Axehedge

## History

The city of Axehedge has a history that goes back thousands of years. Originally built and inhabited by the Dwarves, the city was called Dorag-Dohûl. Shortly before the destruction of Bai’el, the Dwarven leaders were able to divine the fate that was going to befall the mighty empire and fled beneath the Mithral Mounts, sealing themselves away in safety as catastrophe befell the surface world.

In the centuries since, other groups came and went, inhabiting the stone ruins of the city. Because of its location on the edge of the Forsaken Hills and the Hedgelands, the ruins changed hands many times, sometimes occupied by Forsaken tribes and at other times inhabited by settlers from further south. The current government of the city dates back to 845, shortly after the Hedge Charter was signed. Though an outlier in terms of the makeup of the rest of the political confederation, there were mutual benefits for the settlement joining, as opposed to remaining an isolated lone city-state.

## Life and Society

The people of Axehedge claim to be descendants of the Dwarves, and while their claims cannot be proven true or false, there are many aspects of their ways and culture that would suggest the claims are true. The average height of natives is slightly shorter than that of the wild men of the Unwelcoming Hills, the Free-Cities, and the Hedgelands. For time immemorial, beards have been worn by virtually every native man.

A Dwarven city at its heart, the Humans that have adopted it have maintained the precise planning that the Dwarves laid out. The precise grid pattern that streets and buildings are plotted on follow the blueprints laid out by the Dwarves. Buildings are made of stone, generally marble, limestone, and granite obtained from nearby mines and quarries, and are generally anywhere between one and three stories tall, arranged externally and internally to provide maximum efficiency in terms of lighting, heating, and cooling.

Due to the preponderance of engineers, artificers, and inventors, many wonders that are not particularly common elsewhere are in a great deal more abundance in Axehedge. Mechanical clocks and gas lights, for example, are considered status symbols in most other settlements, but in Axehedge, publicly maintained mechanical clocks display the time and publicly maintained gas lights illuminate the streets. Commoners are still priced out of private ownership of such things, but the Council of Leadership provides them out of tax revenue in the public sphere.

## Major Geographic Features

Axehedge is partially carved into Mount Tûmunthûm, one of the mountains in the Mithral Mounts. Because of its unique history and location, Axehedge shares the fewest similarities with the other members of the Hedgelands Charter. The area is hillier and more mountainous than forested, making it architecturally different from any of the other major settlements in the Hedgelands. Most buildings are stone, as opposed to being made of wood. It is surrounded by a great stone wall, making it virtually impenetrable.

North of Axehedge are the Forsaken Hills, a lawless land infested by the Forsaken, brigands and wild men stretching to the Free-Cities. South of the city are the Mithral Mounts. Deep under the Mithral Mounts lies the great Dwarfhall of Dhom-Dûral. To its east is the Bay of Gulls, and to its west, the Hedgelands and the Inner Sea.

The River Karth bisects the city, with the water flowing out from The Colossus carved into the Mount Tûmunthûm into a waterfall gushing nearly 450 feet to the city below. The river was named after Garrett Karth, the first known explorer tap trace and map its headwaters. In the language of the Dwarves, the river is known as *Mamorûr-Lur*, which is translated loosely as “River from the Skies”.

The city is divided into three areas: the Six Towers District, the High Quarters, and the Trade Ward. The Six Towers District is the largest subdivision of the city, the home of the majory of Axehedge's population. The ward is named after the six towards manned by the Knights of Axehedge to police and protect the residents of the city. The High Quarters are former Dwarven abodes carved into the mountain that are now inhabited by the city's elite. The Trade Ward is home to the majority of Axehedge's industry and business.

## Important Sites

The Colossus

The Colossus is an imposing Dwarven face carved into the surface of Mount Tûmunthûm. The face is stern and looks into the distance with an expressionless gaze. The River Karth flows out of its mouth and cascades down into to the city below in a waterfall nearly 450 feet in height. Who the Colossus is supposed to depict has been lost to time, although the Dwarves likely have ancient records identifying the imposing visage.

## Major Organizations

Council of Leadership

Knights of Axehedge