The Blackwater Quarry is a permanent emerald mine located within the Crystal Mountains, a simple mountain road between it and its' closest neighbor, Canterlot.

The quarry itself is surrounded by a large iron and steel wall, standing at an impressive twelve stories tall. A rather modern elevator system is in place for non-pegasi to reach the top quickly, and there are numerous defensive positions that can be taken in the case of an attack - of which there have been zero.

Inside the circle of the massive wall is the quarry itself, consisting of the quarry yard, the gem refinery, two rows of sturdy equipment sheds, the lunch trailer, the sleepover barracks, the Pony Express office, the water tower and the vault. A lot of open ground is in the yard and staging area, due to the need to run minecarts in and out of the Blackwater Mines, located past the sheds and up the hill.

The Blackwater Gem Refinery is a marvel of clockwork and steam technology, using hoofmade machinery to cut, polish and grade precious gemstones - particularly emeralds. Fed from belts at the drop-off end of the refinery, the finished products come out carefully weighed and sorted by grade and type.

The rows of sheds are multi-purposed; one is operating as a home/workshop, and another is the medical services area. A number of them are still used for simple storage, while a few are still mostly empty.

The Pony Express office is actually a two story cottage that houses the quarry's mailmare, and acts as a package delivery service as well as the typical letter/scroll delivery system.

The Blackwater Vault is actually the large boulder sticking out of the ground at the end of the rows of sheds. The huge rock has been hollowed out, and has two strong and THICK steel doors that are magically enchanted to only open for a certain special kind of key. Inside, there are rows of shelves containing all the family's riches, including the famed Blackwater Emerald, a four-story tall column of pure emerald, expertly cut and hoof-carved with runes and scrimshaw.

The sleepover barracks are for miners who either don't have a home to sleep in, or those who work extra shifts. The beds are free to use, and tend to be just comfy enough to get a decent night's/day's sleep, depending on the shifts. Curfew is midnight; any pony cought outside the barracks after hours without permission may be subject to suspension of that worker's sleepover usage rights.

The lunch trailer is a sizable permanent trailer which houses the quarry's staff kitchen. It has a number of modern conveniences, including a walk-in freezer and a twin counter flatgrill. There are picnic tables set up nearby, as well as a condiment cart that is usually kept rather neat, despite the rough nature of the workers.

Along the backside of the gem refinery is a path that rounds the edge of the quarry and heads up a hill to where the Blackwater Manor lies. Completely inaccessible except through the quarry or flight, the manor house is a three story, 55 bedroom mansion that extends back into the mountain itself; roughly one-third of the entire building is completely covered in rock.

The manor house itself is a very stately, subdued home; architects and artists can easily see how the different levels were added at different eras, yet were all carefully crafted to blend in with each other. The resulting architecture is rather a treat to behold, and unique in all of Equestria due to it being built onto again and again as centuries passed.

On the side of the Manor, out of sight, is the garage where the family keeps their modes of transportation. Within it are three carriages, two wagons and a hoof-crafted automobile, as well as the toolbenches that make up the workshop area.

An ivy-grown path leads from the far end of the manor's property and through mountain scrub pines and rocks to the area known as Blackwater Ridge. Surrounded by the rusted remains of what was once a foreboding-looking iron spire-tipped fence, it is the family cemetery. There are a number of beautiful statues and aged tombstones here, as every Blackwater who lived on the property (with certain exceptions) is interred within.

Not too far from Blackwater Ridge is another pathway that leads down into a hidden valley. Sitting in the bowl created by three intersecting mountain peaks, there is an overgrown statuary garden. Amazing statues of the Two Sisters are here, as well as countless other works buried beneath the vines and scrub brush.

These are the basics of the Blackwater Quarry, the biggest supplier of emeralds in Equestria.