Of Bastards and Exiles

[jhwisner]

There's also the option to have people who were rumored or beleived to have done things worthy of much harsher punishment - but whose crimes could never be proven or formal charges/allegations were never brought. In the case of a noble the shame that they were beleived to be involved with something sinister might have forced them out - plus you would have the spectre of something more interesting and dark looming over some of the residents. Maybe a Li Halan lord who was rumored to dabble in dark rites like some of his ancestors or an Al-Malik noble who was rumored to be improperly involved with his Ukari (or maybe Vorox for the sake of laughs) servants beyond mere curiosity and to the point of harboring pro-alien rights views.

[Amlost]

Quick concept to run by everyone. After re-reading part of the Decados chapter of LotKW I came to the idea that parents are not in control of legitimacy or illegitimacy of their own children after birth. They are responsible for their training and education (and can adjust the methodology and funding accordingly) but their fate as Decados is based on meritocracy alone.

[Amlost]

Prelude letter to the Guide.

An Exiles Guide to Rudra

Necropolis, the name alone conjures up exotic images of a ghostly abandoned city in the minds of the inhabitants of all the known worlds. A city of the damned, a dead city, a city of black citadels and poisoned soil; this is all they know of this place. And this was rightly so when Salimann al-Malik wrote of this world six hundred years ago. And so the city remains to some extent.

Most travelers of rank and privilege who would desire to visit this world see Necropolis only as a landing pad and supply point for a pilgrimage to see the Gargoyle in the wastes. Those soldiers sent here to serve the Emperor and Regents before, see the city as a retreat from the front line. This is only a place where they can see short bursts of relief before returning to forward forts and outposts.

Necropolis is a different place for the residents and natives. Rudra it is called once again. The struggle to survive the physical and political hardships have shaped and formed this city over the centuries since rediscovery. It is the capital and cosmopolitan center of the world. It has been held by the Empire and Regency for more than 450 years.

It is the political capital of an Imperial world. Soldiers, bureaucrats, and ambassadors are therefore stranded here by their masters at regular intervals. It is home to hundreds of noble exiles left nowhere else in the Empire to retreat. Tens of thousands of freeman roam the streets. The few true serfs cling to the small noble estates for sustenance.

This is the commercial and transportation hub of Nowhere. Home to the only spaceport and largest aerodrome, commerce flows thru this city making the markets of the Eastway the lifeline of goods to all the inhabitants of this world. The feint pulse of this world courses thru this city.
I have seen other purported “Guides” to Necropolis. Most are little more than parchment pointing the regular gargoyle pilgrims to the writers preferred suppliers and soldiers to the local brothels. (One ingenious “Guide” is a pictographic map whose only purpose I can see is to lead the illiterate new arrivals to the local Muster recruiters.) This guide is meant to be different. This Guide is for the newly arrived exiles from the rest of the known worlds. Lost and without purpose after the rest the civilization has pushed them to the fringe.

When I arrived I had no guide. I was not seeking the gargoyle. I was not here to fight for the regent. I was an exile from my homelands, cast out by my mistakes, and the assumptions of others. I struggled and cursed this place for more than two years before I embraced the city in my bid to survive. In doing so I saved myself from destruction and found new purpose.

It is my hope that the readers of this guide are helped in discovering that in this place of desolation hope can be found. Hope, it is said here, can sometimes be found in the ashes of hubris.

-Sir Sabri Cincinnatus al Malik

[Amlost]

The Board has been so... well abandoned lately, decided to post a little more since the group it was written for has long since dispersed.

"To begin I must describe Rudra in relation to the rest of Nowhere. The capital, the largest city, and the hub of commerce have been squeezed into a small area approximately 8 by 14 mile area surrounded by small streams. Instead of being constrained to such a small area by space concerns, the inhabitants of Rudra have banded into a small area around a small source of water.

Rudra lies on the northern shores of a river which shares its name. This brackish body of water flows from the southeastern streams of the Tulac Mountains west into Lake Rudra. Lake Rudra lies about 10 miles to the east of the inhabited regions of “Old” Rudra.

The landscape of the city has been sculpted by the needs of its inhabitants. Swathes of arable land have been carved out of the urban wastes surround each of the fountain streams. The ancient spires of the 2nd Republics city rest on foundations dating back to Diaspora. Restored structures from these ancient eras sit next to regency era stone and brick structures making for a disjointed set of architectural styles.

