Rivenford sprawls along both banks of the slow River Sern, linked by a famous chain pontoon and an arched stone bridge; market stalls, warehouses, and houseboats crowd the quays while guildhalls and a merchant quarter crown higher ground, and a maze of lower alleys hides both beggars and thieves.
Where the river divides the city, fortunes and fates are made on the water.
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First Consul
A forty-something woman in practical silks who keeps a ledger and a dagger in equal readiness.
River Watch Captain
Broad-shouldered and scarred, he favors a leather coat patched with river wax.
Freighters' Guildmistress
Graceful in speech and posture, she negotiates tariffs like a blade.
Master Stonewright
Short, soot-dark, and intensely proud of his guild's stonework.
Night-barge operator
Short and wiry with quick hands and ink-stained fingers from ledgers hidden beneath his bed.
Merchant house and consignment
A well-appointed exchange for merchants to consign cargo, negotiate tariffs, and secure shipping routes.
Shipwright and smithy
A booming smithy where dwarf craft meets river timberwork to produce sturdy barges and repair hulls.
Night-workers, smugglers, debtors, and sometimes council clerks in disguise
A bawdy tavern on the lower quay favored by bargemen, smugglers, and assorted creditors.
Commercial guild
A powerful collective of barge owners and freight brokers who negotiate tariffs and contract routes.
Crafts guild
Artisans and masons who claim maintenance rights to the bridge, quay, and city defenses.
Loose underworld network
A shadowy web of operators specializing in moving goods after dusk for a premium.
A stout stone gatehouse that controls passage across the city's arched bridge and houses toll clerks.
A famous floating quay chained across the river that rises and falls with trade and tide.
A dried, reed-choked canal arm behind warehouses now favored by smugglers and stray otters.
A narrow lane of leaning tenements where information brokers and pigeon handlers operate.
An underground conduit connects the Logbooks vault to a disused warehouse under the quay.
The Rivermother's shrine hides a relic that can calm minor floods when invoked.
A forged list of debtors exists that could ruin several merchant families if made public.
Night Cargo
Captain Harsk needs help tracing a missing night barge which vanished with tax-bound grain, leading to a smuggling ring and a ledger of bribed officials.
The Sinking Favor
A champion barge sank during the regatta; investigators must find saboteurs among rivals, guild rivals, and a secret admirer seeking revenge.
Ledger of Lies
Mara Venn's forged contracts threaten to topple a merchant house unless heroes find proof in the Logbooks vault via a risky subterranean entry.
The Quiet Stone
Sister Amaya seeks discreet guardians to retrieve or protect the Rivermother relic before flood season, while a rival cult eyes it for darker rituals.
