Writgate

Writgate at a Glance

Writgate is the capital of the Western March. It stands at the mouth of the main mountain pass, where all travel must slow and submit. The city exists to control movement, goods, and people. Entry is watched, exits are limited, and mercy is secondary to order.

Refugees, raiders, and hungry crowds are treated as threats before they are treated as people. Aid is rare and tightly managed. The pass must stay open, even if bodies pile up outside the walls.

The Pass and the Walls

High stone walls seal the pass with layered gates and narrow approaches. Watchtowers cover every road and slope. Streets are tight and angled to break crowds and slow carts. Open spaces are few and always watched.

Holding yards sit near the gates to confine people, animals, and cargo. Anyone without approval is detained until a decision is made. Most wait. Some are turned back. A few disappear into holding pens or work details.

Rule by Force and Record

Writgate is governed by written order backed by violence. Authority flows from the March Court and is enforced by patrols, guards, and jailers. During declared emergencies, officials can seize supplies, animals, property, or labor without appeal.

Disputes are settled quickly. Outcomes favor control, not fairness. Fines, confiscation, forced service, or imprisonment are common. Justice is not the goal. Compliance is.

Lord of Writgate

Lord Edric Grael holds absolute authority during crisis. He decides when movement stops, when supplies are taken, and when districts are sealed. He appoints commanders, sets enforcement priorities, and controls who may pass through the city.

His duty is simple and brutal: keep the pass open and the city intact. Hunger, disease, and unrest are problems to be managed, not solved. He answers to the crown and reports often, but within the walls his word is final.

The March Court

The March Court processes people, not arguments. Petitioners are searched, disarmed, and rushed through hearings. Speech is limited. Decisions are fast.

When emergency powers are declared, orders are issued that override all local claims. Property is taken. Labor is assigned. Travel is restricted. Appeals are rare and usually pointless.

Trade and Control of Goods

Writgate survives because goods still move through it. Ore, timber, resin, and tools pass under guard and inspection. Losses are treated as theft or sabotage.

Certain materials are tightly controlled due to their industrial value. Storage yards are guarded like fortifications. Fires, theft, or damage bring swift punishment.

Faith and Inspection

Travelers pass through inspection before entering the city proper. Priests examine them for sickness, corruption, or forbidden influence. Some checks are sincere. Others are political.

Refusal to submit is treated as guilt. Those flagged are detained or isolated. The faiths are respected, feared, and rarely challenged, even when they are wrong.

Magic and Vaus Hall

Magic is rare and tightly controlled. Vaus Hall houses the city’s only sanctioned wizard and a small staff. The hall maintains wards, alarms, and emergency defenses tied into the city’s security.

In return, the wizard holds limited immunity and influence. Commanders rely on the hall during threats, then seek to limit its power once the danger passes. The tension never fades.

Districts of Writgate

The Slums

Crowded and unstable, pressed against old walls and broken lanes. Crime is common and organized. Cult recruiters work openly. Guards enter in force and leave fast. Fires and rumors spread quickly.

Lower City

Dense workshops, cramped housing, and constant labor. Unrest grows here first when shortages worsen. Meetings happen in hidden rooms and shuttered buildings. The city calls it disorder. The people call it survival.

The Docks

Trade yards and loading platforms under heavy watch. Violence is crushed quickly. Bribery exists but follows strict rules. Smuggling is constant. Disease control is harsh due to traffic and exposure.

Market District

The center of legal trade. Goods are measured and monitored. Tools and basic supplies are treated like luxuries. Officials and informants blend into crowds. Most real deals happen quietly.

Castle Ward

The seat of power. Court halls, command offices, and record vaults fill the district. It is built for defense, not comfort. Most who enter leave with less than they brought.

Upper City

Better housing, guarded storehouses, and controlled access. The coliseum sits here. Public games serve as warning and release. Fighters include prisoners, debtors, and hired killers. Winners earn favors. Losers are discarded.

Temple Ward

A controlled entry zone. Inspection halls, holding sheds, and isolation yards dominate the streets. Charity exists during declared emergencies, but it is guarded and conditional.

Cemetery

Used constantly and without ceremony for the poor. Plague pits and ash graves handle bad weeks. Important dead are marked and protected. Grave theft is common enough to require armed watch.

Barracks

Holds the garrison and the prison. Patrols deploy from here across the city. Prisoners include criminals, debtors, and unverified outsiders. Sentences often end in forced labor.

Vaus Hall

Isolated by law and fear. Guarded by wards more than soldiers. Petitioners arrive daily seeking cures or protection. Most are turned away. Some leave bound to obligations worse than debt.

Daily Life and Mood

Life in Writgate is tightly controlled. Movement is watched. Punishment is public. Silence is safer than speech.

The city survives because it must. The pass makes it valuable. Scarcity makes it cruel.