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"How does an Averlander tell a difference between his woman and his cattle? He can’t!"

—Reiklander joke.

Averheim is the capital city of the Grand Province of Averland, and the original capital of the ancient Brigundians tribe.

Overview[]

Averheim has been the chief city of the land between the river Aver and the river Reik since before the legendary Emperor Sigmar was born. It sits on a bluff above the river Aver, and so is immune from its occasional high floods. At the highest point of the city, at the end of the road leading from the towns of Pfungzig and Heideck, the fortress of the Elector Count sits behind powerful walls from which its towers command a view for miles around.

Chieftain Siggurd of the ancient Brigundian tribe reputedly began the fortress called the Averburg after Sigmar made him a Count of his new Empire. He wanted a symbol so powerful and intimidating that no one, neither rebel nor invader, would ever challenge his rule, and through him, Sigmar. Naturally, the castle has been rebuilt, added to, and repaired several times, so the truth is hard to tell. Scholars believe it certainly dates to the early first millennium, but cannot be sure until they examine the foundation, which would mean entering the crypts of the Elector Counts. Their requests have been regularly denied without explanation. Some wonder if, rather then out of a sense of propriety and privacy, it is perhaps because the rumours of Siggurd's shield, spear, and chariot, purported to be magical artefacts of great power, are buried in the crypt with him. If so, the Elector Counts would not be anxious to let others know they possess such powerful weapons.

Averheim is also famous for its stockyards, where the great cattle drives end in the heat and stink of an Averlander summer. For several days, the streets are filled with cattle being brought to market and retainers of the cattle lords eager to spend their pay. The Averheim watch often hires more help during this time to keep at least some control over the "celebration." The stockyards are near the docks where the slaughterhouses are located, so the cut meat can be salted, cured and loaded onto barges for easy transportation. Recently, a cabal of merchants has begun experimenting with ice brought from the mountains and kept magically cool, to keep the meat fresh during transportation. The Salter's Guild of Averheim has threatened violence if the experiment continues. A famous monument in the city is the Pillar of Skulls, marking the high point of Gorbad Ironclaw's invasion of Averland in the 18th Century.

Although the Averburg itself has never fallen, the city was penetrated and Gorbad's forces made it as far as the Plenzerplatz, the city's main square. There, the Grand Count and his personal bodyguards along with the remaining soldiers of Averland set upon them. Slaughtered by the hundreds, Gorbad's army was forced to move on, and the Elector Count ordered a monument built from the skulls of the dead Orcs. To this day, it is said that blood drips from the eye socket of some of the skulls on the Night of Mystery.

In present times, control of Averheim has not been a clean-cut affair. While the family of Marius Leitdorf nominally owns and administers the land and legalities of Averheim, their constant infighting has allowed several rival factions to gain power within the city. Many noble families, most notably the Altraums, have garnered influence with local guilds and merchants. Gossips in the street whisper of criminal connection, and of bribery and coercion. Certainly, the local temple of Sigmar has received some hefty donations recently, judging from the latest round of building and decoration. Thieves have become more brazen of late. Whilst the city watch continues to keep the peace "in the name of the Count," they lack leadership and funds to deal with large gangs that have started to rear their heads. No one can say for sure if these groups are the result of political manoeuvring on the part of the nobility, or just speak of a lack of orders. Most believe that rulership of Averheim is the key to the title of Elector Count. With such a prize to offer, it can only be a matter of time before simmering undercurrents of violence boil over, bringing blood on the streets.

The City[]

The Temples[]

With the exception of Ranald, shrines to all the other major deities of the Old World pantheon can be found throughout the city. The worship of Sigmar is particularly important to Averheimers, due mainly to their proximity to Black Fire Pass, the scene of his great�est victory. As well as the temple on the Plenzerplatz, a further two shrines exist, one in the outlying district on the northern bank of the Aver and another in the southern district of Averheim.[2a]

There are three large temples in the vicinity of the Plenzerplatz.[2a]

Temple of Sigmar[]

The largest of these is the temple of Sigmar, built along the eastern corner adjacent to the Averburg. It is built in much the same style as the Averburg Palace, replete with arches, spires, and a cacophony of religious statues and bas relief carvings. The temple’s grounds and precincts are patrolled at all times by members of the Knightly Order of Sigmar’s Blood. A white marble statue in front of the temple depicts Sigmar in furs and armour, holding Ghal Maraz aloft. A second figure is positioned just behind Sigmar, standing proud in the war panoply of a charioteer. This is Siggurd, King of the Brigundians, the ancient tribe that modern Averlanders regard as their forebears. Visitors to the temple of Sigmar are likely to be greeted by Disciple Kurgan, a broad, soft-spoken man with a fierce beard. He has taken a dwarf name in honour of the friendship between Sigmar and the dwarfs and will be especially polite to dwarfs.[2a]

Temple of Shallya[]

