Swordmaiden

The Swordmaiden is a sculpture closely held in Arcade of Watersedge, and not on public display. The base that it sits on is not original to the piece and is believed to have been set there by a mage of no mean ability.

Heiniko

The son of Heimos and Ranay, Heiniko imagined himself the god of the sea. He was also the patron of male fertility and of scholars.

He was the patron of Watersedge.

History of Man -- Book I: Westrun Part 4

For the eight or nine generations spanning two centuries, the Tren had established themselves as the pinnacle of civilized men among the Nandi. At Treft, the City of Stone (formerly Ald Morin) the ways of the Vyrum were slowly disintegrating along with the architecture and wonders of the world they had built. The first generation of men who inherited from their masters were the best educated, but with each passing generation something more was lost. 

Within the first decade of inheriting the ald, as the Tren took over administrative and governing functions, they needed laborers and workers to assume their menial tasks. This fell to the more "savage" and uneducated Nandi that were allowed to become residents. A stratification occurred in society between those who could speak Vyrum and those who could not; with the former being seen as occupying a higher class of society.

Even this language skill was losing steam. New writing was very rare; understanding older writing was rarer. The Tren, as mere servants, had already spoken a low version of the language -- the words they used for communicating with their masters while serving was mixed with that of their native tongues and this pidgin was spoken in the kitchens and smithies and stables of the ald. The syntax and grammar of their low Vyrum already differed significantly from the original "high" Vyrum, but even as the purebred Tren proved reluctant to intermarry with their incoming Nandi population, the bloodlines were invariably mixed and so was the language.

Outside of Treft, in the City of Wood and along the plains, none of the ways of the Vyrum were known, let alone preserved. All that the Nandi had of "higher" culture was what came from emigres from Treft -- some of whom came as wealthy traders and others as the sons of daughters of Tren given to cement alliances with various tribal chieftains. 

Such had been Larec Redfist of the Rathor Confederation. His father was a Nandi warlord (perhaps descended from servants of Ald Biye -- the record is unclear) but his mother was the youngest daughter of a Tren merchant of Treft. With such "noble" blood in his veins, Larec was destined to become the sire of kings. Even Eiter, King of Treft in those years, was not pureblood Tren, for his grandmother was a Nandi "princess" whose father and tribe had been accreted into the city to patrol its walls and keep its peace.

In 3413ey refugees from across the Dagger Sea entered the social milieu of Westrun. Like the Tren, the Meni were the tamed human servants of the Vyrum Empire. They too had inherited alds and assumed the mantle of civilization. Unlike their Westrun counterparts however, the Meni of the Principalities were right at Ald Dovaris -- the center of what had been the Vyrum Empire. As a consequence of better education and perhaps great wealth, they almost seamlessly continued the governance and institutions of the previous age, albeit with shorter reach. 

For two centuries, while the men of Westrun were engaged in war with Urok and each other, these civilized men of the Principalities were developing noble Houses and contending with one another for control of the Empire. When the pretensions of one House proved unsuccessful, a lesser son led some 700 people in exile including a company of trained warriors, plus five score of the best trained and most capable administrators, artisans, architects and sages. Coming over the sea in a flotilla of makeshift vessels, Tal the Just made landfall at the charred ruin of Edgewater Fortress - the former Urok home in the Saltmarsh. 

The only rivals for their new land were a minor fishing tribe of the Rathor Confederation. At first the Meni named their settlement for Ald Casera, but the name among the Nandi would not take and slowly became known as Watersedge. The people which lived there were the Talir. A new fortress was built, the marshes were drained and agriculture to rival that in the Principalities was started.

The Rathor were unhappy with a new walled settlement between the Wody and the Brownbeck, but lacked the ability to assail it through miles of barely accessible marshland. Moreover the protected harbor of the Meni meant any siege was unlikely to cut off food and water. Westrun was astonished to discover humans who spoke High Vyrum and who were self-evidently of noble blood on their very doorstep. The Meni flourished and spread along the coast, actively avoiding conflict with the tribes they encountered.  

The Oracle of Walashabad

Walashabad is another name given to the Port of Watersedge. According to the devout of that pious city, the oracle that can be found there is an unwelcome addition. It is true that the Church of Westrun looks dimly on those who look for pagan help and for this reason, the oracle lives outside the city limits.

Indeed, he makes his home on a rocky island not far from the left leg of the city's colossal statue of Tal. The island is small and boasts little more than heaps of gull droppings on sea washed rocks, but there is a cave there and the oracle lives in it. The water is shallow and treacherous to ships and rowboats alike, but for those who make the swim, and have a live gull, the oracle can be accommodating.

He is sustained, folks say, by the seabirds he sacrifices and the raw fish he is able to spear in the shallows. According to some there is a spring on his island which supplies him with the water he needs.

