engines visible at regular intervals. The forms of dwarves can be seen peering out over the battlements and manning the siege engines.
While the lower twenty feet of the fortification may not have windows or arrow slits, it is ornately decorated. Ten foot Statues of armored dwarves flank the doors, standing before soaring mountain peaks. To each side of the doors, in the center of their respective fortifications, matching statues of a huge thunder lizard stick out, lowering their heads towards the tunnel and presenting a shield-like bony plate and three imposing horns to any potential attacker. The frame of the door is covered in runic designs, and all of the carvings are inlaid with bone, most notably the snowcapped peaks of the mountains.
Passing through the tunnel bastion
Behind the tunnel gates, the interior of the gatehouse opens back up into a broad space three hundred feet wide and a couple of hundred feet long. Gatehouses bookend the area, and the walls are unbroken by arrowslits or windows for the first twenty feet. Above that point, they are lined with battlements, arrow slits, and siege engines on all four sides, and dwarves can be seen patrolling the battlements or manning the siege engines.
The entire expanse of the bottom twenty feet of the walls is carved with life-sized likenesses of armored dwarves, all holding their weapons and staring into the center of the area. Their figures are inlaid with metals, and their exposed skin is all inlaid with dinosaur bone. No two are alike, with different hair and beard styles, armors, and clan sigils displayed. In the center of the inner gatehouse, betwen the doors, a massive dragon has been carved rearing up behind the dwarves, it's wingspan filling the entire hundred foot wide wall, and it's twin-horned head extending up through a gap in the battlements, looking down over the whole area. The dragon's whole body is inlaid with a silvery metal, and it's eyes are a pair of egg-sized saphires.
Entering The Citadel
The gates of the tunnel bastion emerge in the corner of the eastern face of a pair of perpendicular cliffs which run north and west from their intersection point. This paragraph sucks which run to the north and east. The tunnel bastion lead out into a courtyard which is dominated by a massive keep that towers over the outer walls, it's southern face runnaround six hundred feet before angling inwards. A pair of perpendicular cliffs are to the east and south, with the tunnel bastion emerging from the eastern cliff face right where they meet. The courtyard is four hundred feet wide and extends for over a thousand feet to the east until it reaches the citadel walls, where it wraps to the north around the keep. The citadel walls are a hundred and fifty feet tall and extend to run along the cliff wall to the south right up to the tunnel bastion.
The gates of the tunnel bastion lead out into the inner citadel. The bastion is nestled into the corner of two perpendicular cliffs, worked perfectly smooth and straight. A massive keep is backed against the eastern cliff, with a courtyard wrapping around it and a broad wall a hundred and fifty feet tall and a hundred feet thick surrounding it on three sides. The wall has been extended to run along the southern cliff face, leaving every inch of the courtyard sandwiched between the walls and the keep.
Standing four hundred feet tall, the keep dominates the area. Its walls run around seven hundred feet on a side and angle inwards at the front corners. The walls are lined with multiple levels of battlements and arrow slits, and absolutely bristle with siege engines. In the opposite corner from the tunnel bastion is an L-shaped gatehouse
As you round the corner, it becomes clear that you're in a large courtyard extending around the keep, hundred and fifty foot wide walls separated from the keep in the center by a four hundred foot wide open courtyard surrounding the keep on three sides, with a sheer cliff face on the fourth. In the far corner from where you entered, an L-shaped gatehouse sits, large enough to be considered a keep in it's own right a large set of gates in the inner corner and a smaller set in the right wing.
Entering Thagspar
The central gates of the inner citadel emerge at the top of a broad stone ramp which curves slightly to point due west before straightening out and running for another six hundred feet, dropping fifty feet over that distance. At the end of the ramp is a stone lined street which runs west until it reaches the outer walls, a massive gatehouse standing on the far side of a wide courtyard at the end of the road. To the north are the buildings of the dwarven settlement of Thagspar, and to the south is another wall, imposing, but significantly less substantial than the main walls of the citadel. In between the road the and the wall to the south is a row of buildings, mostly taverns, bars, and inns.
The buildings of thagspar are built of sturdy blocks of the same dark stone as the mountains, the surface of the blocks worked smooth, but not polished to a shine, and their roofs are covered in slate tile when they aren't flat. In typical dwarven fashion, their sturdy, practical construction is contrasted with ornate carvings and decoration. Light colored wood, presumably harvested from the surrounding jungle, stands in stark contrast to the dark stone of the walls. The wood is used flexibly, as trim around doors and windows, as a facade at the corners and tops of the walls, and to inlay carvings.
The streets are lined with broad stone slabs, wide sidewalks running down both sides. Downspouts from the gutters of the surrounding buildings run directly into narrow channels and then to metal grates, presumably leading to a drainage system of some sort. The streets aren't incredibly busy, but there's regular traffic; dwarves moving in ones and twos on the sidewalk and carts moving down the streets, pulled by either bipedal reptiles with bony dome like skulls, or large quadrupeds with an array of spikes coming off of a bony frill extending from their skulls.
Maps
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The Sunset Citadel
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