Marketplace Shophouses

Ather, the new capital district for The Republic of the Reaches, is under heavy construction. Sections of the city have been surveyed and wealthy lords have purchased rights to build out various wards of the city and charge appropriately. Lord Demion has had his mind set on building a substantial market, a showcase for goods from around the sphere. But he also needs places for tenants to live. So he has built up.
The shophouses of Guild towns have always been tall and narrow, typically three stories tall, with shops on the ground floor and residences above. In Ather, Lord Demion's architects and workers have gone much higher, with residences five, sometimes six floors above the street. The houses are built with no room in between, such that they appear to be supporting each other.
Knowing that wealthy residents will not wish to climb so many stairs, the best suites are on the lower floors. The dwellings at the top of the towers are small, and a hard climb to reach. The only advantage to living on the top floor is the view (out over the rest of the construction work) and the fresh breeze (when it does not smell like swamp.) Residents often own or work in the shops below, or in related professions such as accounting, factoring, or trade law.

Contents & Furnishings

The floors are typically smooth wood planks, or stone tile in the units meant for the wealthy. The interior walls are white plaster, a tradition in the Reach going back hundreds of years. Furnishings are plain, even among the wealthy, though you can observe higher quality and greater rarity in the materials used for those with more coin.

Moving Day

The shophouses have doors facing outward on each floor, and hoist arms extending from the roof, so that bulky items can be raised from the street below and hoisted directly into the living quarters above.

DRAFT

This article is currently a work in progress and may be incomplete or subject to change.