Weavewold - the jewel of Oakenshire

The branches of the weeping willow drooped low in the constant heat, their tips gently grazing the water of the moat. Mal sat in its shade, watching the mayfly and dragonfly dart the summer water, and looked high from the mound at the keep ahead of her. Behind her was carved initials into the tree's bark, she pretended not to see her sister's handywork. She could hear Reece and Cledwyn sparring beyond the castle wars, exchanging vile insults that would have them fed soap by their mother had she still been alive. It was home - a messy, often intolerable, unsympathetic, home, but home nontheless.

Weavewold is a central fortification and market town in the county of Oakenshire, having been the ancestral seat of House Longreed for centuries. It is one of the major seats in Cornay, having ownership of many acres of fields for both crops and livestock around its walls and being one of the great castles heavily improved during the life of Queen Ellabeth "Beth the Builder" Cornay in the 300s.

The keep and walls are built primarily of a sandstone found on the eastern coastline of Oakenshire, transported through the use of the rivers and canals that run through the fields of the county. In addition to the sandstone, decorations and detailing were carved of a local freestone made of oolitic limestone that is found almost exclusively in South Western Oakenshire. The production of this material, known as Oakenstone, falls into the remit of the nobility of Trakefield - who quarry the stone and ship it down the Trake River to the Bay of Stars.

Weavewold Castle was originally a large stone and wood keep on the outskirts of Weavewold town, but was quickly expanded during the 300s to the designs of Queen Ellabeth - whose interest in architecture is legendary. The castle was designed to be viewed from a specific point and, though it is defensible from every side like any good castle should be, great efforts were made to make the approach to the keep's main gate as aesthetically pleasing as possible. Diplomatic Visitors would ride from the Southwest, chosen for the road that leads directly to the capital city, and see the fortification in the distance - perched atop a small mound in the midst of golden fields of barley and wheat. As the visitor would ride from the chosen route, they would be met with an image that highlighted the main keep of the fortress - an octagonal tower surrounded by a moat and a high defensive wall of sandstone. The rider would then have to ride around the edge of the moat and wall, taking in the fields and defences of the castle as they rode up the small hill before they were greeted with the main gatehouse - a tall structure with a wooden hoarding positioned above its gate to position archers in case of an attack. Through the gatehouse, which was defended with two separate portullises to create a killzone where oil and pitch could be poured through murder holes, was access to the first courtyard. The initial courtyard featured a large open space, rectangular with a flat area of lawn surrounded by a walkway of pitched stone. This courtyard would be the site of many tourney melees across the years, providing enough space for an octagonal arena to be temporarily constructed and accompanied by wooden stands and pavilions. In Spring and Summer, the walls of this courtyard are decorated with rising vertical gardens of yellow and blue rose climbers intermixed with beds of daffodils, flowers local to Oakenshire as a show of pride and identity. In winter, the courtyard walls are bare - decorated only by hanging banners. In the top right-hand side of the courtyard is a small corner tower, known as the closet tower, dedicated to the storage of linens and clothing. In the bottom right-hand side, another small corner tower plays the part of a jail - with a basement dungeon and apartments for those captive but trusted outside of lock and key. To the left of the lawns is a large building containing the kitchens, buttery, pantry and salt store for the keep, with an archway allowing gentry to bypass these spaces into the Wheel Courtyard. The Wheel Courtyard is named so for its wheel design, with paths making the eight spokes that cut through small, hedged gardens, each dedicated to one of the Cornayan Gods. The centre of the wheel is a moderately sized, circular courtyard set with a tall tree in its centre. This area is designated largely for diplomatic meetings and evening affairs, lit by braziers and candlesticks at night and shaded by a large central silver birch tree that blooms leaves of Longreed yellow in the cool autumn seasons. Many famous displays of courtship and chivalric love have occurred here within the Wheel Courtyard, from Lord Harlan Longreed's proposal to the late Lady Helena in the 1290s to much older and more famous tales of the wedding of King Romidor the Great and his Longreed Queen. Around the Wheel Courtyard are some of the vital locations for Weavewold's daily life, such as the series of bedrooms and guest rooms to the west, and the dining hall above the archway separating The Wheel Courtyard from the First Courtyard, which overlooks both with large windows. Besides the dining hall sits a small parlour and long gallery, both of which can be accessed by a set of external stairs that rise from the Wheel Courtyard's southeastern wall.

Through the southern archway in the wheel gallery lies a wooden bridge that leads to the main tower of Weavewold, surrounded by its own separate moat and wall for extra protection should the rest of the castle fall to siege or invasion. The upper floors of the tower are dedicated to private quarters for the Lord and Lady of the Keep, with other bedrooms in the tower for their eldest children. The tower is also fitted with its own dining room, a parlour, a trophy room, and an armoury on its lower floors - with the bottom floor reserved for storing food and wine, separate from the larger store, in case of siege. The Tower's external moat connects directly with the nearby river, accessed by a half-submerged portcullis that can be raised from the inside to allow quick escape unnoticed or, more commonly, to allow for unnoticed escapes into the local town by the younger nobility in the family.

Beyond the moat and walls of the fortification is a large estate garden, interwoven with the winding river that cuts through Weavewold town. The gardens make use of the river and feature a small number of decorative ponds and water gardens to amplify the feature, accompanying the knot gardens of vibrant yellow, green, white and blue flowers. Overall, Weavewold is considered one of the premier castles in both Oakenshire and the nation at large - being commonly listed amongst the most important and impressive structures in Cornay. Its position in central Oakenshire makes it the beating heart of commerce and control in the golden county, making it a vital position for any ruler to hold amongst their allies.