Frekdal, the trading place

An unassuming intro

Frekdal is a fairly small region located just underneath the Base of the Beast. It became a popular trading hub due to it's connection to one of the main rivers coming from the Base of the Beast, and is one of the most direct paths connecting the Elven region of Cryfifren to the base. The area, which was formerly a town within the Base of the Beast, has now expanded into it's own small region. It has since adapted to it's new purpose and is often full of all sorts of odds and ends from across Vertinall, becoming known for it's unique marketplace and the goods it carries.
Oh right, and everyone that lives there is off their rocker.

Wait what

Come on, did you really think that there would be one place in this hell of a world that's normal?
Frekdal is the kind of place that ranks highest in 'Places I really don't want to be in but have to anyway' when it comes to getting just about any exotic item from the heart of Vertinall. You'd think given that the place would actually be alright, if so many people pass through here on a daily basis and bring a bit of money in, how can it suck?
Actually scratch that I can probably knock off a few reasons why this place sucks.

Wind the clocks back a bit

Go back long enough and Frekdal was an alright place to live. Nothing to write home about, just a little town full of lovely, little people.
Now when I say "Long enough", I'm talking long long. This is far back enough that people aren't really sure what state the rest of the world was in for Frekdal to be anything close to 'lovely'. But it was apparently BEFORE the snake was even about.
...

Look I got told this by some old lady named Doris, who's probably been in Frekdal as long as the Snake has, so I'm buying it. She was basically the only person there that didn't punch me the moment I tried to talk to them.
According to her, after the Snake showed up trading became a necessity to get certain building materials, foods and luxuries, and Frekdal ended up being in just the right (or wrong) spot to trade to and from what then became the Base of the beast. The town was forced to expand, and the locals were a tad bitter about the whole thing.

"Would you like a biscuit dearie? Just be sure to leave a couple for little old me, or I'll break your legs- you get me?"

— Doris, Not as nice as I first thought she was

Back to now, then

That bitterness carried through each and every generation of Frekdalian, and built up to the horrid, foul mouthed and bad tempered individuals you end up seeing today. This lot SERIOUSLY hate everything.
They hate trading. They hate traders. They hate people from other regions. They hate people from Frekdal. They hate hating.
Hang on that last one doesn't sound right- That's the one thing they like. They like hating things.
Okay so they hate mostly everything. But you get my point.

Demographics

While you'll find just about every species and race in the book coming through Frekdal, the people that live there are almost all human. It's this lot that also organises and manages all of the trading stands in the Region.
Generally if there's a stand, it's probably got a human serving behind it.

Government

Frekdal actually has a Mayor, believe it or not.
Nobody cares though.
One thing of note is that the market trading is taxed at a slightly higher rate than most other regions. This small change actually has a huge impact, simply due to the amount of trading done in Frekdal. It is one of the reasons that the place has managed to stay the way it is for so long.
It's also the only thing locals ever rattle on about when you try to talk to them or buy something from them.

Defences

The town has no defenses in the normal sense. But you'd be an idiot to start anything against a Frekdalian. They'll mess you up, man.

Industry & Trade

Anybody and everybody that lives in Frekdal has a family market stall that has been forcibly passed down from one generation to the next.
Nobody enjoys this.

Architecture

Houses in Frekdal are typically quite basic, and made of wood. You'd probably assume they'd have some kind of exotic decorations from all of the places that come through, but folk are stubborn and make their houses look as uninteresting as possible. Any attempts to deviate from this form is normally met with judgement from the neighbourhood for being "too loud".

Alternative Name(s)

Freakdal, shit 'ole, The trading toilet

Type

Large town

Population

5000

Inhabitant Demonym

Frekdalian

Included Locations

• The seat of extraordinary and unbelievable power

by TheDumbOwl (Me)

"One time, I was trading with this guy who was staring right through me SCREAMING constantly. It wasn't like, at me, but he was taking items and drawing up exact change without having to look down or anything. Those guys are nuts, man."

— A concerned trader

Doris, guarding her biscuits by TheDumbOwl (Me)