West Fortress
The West Fortress was once the westernmost settlement in all of Reme. While many settlements exist farther west now, West Fortress remains the county seat for the Aciier family, one of the few noble houses in the Westmarches to avoid becoming embroiled in the recent and lengthy Westmarch civil war. West Fortress also remains the westernmost major trade hub in Reme, as well as the best place in the Westmarches to buy tough work-ponies, donkeys, Loreclan-bred horses, and mules. Finally, West Fortress is known for fine sheep, wool, and excellent cheeses.
Located on the west bank of the Aciier River, about halfway between the Windreft and the northern edge of the Westwood, the West Fortress riverboat pilots are some of the most skilled in the world, with intimate knowledge of the mercurial Aciier’s many moods. The Aciier is prone to unpredictable flooding, especially during winter and spring, and also varies in depth and speed (and even course from year to year due to its flooding habits) while maintaining a deceptively placid surface. Many a supposedly experienced river pilot from other parts of the world has lost cargo or even lives trying to navigate the Aciier, but the West Fortress pilots teach their apprentices to notice every last detail of weather and water flow, taking clues from the surrounding wilderness and more in predicting when transport is advisable and where to play it safe and portage one’s craft for a day or so. West Fortress rivercraft are designed with shallow, flat bottoms and built light with attachable cart wheels for easier portage where necessary.
For similar reasons, West Fortress itself boasts an impressively high wall built of granite and sealed watertight all the way around the city. When the Aciier’s floodwaters reach all the way to the city, various extendable or floating ramps are deployed to allow any necessary traffic to and from the fortress, while the majority of citizens remain snug and dry in the elevated and granite-paved streets inside. The city was built atop a low but wide granite tor near the river, one of three such tors in the general West Fortress region. Between the flooding and a minimum of good farming soil nearby (everything being too rocky), the city is already at its maximum population capacity, and Aciier’s countess funds settling expeditions to the less-populated regions of her nominal territory whenever she can afford to do so.
Fortunately for West Fortress, the Aciiers are currently in high favor with the grand duke and the duke of the Westmarches due to their neutrality in the long war. Thus, ducal funds have been allocated for improving crowding issues within the fortress itself, as well as several new sponsored settling expeditions to wild areas, taking the pressure off the residents somewhat. Also, with the war finally abated, and pitched battles between the Brodcheks and Merciers no longer a common occurrence in the eastern Windreft, West Fortress is now once again more easily able to send large granite-barges down to Eckland in the late summer when the Aciier is tamer. The granite from quarries south of West Fortress has long been one of the region’s best exports, but between the Aciier’s unpredictability and the violence in The Windreft, transporting the stone to market has been hazardous. Now that profits are up again, the countess is said to be in a generous and optimistic mood, more beloved by her people than ever.
Of course, another reason the countess might be happier than before is her growing friendship with Hana, a young ward of hers. No one knows why the countess took in this apparently clanless orphan, but the two are as close, it is said, as mother and daughter. Countess Gemra Aciier has never birthed children of her own, though she was married for many years, and she has never stated publicly why this is. Her title and lands will pass to her niece, Kemmin Aciier, with whom both the countess and West Fortress have a basically pleasant relationship. Everyone adores young Hana, however, who is cheerful, intelligent, hardworking, and always helpful to those around her without the slightest regard for class. Some fear that Hana’s popularity is causing a jealous rift between the countess and her heir, but others believe that Hana is so likable that even Lady Kemmin can’t help but dote on her as a young cousin. Thus far, Countess Aciier has made no move to officially adopt her ward.
Many are curious about Hana’s origins, however, and some say she bears a startling resemblance to the old Decian duke and his wife. If Hana is somehow the child or grandchild of the last duke, some believe that would make her, by rights, the true grand duchess of Reme. Countess Aciier gives every sign of being loyal to Grand Duke Iltobarus, but some say that the old duke’s Northmarch Decian cousins, though not themselves eligible for the grand ducal throne, have sent agents to sniff around West Fortress in case Hana might be their ticket back into power. According to Countess Aciier, Hana is the orphan of someone to whom Gemra Aciier owed a boon, and she is raising the deceased woman’s child in order to pay her debt. Hana is now 14 years old, pale, small and slim, the perfect opposite in appearance of coppery Gemra Aciier who stands taller than most men, with broad shoulders and a surprisingly heavy sword arm.
