The Pit (Of Knowledge)

Capitol of the Kingdom of Riparialand, it's central feature is a ridiculously wide, massive stone bridge spanning the Glass River. Atop it is the fairytale/Ludwig-style castle of the royalty that officially rules the kingdom, and the main temple to Karosh (the major good-guy good of Water).

Some merchant shops that cater primarily to the church and the castle are also set up on this bridge, along the buildings belonging to some of the more important guilds, the dorms for clergy and workers at the temple, and a few workshops and warehouses dedicated to the use of the temple or the castle.

The usual array of the finer class of wandering vendors (i.e. from carts) roams the neighborhood during the day (and occasionally at night). Both “paladins” (“city watch” in this case but employed by the temple) and Guards (“city watch” but employed by the castle) patrol regularly to keep the peace. Violent crime is rare, and the main dangers aside from more complex “white-collar” crime are the occasional pickpocket or shoplifter, and maybe a vandal once in a while.

At dusk, the Lamplighters (a small sect devoted to the service of Gleam, a recent minor god of “Light in it aspect as an aid to civilized sight” i.e. god of candles, lamps, torches, etc) comes out to awaken the magical street-lights which keeps the area reasonably well-lit at night.

King Hosric IV - generally favorably viewed by the populace as things in the kingdom seem to be going well, but he is rarely seen outside the castle. There are rumors that the person seen as the king is often a stand-in so that the actual Hosric IV can sneak off in disguise. (The symbol of the monarchy is no longer a crown. It used to be, but there was an assassination attempt on Hosric I. Being one of the last Adventurers of the kingdom in those days, he survived the struggle with the assassin but the crown was crushed in the fight. Instead of having a new one made, he had the crown refashioned into a half-face mask which has been used as the symbol of royalty ever since. This makes it a bit easier for a hypothetical stand-in to pose as the ruling monarch.) The rumors vary depending on the attitude of source of the rumor towards the king. Some speculate he's sneaking off to spend time with secret lovers, some say he's leading exploratory expeditions trying to relive the Adventurous glory-days of his great-great-grandfather, some say he's secretly mingling with the regular populace to find out what people really think of him, some accuse him of some nefarious dealing with foreign nations, creatures from the deep, dark ocean, or infernal forces. And, of course, many say these rumors are all nonsense and he's just a sheltered, slightly-inbred introvert.

Elder Stanley Wright - “Verger of the Holy Edifice” formally, or “facilities manager” if you want a less formal description. He's in charge of maintenance and upkeep of the Temple of Karosh, including the hiring, paying, and directing of workers and craftspersons who build, repair, and clean the structures and furnishings of the temple. There are plenty of people with plumbing skills, as might be expected for the elaborate waterworks in the temple of the water god.

The “High Eveningside” neighborhood is at the West side of the bridge, and “High Morningside” is to the east. Both are high-rent neighborhoods populated mostly by nobility and higher-value merchants. Eveningside merchants trend towards complex crafts, jewelry, books, finished alchemical preparations, and services such as doctors and lawyers, owing to it being in the direction of Salamander. Morningside trends more towards wine, fine foods, brokerages for building materials, shipwrights, and similar, owing to it being closer to the road that most agricultural and natural-resource materials come in.

Eveningside apothecary - Gerhardt Wasserbrenner. An oddly skinny dwarf. Top-quality medicines, but a reputation for crazy experiments, the result of which are sometimes on sale. (examples: dephlogisticated oil, *ultra*phlogisticated oil, potion of poisonousness…)

Cyrus Calone - at the western edge of the neighborhood, he's recently moved in to be in the rich-people area. A reputation for genius and/or arrogance, depending on who you ask.