Beit Castan

Beit Castan (Large City) Deylik of Saganat:

Conventional; AL N;

40,000gp limit; Assets 31,800,000gp;

Population 15,900; Mixed (human 89%, orc/half­orc 7%, halfling 3%, other 1%).

Authority Figure: Turfian Dey ibnt Tayyib al­Bakhoura (N human female Rog 5/Shadow Dancer 7), ruler of Beit Castan and Dey of Saganat.

Highest level Divine Casters:

Yeganeh (LN human female Clr 10/Contemplative 5 of Xan Yae),

Ali­Naghi (LN human male Clr 12 of Zuoken),

Kimiya (human female Clr 5 of Geshtai; reference: ZEF6­01 Out of Water)

Beit Castan is only recently a proper city in Zeif. Originally, it was a coastal settlement belonging to the Bakhoury Coast, but In 3046 BH (387 CY), the town came fully under Zeifan administration when its famed Amir, the last of his kind, proclaimed a self­exile and departed from the city. Some believe that this event was the first leading to the eventual subjugation of the Bakhoury Coast, which is now a Zeif controlled hotbed of civil unrest. Regardless of its implications, the exile of the Last Amir granted Zeif a new city that became its most westerly settlement along the coast, and provided it with continued riches to fund its great power.

Beit Castan is renown for its pearl bed, which lies all over its harbour and beyond. Pearls from here are acclaimed to be some of the largest and richest found throughout the Gulf and the rest of Zeif's coastline. The city has made quite a trade of it, selling its wares mainly to customers from the Bakhoury Coast as well as exporting them east to the aristocracies of Zeif's neighbours.

Beit Castan is also a port of illegal smuggling. The Dusk Lash is said to be headquartered her, and is involved in the illegal transport of many goods from the unstable emirates of the Gulf and the Bakhoury Coast. The criminals of Zeif know that Beit Castan is a good place to rid themselves of loot, and a good place to retrieve items not normally available to the common people of the Sultanate. The Dusk Lash is said to be tied to the faith of Xan Yae, and the Goddess is a popular choice of worship along the Gulf's coasts. She has a temple in Beit Castan which is on the docks, and the Dusk Lash makes a headquarters of a small buildings which adjoins it.

Curiously, Beit Castan is also home to one of the best and few licensed privateers outside of the Bakhoury Coast, where such bounty hunters are common. Turfian Dey is also the ruler of the seaside town, and she works the seas in search of the pirates that smuggle the goods from her city on her ship the Silent Siren in between duties with the town's administration. She is very skilled at her job and is known to be unbelievably lucky in her affairs. Some believe she is favoured by Istus, but others liken her success to the less frequent naval patrols in the area, leaving more for her to catch.

Notable Businesses: The Temizle Nefes, (Geshtaioperated public bathhouse; reference: ZEF6­01 Out of Water)