District: Southwatch
Population: Mostly human with a majority of Karrns.
Character: Paranoid and dangerous.
Businesses: Small market stalls, cottage industries, laborers for other districts. 1,000 gp limit.
Key Personalities: Berrinessa, Drago Thul, Gaulronak, Harysh, and Captain Smargat.
As you pass through the gates and enter Grindstone, the air takes on a different feel. People glower at you from doorways or shutter their windows. Children stop playing their games, and only street vendors look you in the eye. These people seem more taciturn than usual for Karrns, but why?
Citizens from other districts move quickly, as if eager to be away from here. They seem a little fearful, and that gives the residents some measure of pride.
With only the Koronoo River between it and the jungle, Southwatch is exposed to the wilds. Over the centuries, the district’s older buildings have been dismantled to provide other districts with building material, and only fragments remain of the great wall that used to defend this stretch of the city’s southern face. Across the river, the Tents of Rushemé lie ready to trade with the city.
Southwatch is home to those not afraid to live on the edge, whether pariahs, poor people with no choice, or those who have dealings with giants. Among these people are many settlers from Karrnath. The freedom to worship the Blood of Vol openly has drawn many Karrns to the city, and the Last War sent its share of expatriates. Justice here is rough, enforced by the Swords of Karrn under the leadership of Drago Thul If the Storm Lords think they need to intervene, they are more likely to send in House Deneith mercenaries than the Stormreach Guard, which would be outmatched by the Swords.
SUMMERFIELD
Karrns might dominate much of Southwatch, but they are not the only settlers within the area. The Summerfield ward contains a large amount of the district’s housing, and many of the residents are not Karrns. The ward has a mix of poor people who cannot afford to live elsewhere, or choose not to squeeze into an overcrowded district such as Cross, and well-to-do explorers and pirates who would rather live in the open than with the wealthy folk of Respite. Summerfield is therefore welcoming to almost anyone, and many of the residents do not take kindly to the Swords of Karrn throwing their weight around in this ward.
The Ship's Cat
A tangle of densewood twigs that have been thatched together, the Ship’s Cat is an inn run by Harysh (female shifter), who has a reputation for honor, hospitality, fairness, and discretion. This makes her a valued intermediary for many. The inn takes its name from Harysh’s dozen cats, which share the place with guests. Familiars and animal companions receive excellent care at the inn, as long as they do not raise the resident cats’ hackles.