Editing Ataropolis (section)

== Economy ==
Ataropolis and its surrounding territories have a strong and diverse economy that includes many industries. These industries include agriculture, shipping, fishing, textiles, magic services, blacksmiths, and even universities.

Most of the area around Ataropolis is dedicated to agriculture. The rich waters of the bay allow for very productive fields of aquatic crops such as kelp, rice, water lilies, watercress, taro, lotus, waterspinach, wasabi, waterchestnuts and shellfish. The inhabitants have constructed large enclosures that serve as pastures for fish hatcheries, and preserved fish is one of ataropolis' major exports as a result. A typical farm around the city consists of an oyster bed on the bottom of the sea floor, a canopy of kelp at the surface with columns reach down to attach to the floor, and fish swimming in the water in the middle.

Shipping and trade is one of the most important industries in Ataropolis. The cities merchant fleet has trade routes for hundreds of miles. Although Merfolk are powerful swimmers, ships are still the best way to move large amounts of cargo. The portion of the city that is above water is mostly dedicated to docks and markets, where ships from all over the region come to trade their goods.

Ataropolis possesses indiginous mining and blacksmithing industries. Instead of using corrodable iron, merfolk smiths have developed the corrosion resistant alloy [[stellite]]. Stellite is illegal to export or trade to nonmerfolk.

Textiles are another major export. the waters around the city are heavily cultivated with shellfish with provide the highly desirable fabric called seasilk. It is very strong and capable of being woven into fabric that is finer than silk. Additionally, it is immune to degradation by water. A monopoly on the production of this material means that merfolk spinners produce some of the best textiles in the region.