The Regions of Rossak

[Mock26]

Background:
The Regions of Rossak is the name of my current 2nd edition Forgotten Realms AD&D campaign.  The idea for this setting didn't really spring forth from anyone idea but has grown over the years.  When I started a previous campaign I wanted to run my campaign in an area that wasn't highly detailed already.  After pouring over the Forgotten Realms maps for several weeks I settled on the Vilhon Reach area.  There were a few cities in place in the area, there was a "fallen" kingdom in the area, and the map showed a decent variety of terrain.  The first thing I did was to create a new city in which to base the group.  Thus was born the city of Sherrco.  I then spent several weeks painstakingly creating a detailed map of the city using Microsoft Paint!  After that I detailed some shops and a few NPC's.  But, something was still lacking.  One day I was looking up a spell in the Forgotten Realms Adventures book and it suddenly hit me.  I needed a detailed description of the city and the format used in that book was just what I had been looking for.  Even though I had read through all of the city descriptions in there previously I didn't know it was what I was looking for until I saw it again at that particular moment.  So, I wrote up a one-page detailed description of the city.  Once I finished it I was hooked and decided to keep running with it.  I then started adding cities on the map and started writing up city descriptions.  I held off on mapping out any of the other cities as I lacked a decent tool at the time and I felt that the maps weren't needed and I decided to concentrate on the descriptions of the city.

General Notes:
In my campaign I primarily just use the Forgotten Realms as a geo-poliltical backdrop.  I don't really follow much of the official changes that happen (such as the Time of Troubles), but I do allow gunpowder and wild magic.  Lizard men in this area are kind of like our ancient romans.  They once had a civilized culture a long time ago but that culture collapsed and they are primarily barbaric now, though they are a very proud race.  The climate has also changed to make it a lot less of a humid-tropical region.

The Regions of Rossak:
The Regions of Rossak is a loose confederation of 50 cities.  Most of the cities are independant, though some of them have formed leagues and alliances with other cities.  Early on there was a lot of strife between various cities and as time went by cities starting forming alliances with other cities.  Eventually this grew almost too complicated to keep track of.  If a city were to declare war against another city all of the various alliances would come into play and a city might find itself at war with itself!  There were a few small attempts at declaring a war but these were quickly given up when all of the various representatives of the various cities would spend weeks sorting through who would come to the aid of which city and most cities found themselves obligated to help both sides.  The cities, for the most part, get along peacefully with the other cities and all the cities generally work hard to avoid conflict with other cities.

Races:
All of the core races are equally represented, as well as a few others, such as lizardmen.  Dragonlance draconians have been encorporated into one small area.  There are also some ancient Earth vikings have been transported here via a temporal rift.  Finally, there are the Séshell (originally spelled Séashell and created by Shawn Lucas, an old DM of mine) who are another race of lizardfolk.  The Séshell lack tails and look exactly like a human covered in very small black scales.  Their origins are as yet a mystery to most scholars in the region.

Unique Groups:
The Ansar Knights are a Forgotten Realms spanning group of good humans modeled after the Knights Templar.  There are two ranks within the Knights, Knight and Auxiliary.  In order to be a knight you have to be human, of good alignment, and either a Fighter, Paladin, Cleric, or Mage.  If you are of another race or class you can only be an auxiliary.  The knights proper are a very racist group of humans who believe in the superiority of their race.  They view the other humanoid races in a relatively kind light, seeing them as being relatively decent folk who can't help that they were born inferior and who need the guidance of humans to achieve their full potential, whatever that may be.  While being racist in nature they knights will defend their auxiliarys fiercely.  While they may be inferior, they are still members of the Ansar Knights! They actively fight against evil wherever they find it.  Additionally, The Knights act as vigilantes, following and enforcing the laws of just and good kingdoms that they are in.  They also work in secret to relieve the suffering of good folk living in evil kingdoms, such as Thay.  They also secretly work to bring down the evil governments.

The Clerics of the Quest are a bunch of lunatics.  Literally.  St. Cuthbert (who was once considered as a possible deity in the Forgotten Realms by the creators) was once a deity and was forced out by the rest of the pantheon.  While he is no longer actively worshipped (except by a few hold ons) some people still remember him.  The Festival of St. Cuthbert is still celebrated by many folk in the Regions and the Realms.  St. Cuthbert is now trying to subvert the powers of the current pantheon, but without his mace, an artifact, he lacks the power that he needs.  So, he has been quietly corrupting clerics of all of the various deities.  Those who are "Cuthbert Touched" are suddenly overcome with a fanatical desire to find the Mace of St. Cuthbert.  All other concerns are secondary, including the alignment and deities of their brethren, thus it is possible to find a LG cleric working side by side wtih a CE cleric in their quest for the mace.  All Clerics of the Quest are looney in some form or fashion and have a bit of a split personality, a feature that allows them to still acquire spells from their own deities.  For the most part they are merely a major nuisance within the realms and most cities grudgingly tolerate them.  


Here is a map of the Regions of Rossak:
[spoiler=Regions of Rossak]
 
The base map, as well as some of the cities (those in purple) were designed by the good folk at TSR and are part of their Forgotten Realms setting.
[/spoiler]


Here is the first write-up that I did.  Please bear in mind that the entire collection of cities is a work in progress and there are bound to be typos.  I will eventually be loading up all of the cities.

Sherrco
Independent City, loosely aligned with Chondrun, Larmer, Ormvald, and Zamuda

Who Rules: King Entas Mithriltooth (CN, Human Male, F15) rules Sherrco completely.  Not only is he brave, handsome, and a fierce warrior, but he is also extremely intelligent and very wise.  He is deeply involved in a lot of what goes on, but also relies on trusted advisors to take care of the 'small things' that go on.  Unfortunately, he has been forced to make examples of some advisors who proved to be untrustworthy and unloyal.
Who Really Rules: King Entas rules completely.
Population: 32,000 (65% human, 25% dwarven, 7% elf, 3% mixed other races).
Major Products: Steel, arms, armor, chariots, fine jewelry, medicines, cattle, smoked meats, cheese, and bounty hunters.
Armed Forces: 2,500 (1,000 cavalry of mixed types, 500 heavy infantry, 250 light infantry, 250 archers, 250 artillerists, and a force of 250 dwarven assault troops).  Nearly half of all the ground troops (excluding the assault troops) are dwarven, and the city can also call up 1,500 dwarven infantry milita.  The Ansar Knights maintain a permanent force of 1,000 in Sherrco.
Notable Mages: Katerine Agon (LN, Human Female, W24) is in the process of trying to figure out how to permanently levitate an entire city.  She is currently experimenting with houses, and her has succeeded in levitating house.  However, she keeps it ½-inch off the ground and hides the levitation with shrubs.  She is an expert in changing the mass of materials.
   Aremris Wregan (NE, Human Male, W23) experiments with creating extra-dimensional spaces and will create magic items for a price.  Rumors abound that he is using his house as the main object of his experiments.
   Nyild Oaktree (CG, Elf Male, F15/W17) is the head of a local bounty hunter school, as well as being an instructor at the local mages guild where he specializes in divination spells.
Notable Churches: Tymora, Sune, Gond, Lathander, Tyr, Tempus, Selune, and Waukeen.
Notable Rogues' and Thieves' Guilds: Officially, according to the city, there is no guild in Sherrco.  However, The Black Hand, which spans five cities, has its headquarters here.  Gunther NerDrugan (LE, Human Male, F16) appeared out of nowhere years ago and took over the guild of Airspur.  He set up a puppet leader and did the same in Lomatra.  Eventually, he had four guilds and came to Sherrco to base his operation because it had no guild.  Well, it did, but he quickly took it over.  His prowess with a rapier and main-gauche, along with a seemingly magical immunity to poison (and a well-paid and loyal troop of bodyguards), has allowed him maintain a firm grip on the Black Hand.  Overall, he is fair and takes care of those who are loyal, but he is also ruthless when he needs to be.
Equipment Shops: Full, with a high number of shops stocking high quality items.
Adventurers' Quarters: Adventurers are welcome throughout Sherrco.  The Bullfrog is a very popular dive because its in one of the more livelier (i.e. rowdier) sections of town with good ale and dirt cheap rooms.  At the other end of the spectrum, The Palace is am extravagant, expensive place for those with expensive tastes.
Important Characters: Lord Kurgen Redaxe (CN, Dwarf Male, F15) is a retired adventurer who left his holdings in Cormyr in the hands of his eldest son and is now a renowned goldsmith whose work is the best in all of Rossak.
   Tuvalla Redaxe (LN, Dwarf Female, F12/Ps12) is the daughter of Lord Kurgen but she renounced her title and donates 25% of all her income to dwarves in need of assistance (for which her father cut her our of the will).  She is now a expert blacksmith and armorer whose shop has the best workers and put out the best work for miles around.
   Kreellaline (LE, Quickling Male, T15) operates outside of the local guild, and the guild lets him, simply because they gave up on catching him years ago.  He is a phenomenal pickpocket and is an excellent tracker with superb hiding skills.  If he can be found, and if you have enough money, he's the first choice in spies in Sherrco.
   Gilthor (NG, Elf Male, F19/W23) is an ancient elf, nearly 2,000 years old.  He spends his time at the Gilded Mug, drinking their renowned ale, telling stories.  A lot of his stories seem far-fetched and some people think he's going senile, but his memories over 500 years old are still crisp and clear.
Important Features in Town: Sherrco straddles the Upper Chondrun and its river gates are large enough to allow most masted ships to pass through the city.  With the exception of a few castles further upriver, most ship's journeys end at Sherrco.  The city is roughly rectangular shaped with the river running almost down the middle.  Within the city is also a large island upon which sits the original castle that was here before the city.  There are no bridges to the island, so charter boats do a brisk business here.  There is only one true bridge across the river, near the northern side of town, but the southern river gate is also a public bridge, but only during daylight hours.  Sherrco has some strict laws, one of which is no riding of horses in town without a permit, which is very expensive.  Fortunately for visitors there are stables located next to all of the town's gates.
Local Lore: Sherrco is an extremely active town.  A lot of overland trade routes wind up here where cargo can then be shipped down river to the Vilhon Sea.  Because of this there is always a need for caravan guards.  Sherrco is also a terminus for one branch of the Dorgan Highway, though most people are not aware of this.  There is a large cave complex south of the city which connects to the Underdark, and this is a popular place for adventurers, for two reasons.  The first is the lure of fame and fortune.  The second is that through this area is an underground highway that leads to a series of dwarf and deep gnome colonies.  Recently, the drow have started to get more active in the area, either bypassing or wiping out the outposts just within the cave complex.  Also, kobolds have been staging raids on the city, some of which appear right in the middle of the city, seemingly out of thin air.  This has caused a bit on consternation for the king, but fortunately, there have only been a few raids, which were small in number and easily dispatched.

