Sandpoint was founded about 50 years ago by a league of merchants from the city-state of Magnimar, which lies about 70 miles to the southwest. The guild found a perfect natural harbor that was uninhabited by civilized people, and sent a force in to subdue the local humanoids (mostly goblins). Unfortunately, there were a band of Varisians (a human people native to the area) that had settled in the same land, but they were little match for the Guild's forces. Reluctantly, they allowed the newcomers to take over.
Despite the blood that was shed at its founding, Sandpoint today is a peaceful and close-knit community. Its population currently stands at about 1300, and is growing. It boasts a playhouse, a museum, a school, and a newly-constructed cathedral. The largest attraction is the ruined 200-foot-tall tower called the Sandpoint Light, which has stood for thousands of years. Assumed to be a lighthouse, no one is really sure what purpose it served, but it is one of many massive monuments built by the long-vanished Thassaloninan Empire. One thing that is known about the Sandpoint Light is that it was originally at least twice as tall as it is today.
Not beset by the forces of marauders like a true frontier town, nor the hotbed of intrigue and/or crime of a large city, Sandpoint is one of the few truly peaceful places in the land of Varisia. However, Sandpoint has seen its share of troubles, known to the locals as the Late Unpleasantness. Five years ago, the town was terrorized by a serial murderer known as The Chopper, who killed more than a dozen of people in town over a period of months. The Chopper's reign of terror finally ended in a melee with the town sheriff, who killed the murderer, but was also mortally wounded in the fight. The Chopper was revealed to be Jervis Stoot, a local eccentric woodcarver of great renown. Not a month after The Chopper was slain, a fire broke out in the temple which spread to engulf a fifth of the town. Thankfully, only a handful died in the Sandpoint Fire, but the dead included the town priest and his daughter.
With the Late Unpleasantness behind them, the townsfolk are looking forward to this year's Swallowtail Festival (a late summer holiday), which will include the official dedication of the new Sandpoint Cathedral. Among the celebrants gathered for the Swallowtail Festival are a number of new adventurers...
Not beset by the forces of marauders like a true frontier town, nor the hotbed of intrigue and/or crime of a large city, Sandpoint is one of the few truly peaceful places in the land of Varisia. However, Sandpoint has seen its share of troubles, known to the locals as the Late Unpleasantness. Five years ago, the town was terrorized by a serial murderer known as The Chopper, who killed more than a dozen of people in town over a period of months. The Chopper's reign of terror finally ended in a melee with the town sheriff, who killed the murderer, but was also mortally wounded in the fight. The Chopper was revealed to be Jervis Stoot, a local eccentric woodcarver of great renown. Not a month after The Chopper was slain, a fire broke out in the temple which spread to engulf a fifth of the town. Thankfully, only a handful died in the Sandpoint Fire, but the dead included the town priest and his daughter.
With the Late Unpleasantness behind them, the townsfolk are looking forward to this year's Swallowtail Festival (a late summer holiday), which will include the official dedication of the new Sandpoint Cathedral. Among the celebrants gathered for the Swallowtail Festival are a number of new adventurers...
