What does Turtleback Ferry Trade in Exactly?

[Grimcleaver]

I'm introducing the characters to Turtleback Ferry tomorrow, and have been pouring over all the information, for the first time really, and one big question has come up and I can't seem to find much of an answer. Turtleback Ferry is in this ulcer-inducing part of the world ripe with trolls and ogres and all sorts of awful stuff, including recently Black Magga arrived from the Storval Deeps. Yikes. But they are a thriving trade town as big as Ilsurian with their own fort, ferries to carry trade down river, big solid roads to survive floods, the wicker road to encourage trade with the secluded gnomes of the Sanos and an awesome trade for protection relationship with distant Magnimar which is apparently worth enough to them that they're willing to shuck out thousands of gold to a group of adventurers to go ensure that the town is okay.

Holy cow! What do those guys trade in? I know they fish, sure and they trap furs and meat. Yeah. But what do they produce that big city folk trade for? Are there mines or something? Rare magical material harvested from the woods? I just don't get it. I looked around the minimap for something that was already there that I had maybe overlooked. I just am not seeing it.

Now yeah, I can probably make something up on my own, but you guys are pretty great usually about chipping in with your ideas and I always feel like what I come up with is better for your contributions as well as the original thoughts of the writers (who usually find their way in to comment too--I love this place). It always makes for a richer story. Thanks.

[robin]

I would say gnomish products
Otherwise , I rather think it's a trading post for people in the area and not for intercontinental trade

[Coridan]

I think the town is there more to support the fort than the fort is there to protect the town. They're also probably the big market for the gnomes from the woods next door to move their goods into human lands without having to let humans into their lands or to have to go all the way out to big human lands themselves.

[James Jacobs]

Admittedly, Turtleback Ferry's a bit underdeveloped, but that said, here's my thoughts just off the top of my head:

1: They might do some lumber trade.
2: They certainly do furs and hunt for meat and fish.
3: They could even serve as a "gateway" to trade with the gnomes of Sanos Forest.

But for the most part... they don't really trade with other cities. They're on the very edge of civilized Varisia, not quite under Magnimar or Korvosa control. They do enough to support themselves, and likely trade with the other small villages nearby, but it's certainly possible that they DON'T have any major exports out of the area to the more civilized reaches of Varisia. This is the route I'd take were I to develop the town further.

[Charles Evans 25]

As far as I recall from the background information in PF #3, Turtleback Ferry was there before the Fort; the Fort was added to stop ogres raiding the town.

Bridging points (or ferry services) across rivers (particularly in fantasy worlds where things living in rivers may render fords not quite so safe as in the real wold) form a 'bottleneck' for routes to pass through, so it might be a natural place for people to meet and trade. If you have a ferry service, people might not necessarily want to cross at night, so will need/want somewhere to stay. Goods being moved up river, to await collection by land-travelling caravans or mule trains, will need storage space (warehouses, etc) to be kept in, since 'connections' won't always be guaranteed to arrive on time, and the same will apply for goods waiting to transfer from road to water. At the same time, people accompanying those goods (the owner or a trusted representative, plus guards unless the owner or representive is a mighty hero in their own right) are going to want somewhere to stay. There may very well be demand for 'hands' locally to carry out the handling of goods, moving them to/from warehouses, or loading directly from boat or mule train.

More recently, the place will handle supplies and/or new conscripts moving upto Fort Rannick as well.

Anyway. There are some thoughts. 'Services' to travellers and merchants aside, a lot of the population may still exist on basis of people scraping a living from farms, coming together to trade/barter with one another, and to offer any surplus for sale to passing merchants.

[logic_poet]

�@�@James Jacobs"] Admittedly, Turtleback Ferry's a bit underdeveloped, but that said, here's my thoughts just off the top of my head:

1: They might do some lumber trade.
2: They certainly do furs and hunt for meat and fish.
3: They could even serve as a "gateway" to trade with the gnomes of Sanos Forest.