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Four cities:


Airspur
Independent City

Who Rules: King Farasel the 7th (LN, Human Male, F19) inherited the position after his great uncle, King Farasel the 6th, and his entire family were killed in a fire.  The current king was the closest living relative that could be found.  Unfortunately for the city, the king is far more proficient with weapons than he is with his brain.

Who Really Rules: Lady Jaclyn Coppermane (NE, Drow Female, W18), head of the Royal Council of Airspur, has lived in disguise in Airspur for most of her life.  She was originally born on the surface, and when her family moved back into the underdark she quickly realized she was out of place.  She then took on her current disguise and made her fortune quickly.  And just as quickly she gained a lot of political power.  She manipulates the council with great subtlety (and the occasional bribe or assassination) and she uses the King's weakness for women and wine to secretly rule the kingdom.

Population: 31,500 (45% human, 20% elf, 15% dwarf, 15% lizardman, 5% other).

Major Products: Art, candles, chests, clothing, glassware, trained aerial mounts, woodcarvings, and an extremely fine brandy called Griffon's Mane.

Armed Forces: 1,250 (250 light infantry, 500 engineers/artillerists, 500 aerial cavalry), plus a force of 16 spelljamming ships, though the vast majority of the population isn't aware that they can leave the planet's atmosphere.

Notable Mages: Mistress Adrianna (CG, Human Female, W22) spends her time creating magical flying and teleportation devices.  She also is an expert on meteorology and weather control spells, though she only uses these on rare occasions.
    Emallame (LN, Human Male, W18) runs a school devoted to aerial flying and combat.
    Melnos Foxmane (NE, Human Male, W17) is an expert on aerial creatures, and he also does secret experiments on breeding new aerial monsters.

Notable Churches: Waukeen, Akadi, Lathander, Azuth, and Helm.

Notable Rogues' and Thieves' Guilds: The Black Hand chapter in Airspur is run by Blackie (LE, Human Female, T21), who is a dark-skinned, ruthless thief who controls her guild with an iron grip.  She is fair to those who follow her rules, but will turn on anyone in an instant if they disobey or double-cross her.  Despite her ruthlessness, she is loved by nearly all of her guild members, in more ways than one.

Equipment Shops: Full

Adventurers' Quarters: Adventurers are welcome throughout the city, but favor those near the 'port' area, and The Pit, which is built around an inverted dome on the underside of the city.

Important Characters: Sir Michael Goldmace (LG, Human Male, F31) is the former head of the Ansar Knights, now retired.  He is extremely old and spends most of his time in his wheelchair on a balcony overlooking the training compound of his fighting school.  His school specializes in general training, training gladiators, and he also trains those specifically trying to become officers among the ranks of the Ansar Knights.
   Hennikin (CN, Dwarf Male, F15) crafts aerial weapons and harness-ware.  He is also the inventor and sole brewer of Griffon's Mane, which he treats as a hobby.

Important Features in Town: Airspur is a flying town.  Through magic long since lost, the town was ripped out of the ground and raised into the sky.  That was over 500 years ago.  Since then the town has grown to completely fill up the entire surface area of the island upon which it sits, and there has been some expansion into the rock itself.  This downward growth is strictly controlled, though, for fear of upsetting the magic that keeps the town flying.  The town now roams around the areas of Eastern Rossak, generally quite high, and it always has cloud cover on the bottom to disguise it.  Every four months, though, it returns to the area from where it used to sit, and it lowers to an altitude of about 30' for the duration of about two weeks.  This is the only time that most residents and visitors can come and go freely without the need of magic or large quantities of money.  
   There is a large, open area on the northern edge of the floating island that is the only place where aerial mounts can land freely.  There are several private landing areas and stables around the edge of the island, and landing elsewhere is strictly controlled through expensive permits.  These permits are magical in nature and must me worn on the mount at all times.  Certain members of the local military can detect these devices and it is through these that non-licensed mounts are detected.  As for flying in general, it is not permitted anywhere over the city and those that are caught better have an incredibly good explanation.

Local Lore: Because of its roaming nature, there isn't any local lore that remains constant for any length of time.  The area where the city resided before it took to the sky, though, isn't a particularly friendly area.  Tribes of sauhagin and a colony of were-sharks inhabit the sea.  The plains are home to thri-kreen, tribes of orc, goblins, and ogres, and a large colony of bullettes has plagued the area for years.  The city of Airspur doesn't do anything about this, except to clear and maintain a 1-mile wide perimeter around the town when it 'comes home' every several months.  They see the surrounding dangers as a way of keeping undesirables away from the town.  During its periods of roaming the sky the town is really fairly safe, except for the occasional dragon.  The city, however, is more than prepared for dealing with such attacks.
   The sewers are set up to channel everything into large cisterns where the waste is stored until the city is over areas where it is safe to dump.  Hidden tunnels that are inhabited by jermelaine crisscross the sewers.  The city is aware of them but hasn't been able to eradicate them.  They haven't tried too hard, however, because they know that the jermelaine are part of the greater balance.  When they get out of hand, though, they have no problem sending out some punitive mission.
 

Arrafel
The League of Chondalwood

Who Rules:  The council of 16 elders is made up of four representatives from the Mage's, Fighter's, and Merchant's Guild, and the high Priests and Priestesses of the local region, with most of the power being controlled by the Elder Four.  Each of the Elder Four is the highest and most respected representative of the four that make up their particular section of the council.  The council must have a ¾'ths majority vote on any major issue to pass, with the Elder Four being able to overturn any measure passed by the council.  Generally, there aren't any real problems with anything because each of the Elders almost always has the support of other three beneath him.

Who Really Rules:  The Elder Four usually lead the way in all issues.

Population: 17,500 (95% of the population is made up of elves, with the rest being an equal mix of humans, half-elves, halflings, and dwarves).

Major Products:  Lumber, finished wood products, medicines, furs, and paper.  Elvish archer-mercenaries are also a common product of the region.  Arrafel also produces Fey Bow, a delicious mead that is made only from a special honey that is cultivated from hives located within hollow cavities found in Great Birk trees.

Armed Forces:  Being a border town on the Chondath border, Arrafel supports a sizable armed force, numbering about 1000, with almost half of that made up of light troops that specialize as archer/scouts.  The core of the military is made up of The Heart of the Oak, which is a 300-man strong force of plate mail clad heavy infantry.  This force is actually made up of 150 elves, 100 dwarves, and 50 humans, and is comprised along the following lines:  Captain Karr Stoneforge (CG, D, F12) and his personal bodyguard of 20 Fighter/Priests (led by an elf, Silvas Nightcrescent, LN, elf male, F/P 8/9) of various races, all F/P 6/6.  Under Karr are three lieutenants (F8), each of who oversees three sergeants (F7).  Under each sergeant is a force of 9 infantry, ranging from level 3-6, with two Fighter Priests (3/3 '" 6/6) in each platoon.  The remainder of the military is a mixture of specialists and medium infantry.  All members of the armed forces are adept at preparing snares and traps.

Notable Mages:  Darasel (CN, Elf, W15), a former elvish adventurer who is overly protective of his city.  Despite being the most powerful mage in the city, he refuses a seat on the council.  Instead, he prefers to spend his time roaming the countryside with the archer/scouts or creating offensive spell scrolls that he stockpiles in case the city is ever attacked.

Notable Churches: Solanor; Shrines to nearly all elvish gods; Clanggedon Silverbeard; Mielikki, Tempus, Eldath, Vilvanus

Notable Rogues' and Thieves' Guilds: The Broken Arrow is a small guild with 11 members, including its guild master, Ethelle Birchlimb (LN, Elf Male, T10).  There isn't much profit to be made in town, so the guild spends most of its time waylaying orcs and the occasional wealthy citizen who is out an about in the woods.  Their stealth skills are so good, in fact, that all the members of the guild have primary jobs as scout for the military, a role that gives them a very good cover story.

Equipment Shops: Full

Adventurers' Quarters: Non-evil adventurers of all types are welcome in Arrafel as they are a good deterrent to any unwanted denizens that occasionally come into the area.
Important Characters:  Jeremiah (LN, Human Male, R12) roams the woods around the town, constantly on a vigil against anyone who would dare to harm his adopted homeland.  If he is found, he will gladly talk with anyone friendly and provide any information that he can.  He sometimes seeks out adventuring parties in the area to point them in a direction where their power could be used to great benefit.  While he is very friendly and knowledgeable, he is extremely ugly (Cha. 6), and this sometimes puts people off before they get the chance to know him.
   Dimitri Hawkeye (LG, Human Male, W6) gave up practicing magic to build spyglasses and telescopes, which are of highly exceptional quality.
   Mallakilli Firebreath (CN, Gnome Female, P4) is the manufacturer of arquebus rifles and pistols, and the occasional bombard.  Her creations are of average quality, which is quite exceptional as she started making them after having only seen one in use.  Her designs, however, are absolutely beautiful and the esthetic value of her pieces is of highest quality.
   Misra the Pearl (LE, Half Elf Female, T7) is a pickpocket who has a fetish for pearls and silver.  Anything else that she acquires is secretly donated to the church of Solanor.

Important Features in Town:  Arrafel is not a very big town in terms of population, but the actual size of the city is about twice as big as most towns with the same population.  The reason for this is that the city is made up of wide avenues with plenty of trees.  About 15% of the population actually dwells in structures built amongst the trees.  There is also a sizable community of Treants that live in the vicinity of the city, and they act as a secret weapon in case the city is ever attacked directly.  The town also has an abundance of fountains within its walls.