The Nine Hills region is located in the north central & western segment of the city. Here lies the Pater Fountains and the remnants of the clans who survived the isolation from the rest of the known worlds. The Nine Hills are the heart of the old city being, quite possibly the only consistently inhabited area of Nowhere since the fall. Many noble house estates can be found in this area as well as the Imperial Trinitine Towers.

The Eastway is a region, containing the road of the same name, which lies between the Nine Hills region and The Mudds. This region is the economic hub of both Rudra and all of Nowhere being home to the majority of the city’s guilds.

The Mudds are much ignored by local visitors being considered a dirty and low class region of the city. They consist of the lands lying between the eastern and western confluences of the Pater Fountains and the Rudra River. The Mudds are home to many industrial facilities belonging to the local administration and guilds.

The Starport Quarter is located in the far southwestern section of the city. The port itself sits high on its maxicrete foundations overlooking the river and Garrison Isle. Much of the old port is abandoned or has been turned over to the Imperial Navy. Here the

Just to the north of the Starport quarter the Bishop’s Quarter, home to world’s religious authorities. Here the religious authorities rule over church lands between the outer wall and the Western Confluence. The Bishop traditionally has complete authority in this region with the exception of outlying estates controlled by other sects.

Between “Old” Rudra and the salt lake / sea lies the great no-man’s-land, known locally as The Outlands, ancient abandoned ruins of what must have been a truly grand city before the fall and destruction of this world rise are scattered across this land. In this region small family/clans control small area’s surrounding the homesteads that are fed by 10 – 50 foot wells amongst the ruins of the old city. The outlands are a sparsely patrolled with a number of lawmakers who maintain control over this region of the city. It is largely controlled by various small clans who are marginally aligned with the local constabulary force.

[Angelman]

Nice write-up, Amlost. Nowhere is an interesting place. I'd love to run a drama or epic there.

[Amlost]

Thanks Angelman; but I hope you didn't think I was done. Let's tour the Pater Fountains of the Nine Hills next.

The Pater Fountains; Source of Life

Nine fountains crown nine hills in the north Nine Hills Region of the city. Constructed sometime during the Second Republic the large maxicrete structures are each themed sculpted fountains that spill out into a large pool that in turn empty out into creeks. These creeks then wind, south, down towards the river. They are vital to the survival of this city and are considered near sacred to its inhabitants. Each of the nine was named and crafted after now forgotten pre-reflective deities. They are named from east to west; Ānanda, Vijñāna, Manas, Prāna, Vāc, Īśāna, Ttpuruna, Aghora, and Sadyojāta. These fountains are considered neutral ground by all inhabitants of Rudra. Harsh penalties would be leveled on anyone who would damage these structures. It is rumored that they are fed by large underground aqueducts that run hundreds of miles up into the Tulac Mountains.
I spent some of my time here in Rudra studying these fountains from an architectural and artistic perspective, but a full description of the fountains is unnecessary here. Instead below I’ll attempt to concentrate on generalities and impact to the region surrounding them.

Ānanda: The Statue of the Guardian King stands over the Ānanda Fountain. Water “seeps” out of the rock under his foot at a copious rate, supplying the watering troughs of the animals brought here prior to slaughter. This fountain and the surrounding area have poor soil, supporting little but raw scrub grasses. The gates to the foot paths thru the hills that the local Wanglers use to move herd animals in and out from the foothills of the Tulac Mountians are just north of the plaza. The local Wranglers Guild Hall sits in the immediate shadow of the Ānanda Fountain. The Wranglers allied with the local Maur Clan over four hundred years ago, years of intermarriage have lead to the two becoming almost indistinguishable.

Vijñāna; The Fountain of Vijñāna overflows a cauldron in the middle of the square with five human statues huddling around the central water source. This symbolic statue of the life-sustaining requirement for water has more significance now in the Dark Ages of Mankind then when built during the Second Republic. The surrounding neighborhood is predominantly a farming area however it is also known to be home to a number of apothecaries. The House Hawkwood Councilor Estate borders the runoff of the Vijñāna Fountain to the South East and has many farms on the eastern shore of the stream.

Locals inhabitants have a spilt allegiances; apothecaries sell large quantities of salves to the local Amalthean’s, the Apothecary Guildsmen, and local peasants who may serve the Church, Hawkwood, or the Empire.

