Campaign Wiki

Acoroc

Properties2
tagseraedal, location, city, dwarven, timro, forge, sovereignty
aliasesAcoroc, City of Iron, The City of Iron

6 min read

Infobox

Acoroc

Municipal Details
AttributeDetail
City RoleSovereign Dwarven Ironhold & Armament Forge of the [[Timro
WorldEraedal
Ruling BodySovereign Council of Dwarven Thanes
Population31,000+ Known (24,000+ Underground Dwarves, 6,000 Surface Humans, 1,000 Slaves)
Key FeaturesSubterranean City of Iron, Avenue of the Gods, Avenue of Lords, Fort Seb
Primary ExportsMasterwork Dwarven Weapons, Plate Armor, Refined Iron & Steel
The Secret Highway350-mile subterranean tunnel connecting directly to the Kobold mountain realm

⚒️ Overview

Acoroc, celebrated across southern Eraedal as the City of Iron, is a unique political marvel within the Timro Kingdom: a completely sovereign, self-governing dwarven city-state operating within the borders of a human feudal empire.

Discovered two centuries ago when human prospectors struck rich veins of iron in the western foothills, the subterranean dwarven halls initially threatened to provoke an empire-shattering war. However, King Acorok IV wisely recognized that attempting to dislodge entrenched dwarven clans from their underground fortresses would be an exercise in catastrophe. Instead, he forged the historic Treaty of King Acorok, granting the dwarves total internal sovereignty, immunity from imperial taxes, and exclusive control over the mining, manufacturing, pricing, and distribution of all arms and armor. In return, the dwarven tharnguards pledged their enduring loyalty to the Throne of Timiro and guaranteed a constant supply of masterwork weapons to the Royal Army.

To seal his eternal oath, King Acorok decreed that the city would forever bear his name. Today, while the orderly surface settlement of Acoroc houses some twelve thousand merchants, humans, and craftsmen, the true heart of the realm lies miles below—the vast, smoke-cloaked subterranean City of Iron, where twenty-four thousand dwarven smiths, miners, and warriors forge the steel that guards the civilized world.

🗺️ Geography & Layout

                         [ MOUNTAIN FOOTHILLS ]
                                   |
         [ FORT SEB ] <--- [ SURFACE ACOROC ] ---> [ MINING COMPLEX GATES ]
      (Befuddled Garrison)  (Avenue of Lords / Gods)     (Exclusive Dwarven Entry)
                                                         |
                                            [ THE SUBTERRANEAN CITY OF IRON ]
                                            (24,000+ Dwarves / Smelting Vaults)
                                                         |
                                            [ THE 350-MILE UNDER-HIGHWAY ]
                                            (Secret Passage to Kobold Realm)

1. Surface Acoroc

The surface city is a clean, orderly grid of paved avenues and stone facades:

  • Avenue of Lords: The commercial district, crowded with high-end trade shops, moneylenders, and outfitting agencies catering to wealthy knights and travelers.
  • Avenue of the Gods: A grand boulevard featuring nearly twenty shrines and temples honoring diverse deities, most prominently Torag (the Father of Creation), Abadar, and the Order of Light.
  • The Surface Demographics: Home to roughly 6,000 surface dwarves and 6,000 humans (farmers, teamsters, and arms merchants). Non-human slaves are legally limited to human-owned service quarters, as dwarven clans refuse to practice chattel slavery within their ancestral halls.

2. The Subterranean “City of Iron”

Hidden behind the massive, rune-carved iron gates of the central mining complex lies the true metropolis:

  • An immense, honeycombed underground city extending through tiers of natural caverns and sculpted basalt galleries.
  • Roaring geothermal smelting furnaces and water-powered triphammers forge weapons day and night.
  • Elaborate defensive labyrinths, dead-fall traps, and false galleries make the subterranean city veritably impenetrable to conventional military siege. Humans—even royal ambassadors—are strictly forbidden from venturing into the lower halls without the personal escort of a Clan Thane.

3. Fort Seb & The Human Garrison

Built just outside the city walls by the Timro Crown to symbolize imperial “protection” of the dwarven state:

  • The human soldiers stationed here are charged with patrolling surrounding highways and keeping order, but possess zero legal jurisdiction over dwarven citizens.
  • Dwarven Slapstick: The garrison is a notoriously loathed posting among Timro officers. During their mandatory weekly diplomatic visits to the city, human soldiers are the perpetual target of robust, slapstick dwarven practical jokes, puns, and boisterous teasing. Timro soldiers are required by royal treaty to maintain absolute courteous decorum at all times, no matter how humiliating the jest.

🕵️‍♂️ The Great Secret: The 350-Mile Under-Highway

DM Hidden Lore: The Kobold Alliance

To the profound perplexity of the Timro Crown, kobolds are frequently spotted strolling openly through the streets of Acoroc, running errands, or enjoying ales in dwarven taverns without anyone ever witnessing their arrival at the city gates.

The secret truth, known only to the High Thanes: centuries ago, the dwarves of Acoroc and the sovereign Kobolds of the distant mountain range jointly excavated a colossal, warded subterranean highway spanning 350 miles beneath the mantle of Eraedal.

The bond between these two subterranean races is unbreakable. If Acoroc were ever besieged, an army of tens of thousands of kobold sappers and skirmishers would march through the tunnels to relieve their allies.

⚔️ The Sale of Weapons & Dwarven Trade Law

As the undisputed producers of the finest armaments in Eraedal, the dwarves enforce unyielding trade protocols:

  • No Haggling: Dwarves consider attempting to bargain or dicker over price as a direct insult to their craftsmanship. Haggling causes the price to instantly double, and persistent complainers are bodily ejected into the street.
  • Bulk Sales: Bulk shipments of weapons and armor are sold exclusively to native Timro merchants bearing an official writ signed and sealed by royal allotment agents in Credia, Old Timiro, or Aracho.
  • Foreign & Non-Human Embargoes: Bulk arms sales are strictly forbidden to Western Empire merchants, the Land of the South Winds, or non-humans. Individual Orcs, Ogres, or Goblins may purchase a maximum of four mundane weapons, under heavy dwarven scrutiny.
  • Superior Items: Masterwork weapons, resilient armor with enhanced durability, and enchanted alloy shields are priced at substantial premiums and never discounted.

🎯 Adventure Hooks in Acoroc

  1. The Smuggled Ironwood Blades: The party traces an order of masterwork weapons bound for the insurgents in Borlon to a rogue human merchant in Acoroc who is illegally funneling dwarven steel through the southern sea routes.
  2. The Under-Highway Incursion: Strange seismic tremors rock the deep tunnels of the 350-mile under-highway. Dwarven scouts discover that subterranean entities—spawned by the dreaming Galchutt deep within the crust—have breached the tunnel walls, threatening both Acoroc and the Kobold realm.
  3. The Diplomatic Humiliation at Fort Seb: A haughty young noble officer assigned to Fort Seb loses his temper during a dwarven prank, drawing steel on a dwarven clan elder. To prevent an international treaty crisis that could cut off weapons to the Timro Royal Navy, the party must mediate the dispute and perform a challenging service for the Thanes.

Graph View

Backlinks