Local Lore: Arrafel is a quiet town, but it is not a stranger to violence.  The local area does suffer from a minor orc problem, so the armed forces are usually kept busy.  Despite the vigilance of the patrols, an occasional orc raid makes it into the city.  However, they almost never cause any serious damage and are usually quickly destroyed.  
     The presence of these orcs brings in a lot of novice adventurers looking to make a name for themselves.  A lot of these bands have a high number of dwarves amongst them, and while the local dwarvish population lives in peace with the elves of the area, these outsider dwarves often result in some racial fights between the two.  Fortunately, these are more along the lines of drunken brawls than serious melees.

 
Chondrun
Independent City, loosely aligned with Larmer, Ormvald, Sherrco, and Zamuda

Who Rules:  Lord Eralg Shieldcleft (CG, Dwarf male, F16) is brave, fearless, and extremely charismatic.  Unfortunately, he has very little skill when it comes to politics.

Who Really Rules: Lady Revlis Shieldcleft (CN, Dwarf female, F13).  While Lord Eralg may have the actual power, Lady Revlis is more than adept at getting her every whim and desire passed by her husband.

Population:  56,000 (65% human, 35% equal mix of all types)

Major Products: Iron (the city rests upon a decent sized iron deposit), finished metal products, arms, armor, locks, bricks, and Chond Rum, a drink that despite being of poor quality is very popular with sailors because it is very potent and very cheap.  Most of the revenue (75%), though, is generated from commerce coming up the Chond River.

Armed Forces: 6,000 of all types, with specialist forces of Heavy Cavalry and a mounted ballista corps which is a force of wagons with ballistae mounted in the back.

Notable Mages: Ydna Silvermane (LG, Human Female, W19) is a were-otter who spends her days researching water spells and river life forms.  By night she roams the river in otter form being free of all human constraints.
   Ray Kondrun (NE, Human Male, W17) is primarily a moneylender who uses his spells to keep his customers honest.  He uses his intelligence to write up contracts with clauses that are designed to cheat people out of their money.  These special contracts, though, are reserved for those who can afford it.  He has to keep most of his business honest so no one catches on to his schemes.
   Dorothea Glassmane (N, Hale-elf Female, W14/T12) runs a school for apprentice wizards and makes a tidy living at this.  She also turns out some very talented wizards.  Her main job, though, is as an agent for Hlondeth, Chondath, and Sespech.  It's a dangerous line she walks, but she truly loves it, and she's quite exceptional at what she does.

Notable Churches: Tempus, Waukeen, Gond, Dwarven Gods

Notable Rogues' and Thieves' Guilds:  K'Vin One-Hand (LE, ½-Orc, T18) and The Bloody Stump Guild.  This guild enjoys a unique position within the city.  While the city has publicly sworn to destroy the guild, it has also come to rely upon the guild for vital information from outside the city.  Despite heavy losses through execution, the guild, and K'Vin, actually thrives upon being pursued within the city.  Yet, K'Vin has come to realize that the freedom of the city is paramount to his own freedom.  Therefore, his spies comb the border towns of Chondath and bring back any information that Lord Eralg may need.  This information is passed on to Sir Ispep (LN, Human male, T12), one of Eralg's trusted advisors, who is also a member of the guild.

Equipment Shops:  Full

Adventurers' Quarters:  Adventurers and employers are required to conduct all business within sanctioned 'hiring halls,' with the employers being required to pay a nominal fee.  This is not done to raise any revenue, but rather, is done to ensure fair and honest competition and to protect the interests of the adventurers.

Important Characters:  Lord Nug Limbhacker (CN, ½-Ogre Male, F11).  Nug is a semi-retired adventurer who left his companions far away somewhere between Shadowdale and Hillsfar.  He currently works as a 'hired battleaxe,' selling his massive bulk and weapons to the highest-bidding adventuring group.  He carries a door for a shield, wields a massive battleaxe (1d12/1d12), and carries 4 regular battleaxes that he uses as throwing axes.  While he is immensely strong (18/00), he is equally stupid (Int. 5).
   Basilius Redflower (LN, Human Male, 0-level) is a gem carver whose sapphires carved in the likeness of roses are known as far away as Waterdeep.
   Xof Yllucs (LG, Human Male, F6) is a maker of canoes, both standard and long distance outrigger models, which are highly sought after by people all across the Regions of Rossak.
   Tamar Aldertree (N, Dwarf Female, F3) makes travelling trunks ranging from simple containers to ones that are full of drawers and secret compartments.
Important Features in Town:  This city sits astride the river junction where the River Nun meets the Ormvald Flow.  The Ormvald runs right through the center of the city and into the River Nun.  Where it meets the Nun there is a large island, upon which is built the massive Castle Shieldcleft, which is the seat of power for Chondrun.  Except for part of the city wall, none of the city proper lies upon the southern side of the river.  On the southern side of the river the walls are built right against the shore.  The walls for this section are twice as tall and twice as thick as the rest, with towers spaced twice as close together here than in other parts of the city.  All three of the city's river gates are extremely well fortified, and are tall enough that medium sized, masted ships can sail underneath them.

Local Lore:  Chondrun was once known as Silverflow, due to the amount of river business that passed within its walls, and it was part of the kingdom of Chondath.  However, the King of Chondath was fond of ignoring the needs of the city while still demanding that taxes and revenues be paid.  When an iron deposit was discovered beneath the city, things simply got worse, with a demand for more revenue and an increase in the taxes.  So, about 60 years ago, the city of Silverflow secretly signed a treaty of mutual support with nearly half of the cities of the Regions of Rossak and plotted to break away.  After several years of secret planning, Silverflow was ready, and with a massive army of nearly 60,000 troops, they quickly drove towards Hlath, the capitol of Chondath, and in a matter of days had besieged the city.  The king was quick to sue for peace and gladly let Silverflow break away from the kingdom.  In exchange for being allowed to be an independent city, Silverflow, now renamed Chondrun, agreed not to shut off trade to the cities further up river.  Eager for independence, Chondrun eagerly accepted, and since then Chondath has been very friendly with the Regions of Rossak, for the most part.
   Chondun is a very safe and secure city in a region that is very safe and secure.  Because of this there is very little need for adventurers in the area.  The city is, though, a good place for adventurers to go if they are looking for excitement elsewhere.  A lot of caravans come through the city, and a lot of cargo is loaded onto boats and shipped down river and out onto the Vilhon Reach where it is shipped to cities near and far.  Because of this there is always someone looking to hire experienced adventurers as guards.
   In the last couple of years some of the local iron mines have dug deep enough to connect into areas of the underdark.  While nothing truly powerful or evil has come up through these mines a lot of people in power think it is only a matter of time before something does.  To that end the city quietly, and often secretively, hires adventurers to work as scouts in the areas of the underdark in the general vicinity of the mines.  A few of these groups were never heard from again.
 

Cimbar
Independent City

Who Rules: King Vartan the Bear (LN, Human Male, F21) is a huge, powerful (natural Strength of 19), and very handsome person, who also happens to be very intelligent.  His only major fault is that he is extremely vain about his physical build and his looks.  To this end he spends countless hours training and grooming.  He is considered to be a very good ruler, but he does rely a lot on his advisors, especially Lady Kari.

Who Really Rules: Lady Kari (LE, Half-elf Female, Psionicist-18) uses her natural abilities to gain an edge over the other advisors of the King.  Everyone is amazed at how often she comes up with an idea or plan that they themselves had been thinking of.  Because of this numerous spies follow her around, making sure she isn't sneaking into areas where she shouldn't be and acquiring knowledge that she shouldn't have.  This has been to no avail.  While she is respected, she isn't very well trusted, and Lady Kari doesn't mind one bit.   She has the King's ear, and is biding her time until she can be the ruler.

Population: 34,000 (90% human, 8% elf, 2% other).

Major Products: Art, books, paper, parchment, textiles, musical instruments, textiles, and Bard's Brew, a wine that is made from grapes that grow in isolated vineyards on the cliffs to the east and west of town.

Armed Forces: 1,000 (500 light infantry/archers, 250 mixed cavalry, 225 artillerist/engineers, 25 mages) plus a naval force of 8 light warships, each with a complement of 25-50 marines.

Notable Mages: Sir Lyle the Elder (LG, Human Male, W19) is an old mage who wiles away his time in his tower overlooking the sea writing travelling spell books that he then gives to beginning mages to help them get their careers off to a good start.
   Woren Moonglow (CN, Elf Male, W16) is one of the few prominent elves in Cimbar.  This is due do his vast store of knowledge from the days when Cimbar was once a mighty town.  He hopes to someday see the city's old glory restored and works ceaselessly to accomplish this.

Notable Churches: Deneir, Sune, Eldath, Selune, Gond, and Waukeen.

Notable Rogues' and Thieves' Guilds: Lorr the Lion (NE, Human Male, T22) runs The Talons through sheer terror.  Those who oppose him are fed to his pet lions, and just to keep everyone on their toes, the occasional ally becomes dinner also.  Lorr is crafty and has managed to avoid getting caught by the authorities, or deposed by his underlings.  His guild is very profitable and is always attracting new members.  Not surprisingly, the guild has a very high turnover rate.

Equipment Shops: Full.
Adventurers' Quarters: Adventurers are welcome throughout town.  The Cup of Life is a very expensive place that is a badge of honor for those who have just made it big, and for those who are simply rich.

Important Characters: Foorm (CN, Human Male, F11) was once a gnome before he was reincarnated and he now spends his time helping out non-humans who are in trouble because they simply aren't human.  He is also an expert on gnomes.
     Corlatta Bladesong (LN, Human Female, F9) is a blacksmith/bowyer who specializes in doing inlays on bows and crossbows.
     Edana the Bookworm (NG, Human Female, 0-level artisan) is the head of a paper making company that specializes in high quality products for use in books.

