Blackford is the center of power and control in the region. The town was once a bustling merchant city, but it has fallen on dark times since the bandits took over. It's now a den of iniquity and ill-repute. Very few merchants or traders from outside have stopped by, most avoid the town or rush through it. The town is now a haven for black market goods, smugglers, and less-than-ethical products such as drugs, slaves, necromancy, and prostitution. The townsfolk aren't happy and talk very ill of the bandits, some even talk about liberation. However, the townsfolk are very well subjugated with a lack of hope, they see release from their fate near impossible as things stand now.