Canal Entrance
Summary
The Canal Entrance is a dried-up man-made waterway that serves as a hidden smuggling route into New Smoke. The canal predates the town's construction and is located approximately 35 feet from the town wall, concealed behind a pile of shattered boulders that blocks sight of the walls. In Session 7, the party uses this entrance as their infiltration route into New Smoke, having learned of it from Nick Silver. The canal presents a timing-based danger requiring careful coordination to avoid detection by Wall Guards patrolling above.
Description
The canal is a man-made waterway that appears to predate New Smoke's construction. The entrance remains dry for at least 20-30 feet before filling with dirt and rocks. The approach requires navigating through underbrush and pitcher plants before reaching the concealed entrance behind the boulder pile.
A metal grate is set into the wall where the canal passes underneath into New Smoke. Inside the town, the canal outlet has been built over many times with planks of wood, and someone has positioned their cart over it, making the exit difficult to identify from the surface. The metal grating that used to cover the outlet appears to have been compromised or removed, allowing access to what appears to be an underground drainage system.
Hidden in the seam between two larger boulders in the rubble pile, Sucks Benedict discovers a stone with a carved symbol. The symbol resembles a hazard or danger warning similar to those used in Safia's city.
History
Session 7
The party arrives at the canal entrance after Nick Silver previously told them about this smuggling route. Sucks Benedict uses his Trap Expert move to assess the entrance, identifying the primary danger: timing. As the GM explains, "If you walk into the canal at the wrong time, you will be in danger. If you don't time this right, you'll walk into the canal and you will pass within view of the guards on the wall and they will see you."
While examining the rubble pile, Sucks Benedict finds a marked stone: "There's a rock that's like set into like the seam between two larger boulders. It's filled in with other smaller rocks, but one rock in particular has a symbol carved into it." Safia recognizes the symbol as similar to hazard warnings from their city.
Vasso scouts ahead by flying around the town to locate where the canal emerges. The canal outlet proves difficult to spot from above due to the wooden structures built over it, but Vasso identifies the metal grating and confirms the exit point has been obscured by construction and a cart positioned above it.
Notable Features
- Concealed Position: Located behind shattered boulders that block sight of the town walls, approximately 35 feet from the wall and slightly to the side
- Timing-Based Danger: Guards patrol the walls above on a schedule; entering at the wrong time will expose intruders to detection
- Marked Stone: A stone carved with a hazard symbol hidden in the rubble pile, recognizable to Safia as similar to warning markers from their city
- Dry Canal Bed: Remains waterless for 20-30 feet before filling with dirt and rocks
- Compromised Metal Grating: The canal's outlet grate appears to have been removed or disabled, providing access through the town wall
- Obscured Exit: Inside New Smoke, the outlet is concealed by layers of wooden construction and a cart positioned above it
- Underground Drainage System: The canal connects to what appears to be a subterranean drainage network beneath the town