The Priest of Varmeylius

The Priest

Varmelius is the God of Truth, Change and Journeys.  He is an Elvin God, though there are likenesses of him with a human face.

He was originally a warrior and advisor of Pholtus.  Then, Pholtus created the Ascendants, of which he was the third.  Varmelius has walked the Northern Province.

When Pholtus Passed the Light to Leah'Dah, she wore the new mantle of his old power, and became a god along with all of the ascendants at that moment.

Some passed and died almost immediately, others grew and strengthened.  Varmelius was on eof those.

He lives in the city of Tulnimoon, that he founded in those days, far to the south between the lands of men and the horned lands.  His Avatars roam the world in his stead, calling beings to priesthood, and warriors to the Vistilry.

Experience levels have nothing to do with the Levels of attainment in the Priesthood.  One may be a seventh level acolyte.  Or a 3rd level high priest.  Prayers and experience guidelines are taken directly from the PHB.  The ranks are as follows

Worshiper - a being who worships of feels positively towards Varmelius.  They are able to receive aid from Varmelius.  Non worshipers cannot receive aide from the Deity.

Adherant - a worshiper who lives and abides by the codes of Varmelius.  They gain Divine Intuition.  It is an ability to discern what is the will of Varmelius and what is not.

Mendicant - an Adherant who is wandering seeking the call to follow Varmelius.  Mendicants gain the gift of Fate.  Fate lets them summon the will of Varmelius once per day, to guide them through their lives.

Acolyte - someone called to the Priesthood by an Avatar, and seeks the voice of Varmelius.  They gain Obedience, which allows them to manifest the will of Varmelius in their life and journey towards becoming a Cleric.  they gain the ability to perform Rituals and Rites, and Prayers.  They gain the power of Contrition, which lets them mend the relationship between a worshiper, adherent or mendicant and God.  They gain the ability to Turn Undead.

Cleric - a Cleric has acquired 100 obedience points and has received their vision.  They receive Varmelius Blessing, which aides all in sight or earshot that worship Varmelius +1 on saves and +1 to hit.  They gain an additional Prayer per Prayer level.  If they have 3x1st/1x2nd prayers, they get 4x1st/2x2nd prayers.  Their touch purifies food and drink.  They can bless water and make it Holy Water.

Priest - a Priest who has acquired 1000 points of Obedience and has drawn a Vicar.  Their Prayers double, so if they had 4x1st, 2x2nd and 1x3rd, they would get 8x1st, 4x2nd, and 2x3rd.  They can detect lie at will.  they gain the power of Sight, This allows them to see the true nature of a thing if the focus and use their holy symbol, and is treated like True Seeing.  

High Priest - High priest has acquired 10,000 Obedience points, and gets their power directly from their god and can seek aid through prayer at will without limit.  All High Priests are Resurrected in Tulnimoon automatically if they die contesting evil.


·        Prayer Book

o   Given to an acolyte to begin their journey towards Varmeylius.  A record of prayers, devotions, rituals, rites and functions of an Acolyte of Varmeylius.

o   A source of constant guidance to the Acolyte, and where they record the significance of God in their life as they seek to improve the life of others and thwart the will of darkness.

o   The acolyte adds to the book throughout their life, and writes their own that is an accumulation of their practice of the methods of the original book.  When completed by becoming a priest, they are given to a new acolyte called to the work or kept in the Priest Temple or at their shrine.    

o   Prayer books hold all the Prayers a Priest can learn.  Many prayers are beyond the Priests level but still able to be cast, albeit at a great disadvantage. 

o   Priests memorize prayers and no one prayer can be memorized immediately, it takes time.  Mostly prayers are read aloud from the book.  Once memorized,  a priest can always have it as an option for use.

o   When PC begins the Journey to Priest from Accolyte on the day they hear the Voice of Varmeylius and meet him face to face, the begin to make a copy of their Prayer book.  It may take a year or a life time as they do not recopy a section they have not lived through.  Once done, the Priest can, through god, call a new Priest.

o    

·        Relic

o   A holy item some Priests may obtain.  Usually kept in a place of worship in a temple.  Sometimes carried on the Priest.  They have special powers, grant special abilities and attract the Dark who wish suck items destroyed.

o   Weeker’s Band is an artifact of the High Priest Weeker, who fought Innis and defeated his minions at the gate of Hinblank far to the west.  Weekers Band is actually the chord that accidentally had wrapped around his wrist during the fight.  His love of god and his constant use of his holy symbol in that hand and the blow that took his hand from him, subsequently turned the band into an artifact with the will of god.  Though Weeker never regained his hand, his acolyte Arkan, recovered the band and wore it.  It threw the brightest light, could dissolve fiends back into the ether from which they come, and could show the past.

·        Staff

o   All Priests carry a staff.  It grows in power with them as they progress through life.  They fill with the power of god and are echoes of his intercessions in the Priests life.  They are a symbol of the Deities Power manifest in the Priest.

o   All Staffs begin as non magical items.  As the Acolyte matures the staff increase in power and ability.  This progression continues mirroring the needs of the Priests life an journeys.  It is not uncommon for a High priests Staff to have several spell like abilities and offer numerous immunities to the Priest.

o   Another effect of the priests Staff is that it is not usually used in combat, in fact, Priest do not fight physically in most cases.  There are many stories of what Priest can do with their staff, and almost none involve killing.

·        Holy Symbol

o   This can be as simple as twigs and twine or as complex as an artifact.  It is almost always worn on a chain around the neck.  It represents the Deity himself.  It is on a chain around the neck to symbolize services and that the Priest carries it aloft.

o   This is used to turn undead.

o   This is used to seek intercession from the Deity.

o   This is used to Pray.

o   This is used to heal and cleanse.

