(population 37,000) Seaforth is the fourth largest city in Orel, located along the western shores of the Thannish Estuary.
Often called "the City of Thieves," Seaforth is a bustling Orellian seaport, with a rather unsavory reputation.
but at different times in the city's history, it has been under the control of the kingdoms of both Alveron and Gwynne.
Because the city has been sacked and burned a dozen times, it has both high walls and a large military garrison.
The city is accessible via the Stoneway, which connects it to Westgard Keep. There is also a ferry service that carries travelers to the Gwynnish city of Kholis, located on the eastern shores of the Estuary.
Because Seaforth lies on its western border, many Gwynnish citizens live and work here. There is also a large Rynnish minority, because of the proximity of the neighboring Cimbar Hills.
The City of Seaforth is ruled by Grand Duchess Inara Andradi.
Prominent City Families
- House Andradi
- House Jyotis
- House Krovas
- House Merced
- House Mitras
- House Ranarsh
- House Trelford
City History
Seaforth has a history stretching back thousands of years. the first settlers were a people known as the Vilshi. Little is known of them other than their penchant for worshipping the Dark Gods, and their seamanship. The only remnant of Vilshi culture is the series of ancient temples located near the river, flanking both Nun Street and the Street of the Thinkers. Known today as the "Forbidden Temples." These antediluvian structures of glossy dark stone and weathered pale rock were built long ago and the city founders beheld them with a mixture of profound respect and abject fear. Some say the city founders breached one of the temples and discovered the actual resting place of the Dark Gods of Corwyn. What eldritch bargains may have been struck in the mists of history will likely never be known, but the city and the eldritch fanes have dwelled in uneasy cohabitation ever since.
The Jagged Caverns: located below the city streets are a vast network of natural caverns and expertly carved passages. Whether these dungeons were dug by the Vilshi, or some subterranean race in unknown. Today, they serve as hideouts for thieves, dark cults, and smugglers.
The quarters described below are:
• The River Quarter: Home to Seaforth’s docks and grain silos, the River Quarter is a place for honest trade and villainous skullduggery alike. For many visitors, the River Quarter is the first city district they encounter. Many an adventure begins in the River Quarter and quite a few end here as well—usually when a body is dumped in the Arrix River to hide the crime.
• The Citadel and the Rainbow Palace: This part of the city houses its defenders and its great potentate, the Overlord of Seaforth. Seldom visited by anyone except on official business, adventurers entering this district are likely to have either done something very right or horribly wrong.
• The Noble Quarter: The villas and manors of Seaforth’s upper crust are gathered in this opulent neighborhood. Scheming nobility, vile cults, depraved demoiselles, and adventurers employed by the city’s upper class all can be encountered here.
• The Street of the Gods (Temple Quarter): Seaforth’s unusual religious practices call this area home. From rising cults swiftly leapfrogging their way up the city’s ecclesiastical thoroughfare, to the opulent temples of the established religions, to the black fane of the Gods of Seaforth, this district houses the city’s spiritual heart.
• The Forbidden Temples: Blasphemous and forgotten fanes squat in this neighborhood, rotting, crumbling, and ignored by the city at large. Whether remnants from an outlawed religion or the temples of forsaken gods pre-dating the city’s founding, these dark churches house many mysteries and far more dangers.
• The Crafts Quarter: This broad section of the city is home to its merchants, tradesmen, and guilds. It is here where fortunes are made or lost, where unscrupulous traders cut their competitors’ throats (both figuratively and literally), and where adventurers come to reequip before their travels take them outside of Seaforth.
• Thieves’ House: The headquarters of Seaforth’s notorious and powerful Thieves’ Guild, this district is comprised of a single, sprawling building whose passages aren’t fully known even by the thieves who dwell there. The heart of the city’s criminal underworld, Seaforth’s thieves spend their careers either desiring to be accepted within its walls or hoping never to step foot inside them.
• The Slums: There are several neighborhoods in Seaforth occupied by the impoverished, the desperate and the mad. These expanses of decaying tenements are home to all manner of folks, from honest but poor families to minor gang warlords to sinister cabals intent on spreading evil. Avoided by the cautious, the city’s slums make perfect starting points for adventures.
• Rich Men’s Quarter: Inhabited by the affluent residents of the city who cannot claim nobility, this district is well-patrolled and home to lavish villas and small manses. Although placid to outward appearances, this district is a hot bed of intrigue and decadence.
• The Carousing Quarter: The city’s tenderloin, the Carousing District is where all the city’s debased appetites are slaked. Home to a hundred taverns, gaming houses, bordellos, and other dens of ill-repute, the Carousing Quarter numbers many adventurers among its residents.
• Plaza of Dark Delights (The Plaza Quarter): Bordering Seaforth’s legendary nocturnal marketplace, the Plaza of Dark Delights, the Plaza Quarter is also where the city’s more respectable population goes for recreation. Music halls, theatres, salons, and similar reputable establishments are found in this district. It is also home to the city’s sole parkland, the Park of Pleasure.
THE RIVER QUARTER
Trade is the lifeblood of Seaforth. The city is simply too large to provide for its own needs and its continued existence depends on the commodities it imports to feed and clothe its residents. The money collected from tariffs and taxes on exported goods to other lands help fill the city coffers. The majority of this trade is centered on the riverside docks that line the eastern bank of the Arrix. The hum of commerce seldom ceases on the dockside as ships depart and arrive laden with goods and those who make their living off those ships ply their trades. Not all commerce along the docks is legal in Seaforth. In the shadowy alleys between dilapidated warehouses and in the backrooms of wharf-front taverns, a more sinister clientele goes to work. A skiff rowed silently across the silt-laden waters of the river might be crewed by fishermen starting their day or by cutthroats depositing their latest victim beneath the murky waters.
Places of Interest
• Home of Kern the Moneylender: Home to one of the most reviled usurers in Seaforth, this manor was bought as a gift for Kern’s wife, Ayala. Those seeking to borrow sums from the moneylender must cross his threshold, hat in hand.
• The Grain Silos: These towers contain Seaforth’s stores of wheat, corn, and other dry goods intended to feed its populace or be traded abroad. Black-uniformed guards and rat-catchers alike regularly patrol both the silos and the surrounding streets.
• House of the Grain Merchants: This lavish guild house is headquarters to the powerful Guild of the Grain Merchants. From its roof, one can observe grain ships departing for foreign lands or watch over the vast fields of wheat that grow outside the city.
• Tower of the Serpent: This decaying tower was shuttered by the Overlord long ago. It stands disused close to the riverbank and not far from the other Forbidden Temples of the city. The current status of the Serpent cult is unknown, but some say it still exits underground.