Manas; Located North of the Trinitine Towers the Manas Fountain is a vital source of water for a number of key facilities and the Plaza it sits in is well patrolled. The Fountain and the area surrounding it are historically considered property of the reining governor. The Fountain itself consists of a semi circular colonnade surrounding the northern edge of the plaza. Six water spouts shoot up from the top of six oversized columns before falling into a set of suspended basins which overflow into the collecting pools. Over the centuries various statues of local governors and generals have come to inhabit the plaza. The area farms that surround the fountains are Imperial properties, farmed by the inhabitants of the Gaspar Tower.

Prāna; The Prāna Spire stands as a tall column standing over all the surrounding buildings with water circulating helically and spiraling towards the ground before, about twenty feet from the ground an arch spreads out from the central pillar crossing the six way intersection of the central plaza. The outflow from the pool flows from the collecting pool thru the center of the Saltiani Bank. It is a graceful piece of artwork that lies at the center of the most densely populated section of the Nine Hills. The region around Prāna is home to Rudra’s famous black metal towers that are home to the Massari (S) and the Valleniado Estates (SE). Local clans ruled this area in the early years of the regency but have since divested into a dizzying number of intermarried families.

Vāc; The Fountain of the Speaking Waters, as it is known by the local al-Malik, is a row of tall metal and maxicrete and metal structures that sit in a split in Spoken Road, a north south offshoot of Governors Way. Water shooting up from surrounding fountain pools hits the ancient metal in a muffled roar and drips back off in a melodic rain. Vac is the only of the great fountains that was not built on a Plaza proper but instead lies in a fifty foot split in the Spoken Road. Water flows from the fountains mouth to the west into the fields where it quickly joins the Prāna to form the central confluence.
While the western side of the Vāc Fountain is agricultural the eastern side is distinctly urban. These neighborhoods contain a six hundred year old Ubun ghetto, the subterranean church of St. Lextius-by-the-Waters, and the skeletal remains of the Griffin’s Tower. This region has been unsuccessfully claimed a number of times by numerous powers of the city but remains fragmented. The Governor/general has appointed Sir Marius Ensheld the Sheriff of Vac to ensure law and order.

The Īśāna Stairs; sit on the doorstep of the Seleucun Gardens of Revealing Grace. The Great Stairs of the plaza start in the north and gradually descend to the Governors Road. Water spouts into semicircular pools at 5 different locations along the north stairs and then drain under the stairs only visible thru transparent winding paths as it flows steadily downhill. At the bottom of the stairs, along the north south Descending Road, a pool collects water from the upper springs before it disappears again underground eventually emptying into the confluence within the Gardens.

My brethren have consolidated a considerable amount of their power in the the Īśāna region openly controlling many businesses in the region. They provide employment in the tech workshops of the East Bank Beistegui Tower and in the fields along the eastern confluence where they own significant land. The al-Malik are the primary patrons of St. Codoworth Upon-the-Stairs.

Tatpuruna; Water from Tatpuruna springs to life from the median 300 ft to the north east of the Plaza and flows thru a suspended aqueduct towards the plaza. Here it drops into a lower pool on the north east corner of the Rohrbach Citadel. It is widely believed that the fountain was sacked or stripped of some other element(s) in the distant past. The plazas southern exposure is dominated by the gates of the Rohrbach Citadel which turns into Ascentway only at its eastern termination. The northern and eastern exposures of the plaza hold four large housing estates that are leased by the Torenson’s to various local minor nobles and clan chiefs. The area surrounding Tatpurana contain the largest farms in Rudra proper all controlled by the same nobles and clans ensuring Torenson influence over local agricultural production.

Aghora; Known locally as the Mist Fountain, numerous spouts of water are fractured into a mist before re-condensing in a hundred side pools. Numerous concave arches and knaves surround these pools. Aghora is the only of the Pater fountains that is “stocked” with life. The pools contains significant stocks of multi-colored coy. Inhabitants have added covered ponds downstream of the fountain as fish farms as far as the Governors Road. Local industry are known for their handicrafts of wood and local plant fibers; something of a rarity on a planet with so little vegetation.

The surrounding area is controlled jointly by the Meritte Clan. The Meritte Clan also maintain a number of lands to the east of the city that are used to harvest sisal and marsh jute.

