Fartown
A decently sized town far to the west of the lush planes surrounding the capital, Fartown is the colloquial term. The real name of the settlement in its inception was Glendisfarne, named for the two founding families 'Glendis' and 'Farnier' that established the town a little over twenty years ago. Fartown was originally a mining settlement, set up to house the large amounts of miners and their families that travelled to the western reach to work the highly profitable electrum mines.
Although years have passed since then and the mines are no longer hold the rich deposits they once did, mining remains a staple industry in the town and surrounding areas, and electrum coins are the primary currency over gold. Numerous other industries have sprang up in the decades since the town's founding such as logging and the farming of rare plants for their uses as spell components and flavouring. This has led to a bizarre situation where staple foods such as bread can be more expensive than truffles, a fact not lost on adventurers, travellers, and culinary tourists.
Due to its location as the last large settlement before the frontier of the western mountains, it is one of the smallest towns to contain an adventurers guild. The guild building itself is the largest building inside the town walls, and serves as a hub for the many adventurers that call Fartown home. Owing to the frontier nature of the town, work is plentiful for adventurers, who can find work as monster hunters, scouts, guards and couriers. Fartown is often considered a place for upcoming rookie adventurers to cut their teeth, or a place for more seasoned adventurers to retire away from the hustle and bustle of the more populated regions.
Government
The town is ruled by a council made up of representatives from each major faction in the town. The council mostly serves to resolve disputes between members of the different factions, who each have very different opinions on how the town should operate. This is the closest thing Fartown has to the rule of law, and adventurers from the guild are often called in to serve as a militia or town guards when the council believes it is required.
Defences
Although a frontier town, Fartown is well defended. A large wall surrounds the bulk of the town, and the number of adventurers (retired or otherwise) that call it home make it a not-so-tempting target for any potential bandits. The roads in and oout of the town are not so well defended however, and many brigands carve out a good life for themselves by preying on caravans importing supplies or exporting high value goods.
Industry & Trade
There are three key industries, mining, logging and speciality farming. The electrum mines are the reason the town exists and are still active, however they have been moving further into the western mountains as the easy to reach deposits have begun to dry up. Logging is a large industry in the town, however it is mostly for internal construction as it would be too costly to transport timber. The speciality farms are the most recent iindustry to crop up in the town, as it was discovered a number of high value herbs and funghi grow in the area. These new farms have been established in the cleared areas of the forests and are most often owned by investors that have never set foot in the western reach. Due to the high value of he exported goods, numerous caravans make the journey to Fartown each week, as the cost of the long journey is offset by the money made selling the goods in the capital region.
Guilds and Factions
The main faction in the town is the adventurer's guild, which serves as a hub for the numerous adventurers that frequent the town. Due to the large number of adventurers in the town, the guild has a large amount of influence in the local politics. Guild representatives serve on the town council alongside members of the ruling noble families that own the mines and the caravans that are the lifeblood of the town.
The two ruling noble families are Glendis and Farnier, and they have been feuding for decades. The petty squabbles between the families have lessened in recent years due to the growing influence of the adventurer's guild and outside investors. The families have been pumping more money into the town and have made an unsteady truce with one another in order to keep a hold of the town.
Tourism
Due to the large number of caravans and adventurers that frequent the town, numerous inns and taverns have sprung up. These establishments cater to anyone with coin and have a number of speciality liquors which are suprisingly cheaper than the more common ales and ciders, due to the cost of importing.
There are also a number of 'food tourists' that visit the town, these are often wealthy nobles and merchants who can afford to pay for a guarded carriage to the town. The locals see them as frivolous and haughty but many of the inn's appreciate their patronage, as they are often willing to pay extra for things an adventurer or caravaneer would never buy.
Geography
Fartown is located on the rolling hills of the western reach, at the foot of the western mountains. It is surrounded by a huge coniferous forest, which provides much of the timber that the town is built from. Many first time visitors to the town are shocked at the natural beauty of the area, but the rolling hills and ancient forests conceal many dangers.
Alternative Name(s)
Glendisfarne
Type
Town
Location under
Included Locations
Characters in Location
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