Ashden

Ashden is a municipality and one of the northernmost townships in Northlea Governorate, Arcerion. The town has a population of 11,224 as of the 2020 census and is expected to grow to 15,000 by 2030. Ashden is in a remote part of Arcerion, located in the Northumbraeland Mountains on the border with the New Archduchy. It sits in the Northern part of the Arcer Heartland, a vast expanse of plains and rivers that are flanked to the North by the Northumbraeland Mountains and from the South by the Aileach Mountains.

Originally it was founded as part of the Ashden Garrison, a place from where members of the Arcerion Mounted Rifles could conduct armed patrols into Indigenous territory to protect the Northern parts of Northlea Governorate from raids.

Ashden is a popular destination for many wealthy individuals as well as Istroyan Games athletes preparing for events or training, as the ski resorts and winter sports opportunities provided are unmatched in Crona and many parts of Ixnay. The vast amount of wealth in Ashden also contributes to an exceptionally high real estate cost and cost-of-living, making it one of the most exclusive and expensive municipalities in Crona.

As of 2026, Ashden was set to continue its growth in terms of both real estate to be developed as well as infrastructure, with planned upgrades for both the airport as well as the Royal Ashden Resort expected to be completed by 2030 as part of the Northern Development Program. Ashden also serves as one of the main diplomatic points-of-entry for civil servants, politicians, or other functionaries from the New Archduchy that enter Arcerion for business.

Ashden Municipal Airport
Ashden Municipal Airport (IATA: AMA) is an international airport located on the outskirts of Ashden Municipality. The airport primarily serves Ashden Township as well as the surrounding area and is the largest commercial air freight airport in Northern Arcerion. It is considered one of the most active airports in the Arcer Heartland outside of Presdale International Airport. The airport opened in 1957 as the Northumbraeland Airfield to service Arcerion Air Force helicopters assisting with tactical airlift, and would later be greatly expanded during the Fourth Bush War as a centre for casualty evacuation aircraft and the launching of fighter bomber sorties to service the Operation Teflon area of operations. In the 1980s with the vast increase in private wealth investment and the expansion of ski and winter sport activities Ashden opened an additional runway and private air terminal, which no regularly services the most private jet aircraft compared to any other regional non-capital airport in South Crona. Ashden includes a pair of 3,050 m x 61 m asphalt runways, enough to handle large cargo operations from transcontinental air freight coming from Levantia or Sarpedon.

Ashden Garrison
Ashden Garrison is a minor posting for the Arcer Army and Arcer Air Force. The Arcer Air Force maintains a helicopter squadron at the Ashden Municipal Airport as part of their tactical helicopter requirements to support the army. The helicopter squadron administratively belongs to Presdale Garrison, however is detached in support of the Army. The Arcer Army maintains two squadrons of light cavalry, provided by the Arcerion Mounted Rifles (AMR), harkening but to their historical linkage to Ashden. These squadrons perform reconnaissance and border stability operations on the shared Arco-Tite border area. The Western Arcerion Rifle Regiment (WARR) also rotates infantry companies into the mountains for exposure to mountain and long-range patrol operations, currently with 'G' Company, 2nd Battalion garrisoned in Ashden.

The garrison also serves as the satellite facility for the Arcerion Mountain Warfare School, with a small cadre of staff from the Royal Easthampton Borderers (REB) remaining in Ashden to practice skiing (cross-country, downhill) and alpine infantry operations, owing to the towns significant and excellent ski hills.

Winter Sport
Ashden has a variety of winter spot facilities that make it the most popular destination in South Crona for skiing, especially for members of Ixnay's elite. The most popular destinations are a pair of ski resorts, the Northumbraeland Ski Resort and the Royal Ashden Ski Resort. Between both resorts there is over eight hundred acres of skiable area, with a top elevation of over 3,500 m, and a total of ninety-six ski runs. Ashden also has eleven chair lifts, with a dedicated pair of gondola-style lifts that bring skiers to the Royal Ashden, situated ontop of the mountains, both of which run continuously, 24 hours a day, year-round.

On average Ashden sees upwards of 760 cm of snow per year, meaning that the requirement for snowmaking is less than 30% of the total acreage. A number of professional Arcer Olympians and others from Ixnay use Ashden as a winter training facility for the Istroyan Winter Games.

Real Estate Market
The housing market in Ashden is expensive and above the average cost of living in Arcerion. It is also home to the single highest concentration of high net-worth individuals in Crona, making Ashden the premiere destination for many millionaires and billionaires to vacation at. The market regularly sees homes listed for millions of Arcer Pounds, with a single-family home in the suburbs often costing £1.400,000. Many individuals choose Ashden as a smaller resort location than many other major cities or destinations in Crona or Ixnay due to its quiet nature and the privacy it affords. Real Estate in Ashden is extremely restricted due to the nature of the surrounding lands, held either by the federal government of Arcerion, ranch and cattle raising land, or farmsteads protected by the Farmstead and Land Use Act of 1868. Global realtors have often seen the town as the most expensive Cronan munipality for real estate outside of some downtown cores such as in Alstin or Kurst. Lack of affordable housing has often been cited as partially the reason for the town's small growth in population since its founding, as the expensive nature of the land has meant that it attracts very few members of the lower or middle class. Efforts have been made by the Arcer government to introduce federally-subsidized homes however the Northlea Governorate regularly restricts changes or establishment of newer sources of housing due to the vast amount of private wealth and investment that is funneled into the municipality on an annual basis.

Notable Individuals
Below is a list of notable residents of Ashden since its founding.
 * Eric Banting, Billionaire and CEO of the Kinnaird Bank (Arcerion)
 * Ulrich Digarde, founder and CEO of Intrepid Enterprises

Sister Cities
Below is a list of Sister or Twinned Cities to Ashden across Ixnay.
 * Famichez, Yonderre
 * Kásen, Kiravia