Barbarians

The market in Garr is crammed into a narrow alleyway between the city's huge wall, and the back of the Pits. Traders vie for space, balancing the need to make room to work, with the fear of jostling against or irritating a hot-tempered barbarian. The market's location behind the Pits also adds some complications; while the reputation of the Pits is ferocious, it is untenable to have all one's slaves and warriors fighting constantly to the death, and so most bouts are against captive beasts or Wulpor, or else they set warriors against each other... but only until one yields. Nonetheless, animals die frequently in the Pits, and it is the Barbarians' customs to simply hurl the bloody remains, often one piece at a time, over the back wall of the Pit; traders must therefore, take pains to protect their wares for being splattered in guts and gore.

The Barbarians claim to be fearless and shrewd, and no visitor here should question their courage, nor their judgement. There is plenty of reason to question both, of course. Many note that the Barbarians spend much time hunting wild beasts, or pursuing Wulpor some distance to the north, but are loath to hunt the Arakvar close by to the east; to mention this would be to suggest that the Barbarians are afraid of the Arakvar. Traders are also quietly aware that although the Barbarians claim to want more merchants to visit their stronghold, they nevertheless force trade to take place in the part of the town they themselves most disdain; a series of streets downhill from the warriors' lodgings, which is best described as an open sewer... but to suggest to the Barbarians that this might be stupid would be unwise. Raising such questions publicly invites a violent response. Clever traders know that it is better, and less painful, to praise the Barbarians' bravery and cunning, rather than to point out their limitations.