·        Robe

o   A priest of Varmeylius wears robes alone and no other armor.  The robes can range from black to white but are not colored.  They can be magical, or mundane.  So long as a Priest wears a robe only, and it is any shade between Black and White, the covenants are kept.  Past that, the robe usually has little religious significance and can be a mundane magic item or something practical.

·        Followers

o   A Priest will collect follower fairly quickly.  Many want to serve god.  It is not uncommon for a party of ten to be comprised of four player characters and 6 NPCs who serve the Priest of the party.

o   NPC’s are the pool the Priest has to draw followers from.  This is all done with actual role playing.  There is no limit to haw many or how early a Priest can draw followers, it can even happen as an acolyte.

o   Followers will be played by the DM, until Good Faith is established with the Follower and then he may directly control the Follower.  Each follower starts with a 1 for good faith.  When Their Good Faith reaches 20, the Player gains direct control of the Follower and it passes from the control of the DM.

·        Functions

o   Priest have obligations to marry, divorce, sanctify, cure, heal and perform funeral rites, lay the dead and the undead to rest, and bless crops, etc.  Many of these rites, functions and ceremonies are detailed in the Prayer Book. 

·        Shrines

o   There are shrines to Pholtus, Leah’dah and Aday all over the Northern Province.  As Pholtus, Leah’dah, Varmeylius and Aday are all Deities and all wholly sympathetic to each other.  For Instance, Aday can be worshiped at any Pholtic Shrine.   Shrines, heal wounds, cure disease, can dispel curses and are places where the deities often interact with their followers.

o   There are obligations to pray and sacrifice at all shrines and Priests of Varmelius can sense them and are drawn to them.

·        Prayers

o   While a priest will have a prayer book with many prayers in it, he can learn new prayers from many sources and sometimes, offer his own. A Priest can pray any prayer, there is just a likelihood that god or an avatar will answer.  

An acolyte, cleric or priest may attempt to say prayers above the level and beyond their ability.  This has a base chance of 25% for working modified below.

-5% under Duress.
-5% per level above beyond ability.
-1% per point of Will Power ((WI+CO)/2) below 20.
-1% per point of Fortitude ((WI+ST)/2) below 20.
-1% Per point of Gravitas (average of all Req/5) below 20.

+10 following the Will of Varmelius.
+1% for every 10 points of Obedience.

·        Pilgrimage

o   An Acolyte of Varmeylius will begin his journey to Priesthood by seeking the voice of Varmelius.  This is an inward journey and increase with instances of acts according to the character of the deity.  Once the Character has acquired 100 points of Obediance, they will become a priest, and meet their god face to face.  There are many Priests who have never been to Tulnimoon, the City of God where he resides in the flesh.

·        Avatar

o   Each priest of Varmelius has a representative of God that serves as his connection to the Deity until the Priest forms his own.  It is usually this Avatar that calls the person to service and is available at times to listen and council the Accolyte.

A brief History of the West, the return of the Light, the Second Dawn of Man, and the Sleeping of the Age.

A brief History of the West, the return of the Light, the Second Dawn of Man, and the Sleeping of the Age.

There are many histories. 

Some say only the sages see back far enough.  But what truth can be found in legend that no scribe can surmise?  There is the Great Count of Days in Kias written by King John himself that span almost 1,100 years from the day his ships moored in what is now known as the Bay of Kings.  There are the Great Epicosmoleric Tomes in the Hidden tower that record the 9 Histories of The world, as written and passed down by the heads of the ancient colleges of sorcery the seek the Birth of Magic.  There is the Hall of Mirrors in SkyFall, the ruined city of the dwarves, where their language lives in its many forms, and chronicles fantastic things that seem to have no reference in this world.  There is the Great Work of the Sages Guild at the Gra y Heart Observatory that is said the record the lives and deeds of all men.  But who has access to these places to hand out truth and understanding, and it is no great thought that a lie can be written as easily as it is spoken. 

There are stories.  Stories are born in your own heart, and rise with you through your life and have their say in your deeds and the deeds of others and never die, but stay carried aloft in the hopes and tears of your friends and your people.  Most people have stories.  Most people remember a time when, or they remember that their father knew someone, or were themselves great, and almost everyone comes from somewhere, a survivor of some great dead whose fruit is a 10 generation tree of life, that may not have been had they failed, cowered or been carried away in the rivers of doubt and fear that crisscross our lives.

You have your own stories don’t you.  Of course you do.  Here are a few stories often told, and known by many.

"The Dwarves broke the world.  The Mockery of man.  Sprung up as some insult against the Men of old, the reached deep into the world and pulled forth its heart and with a mind not governed by the Light and no Soul to hold faith, the cut the heart from the world and broke it upon the tallest mountain.  But the earth was older still than the Dwarves and while they destroyed all good things the earth did, the earth had the last say, and sent a choice to all things and to all places, to pick up the earth and live again.  This thing was called magic by Men.  And the cared for it, and the punished the dwarves where they could find them and they tried to heal the earth but somethings just stay broken."

"As the last man died protecting the Light, his child was left, as he could not raise a hand unto his own.  Darkness buried the light and took the child and made elves from her.  Ooiya was her name.  The elves being the answer of the darkness to the Answer of the Light that was Man.  It is said that it is in every elf not to be wholly evil, and so many elves choose to see their light and serve man, but many elves also choose the Dark and shun the light and are forever the enemies of Man.  And so as Man is responsible for the creation of elves in that Aand could not kill his child as he lay wounded unto death by the Great Heaven, it is in mans heart not to slay his child still though elves be wholly or partially of this darkness, there is the hope in them that they might see who they truly are."

