The Divide

The home away from home for those who work in the Mines of the Shrouded District. Nestled deep within the immense entrance to the mines, The Divide is used as a base of operations for all miners. Spanning the entirety of the first level, The Divide was built into the walls of the circular cavern.

History

The more Vallaki grew as a city the deeper the mines were required to be dug. The further the mines were dug the more rare minerals were discovered nestled in between the large abundance of coal and natural caverns. The more that was found the more the city grew; thus was the cycle created. The more they found the the higher the demand came for both raw and refined materials, which made the companies richer and richer, which then fueled their greed for more expansion. Combined with the need for defense from the The Scourge  and the perfect storm of industrialization was formed. Miners continued to go deeper and deeper into the bowls of Barovia and soo enough more and more levels were constructed to aid in the process. With the ever expanding tunnels came a need to work more hours, which in turn created the need for a place to stay during the long shifts: Thus The Divide was born.

The Divide itself is a ragtag shanty town build entirely out of steel and stone, with several of the buildings themselves built into the stone walls itself. Due to the nature of the mines the whole ground is made entirely out of steel beams, creating a false ground for people to traverse. At first everything built here was entirely owned by the Mining company, but as time passed more and more independent shops opened up as several business owners saw an opportunity to make some quick cash.

The Divide is split into three distinct areas or rings: The Grindstone, The Flux (inner amusement area), and The Warren.

The Grindstone

The Grindstone is the center of the platform and where all logistics are taken care of. Run entirely by the mining company, the center is entirely a industrial area for the mines. This is where all materials are separated, tallied, and prepared for transport. This is also where all miners check in and out before and after their shifts, and where all of the machinery is operated. Navigating through the jungle of pulleys, hoists, drums, suspensions cords, and suspension cords is already difficult enough, but combined with the numerous other pieces of equipment used by the other aspects of the company, such as the separators and transporters, and it is like a steel maze; with several hundred pokey bits sticking out and ready to cut you up.

Due to the nature of The Grindstone, some of the widest and well constructed buildings exist here to house all the elevators and processing stations. After checking in for each shift, groups of miners are given minecarts and tasked with going to one of the numerous levels to relieve the previous shift of miners. Once you are relieved, you are expected to report back up top with all of your findings, where you are then paid for the day. The pay, unfortunately, is incredibly little; amounting to only a few gold a day.

The Flux

The Flux is the closest you will get to normality within The Divide. The Flux itself consists of several well constructed, and not so well constructed, buildings made out of stone and wood. While many buildings here consist of warehouses for the company, the remaining buildings are owned by individuals or other corporate entities. This is where many miners come to relax after a hard day of work, or even on the weekends if they moved their families into The Divide. While you wont find any quality shop like you would top side, you do have your basics. Cobblers, tailors, woodworkers; many small shops with very little going for them. The true big shots of the Flux are those that can provide more enjoyable situations. Purveyors of delightful goods and experiences to help wash away the struggle and pain of working so far away from home. From the mundane, such as tobacco and alcohols, to the more exotic, such as drugs and gambling; these people have a iron grip on the miners, and are not willing to let go.

The most infamous of these businesses are that of Ricky's Casino, the Fortunes Favor. Here people gamble away their earnings, and sometimes life savings, in an effort to make themselves rich enough to get out of this hellhole.

The Warren

The Warren makes up the outer ring of The Divide, consisting entirely of buildings built directly into the walls of the cavern. This is where you will find a majority of the living spaces provided by the mining company, which consists mostly of incredibly poor pubs, dive bars, and incredibly shotty taverns. Here you will find, by surface standards, incredibly cheap meals and places to stay nights. Unlike the surface, you will find no charm, pizzazz, or quality to any meal, drink, or place to stay. The food is often stale and old, the drinks are diluted and taste like shit, and the rooms are just that: Rooms. You'd be lucky to find any with proper bedding. But for those working the mines even the simplest of food, drink, and rooms can be seen as a godsend. 

Outside of the living quarters, you will also find several smaller shafts dug into the walls. These act not only as chambers to help reduce the buildup of toxic chemicals and pollution, but also serve as tracks for minecarts being sent to and fro the processing plants top side.