Westhaven

  Set in a small bay, Westhaven has long been known as a good place for ships to weather a storm, or take on supplies. Developed from a fishing village, Westhaven has grown into a town and now provides access for trade into the other towns in the region. The town has four districts, each enclosed by a small wall intended to demark the town, and animals out, rather that as a defensive wall. The main coast road runs through New Town and Harbour, and is known as Market Street, when it runs through New Town, is the commercial spine (and busiest part) of the town.

• Trade - The Harbour District accommodates ships that trade between Stilan, Angasa and Urgon. While a few land based merchants transport cargoes between local towns.
• Fishing – The Fishing Fleet provides fish for the town, and preserved fish for export across the Eastern Province.
• Salt - Salt Pans, just to the west of the town produce salt for the region. Salt production here, uses a mixture of natural evaporation, and large heated, flat metal pans.
• Manufacturing - Westhaven has the largest, and most diverse, group of craftspeople in Westland. Their products are used throughout The Eastern Region, while a few are shipped further afield.

• Harbour – Docks, Fishing Village, Fish Market, Warehouses, cheap accommodation, Shrine to Shan, Way House etc.
• Trade District?. Needs a new name, but home to most of the crafters,
• New Town – As befitting a town built on trade, it holds the main market and shopping district, and the main thoroughfare is called Market street. New Town also contains the Town Hall, Guild Hall, The Governor's Mansion and the Town Guard’s Barracks, and main merchant offices. It also holds the Homes for those who can afford them. It is the place to live.
• Ross Hill - The first part of the town to be built, but became a bit of a backwater, as the town developed. Close to the newer parts of town there are homes (including a few big houses) for those who can afford them. It also contains the town cemetery, and a small temple dedicated to Takri. Further out, you will find the tenements, back-to-backs and other small homes that serve the less well off. At the far end, as far away from the busy parts of town as you can get, you will find Glebe Street Market.
• Local settlements – outside town, the Coast Road is dotted with farming villages and other small settlements – inland (accessed through the Ross Hill district) there is next to nothing except countryside, even the small farms that once existed there have fallen into disrepair.

• Sir Preston Mexon, the governor, oversees state taxes and the town guard. He lives in a large mansion just off Market Street, in New Town, and was appointed by Lord Rignal.
• Willis Farxina, the Mayor, oversees the day to day running of the town and can set local taxes. He is responsible for things like Night Soil collections, Building inspections and civic maintenance. He lives in a mansion in Ross Hill and has Offices in the town hall, and owns quite a lot of property around town. The mayor is elected, for life, with every local property owner has a vote in the election. Note: (Most residents of the city rent their property)
• George Swavely, the Guild Master, manages craftspeople, merchants, traders. He is a Master Furrier, exporting and selling expensive furs and leather goods from his emporium on Market Street, ironically, he still lives above his shop. Guild membership is prestigious, and gives access to extra work. While the guild isn't concerned with small shopkeepers or very minor crafters, it keeps a tight rein of any 'serious' crafters and business people in Westhaven. Guild members (Master or Journeyman) can claim some businesses expenses before they are taxed, and are eligible to apply for state and local tax funded work. The Guild Master is elected by guild members who have attained Master Rank. Note (To obtain Master Guild status, requires reaching the journeyman stage, setting up a business and owning property - which also means they get a vote in Mayoral elections.)

Westhaven is the most westerly natural port in the Palatine Kingdom of Stilan, a nation that developed along the River Stil. It is dived into several semi-autonomous regions, each with a Palatine Lord (of different degrees) as its ruler. Westhaven is in the imaginatively named West Land, the most recently established region, spreads away from the river to the west, and is the only region that does not border the River Stil. Its ruler, Palatine Lord Riginal III, rules with a light touch. He has to, and his holdings are widely spread and lightly populated. Away from the coastal areas, much of the land is still Ancient Forest, and home to many strange creatures, humanoids and tribes. A road links most of the settlements to the west, although cliffs and wetlands mean that ports and true coastal settlements are a rarity. Most town are some miles inland, and trade along the ‘Coast’ Road (that often doesn’t run close to the coast) can be paramount. As the western most port, Westhaven has long been a stopping point for ships travelling between Stilan and Urgon - and the lands beyond. Many larger vessels now make a direct journey between the two states, but for the smaller coastal vessels, Westhaven is still an important stopping point and trade location.

Hoys trade between Westhaven and Stilan, while Cogs can make the short trip across the narrow deepwater channel, and trade as far as Urgon.