For the Map, please check the Game Map section.

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Diamond Lake nestles in the rocky crags of the Cairn Hills, three days due East of Waterdeep to which it is subject. Iron and silver flow from the town's mines and fuel Waterdeep's markets and support its soldiers and nobles with plenty of raw material. This trade draws skilled and unskilled laborers and artisans to the town who hope to strike it rich and have little to choose but a life of low wages - many are displaced refugees or foreigners driven out of their own homes by war and famine.

Once, Diamond Lake boasted far greater exports than simple raw materials - priceless treasures looted from the tombs of ancient civilizations and dug up from the ruins of long-lost cultures. Many used to visit the lake to enjoy its crystal-clear waters and excellent fisheries, but Waterdeep's increasing demand for iron and silver continues to slowly drive the community to ruin as the lake and surrounding hills grow more and more polluted and uninhabitable.

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Map Key:

1.) The Emporium - A den of vice and entertainment, it is the main area where miners and travelers go to have fun in Diamond Lake. Its Veiled Corridor is known as a place where any pleasure may be gained for a price and is particularly popular with the town's wealthier residents.

Most people know Gaspard - the Emporium's thin, balding attendant, - and Zalamandra, the young and charismatic madam in charge.

2.) Lazare's House - those seeking a culture nightspot congregate at this cozy gambling parlor. In contrast to the garish and ostentatious Emporium across the street, Lazare's exudes a quiet sense of class and dignity.

Lazare, the proprietor and owner of the parlor, was a champion of chess in Waterdeep some 20 years ago and has made enough money gambling to purchase a mine and retire. In recent years, he has been plagued by misfortune as his mine has been sold off to a local merchant named Balabar Smenk and his beloved wife has passed away.Th

3.) The Feral Dog - The ever-popular drinking hole for Diamond Lake's poorest denizens, the sleazy tavern is known for a rowdy crowd that scream obscenities and wave betting vouchers each night as they try to earn some coin by betting on vicious pit fights between two dogs.

Fights are frequent, criminals are abundant, and it is said among locals that there are as many humans in the festering garbage pit behind the ale-house as there are dogs. Most notable among the criminals is Kullen, an albino half-orc who silently seethes in the bar on most days and keeps a rough order in the ale-house with his gang of henchmen.

4.) Church of Lathander - Run by the dawnbringer Jieran Wierus, a bombastic orator who's populist rants appeal to the town's poor and downtrodden commoners. He often preaches the creed of honesty and sacrifice, encouraging his followers to flagellate themselves as penance for their sins and to help those in need around the town.

The church holds sermons three times a week and they are usually filled to capacity long before the dawnbringer even gets there. While many in the town consider him and his 'cult' a menace, they are law-biding and popular enough that the town guards have not made a move yet.

5.) Tidwoad's - A 'theft-proof' (or so the owner boasts) jeweler's shop run by the cantankerous gnomish jeweler Tidwoad. Though unfriendly to most folk, Tidwoad is much kinder to fellow gnomes who are usually welcome to lodge in some cheap apartments above his workshop with a single landing and staircase connecting their rooms directly to the street.

This store is the usual destination for most people who wish to deal in valuables in Diamond Lake.

6.) Sherrif's Office - When a brawl gets out of hand or there's unrest in town, the Mayor often relies on his private group of watchmen, headed by the boisterous Sheriff Cubbin, to keep the peace. Most of them are former residents of Waterdeep, with many believing they were reassigned here due to corruption or self-serving behaviour.

The locals can seldom rely on the Sheriff or his men as they usually only prosecute crimes that impact their employer or the rich merchants who run the mines in the hills surrounding Diamond Lake.

7.) General Store - A large general store run by the amiable and stylish Taggin, a man who is always eager to supply anyone that enters his story with anything they could possible require.

Those looking for unusual items may request they be ordered from Waterdeep itself with a modest mark-up.

8.) The Hungry Gar - An inn in which the head chef claims to serve the finest meal in the Vein.

9.) Jalek's Flophouse - A converted warehouse that houses nearly a hundred pitiful indigents fighting off poverty with handfuls of copper coins each week. Once a prosperous fishery, it is now just a rotting carcass hosting the city's most unfortunate residents.

Jalek himself is rarely seen, but his half-orc enforcer Golot is known to be a violent, ill-tempered brute who ALWAYS collects his dues. Some say that those who fail to pay the fee for staying at the Flophouse are driven out of town or killed.

10.) Smenk Residence - An old mansion where Balabar Smenk lives. Though the guards seek to ward off most seeking entrance, the door remains open due to an old promise made to his discontent miners that he would always be available.

11) Deepspike Mine - An old, abandoned mine owned by Balabar Smenk that ran dry some years ago.

12) Garrison - The refurbished ruins of an ancient keep that host 60 Waterdhavian militiamen tasked with patrolling the local region and liaising with communities of halflings, gnomes and dwarves. Captain Tolliver Trask, the garrison commander, and his men don't usually involve themselves with the politics of Diamond Lake and mostly keep to themselves.

The garrison also holds a chapel to Tyr, and boasts the second largest congregation in the town after the Church of Lathander.

