Arlashore

Second only to Serenal, Arlashore is the one of the largest settlements on the banks of Lake Arla, in the heart of The Southern Baronies region of The Kingdom of Vallanna.
The town sits on an important trade route between The Kingdom of Vallanna and The Kingdom of Ashalla, in a valley between the small mountain range of The Silvers, to the North, and the continent-splitting Ice Spine Mountains to the South.
The town's centre, including the Earl's manor and the town's administrative buildings and central market, can be found straddling a small tributary river which feeds into Lake Arla after winding itself down from the Ice Spine Mountains to the South. The town's historic dockside, the centre of the fishing industry in the town, is meanwhile found on the shore of the lake itself, in the North-Eastern end of the settlement.
The North side of the settlement sits in the shadow of the eaves of The Silvers, a small range of mountains on the western side of Lake Arla. Someway up the mountainside, but not inaccessable from Arlashore itself, sits the Silverheight Monastery. This institution has been in place for only slightly longer than the town itself. Indeed, some of the town's initial residents were members of the household staff of the monastery.

Government

Ruled by the Earl of Arlashore, Damon Vasre, and his wife, Countess Mara Enarren-Vasre; the day-to-day operations of the town are overseen by a Mayor and a small council of advisors, all of whom report to the Earl.

Defences

The centre of the town is protected by a substantial defensive wall; a holdover from The Demon War. The town has grown in the intervening years however, and given the relative peacefulness of the town's location, these defences have not been since expanded. The geography of the area has contributed to this feeling of safety; with the mountains directly to the North and Lake Arla to the North-East cutting off potential routes of attack.
Due to the town's location on an important trade route to the neighbouring The Kingdom of Ashalla, a small garrison of soldiers are stationed in the town, to respond to any threats which might occur.

Industry & Trade

Arlashore is home to the second largest fishing fleet on Lake Arla, who not only produce enough for the town itself, but also make use of the settlement's position on the trade road between Serenal and the neighbouring Kingdom of Ashalla to export significant amounts of fish.
The trade road itself has made Arlashore something of a market town, being the first major settlement that traders from Ashalla will enter, and the last that traders from Vallanna will enter. This has made the town prosperous and cosmopolitan.
Due to the surrounding geography, farmland around the town is rather scarce, although several smaller farms do produce some essentials. As such, while the fishing industry of Arlashore operates at a surplus, the town inevitably must import many other foodstuffs.

History

First founded in 602 AoU, shortly after the establishment of the Silverheight Monastery on the slopes of the overlooking mountain, Arlashore remained little more than a backwater village for the first few centuries of its existence. Many residents worked at the monastery as members of its household staff, while others made their living fishing on Lake Arla, hunting in the surrounding lands and farming just enough to survive.
With the construction of the new trade road through the area however, the population of Arlashore underwent something of an explosion, as the town found itself becoming a major trading post on the route between Vallanna and Ashalla.
During The Demon War, the town was spared the destruction which some northern settlements underwent, possibly due to the deployment of a substantial detachment of military forces, who used the town as a staging post in their efforts to protect the vital road connection.

Type

Town

Population

~12,000

Owner/Ruler

Damon Vasre, Earl of Arlashore

Owning Organization

The Southern Baronies

Characters in Location

• Damon Vasre, Earl of Arlashore