Population: 780 permanent residents, with a constantly shifting transient population
Overview: Orien rest stop on the Border Road
Key NPCs: Kolara d’Orien (female human administrator), Barro d’Ghallanda (male halfling innkeeper), Veskala (female kobold innkeeper)
For centuries, Orien Route 7 has been an important trade road allowing for the transport of goods between Breland and Aundair. Unicorn Point was established centuries ago as a simple Orien waystation to support couriers and caravans. Then they realized that they needed a Vadalis presence to provide fresh mounts for couriers and caravan teams. And what about a Gold Dragon Inn to support the increasing traffic? And a Jorasco healer to take care of injured travelers? And a Cannith tinker to repair damaged vehicles? With each such addition, Unicorn Point grew, until it had truly become a town in its own right. However, it’s in a strange middle ground because it’s not a traditional town. The residents of Unicorn Point aren’t Brelish or Droaamite, they’re all heirs of the dragonmarked houses. There is no mayor or magistrate; everyone in Unicorn Point works there, and the houses are renting the land from Count ir’Blis. House Orien has the strongest presence in Unicorn Point, but they don’t hold any sort of absolute authority over the other house representatives. In general, it’s in everyone’s best interests to get along… but there’s a lot of room for interhouse intrigue at Unicorn Point!
Overall, Unicorn Point is dense, functional, and relentlessly commercial. Every service is tied to a house guild. All permanent residents live in house outposts. It’s not a town; it’s more like a spaceport or a truck stop.
The King’s Assessors of Breland maintain a roadblock just south of Unicorn Point, where they make sure that all caravans have paid appropriate taxes on their cargo. However, the people of Unicorn Point don’t care about Brelish taxes and make no judgments about smugglers.
Unicorn Point has representatives from almost every Dragonmarked House. The notable exceptions are House Lyrandar and House Thuranni; Phiarlan has the entertainment contract, and with no airship tower and no waterways, there’s not much use for the Windcallers. Here’s an overview of the services.
House Cannith maintains and repairs land vehicles, and maintains a staff of tinkers who can perform general repair and maintenance on the structures and equipment of Unicorn Point itself. Cannith also runs a general store providing hardware and common magic items. The Cannith outpost is part of the central Orien enclave.
House Deneith maintains a force of 40 Blademark mercenaries. By default, these Blademark soldiers are there to defend Unicorn Point from raiders, but guests can hire a bodyguard for the duration of their stay should they wish.
House Ghallanda runs the largest Gold Dragon Inn on the Western Frontier. It has a vast wing of modest rooms, with a smaller number of comfortable rooms; there is no wealthy suite at Unicorn Point.
House Jorasco maintains a small but efficient healing house. They can’t raise the dead, but they can provide the other standard services.
House Kundarak has a bank with a small vault at Unicorn Point. Generally speaking, people don’t stay in Unicorn Point long enough to need long-term storage or banking services, but some travelers feel a need to store valuable goods in the Kundarak vault overnight. As with all Kundarak enclaves, the bankers ask no questions about the goods being stored.
House Medani has no outpost of its own, but House Orien keeps three Medani inquisitives on retainer at the Orien enclave in case there’s trouble, and they can sell their services to travelers.
House Orien maintains the large enclave that serves as the heart of Unicorn Point. Working with House Vadalis and House Cannith, they ensure that all Orien coaches and caravans are kept in working order and that drivers and couriers can get fresh mounts if needed. There are barracks for Orien drivers, so they don’t have to pay for a room at the Gold Dragon. The enclave also contains a Teleportation Circle for people who absolutely have to end their journey, though the cost is prohibitively expensive for most travelers. In addition to its own services, Orien allows traveling merchants to sell goods in an open marketplace in front of the Orien enclave, and there’s always a diverse assortment of offerings.
House Phiarlan has a contract to provide entertainment at the Gold Dragon Inn, and Phiarlan entertainers often perform at the open market in front of the Orien enclave.