"There once was Light, and it was served by men and Men were the beginning of the Light.  It had one champion from the beginning of days, Pholtus, and if there was a god, Pholtus was it.  Many sought him for protection and guidance and only Pholtus stood in front of the Great Heaven and Pinned the sky with daggers and kept the dark from the tent he built for man.  But darkness if foul and good only for hiding and building wrongness, and though many rose in strength beside him, Darkenss found a way into all things.  Pholtus Told Man that he would bring the Light to ever piece of the Gift, and there were many who stood beside him and said they also would surrender their lives and help him in evil, correct the great flaw of the world, and that their lives would be a sacrifice to give man always a place in the Gift.  And they are the gods now, though in their time they were mortal Men, women of the Line of Ooiya.  And Pholtus brought darkness low and stuffed it back into the ground and pushed it out from his Sky and laid it upon the Great Heaven.  And his time came and he made gifts of himself to all things, and there were some among his Ascendants that could not hold open the sky or keep pinned the darkness of the heavy depths, and lost the gift of Pholtus and were taken into the Dark where they remain.  But there are gods left to us, Varmelius in the south in his great City of Tullnimoon.  There is Mathereal of the earth who is the power of the earth.  There are others too, and evil, the Gray Veil himself Malfator in his Aspects and the world of the dead.  Peytah, the Path, Yihoon who see’s, Igyaya lost to reason, Leah’dah gone from the Gift, a scar of great pain upon the world and the lands in her passing.  The good gift of God, wasted on his children, the many gods now, who live and fight and die."

"King John has ruled for over three thousand years.  He fights the God King Mok Turosh in the south for us every day.  He will not let his city fall.  I have seen him, lead his men, call them back from death, drive the horns of the enemy into their heads, the flags from the ramparts fluttering as he pushes them from the fields of his kingdom.  I have seen his Vicars set things right.  I have seen him stand with that great light and punish the god king and break the banner of his red word.  May King John still live forever."

"There was a day when the dark of the southern lands, the horned lands, awoke with a voice and a vision and came north to take what is left of the Gift from Man.  Mok Turosh, the God King, the King of the Banded lands, the Power of his people, the Drinker of Blood.  He has destroyed the great and vast plain of the south and taken all those great cities from men.  He stands at the gate of Kias and knocks with his great hand.  He looks north, here to this small province, and see our light.  He will come for us if Kias falls.  He sends his kind north to find us."

"There are many great things that are left, though it seems all the goodness in them is past and the hands that made them, held them high, drove out the darkness, have been wounded, and are lost to us.  These things are a great power, when magic was strong and new, and weapons ripped the havens open and made there a place for Light.  Then great swords, pinned the darkest of hearts deep within the earth.  When the words of the mouth were a powerful language and the greeting healed and nourished and the admonition destroyed.  These artifact are there, out there, far to the west, past the green sea, and the high wall of the world, past the second sea, and in the broken lands of the Western Men.  All in the south know of the Eye of Varmelius perched atop his mountain city of Tulnimoon.  It is not beacon but a tool of the old Western men, a box that restores the sky and breaks darkness.  It is now god up there that stands the vigil, not varmeylius in his Golden Halls, but a toll of the old ones, and artifact of their will and faith before the world was born, and then Broken again."

"Everywhere there is war.  Many Cities burn or are burnt.  The great of men have died or fight still somewhere.  It is now that the Darkness, with its evil and caution, pushes forth into the deeper places, tests the light and eharts of man, and seeks ever a place in the world that was theres of old, before the coming of man and Light.  It is all those things wild and dark, the creatures of the woods, the mountains, the sky.  Shine a light into darkness.  Drive it back, do what you can.  If we do nothing, will the Light always shine?"  

"They say that everything is a cycle.  That we live and die and live again.  Who knows this, the Gods may, they tell not me.  But for all this, all that was, the heights of power, the great and vast lands of promise and peace, everything slides down the hill to be taken by the river or worn to nothing by time, eventually.  I say the age is sleeping, or soon to be.  Maybe man will survive."

Fucking thieves..

NPC Thieves

            Thieves abound in the NP; Cutpurses, Back-Stabbers, Murderers, Liars, and Cat Burglars.  The PC’s will meet them on the road, in the city, at their guild houses, in bars, at home, etc.  There are several of these characters of note and this list serves as a glimpse into the possibilities for the personalities and potential in the NPC Thief arena towards developing a good, long campaign.  Thieves should be caught and killed in the street or turned in to one of the Guard Houses.  PC’s, should see thieves doing their deeds to others, they should also see them executed, in stocks, hung from the town gates, or in cages outside town, as ‘food for wolf’.  A nameless NPC thief is not an example or a plot string but a tool to show what life is like in the world.  Epicenes comes not from tracking down a cutpurse and killing him or her, but dismantling a small crime organization or having a nemesis that spans years of Character life and levels with the PC, only to half the PC nearly defeat them or their agents and cohorts or almost catch them and then they get away.  A good thief is the reason PC’s get henchmen, build towers, invest or hide their wealth and keep watch on trips or stay out of bars or town altogether.  Separating what is going on in the DM’s head from what the PC’s experience is the greatest challenge, as well developed thief NPC’s will remain hidden from the PC’s for many months of gaming and will be revealed only sometimes, in that, stuff stops being stolen or a charred corpse is found, communicating nothing of the epicenes of the rouge that has been plaguing them behind the scenes.  With that said, here are some developed thieves of varying shades and degrees of Theifdom, from the Opaque Bully to the Transparent Mastermind.

Broda – Human Thief6 – Ring of Wishes (depleted but still has a link to Endine/water elemental Lord who was bound to the ring by Saydril (see Saydril’s Tomb), an Ascendent from the Days of Pholtus.  Endine will lead the wearer of the ring to Saydril’s Tomb.  Broda speaks with Saydril but thinks himself imaginative.  Endine will never come to the aid of the wearer of the ring, but there is always a possibility the two will have similar goals in which Endine may assist), Ir’s Harp (a throwing dagger +2 that bonuses CH by +3).

