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What do I need to know about Alder Hill?
This document should give you a quick overview of what the town of Alder Hill is and what you will find there. For more information on Alder Hill and the continent of Arlavré, visit our Library. What and where is Alder Hill? What is the Alder Hill Inn? What is the history of Alder Hill? What kind of people and races live in Alder Hill? What and where is Alder Hill? Alder Hill, a medium-sized village with roughly twelve hundred inhabitants, is built on the eastern banks of the river Gwern. The only known bridge over the Gwern is here, and therefore all merchants and wayfarers have to visit Alder Hill on their way from the west to the east of the continent Arlavré, unless they want to cross the hostile Kelvóðin mountains further the north. Before the rather young Alder Hill, there have been other cities known to be at this specific location, which have left a few ruins and stone settings in and around the town. Around the village are palisades, meeting the Gwern both in the north and the south and providing Alder Hill with a defense against the Bírdun, fierce and agressive creatures known to breed in the Midlands and in Brongwertorn, the region around Alder Hill. The Midlands are sparsely inhabited, a few villages besides Alder Hill are known, but even the nearest one, Evoryn, is at a few day's distance by horse. What is the Alder Hill Inn? The Alder Hill Inn is renowned as a place for the weary traveller to forget their cares for a while and to have some fun. The Inn lies next to the old stone bridge on the east side of the river Gwern, and is one of the oldest buildings in Alder Hill. The Innkeeper Radelia, who people say has owned the Inn since it was opened, is a mysterious woman of uncertain origin and race: she seems to be human, and yet there is a touch of the Elf about her, with surprising strength under her usual friendly and easy-going nature. Troublemakers of the ordinary variety are dealt with swiftly by Young Burt (son of Old Burt, who in turn is the son of Even Older Burt, in turn son of Positively Ancient Burt), who is occasionally helped by the Troll Bouncers, and Radelia herself deals with troublemakers of the magical variety. Many people visit the Inn regularly, and some never seem to leave it, like Mekaul, the old geezer who never fails to inject a cynical comment into a conversation, or the magpie who has developed a taste for the local ale. What is the history of Alder Hill? The Alder Hill world has a history many thousand years old. While some of the races seem to have been around forever, like the elves, fae and dwarves, others are quite young - ifrin history dates back no more than five centuries. Common reckoning in this part of the world is before/after the foundation of Onþazkinel, the capital of the extinct Kolðarites, agressive humans who tried to conquer the whole continent. The Kolðarites were defeated by an alliance of Elves, Fae, Dwarves and Iðavi in 734, and Onþazkinel was destroyed. The current year is 1134, almost four centuries after the destruction of Onþazkinel. What kind of people and races live in Alder Hill? Most of the people living in Alder Hill are humans from the Midlands. But recently, people from all over the continent Arlavré visit Alder Hill, be it humans from other lands, or completely different races like elves, trolls or dwarves. Even usually shy creatures like the fae or the ifrin can be seen nowadays in Alder Hill. Some of them even settle down. Trade is flourishing and the village continues to grow. |
