Graystone

The majestic greaystone guards the only major passage through the Gråheim mountain range. It took two centuries to complete, commisioned by High King Æular of Tulim in 151 5E, and was buildt with the help of a large number of Darw's, even elisting the help of the Goliaths of the northern fylkes.

Purpose / Function

The fortress guards the pale pass, nestled in between two towering mountains. With its prodigious location, there is no bypassing the defensive structure.

Architecture

Graystone stands as one of the wonders of construction in the modern world, both in sheer size and resilience.
The fortress is partly carved out of the mountainsides, and its sheer walls tower 400 feet over the floor of the pale pass to the west. To the east, it holds back the Isilja lake, ever ready to unleash a flood on an approaching army. Its mighty halls once hosted a garrison of twenty thousand armed men, with room to hold all the amenities such a hoast would need.

History

They say that as long as man has a memory of life in the north, there has been a fortress at the end of the pale pass. For the greater part of history, that fortress was a small thing, but whoever held it decided who could come and go. The fortress that stood there when Graystone was commissioned had walls 60 feet tall. Graystone would surpass that nearly sevenfold.
Its construction was nothing short of controversial, with contemporary historians complaining that it would almost certainly bankrupt Tulim, and stand as a testimony to grand hubris. And to be fair, it nearly bankrupted Tulim not just once, but five times during its construction. Since its completion, it stood as the unbendable "gate to the north", and through taxation and security, allowed Tulim to expand westward and conquer its old nemesis, the nation formerly known as Henfomi. Later it became the seal that held the Gilm armies from advancing into the Tulim hartlands.
That changed in 487, as Gilm had managed to infiltrate the garrison to such a degree that a surprise attack on the night of the winter solstice saw the 'unbending seal' break. The blood of 15'000 Telimen and 5000 Gelise flowed from the fortress, and the weeping river was said to run red for two weeks as the blood was washed out. The loss of the fortress in the region cannot be understated. In Tulim it is simply known as the darkest night, while in Gilm it is celebrated as the Night of the black herald. With the gate to the north now open, the armies of Gilm poured through and conquered the Fylkes Vridvang and Throndeng in a single week.

Founding Date

Comissioned 151, finished 362 of the fifth age

Alternative Names

The gate to the north

Type

Fortress

Owner

Draconic Emperor Nerrfan

Owning Organization

Gilm