MO: Broda poses as an adventurer and hangs out in the bars of Brighton befriending newbies and seasoned adventurers.  He is always looking for an angle.  He is not a killer and if it comes down to it, he will not fight someone unless they are going to kill him.  He is likeable, in his early thirties, is good with longsword and dagger and knows a few tricks that always make adventurers happy, and make him look like a badass that is more powerful than he actually is. 

Broda knows all of the bar maidens and bartenders in Brighton and keeps them in silver and they keep the info coming to him.  He is a fantastic resource but can only be one if the PC catch him stealing, are not violent, and have a good attitude about it.  He will then feel bad, be grateful, and want to help them (the PC’s) get on their feet with a good adventure or info.  Because of his connections, he knows of all kinds of items on the market, and where the dangerous tombs are and where caches are hid, etc.  He is not a camper and so does not go on adventures. 

            He owns a three story tower in the middle of Brighton.  He has a farm that people work for him about two hours east of Brighton.  He also has a home in Bricking.  He does not have any hideouts per say as all he is after is info and Kings Piece.  While he does invest in the occasional ‘sure-thing’, he is not enterprising and his motive is to be In The Game. 

            Broda will never come to the rescue and he will steal from the PC’s if he thinks there is a reasonable chance he will not be found out.  If he is found out, he will never give the money back.  He will maybe give the PC’s a favor or some info in return.  If there is an important item involved, he may help them with info on where or who to recover it from.  He never hangs onto items.    

            Broda has powerful adventurer friends; if he calls in a favor, it can be character ending for a PC.  Broda’s Mother is an Exvocate.  Broda’s Sister “Eesla” is a Warrior that rides with Dane Truin of the House of Hale in the North (see Lords of the Brake).   

            Broda has three guises; Just back from an Adventure, Spending all my Spoils, and Kicking Some Ass.  He usually is seen around town in Spoils, but will dress appropriately for whoever he is trying to take down.  Before the PC “Meet” Broda, he will have observed them on at least two separate occasions, so, it is unlikely an encounter with Broda with occur unless the PC’s develop habits in town. 

            Orun – Half-Kord Fighter/Theif 8/8 –Echol’s Braid (a totem that grants the wearer combat strength of +2+2 when fighting in mele.  Two Pholtic (all heal) Healing potions.  Wander (Dwarven Bardiche that grants one additional attack per round)  Raven Burl (a witch made totem that will summon a raven to find someone or something).

            Orun is a cunning brute but is not wise or intelligent.  His deal is to track people (naive adventurers) into the outback and kill them in their sleep and take their stuff or track them to adventure locations and trap them when/if they emerge with treasure.  If the PC’s look well-heeled and have new this, and new that, he will just try to rob/kill them when they are weakest.  If the party has more than three, he will get help from one of the 80 Kord camps around Brighton. 

            Orun is aggressive, does not talk and fights to the death out of animal instinct and hatred for men and elves, not out of esprit or belief.  Orun also takes the jaws from those he kills.  He is camped an hour north of Brighton and has four hideout/lookouts in the farmlands and forests north of the city.  Orun will sell young females and children to Nero who pays gold for them.  He always attacks the strongest looking fighter first regardless of the actual threat of arrows or spells.  He makes a decision about who he will kill and who he will capture before he starts anything, and he never changes his mind about this and so cannot be begged or bribed.  He barters horses and gear to the Kords for food and coin, which they do not use.  He used to fence fine items (magic, etc) through Shim, but Shim was killed by undead last winter and Orun has not found a new fence yet. 

            His stash is in a near collapsed well on in the burnt ruins of a farmstead on the far northern edge of the farmlands, three hours north of Brighton.  It is not trapped it is just well hidden.

            Orun is a great tracker and has terrific eyesight and sense of smell and direction, movement, time and weather.  He is not hirable.  He is not good with projectile weapons and wields a pole arm and carries a skinning knife.  He is completely silent if he wants to be.  He is also a master of hiding and moving stealthily.  He cannot ride horses as he is a Kord and horses they will not permit Kord riders.  He barely makes enough to live.  He is recovering from wounds received a week ago and is being ‘treated’ by witch medicine and it has taken most of the items he has saved.

            It can be assumed that Orun is closely following any adventurers levels 1-4 whenever they are leaving Brighton to the north.  He has may follow a group for three days if he thinks they are promising and worth the risk.  He is not so greedy as to get loaded down and will overlook hidden loot.  Horses, weapons, and coin get taken, after that, it’s whatever stands out.  Orun is one of “the thieves that work the road”.

Black Fred – Human Thief/7 – Storm Girdle (breath water, create fog, control winds), Vengence (longsword +3+3 always attacks last in around, never misses, cannot divide attacks).

Black Fred is really a Ptolegian Prince turned pirate/marauder.  He is not evil per se, but will sink ships killing everyone on board.  He has two ships in his “armada”; the Shelter upon which he crewed (common Ptolegian practice to make Royals work ships and learn the seas and their boats) as a boy and later found in the north and reclaimed, and the Lacedon, the boat he built in the Sea of Tarsus.  Each boat is crewed by twenty sailors of varied talents. 

Black Fred will not sink a ship unless it fires upon one of his with ballistae, magic, or seeks to ram him.  He does not intercept food or cargo ships, only private boats or the ships of well-heeled adventurers, or other Pirates, mainly the Danikans.  He will not hire out the Lacedon but will join an adventure that looks promising.  He hates Kords and will sail two days to kill one.  He is wanted in Kias for desertion.  He has worked for the Wardnes service before.      

