Geography
Location: Western coast of Faerûn; 500 miles north of Baldur's Gate and 300 miles South of Neverwinter.
Area: The walls of Waterdeep enclose roughly 7 square miles (18 square kilometers) of area. About 5 ½ times as big as Central Park in New York. Waterdeep commands an additional 40 mile stretch of farmland outside the borders of the city proper.
Population: There are approximately 165,000 permanent residents in the city of Waterdeep. This number is nearly doubled by the number of visiting merchants and tourists during non-winter months. The wider area's population stands at ~1.4 million.
Comparative
Population Density: Metropolitan population density sits between 9,200 and 16,000 thousand people per square kilometer depending on the season. This is roughly
equal to Guadalajara, Mexico at its lowest, Cairo, Egypt at its highest, and New York City at a loose average.
Climate
Waterdeep being a coastal city has a relatively stable climate. Snowfall is extremely uncommon along the coast but rises to about 3” per winter month as you go inland.
Summer | Winter | |
---|---|---|
Coastal | 45℉ - 66℉ | 39℉ - 51℉ |
Inland | 54℉ - 81℉ | 35℉ - 46℉ |
Surrounding Region
Prominent terrain of the region include:
Mountains
- Forlorn Hills. Dwarven ruins and mines dot this rolling landscape.
- Mt. Illefarn. Named for a ruined elven empire.
- Rat Hills. Waterdeep's dump. Mountains of disease-ridden filth.
- Sumber Hills. Rolling hills split by the Dessarin river.
- Sword Hills. Jagged hills hosting bandit groups preying on Waterdeep travelers coming East.
- Sword Mountains. Home to powerful Orc tribes.
Rivers
- Delimbiyr River. Just South of Daggerford. The Delimbiyr marks the Southern extent of the Waterdeep region. An important trade road follows the Northern bank moving travelers and products from Secomber to Daggerford and on to Waterdeep.
- Dessarin River. Headwaters next
to Waterdeep. The Dessarin runs mostly North to South and is a major
trade route through this region.
Wetlands
- Lizard Marsh. Wetlands and waterways guarded on the Northeastern edge by Cromm’s Hold.
- The High Moor. Created by elven magic in -10,500 DR, this sprawling moor has numerous ruins.
- Stump Bog. Named after the rotting stumps that jut above the surface, Stump Bog is rumored to have buried treasure and draws adventurers to its dangerous waters.
- Mere of Dead Men. Home to a pair of black dragons, and hordes of undead, few willingly travel the Mere.
Islands
- The Red Rocks. Seastack islands known as a refuge for several prominent pirate groups.
- The Selpir. Slow-moving water creates a quiet marsh hunted by Merfolk and to a lesser extent Lizardfolk.
- Lizard Marsh Islands. Large dry patches of land littering the Lizard Marsh. Humanoids of all kinds use this area as a place to hide.