Important Features in Town: Cimbar is located on the sides and rim of a natural depression that drops down 50' to the same level of the sea.  Tall, thick walls that are very formidable surmount the upper rim and the harbor rests down at the bottom of the slope.  One's economic and social status can be easily determined by how far above the poorer port area one lives.  The harbor was once one of the richest areas on the south shores of the Inner Sea, and ships would have to wait for several days before a berth would open up for them.  Now, the outer docks are abandoned, and there is never a shortage of space for ships.  Cimbar was once the most prominent city in the area and was a valuable gem in the Chessentan Empire.  Rock Point has stolen the economic wealth of the city, and Rossak has taken away the intellectual glory that Cimbar once enjoyed.  At least half of the city is empty, but the city makes sure the buildings are somewhat maintained and don't become dilapidated.  Most of the residents still love listening to the bards sing tales of the old days and think that better days are just ahead.  Despite the decline, though, the town still does a good deal of trade and the standard of living is higher than most towns of its size.
 
Local Lore: The area around Cimbar was once touted as being the safest area in the Realms.  It was said that someone could walk for fifty miles in any direction and fear nothing except the occasional rainstorm.  Now, though, orcs and goblins are a constant threat to the city, as well as bands of nomadic humans who have no respect for any authority except that of the sharpest sword and the strongest arm.  Pirates are also a nuisance, but are not too bad because the natural reef around the port is vast, and those who know the channels are closely watched.
     The most common job for adventurers in the area is as caravan guards, a job that pays extremely well, but is also very dangerous.  The second most common activity for adventurer is fighting orcs.  In ages past, hill dwarves lived in the area and built many small towns beneath the earth.  The dwarves, though, eventually moved on to form the basis of the Dorgan communities that grew up to the west.  Orcs and goblins quickly moved in.  When Cimbar prospered, they hid in their underground dwellings and expanded them.  Now, they are back upon the surface creating a nuisance of themselves.  Rumors abound saying that if the orcs were removed, you could walk from Cimbar to with a few miles of Rossak and never have to see the light of day or the stars of night.

[LordVreeg]

you answered the beer thread.
you get a response

[blockquote=mock26]Lizard men in this area are kind of like our ancient romans. They once had a civilized culture a long time ago but that culture collapsed and they are primarily barbaric now, though they are a very proud race. The climate has also changed to make it a lot less of a humid-tropical region[/blockquote]
How long ago?  I kind of like this.  I had a race of dragon-worshipping lizard men about 3k years before the current.  Was their romanesque nature including empire, at one point?

I like the loose confederation.  

The vikings killed me.  No insult intended, but it sounded like a heavy drinking night result.  Temporal rift or trans-dimensional?  How many vikings and how long ago?

The Clerics of the Quest were an intersting crew.  How do these clerics get treated when they go to worship?

I do like the map.  Very clear.

I must say I enjoyed reading the town/city descriptions, and if you were looking for them to read as a really, really good D&D setting, you succeeded.  The flying cities, the high level NPC's, the race-specific churches.

[Mock26]

you answered the beer thread.
you get a response

[blockquote=mock26]Lizard men in this area are kind of like our ancient romans. They once had a civilized culture a long time ago but that culture collapsed and they are primarily barbaric now, though they are a very proud race. The climate has also changed to make it a lot less of a humid-tropical region[/blockquote]
How long ago?  I kind of like this.  I had a race of dragon-worshipping lizard men about 3k years before the current.  Was their romanesque nature including empire, at one point?

I like the loose confederation.  

The vikings killed me.  No insult intended, but it sounded like a heavy drinking night result.  Temporal rift or trans-dimensional?  How many vikings and how long ago?

The Clerics of the Quest were an intersting crew.  How do these clerics get treated when they go to worship?

I do like the map.  Very clear.

I must say I enjoyed reading the town/city descriptions, and if you were looking for them to read as a really, really good D&D setting, you succeeded.  The flying cities, the high level NPC's, the race-specific churches.

The lizard men were a going concern about 2,000 years ago and the sun set on their golden time about 750 years ago.  They didn't have a true empire per see but were more along the lines of a point of light culture.  They were mostly independant cities that were bastions of knowledge and civilization.

As for the Vikings, they were written up while at work.  There is a great 1st edition adventure in Dragon Magazine #100 that has a group of adventurers going to modern day London to recover an artifact, the Mace of St. Cuthbert (and now you know the origin of the Clerics of the Quest).  That is what inspired the idea for the vikings.  It is also part of St. Cuthbert's plan as it was through some vikings (who had been raiding England) that he was able to "sneak" some influence back into the Realms.  There are only about 500-750 vikings in the Realms, which equates to about a dozen ships of various sizes.  They have been slipping into the area for about a 50 years or so (I can't remember exactly off the top of my head).  They are a very minor influence and were mainly put in for flavor.  My group has yet to interact directly with any of them.  The vikings in the regions have for the most part adapted quite nicely and have married and are here to stay.  The rift is just a spatial/temporal rift that only connects two points on the prime material plane.

As for the Clerics of the Quest, they don't go to worship in the old fashion any more as doing so is time that could be better spent searching for the Mace of St. Cuthbert.

What I find pleasing is that my players have actually read through their copies of this massive document.  When they are going to a specific city they will usually read up on that city and will often have a printed copy of that city.  For the most part if it is on the document the characters know about it (except for some obvious things, such as a fair amount of the thief information and some of the "who really rules").  My players mostly concentrate on the notable mages and important NPC's and a couple times I've been caught off guard when they say that they are going to talk to so-and-so and I have to check to find out who that person is.  With something like 55 cities and several hundred personalities it can be easy to forget some of them.  Also, with that many people coming up with names became a challenge at times.  A fair number of the names are anagrams of famous people and of my friends and some coworkers.  There are also some characters of mine and characters of my friends.  In Sherrco Kurgen and Tuvalla Redaxe were both characters of mine.  Jeremiah in Arafel is my friend's character who fought alongside Kurgen.  Nug Limbhacker in Chondrum was my character before Kurgen and even though he died in the real campaign I "raised" him for my campaign.  And, finally, Lyle the Elder in Cimbar was one of the best players I've ever gamed with.


Thanks for the compliments!

As time permits more and more cities will be added to the list.


Take care and have a great day....



ciao,
john.

[LordVreeg]

[blockquote=Mock26]What I find pleasing is that my players have actually read through their copies of this massive document. When they are going to a specific city they will usually read up on that city and will often have a printed copy of that city.[/blockquote]
This is one of those things that makes technology tough. Back in the old days, no one was reading my stuff.  I always have to either cut very short my posting for fear of players seeing it, or else count on them being extre-good about it, or some combination.

[blockquote=Mock26]Gilthor (NG, Elf Male, F19/W23) is an ancient elf, nearly 2,000 years old. He spends his time at the Gilded Mug, drinking their renowned ale, telling stories. A lot of his stories seem far-fetched and some people think he's going senile, but his memories over 500 years old are still crisp and clear.[/blockquote]
How do you deal with this?  I run a setting with tons of interrelated layers of history, all muddled by time.  But I had to mitigate my long-lived races dramatically due to the damn elves wanting to know why they wouldn't remember major events from half a millenia ago.  Drove me to totally change my max-ages and back stories so as to preserve the mysteries of the past.

[Mock26]

[blockquote=Mock26]Gilthor (NG, Elf Male, F19/W23) is an ancient elf, nearly 2,000 years old. He spends his time at the Gilded Mug, drinking their renowned ale, telling stories. A lot of his stories seem far-fetched and some people think he's going senile, but his memories over 500 years old are still crisp and clear.[/blockquote]
How do you deal with this?  I run a setting with tons of interrelated layers of history, all muddled by time.  But I had to mitigate my long-lived races dramatically due to the damn elves wanting to know why they wouldn't remember major events from half a millenia ago.  Drove me to totally change my max-ages and back stories so as to preserve the mysteries of the past.

Most of the really older elves in my world become reclusive in regards to outsiders and many head on off to Evermeet after about 500-1,000 years.  I also don't allow my players to play really old elves.  Fortunately, your problem has not yet come up in my campaign!



PS  I'm hoping to get the next batch of ciites up real soon.

[Mock26]

I know it has been a long time since I last posted, but I spent most of my time this summer roller blading in preparation of a marthon this month.  And, I've lost 25 times and taken 5 minutes off of my best marathon time!  Granted, I've only done 5 marathons and only one of those was an official race.

But, the weather is changing and that means more rain days when I can't blade but I can work on my worlds!

So, here is four more cities:

Crodges
Independent City

Who Rules:  Admiral Nagillum (N, Sea-Elf Male, F/M 14/12)

Who Really Rules:  Council of Sea Elves, comprised of 7 sea elves from the local sea elf community.

Population:  43,000 (35% human, 30% elf, 30% sea elf, 5% other)

Major Products:  Fish, quarried stone, ships, maritime products, trade, ivory, crates, bards, musical instruments, dyes, and Djinn Juice, a clear liquor that is made from juniper berries that grow in the nearby mountains.

Armed Forces:  Ground forces:  3,500.  Aquatic forces:  2,000 sea elf marines, 5 dragon turtles, and a fleet of 65 warships of various sizes with mixed crews of humans, elves, and sea elves.

Notable Mages:  Daphne Dewmorn (LN, ½ Sea Elf Female, W26) was the product of her mother having been raped by pirates after she was captured outside of the main channel into Crodges.  Knifed and thrown overboard, she was left for dead, but she survived and gave birth to her daughter.  Daphne was raised as a welcome addition to the community, and over the years she developed an intense hatred of pirates.  To that end, over the past 50 she has sunk just as many pirate ships on her own as the entire sea elf community combined!

Notable Churches:  Istisha, Water Lord of the Elementals; Umberlee, Waukeen, Lliira, Oghma

Notable Rogues' and Thieves' Guilds:  There are actually two guilds within this town, The Granite Heart and The Silent Depths.  The Granite Heart is run by Shenara The Lithe (CN, Human Female, T15), who has a strict policy of limiting all operations to businesses and people only.  The homes of the residents are considered off limits, and all shipping related operations falls under the operations of the other guild.

   The Silent Depths is run by Harril Semoon (LE, Gnome Male, T12), and their operations are restricted to the shipping lanes only.  Both guilds work in near perfect harmony, with neither interfering with the other.  On occasions, though, one guild will overstep its territory and the ensuing turf wars can get very nasty, very fast.

