he Western Ruins

Despite the name, this district is no longer the wreckage it used to be. This former Textile District is where the city wall was breached during the last invasion and it experienced the most brutal fighting. As a result, most buildings were razed to the ground. The district was later reclaimed for the city, and the breach hastily repaired. Freed from the threat of the invaders, many refugees from the war have returned to occupy and rebuild the area. Along with them, numerous immigrants from all over the Moonsea have come to live in the section, attracted by the offer of steady jobs and a promising future. That has not come without trouble. The vast majority of the current inhabitants of the Western Ruins are of the poorest extraction and the mixture of older Phlanites and newcomers puts a strain on the daily life of the district as racism and xenophobia flare.

The situation has turned explosive in the case of the relatively large community of migrants from Melvaunt due to the recent history of conflict between the two cities. The Melvauntians live in a kind of unwalled ghetto within the Western Ruins, and in the past years they have been subject to pogroms for just about any reason. The situation has gotten better lately as the Watch has reasserted its authority and the living standards have improved. However, the need for the Melvauntians to self defense has produced a system of violent gangs whose only bonding lies in their staunch racism and their union against external threats to their community. These gangs, collectively known as the Good Folk, are otherwise warring among themselves in petty turf wars and engaged in criminal activities.

The Western Ruins are a collection of makeshift buildings and even tents that form a maze where the occasional visitor may easily get lost. In the case of the Melvauntian neighborhood this is less than advisable, as the Good Folk often receives visitors with hostility, and crimes committed there are rarely reported. While the watch avoids the depths of the ghetto except for token patrols, the mere slums nearest the gate are patrolled more often and are relatively safe. Night assignments are however avoided like the plague.

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