 

Salien – Elvin Theif/7 – Tearbringer (legendary Westfolden blade forged for the war against men and wielded by Varith, a leafwinder who was one of the 7 Emissaries to drive men from the Northern province 400 years ago, found by Salien with the help of Myskateel., this blade is +4+4 and has vampiric regeneration when used against humans, it is powerful and intelligent and mostly responsible for Saliens hatred of men and his serial murder of them), Aman (Great Bow +2+2) Four types of Poisoned arrows, and many magical arrows of varying effects.      

Salien is an assassin for the Smiluvenni and works for Sulon (Understay) occasionally.  He is an incredible shot with a bow and uses poisoned and magic arrows.  He is more thoughtful of his marks and poses as an elven hunter that could be persuaded to join a party as a scout and bowman.  He has taken down 13 adventuring group with this ruse. 

Salien’s lover, Larian Lithililian is the third son of Say Lilithian of The House of Lilithian (See Lords of the Brake) and he loves to (adventure) with Salien.  He will follow the Mark with their mounts and help Salien in most “safe” chores related to the killing and the robbing of humans, oh yeah, and he hates humans.

Salien has no home in the city.  He stays at Welthower or with Larian.  He sells goods through Hermeal, one of Soloa’s Mothers servants, although Larian is not aware of this.  He is a teacher at Welthower and is especially helpful to humans there, teaching them valuable knowledge of bow-craft and use.  He is one of three people in the NP than can teach firing into mele.  His room at Welthower is spartan but decorated as a Leadist.  He guides or trains for money when there is no one to mislead and kill.         

Salien views Kords as wild animals and so does not hate them or trifle with them if they can be avoided.  He is known by some in town as a guide, but those who know too much die.  He has two Half Elven barmaids in his pocket, one works at Shipwinter in the Harbor, the other at the Harden Down.  Salien knows of many tomb and ruin locations.  He is also familiar with Most of the Lords of the Brake.

Salien is only attracted to parties of Humans (mostly) between 2-4^th.  He is not greedy but his partner motivations of hatred for Humans and a love for the finer things keeps him with his ear to the ground.  He is also a Leafwinder, though none know this but Sulon, Agrippa (see Major Players of the NP) and the Great Nature Dragon Suel.  If shit gets real with Westfolden and the PC’s are involved, Salien will try to kill them all.  Salian is patient, methodical, observant and capable and he will never insert himself into risk.

Thurat – Dwarven Theif8 – Arma (earth elemental spirit 4hd), Staff of Striking (188hp), Dwarven Dead Bracelet (lets you control weak undead, drive away moderately powerful undead, or weaken powerful undead), Eye of Highfall (a gem that lets you see true).

Thurat is an alcoholic, litterally.  He works with (for) Elia Rainwearer, a female High Elf thief.  While Elia is “good” and strives against the Dark, Thurat is of the Dark as dwarves began it long ago in their war with the Gnomes (the predecessors of the Elves.)  He may do one job a year with Elia, helping the Wardens or a Lord of the Brake.  The rest of the time, he is stealing gems, jewels and Gold to feed to Arma.  His alchoholism is not like Human alchoholism.  He drinks and ina few days will drink all the time, then will get dark in his mood and deeds, he has been imprisoned for murder four times in Brighton and is wanted by several Lords of the Brake.  It is only Elia’s insistence that he not be killed or executed that saves him.  He has many enemies, but the smart ones fear him.  He will never go far from alchohol and lives mostly in Bricking.  He will adventure, especially if he thinks there is reason to believe jewels and gold will be found, which he will take without question.  He has little interest in anything else. 

He is 700 years old.  He has been in the Lock and knows several places wear and how to break it.  He also knows where the Underoad is.  He has no problem showing people where and how and also has no problem abandoning people to the ravenous dead that fly those hallways. 

He will sell information for gems and metals.  He is not insultable.  He is self-centered and does not really listen to other people.  Elia has a friend (Gain) that she has tasked with watching over Thurat.  Gain is a Ptolegian half-elf that will help smooth corners when needed, that Thurat is oblivious to.

Thurat will push people out of the way and think not much of it.  He is more of a curiosity than anything else as few people have ever seen a Dwarf.  He is not of a House and has never been to Hardwall, he is not known outside of Bricking and has only a reputation for solid information and a desire for gold and gems and his willingness to fight to kill on a whim.

He will hear of adventurers going to a tomb that promises to have gems or a specific jewel etc and approach them with more info, wanting to either accompany them or to help them survive so they will bring back the gem.  This can be any legit dungeon crawl that is planned and organized.  He is not evil.

Elia Rainwearer – Mage/Theif  7/9 – Mitheal (Intelligent bracelet that will remember spells 18 levels worth of spells for ELia), Chord of Winds (a belt of flying that will also let ELia hear things impossibly far away), Sword of Lions (short sword +3 that will parry every mele attack if no attack is taken by the PC).

Elia was once a Warden of King John.  She reads and speaks all civilized tongues as well as Nulidean (dark magic), and Sorisaris (light magic).  She is a Seeker for Factia Encantata and has seven students in the Northern Provence, and is the leader of the Facta in the Northern Provence and answers only to Alart (see Lords of the Brake).

Elia strives against Sulon and his minions whenever possible.  She is highly intuitive and an expert at espionage and covert actions.  She routinely employs PC’s to aid the Wardens in their never ending work in the Northern Province.  She is a stable, reliable source of plot strings between Factia agendas, Warden actions, Smiluvenni contravention and assisting the Lords of the Brake in their many efforts against the Dark.  Elia will become involved with the PC early on as is her will with many new arrivals to the NP.  She will come to their rescue at least once before they are 5^th level.  She will aid them selflessly and help them succeed. 

