Hey @TheEdVerse, I am impressed by how detailed Waterdeep's sewers are, but a friend of mine is running "Murder in Baldur's Gate" and we couldn't find much online about its sewers.
Is there anything you can share on its history and how it functions? I'm curious how they compare.— Sundered|🐜|ENVTuber (@Sundered_Ant) July 24, 2021
1)
Here’s a starter:
Waterdeep’s sewers are tidal, and cleaned by the merfolk and some powerful Ahghairon-cast (and Watchdul Order-renewed) spells that involve mass teleports to the Rat Hills. 2)
It has big versions of the sort of boxes many of us now have in our basements, that prevent backups (the gate that is pushed up by sewage coming the wrong way, to close the opening).
The oldest parts are a large semicircular…#Realmslore— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) July 25, 2021
3)
…channel that runs around (inland side) the spur of Mount Waterdeep that juts out into Castle Ward (and that Sea and North Wards drain into), and drains through Dock Ward, and two trunk sewers that drain South and Trades Ward… 4)
…through Dock Ward. The northern part of this had sufficient headroom for walkways along one or both sides of the wet channels, underground, but Dock Ward did not. However, as the long years have passed and the city had built…#Realmslore— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) July 25, 2021
5)
…up and up on its own ruins and foundations, the level of the streets has risen, cellars have become undercellars and finally the Warrens, and indoor plumbing now has sufficient “drop” to flush properly (when ewers of water… 6)
…are poured down garderobes, or foot-treadles open pipes from roof rainwater cisterns to sluice downwards).
The authorities have long been aware of the perils of allowing a network of underground easy-passage routes, so spiked…#Realmslore— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) July 25, 2021
7)
…screens divide the tunnels into segments, readily accessed from individual cellars (the owners of which receive tax breaks from the Palace for allowing access, and penlaties if they refuse it) but only laboriously traversed… 8)
…by some trying to stay underground (i.e. criminals and undesirables). This in turn makes small segments of it ideal for the Xanathar and others to set up meeting-places (NOT “hideouts” or “bases”) in.#Realmslore— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) July 25, 2021
I hate to bug you about this Ed, since it has been three days since you posted this – but I don't understand what you meant by "spiked screens divide the tunnels into segments."
Could you elaborate on this? I've never seen this stated in any of the Waterdeep sourcebooks.— Sundered|🐜|ENVTuber (@Sundered_Ant) July 27, 2021
1)
To prevent REALLY bad clogs, many sewer systems have screens across channels to “catch” large debris, that workers come along and clean (taking the debris up and out access shafts). Spikes jutting out from screens catch more debris, and dissuade miscreants from… 2)
…easily getting right up to screens to work on them with acid, or files, or anything else short of spells. If the screens are sited fairly often, they have the effect of dividing the sewers into segments (not for liquid and sewage that flow through the screens…#Realmslore— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) July 28, 2021
3)
…, but from the POV of beings trying to travel through the sewers, who keep running into barriers. City crews work on a segment; criminals find the screens to be frustrating barriers to using the sewers as a covert highway.
And there's a lot of unpublished lore. #Realmslore— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) July 28, 2021