Niswan

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Niswan

(City)

N

City

Titles

City of Pagodas

Nation

Jalmeray

Level

16

Size

Large city

Population

10,300

Demographics

89% human, 11% other

Government

Council

Alignment

Neutral

Demonym

Niswani

Adjective

Niswani

Ruler

Kharswan, Thakur of Jalmeray

Leader

Grand Master of Untwisting Iron Rajni Ayasa, Keeper of the Temple Mannan Villauta, Lord Raheem Pandisar

Images of Niswan

Source: Cult of the Ebon Destroyers, pg(s). 30 (1E)
Impossible Lands, pg(s). 189 (2E)

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, and the city is dotted with numerous shrines, statues, and temples dedicated to the hundreds of deities of the Vudran pantheon.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Houses of Perfection

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

Commerce District

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

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. It and the Commerce District are the best places for visitors to find lodgings.

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.

Surakpor

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

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.

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.

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.

Holidays

Testament to Ashukharma

The largest winter festival, held on the final day of Calistril, in which people make amends with others by splitting colorful rocks and fashioning them into jewelery.

Yolarati

Joyful and welcoming festival of color held on the first new moon of spring, as people throw colored powders on bystanders and engage in games of dodging color-filled bags. Popular with tourists and visitors, gnomes, naaris, and sylphs.

Festival of Flights

A multi-day kite flying event in Erastus capped by a large parade of religious flying displays.

Admani Upastuti

Celebration of Jalmeray's founding held on the first full moon of Lamashan marked by storytelling around Khiben-Sald and the city's creation. Includes events recognizing the plight of the indigenous Sunghari people.

Azvadeva Dejal (Gruhastha)

Celebration of the revelation of the Azvadeva Pujila as held in Niswan, featuring contests of esoteric knowledge and exhibitions of research, invention, and storytelling.