Barba – Halfling Thief/8 – Freeblades Guild

Barba is the resident Master Locksmith and appraiser of the Freeblades guild.  He will give a fair appraisal and history of any item.  His services are free to name level members in good standing.  His prices are high and must be paid in Realm Coin as he accepts no barter for Guildwork.  He works Monday and Tuesday of each week at the Guild and will not adventure.

Barba owns a jewlers in Brighton, Ash Valley, Bricking, Tenwillows, Big Water, Many Rivers and Crossroads.  These stores perform moneylending, coin and treasure exchange as well as sales, appraising, and banking.  The shops are co-opted by the Freeblades Guild and the Sages Guild and are a big deal.  The stores are known commonly as the Moneylenders. 

Many people meet at the Money lenders and it serves a purpose similar to the Freeblades guild as a hub for fences and treasure seekers.  Patrons are geased by the Eye of Hale (relic of Pholtic times) in order to do business with the Moneylender.  The eye travels from location to location once a week for new members.  People break the gease and if they are not killed by Efretti, they permanently lose 1hp/day until death; Once the eye of hale is leveled, it is not lifted easily.  The Efritti are lovers of gems and willing protect the Houses.  The wards and enchantments on the buildings ease the Effriti’s manifesting into the Plane at will.

Sulon – Gray Elven Theif/14 - Understay of Smiluvenni – Chain of malice, Hand of Fate, Dominion, Braid of Echo’s, Wraith.

The Understay is feared as much as the Dragon.  She will never be encountered unless it is very terrifying and dramatic.  She has over 200 assets (those that willing do her bidding) in the Northern Province.  Sulon is the only child of Shira Finnhorn (The Primerium of Facta Necromanta during the Fall of FreeWinds) and Innis Gainsover (a multi-dimensional being / vampire of inestimable power).

Sulon’s duties in the NP are to..

·         Prevent the Wardens from being successful here. 

·         Prevent the Kings return to the North. 

·         Minimize the effectiveness of the Sages Guild. 

·         Motivate and direct dark powers in the NP. 

·         Prevent Westfolden from re-establishing a foothold. 

·         Diminish the Light (there are seven Lights Returned (fragments of Pholtus’ divinity returning to the Prime in innocence) in the Northern Province) but not extinguish it. 

·         Keep the Vaults of Leahdah Hidden and protected from the Light. 

·         Disorganize Men. 

·         …and contain Malfator. 

…as you can see, it is a big job.  Sulon feels all movement on these plot strings no matter how small, via Dominion.  There is plenty of room to develop NPC’s like Salien.  If the PC’s ever do work with the Lords of the Break, the Wardens or the Sages Guild, they will be on Sulon’s radar and will be the target of assassination attempts and turning.  Sulon’s assets include Dopplegangers, spirits, powerful undead, “normal” people, the unknowing and the accidental agents.  All she needs to do is plant greed, envy, hatred, selfishness or apathy and watch it grow while she feeds it what it is looking for.

She does not know or see the Light Returned and never will until one of the Lights Returned accepts its identity, and then, according to legend and prophecy, Pholtus will return and extinguish the Dark for good.  Those same prophesies also foretell the failure of the fragments and the extinguishing of light forever.  Sulon does not look this far in the future and has no real opinion on prophesy.  She was bound by the Chain of Malice by Myskateel and will tirelessly and perfectly pursue the extinguishing of the Light and the perfection of the Will of the Dragon. 

Another problem with this is that Sulon is one of the fragments of Light Returned.  Myskateel sensed it in the place between heavens and bound her with the chain as a child when he stole her from her Father.  This is from the story The Loss of Tears, about the death of Precarius, although Sulon is not named in the Poem nor is Innis. 

Sulon looks to be a young gray elf.  When she is not wearing Wraith and traveling the flayness, she appears bare chested and emaciated with the Chain of Malice holding her almost to the floor, and the golden sword, the Hand of Fate (Pholtus’s Blade) about her waist, igniting against the darkness and evil of the curses upon her.      

  

 

 

Het Man Kord Theif/8

Hetman is a Kordic tracker and one of the best that will work with humans and elves.  It should be noted that Clanned Kords (not to be mistaken for the Warriors of the Living God (how chok turosh mok chok translates literally to Elvin) or, the Armies of Mok Turosh) have no racial enmity and are tribal in culture, belief and affiliation.  Hetman live in a camp (they are not named) north of Brighton, it moves with the seasons and so it is sometimes difficult to find Het Man, however, many in the camps can track or claim to. 

Hetman has a large family and tracks for two reasons.  The pay will help him barter for goods he would not have access to otherwise (medicine, steel, etc) and he views it as having protection while he hunts, which he will do as he guides, taking sons and grandson’s with him to help carry back game to the camp.  Hetman is only a leader of his family.  There are about 15 families in his camp (see semi-permanent settlements of the NP)

Hetman is not smart or wise enough to be diabolical but will attack enemies from concealment and with his short bow.  He is loyal to those he works with, while he works with them and sees them as a source of strength for his family.  He has decent eyesight, but coupled with his Kordic Nature, his sense of smell, and his years of experience in the area, he is a formidable entity to have on your tail. 

Hetman is not complicated.  He views the pay for his help as his property and he will protect his job (the party) because that is his pay.  It could be argued that he is too stupid to cross someone, but that would not account for his ability to avoid danger, manicure trust with loyalty and to utilize party assets to navigate and capitulate obstacles.

He does not use poison as most of what he will be shooting is food game.  He has not special weapons, possessions or wealth other than family.

If he is used more than once and treated fairly, he will offer a son or grandson as a reward.  If their lives are not spent carelessly, Hetman can be a powerful ally and source of cunning and capable guards. 