Equipment Shops:  Full

Adventurers' Quarters:  Adventurer's are allowed anywhere within the city, and they are very welcome as the overland road leading north out of the mountains is one that is hard to keep completely safe.  There are more than enough evil denizens to make sure there are a healthy number of adventurers in town.  Their added power in times of need (the town laws allow for adventurers to be drafted into the military if need be), along with the money they bring into the city, is always welcome.

Important Characters:  Grundalvaal Millinshorn (LG, Gnome Male, F3), Harbor Master.  Situated atop a 200' tall tower at the North Western end of the city, the office of the Harbor Master commands a view of the entire bay, and nearly a mile out each end of the harbor.  From this vantage point, Grundalvaal watches all ships coming into and out of the harbor, and his small army of semaphore flagmen relays his commands to the guides who stand next to the pilots of all the ships entering into and leaving Crodges.  Unable to swim, and a little bit afraid of the water, Sir Millinshorn is master of his domain, and under his watchful attentions no ship has ever accidentally collided with another in 'His' bay.  While it may not look like much from the water, from atop his perch and the upper reaches of the town, he moves ships like a master tactician moving toy soldiers on a tabletop.  His memory is also incredible, and he can remember details of almost every ship he has seen in the past five years.
   
Mijecorc (LN, ½-orc Male, B14) writes songs of exceptional quality that stick in your mind for days afterwards.

Important Features in Town: Crodges rests in the crater of a now extinct and collapsed volcano.  The volcano was situated at the narrow neck of a peninsula, with deep fjords forming the water inlets.  At some point in the past the volcano blew it's top and collapsed in on itself.  The water rushed in and formed a natural bay.  Some time thereafter a community of sea elves moved into the area as the two narrow inlets were easily defended.  About 200 years ago, human merchants who were on friendly terms with the elves were invited to move in and settle the slopes of the surrounding bowl.  Over the years the community grew until it reached its present population, where it has remained relatively stable for about 30 years.  

   The northern slopes tend to be where the majority of the poor and lower middle class resides, and the upper reaches of the southern slopes are almost exclusively for the wealthy.  The lower reaches of the southern slopes are the business districts.  The bowl itself, at the base, is about ½ a mile in diameter, with the upper reaches being about 1½ miles across.  

   At the bottom of the bowl, where thermal vents heat the water, sea elves have set up a large community.  The elves make sure that the fjords are kept clear of unwanted aquatic intruders.  They are also responsible for the 5 dragon turtles that they have raised from eggs and are trying to breed.  The dragon turtles are completely loyal to the community, and no ship is allowed into the bay unless a sea elf accompanies the underside of the ship.

Local Lore:  Crodges is a haven for sailors of all nations and races as it's waters always remain calm, despite what the surrounding seas may be doing.  The reason for this, it is believed, is that an ancient sea elf mage roams the waters of Crodges, forever invisible, protecting the waters in which he was born.  Many an adventurer has washed up on shore, nearly drowned, after trying to find the wizards hidden lair.

   The fjords surrounding the city are also littered with the wrecks of hundreds of ships.  A lot of these are still in good shape with full cargo loads, only because the sea elves refuse to touch them.  While they see it as a taboo act for themselves to loot the wrecks, they won't prevent others from doing this.  There are enough aquatic life forms that are dangerous enough to be treated with caution, but which are not hunted down by the elves.  The reason for the great number of wrecks is that while the Bay of Crodges may remain calm during storms, the fjords and channels do not.  Also, in the past, invading ships have been 'misdirected' by magic to sail into dead end fjords, thus letting the rocky shores and waves destroy the ships.

   Crodges is also a haven for bards, for it's beauty is truly great.  They say a person cannot throw a cup of water without hitting a handful of bards.  While this is an obvious exaggeration, it doesn't seem that way in certain parts of town.

 

Dalwood
The League of Chondalwood

Who Rules:  Thorgeir Staffthrasher (LN, Male elf, Druid 13) rules this lumber town with an iron fist.  Along with The Council of Trees, which is made up of 21 druids, he personally inspects the areas to be forested and selects certain trees to be spared.  The reason for this is that he is maintaining a near perfect balance of the harvesting of the trees.

Who Really Rules:  Thorgeir Staffthrasher.

Population:  5,300 (60% elves, 30% human, 8% dwarf, 2% mixed and other).

Major Products:  Lumber.  There is also a local meadery that makes Green Dragon Mead, a closely guarded local secret.  It is rarely served to outsiders and it is a crime to take it out of the city.  To those few outsiders who have tasted it, many have been tempted to try and smuggle it out of town, and very few have been caught, but only because they've never had the opportunity to smuggle any of it out of the city.
Armed Forces:  2,000 light infantry.  Every single adult male is required to be part of the military, which is set up along the lines of a militia, with most of them using axes in combat because they are lumberjacks.  There is always a core group of 100 who are on duty at all times, patrolling the area around the town.  This core group is made up of two groups of 50, and each is on duty for ten days, with the groups overlapping by a half week.  This allows for a smooth transition of groups with the maximum efficiency in turning over any issues to the next group.

Notable Mages:  Ivar the Raven (CN, Male Human, W8), who earned his moniker because he maintains an aviary of 100 ravens that do his bidding and act as his spies and scouts.

Notable Churches:  Elvish temples

Notable Rogues' and Thieves' Guilds:  There is no thieves' guild in the community because most of the population operates on a system of barter.  This doesn't mean that there aren't any thieves.  There are, but they all run independently, and anyone who has tried to set up a guild has wound up dead in a gutter somewhere.

Equipment Shops:  Half (full in regards to outdoor type gear)

Adventurers' Quarters:  Nothing special with only one Inn in the town.

Important Characters:  Hovanna of the Myriad Colors (LG, Female Elf, 0-level), proprietor of the larger of the only two taverns in town, the Myriad Colors.  Hovanna runs a respectable, albeit slightly rowdy, establishment, where information flows more than the ale.  If there are any rumors in town, odds are that Hovanna has heard about, and she can probably tell you whether or not it is true.  Her information, though, is not free.  It is for paying customers only.  Anyone who tries to pay her outright for information will be asked to leave the establishment, and depending on how they behave, be barred from anywhere from 1 day to 'life.'

   Tuort the Fish (N, Sea-elf male, 0-level sage) is an expert on river fishes, of which the Spiritflow River is full of many varied species.

   Grizzly Ariansson (N, Human-Werebear Male, F6) is a local who devotes his life to defending the bear population against over-hunting and anything else that may be a threat.  He is also an expert on woodland biology and fauna.

   Hallafal Cooper (CN, Halfling Male, T6) actually gave up thievery (for the most part) to make barrels, a trade he learned from his father, and its one that he loves and is extremely good at.

   Wasgij (CG, ½-elf Male, F1) makes furniture for people all over the Inner Sea.  Each piece, though, takes from 2 to 8 weeks, and the cost is at a factor of x5.  The finished product, though, is more than worth the price.  His waiting list is currently just under two years, though for the right price he will put someone to the front of the list.

Important Features in Town: The town has no walls, but it is situated on a heavily wooded island in the middle of the Spiritflow River, which actually runs towards the South Rossak Mountains.  Before the river reaches the mountains, though, it enters into an underground cavern that runs under the South Rossak Mountains, eventually becoming the South Rossak River and emerging on the other side of the mountains.  It is by this means that lumber is floated into the heart of the Regions of Rossak.  There are numerous dwarven outposts along the river, and one dwarven city built along the shores of an underground lake, that the river flows by, so it is a very safe means of transportation through the mountains.

Local Lore: It has been rumored for years that a green dragon of extremely large proportions lives somewhere in the vicinity, but it has never been seen.  The rumors persist, though, because of irrefutable evidence of a dragon having been in areas.  Because of this adventurer groups are constantly passing through the area, only to come back dejected and travel worn with nothing to show for their time and effort.  The green dragon rumor, though, is one thing that Hovanna will not comment on.  She merely says it is just a rumor, nothing more.  The truth of the matter is that Hovanna found the dragon just after it had hatched and its mother had been slain.  The dragon formed a bond with Hovanna, and despite the basic nature of the dragon, it is actually of LN alignment.  It lives a ways off from the city, and it will on occasion enter the city in the form of a human, and visit Hovanna.  The only other person who is aware of this relationship is Thorgeir.



 
De Virn
Independent City

Who Rules:  Lady Celia de la Hoyen (LE, Elf Female, T4) is a member of the local thieves' guild.

Who Really Rules:  Rellik One-Eye (LE, ½-Orc Male, T17) is master of the local thieves' guild and uses Lady Celia as a front, a job that Lady Celia enjoys immensely as she is a very attractive and alluring woman who enjoys the attentions and beds of the numerous male courtesans and diplomats.

Population: 25,000 (90% human, 5% dwarf and gnome, 5% other).

Major Products:  Coal, fine wine, brandy, ale, clothing, and produce.  Tymora's Delight wine, Red Goddess Brandy, and Underdark Ale are three of the most popular local drinks.

Armed Forces:  2,500 armed forces, 2,000 of which are The Sandriders, a force comprised equally of light, medium, heavy, and shock cavalry.  Their name is derived form their sand colored uniforms and the fact that they all ride sand colored mounts.  The remaining 500 are medium and heavy infantry and artillerists, who guard the city itself while the Sandriders patrol the surrounding plantations and farms.

Notable Mages:  Yafoyem Sadiril (LE, ½-elf male, W8).  The thieves' guild is not very fond of mages within the city walls, and as such, they make it uncomfortable for most mages to live here.  The only ones who seem to be accepted are ones who turn a blind eye to the true nature of who runs the town.  Yafoyem actually works in conjunction with the guild, using his powers to eliminate anyone who pries too closely into the town workings.

   Taheer Ibrahim (LG, Elf male, W6) is an exception to the normal rule in regards to the guild.  He is only interested in research and the sale of scrolls.  The scrolls are used to finance his research.  He is very fond of his town, and gives a lot of scrolls to the mages who are in the employ of the armed forces to help augment their arsenal.  Taheer is very intelligent, even for a wizard, but he is extremely naïve.  He is also deeply enamored of Lady Celia, and she uses that affection, along with her body and bed, to make sure that he doesn't learn anything he shouldn't.  Taheer is mildly ashamed of his 'immoral' relationship with Lady Celia, but he enjoys it too much to end it, and he is convinced that she will one day be his.

