Dirmlock

Dirmlock is a Dwarven city currently garrisoned by Imperials, who control its citizens under martial law.

History
The city of Dirmlock was built as a collabroation between dwarves, Deep Dwarves, and the above-ground dwelling hill dwarves as a military fortress in preperation for what would be a decades-long struggle with goblins and ogres of the mountains, hellbent on cleansing the pesky mountain folk from their ancestral homeland. As the war escalated, inhabitants from other mountainous villages and tribes also sought safety within the walls of Dirmlock. The Dwarves were originally reluctant to allow outsiders into their haven, but realized that to leave these human nomads, Gnomish villagers, and Goliath tribesmen out of their walls would surely result in their slaughter. United against a common enemy, the Goblin, the hodgepodgery of Dirmlock citizens gained each other's respect. Inside its walls, the people safely outlasted the Goblins in the long run. When the war was won, although the Dwarven races considered themselves the city's "true" residents, they learned to share the city with the humans, goliaths, gnomes, and other races that had taken permanent residence there. Each race coexisted peacefully, cooperatively, and treated each other with relative equality. During the war, the races were all designated their certain living areas of the city, not to be crossed. Post-war, the racial lines faded away and peasents of all races took up shop, home and tavern where they pleased.

Economy
Wartime boosted industry within the city and production raged, with rare minerals and precious jewels flooding in from the nearby mines. Post-war, industrial growth and agricultural development could expand beyond the city's wall. Population also expanded, as many groups who had survived the Goblin War were drawn to the stability of city life versus the sometimes harsh, unpredictable, and unforgiving mountain landscape. One particularly cataclysmic series of avalanches in nearby Thotham caused a large immigration of Goliath to the city.

Many nomads, tribes and villages that did not settle still made use of the city as a giant regional marketplace, where they could trade their goods that came from far and wide. The huge variety in goods that resulted, the abundance of raw resources available nearby, and the Dwarven industrial powerhouse also drew in many merchants from lands far away, eager to earn their share of wealth as traders.

While the Aureal Ocean was within a reasonable distance of the city, it could not serve as an ideal port; the coastline was much too rugged, rocky, stormy, and cold. However, it did supply the Uruz River, which flowed from the ocean through the mountains, passing directly by Dirmlock. Goods could be shipped downriver into lower lands of Human and Elvish territory, fortifying Dirmlock's position as a leading market city in Cambria.

Imperial Takeover/Present-day Status
The Elendar Empire, an Elvish state centered in the southwest of the continent, engaged in swift expansion due to a prosperous golden age of magic & technology fortified by a strong economy. Led by the charismatic High King Sendarius, the Elendar percieved their prowess as a divine gift from the Gods and a sign that they were destined to govern over the entire continent and live in the world's greatest Utopia.

Dirmlock was an obvious starting point for expansion, and controlling the city would give the Empire militaristic and economic control over the entire mountain region. Additionally, the mountain peoples were weakened by their recent war with the Goblins.

The takeover of Dirmlock by the Imperials is layed out in the timeline below.

Timeline
Year 600: Goblin-Dwarf War Ends

Year 605: An egotistically-inflated Elendar Empire diplomatically demands complete political control of Dirmlock, in exchange the city's people get to be part of such a glorious divine empire will recieve the blessing of the Gods. Dirmlock laughs and gives the Empire the metaphorical middle finger.

Year 606: An insulted Empire arrives outside Dirmlock with a big-ass army and repeats their demands. Dirmlock metaphorically spits in their faces. Siege ensues.

606-609: Dirmlock begins with the upper hand and takes little casualties at first, but the Empire has the endless numbers to continue sending vast amounts of troops. Some Elven-allied humans are also brought to fight.

609: Dirmlock begins to starve and begin taking heavier casualties. The Empire launches a full assault on the city and succesfully takes over.

610-611: The Empire governs Dirmlock strictly and relations are tense. Empire tries to stamp out underground sale of the Blakrok drug, which they consider a great transgression against the Gods, with little success. A population of gnomes is moved into the city serving as cheap labor to rebuild the damaged city. Gnomes hated by all.

611: Present day.