Hermeal – Gray Elvin Thief/6

Pickpockets and Cutpurses – They want coin.  If they want jewelry or magic, its because it will get them more coin.  Even a capable petty thief should not have too much character unless PC direction or fate illuminates it, and many of these gnarly NPC’s may get born through a failed pickpocket and escape, however, there are some ways to play the pickpocket that will develop the dynamic more thoroughly in the PC’s head.  Towns and cities should be bustling, that’s what they are.  There is no Market Day, market day is everyday and people are high pressure, they need to eat.  Adventurers will be swarmed by poor children.  (you should not make poor children the enemy or the source of pick pocketing, they should be direct, and childlike.  It is imperative to grow a feeling of love hate with cities not hate hate.  Kids should gawk in awe, young kids should be staving and hungry and ask for food or hold a pouch that the PC dropped cuz kids were climbing on him, and say, “Hey mister, you dropped this.” and hold it out for him.  They should ask for food not coin.  They should leave if chased away.  If played with they should follow the PC around like lost dogs being shown kindness.  This should be a win) Markets are packet with hagglers and charismatic thieves buying and selling.  Hawkers of Real Majic, Potions, old coins, food(high demand), everything you can imagine, women, slaves.  Most town centers should be like this, even the tiny hamlet of needles bunk has 5-10 people sitting around selling all day.  Farmers sell their food, the surplus, or if they are enterprising, all of it, in towns.  Then with the money they make they buy what they want to eat, not fodder.  These place are ripe for thievery as simple as taking an apple to setting up someone to distract them while others pilfer a real potion.  These crimes are perpetrated upon vendors mostly but the flamboyant unarmed person is the next easiest mark especially if they are alone and have no weapons or body guards.  Adventurers will see people stealing from each other if that is what they are looking out for.  However, a circus atmosphere of everyone stealing from everyone is retarded.  They should see a meat head of a body guard kill a “despicable thief” and they should see a powerful warrior kill a hungry child thief, there is no law in the NP.  Guard Houses (as in guilds not physical towers), have areas they will look out for where most of their patrons are and they will protect the interests of their patrons.  There is not law to call or City Guard defending the weak.  If you were starving and poor but had a dagger you thought was valuable, you probably could not afford to have it appraised.  You probably wont tell anyone about it and you would keep it hidden under your rags of cloths.  You would try to sell it in town to someone with money, maybe not someone who could use it, as you would not be that astute if you are poverty stricken in the NP.  You would not go fight for a space in a market, you would hang out in front of taverns or at the docks and ask any rich looking people if they want to buy it that its special etc.  You would catch people walking down the street, and if you stayed in one place too long, you would be killed by someone else for it if you would not give it to them willingly.  If I was a cutpurse, and a good one, I would approach a group of adventurers and tell them I was a pickpocket by stealing something from them and giving it back at the start of our conversation, I would then offer my services to look out for them and keep other thieves away and give them some good advice on local merchants that wont rip them off and I would keep beggars and hawkers away from them.  I’d ask a 10gp/day epr person in the group and almost every adventurer would pay.  That’s good safe money that makes me money.  I can demand a cut from the peddlers I put in contact with the PC’s, I can have the PC’s give my name to others who may be looking for a city Guide.  I may get an offer of work from the party as well.  I may discover a better opportunity to steal something more valuable than a sack of steel pieces betray them and steal from them without them knowing it also.

On their way into a bar they might see stocks where two or three thieves, trouble makers or drunks are bound and being licked by dogs, tortured by children, pissed on by patrons (because they are in stocks at the piss fence, and bing brutalized by the occasional hero or victim of their malfiesance.  They are there because the bar caught them stealing, starting trouble, hassling adventurers, and the bouncers put them in stocks in front of the bar as a warning to assholes and as a reassurance to patrons that they do not take shit.  One tavern has a post out fron with hands nailed too it that were taken from pickpockets and thieves caught by the staff.  Another tavern hog-ties the offenders and they are suspended from the ceiling in the common area for sport..  some are just killed and thrown into the street, where bodies do not last long, taken by deviants, body peddlers or Kords and cannibals for food.  Good pickpockets will steal and resell immediately, sometimes not even 30 feet from the person they stole the item from.  It is not advised to turn every town into a place where the PC loos all their shit, but you can have a frantic mage looking person come at them begging for their help that they had a wand in their belt only moments ago and the thief must be around here somewhere, please help then he wanders off asking people if they have seen a want or a thief, and eventually is too far away in the crowd to hear anymore.  They can be approached by someone hawking a quiver of arrows just cut off the back of an elf on the other side of town, whole thing 50kp, and have there be some obvious magic arrows in there.  The PC’s should be show delicately why they need expert protection and precautions or they should be prepared to lose some shit.  They can have something planted on them for safety and then have a thief come back for it later. 

Backstabbers and Murderers or more easily understood as Bullys.  These hideous degenerates will never change.  They do not give a shit, they want you to feel uncomfortable, they feel entitled to your treasure, and your power.  They have no respect for any life.  They will give underhanded compliments, and make everyone uneasy.  A good bully played by the DM can have more impact on a campaign than killing a Wight.  They will meet you later in an alley, they will sucker punch you or back stab you while your getting a lap dance, or kill your horses.  While most don’t live past 2^nd level there are enough of them that have become powerful warriors, or thieves, or mages. 

Bully’s can be effective without magic or powerful weapons.  They will make an adventurer feel mean if they don’t buy him drinks all night.  The simplest will make a PC feel unwanted.  The Greater Bully will always be a local and have a bar that is HIS.  They are used to picking on weak people they know they can intimidate because they hate they way they get intimidated by powerful people.  Bully’s attack when you are weakest if you are not a weak person.  Bully’s can be killed easily, but Bully’s always have friends like them who are hungry for the authority and power the bully took away from them.  They will shoot a single arrow into you in a crowd or nick you with a poisoned blade in passing, or have some kid do it. 

