Maps of  The Shanty Town and the Lower Skanse Peninsula, home of Coral Gate.

A message from Bran Swillstree: ” Ole Swillstree gonna leave ya my map here boys and girls. Now it aint near complete, but I did manage to scout the coast a fair bit. Going inland is way too dangerous for the likes of me though, so if ya aim to do that, may The Star be with you. ‘Cause you are gonna need some fortune for sure.”

The Shanty Town – as described by Bran Swillstree

-The garbage dump. The town’s garbage is hauled here and dumped, to later be loaded on barges, or simply carried away by the tide. It is a smelly, nasty area, and you will undoubtedly find all types of carrion in the area. Most is harmless, such as small rats, small snakes, and the occasionally towns person digging for treasure. One mans trash is another’s treasure, so the saying goes. It should be known that occasionally bigger and even giant rats or fantastic creatures can be drawn by the filth. They are capable of ripping a mans arm off for a morning snack. The Guards typically will not patrol to this part of town. Years ago the dump was a seaside amphitheatre, and the benches for the patrons are still present there along with a fire pit where the stage would have been. The quickest way to the dump is to head down to the Dockside and take a left at the trail just before it. Bring a torch if you go at night!

-The graveyard is where the poor of the town are buried. It was learned long ago it is better to bury the dead and let them decompose in the moist ground, rather then stink up the entire town. When a few dead bodies are piled up at the Coral Gate, they often will hire slum residents to take and bury the corpses here. The graveyard itself is located in the section of the slums call Graveside. It is rumored that long ago a great dark elf corruption Savant and his alluring female apprentice made their temporary residence in the small shack nearest the graveyard. Who knows what you will run into there, you are warned!

Smuggler’s Glen – Located far from the town guard post, and right on the small inlet that leads to the sea, this dock seldom sees legal commerce. It is way to far to move cargo from there to the city, so this port tends to attract people who don’t want to attract attention. Pirates, Lizard men and others. Some hostile, some friendly, all dangerous.

Beggar’s Square – The area around the town guard post has turned into a haven for beggars. Seldom does a day go by when someone isn’t begging for something in this area. Once in a while they may have something to trade such as gossip or even a semi true rumor.

Odalob’s Pub – Current closed due to the untimely death of the proprietress, Arole Odalob. Arole was no slouch of a caster, and was more than rumored to deal in corruption magics and keep the company of a certain male vampire. She did a bit of buying, selling and trading of both items and information. Then in the middle of the night a group of Mageocracy Battle Savants appeared in town, and demanded the Relic she supposedly had, a corruption magic staff of some renown. She feigned ignorance, and the Mageocracy officer waved his hand and the item flew out of the Pub. Arole then feigned dead, when a black bolt hit her in the chest and withered all the skin from her body. Evidently she wasn’t feigning dead. She was just dead. Drained like a summer husk. So now the Old Pub is back up on the market.

Queen’s Garden – The large cleared field between Smugglers Glen and Dockside. Once was supposed to be the location for a Queen’s residence, but that plan was long ago abandoned. The clearing remains, and some of the original rare foliage planted for the queen can still be found blooming and sprouting at the right times. The Queen, called Erionel’, never got to see her beautiful dream come to fruition, as her suitor proved to be unworthy, and she left with a broken heart.  As with anything in the swamp, if it has use, it is not long left alone. The Lizard Men found the rare herbs to be of great use for their Alchemists and can become hostile if challenged for the harvests. Other swamp and river creatures are attracted by the sweet smell of the fruit and flower trees that grow near by. Many a battle has taken place on this field over the years. People have reported seeing statues appear out of thin air, some kind of magic! Dunno rightly what that is all about though, but popular rumor is the Queen was going to have a collection of statues in her garden.

Graveside – The town closest to the city graveyard. The smell of rotting corpses can be strong when the wind blows just right. Everyone who stays their reports all sorts of noises from the graveyard at night, and they occasionally say they saw “something”. It is known that if the tombs and graves are disturbed, the town’s former residents will sometimes claw out of the ground until the graveyard is silent once more. Alchemists tend to seek out some of the more rare reagents that seem to only grow from fresh corpses in this place.

Marshlight – Seemingly one of the safer sections of shanty town, except for that fact it is furthest from the guard post. The ground is a bit more hilly here and I constantly heard rumors of a hidden thieves cache that one of the beggar thieves squired away that has yet to be found. The name comes from the strange glowing lights that sometimes appear in the woods. I have not really heard of anyone actually finding out what they are though. 

Cutter’s Hill –  Old Man Cutter. What a strange Joe he was. Always babbling and mumbling about something being lost and anything found on this hill being his. He got ate by a giant salt-water croc one day down at Dockside. Although his son Lil’ Cutter still supposedly is back in the area, and he ain’t one to fool with, as he earned his name by cutting throats. But I do mean to get him drunk and ask him about his old man one of these days.

The Orphanage – It was a sad day in the slums when the plague broke out in here first. All the homeless bastards and half breeds got shuffled down to here, and someone brought the plague in with ‘em. Half were dead before anyone even paid attention, and by then it was too late. Some say you can still hear the crying of the kids if you listen just right.

Animal Bailey – Like any town, we got our fill of strays and mutts. They ended up here. Eustus the dog keeper took pretty good care of them, til the plague got him too. After that they went wild, and couldn’t be controlled. Then one day they was all gone. Someone said they heard ‘em all baying and howling late one night, and the next morning they were all gone. Dunno rightly whatever happened to them, but I sure am curious.

Docktown – Located down past the Orphanage, Docktown was in the past the home to a Bright Elf Defender who did what he could to help the residents of the slums. Velbaren left after the plague struck and hasn’t returned, yet. This town still seems to enjoy his influence even with him gone, and remains mostly as neutral ground. Mostly that is.

The Butcher’s – This name has two meanings. This was in fact the butcher’s shop. Pogo and his wife sold and traded meat to the residents of Shanty town. They were able to eek out a meager living here. Sure, some of the meat was of questionable origins, and a matter of fact I cant say I ever saw a dog, cat or even a rat near the shop. But what the heck, it all tastes like chicken anyway. But it turns out that even the “eclectic” residents of Shanty town have their limits, and that limit was reached when Pogo was found slicing a few steaks off a fresh corpse in the town graveyard. Looks like cannibalism is in fact the limit. Pogo managed to slip away, and his wife followed shortly there after. The Butcher’s shop has remained empty since then, and boy, does it need a good cleaning. I don’t know if you can ever get that smell out!