The Sword Coast

**The Sword Coast** is a major country in northern Faerûn that has served as a central hub to many of the world's adventurers and events, such as the Sundering of Faerûn; an attempt to open deep abyssal trenches into the Underdark to allow the drow armies to spill forth, which was thwarted by the widely known Heroes of Faerûn.

The Sword Coast encapsulates the North and the Heartlands, as well as parts of the Anauroch desert, the Moonshae Isles, and the Endless Ice Sea. The Sword Coast is home to six major cities, three of them being self-proclaimed "capital" cities.

The Sword Coast has a rather unstable political lifestyle, where many cities fight social battles to be considered on an equal level as the six other major cities, while the major cities seek to be better than each other. Most notably is the bitter yet passive rivalry between Luskan and Mirabar, even though both cities depend on each other. Other competitions include the ongoing wars between Candlekeep and Baldur's Gate, as Candlekeep fights to take the city, while Baldur's Gate seeks to exterminate such a pest. Due to political treaties, however, the war has been at a standstill for decades, with many soldiers forgetting it even existed in the first place.

Despite the political struggles, the Sword Coast is ruled over by a council, with each major city represented by three delegates, each minor city represented by two, and each town represented by one. Smaller villages and settlements, while still charted on maps, are usually represented by the nearest city. This council decides actions that should be taken in the country, and has ultimately lead to the independence of the entire Moonshae Isles, excluding Mintarn.

At one point in time, the Free Nation of Amn was originally part of the Sword Coast, but after endless political disputes about Amn's slavery problem, the council finally came to the agreement to exile them from the Sword Coast. Since then, there have been tensions between the Sword Coast and Amn, with the Free Nation behind the assassination of three separate kings of Baldur's Gate, and the Coast responsible for a blockade preventing trade to the other nations surrounding Amn.

## Waterdeep

**Waterdeep**, also known as the City of Splendors, is the heart of the Sword Coast, the divide between the North and the Heartlands. The kings of Waterdeep have all proclaimed it to be the true capital of the Sword Coast, as it is the largest city, and holds the most political and economic power.

Waterdeep is a port city with a population nearing the millions, with a plethora of different ethnic backgrounds as well as races. For merchants, Waterdeep is one of the best starting points in all of Faerûn, with access to budding adventurers, bustling ship routes, and a rather active black market.

To further its representation as the capital of the Sword Coast, Waterdeep maintains a strong relationship with all of the country's major cities, minor cities, towns, villages, and so forth, showing open arms to those in need, as well as refuge for those exiled from their homes. Waterdeep is full of opportunities, and because of this, the law is typically manipulated by expert crime bosses, causing the city's king to be under the corrupt rule of whichever criminal organization pays the highest.

In order to prevent further corruption, some of Waterdeep's highest ranking officials have formed a council of sorts, and have become known as the Masked Lords of Waterdeep. The Masked Lords discreetly run the city under the king's rule in an anonymous circle, with members being swapped out constantly for new ones and their identities being hidden, with more reputable members being rotated every so often. This guarantees that corruption does not interject the council, and that decisions made for the city are not under the blame of one specific person, as all votes are done anonymously by the Masked Lords, and actions are carried out through criminal organizations being bought out to sell the king on specific actions.

While complex in every way, this established political system has allowed Waterdeep to maintain a healthy balance between constantly moving mercantile business and appeased criminal organizations that do not bother innocents. Even with a blanket of crime over the city, underneath those covers is a strong and hardy military with little stopping force, rendering the city impenetrable from outside and inside forces.

## Neverwinter

**Neverwinter** is a major city in the northern reaches of the Sword Coast. It is sometimes known as the City of Adventure, and as the name suggests, it and the surrounding land offer plenty of adventure opportunities for startup guilds.

Neverwinter is a city on the ocean, although its lack of a signified port make it impossible to be a port city. Neverwinter has no notable exports other than a surplus of adventurers, but it is placed in such a location that make it a perfect resting place before travelers delve into the frozen north, towards the city of Luskan, and into the icy wastes beyond.

The city is ruled over by a single queen, and is matriarchal in rule. Other than the adventurous land around it, the only other notable feature of the city is the gaping chasm within, known simply as the Chasm. This chasm opened unexpectedly during the Sundering of Faerûn, and it was from there that the forces of the Underdark began to climb out. Since the Sundering campaign ended, the chasm has remained a part of Neverwinter's landscape ever since.