The origin of the oracle is unknown. Many believe that he is a creature not of this world. Others say that he is no more than a shipwrecked Sea Jack who could not make shore. Whatever his true origin, he lives there to this day and remains mostly out of sight and out of mind. But sailors rushing to safety on stormy nights will tell tales. They say that lightning flashes will reveal a haggard and white-haired man, stripped to the waist and shouting imprecations at the storm.

The Vicenary Ports of Westrun

The Ports of Westrun

Bezapur (Bolden)

Walashabad (Watersedge)

Tamisand (Treft)

Dabil (Dor Inur) 

Bilishapur (Balduren)

Kashir (Tradestop)

The Vicenary Ports Pact upon the Seven Seas

In the estimation of the seafarers, the ideas of  kingdom and border and fealty are overrated. To them, all that matters is the fulfillment of contracts. The movement of cargo and passengers from one port of call to the next is the highest law. Piracy is the greatest breach of it. Between the various port cities is where fortunes are won and lost, one nautical mile at a time. The only governance such men tend to recognize are the ruling authorities of the various ports.

To promote trade and to establish a common set of rules, the Vicenary Ports Pact was negotiated between twenty recognized cities the world over. The Pact creates a loose confederation between the cities and establishes a charter to govern their agreed upon Law of the Sea. The Pact provides a means to pay tariffs that are due inland. It also establishes a way to insure cargo, to certify bills of lading, and a way to negotiate fees with the guilds. The Vicenary Ports Pact also establishes a small navy (and a corps of marines) which can be augmented with privateers. The latter type will operate under letters of authority to conduct reprisals, if necessary.

This system of governance is influenced heavily by the Satrapies of Southrun, from which it draws both its inspiration and its reverence for free trade. Not surprisingly the Seaman's Argot (the thieves cant of the sea) is influenced heavily by the Dahlese language of Southrun. All documents, charters, and licensing is written in the Argot.

The Pact is administered by the Vicegerents (representatives from each of the ports) who are headquartered in Sabaha and act from high atop the Ivory Tower. There the twenty men and their various undersecretaries administer the Pact and command the Vicenary Navy and Marines.

Each port has a local authority vested in the Viceroy whose job it is to receive a bills of lading and to grant a clean bill of health to ships, and his Vice-admiral whose job it is to command the local fleet of the navy and the company of marines, and his Vicereine, whose job it is to dedicate ships.

Tal the Just

After the Desolation of Lanaria, Tal, a younger son of the Emperor, took five score refugees, across the Dagger Sea and settled in the land of Westrun. There, they found themselves at war with the Nandi tribesmen and were forced to carve out strongholds in the marshes of that foreboding land. Tal resisted calls to become the leader of this new people, creating instead a set of laws and a juridical body, under which they all would live.

In time, the refugees intermarried with the more peace-abiding savages, turning them from hunting and gathering to permanent habitations. Chief among these habitations was the New Ald Casera on the Edge of the Water, which came to be known more simply as the City of Watersedge. From that city-state many provinces would come to be ruled; and the kingdom which descended from the principality would come to bear the name of its founder: Talir.

It is a natural place then for the colossus of Tal the Just to have been raised. This great statue was a gift to the people of Talir from the last of the Vyrum craftsmen, Hlaloreon the Bard. Hlaloreon had taken refuge among the people of Watersedge for many years while he was hunted by those who sought vengeance upon him.  

The colossus stands astride the walled harbor of Watersedge, one foot upon each terminal point of the sea wall. While the years and the salt have been unkind to its pockmarked surface, the structure is still intact and fills visitors with wonder. The lighthouses under each of its feet have guided many ships upon the Dagger Sea to safe harbor.

Arcade

The Arcade is the foremost theological depository of the Church of Westrun. Located in Watersedge, it is the place that all aspiring priests must attend to learn the tenets of that faith.

As an institute of higher learning, the Arcade is well-regarded for its study of languages, history, and accounting.

The Arcade also houses the head of each of the Five Canonical Orders and the Cardinal Prefect elected over each.

The Coin Barns of the Oxmen

The common name for those buildings in use by the most popular banking system in Erenth, the Coin Barns are administered by a peculiar society in league with Church in Westrun, and are under the protection of the famed Oxmen. The Coin Barns are the clearing houses for most writs the world over. They charge a 1% fee for those transactions.

Deposits and withdrawals can be made at locations in

• Peakshadow
• Wanderhalt
• Bolden
• Menea
• Treft
• Laketon
• Watersedge
• Balduren
• and Rath in Westrun;
• Old Darios in the Free Provinces;
• Byza and Tradepost (Sabaha) in Southrun;
• and the Imperial City of Shu in Eastrun.

