Eshcol
Eshcol is a port in northwestern Baalthaaz, a few miles south of the Palena River that marks the northern border of the country. The river between Baalthaaz and the City-State of Turkad is supposed to be a neutral area so vessels are (in general) allowed to pass unmolested. Cedar is transported from the area of Zeruin, both as planks of wood and as finished wood products, and logs for the masts of ships come down the Palena tied together as rafts. Sitting on the edge of a large farming region, Eshcol also ships out a lot of agricultural products such as food grown for export and wine from the central hills.
In the flat lands along the Palena River, farmers cultivate tobacco. Most is used inside the country rather than sold in foreign trade and locals are more willing to experiment so more varieties are grown, including some that have stronger or different effects than the plantation tobacco produced by the bale around Turkad to the north.
The city is home to several successful commercial fishing operations, and sells fish to interior towns as well as exporting many varieties of smoked or preserved seafood. The devout people of Eshcol attribute this to the presence in their midst of the high temple of Dagon, god of the sea. The temple is built on piles in the harbor and at high tide seems to float on the surface of the water. Inside, a great statue of the fish-tailed deity stands on a platform behind a bronze altar. Smoke from the burning of offerings rises through many small openings near the roof and wafts out over the city. These offerings are usually land animals, but may also be land birds.
Another method of sacrifice is to take a creature out on a boat into deep water, truss it up, and drop it into the sea; the larger, more intelligent, or more exotic the creature, the more it is hoped Dagon will value the sacrifice. When a fishing boat puts to sea with a dog or goat aboard, it is likely the crew is planning on this sort of offering. If the boat carries a sheep or calf, it probably means the owner has severely offended the deity and is trying to make reparations before a tragedy occurs. Foreigners do occasionally disappear from the dock area, but no one has ever proven one of the fishermen (or the priests of Dagon) is responsible.
Other than the large temple to Dagon, the city also has the usual temples to Baal and to Athera, and many shrines or small chapels to various of the Seventy Gracious Gods. The queen also has a personal shrine to Illion inside her palace.
Queen Talmaia rules her city and its area with a tight grip. Her beautiful speaking voice tends to make people want to agree with her, because everything she says sounds pleasing and reasonable. Even her own advisors sometimes have trouble disagreeing with her because her voice distracts people from their thoughts. The queen is known to be diplomatic, but also ruthless with enemies and competitors.
Settlement
Eshcol, City of
Type
City
Owning Organization
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