Niswan

The port city of Niswan is the capital of the Impossible Kingdom of Jalmeray. Niswan is a many-tiered city of pagodas renowned for its beauty. Every building supports colourful silk banners that flutter in the cold ocean winds, and red stone streets crisscross the hillsides. Cosmopolitan Niswan is a meeting place for travellers and scholars from all over Golarion, and offers sights seen nowhere else in the region. Here, gold-draped eunuchs walk the streets, and Vudran princes offering strange tribute to statues of gods utterly unknown in this region. Niswan is renowned as a centre of religious learning: its High-Holy district is home to scholars and gurus renowned as some of the wisest people on the face of Golarion,¹ and the city is dotted with numerous shrines, statues, and temples dedicated to the hundreds of deities of the Vudran pantheon.²

Districts and wards

Thakur's Palace: The luxurious palace of the thakur stands upon the highest point in the city. It is an architectural masterpiece; features include numerous elemental servants, and jade fountains that flow with fine wine.³

The Heights: The highest caste families and most important members of the Maurya-Rahm live in mansions on the slopes below the palace. There are numerous warriors living here—both the Thakur's elite guards, and the personal guards of the wealthy.³

Cliff fishers' dwellings: The steep cliffs below the Heights are home to the city's low-caste fisher-folk. They ply their trade in the Obari Ocean by day, and drag their boats up the steep slope each night.³

High-Holy District: The High-Holy District houses numerous gold-inlaid and domed temples and shrines. The largest is the Rahthanam Shrine—a collection of countless small prayer chambers, each dedicated to a different one of the hundreds of Vudran deities.³

Grand Chronicler's Circle: This area houses Niswan's largest library, home to numerous religious texts. The nearby streets are full of scribes, bookshops, and similar establishments selling and creating books, scrolls, and parchments in dozens of languages.³⁴

Maurya-Rahm Ward: This is where the Maurya-Rahm work. The most important members live in the Heights, but the others live here as well.³

Houses of Perfection: The four Houses of Perfection, and their associated testing grounds, are on the road out of the city.³

Commerce District: The Commerce District is the heart of the city's trade, and also includes lodgings and entertainment for visiting merchants.³ In 4718 AR, the Pathfinder Society established their new Pathfinder lodge, the Niswan Lodge, in this district.⁵⁶

Harbor District: The city's bustling harbour sees cargoes from many nations, including much of Katapesh's spice trade and goods from distant Vudra and Tian Xia, en route to the other ports of the Inner Sea. The district is also home to a large part of the city's population, mostly craftsmen and artisans.³ It and the Commerce District are the best places for visitors to find lodgings.⁷

Terraces: The terraced fields behind the Commerce and Harbor Districts are an important source of fresh produce for the city's population, who are mostly vegetarians.³

Surakpor: The southern arm of the harbour is the city's warehouse district.³

Low-Caste District: The city's Low-Caste District is on the periphery, south of the Surakpor. It is a crowded maze of crooked streets.⁷

Features

The city has four springs, which feed canals which flow through the city. As a result, water is plentiful. The spring in the High-Holy District is considered to be sacred, and most citizens bathe in it at least once a year.⁷

There are two massive statues of seated figures, known as the Statues of Concordance. One depicts the legendary Maharajah Khiben-Sald, and the other represents the Archmage Nex.⁷

References

↑ Erik Mona et al. (2008). Campaign Setting, p. 85, 200. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-112-1
↑ John Compton, Eleanor Ferron, Mikko Kallio, Jason Keeley, Isabelle Lee, and Christopher Wasko. (2017). Elemental Master's Handbook, p. 19. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-60125-965-3
↑ ^3.00 ^3.01 ^3.02 ^3.03 ^3.04 ^3.05 ^3.06 ^3.07 ^3.08 ^3.09 ^3.10 Matt Goodall. (2011). Cult of the Ebon Destroyers, p. 30. Paizo Publishing, LLC.
↑ James Jacobs et al. (2011). The Inner Sea World Guide, p. 88. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-269-2
↑ Kate Baker. (2018). Beneath Unbroken Waves, p. 4. Paizo Inc.
↑ Kate Baker et al. (2020). Pathfinder Society Guide, p. 111. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-64078-278-5
↑ ^7.0 ^7.1 ^7.2 ^7.3 Matt Goodall. (2011). Cult of the Ebon Destroyers, p. 31. Paizo Publishing, LLC.

[1] Erik Mona et al. (2008). Campaign Setting, p. 85, 200. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-112-1

[2] John Compton, Eleanor Ferron, Mikko Kallio, Jason Keeley, Isabelle Lee, and Christopher Wasko. (2017). Elemental Master's Handbook, p. 19. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-60125-965-3

[CotED30-3] 3.00 ^3.01 ^3.02 ^3.03 ^3.04 ^3.05 ^3.06 ^3.07 ^3.08 ^3.09 ^3.10 Matt Goodall. (2011). Cult of the Ebon Destroyers, p. 30. Paizo Publishing, LLC.

[ISWG-88-4] James Jacobs et al. (2011). The Inner Sea World Guide, p. 88. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-269-2

[BUW4-5] Kate Baker. (2018). Beneath Unbroken Waves, p. 4. Paizo Inc.

[LOPFSG-111-6] Kate Baker et al. (2020). Pathfinder Society Guide, p. 111. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-64078-278-5

[CotED31-7] 7.0 ^7.1 ^7.2 ^7.3 Matt Goodall. (2011). Cult of the Ebon Destroyers, p. 31. Paizo Publishing, LLC.

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