The Tooth
The gem of the Coast, hidden away but gleaming behind a watery veil, the seat of prestige and power for the Blooded Houses and the great halfling Families.
And, if you play your cards right, the Tooth just might not bite you.
From the palace keeps of the Heights to the organized tavern brawls of the Wash, the Tooth is a city of chaos put into an orderly shape by sheer force of will. While the Families like things haphazard, the Blooded Houses feel quite the opposite. That they work so well together comes as a surprise to most, not least of all the Families and the Houses themselves. Here, that balance creates prosperity and opportunity, supplemented by an uneasy influx of pirate wealth and bandit gold. If a criminal is caught, there's no mercy to be found in the Tooth. But those who keep their heads down can make a killing.
For now, the Tooth rises as a seaside rival to Centerley for trade, tourism, and entertainment. For now, trade vessels and Galasteri ironsides vie for space along the harbors of the Wash. For now, the most unlikely of bedfellows get on with their business. But it remains to be seen if the careful balance of the Tooth can survive the realities of its rivalries.
Demographics
Government
The Blooded Houses assemble at the Tooth to decide whatever matters affect them all. While they have yet to formalize their gatherings, heads of household often negotiate, debate, or if all else fails? Duel to decide the common course. The famous (or now infamous) recognition of the Blooded Houses as Galasteri nobility by Mansa Savrias, taking a son from among their young heirs, further legitimized their rule. Now, they work to form a sort of informal Gbara among themselves, the Halfling Families, local human communities, and diplomats from the Pirate Queen.
This would be easier if said diplomats were not regularly executed when they bring demands.
Industry & Trade
As the endpoint of two great rivers, the Tooth controls all trade heading to or from the great Sea. Fruits, spices, wood, rubber, and pearls all flow in staggering quantities upwards to the Capital, with finished goods, fabrics, millet, sorghum, and other staples heading out to see in return. Banditry and piracy are an expanding problem, especially with the Empire's current problems, so a standing fleet of river war canoes and great ironsided ships are also housed at the Tooth's Wash harborside. Supporting this navy is a second great boon to the city, furthering its influence and ability to take taxes.
A third source of wealth for the city is the focused attention of the Halfling Families. Banking, commodity markets, currency schemes, and all manner of other inventive moneymaking properties are active and competitive in the Tooth, without even entering into the illicit affairs that the Families use to subsidize their legitimate endeavours.
History
The Tooth, like many cove communities on the Coast, started out as a pirate fortress. Cousins to the halfling Families would use the great cavern hidden beneath the Lovers' Falls as a staging area for raids, smuggling, ransoms, and worse. In time, protection fees evolved into taxes and tariffs, creating investment capital for the expansive lattice of platforms, rigging, and massive stairways that transformed the fortress into a newborn city.
In the last century, the Blooded Houses, once mere muscle for the Families in the region, have risen to equal partners or even the true leaders of the Tooth thanks to Galasteri support. Where pirates and bandits once made homes, now the fleets that hunt them hold berth. The Families, rather than rebel, have fully supported the Houses and their navy, gaining even more wealth in the process. Whether this relationship of naked opportunism on all sides can last remains an open question.
Tourism
The Tooth was built to be a free soul's paradise, and a great deal of gold has gone into realizing that dream. Visitors can find the finest foods, the most elaborate architecture, and views to take the breath away under or just beyond the Lovers' Falls. Auction houses keep goods both rare and exceptional flowing in and out of the city, while the Families' museums and tale-houses keep the great stories of old alive and well. Down in the Wash, one can take part of the great brawls of the tavern wash-houses or sit back and just enjoy the show with minimal fear of harm. Casinos, comfort houses, dance halls, and street games of chance entice the eye and distract the senses. Just be wary of the many, many pickpockets.
