Upper Northedge
"Upper Northedge is the perfect place for the noble who can afford a manor in the clouds but wants to avoid the bustle of Upper Central."
Upper Northedge is the quietest of Sharn's upper-class wards — wealthy but not ostentatious, calm and peaceful by design rather than accident. Its residents have the means to live in Upper Central or Skyway, and have chosen not to. What they want instead is space, privacy, rooftop gardens, and the kind of neighborhood where wealth is assumed rather than performed. Spire-topped manors and grand estates fill Crystal Bridge and Oak Towers; Shae Lias, the ward's elf district, maintains a living connection to Aerenal that makes it one of the most culturally distinctive neighborhoods in all of Sharn.
The ward also houses the majority of Sharn's elf population — not the naturalized elves scattered throughout the city's integrated neighborhoods, but the Aerenal expatriates who have chosen to maintain their traditions in concentrated form. Shae Lias exists for them, and it is organized around the same relationship with death, ancestors, and the Undying Court that structures life on Aerenal itself.
The ward's council representative is Maza ir'Thadian, an elf who has operated the Oaks restaurant for over three hundred years and assumed the councilor seat six years ago. She is a venerable figure respected for wisdom and common sense throughout the district. She now leaves most of the restaurant work to her sons.
Upper Northedge shares the 100,000 gp gold piece limit with Upper Central and Skyway — the only three wards in Sharn at this ceiling. With only 7,200 residents, it is the smallest ward by population in the city, and all three of its districts are upper class. The Watch coverage for Northedge runs through the Central Plateau's administration, and Commander Belew Yorgan's policy of practically ignoring Northedge means the ward's peace is maintained largely through the social fabric of its residents rather than active patrol presence.
Shae Lias
Shae Lias is a bastion for the values and traditions of the elves of Aerenal. The district is filled with beautifully sculpted statues of long-dead elves — densewood warriors at townhouse gates, honored elders and priests in plazas and open-air orchards. Residents move quietly among these statues as part of daily life. Orchard balconies ring the neighborhood; some belong to restaurants, others are open to the public for meditation and reflection. The district serves simultaneously as residential community for Aerenal expatriates, source of elven craftwork, and a functioning extension of Aereni religious and diplomatic infrastructure.
The Gates of Passage is Shae Lias's physical and spiritual center: a densewood structure that serves simultaneously as temple to the Undying Court, embassy of Aerenal, and crypt. Citizens of Aerenal who die in Sharn are embalmed here and held until their remains can be transported home. Mayne Jhaelian and the other priests function as spiritual advisers and political ambassadors. Jhaelian himself has ties to the Deathguard of Aerenal; his appearance — mottled skin, cold touch, rasping voice as if drawing breath into rotting lungs — is the result of generations of alchemical and magical treatment practiced by his family line to mimic the appearance of the revered dead, not actual undeath. The Gates' priests do not share this with outsiders, but many residents believe that an actual member of the Undying Court — an ancient undead elf of vast knowledge and divine power — resides within the temple. This belief is not confirmed or denied.
The district's other notable establishments follow logically from Aereni culture's orientation toward death, craft, and the natural world. The Silver Bough is the workshop of Tanar Mendyrian, one of the finest woodshapers in Khorvaire — an elf magewright who works in bronzewood, darkwood, and livewood to produce arms and armor of exceptional quality, with enhancement bonuses up to +4 available by commission to clients who have won his trust. The House of Repose provides expert funerary services; the elves of Aerenal know more about caring for the dead than any other culture in Eberron, and the crypts, tombs, and shrines throughout Sharn's City of the Dead were largely built by these artisans. The Winding Root gallery sells the work of over a dozen elf artisans — wooden sculpture, tapestries, jewelry, clothing — at prices that represent years or decades of craft and keep it out of reach of all but the wealthiest buyers.
Two of Shae Lias's most distinctive establishments serve the district's stranger currents. The Veil of Flesh specializes in Aereni body art: traditional tattoos and temporary illusions woven directly into the skin. Nightshade is a tavern and apothecary that caters to those who wish to explore the mysteries of death — necromancers, followers of the Undying Court, and jaded aristocrats seeking something more interesting than wine. The house specialty is beverages tainted with weak poisons designed to bring patrons to the very edge of death. The servers are trained in resuscitation and keep antitoxin available. Accidents do happen.
The Residential Districts
Crystal Bridge and Oak Towers are Upper Northedge's two wealthy residential districts — quieter alternatives to the prestige addresses of Upper Central for nobles who prefer rooftop gardens over proximity to government. Both are filled with spire-topped manors and grand estates; Oak Towers uses materials and architectural styles drawn from Aerenal, and is home to many of Sharn's established elf and half-elf families. Both districts include rooftop parks and gardens, providing calm outdoor spaces that Upper Central's towers don't offer at the same scale.
Dantian d'Lyrandar maintains Stormwind Keep in Crystal Bridge — a Lyrandar estate used for hosting gala events and entertaining important guests. Dantian is diplomatic, primarily interested in furthering House Lyrandar's economic and political position, and has little interest in dealing with people outside his social register.
Districts
Crystal Bridge (Wealthy residential) — A peaceful residential district of wealthy and aristocratic estates. Spire-topped manors, rooftop parks and gardens, and the quiet understated wealth that Northedge's residents prefer over Upper Central's frenetic energy. Stormwind Keep, the Lyrandar family estate, is its most notable named residence.
Oak Towers (Wealthy residential) — A residential district where housing ranges from comfortable to aristocratic, constructed in materials and styles drawn from Aerenal. Home to many of Sharn's established elf and half-elf families. Architecture that echoes the island kingdom gives the district a distinctive visual identity among Sharn's upper-ward residential options.
Shae Lias (Elf neighborhood) — The primary Aereni cultural district in Sharn and a bastion of Aerenal values, traditions, and institutions. The Gates of Passage serves as temple, crypt, and embassy simultaneously. The Oaks restaurant — run by the ward's city councilor for over three centuries — is one of the finest in Sharn. The Silver Bough produces some of the most accomplished woodshaped arms and armor available in the city. Nightshade serves poisoned beverages to those curious about what the edge of death feels like. Statues of long-dead elves line every street.