They will kidnap and rape, that’s their thing.  They love ganging up on someone or inciting a crowd.  Bully will mad-dog you, follow you and pretend every things cool with enough sarcasm and Sinicism to make you want to kill them for looking at you wrong, which happens a lot.  Bully’s think everyone else is the asshole.  These fuckers can be vendors, they can be a clerk or a porter you hired to unload your ship, horses, etc.  They can be one of your guards or henchmen, starting fights unbeknownst to you can coming out like they were getting your back and you love and reward them for it.  A PC having a realization that they have fostered a bully would be an epic accomplishment for a DM.  This does not mean that when you drop below 5hp, Bully’s leap from the rafters to backstab.  Backstabbers are usually stealthy and like breaking into places that other people own and live in.  They will watch you from hiding, case your camp or room at the inn your staying at.  (btw, there are no rooms at the Inn.  Everyone wants rooms at the Inn all the time and will pay large sums of gold for them, they will try to buy rooms permanently.  Adventurers must sleep in camps on the outskirts of town or find a family that will let them sleep on their land as all land in town and out has been divided into Guard territories and no territory allows vagrancy.  Members of the Freeblades can sleep at the Guild Bunkhouse for 10gp/night. (currency side note, the KP –Kings Piece is metal and not gold.  A gp - Gold Piece is one of many ancient currencies of long ago and the most valuable currency.  The common person does not trade in precious metals nor do they often see them.  There is the; kp, or Kings Piece $10.00 / cp, or Captains Piece $1.00  / hp, or Hay Penny $.10  This is the currency of the realm and tradable anywhere.  Gold and Silver are considered barter and since each race and realm and dynasty and king mints their own coins and has forever, all sizes and weights vary.  In general, the largest are Dwarven and there are many sizes and types of each.  Westfolden currency is by House, and there are 9 Great Houses in Westfolden, but the Druids frown on using the currency of the old lords of the wood as they were driven from power over 100 years ago.  The Ptolegies have a currency for every island king as well and deal in all metals.  Though few know this, a major effort by the king and the sages guild to remove gold and silver from circulation has been going on for 80 years now.  The Sages guild is still the best place to sell gold and silver as they offer the best exchange on KP)   

Burglars – True burglars will not be relevant until the PC’s invest in real lodging, build a tower or find a place to stay regularly.  People who live and work in the city’s and towns that are NOT adventures, seek some of that wealth and everyone knows someone who steals.  The people who build your tower will talk idly about it and there brother in law will come steak from you 6 mo. later.  The only real way to prevent being burglarized is to invest in guards, however, friends and family of the guards are likely to steal from you with or without their help, hell, the guards themselves may steal from you.  The pool for guards is slim as any trustworthy capable fighter is an adventurer or what have you, so you have the option of soliciting a Guard Guild to protect your property which has varying costs.  They guarantee nothing however.  There are security companies, or adventurers that are retired and old or lame that will help for money as well.  There is now way you will get a third level fighter and several archers and 1^st level fighters to be your guards, it will never happen.. enter the burglar. 

It is not inconceivable that a thief might steal an item of value in order to offer it to a PC to curry favor or receive aid.  The PC’s may also find a thief clutching a cursed item that eventually ruined them.

Adventurer Theifs – These are legendary individuals that rub shoulders with the little folk, and not infamous marauders or killers as has been well covered above.  Adventurer thieves tend to be flamboyant and braggardly as their skills require explanation and storytelling for full appreciation by the common man.  They are also lavish and believe money can buy you anything.  They are always capable fighters in their own right and can hold their own, generally in a group of adventurers.  From sneaking past sleeping dragons to stealing relics from Liches and Kings, the adventurer thief will tell his tale and is always game for the impossible. 

Most adventurers could be called thieves.  They love to me invisible, and they love hoards and pilfering the treasuries of the powerful and the dead.  They will sift through corpses for a hay-penny, and have no problem wearing the clothing of the dead if it is rich or dweomerd.  They are the types to ‘shoot first’ and ‘keep shooting till it stops moving’.  Thieves build some of the finest towers in the NP.  They also tend to have everything they need with them at all times and nothing they do not.  They are more likely to hire body guards and henchmen than mages or warriors. 

Thieves will kill for the ability to detect magic or identify magic items; any good thief is already a great appraiser.  Thieves are also historians and scholars of society and power.  They know who the Lords of the Brake are and who the heavy players in the area are.  They talk about themselves as much as they listen to stories about other capable individuals. 

Adventurer thieves are happy to let others take the risk while they reap the reward.  The great benefit of their company is that Elves love making locks, and so did Dwarves and the Leahdists and the Ascendants.  With the exception of psychotic Liches and Dragons, everything worth stealing is behind a lock.

Adventurer thieves can deliver a backstab that could kill an elephant and then trade blows for three to four rounds before disappearing entirely only to return healthy and slinging poisoned arrows three times faster than the best archer you have ever seen. 

They will confidently pick fights with people that have things they want because they know their friends have their back.  If they are out matched the WILL run directly to their friends as well, which will suck for everyone but the adventurer thief.

On the down side, it was a thief that broke Gradles Lock and wiped every living person in Ashdale from existence by a sea of Wraiths some 60 years ago.  It is a Thief that woke Ovardiis, and another Thief that freed two of his Simulacra.  It was a Thief that freed Myskateel to helm the Smiluvenni once again after its defeat at the hands of the Circle of Nine.  It was a Thief that let Demragon into the Abbey of Phylukon to kill over 60 Priestesses of Leahdah before the Ushering.  It was a Thief the broke the abjuration of Freewinds that led to its collapse.  It was a Thief that let the armies of Mok Turosh into the Tower of the Moon, opening up the Vasting to them.  It was a Thief who killed Obend Fouge.