Located on the west bank of the Aciier River, about halfway between the Windreft and the northern edge of the Westwood, the West Fortress riverboat pilots are some of the most skilled in the world, with intimate knowledge of the mercurial Aciier’s many moods. The Aciier is prone to unpredictable flooding, especially during winter and spring, and also varies in depth and speed (and even course from year to year due to its flooding habits) while maintaining a deceptively placid surface. Many a supposedly experienced river pilot from other parts of the world has lost cargo or even lives trying to navigate the Aciier, but the West Fortress pilots teach their apprentices to notice every last detail of weather and water flow, taking clues from the surrounding wilderness and more in predicting when transport is advisable and where to play it safe and portage one’s craft for a day or so. West Fortress rivercraft are designed with shallow, flat bottoms and built light with attachable cart wheels for easier portage where necessary.
For similar reasons, West Fortress itself boasts an impressively high wall built of granite and sealed watertight all the way around the city. When the Aciier’s floodwaters reach all the way to the city, various extendable or floating ramps are deployed to allow any necessary traffic to and from the fortress, while the majority of citizens remain snug and dry in the elevated and granite-paved streets inside. The city was built atop a low but wide granite tor near the river, one of three such tors in the general West Fortress region. Between the flooding and a minimum of good farming soil nearby (everything being too rocky), the city is already at its maximum population capacity, and Aciier’s countess funds settling expeditions to the less-populated regions of her nominal territory whenever she can afford to do so.
Fortunately for West Fortress, the Aciiers are currently in high favor with the grand duke and the duke of the Westmarches due to their neutrality in the long war. Thus, ducal funds have been allocated for improving crowding issues within the fortress itself, as well as several new sponsored settling expeditions to wild areas, taking the pressure off the residents somewhat. Also, with the war finally abated, and pitched battles between the Brodcheks and Merciers no longer a common occurrence in the eastern Windreft, West Fortress is now once again more easily able to send large granite-barges down to Eckland in the late summer when the Aciier is tamer. The granite from quarries south of West Fortress has long been one of the region’s best exports, but between the Aciier’s unpredictability and the violence in The Windreft, transporting the stone to market has been hazardous. Now that profits are up again, the countess is said to be in a generous and optimistic mood, more beloved by her people than ever.
Of course, another reason the countess might be happier than before is her growing friendship with Hana, a young ward of hers. No one knows why the countess took in this apparently clanless orphan, but the two are as close, it is said, as mother and daughter. Countess Gemra Aciier has never birthed children of her own, though she was married for many years, and she has never stated publicly why this is. Her title and lands will pass to her niece, Kemmin Aciier, with whom both the countess and West Fortress have a basically pleasant relationship. Everyone adores young Hana, however, who is cheerful, intelligent, hardworking, and always helpful to those around her without the slightest regard for class. Some fear that Hana’s popularity is causing a jealous rift between the countess and her heir, but others believe that Hana is so likable that even Lady Kemmin can’t help but dote on her as a young cousin. Thus far, Countess Aciier has made no move to officially adopt her ward.
Many are curious about Hana’s origins, however, and some say she bears a startling resemblance to the old Decian duke and his wife. If Hana is somehow the child or grandchild of the last duke, some believe that would make her, by rights, the true grand duchess of Reme. Countess Aciier gives every sign of being loyal to Grand Duke Iltobarus, but some say that the old duke’s Northmarch Decian cousins, though not themselves eligible for the grand ducal throne, have sent agents to sniff around West Fortress in case Hana might be their ticket back into power. According to Countess Aciier, Hana is the orphan of someone to whom Gemra Aciier owed a boon, and she is raising the deceased woman’s child in order to pay her debt. Hana is now 14 years old, pale, small and slim, the perfect opposite in appearance of coppery Gemra Aciier who stands taller than most men, with broad shoulders and a surprisingly heavy sword arm.
Settlement
West Fortress, City of
Type
Town
Owning Organization
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