Gyre

One of the first settlements to fall in the imperial conquest of Oren, Gyre remained under control of the Elven Empire until a decade ago. Renamed Ashenfort for the firestorm Admiral Otway's fleet laid upon the township, it was not fully settled until a month after the taking of Heaven's Landing; the strategic sacking of Gyre's warf and central fort became its new namesake.   Imperial troops desperately needed a source of iron. While Gyre had sparse ironsand deposits off its northern coasts, the empire instead pushed forward to take settlements closer to the Heaven thanks to emissary spies years earlier.  

Gyre Trading Company

  Upon conquest, Gyre (then Ashenfort) became a de facto port for its placement in Oren. Imperial Express, a state sponsored logistics and courier service, thrived exporting vast goods otherwise foreign to Ochita. Nearly all of the population of Gyre became embroiled in this business, even some gnomish factions. Shipyards were built near the old warf and operations became incredibly lucrative. Imperial Express prided itself on its ingenuity and resourcefulness; for example, decommissioned vessels were dry docked then anchored into the ground as permanent structures within the city. This process of recycling old ships grew the city exponentially until it rivaled Otway's early years. When Dostun Otway split from the empire, many lesser operations were moved to Ashenfort removing undue risk.   Upon the dissolution of imperial claims in Oren, gnomish renegades and former ImpEx board members consolidated Ashenfort under a single conglomerate under several conditions: it was to be renamed Gyre, have a majority gnome influence, be run by as a company, and guarantee continued services under a new name: Gyre Trading Company.   Elven executives of GTC were given significant severance pay and stock within the new company. Reframing this deal as a hostile takeover of Imperial Express from the elves, GTC started as a franchised spin-off of ImpEx which slowly overtook its locations in Oren. For this reason, many rural areas of Oren and the former empire still use the ImpEx name for their trading posts. GTC would also become Otway's de facto central bank, financing his war debt during the attempted conquest of Oren.  

Gyre Trading Collapse

Gyre Trading Company had surged in profitability after its formation. Elves and gnomes who had built their careers shuttling goods and services around the Catseye established a substantial trade of intangibles. GTC established a direct trade with the Northern Wylds circumventing House Bombalona's monopoly on the cash crop's trade. GTC became the sole distributor of pipeglory in Oren. Exploding demand led to a speculative trade of forward contracts. As business in Gyre was expanding exponentially, buyers were primed to get in early on what was poised to be the next great economic powerhouse in Cabochon.   Following the events of Duston Otway's overthrow, a deep economic crisis began in Gyre as the Houses of Heaven's Landing refused to assume his debt. The debt refusal proved to be the least of their problems however. Sea elves grew more hostile now actively seizing vessels and killing crews trading on the ocean. GTC bought up the debt as stock in itself as it had with Otway maintained by overinflated forward contracts for halfling pipeglory. Held up by promises of pipeglory shipments, the disappearence of the halfings proved to be the watershed moment. Gyre's complete insolvency fueled a massive panic in lower Oren resultant in the 'Gyre Trading Collapse' or often called the 'Gyre Pop' alluding to the speculative bubble of GTC bursting. Companymen formed gangs and seized land outside the city. Elves holed up into the now 'Elven Quarter', installing an enclave bartering services within their community. Many sailors went rogue becoming privateers or flat out attacking sea elf domains to try and regain their livelihood. All this then compounded once word that caravans from Du'chan, Gyre's last trading partner, were severed by the encroaching Scorch.   In desperation, Gyre and Shiftgate held a conclave with House Dusk vying for power in the recent vacuum in Otway. An agreement to reestablish trade with whatever form Otway takes in the future was signed days. Whether GTC can recover from this crisis remains uncertain.