But for the most part... they don't really trade with other cities. They're on the very edge of civilized Varisia, not quite under Magnimar or Korvosa control. They do enough to support themselves, and likely trade with the other small villages nearby, but it's certainly possible that they DON'T have any major exports out of the area to the more civilized reaches of Varisia. This is the route I'd take were I to develop the town further. Magnimar probably also values TbF for the denial value to Korvosa. They might(with some reason) think it strategically unwise to allow Korvosa any influence at all on the rivers that lead to Magnimar. After all, Korvosan agents on the Yondabakari might be sent to the boggards, which probably give Magnimar enough trouble on their own. Especially since the Korvosan navy could run metal weapons (or bribes, or whatever) along the long southern coast of the fens. Korvosa might not send military advisors that way, though, since it would be more of a slog for them than for the boggards. In this scenario, Magnimar wants Turtleback Ferry because:

• It gives Magnimar another base, along with Whistledown, to
  threaten Korvosan influence in Ilsurian and the other Lake Syrantula settlements.
  
• To protect Skull Dam, without which the Yondabakari would be different. Any trouble on that river is bad for Magnimar, as it is bound to stir up the boggards and/or interfere with their freshwater supply. Invasion and irrigation problems are two major causes of civilizations failing in the real world, after all. In this option and the previous, I would beef up the Magnimarian presence in Whistledown.
  
• Although not a great place to access the Storval, depending on how well Riddleport influences the Churchain Hills region, Magnimar might not have many other ways to get to there, which they need for two reasons: 1) The Shoanti, who they probably want as potential allies against Korvosa. 2) Magnimar wants an entry to the trade in Thassilonian artifacts from up there, to which Riddleport and especially Korvosa have superior access. These reasons assume that Rederick's Cove was not just a place to sign a treaty, but maybe also the scene of some conflict with Magnimar's northern rivals.
  
• Similarly, it is a sub-optimal, but possible, jumping off point for Magnimar to communicate with Kaer Maga. KM specializes in objects with generally low volume and mass but high value (ie, magic).
  
• To deny it as a place for agents of Korvosa and Riddleport to jointly meet and plot against Magnimar.
  
• To encourage the gnomes of the Sanos to trade with them, rather than the devil worshipping Korvosans. Depending on how sinister your gnomes are, maybe Magnimar distrusts them and fears they'd be natural allies with K. Accordingly, they try and get to all the easy access points to the Sanos just to keep Korvosa out.
  

Basically, you should assume that Riddleport's barbarian enemies are the Linnorm Kings (vikings), Korvosa fears the Shoanti uniting and spilling down those eastern river valleys (a mutual fear of this possibility probably helps their relations with Janderhoff, and might make W1 a good sidequest in or prequel to AP2, since as strong as Korvosa might be, its back is to the wall), and Magnimar worries about the boggard tribes uniting and swarming out of the Mushfens. Each citystate knows the others' fears, and tries to stay friendly to potential enemies of their rivals in case of war.

Going off topic and looking to AP3, Magnimar is almost as interested as Riddleport is in trouble in the Mierani. Both R and M would want to help the elves. M because they'd like them as a potential ally against R, and R for the same reason, and also slef-preservation/fear of the threat that something the elves can't handle would pose them.

[Grimcleaver]

As often is the case, the seeds of the answer to a question is right there if you look. There's some suggestions as to why Turtleback Ferry and environs are so wealthy and important.

Merchant Deal suggests that traders from organizations like Janderhoff and the Apis Consortium would be interested in the region as a resupply point, to the tune of 100 gp a month.

Local Gift suggests that there is in fact mining interests in the mountains, and that periodically veins of precious metals are found (presumably among less precious materials that are ordinarilly mine).

There's some other suggestions too--ones that people have mentioned already, dignitaries and Shoanti heroes wintering there, bribes coming in from Magnimar and Korvosa. So yeah, mostly you guys have been right on the money.

Anyway thanks. It's about that time. Hopefully I've been able to crunch enough to paint things vividly enough. You guys have all helped a ton.