Black Gate

Location: Aulandrinor Northeast of the Caledonian march and due west of Argos

Type: Small City

Population: 10,000 (not counting slaves) (90% human, 2% Dwarf, 8% other)

Government: Colonial Territory

Black Gate rest on and spills over the edge of the great escarpement. A vast sheer cliff who’s average height is around 100’ over it’s 200 mile length. She is a walled city with three distinct sections of the town, high Guard, Swamp Gate and digger town. Black Gate exists for one reason and one reason only, coal. The violent forces that cracked the vast plain and created the grand escarpment exposed huge veins of high quality coal and few other precious ores. This coal fires the furnaces in far off Argos and is used to build the many ships built there every year. If the sea is the spirit of Argos then Black Gate is her heart, pumping its black blood.

Governance:

Black Gate is governed by a Duke appointed in Argos. The Duke is appointed from among the many noble families in Argos and usually serves a 6 year term. The Duke is further counciled by members of other noble families that maintain houses in Black gate, though not in any official capacity. The Duke’s only real interest is to ensure the coal and other mineral resources reach Argos on a regular basis. The Duke also serves as the local military commander. The current Duke has been in Black Gate for 4 years. He is Duke Frederick Vaspasian. It is widely known Duke Vaspasian thinks of Black Gate as nothing more than a back water burgh and he hates being away from Argos. The Duke takes every opportunity to return on as many trips as possible.

The operation of the city actually falls to the Chamberlain of Black Gate, a position that is appointed by the Duke. The Chamberlain deals with the small local guilds, enforces laws through the watch and collects appropriate taxes. The current Chamberlain is a Tithian named Gile Merrick. He has been Chamberlain for 7 years.

Major Features:

Highguard:

Sitting atop the grand escarpment, this walled section of the looks out over the vast Shiled swamp to the south and north into the vast Telnarden plain. This portion of the city contains the 5 houses of the visitng locals, the city armory, the Elian church, the main castle, the Chamberlains quarters & offices, several inns and bars and a few upscale shops. This is also where most of the cities well-off folk live.

Swampgate:

Resting at the base of the cliff, surrounded by the massive walls, this portion of the city looks up and the grand escarpment and out over those walls ino the threatening swamp. This portion of the city is dominated by wharehouses, animal paddocks and military barracks. The largest market is located in the heart of the district and is further surrounded by many shops, bars, shady inns, whorehouses and the homes of the more meagerly appointed residents of Black Gate.

Digger town:

Digger town is not visible to the paaserby in Black gate. Half way up the massive cliff is a huge cave entrance that leads back into the cliff and into the vast mines beneath the city and the Telnarden plain itself. The mines have been in operation for over 200 years and they now extend deep beneath the plain. Transporting material, tools, animals and slaves started to become a laborious process. So to circumvent this problem a large cavern was dug out with in the mine to house all the equipment and slaves closer to the shafts. Soon opportunistic folks started to establish make shift shops to service the slave drivers that would be too tired to go home more than a few times a week. Digger town now operates as an almost self sufficient village in perpetual twilight.

The Lifts:

The most obvious feature one sees when coming to Black Gate are the massive twin lifts that slowly move up and down the cliff face carrying the coal and ores form the mines. Built and operated by a small clan of dwarves back when Black gate was founded, it is these technological wonders that make Black Gate a viable mining operation and are considered a point of high security in the city. Each of the lifts measures 100’ across and 60’ deep. They are made of dwarven forged steel and follow steel tracks imbedded into the cliff face. The dwarven clan that operates and maintains the lifts will not reveal how they work but most people assume they are channeling the power of the Grey Wash river as it cascades over the Black Falls.