Crime is tolerated to a 'reasonable degree' within the Tooth. Said pickpockets are rarely pursued, as everyone has to make a living somehow. It's considered just another city tax, taken on the reckless or foolish for not guarding themselves. It's when crimes affect the livelihood of victims or the property of people of note that the Blooded Houses send out their thugs and berserkers to re-establish the order in simple, brutal displays of force. Due to the need to establish the 'genuine harm' of a crime, responses can be slow, taking 3d4 minutes for help to arrive in the case of most crimes. That said, once a crime has been investigated and deep harm has been confirmed? The hunt for the offender is serious and harsh.
Sights and Sounds of the Tooth
| d10 | You Encounter... |
|---|---|
| 1 | An illithid card sharp that plays high-stakes games with one's literal head on the line. |
| 2 | A gang of halfling fisherfolk spear-fishing by leaping off of the cliffside with rope harnesses |
| 3 | One of the Lovers, dual spirits inhabiting the falls, makes an alluring pose for passersby. |
| 4 | A half-orc noble is marching up and down the streets with a heavily chitin-armored patrol, looking like a pack of annoyed crabs. |
| 5 | A halfling magistrate is explaining to a robbed tourist that her losses are not significant enough to warrant a chase, and advises methods to protect one's property. |
| 6 | An intoxicants shop is having a sale on hallucinogens, which may or may not offer visions into the Ethereal for only 25 gp. (50% chance of any useful visions.) |
| 7 | A sahuagin-themed brawl party is loudly making its way down to the Wash to take over a tavern for the night by force. They'll get a discount on drinks if they win. |
| 8 | Pteranodon races beginning from the topside down to the Wash, with checkpoints that circle around the Lovers' Falls. |
| 9 | A halfling fortune-teller owns a silk-veiled, expansive shop nearby, and offers insight into one's future luck. |
| 10 | A halfling and gnome are in a bidding war in an auction over an enchanted engagement ring of protection. Neither knows the ring is intended for the other. |
Geography
There are four distinctive sections of the Tooth - the Heights, the Midway, the Wash, and Topside.
The Heights
The Heights are composed of a number of private keeps and defense-minded palaces. Once a favorite of the Families, the Blooded Houses have bought out the area in recent years and combined multiple mansions into expansive compounds for their extended families. The city guard and its many imperial magistrates also house themselves and any support staff in the Heights, dropping by zipline to lower areas if there's a hurried need to arrive. The need is rare, as the danger is great.
Midway
Most of the population of the Tooth lives in the Midway, a great spiral of platforms and broad stairs that circle around the flow of the Lovers' Falls from the Lake of the Tooth above. Long bridges run through the center in the misty area between the two great waterfalls, creating a thoroughfare for those who don't mind getting a little wet along the way. Multi-floored apartments, townhomes, storefronts with impressive false fronts line the walls underneath the waterfalls, while more expensive homes are built onto the overlook half of the spiral, gazing out to sea or back towards the falls.
The Wash
At the bottom of the Lovers' Falls lies the wash, a perpetually humid and misty set of harbors. The Galasteri Navy, operated by the Blooded Houses, has its home here, as well as a great number of civilian berths for traders, travelers, and not an insignificant number of pirates. While pirates are brutally hunted out at sea, those who manage to quietly arrive in the city are more than welcome to spend their plunder here. Taverns, brothels, shops, and more line the rainy boardwalks of the Wash, making them a popular spot for those who don't mind a touch of the disreputable.
Topside
Above the Falls and alongside the Lake of the Tooth are another set of old homes, fine cottages, affluent farmholds, and palaces. These are the current homes of many of the halfling Families greatest Aunts and Uncles. One would hardly expect the heart of organized crime in the Dream to be so peaceful or picturesque, but they invest a great deal in creating that image of a pastoral paradise. The Common Hall, a great concert and dining venue, is built atop the great rocky jut of the Tooth itself, and serves as an unofficial capital of the Families' influence.
Industry and Trade
History
Tourism, Crime, and Sights
Geography
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