Sadyojāta; Water cascades down a large artificial maxicrete cliff down into the shadowed pool below. As the sun sets light out of west it reveals a variety of stone globes, one showing the continents of Urth. Many worlds that once ringed the Republic are amongst the globes that rise from the shallows of the pool. Sadyojāta is located northeast of the Governors Road bordering the Outlands. Built into the north eastern wall of the fountain are rows of stone houses where the Eastern Garrison maintains a small contingent. An orchard of fruit trees are grown in this miniature valley protected from the weather but well watered by the fountain.

The region around the fountain is controlled by the Torenson allied Lokhienne Clan. The tightly bound clan maintains a stranglehold over local agriculture, feeding their brewery and distilling business.

[Amlost]

The Trinitine Towers; Source of Power

The Trinitine Towers are the bureaucratic center of Rudra and ultimately all of Nowhere. It is here that all visitors are requested to register with the Imperial administration before heading out into the wastes. The Trinitine Towers consist of 4 interconnected cylindrical obsidian towers forming a courtyard and three towers on the north end. The Regency Tower (NW), the Garrison Tower (NE), the Lord Mayors Tower (SW), and the Sentinals Tower (SE) are linked by a dense network of cables and walkways between their upper levels and enclosed to the east and west by masonry walls. The Regency Tower and the Garrison Tower are two of the largest of the infamous obsidian monumental structures in the city and hold the Imperial Bureaucracy and Garrison Command staff respectively. Each of the Trinitine Towers has its own power source and cisterns. In an emergency the towers could be manned, sealed off, and hold off all but the most serious of insurrections.

General Albrech Brech rules Nowhere directly as the Imperial Governor of this world and Garrison Commander from his office in the Regency Tower. Security and access to this building is tight and by invitation only (I have been inside this tower one time in my long years in this city). Governor Brech does not entertain much and when he does it is usually with other visiting Imperial personnel. He does however have regular meetings with the local heads of the noble estates in the lofty corridors of the tower. The Regency Tower acts as home and office for over a thousand people.

The Garrison Tower houses the Rudra Garrison command staff, the Imperial Naval Office, and the supply staff for the larger garrison at Fort Vladimir. The Garrison Tower is a constant hive of activity; sounds of voices belch thru squawkers, sergeants scream commands to their staff, and petrol vehicles stream thru the loading docks at the base of the tower.
The Lord Mayors Tower is home to the local bureaucracy that maintains order in Necropolis. Here the local constabulary maintains a small policing force, local bureaucrats issue permits, and local courts try criminals. The office of Lord Mayor has been vacant for nearly 20 years now replaced by a trio of Imperial advisors who directly report to the Governor General. There is constant rumor that the Emperor will fill the office but many believe that Brech likes the status quo.

The Sentinels Tower contains a vast assortment of public agency’s and is the one most travelers here will need to visit. The ground floor is home to the agency responsible for tracking arriving travelers. It is tradition that prior to departing into the wastes of Nowhere travelers sign into a log book on the ground floor of the building. This tradition was started back during the days of Alecto rule here and has continued unabated since that day. Hundreds of log books now line the walls containing the names of those who have come here before. The annuals and records of Nowhere since it’s rediscovery can be found in the libraries of this tower. The upper levels contain the base for the local Imperial Eye agents who seem to act only as a local point of contact for higher agents on assignment. The Imperial Liaison with the tribes also resides here as well as agents of the Nassari tribes.

The Balizar (E), Melichior (C), and Gaspar (W) Towers on the north end of the Tritine Towers are owned and run as Imperial Estates. They are collectively home to close to two thousand people. They are home primarily to freeman and low level guild members and are three of the most industrious estates in Rudra. Balizar is well known for its mechanical workshops producing much of the replacement parts and tools needed by the Imperial garrison. The Melichior houses the local markets and craftsmen, they are well known in the city for production of garments from imported clothe and local wool/leather. Gaspar is primarily a housing tower, it’s lower levels home to serfs who farm the fields to the north (fed by the Manas Fountain). The upper levels house some hanging gardens and a massive dovecote.

