Northern bank — Northern extension of Old Ward
Night Hook is the newest part of Morain, grown out from the northern edge of Old Ward over the past generation as the traffic along the highland road increased. Where Old Ward is worn and settled, Night Hook is rawer — buildings still smell of fresh timber in places, signage is brighter, and the district has the energy of somewhere still figuring out what it wants to be.
The name comes from the hook-shaped bend in the highland road where the track curves north before climbing toward the plateau — travellers rounding that bend find Night Hook’s lights waiting for them at the end of the day’s walk. The taverns here grew up to catch that traffic, and the district remains primarily a service stop for people coming and going.
Character: New, lively at night, transient crowd mixed with young locals
Notable Locations:
- The Bent Road Tavern — The first tavern to open in Night Hook and still the busiest. A large common room, a fireplace permanently stoked against the highland chill, and a landlord named Oskar who knows how to manage a room full of tired travellers without trouble. Simple food, good ale, beds in the loft for those who need them. The notice board by the door is rarely empty — guides for hire, warnings about highland weather, requests for escort up the mountain road.
- The Pale Antler Inn — Newer than the Bent Road and aimed at a slightly better-heeled traveller. Fewer beds, more privacy, better food. Popular with goliath emissaries coming down from the plateau on official business, and with merchants who move highland goods.
- Highland Guide Services — Less a formal building than a known corner of the Bent Road’s common room where guides who work the mountain roads can be found. Several locals have turned the plateau routes into a trade, offering escort, navigation through highland weather, and introductions to the goliath tribes for those without prior contact.
Worship: None formally. A small carved wooden figure of Tymora — goddess of luck — hangs above the door of the Bent Road Tavern. Most who notice it are grateful for the gesture.
Population character: Transient travellers, adventurers, highland guides, and the small permanent population of younger locals who found work in the taverns and inns. Night Hook has less of the Old Ward’s communal closeness and more of the restless energy of a crossroads.