VEN THE MOST HARDENED ADVENTURERS
watch their steps in Baldur's Gate, where lives
hold prices in copper and greed proves dead-lier than dragon fire. Baldur's Gate has a rep-
utation for being a rough place, where crime
and opportunity walk hand in hand, and
where anything can be bought, sold, or seized
at swordpoint. If something can be given
a price, it's for sale somewhere in Baldur's
Gate. Drugs and poisons sit on shelves along-side tinctures and remedies. Trade goods from Chult,
mechanical wonders from Neverwinter, tomes of magic
from Calimshan, and the most believable counterfeits of
each can all be found in the city's stalls.
The Flaming Fist, a mercenary company paid forby the city, protects residents without the barest hint
of civil delicacy. The Watch, the guardian force of the
wealthy Upper City, exists only to serve the patriars-
the city's detached upper class. Meanwhile, crime flour-ishes under the control of the Guild, which oversees
almost every organized criminal act, from docksidegambling rings to blackmail at patriar garden parties.
Either under the Guild's auspices or in defiance of them,
those who cut purses or throats make a decent living in
the city, their talents traded as briskly- and often just as
openly-as those of any other professional.
For all its shadows and dark dealings, Baldur's Gate is
not without its lights. Some residents earnestly seek to
make the city a safer place by banding together to make
their own sort of imperfect but effective justice.
BAL.DUR'S GATE CAZETfEERHISTORY OF BALDUR' s GATE
Since its beginning as a quiet backwater community,
Baldur's Gate has undergone a dramatic transformation,
becoming the hub of danger and adventure it is today.
FOUNDING BALDUR
1
S GATECenturies ago, the hero Balduran spent years questing
in lands across the Sea of Swords and beyond. When
finally he returned to his village of Gray Harbor, he
brought fantastic wealth with him, much of which he
gifted to friends and family. These boons greatly im-
proved Gray Harbor's fortunes, launching businesses,expanding its docks, and seeing the creation of a de-
fe nsive wall around the town. In honor of their heroicpatron, the citizens came to call one of their new wall's
passages Baldur's Gate. Within a generation. though.
the gate became synonymous with the community, and
the settlement known as Baldur's Gate began appearing
on maps of the Sword Coast.The city's surprising growth attracted all manner of
people. Peasants affected by raiding and war, farmers
rendered penniless by famine and drought, pirates seek-
ing a neutral port- all types saw a chance to put their
mark on the rapidly growing community.
ORDE R I N BALDUR's GATE
As the city swelled, questions of law and taxation arose.