[Amlost]

St. Claudius’s Cathedral
The Cathedral of St. Claudius the Page is the center of the churches power on Nowhere. The church is a powerful force on most worlds however the local church has been seen as a beacon of kindness, support, and charity the likes of which I have never encountered in a local populous before.
St. Claudius’s is more than a mere church. It is a complex. It is an estate as big or bigger then that controlled by any force in the city other than that of the Emperor.
Entering into the complex one passes the Suzern Towers, two converted “ubiquitous black towers” to serve as watchtowers whose views look out over the city. The church keeps a significant local garrison of constables here in order to maintain local order.
The Cathedral itself is a massive five story maxicrete and masonry structure. The blocky buildings domed interior sticks out above the masterfully crafted exterior pillars and pediments. The large interior is unlike any church I have ever visited. The nave is bowl shaped with all seating facing to a stone pulpit sitting ahead of the atrium and choir lofts. While smaller than most major Cathedrals on other planets St. Claudius’s is capable of seating tens of thousands for services.
Two Walled Courts sit North and South of the Main Cathedral. These contain the living quarters for the local servants of the Orthodox Church. While traditionally the Southern Court contains the “local church” and Northern Court caters to Father Church such distinctions have broken down in recent decades.

St. Okum’s Church
St. Okum’s is a structure whose design is more reminiscent of a hugely oversized Eskatonic prayer house then an Orthodox church. However the impressive curved naves stepped one on top of the next and endless side chapels of St. Okum’s offer a deeply religious atmosphere that I have never felt attending masses at St. Claudius’s. St. Okum’s serves as the primary place of worship for those living on Rudra’s more sparsely inhabited eastern region. It sees regular traffic from the inhabitants of the Outlands looking for spiritual security.

St. Godfrey’s Retreat
St. Godfrey’s is the local Battle Brother Monastery. It is located on the western shore of the eastern confluence and is connected directly to the Amalthean Monestary to the south. The retreat is primarily used these days as a recovery house for those brothers wounded on the Stigmata front and whom require a significant amount of recovery time. A tiny cadre of a dozen war weary veterans of the Symbiot Front operates the Retreat. Within the Great Tower there the local knights live and worship; the outer courtyards (three) are used as exercise yards and are known to have extensive storage facilities hidden under neither.

St. Idoru Hospital
St. Idoru was a 45nd century Amalthean self-exile from the barbarian invasions and the leadership of her own sect. She is said to have come to Nowhere on a self quest to find lost medical knowledge. She stayed on Nowhere to tend to the native survivors of Rudra after seeing a vision of the conversion of this world from agricultural paradise to desert wasteland. Her writings, stored in the vaults of the hospital, are some of the best preserved early investigations into this event.
The Hospital itself is sited along the eastern bank of the Western Confluence, within the Bishops Quarter, just to the north o the Suzern Towers. The two story outer buildings house the main hospital, food kitchens, and staff housing. The great courtyard is a thing of beauty with its small folly-like convalescent homes nestled amongst the well tended gardens.

Orphanage of the Enigma
The Orphanage was founded on the fortunes of two former spy masters who were driven from the Imperial Eye in the wake of Regent Ralista Decados’s bid for the throne. Lennox Philippe and Maria Ellorra Yentz founded in 4835; using funds that they appear to have extorted and blackmailed from a wide range of nobles and guildsmen. They took over the estate of a former Li Halon lord and converted the rambling mansion into a functioning orphanage. They, Lennox and Maria Ellora, lived here and raised three generations of orphans until their deaths in the 4870’s. Because of their background rumors have constantly arisen that the children of the orphanage are spies for the Imperial Eye.
The orphaned children whom grow up in the walls have generally had the advantage of a highly structured education and consistent medical care. Many are apprenticed to local guildsmen, are ordained into the church, work as city bureaucrats, or in the local constabulary. The orphanage itself is run by a five person board and is staffed by an assortment of churchman and former orphans.

[Amlost]

The Imperial Garrison

Garrison Isle: The main bridge crossing the Rudra River with access to the garrisons to the south, Garrison Isle lies in the shadow of the Starport District. The Garrison Isle holds on average two companies of troops who operate the gates south and west as well as supporting the transport company’s who resupply Fort Vladamir. Pilgrims venturing south to Urzenkai or west to Takameth by land are required to pass these gates.
The isle was established by the Alecto to maintain upwards of eight companies of troops and considerably larger armaments that were required to garrison the river in those wilder more violent days. The south bound gates are built to allow convoys from the north side of the river rally on the island before crossing to the south. The Western gates are more informal and remain open to foot and cart traffic during daylight hours. Past the western gates retired Regency and Imperial Officers have been granted dozens of agricultural estates. When returning to town the unofficial Officers Club, the Bronze Shield, is their first, and sometimes only, stop. (Single Room: (5 crests per night))

Power Station: The Power Station is a fortified position on the southern shore of the Eastbridge. Established in, as the name suggests, the remains of an old second republic power station it is a secure building. The maxicrete core of the building remains the second largest structure left from before the fall after the spaceport. Hundreds of troops and troop carriers are located here. The most experienced scout platoons on Nowhere are based and train from this facility. It also acts as the command station for the small Imperial Naval Force that patrols Lake Rudra. The entire Naval force consists of a dozen small patrol craft and a half dozen mothballed larger craft.