The local temple-hospice of Shallya is a wide building adorned with a somewhat incongruous tall tower, built on the southern corner of the Plenzerplatz across the street from the Journey’s End. It surrounds a small square courtyard, set around a pool of clear water and furnished with many benches allowing patients to ‘take the air.’ Why the engineers of the temple-hospice deemed it necessary to build a tall and slender tower is not quite known. The cult authorities insist that it is there to provide the Shallyans with a quiet, isolated place in which to meditate. Sceptics point out that other temple-hospices tend not to have such structures. They proffer alternative theories, ranging from it being a folly built to compete with the palace and the temple of Sigmar, to darker rumours about it being used to house dangerous lunatics, the mutant relatives of rich patrons, or worse. Visitors to the temple are likely to be greeted by the formidable Mother Henriette, a tall, heavyset woman in her forties. She has a habit of clucking in disapproval, and this, plus her voluminous white robes and the blood-red mantle she wears, have earned her the nickname “Mother Hen” from her gaggle of initiates and the temple laity.[2a]

Temple of Verena[]

The third temple is dedicated to the worship of Verena, situated in the northern corner of the square directly adjacent to the Averburg and opposite the temple of Sigmar. It is a square building with a façade of tall columns in the Tilean style. The temple of Verena boasts an impressive library and a museum area. This displays exhibits and demonstrations themed around the Battle of Black Fire Pass, the most famous victory of Sigmar, which happened on the edges of what is now Averland. Visitors to the temple are likely to be greeted by Unterlector Viktor Glottz, a rail-thin wisp of a man of uncertain age. Unterlector Glottz’s insistence on hearing “both sides” of every issue or debate has earned him no friends in the Cult of Sigmar or amongst the Witch Hunters.[2a]

Economy[]

Cattle are the lifeblood of Averland, and Averheim is the heart of the cattle trade. Live beasts come into the city in droves, where they are butchered and skinned, their meat and hides sold throughout the Empire and to the dwarfs of the World’s Edge Mountains. Leather goods are easily found in Averheim and the overall quality of the leatherwork is extremely high. Live cattle are also bought and sold in Averheim, either for breeding purposes to improve the quality of a herd or as a simple means of preserving the meat over a long journey. The cattle trade is at its heaviest during the late summer and early autumn, and the influx of cattle and cattlemen during this time is an economic boon to the city.[2b]

Second to the cattle in raw economic terms, but an equal source of pride to the province and the city, are the horses of Averland. Many fine horse breeders and trainers make their homes in the province and much of the trade comes through Averheim. The cattle paddocks that ring the city do double-duty for horses during the spring and discriminating horse buyers from throughout the Empire descend on the city during the spring months as breeders show off their finest specimens.[2b]

Averheim also has its fair share of artisans, merchants, and metalworkers who work outside the livestock trade. Iron, tin, and silver come into the city from the mountains and are worked into fine examples of weapons, armour, tools, and ornaments. Merchants also travel back and forth between Averheim and the nearest dwarf holds, bringing leather, meat, and grain to the dwarfs and returning with dwarf-made metalwork, weapons, armour, gold, and spirits. Trade with the dwarf holds, and trade through Black Fire Pass with the Border Princes and Tilea, have conspired to make Averheim extremely wealthy.[2b]

The sizable halfling population and agreeable climate conspire to make Averheim a city of fine food as well. In particular, the local vintners make excellent wines, and the Elector Count has historically sponsored a wine-tasting festival every year in Averheim.[2b]

With no university, college of engineers, or similar institution in the city, Averheim is not renowned as a source of firearms and artillery. Black powder weapons and the black powder itself are primarily imported, mostly from Nuln. Recently, the price of black powder has spiked as the supply has dropped for reasons unknown. Black powder weapons and shots are ten per cent more expensive than normal in Averheim.[2b]

The massed collection of Averland herds is one of the wonders of the Old World. It is said that when the first hammer of the season fell, there are thirteen cows in Averheim for every person. Those kinds of statistics are liable to provoke suggestive rumours from outsiders, but in truth they are jealous. The animals are valuable and had made Averland extremely rich.[3a]

Those riches showed in Averheim’s mighty townhouses and guild-chambers. Most of these are many storeys high, constructed of warm brick and decorated heavily. On the richer east side of the river, elegant squares had been embellished with the bequests of rich men. Fountains gurgled even in the height of the hot summers, and there are fewer slums than in most Imperial cities. Though there is poverty, especially on the western fringes of the city where the migrant workers from Stirland and Tilea congregated, a careful visitor could ignore it. Such a thing is seen as impossible in Altdorf.[3a]

Sources[]

  • 1: Sigmar's Heirs (2nd Edition),  pg. 46
  • 2: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 3rd Edition: The Enemy Within (RPG)
    • 2a: pg. 23
    • 2b: pg. 26
  • 3: Schwarzhelm & Helborg (Part 1): Sword of Justice (Novel) by Chris Wraight
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