Notable Churches:  Deneir, Gond, Tymora, Mask

Notable Rogues' and Thieves' Guilds:  The Broken Hogshead operates quite discreetly, and is actually quite small.  Most of its revenue is derived from skimming profits off of the government and from ransoms paid by the rich families of kidnapped individuals.  All of these kidnappings, though, occur well away from the city so as to not to give the town a bad reputation, and it is only done a few times a year.  A small amount of money comes from larceny, which is carried out quite methodically so as not to rob someone too often, and to divert the population's attention away from the town government.

Equipment Shops:  Full

Adventurers' Quarters:  All adventurers are restricted to three inns located within a walled courtyard just inside the main gate of the town.  If they venture into the city, they are required to disrobe in the presence of guards (there are female guards for females) and wear special, red frocks.  This makes them easy to track (by the guild), and keeps them from actually wanting to come into the town.

Important Characters: Tabor Ghostflight (CE, Human Male, F11), a truly ruthless individual who values the life of others as much as most adventurers value a copper piece.  Once wronged by a member of the thieves guild, he swore vengeance, and he spends his nights sulking through the dark alleys of town looking for thieves.  When he finds them, he cruelly murders them and strings the bodies up by their feet on some street corner, his initials carved across their forehead.  No one knows who exactly he is, and the city has a reward of 100,000 GP for his head.

   Relbboc Boots (LG, Halfling Male, F2) makes very exceptional boots that don't need breaking in and increase a person's movement rate by 10%.  He is often sought out by mages looking to make magical boots.

   Rentniv of the Grapes (CN, Human Male 0-Level) owns a vineyard on the outskirts of town, and while his wine is of good quality, the brandy that he distills and sells under the Red Goddess label is very potent, and equally delicious.

Important Features in Town: The town is built on a great number of natural springs, some of which are thermal.  As such, the town has a fountain on almost half of its corners, and in every single square.  De Virn also has a large number of bathhouses, either public or private.

   There are also a series of underground rivers that run deep beneath the city, leading to underground lakes and seas, and leading deep into the Underdark.  While no major terrors have worked their way up from the deep, the occasional minor denizen does make into the city from time to time.

Local Lore: The city of De Virn was founded about 450 years ago when a trade caravan discovered a series of natural springs while crossing this stretch of land.  The city quickly grew to its present size in a matter of years, and the population then leveled off.  The city amassed great amounts of wealth really quickly, and this naturally attracted thieves.  The thieves were a chronic problem for centuries, until about 25 years ago when a group of adventurers were brought in to root out the local guild.  This they accomplished, but the city accused them of taking over the guild and not eliminating it, and the city then passed the strict laws currently in effect.

   In the last twenty years the city has grown extremely wealthy from all the trade coming through its walls, and from the quality products it actually produces.  What is interesting is that a large number of lower class people have fled because of high taxes, and an almost equal number of wealthy citizens have moved in.  This makes the town a natural draw for thieves, despite the fact that any that are caught are executed.  In reality, new thieves are welcome to come into the town, but they had better make contact with the guild and find out if they are welcome to practice their trade.


 
Dorgan
The Free Cities of Dorgan

Who Rules:  First Lord of the Free Cities, Sir Kiril the Rock (LN, Dwarf Male, F26), rules the city of Dorgan, but he is also the ruler of the Free Cities of Dorgan.  As such, he sits at the head of the Dorgan Council where all have a voice in governmental matters, but Kiril has the final say on council decisions.  Kiril, though, is extremely wise and listens to his fellow Lords and Ladies, but when he sets his mind to something, almost nothing will change it.  It is from this huge stubborn streak that he acquired the title of 'the Rock.'

Who Really Rules:  Sir Kiril the Rock

Population:  115,000 (90% dwarven, 5% gnome, 2% sea elf, 3% human and other)

Major Products:  Gold, silver, masonry work, mercenaries, preserved meats, arms, armor, mushrooms, bricks, and beer, especially Redaxe Ale, a dark red ale that is said to be descended from The Ale of the Gods.

Armed Forces:  20,000 of all types, including a navy of 16 large warships, manned by elite crews and loaded with more than the usual complement of artillery equipment.  Each ship also has a small force of sea elf scouts.

Notable Mages: Mistress Danya of Narva (LG, Human Female, W19) was originally brought into Dorgan as a half drowned refugee whose ship had been sunk while coming to the rescue of a Dorgan ship that was being attacked by a blue dragon.  She succeeded in driving off the dragon, but not before her ship was sunk and most of the crew slain or drowned.  Grateful for her assistance, the dwarves granted her the status of Citizen and said she could stay as long as she wished.  Grateful for the hospitality she was shown Danya planned on staying for just a short while, but she grew to love the city and decided to stay a bit longer.  That was 35 years ago.  Though she is now well into her 60's, she is still active, and quite attractive.  Danya is almost a dwarf herself, being only 4' 6' tall.

Notable Churches:  Dwarven churches only, very large shrine to Istisha, Water Lord of the Elementals

Notable Rogues' and Thieves' Guilds:  While Dorgan is a well-policed and civilized city, it is currently in the midst of a guild war.  The last unified guild master, Lothair Slyhands, died of mysterious causes about two years ago.  Many thieves died in the ensuing power struggle to take over.  Fortunately for the citizens of Dorgan, no one has been able to unify the different factions.  Since most of the thieves' efforts are directed towards eliminating or winning support of the competition, thefts have fallen drastically.  Currently, there are 6 different factions vying for power, though this can change as rapidly as a dwarf swings his axe while hewing orcs.  Most of the thieving that does take place is from outside thieves who slip into town for a short stay to make a quick profit.  This, though, isn't a sure thing, as all of the factions will kill off any outside thief they find.

Equipment Shops: Full, though human sized equipment isn't in great supply and can cost more than the standard price.

Adventurers' Quarters:  Adventurers are free to go anywhere within the city, if they can (see important features), though they tend to stay in the portside quarters more than anywhere else.

Important Characters: The Rat (CG, Dwarf male were-rat, F5) is Captain of the Granite Quarter's sewer patrol.  He has been offered promotions over and over again, but he turns it down as he loves the seediness of the poorest of the cities sections.  He is a great commander, but he gives his lieutenants free reign in what they do as he is a loner and prefers to roam the sewers, alone, keeping them clear of vermin.  The Rat, and other members of the sewer patrols, are a great source of information, for they hear just about every rumor that works its way through the city.  The easy point is finding them, for the they all hang out at The Gutter, a seedy bar where they gather after their shifts' end.  The hard part is getting past the stench that they carry with them after work.  Buy them a drink, though, and they'll talk your ear off for hours on just about anything, especially rumors.

Chrycheva the Tracker (LG, Human Female, T14) doesn't practice any of her thieving skills, except when she is following her true vocation, which is that of a bounty hunter.  She works only when specifically sought out, or if she happens to run across someone whom she knows has a bounty on him or her.  She has never failed to fulfill a contract.

Important Features in Town:  The City of Dorgan is built inside the last mountain of the peninsula that it sits upon.  The mountain is quite large, and has been partially hollowed out.  There are two entrances into the mountain, one a large castle built right next to the side of the mountain and heavily fortified, the other being a series of three massive gates that block off the artificial channel that enters from the sea into the mountain itself.  This channel is just as heavily fortified, and leads to a lagoon that is a mile square.  Surrounding three sides of the lagoon are open spaces filled with traditional, human style buildings.  Surrounding all of this are the entrances into the dwarven underground sections of the city.  Most of the 'true' dwarven areas are built to dwarven dimensions, and are uncomfortable for human sized beings.  All main corridors, though, are built quite large to handle human, elves, and anything large.

Local Lore: Legend has it that the town was founded 1,000 years ago by a dwarf named Negruk who washed up after the ship he was on sank.  When he washed up, though, he washed up several miles upstream, in the heart of Mt. Dorgan.  Sensing divine intervention, he immediately sent for his family and their families, and started building the town.  Over the years the city kept growing and growing.  At some point, Negruk's grandsons took to sailing and their direct descendants are now admirals and Captains in the Dorgan Navy, the only known Dwarvish Navy on the open water.

   The lagoon and the human-sized open quarters were expanded about 150 years ago after more and more human merchant ships started trading with Dorgan.  Dorgan also has an underground entrance that is the terminus of The Dorgan Highway, which is a massive underground road that connects all the major and minor cities of the Free Cities.  Interspersed along the highway are minor villages, inns, 'chariot express stations,' and patrol stations, each of which is a mini-fortress in it's own right.  The road itself is 70' wide and 20' tall, with the middle 20' being reserved for the chariots that take messages back and forth in a system similar to the pony express.  

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And four more:

Dorgan Bridge
The Free Cities of Dorgan

Who Rules:  Lady Yasha Whitehammer (NG, Dwarf Female, P2), daughter and only child of the former ruler, Lord Eirik Whitehammer, who was slain while leading an attack against a drow raiding party that had infiltrated the city.

Who Really Rules:  Sir Rurik Hammerhands (LE, Dwarf Male, F12), Uncle of Lady Yasha.  Sir Rurik was Lord Eirik's younger brother, a position he resented and despised his parents for.  Unknown to anyone else, he murdered his brother during the raid in the hopes that he would take over, unaware that his brother had received permission from the Dorgan Council to pass leadership over to his daughter.  Lady Yasha, though, is more naïve and inexperienced than she appeared, and she turned to her Uncle.  Sir Rurik accepted his role as advisor only because he would never stoop so low as to murder his own niece, and he still basically runs the city.  However, Lady Yasha is coming 'into her own' and slowly distancing herself from her Uncle.  He hasn't noticed it yet, but he soon will.

Population:  36,000 (98% dwarven, 2% other)

Major Products:  Iron, lead, glass, steel, weapons, mercenaries, and Whitehammer Mead.

Armed Forces: 12,000, mostly heavy infantry, including a force of 200 aerial cavalry who ride griffons and are led by a force of 25 elite riders (F10+) who ride a race of magical metallic griffons.

Notable Mages:  The Ring of Fire, a group of 12 mages (6 human, 3 elves, 1 ½-elf, 1 lizard man, and 1 gnome, all CN or CG, and all W10-W16), who were hired several years ago and are in the middle of a 10-year contract to help provide protection.  

