Stonebridge is the largest city in the kingdom of Ehb, located upon the shore of an offshoot of the Bay of Ehb in the western farmlands.
History[]
Founding[]
Stonebridge was founded in the early 600s by Etan Stonebridge, an intrepid merchant who had been able to earn exclusive trading rights with the native Droog. The large expanse of arable land to the south, navigable waters to the east, and mineral-rich peaks of the Green Range to the north put Stonebridge at the crossroads of most trade in the budding kingdom.
When Ehb gained independence in 845, Stonebridge was granted a town charter, as well as autonomy from noble rule. Instead, the town was ruled by an elected mayor, advised by a council of merchants and guildmasters.
A map of Stonebridge at the time of the Seck Resurgence
Dungeon Siege[]
By the time of the Seck Resurgence in 1144, Stonebridge was a sizeable town, filled with all manner of people. The rampaging Krug attacked the town, putting much of it to the torch, leaving the city little more than a burnt-out wreck. The future Lady Montbarron passed through the town during her quest, recruiting several capable companions for the arduous trek through the Glitterdelve to Glacern.
The Goblin Renaissance[]
Using the fame of his brother as one of the Heroes of Ehb, Rupert Ketzler won in a land-slide election as the new mayor of Stonebridge, a position that his descendants would hold for four generations. They would preside over the town's most prosperous period: The Goblin Renaissance.
After King Konreid signed the Goblin Treaties in 1154, granting Goblins rights as citizens of Ehb, Stonebridge was the first town in the kingdom to openly invite their kind to settle there. The riches that these Goblins and their inventions brought into Stonebridge allowed it to rebuild and expand, and it quickly became the largest and wealthiest city in Ehb. The products of these brilliant inventors, such as the genius Brimfallow, were exported across the land, and the Stonebridge Collegium became the premier academy for mages.
In 1175, Stonebridge's ironmongers were granted permission to construct a massive complex beneath the city, in order to power the various machines around town. This complex, the Great Foundry, was completed four years later. The foundry was originally fueled using coal from the Glitterdelve Mine, but began to use bound Fire Elementals after magical advances were made. Cyclopses from eastern Ehb were brought in to work the foundry.
The 10th Legion constructed a Grand Chapterhouse in Stonebridge during this period, furnished with riches from across Aranna. It was there that they convened in 1264, to discuss the seizure of Legion property by King Hendrick, and ultimately decided that they should remove the king from power and place his eldest son, Roland, upon the throne.
The Purge and the Tomcat Rebellion[]
After King Hendrick's murder by the Legion's Grand Master, Hugh Montbarron, outrage swept across the kingdom. The Tobelmann sisters, relatives of the young mayor, Tomas Ketzler, spoke openly against the Legion, and supported Jeyne Kassynder and her Azunite zealots when they arrived in Stonebridge. The 10th Legion's Grand Chapterhouse was ransacked, and the ancient treasures within were taken as trinkets and souvenirs. The bloodthirsty mob tore apart any legionnaires that they could get their hands on. The Ketzlers turned a blind eye to the slaughter and destruction brought about by this purge, and took a large cut of the loot pilfered from the Legion's vaults for themselves.
After a night of terror, the people of Stonebridge were horrified by what they had done, and removed Mayor Ketzler from office. The mayor's mother, Elsa Tobelmann, refused to give up power so easily, however. She wrote a letter to Ehb's deposed royal family, offering them support in their war against Jeyne Kassynder if they helped her family regain control of Stonebridge. The letter was intercepted however, and found its way to the desk of Rainald Kassel, guildmaster of Stonebridge's ironmongers.
When Elsa Tobelmann's mercenary army arrived to seize the city during the Midsummer Feast, they didn't find the mass of drunken revelers that they had expected, but rather, a well-organized army standing against them. Goblin rockets rained down upon the rebels, and guerilla fighters assailed them from every alleyway and side-street. Tomas Ketzler fell from his spooked horse and was dragged by one foot from the town gates, leaving his army in disarray as they fled from the battlefield.
The people of Stonebridge gave chase, routing the rebels halfway to Wesrin Cross before letting out a great roar of celebration. The only sign of the Ketzler family left in Stonebridge was their tomcat banner, trampled by their own routed army. As such, this failed coup is remembered as the Tomcat Rebellion.
Independence[]
With the rest of Ehb in the civil war between the royal family and the Church of Azunai, Stonebridge declared itself an independent republic following the Tomcat Rebellion. The city's merchants and guildmasters named themselves 'Meisters', and established a new ruling council under Mayor Rainald Kassel.
Stonebridge stayed stubbornly neutral throughout the war, and the Meisters profited greatly off of the fighting, constructing an army of automatons to protect themselves should either side decide to attack.
Dungeon Siege III[]
In 1294, descendants of the 10th Legion came to Stonebridge, and reclaimed the Grand Chapterhouse as part of their quest to rebuild the Legion and restore the kingdom of Ehb.
Seeking to gain the backing of the Meisters in their fight against Jeyne Kassynder, the Legion helped resolve various troubles around the city, gathering the votes they needed from the councilmen. Before anything could be decided however, a criminal, known only as 'The Dapper Old Gent', turned half of the city's automaton army against them. The Legion stopped the Gent's plans for revenge and apprehended him, learning that he was the apprentice of the 10th Legion's last Grand Mage, scarred by his experience during the Purge.
With Stonebridge's automaton army at their back, the Legion assaulted the Spire of Azunai, and brought Jeyne Kassynder to justice.
Reconstruction[]
Major shakeups occurred in Stonebridge after the war's conclusion. The constable, Meister Wulf, who had supported the Legion, was elected mayor, although others say that he lost by a small margin due to the legionnaires' decision to spare the Dapper Old Gent who had terrorized the city. Meanwhile, the Cyclops workers of the Great Foundry found new freedom from their centuries-long enslavement, and gained new rights in Stonebridge; some say that this was just a fanciful dream though, and that the ironmonger Meister Rorik Kassel, used their back-breaking labor to supply the 10th Legion with the finest arms and armor in all of Aranna.
Trivia[]
In Dungeon Siege III, there is a catapult in front of the Meister Hall, a reference to Gyorn's old catapult 'Gravemaker' from the original Dungeon Siege.