Eastern Yard: The law enforcement and military assets assigned to protect the eastern ruins of the city and the northern shores of Lake Rudra are based out of the Eastern Mustering Yard. Newly arrived young officers are often stationed here to give them a taste of life on Nowhere. This is strenuous and difficult military post always responding to security alerts in the Outlands, however it is a relatively safe post.
The Eastern yard lies at the junction of the Nine Hills Region, the Eastway, and the Outlands. The yard itself consists of a roughly pent angular enclosure wall of salvaged metal surrounding a single ruined tower and a series of command control buildings.

[Amlost]

Routes of Travel

The Eastway: The Eastway is the hub of commerce on Nowhere; running from the Gates of St. Claudius’s east towards the sea. Although transverse-able all the way to the sea (after a cleanup initiated by Regent Victor Emanuel Hazat de Cadiz) the Eastway is only “safe” from the Church Enclave surrounding the cathedral to the Eastern Confluence. Shops line the Eastway and are constantly changing. The open markets set up by run by night Scavers and Charioteers are as common as decades old shops.

Regents Avenue: Begins at the Garrison Isle Bridge runs North past the entrance to the spaceport, along the Western Confluence Stream, past the Gates of St. Claudius’s, thru the Gates of the Trinitine Towers, and ends at the Manas Fountain. The Regents Ave. is the only road in which one should feel safe traversing at any time of day or night. It is well patrolled from the Rudra River to the Northern Manas Fountain. The entrance to St. Claudius’s and the Trinitine Towers are especially well patrolled. Power and strength emulate from walking this street. Along this road on with find the most loyal subjects of the Empire.

Garrison Street: Begins at the Garrison Bridge runs East along the river. It crosses the three major confluence streams just meters from where they flow into the River Rudra providing access to the Mudders Guildhouses to the South and “The Ring” to the north. Garrison Street represents some of the shadiest and some of the most industrious regions of Nowhere. The presence of so much of the local Imperial Garrison in the south of the city has mitigated the impact of violence here but has, given the sins of off duty military personnel encouraged vice here.

Governors Street: Runs just north of the Trinitine Towers where it intersects Regents way at the Manas Fountain. Governors Street forms the core of noble and clan power in Rudra. Walking the Street on will see the great fountains and view the great councilor estates. This is truly the only area that has been inhabited since the 2nd Republic; well maintained buildings stand in testament to the care shown to this section of the city by its inhabitants. The stark contrast of the urban buildings, towers and housing blocks of extreme architectural differences, and the green farmlands carved from the ruins of ancient structures creates a marvelous contrast.

Ascentway: Starting at the Eastbridge the street ascends towards the foothills of the Tulac Mountians. It crosses Garrison Street at Fort East Gibraltar before following the Eastern Confluence north past the Aghora Fountain to end at the base of the Sadyojāta Fountain.

Freeway: An elevated road once traveled into the western wastes. It now ends in a concrete ledge 425 meters to the west of the starport. It runs east into the city with numerous ramps onto supplementary thoroughfares. The eastern end of the road currently ends near it’s northward turn thru the city. It apparently once continued north into the wastes but little remains of the ancient road after it breaks apart just a dozen meters from where it once met the Eastway. In sections between the confluences the inhabitants’ have build up blocks of homes and workshops under the great road.

Set’s Way: Located between Freeway and the Eastway, Set’s Way, a narrow straight road, has developed from an abandoned waste to a productive business district over the last century. Started during the Regency of Gil Torenson, who spent some years at the Rohrbach Citadel, a number of side roads had been stripped and rebuilt as merchant districts. Set’s Way links to most of the rising merchant quarters of the city including Smelters Row, Masons Row, Potters Quarter, and Chemists Row.