Notable Churches:  Dwarven churches, and shrine to Akadi, Queen of the Air elementals.

Notable Rogues' and Thieves' Guilds:  Dorgan Bridge contains a thieves' guild, but it is a small one and it's leader is Lydia Steeleye (NE, Dwarf Female, T9), so named because she lost her eye and had the socket plugged with a steel ball.

Equipment Shops:  Full for dwarven and general equipment, half for human sized items.

Adventurers' Quarters:  Adventurers are welcome throughout the city.

Important Characters: Hadrian Yellowthorn (CG, lizardman male, 0-level) was a childhood friend of Lord Eirik, and is kind of a town historian.  He can answer almost any question on the history of Dorgan Bridge, but if he thinks someone is trying to learn something for ill use, he won't say anything.  On a different side, Hadrian has a lot of Underdark contacts that provide him with information of what is going on in the surrounding areas.  Because of this he is sought out quite frequently by individuals about to head off into the Underdark.

   Selwyn the Cook (LG, Dwarf Female, F6) is, not surprisingly, a cook.  She started out as an adventurer, and while passing through this area she was cursed by a fellow adventurer upon whom she had played a joke on.  The curse was that she would love cooking more than anything else.  To that end, she walked into a bar, The Golden Skillet, and asked for a job.  Surprisingly, she was a natural chef, and even after the curse wore off, she continued to cook.  The Golden Skillet is now the most popular tavern in all of Dorgan Bridge, and since Selwyn started working there, it has tripled in size.  If someone is looking for an important person, all they need do is visit the skillet, and if they are not there, someone there will know how to find them.  If someone brings Selwyn some new, exotic, and or unique food item or recipe, she will gladly open up to them and tell them a lot of the political and not-so-political intrigues going on.

   T'Cerid Hempwise (CN, Dwarf Male, 0-level) makes rope, and only rope, in his specialty shop that can make strands up to 500' in length.  He makes rope out of hemp, silk, or a special weave with thin strands of steel in it.

Important Features in Town:  Dorgan Bridge is situated about 15 miles in from the fringe of the mountain range, and is built entirely on and in a natural stone arch that spans a 1 mile deep, 2 mile wide chasm, which runs about 8 miles north-south, with Dorgan Bridge in the middle.  The stone span is about ½ of a mile wide, and at it's narrowest, about ¼ mile thick.  The city sits right in the middle, and is surmounted by a 50' tall, 50' thick wall.  No building is more than 3 stories tall, and with the natural upward curve of the arch, the rooftop of every building offers a great view of half of the city.  The lower levels of the city go down about 4 levels, with the outermost dwellings having windows looking out of the sides of the arch.

Local Lore:  Dorgan Bridge is a young city, being only about 150 years old, and was modeled after the fabled lost dwarven city, Kraxxen Bridge.  Some people believe that Dorgan Bridge will be the next Kraxxen Bridge, but more than enough dwarves are superstitious, and though they may love visiting the city, they won't live there.

   Dorgan Bridge is a strategically placed city in that it is a major intersection of the Dorgan Highway and also a junction several overland trade routes.  The roads to Mount Dorgan and Dorgan Gap are on the east side of the city, and anyone wanting to continue on to Fort Dorgan, Dorgan Wood, and or Dorgan, must cross through to Dorgan Bridge.  In fact, this is the only place where the Dorgan Highway comes above ground, with entrance forts located on either side of the chasm.  There are also smaller roads on either side of the chasm.  One leads on down to The Krag and Dregfeld, and the other heads down to Ormvald, Larmer, and Sherrco.

   Because of its strategic location and the numerous mines in the surrounding mountains, various denizens are constantly attacking Dorgan Bridge, be it orcs, ogres, trolls, kobolds, or whatever.  It is for this reason that Dorgan Bridge supports such a large military force.  At lot of the soldiers, though, also work in other occupations, usually the mines.  

   Dorgan Bridge, because of the numerous forges, is sometimes referred to as Forged Bridge.  In winter, some areas are so warm do to numerous forges and blacksmith shops that people will take off their coats while walking down the street, even in freezing weather.


 
Dorgan Gap
The Free Cities of Dorgan

Who Rules:  Lord Exader Mithrilbraid (LN, Dwarf Male, P18), distant cousin of Sir Kiril the Rock.

Who Really Rules:  Lord Exader Mithrilbraid rules Dorgan Gap with one hand firmly holding the reins of power, the other generously helping his fellow dwarves.

Population:  43,500 (79% dwarf, 11% gnome, 6% human, 3% good drow, 1% other)

Major Products:  Gems, silver, copper, jewelry, engineers, rat patrollers, siege weapons, locks, and Rat Breath Beer.

Armed Forces:  6,000, mostly heavy infantry and artillerists, and a cavalry force of 300 chariots, each with a drive and two archers.

Notable Mages:  While there are numerous mages, be it human, drow, other, or gnomish illusionists, none of them are truly exceptional and worthy of note.

Notable Churches:  All dwarven, Waukeen, Tyr, Tempus, and Gond

Notable Rogues' and Thieves' Guilds:  The Pilfered Diamond, led by Allavut Daggerbreath (LE, Dwarf Male, T13), who is a thief by trade, but an assassin by profession.  The Pilfered Diamond is quite small, comprised of only 20 thieves in reality, though on paper it is quite sizable, being listed as having a membership of nearly 500.  However, the guild is a front for the city government, whom Allavut is a member.  The guild was set up so that any thieves that come into the town and join will be allowed to operate in a limited, chaperoned capacity before they are set up by the guild to be caught.  In this way, very few thieves last long in the town.  The guild even goes so far as have it's only mage-thief cast change self on himself and deliberately gets caught so that any outside guild that is watching won't get too suspicious.

Equipment Shops:  Full

Adventurers' Quarters:  Adventurers are welcome throughout the entire city, though they must sign a document saying that if the city is attacked while they are there that they are aware that the city has the right to 'draft' them into the military if need be.  While this has happened in the past, the city does not squander such conscripts, but employs to the best effect and they are quite generous with rewarding such service.

Important Characters:  Rognvald Bronzeaxe (LG, Gnome Male, F8) who is a private in the military.  He is extremely talented and an exceptional fighter (his proficiency with the battle axe is envied by many a dwarf), but he hates the idea of leadership.  Every time that he is promoted, he shrewdly calculates just what exactly he needs to do to be demoted back to private, a place he loves because of the camaraderie and because he loves getting into the thick of things during fights.  On the side, Rognvald manufactures battleaxes (which are all gilded in bronze) that are of truly exceptional quality.  These axes are perfectly balanced (weapon speed is reduced to 4 on all of them) and can be thrown as a hand axe by anyone with a strength of 18/50 or higher.  Despite his reluctance to lead, Rognvald is a great tactician, and he is often sought out by anyone planning any type of a military action, and he will gladly review and refine any such plans, if he has the town.

   Tekram Opalnails (LE, Dwarf Male, T9) mines and cuts gems.  He is an expert in his field, though on occasion he'll substitute a fake one for one he is working on or appraising for a client.

Important Features in Town:Dorgan Gap is so named because it is situated in a very narrow gap between too high cliffs at the edge of the mountains.  The gap itself is only about 500' wide, as is completely dominated by a massive fortress.  This fortress, with it's 40' high, 25' thick walls, and support towers on top of the cliff and along the ravine on either side, is merely the top level of the city, which is an underground city.  While a lot of people are aware of the city beneath the fort, many are not and they are allowed to believe the fort is merely a dwarven outpost protecting the trade routes.  

   The city is quite massive, being laid out on a grid pattern, with each grid being separated from it's neighbors by 100' long access ways that are heavily defended.   In addition, the cities' 15 levels are separated by 100' thick areas of rock.  While this can make reinforcing areas a bit risky at times, there are good access ways  between all sections and in the advent that a section is captured it can be easily cut off.  

   Several sections of the city are inhabited by a group of drow.  These drow were originally a handful of good aligned adventurers who took up residence here.  Over the years other good and neutrally aligned drow have come in, making quite a community.  While these disillusioned drow are violent enemies of their Underdark brethren, there is still some racism towards them from other citizens of Dorgan Gap.  However, these are people who do not personally know the drow, for anyone who knows them is completely accepting of them.
Local Lore:  Dorgan Gap started out as merely a fortress to guard the trade routes.  Over the years, more and more raids brought about the necessity of expanding the fort and increasing the size of the garrison.  Soon, the fort completely filled the gap, and the only way left to go was into the cliffs and down.  In addition to being built down and outwards, there are several city sections that have built into the massive, 1000' tall cliffs.  There are also numerous mines that shoot out from the outlying sections of the city, bringing a lot of wealth into the city.  

   Because of its massive size, and the complexity of it's design and sewer and ventilation systems, Dorgan Gap's engineers are some of the finest in The Realms.  Dwarves from as far away as the Moonshae Islands and the deep south travel here to attend the engineering university of Dorgan Gap.  Additionally, the sewer patrollers are also some of the best in The Realms, and many novices from around The Realms travel here for training.  The city itself is laid out on a massive size, with most corridors being 15' high to help in the ventilation of the lower levels.

   Many an invading army has come upon the fort, thinking to quickly overthrow it.  Needless to say, they are quite surprised when such a small fortress can spew forth such a massive military!  In time of need, many of the population can double as a militia, effectively tripling the size of the armed forces.



Dorgan Wood
The Free Cities of Dorgan

Who Rules:  Lord Eldgrim Arrowbreaker (LG, Dwarf Male, F13), so named because he once split an oncoming arrow with his battleaxe.  He is a fair and just ruler, treating all beneath him as an equal.  However, he is a bit naïve and sometimes gets too involved with the minor details and doesn't delegate tasks like he should.

Who Really Rules: Osric Beechwood (NE, Elf Male, F17), who is a prominent member of the local elven community.  He uses respect for the environment to play upon the overly good intentions of Lord Eldgrim to get what he wants.  Osric doesn't really rule from behind the throne, he simply heavily influences Lord Eldgrim.

Population: 19,000 (55% dwarf, 40% elf, 5% other).

