Doston

It was hard after the flood, but as they say Dostonians do as is their wont, and nobody was feeling like leaving as winter loomed on the horizon.  I remember passing through the streets right after the flood with the rest of the traders in my caravan.  We'd holed up in a cave up in the hills for the night and weren't particularly affected by the rains, apart from the wet ground holding up our horses as we pushed on towards Doston.  We knew it had rained hard, and expected a little bit of flooding from the Dos to have hit the town.  As we crested the last foothill we knew it was bad.  The river had completely burst its banks, flowing a kilometre or two either side onto the plains.  Doston was in metre deep water all the way around.  The docks on the river were gone, and even if we strained our eyes we couldn't make out any more than a few pilings left to mark their existence.  The houses nearest the river were shattered, and even those on the far edges of the town were gone.  We resolved to go in and help the townspeople carry out their belongings.
When we got there, the Dostonians were quite happy.  Some had taken the planks from their shattered houses and tied them together into rafts, and sped through the water around the houses.  Children swam in the floodwaters splashing each other, and even the adults, although slightly more sombre, seemed somehow unaffected by the tremendous devastation that had happened.
We left them there and the next time we came to Doston, about 3 months later, it was as good as new.

Demographics

Doston is a river settlement, occupied mostly by the people of the plains kingdoms.  Most of Doston's population are river workers, either fishing or crewing on the small trading sloops that travel on the Dos.  Other common professions include tanners, farmers, and the occasional healer or cook.  On average, the people of Doston are reasonably well-off, but are poor compared to the middle to elite classes in many other areas.

Government

Doston is run by a town sheriff who works in cooperation with the leader of the local fishing guild.  The sheriff is responsible for reporting to the current ruler of the kingdom in which Doston is situated and carrying out their orders, while the fishing guild as the largest commercial body in the town helps regulate trade and other such things that pertain to their business.

Industry & Trade

Exports:

• Fish
• Grain
• Leather

Imports:

• Lumber
• Exotic goods
• Herbs

Infrastructure

Doston has a large docks on the Dos, which serve its many local ships and large local fishing and trading industry.  Additionally, the city itself has many raised roads that were built after the flood in 382 nearly obliterated the town.  Artificial piles support many houses and other buildings to protect them from flooding.  The town contains many watermills that take advantage of the Dos by drawing water from small side trenches.  These are, however, sunk deep in the ground to ensure flooding cannot extend to the point it did in the great flood of 382.

Assets

Doston itself owns the docks, but most of its local ships are either privately owned or owned by the local fishing guild.  Nearly all property is also owned privately.  Doston does have a small town armoury for defending itself against any river pirates or attacks from neighbouring plains kingdoms - this includes a few sets of chainmail armour, some pikes and swords, and shields.
Doston also has a large granary to store the crops gathered from its municipal farms in the winter.  Said granary often has extra space which is rented out to private farms for their storage over winter, netting the town additional income.

Guilds and Factions

The most important guild in Doston is the Dostonian Fishing Guild, as they control both the town's substantial fishing industry and its river trading, taking in money through taxes on sloop traders and renting and selling many ships to the locals.  In addition to this they have an active hand in the running of the town, and substantial power over the lives of the citizens therein.  When recovering from the great flood of 382 the guild advocated not to raise roads and instead to lower them, creating canals and allowing greater movement of ships.  This was vetoed by the sheriff and the Queen at the time, and the raised road system was adopted instead.

History

Doston was initially established as the capital of the plains kingdom of Trian, before this state was absorbed by the larger kingdom of San in 128.  Since then it has grown prosperous and become a hub of river industry in the San kingdom.
The flood in 382 was devastating to many settlements along the Dos, but Doston due to its proximity to the river and heavy dependence on it was most heavily affected.  Floodwaters reached heights of 5 metres during the worst of the overflow and rain, and many of the town's houses and other buildings were destroyed by the raging Dos as it broke its banks.  The food stored on the lower parts of the granary was rendered inedible by the floodwater, and only 30% of the stored food survived.  The townspeople were reportedly not much fazed by the destruction, and in 3 months time Doston had bounced back with most people living in newly elevated houses.
A major innovation in Doston was the construction of raised roads, after concerned residents pointed out that should another flood occur they would be hard pressed to leave their houses and help others or seek help.  It was decided that the roads would be raised by 2 metres above ground level and the entire town chipped in to pile the dirt required for this undertaking.  The raised roads were adopted in other towns of the San kingdom and eventually spread to other river towns in Mythia, although they are still not a typical sight outside the region.
After the reconstruction of the town, Doston continued to grow and remains a hub of river trade today.

Architecture

Doston houses, while originally the flat, single-storey dwellings of the plains kingdoms, are now raised on stilts or stone pilings and often comprise up to three stories, after the flood destroyed most low-lying buildings.  They are typically made of wood and occasionally stone or brick, and are sometimes painted in white or brown.
The most unique elements of Dostonian architecture are the raised roads and lowered watermills.  These watermills are recessed up to 10 metres into the ground, with trenches off the Dos sunk 5 metres deep at the very least.  They typically are made of stone and often have Preservewrits cast on them to prevent water getting into the machinery within.  All have large, gradually sloping driveways that lead up to the main roads so as to bring in and send out unprocessed or processed grain.

Geography

Doston is located on the edge of the San kingdom, along the river Dos that separates the San territory from that of the Downin.  The Alps loom to the west and the foothills are no more than a day's walk from Dos.

Natural Resources

Dos's most common natural resources are fish, clay, and wheat or other crops.

Type

Large town

Population

4000

Inhabitant Demonym

Dostonian