Old Deer River
Old Deer River falls from just below the castle, winds through town, and then heads southwest to intersect with the Leather Road (and continue further into the Deep Forest). Old Deer River is a light river, more a stream in late summer, but it can grow to decent size in the spring as the snows melt.
Map Features: Roads
The curved (red in the color map) path running from the gates and around the houses are the major roads of Biblyon. There are many more alleys, especially in the Merchant’s Quarter and the Newtown Quarter areas.
Map Features: Trees
Trees on the map represent more than one tree. Trees generally only exist in gardens. Most of the trees in the valley have been cut down and used for building or fire wood.
Valley Walls
On the north and south sides of the valley, the mountainside rises sharply. The buildings on the south side of town are a hundred feet higher than the buildings near the river. The Library is the highest building in town.
Waterfall and Pool
At the east end of town a small waterfall tumbles down the cliff face. In the spring, the waterfall (and the river) grow to twice their size. A natural pathway winds up the mountainside toward the castle. At the top of the waterfall, the pathway also goes north and south to many of the farmers’, herders’, and miners’ homes.
The Graveyard (11)
In the graveyard outside of town, it is easy to see when the mass suicide occurred. There is a cluster of about a hundred (81) very simple graves, with wooden crosses and a faded “1911” written on them.
The Market Square (12)
If you want to buy books, writing supplies, and the services of research assistants, there is no better place to go than Biblyon’s Market in their town square. Farmers also set up here.
The Market is seasonally available. Whenever people gather to sell, some gather to buy. There can be as few as zero or one merchants, or as many as several hundred. There tend to be more on Sundays and around full moons. The Sundays before major holidays, such as Christmas, Easter, Summer, and Harvest, are also big market days.
You’re not likely to find a rare book in the Market, but one or two have been known to slip under the watchful eye of the Tutors. Occasionally bits and pieces from the Castle show up in the market, either as part of a townsfolk’s or farmer’s stall, or having been bartered by a local to a more regular merchant.
Merchants Quarter (13)
Most shops are set up in the merchant’s quarter, though on Market days merchants with portable merchandise are likely to be in Market Square. During the day, the Merchants Quarter is crowded with scholar, farmer, trader, and merchant. During the evening the focus of the crowd is the Fons Tabernus near the river.
Uphill (21)
The “uphill” area on the south side of the main road is the home of the richer members of town, often merchants who have made money and want to retire to a life of study.
Downhill (22)
The Downhill area is where most people live in Biblyon. These are the woodcutters, the servants, the waiters and bartenders and waitresses of Biblyon. Farmers who have a “Biblyon home” probably have it in the downhill area.
Outhill (23)
The town is growing, and houses and businesses are being built outside of the wall.
Midhill (25)
If there were such a thing as a middle class, they would live Midhill. These are the long-term visiting scholars, the librarians, the upscale farmer-scholar, the tutors that have their own home outside of the House of Tutors. Here, the houses are built with slightly more space and privacy than Downhill, but much less than Uphill.
Boatyards (27)
The Old Deer River cuts southwest across Highland and intersects with the Leather Road before heading into the Forest. Some travelers to Black Stag will bypass half of the Leather Road by taking the river. A single passenger trip from Biblyon to the Leather Road will generally run about a shilling, and take two to three days. Passengers will be dropped off at the Old Deer Bridge one hundred and fifty miles east of Black Stag.