Major Products: Raw lumber, finished wood products, and quarried stone.

Armed Forces: 6,000 (3,500 heavy dwarf infantry, 750 dwarf combat engineers, 250 artillerists,  1,500 light infantry/archers made up equally of dwarves and elves).

Notable Mages:  Sarlic Moonbody (N, Elf Male, W14), who is a local hermit.  He has no real home, but he does have several small tree houses where he keeps small things.  He does have a hidden cave that is heavily protected by magic where he stores his few valuable possessions.  Sarlic spends most of his time roaming the woods, chatting with the lumberjacks, hunters, adventurers, and military patrols.  He knows the entire woods like the back of his hands, and he knows within days of anything that is amiss.  However, because he is truly neutral, he won't take direct action against anything evil.  If anyone seeks him out for information he may or may not help them depending on where he feels the local balance between good and evil is.

   Ainigriv Sodbreath (CN, Gnome Male, I11), who got his name from his habit of eating dirt, is the town nut.  He is an overly friendly, quite crazy, illusionist.  He frequents local inns and taverns, performing tricks for small change and food.  He has contacts across the entire Realms and thus has information on far-flung places, even as far as Kara Tur, the asian lands.  However, he knows very little about anything that goes on in the area of North Rossak, and knows only slightly more that is going on in the areas of South, East, and West Rossak.  His information is reliable, but it may take several hours for him to get around to answering a simple question.

Notable Churches:  All Dwarven churches, Mielikki, Silvanus, Helm, Tempus

Notable Rogues' and Thieves' Guilds:  No thieve's guild at all.  Only a few thieves operate in the area, making a living stealing from the few powerful merchants in the area, and from visitors.

Equipment Shops: Full

Adventurers' Quarters:  Adventurers are welcome in all parts of Dorgan Wood.
Important Characters:  Odon the Clothmaker (CG, Dwarf Male, 0-level) spends his days at his shop making cloth from imported raw materials.  Located on the main square, Odon's is a favorite hang out with the ladies, who gossip non-stop all day.  While much of the gossip is meaningless, a lot of political information passes through Odon's shop, information Odon keeps on mental file in case it is needed.

   Yadnus Enin (CE, Dwarf Male, A11) is a cutthroat assassin who will be true to his word and kill his target, though he won't hesitate to take a counter-contract against his employer, and then kill both clients!

   Rebmetpes (LN, ½-Elf, F3) is an expert on making all types of arrows.

   Bornek Woodheart (CG, Dwarf Male, 0-level) is an expert sage in the fields of trees and woodland mammals.

   Skarl (LG, ½-Orc, F14), is known by everyone in town, but he wears a special hat to mark him as friendly.  The reason for this is that he can easily pass for a full orc.  To this end he is employed as a spy to find out what the orcs are doing.
Important Features in Town:  Dorgan Wood is built on a granite mesa that juts up out of the middle of the forest.   While it is quite large (almost 2 square miles in a roughly circular shape), it isn't very tall, being 30' tall all the way around.  The walls of the town, though, are 30' tall and built right up to the edge of the mesa.  There is one main causeway up to the city, with a large drawbridge at the end, but there are numerous wooden stairways that wind down from the top of the walls to the forest below.  These are always heavily guarded and can be cut away in a matter of seconds.  The above ground area of the town is quite spacious, with wide shrub lined boulevards and many parks, and the underground portion is confined to a small area towards the center of town, though it goes down several levels.

Local Lore:  When the dwarves came to this area, they had tunneled all the way here, extending the Dorgan Highway, and one day they just appeared on top of the mesa and started building.  This was 350 years ago, and at the time the elves and dwarves weren't exactly on the best of terms.  Naturally, there was a war.  It was fortunately brief, but it was quite bloody.  Since then the dwarves and elves have been on good terms, though the occasional racial spat does spill over into a fight.

   It is because of this past that the elves are heavily involved in the local politics, so as to ensure that the local environment isn't exploited.  However, the dwarves have been careful not to over harvest any trees.  In fact, the dwarves and elves have a great symbiotic relationship.  The elves help the dwarves harvest lumber and provide them with bows, arrows, and some finished wood products, and the dwarves provide stone and masonry skills.  

   The local woods, though, are home to quite a few tribes of orcs who dwell in the area, and they are constantly at war with each other, be it above ground amongst the trees, or under the ground, in the dark.  This area is full of underground cave and tunnel complexes, so it is natural for the orcs and dwarves to send forces against each other at any given time.  This makes for an ideal environment for adventurers, and there are always at least 3-6 groups in the town, either recovering from an adventure, or getting ready to head out.

 

Dregfeld
Independent City

Who Rules:  Sir Brodek Blunthammer (CE, Dwarf Male, F15), who inherited the throne from his father, who was a kind and just lord.  The population was none to happy the way Brodek turned out, but he wasn't as bad as people though he would be.

Who Really Rules:  Lady Yagalla Blunthammer (CG, Dwarf Female, F12) married her husband because of an arranged marriage.  At first she resented her role as Brodek's wife, but shortly after the marriage her father in law died and Brodek was the king, and she realized that she could wield a great deal of power from behind the throne.  To this end she secretly approached most of the town council and successfully sought out their help.  While Brodek may be greedy, and at times sadistic and cruel, he has great business acumen and is keenly adept at navigating the complex political relationships that exist throughout the realms.  Lady Yagalla, and certain members of the council, makes sure that he doesn't destroy the city

Population:  17,000 (75% dwarf, 24% human, 1% other).

Major Products:  Pickled fish, fishing equipment, commerce, semi-precious gems, and kegs.

Armed Forces: 1,400 (1,200 heavy infantry, 200 artillerists/engineers), a small fleet of 6 heavy warships manned by all human crews, and the assistance of several Earth and Water elementals who act as under-ground/water scouts.  In times of need a militia of 1,200 of mixed infantry and artillerists can be raised.

Notable Mages:  Motipé Silverfin (CN, Human Male, W21) is Admiral of the fleet who naturally specializes in naval spells.  He knows what is really going in behind the political scenes, but he doesn't care.  All he does care about, thoug, is protecting the city from any waterborne threat.

   Ami Questhall (CE, Elf Female, W14) was brought in by the local thieves' guild to help with some problems from a rival guild that was trying to move in.  However, she overthrew both groups and took the remnants and started her own guild.

Notable Churches:  Dwarven gods, Tymora, Umberlee, Istisha (Water Lord of the Elementals), Bane, Besheba

Notable Rogues' and Thieves' Guilds:  The Wizard's Cleft is a magic shop owned and run by Ami Questhall, a mage who took over two rival thief guilds and made her own.  She is ruthless in her profession and has no qualms of killing anyone that gets in her way.  In her shop she seems like a kind, beautiful, scholarly mage with a keen business sense.  That is exactly what she wants the world to think, if they only knew her true, darker sadistic side.  

Equipment Shops:  Full, especially naval type equipment.

Adventurers' Quarters:  Adventurers are only allowed to stay in the port quarters, unless they obtain a special permit from Zorek Bladethirst (LE, Dwarf Male, T8), the town's Adventurer Liaison.  Zorek is extremely greedy, and these permits can be quite expensive, depending on how moods are that day.  They, can, however, travel freely throughout town.
Important Characters:  Angela Steelhelm (LN, Dwarf Female, F6) is a local merchant who owns a fleet of 6 trading ships.  She imports just about anything she can get her hands on if she thinks she can make a profit.  She is quite honest in her dealings, but she will use every edge she can get to make money.  She will also get anything that someone wants.  This can be quite expensive, however.

   Yehenna Lavan (CN, Dwarf Female, 0-level) is the owner of a local sail making shop that specializes in intricate design work on the sails.  Her sails are sought after as far away as Corymr.  She ships her sails through Angela Steelhelm's business, and uses this as an excuse to attain information that certain other clients wish to purchase.

   Wilhem Wundt (LG, Human Male, W3) is an expert navigator and map maker.  Almost all of the governments on the shores of the Inner Sea of Rossak use his maps or copies of his maps as their official maps.

Important Features in Town:  Dregfeld is built at the base of a cliff, under a large overhang.  This cliff is horseshoe shaped and quite large.  This bay is about 2 miles in diameter.  The entire town itself, though, is only about 200' feet wide (anywhere from 50' to 300' at some points), and only about half of the town is protected by the overhang.  The top of the cliff is surmounted with a narrow wall and some defensive towers.  The narrow opening is heavily defended with high towers and a large boom of heavy, thick chains that can block off the narrow inlet.  The port quarters are on either side of the bay entrance and extend only a short ways in.  The mine entrances are at various areas of town, against the cliff wall, and all are heavily guarded.  Other than basements and military installations, no structure (except for additional, secret areas of the palace) is allowed to be built into the cliffs or underground.

Local Lore:  Dregfeld was founded 125 years ago by Dregfeld the Cowardly, a dwarven warrior who was kicked out of Dorgan Gap for cowardice in battle.  Dregfeld, though, had been the victim of a scare spell, but no one had witnessed this.  A lot of his friends and family, though, believed him and followed him into exile.  After several years of aimless wandering, they came upon a small fishing town built in a sheltered bay.  Dregfeld and his comrades offered their services as soldiers, artisans, and craftsmen to the town in return for a place to live.  The towns people, ever victims to orcs, kobolds, and goblins, were more than grateful for the assistance.  Soon, Dregfeld had risen to the top as a prominent citizen, and within ten years, he was elected mayor.  Over the next 100 years, wandering dwarves started to migrate to the newly named city of Dregfeld, and it grew to it's present size.  Dregfeld was made King, and it was he who decreed that the dwarves live above ground.  He did this as an act of defiance over his shame, and the decree has stuck ever since.  It was Dregfeld who hired wizards to augment the military, and convinced them to make a pact with some earth elementals to offer assistance in detecting underground threats and ore veins.

   Mining is big in Dregfeld, but fishing is the main commerce, so much so that half of the fishing fleet is made up of dwarves.  Many experts on mining, sailing, and fishing can be found in Dregfeld.  Over the years, relations with the Free Cities of Dorgan have greatly improved, and at any given time, military units from Dregfeld will be in various Dorgan cities for cross training, and the same is true of Dorgan units being in Dregfeld.