Fork

The small town is mostly average people with standard level of education. Most moved from Nosta, which is a much larger town about 5 miles south, and has more competition for jobs and always stays busy being on the main trade road. The people here came to return to the country, have the freedom to start their own shops and craft items of their choosing, rather than what an unimaginative employer thought would sell to the traders coming through. These are people who want to create, and to live their lives in peace.   The town is full of families, some are farmers, many are craftsmen (woodworkers mostly), there are two blacksmiths who share a forge and have different specialties, and one herbalist shop, and one general store.

Chip Diggs is the appointed Mayor, though he isn't exactly excited about it and doesn't like politics. A lumberjack by trade, he prefers getting to the point and getting out to chop wood. He has a knack for construction and rallying people for a common cause, so he got the job. His wife died a number of years ago, and his eldest daughter, Lora, deals with a lot of the logistics. Many in the town are ready to shift to her becoming the official town Mayor, though she is only 16, she is level headed, straight forward, and tactful. She also has no skill in any craft, but also appreciates the skill and talent of the people in the town.   Laws are straight forward and plain. The laws of Raone were adopted upon founding, and the town pays tribute to the Duke of the Eastern Reach, Nibblenock Noseworthy. The town also has the support of the Duke and he brings his wife and daughter by fairly often and makes purchases to support the town.   The town has yet to experience any significant lawbreaking, though small altercations have occurred. In those cases, the townspeople gather in the Timber Hall, the first construction project the town achieved successfully, to review the facts and offenses. The Mayor has final say unless the townspeople as a group object. Thus, public situations are dealt with as a tight knit community.

The town is new, but a guardhouse is under construction. There are four guards who are living as guests in a number of townspeople's homes until the guard house is finished. Two towers are also being constructed. There are no walls except for the old stone wall that has been here since before the town was founded, but it is east of the village and seems to have been built to protect the tower in the woods to the east.

Since the Duke has begun supporting the town, shipments of finished wooden goods are sent out every week. The Duke has arranged a cart to arrive every week to take goods to sell in other towns and deliver payment in coin and goods in return from sold goods last week. In addition, there are a few times in which the town has orders from Nosta and other towns. In this case, a few of the townspeople will load up a cart/wagon and deliver them to Nosta, Lacon, or Lores.

The largest structure in the town is Timber Hall. It's made entirely out of wood, without the use of nails. It serves as a town meeting hall, the town's tavern, and place of shelter during strong storms. It also is a source of pride for the townspeople, since it represents what they can accomplish together.   The rest of the buildings in the village are mostly homes and there is a wide variety in designs, since there is a good mix of elven, dwarven, human, and a Half-Orc couple who reside in the town. All the homes are on the plain side, but well built and clean.   There is also a forge, with a unique layout to accommodate two different work areas. Many of the houses have a covered workshop attached to a house or near it. One small cottage has a garden surrounding the house filled with different colors flowers and other plants, with a sign above the door marking it as an apothecary.   There are also fields nearby that are being worked. Though they aren't large.   One building farther into the town, and built into lightly wooded area is an open lumber mill. It's relatively small, but the purpose is obvious. One structure is an open pavilion built onto a stone platform. There is a low longhouse nearby and a few piles of logs nearby to be cut.

The town is placed in the middle of a forest. An ancient road heading north from the crossroads that existed before the people settled these lands. The ancient road split into two, one heading north west, the other north east. This is where a group of nearly 50 people decided to settle and start a new town about three years ago. The land is mostly flat with gentle hills. It gradually slopes upward the farther north you go, as you approach the cliffs to the north.   To the east, the woods thicken. A traveler will find an ancient stone wall in terrible condition. It might have once been 8 feet high and three feet thick at the base, but now is in crumbled ruins. The wall surrounds a tower just as ancient, and in as much disrepair. Some of the children used to play around it, but last spring, young Jhol died when part of the structure he was playing on collapsed. Everyone in the town avoids it completely.   To the west, the hills become rockier and thin out as you near the Giant's Tears River, a quickly moving rapids river.

A wide variety of trees growing in the area provide the raw materials for the woodworkers in the town. Good farmland allows them to grow most of what they need. Wild berries and apple trees, as well as good hunting in the area also help support the town. Their main export is finished wood products ranging from furniture to toys, to puzzle boxes and training swords.