Nestled high in the rugged embrace of the Stonebark Mountains, Brassford is a marvel of craftsmanship and endurance — a city built as much from will as from stone and steel. The mountain winds carry the scent of smelted metal and burning coal, for Brassford’s forges never truly sleep. Great chimneys rise from its tiers, breathing steady plumes of smoke that mingle with the crisp alpine air, giving the city its nickname: “The Smoking Crown of Hilltop.”

As the beating heart of Hilltop, Brassford serves as both the nation’s industrial forge and its spiritual center. Chancellor Rellis Avanrae rules from the grand marble terraces of the Forgehold Citadel, a towering structure carved directly into the mountain’s core.

Religion thrives here as deeply as the veins of ore that run beneath the city. Shrines and statues to the great patrons — Aurum, the Oathfather; Virelle, the Crystal Matron; Talan, Keeper of the Flame-Touched Grove; and Orithiel, the Bellringer at Dawn — stand proudly in plazas, temples, and even workshop courtyards. Pilgrims and priests walk the same roads as miners and blacksmiths, their chants mingling with the ringing of anvils and the tolling of brass bells.

When dusk falls, the light of countless forge-fires bathes Brassford in a warm golden glow, as if the gods themselves bless the city each night. Brassford stands not only as Hilltop’s capital, but as a living testament to faith, labor, and unity — a mountain stronghold where divine devotion and mortal industry burn together, bright and enduring.