Morain’s secondary identity is as a waypoint. The road that leads north and east from the Old Ward Plaza climbs out of the river valley and up through Titania’s lower forested slopes before reaching the highland plateau where the Goliath tribes hold their territories. This road has always existed in some form — the goliaths came down it to trade long before Morain was a town — but as traffic increased, Morain found itself at its base.
The goliaths are not hostile to Morain. Relations between the town and the highland tribes are old and generally respectful, built on generations of fair exchange. Morain supplies preserved food, tools, and occasional medical attention. The goliaths supply highland goods, passage guarantees for traders, and the implicit security of being known to have the tribes’ goodwill. It is an informal arrangement, but it holds.
Night Hook grew from this road traffic. As more travellers arrived — adventurers seeking the plateau, merchants looking for highland contacts, scholars interested in the goliath oral traditions — the Old Ward could not accommodate them all, and new buildings went up on the northern side to catch the overflow.