The Coin Barns will take any deposit of any coinage. Withdrawals can be made at any location, but they are not allowed until a 90 day waiting period has elapsed. After that initial waiting period, amounts can be withdrawn on any Firesday, after notice has been given on the previous Moonsday.

For some, the greatest service that the Coin Barns offer is to vouchsafe (by the honor of the Oxmen) the average size of their depositors accounts per annum. Far from being seen as a breach of privacy, this actually allows nobility and other institutions to determine how credit worthy their potential customers and trade partners are.

Angels of Aladinus

Aladinus was a famous Colonello in the Provinces before the Taming of the Serpent. He was loyal to Agronar the Conqueror and one of those who would not fight against him during the War of Subjection. Aladinus set sail from the Principalities and landed in Watersedge, where his guild was first headquartered. The current Aladinus is almost certainly not the same one as the Hall is very old, numbering its age in centuries. Either some magic protects Aladinus from aging, or he is a demi-human, or the current Aladinus simply continues to take the name of predecessor.
 
The Angels are primarily a light infantry company when fighting in formation.

The Angels have a guildhall in Watersedge of Talir, and Wanderhalt of Collonia.

The Brute Squadron

The Brutes are primarily a heavy cavalry company when fighting in formation.

Tigers of Talir

The Tigers are primarily a pike company when fighting in formation.

Pious and Impoverished Sons of Charity

The chapel of this peerage is in Watersedge of Talir.

The Pious and Impoverished Sons of Charity exist to build orphanages in Talir, to serve the orphans of Balduren and the rest of the Eight Kingdoms.

To fulfill their primary mission, the Protectors, will often do battle with evil and take the accumulated treasure of such beings to fund their programs. There is a large gulf between this method and simple thievery. One, the Protectors make no secret of their intent nor methods. They neither skulk by night nor use subterfuge, but engage evil where they find it -- openly and proudly. Two, the Protectors cite what they call the ancient Law of Spoils, to take what belongs to the victors in the absent of any competent authority. Applying the Law of Spoils can be difficult at times, but Protectors take great pains to do so properly, for their Paladinhood rests upon it, properly done.

The Protectors believe that the best outcome for any orphan is to become a Paladin, barring that, a Cleric or Consecrated Woman. Failing that, they will settle for an educated and God-fearing, productive member of society. To promote the first end, each of the individual Sons will have at least one page and one squire, and often have many more.

The symbol of the Peerage is a set of gilded scales with a loaf of bread outweighing a stack of coins.

College of Leomund

The College of Leomund is located in the City of Watersedge, in the Kingdom of Talir of the Eight Kingdoms of Man in the Land of Westrun.

Leomund is a founding member of the White Council.

The Primus is Danil. The students wear red robes with a black hood.

The Oxmen have rated the college at 11 gold bars.

City of Watersedge

Located in the Kingdom of Talir in the Land of Westrun, Watersedge is the capital city of that realm.

The chief export of Watersedge is fine furniture, but trade also flourishes in the lemons and oranges planted around Talir, plus the processing of sugar cane into molasses, sugar and Talirean Wine -- brown, gold and white. Watersedge is also a principal market for eel, crawfish, shrimp and alligator -- all of which are brought in by rural fishermen.

As a port city, the walls of Talir extend into the sea and terminate at two massive statues of the ancient gods Utunos and Heiniko, god of the sun and the god of the sea respectively. These statues tower some 100 feet into the air. Utunos holds aloft a giant ball which provides a beacon of light for ships to navigate by. Heiniko holds aloft a massive net which is hooked by gears and pulleys to a net of chains which will close the harbor (if necessary) by erecting an impassable barrier about four feet above the waves. For this reason Watersedge is often sought by sailors fleeing the Northruner amd Hayao predations.

It is both a massive port city and a bureacrat's dream.  It has a detailed system of laws and is widely known for its regulations covering nearly every facet of its citizens, residents and visitors lives. These categories of people are very different from one another and the differences are strictly observed in Watersedge. As the capital of Talir, a theocracy, citizenship is restricted to members of the church, and public office may only be held by members of the clergy. Residents who are not citizens are considered second-class and enjoy a higher cost of living, but still thrive in the city's reputation for safety, security and cleanliness.

Watersedge is home to Stafon Strathurst, King of Talir who is also the High Priest Elect of the Supreme Holy Council. Additionally it is home to Magister Leomund, as well as the Sages Artemor, Hocequin, Kosel, Rihodor.

Magister Leomund

Careless : Thoughtless. Heavily perfumed.
motto : Never make a promise.

Leomund is the founding member of the White Council. He is a prolific inventor of spells and of certain magic items. He is little liked by the Magisters who are not members of the White Council and is considered stiff, uncompromising and unapproachable.