Everhost

While primarily dwarven, there is a large minority of human citizens in Everhost. Most of these are descendants of the original Garamoran refugees taken in after The Rift, whose ancestors made the underground city their home.

Everhost is a fortress built into the side of a mountain. From without, there is only one possible entrance, an iron-reinforced gate that blocks a short passage guarded by portcullis on either end. The walls above and around this gate are fitted with arrow slits. Without siege weaponry, Everhost is nigh impregnable.

Trade has been established between Everhost and all other major cities in Egera. By nature of its location, the city must import a large amount of it's food stuffs. With the current population it's likely the city would not survive without imported grain.   Deep mines extend into the earth below and around the city, providing ore and stone for craft and trade. These are the city's main exports, along with items crafted from the natural resources.

Everhost is the last remaining dwarven city in Egera. During the Great Rift collapses in the tunnels that connected it to the rest of the kingdom collapsed and cut it off from the rest.   Efforts were made, after the city recovered from the Rift, to excavate collapsed tunnels and caverns to reestablish contact with the other settlements. Some passages were determined to be too dangerous to risk excavation, and others led to only more destruction. Eventually efforts to reconnect were abandoned and it is today assumed that there were no survivors outside of Everhost. Occasionally someone will make an attempt at exploring or excavating old passages, but at best these expeditions turn up only ruins. If there were any other survivors of the Rift, they are far beyond Egera, and they are on their own.   Despite the destruction they faced themselves, Everhost took in many human refugees from the destroyed cities of Garamor. Today their descendants are fully integrated into Everhost society.

There is little in Everhost that would draw the pleasure traveler, but it does see it's share of tourists seeking something other than a pleasant vacation.   As the only major settlement to have survived The Rift, Everhost's historical archives are the most complete in the world and contain some of the oldest documents in all of Egera. Documents dating back to before the Rift. The value of these documents to historians, explorers, and arcanists cannot be overstated, and researchers come from across the continent to gain access to Everhosts' library and archives.   The city is also of interest for it's architecture. Both historians and modern architects have come to study the techniques used by dwarves past and present to ensure the safety and stability of their home.

While portions of Everhost were damaged and made unstable during The Rift, those that could be saved have since been repaired and reinforced. The architectural style of the main city is now unique in Egera, the only surviving examples of Pre-Rift dwarven construction. And the techniques still used to excavate new caverns, carve new structures into the living stone, are also unique.   Dwarven architectural style is known for it's melding of artificial construction, excavation, and natural formations. All of the major dwarven settlements were set in natural caverns that measure hundreds of feet high. Often it can be difficult for those unfamiliar with the style or techniques to differentiate between natural and artificial caverns.