13.) Lakeside Stables - The community's horses are predominantly stabled in this rundown stable watched over by the unpleasant Lanch Faraday. Cheap and relatively safe from theft, they are the most accesible stable for locals and travelers, though some customers complain of mysterious bruises on their horses...

14.) The Midnight Salute - A more 'typical' house of ill-repute that typically caters more to travelers and members of the garrison who are looking for something less 'exotic' than the Emporium offers. Its proprietress, an elf by the name of Purple Prose, stressed discretion and decorum and is often the first to meet any distinguished guests that visit The Midnight Salute.

15.) The Spinning Giant - This two-story tavern caters largely to the waterdhavian soldiers when they're off-duty and looking to meet friends, sing songs and drown themselves in ale and good cheer. It's decorate with a fading fresco of an dancing imbecilic giantess in a yellow dress.

As locals know, an awkwardly-whirling and dim-witted hill giantess was indeed caught by the garrison some 40 years ago and was The Spinning Giant's main form of entertainment for more than 20 years before dying of a plague. Though she is long gone, her stage remains, now playing host to the town's most elaborate musical performances.

16.) The Captain's Blade - Tyrol Ebberly, supposedly a former watch captain in Waterdeep and an inveterate gossip, runs this weapon shop with efficiency. Despite its small size, it carries a very large assortment of weaponry.

17.) Venelle's - This chaotic shop is run by a rather odd woman named Venelle who carries a large stock of waterdhavian armor and weapons as well as bows and arrows of her own manufacture.

18.) Allustan's Residence - Allustan the Wizard, also known as 'the smartest man in town', lives in this small, charming home on one of the few shores of healthy grass around the town.

19.) Tilgast Residence - Surrounded by a stockade, this opulent mansion is the home of Gelch Tilgast and is noted for its stables which are sometimes rented to wealthy travelers looking to get the finest care for their horses in the town.
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20.) Old Piers - Long ago, travelers would come from far and wide to Diamond Lake to sail on its crystal-clear waters, but this practice ended as soon as the lake's waters were fouled. Now, only rotting piers, crumbling fisheries and a few sunken masts peeking out of the water remind of that distant time.

A couple of small ships still operate, allowing travelers to cross the lake for a modest fee.

21.) Able Carter Coaching inn - One of the many Able Carter inns that provide rest to travelers at every step of the journey from Waterdeep to any of the surrounding towns. Most newcomers to Diamond Lake tend to stay here for a time, until their money runs dry and they're forced to seek cheaper accomodation.

22.) Parrin Residence - Home of the Parrin family who owned some of the mines around town, but have since fallen upon hard times.

23.) Illefarn Covenant - This sturdy brick and timber structure is host to three prominent representatives of the Ironeater Clan from Mount Illefarn. They are chiefly interested in the iron mined in the hills surrounding Diamond Lake and buy examples due to their unique coloration and purity.

24.) Gansworth Residence - The home of Chaum Gansworth, owner of one of the mines in the hills and The Rusty Bucket. He keeps to himself and is generally rarely seen.

25.) The Rusty Bucket - A popular restaurant that was once known for its fine fish, but has since been forced to adapt to a land-based cuisine. While it has somewhat deteriorated in the years since, it still remains a prominent place for both locals and travelers to eat.

26.) Moonmeadow Residence - This is the residence of Ellival Moonmeadow, a mine manager who works for a prominent mining operation that extracts silver from all over the Waterdeep region.

27.) Osgood Smithy - The distinctive "O" maker's mark of Manlin Osgood, the owner of this smithy, is known throughout the region for being a sign of excellent quality (and a frequent target for forgeries). Though Osgood specializes primarily in armour and tools, he is happy to forge almost anything desired.

28.) Smelting House - Long ago, local mine managers maintained their own smelting houses, but frequent quarrels and sabotage hindered the flow of iron from Diamond Lake to Waterdeep. Since then, the rulers of Waterdeep stepped in and monopolized the smelting trade, placing it within guarded walls of a fortress-workshop which now produces smoke and pollution.

29.) Diamond Lake Boneyard - The town's overcrowded cemetery tended is tended by the shadowy, but seemingly well-meaning, Cult of the Ascended Lovers who seek to preserve its sanctity and maintain its appearance before it becomes overgrown and wild.

30.) Neff Manor - Governor-Mayor Landon Neff's sprawling manorhouse squats atop the hill overlooking Diamond Lake, a tangle of scaffolding, wire and workcrews. Protected by a wooden stockade, the manor is the center of politics in Diamond Lake and serves the functions of town hall, court house and private manor.

31.) Dourstone Mine - This iron mine has remained strong for a very, very long time and continues to produce a good amount of raw iron ore each month.

32.) Abandoned Mine - It's been so long since this mine was operated that nobody around town even remembers its name.

33.) Menhirs - A worn stone ring often visited only by residents of the Bronzewood Lodge, a nearby community of rangers, druids and others nature-lovers who occasionally come to Diamond Lake looking for work.

34.) Old Observatory - This crumbling and abandoned observatory once housed an order of monks, but is now inhabited by squatters and vagrants that breeze in and out of town.

35.) Dourstone Residence - A squat, well-protected manor is the home of Ragnolin Dourstone, one of the more responsible and well-liked mine managers in Diamond Lake.
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:18, Tue 25 Aug 2020.