0708 — The Bridge Encampment

A large stone bridge, 50 feet wide and 200 across, forms a crossroads of land and water. The green-flecked black stone is not found nearby, and is ancient, from before the time of the quarry that would become the Valley Collaboration (0807). Despite being worn smooth by weather, it is still sturdy.

Due to the relative ease of travel offered by the road and river, this has become a permanent encampment. The exact makeup of the residents changes day to day as members of the more permanent settlements and the more nomadic exiles arrive and leave. At any given time, there are 6d6 exiles present.

The encampment can function as a village by the economic standards of The Nightmares Underneath, but the particular services it specializes in change based on who is here at any given time. For every 5 exiles present, roll on the following table to determine a specialized service also present:

1. A fisherman, selling their catch and willing to trade supplies.
2. 2d6 hunters and foragers from the Thicket Collaboration (0208).
3. An herbalist trading in medical supplies.
4. 1d8 transcendentalists trading in oddities and books.
5. A lumber harvester with tools of the trade, 2-in-6 chance to be a smuggler with some other supply concealed.
6. 2d4 members of Hare House in an aggressively fine looking tent, selling their services.

Some notable denizens and locations:

Underneath the bridge, where moorings for boats have been set, the Salvager’s Guild operates its ramshackle organization. 3-in-4 chance that a raft and 2d6 members are here. They have made a business of retrieving the various odds and ends that wash down the river from the west (I use the waterlogged items list from The Thawing Kingdom for this). The leadership of the group boils down to whoever happens to best maintain a working boat or raft. They were responsible for finding the printing press now in the Thicket Collaboration, and in 1d6 weeks of a party arriving they will find another. It will be a highly desired object by all factions.

Rubello (he/him) is an Occult-Futurist spy who openly stands on the bridge and notes passers by and through. He wears a flight suit and helmet that conceals his face entirely, and takes notes with a mechanical drafting pencil. Members of the settlement tend to be uneasy with him after he brutally and efficiently slew a passer by who belligerently confronted him. Knows the spells Brutal Weapon, Blessing and Bane, Martial Inspiration.

Innes (he/him) is a fire cult spy who is often here, pretending to be a trader in odd jewelry. He keeps an eye on those passing through, looking for suitable recruits and sacrifices. When he returns to the Northmost Collaboration, he will pass on his knowledge gained to members of the temple at 0604.