The Market

The Evenshade Market Pavilion is an elegant open-air structure standing like a crown at the edge of the village proper. Its graceful vaulting roof—made from reddish-brown brick and supported by intricately joined wooden arches—shelters the heart of Evenshade’s daily life. With no enclosing walls, the structure opens directly to the surrounding lands, letting fresh air and birdsong drift through the stalls.

From early morning until dusk, the pavilion is alive with color and sound. Locals sell produce, baked goods, herbs, flowers, and carved wares. The scent of apples and fresh bread mixes with the cool stone air beneath the canopy, while sunlight pours through eight whimsical skylights that seem to ripple like pond water.

The Market Pavilion stands deliberately where civil meets commerce—at the junction between the heart of the village and its outer lifeline. Its proximity to the River Harbor ensures that goods from merchant barges, regional farmers, and traveling artisans can be brought swiftly to market. The stone-and-earth road between harbor and market, with only two wide bends, was engineered to:

1. Ease transport for heavy carts and horse-drawn carriages
2. Maintain line-of-sight from the Harbor Keep watchtower, enabling guards to monitor movement and protect against smuggling or sudden attack

Architectural Details

• Structure:
  A hybrid of timber, stone, and brick, the pavilion is supported by heavy limestone columns, each etched with vines, local wildlife, or quotations from Oghma’s Book of Silent Wisdom.
• Roofing:
  The ceiling vaults 25 feet overhead, constructed from patterned brickwork interlaced with wide arched beams. Skylights let in filtered light, creating shifting mosaics across the stone floor as the sun moves.
• Stalls:
  Permanent stone-and-wood stalls line either side of the interior, covered in green fabric awnings that flap softly in the breeze. Each vendor has their own space, many marked by carved family symbols or clever hanging signs.

Layout

• Main Pavilion: Central nave of ten bays, each supported by stout oak columns and pointed arches. Skylights in the roof admit diffuse daylight.
• Peripheral Stalls: Smaller lean-tos extend beyond the main hall, protected by canvas awnings.
• Raised Platform: At the north entrance, used for public notices, auctions, and heralded announcements.
• Storage Cellar: Beneath the eastern bays lies a cool stone-vaulted cellar for perishable goods and seasonal surpluses.

Market Days & Customs

• Weekly Rhythm: Open on all but Fourthday and particular holidays—aligning with the ten-day week for wide regional trade ties.
• Opening Ritual: At dawn on the first market day each week, the Watch of the Scroll tolls a bell from the Market Tower, and the Guildmaster reads the “Merchant’s Oath.”
• Weights & Measures: Certified brass scales and standard measures are publicly displayed; disputes are settled by the Merchant’s Court under the Council Hall.
• Festival Markets: Special night markets light up during Greengrass and Highharvestide festivals, with lanterns hung from the rafters and music by local bards.

What You’ll Find

• Fresh-caught fish:
  Silverfin, copperback perch, and occasional mudglint. See Fish of the River Chionthar .
• Produce:
  Carrots, apples, butterroot, sharp berries, bitter greens, and heirloom vegetables from surrounding farms.
• Baked Goods & Cheese:
  Seeded loaves, honey rolls, and soft white cheeses wrapped in oiled cloth.
• Crafts & Essentials:
  Candles, hand-carved utensils, soaps, furs, medicinal salves, and parchment.
• Imported Luxuries:
  Spices from distant ports, silks in muted tones, and rare teas. Occasional traveling caravans with exotic curiosities.
• Food & Drink:
  Roasted chestnuts and spiced pastries. Fresh-pressed ciders and ginger-spiced ales (sold on-site in wooden tankards).
• Performers & Philosophers:
  On clear days, bards or temple scribes may set up in the corners to tell tales, share teachings, or trade riddles for figs.

Personnel

• Guildmaster Tessa Greenfield: Oversees stall assignments, fair-trade enforcement, and market expansions.
• Clerk of Weights, Kerizi Val'aton: Maintains the brass scales and adjudicates measurement disputes.
• Head Stallkeeper, Marinella Dune: Coordinates vendor setup, stall maintenance, and clears lanes for foot traffic.
• The Watch of the Scroll Liaison, Constable Brenna Faylock: Ensures order during peak hours and festival crowds.

Lore and Flavor

• Edge of Wild & Civil:
  The market serves as a literal and symbolic threshold between the cultivated wisdom of Evenshade and the mysterious knowledge of the Reaching Woods beyond. Travelers from the docks often stop here first.
• Old Mason’s Mark:
  An ancient builder’s sigil is said to be hidden in the brickwork—those who find it are considered “touched with fortune.”
• Harpers’ Drop Point:
  Rumor says that one of the stone columns is hollow and occasionally used as a secure message cache by the Harpers.
• Festival Use:
  During moon festivals or the Day of Ink and Silence, the stalls are cleared for dances, speeches, and candlelit meals.