Hul-Jorkad
Hul-Jorkad
Religion
Traditions
-10% Aggressive Expansion Impact
+20% Garrison Size
Remembering the FallenNo two Dwarves can truly agree what happened on the fateful day of Hul-Jorkad's fall, or even the source of the orc invaders. Debate rages, over whether they were a divine punishment for the greed and bickering that had weakened the hold, strange beasts of the region rallied by Dûrkân the duplicitous: A con-man who cast himself in an image they saw as a god, or just a stroke of ill-fortune for miners who had dug too deeply and greedily.\n\nAll that can be said for certain is, in a single day, the enfeebled and unprepared hold was overrun. The accounts of that dreadful day and the marks it left upon the stones of our hold gave them reason to fight all the harder, then all that we've built could so quickly slip away.
+2 Tolerance of the True Faith
Dwarven PlumbingHul-Jorkad has traditionally served as the centre of the Serpentspine's civil engineers who drafted many texts and treatises on architecture and infrastructure, adopting these old theories and knowledge with new ones to clear millennia of sludge from the pipes and aqueducts. When finished they found that the water was not just potable, but exquisite. From great waterfalls to public fountains and wells, to, perhaps most appreciably, indoor taps and water-bearing toilets connected to the renowned sewer system, the Lead Dwarves were proud to show their mastery of waters' flow.
-25% State Maintenance
Skittering Through the SewersWhile the Hul Jorkad water system's merit could hardly be challenged, in the Serpentspine all manner of nasty creatures and troubles were attracted by it. There was no end to them; whether they be sewers clogged by Ironweave Skitterer webs, careless digging by goblin squatters, or strange abominations rising from within the sewer tunnels as a byproduct of alchemy and magic.\n\nTo say the least, the soldiers had no want for practice and exercise outside of wartime. This allowed them to deploy and test strategies new and old, and to constantly refine and tweak the conduct and practices of the armed forces. While perhaps plumbers could more properly secure the pipes, it became a rite of passage for young warriors to venture forth into the aqueducts and sewers of Hul-Jorkad.
-1% Yearly Army Tradition Decay
A Tale of Lead and GoldLead is the centre of dwarven alchemy, and there was hardly a better place to get one's hand on it, or any other alchemical component than Hul-Jorkad. Before the Hold's fall, up-and-coming alchemists made pilgrimages from across the Serpentspine to try their hand in turning our lead to gold. This ancient ambition is said to have once consumed the hold.\n\nEven now, dwarves are raised with the tale of Gulan-Amekh, the Golden King. As a young, starry-eyed man, the last king of Hul-Jorkad was said to have spent his life searching for the ritual in which he might turn our lead to gold. Soon enough, though, he was afflicted with intense greed and obsession with wealth, and his goal discarded. Only his fixation on gold remained. It's long been said that Hul-Jorkad might have held, had he not embezzled and hoarded the funds that would've armed the soldiers on the fateful day of the hold's fall, or even that the orcs were sent as a punishment, for a greedy, unfit ruler whose lust for gold had spread to his people, fracturing the hold at every level.
+0.05 Yearly Inflation Reduction
+50% Innovativeness Gain
Life-bearing LakeRight at Hul-Jorkad's Doorstep, the lake that shares its name had long been a source of trouble, with many dangerous creatures around its shores. At first the dwarves of Hul-Jorkad thought the area would not be not worth the effort to settle but, after a second look, they found the treasure in it, like gems beneath bland stone: water. While historically meltwater from the peaks fed through the aqueducts of Hul-Jorkad was enough to maintain the hold, that supply had become nearly insufficient.\n\nMeanwhile, the lake was filled with the life of many fish and edible plants that would provide the Lead Dwarves with food variety envied by the deeper holds. First with simple water wheels along the river's run, and ultimately with the towering mechanical water pumps, the water brought up into Hul-Jorkad would be enough for its people and to sell to every stretch of the Serpentspine beyond. It would also power the gears of each and every machine in Hul-Jorkad that sprung from the minds of the Lead engineers.
+15% National Tax Modifier
The JunctionLying in the junction between the Serpentreach and both the West and the Middle Dwarovar, the importance of the hold's central location allowed for much interaction with outsiders passing through. Generally wanting to keep positive relations among the other holds, the junction was outfitted with many facilities to enable trade with Hul-Jorkad before the caravans left for their destinations.\n\nTop notch security and many goods from the hold encouraged visitation from all over the Dwarovar not only for trade, but also for tourism, many enjoyed the enigmatic and magnificent systems of of pipes and aqueducts that both astounded the eye and proved extremely useful, leading to specialized bathhouses and breweries fed by only the most rarefied water.
+10% Global Trade Power
Lead Lined LivesThe toxic nature of lead has long been known throughout the Serpentspine. While many fools have poisoned themselves with poorly kept pipes, been fool enough to disrespect the metal and use it in paints, or many other common mistaken usages, the dwarves of Hul-Jorkad knew lead's place: Used as ammunition for the shot towers, flowing through alchemical instruments, and behind the pipes guiding waters flow within pipes conveying Halann's safest and most desirable water.\n\nThrough intelligent use of a dangerous material, the dwarves of Hul Jorkad keep finding safer, more efficacious uses for their second most abundant resource. Bright folk envied the lead-lined lives of the Lead Dwarves. Wise ones know their pipes aren't.
-10% Artillery Cost
Ambition
+1 Land Leader Fire
History
TBD
Strategy
TBD