Amaroth

City Crest
Gold rose in front of a white spire

Appearance
A walled city built of carved white stone. The houses, buildings and roadways made of stone with stone gangways going between the higher floors, as well as a system of magically propelled monorails. It is built entirely in gothic cathedral style, with lots of sharp spires and carvings. The upper levels are hastily built from wood - shanty towns in the spires. It is surrounded on 3 sides by immensely thick overgrown jungle, and on the fourth side by a waterfall crashing down from the mountains. Outside the walls there is a small clear ring of farmland and pasture before the jungle begins again.

Economy
Amaroth doesn’t produce any raw materials of its own. Instead the surrounding villages and farmsteads pay a tithe of food and raw goods in return for protection from outside threats. To protect itself and its vassal cities, Amaroth has a large standing army led by experienced paladins. They’re recognisable by their white armour with gold chasing. As one of the only safe areas in the region, Amaroth is a bustling hub of trade with caravans arriving every day from anywhere and everywhere. The city is also known for its artisan goods, particularly metalwork and stonework. In addition to trading in the traditional currency of gold, Amaroth has a separate currency of Indulgences which is given in exchange for prayer.

Culture
Amaroth is ruled by a single autocratic leader called ‘The Smiling Prince’ and has been since its founding 500+ years ago. The only religion allowed to be practiced within city walls is that of the god Hesta, who supposedly founded the city. The Hestan religion has priests and paladins but no clerics other than The Smiling Prince himself. Worship is taken very seriously and all city dwellers are expected to pray at least once per week.

Races
The main people of Amaroth are humans, and The Smiling Prince and the majority of the high ranking officials of the city are from the human group called the Roth. The second most populous race is Birdfolk, with the majority being from a local tribe called the Asities. Most Asities are fiercely loyal to the Prince and very religious, despite being treated as second-class cities by many of the humans. Though not numerous, an Orcish clan known as the Nightswoops are also allied with Amaroth. Frequently seen with their spirit-bonded dire bat companions/mounts, the Nightswoops have claimed a nearby empty quarry as their lair and serve the city as scouts and aerial shock troops. Dwarves from the neighbouring Cadogan Mountains and Elves from allied Elfmeets are also common sights. The trading nature of Amaroth means that there is a constant stream of traffic from all over the region and beyond, so even more unusual races are barely remarked upon - apart from to ask if they have anything to sell.

History
Over 600 years ago the Roth and their god Hesta were one of many small-time tribes fighting for space and worshippers at the edge of the jungle. Unlike the other tribes who were primarily nomadic, the Roth brokered a deal with a cartel of the Cadogan Dwarves, and they poured all of their money and manpower into building a stone cathedral surrounded by high defensive walls. Though initially this meant that the Roth tribe suffered from shortages of food and resources, in the long run it allowed them to defend against the monsters of the jungle and the bandits of the mountains. Amaroth began to be known as a safe place to meet and trade, and slowly began to expand.

Hesta's insistence on building in stone and clearing the jungle around the walls meant that when the formidable Orcish warband the Nightswoops were cutting a swathe through the jungle tribes, the Roth were able to not only defend themselves but defeat them over the course of several gruelling years of guerrilla combat. The Nightswoop warchief, convinced of the superiority of settling down in a civilisation, joined the Roth and formed the core of a new religious army. With a standing army, Amaroth began to offer protection to surrounding tribes in return for tithes. Amaroth has only grown since then.