House Sivis has a small station—Stone 66—that provides the services of the Speaking Stone and the option of Sending.
House Tharashk maintains a small outpost at Unicorn Point, primarily providing lodging and supplies for Tharashk bounty hunters and agents of the Dragonne’s Roar.
House Vadalis maintains the stables that are part of the Orien enclave, while also running a separate stable and livery for guests who aren’t associated with House Orien. They have established a series of large, fenced pastures for traveling Vadalis monarchs who need to temporarily pause with their beasts.
Unicorn Point is a collection of Dragonmarked enclaves, but it is an extremely practical outpost. It is driven by the constant stream of caravans and convoys. The Cannith scions aren’t engaging in abstract arcane research; they are fixing broken axles and Mending wheels. Most of the people of the Point are hard-working and plain spoken, with little interest in the intrigues and schemes their houses may be engaged in elsewhere in the world. Here are a few notable denizens of the Point.
The Queen of the Road. Lady Kolara d’Orien is the current administrator of Unicorn Point, but she didn’t rise to this position by sitting behind a desk. Kolara spent a decade driving Thunder Coaches, before shifting focus to serve as a Blade of Orien defending convoys on the most dangerous routes. Initially assigned to assist the Deneith mercenaries at the Point, Kolara took charge when other house leaders were slain in a raid during the war. House leadership was impressed by her charisma and tactical acumen and assigned her the de facto command of the Point. Kolara is good at her job, maintaining strict discipline among the Orien staff and ensuring the steady flow of traffic; it helps that she has a keen understanding of the teamsters’ experience. But she also delights in spending time in the Gold Dragon Inn and the Orien canteen, gambling and carousing with travelers and encouraging the drivers to share their tales. She is renowned for her capacity for drink and her luck at cards, and beloved by many travelers—hence her title as the Queen of the Road. Now fifty-three, Kolara isn’t as spry as she once was and prefers to avoid drawing her sword. However, her training as a Blade of Orien allows her to cast a variation of Vortex Warp, teleporting a target up to 150 feet to a place she can see or knows well; those who cause trouble in the Gold Dragon might suddenly find themselves in the brig.
Lord Barro. Barro d’Ghallanda is the host of Unicorn Point’s enormous Gold Dragon Inn. A burly halfling with a baritone voice and a thick beard, he is determined to provide every patron with the most delightful experience possible. He remembers the preferences of the teamsters who regularly pass through the Point, and always strives to learn everything he can about new customers. While he would never actively betray a confidence, he loves to see people happy and often works as a matchmaker—helping to establish romantic or business connections between people in need. People have gotten quite used to Lord Barro’s well-intended nosiness. With this in mind, it’s just possible that Barro is also serving as an informant for the King’s Dark Lanterns, the Royal Eyes of Aundair, or others eager to know who’s traveling along the Border Road and what they’re carrying…
Veskala. Over the last few years, the number of Droaamites traveling along the road has increased. Veskala’s is an inn catering to the appetites and needs of the monsters on the road, from gnolls to goblins. While Unicorn Point is primarily a Dragonmarked outpost, Tharashk viceroy Kundran Torrn of Graywall pulled some strings to help the kobold Veskala get established at the Point; her hostel is technically part of the Tharashk enclave, and is a favored destination for traveling mercenaries tied to the Dragonne’s Roar. While it is tiny in comparison to the Gold Dragon Inn, if you’re keen to try Droaamite cuisine or to listen to a little harpy song, head to the common room at Veskala’s. Veskala herself grew up in the kitchens of what is now Turakbar’s Fist. She escaped to Graywall when the Daughters rose to power, and it was there she befriended Viceroy Torrn. She is devoted to the Fury and there may have been some divine power that has helped her survive and prosper. Veskala takes vengeance very seriously, and she is determined to someday make Rhesh Turakbar pay for the suffering he’s inflicted on her and her kin; this may be something a party of adventurers could help with.