Got a request to help come up with a list of 10 shops and their proprietors and managed to generate the following in 15-20 minutes:
The Cock’s Comb – A millinery for women who prefer dashing men’s style hats
Aenid’s – frozen confections in the shape of [local tourist feature], still run by Aenid
River’s Bounty Trade and Parcel – Run by “Eelskin”, sells fishing supplies, traps, and is the local parcel hub
A Quiet Place – Devotionals, holy symbols, incense in a many-drawered cabinet with labels that chart the calendar year, all holy days & their matching scents in order. Run by Mother Peet, who never talks about her own faith but seems to be able to determine the faith of others with a quick cold read
Squidbite Alley – Tattoo shop run by Bill Bristles, who only has one perfect tattoo on the back of his hand
The People’s Library: Scrollwerks & Wordsmithery – Three women run this shop for the benefit of scholars and illiterates alike
Jasper’s Gears and Whatnot – No one remembers who Jasper is, but Pigtooth runs this dump now. Quick to tinker, has lots of treasures among the broken drifts of upcycled miscellany
Your Friends – Rent a local tour guide for the day, all in the employ of Rattus Norway (likely not her real name)
Keys, Keys, Keys, Keys – Locksmith’s shop, named after the repeated list of services painted on the front. Rents out safe deposit boxes for tourists who don’t want to carry their stuff around. Proprietor: Woodstave Purchase. Looks like an owl.
Nicknock’s Knickknacks – You can get all sorts of junk here. Amateur paintings of [local tourist feature]. Keychains that they’ll burn your name in. Racy playing cards. Young lady on shift: Lattice
Salt & Iron Boat Rentals – Available hourly, half day, full day. Get a fully crewed boat for tourism (see the KRAKEN! (just a statue)). Run by Cap’n Gurbbins. (At least that’s what it sounds like he says… pipe never leaves his mouth and most of his teeth have been replaced with symbiotic barnacles)
Afternoon’s Zephyr – Lummit will be happy to strap you to a kite (“very safe, very safe”) and hold the anchor-thick rope so you can launch off a cliff and take a few big loops before being reeled in. “Water makes the rocks soft anyway, bounce right off, but get the kite under you anyway if you fall, just to be safe”
Ocean’s Bounty Collective: Shellfish and Sights – Bring keen eyes and an appetite, but a sharp knife and prying stick will be provided when Quisp and her sister Klems take you down to the tidal pools for an introduction to the local rock-clinging shellfish. Learn about their life cycle and stick more of them in your mouth than you ever imagined you would. Learn the right way to bite into a Spined Elf-Nickel, or the rare Clam King with its grasping appendages that look like a little crown!
The Fallen King’s Retirement Villa – A cliff. Local lore says the locals chased a hated king off that particular cliff long ago. Now a site for romantic canoodling. Local teens will claim they’ve dived into the ocean from there, but there’s no way. There’s no way!