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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Stormonu" data-source="post: 5598478" data-attributes="member: 52734">Hmm.  That gets me thinking about my "adventuring town" of Edgeridge that I used back in my 2E days.Edgeridge started out as a trading depot near the edge of the Thunder Mountains run by the Tabalt family.  Over the years, as a supporting community grew up around the depot, a manor/fortress/barracks was built nearby (by the Prentiss family) to protect the residents and provide guards for caravans using the mountain pass.  After a particularly vicious war with goblins from the mountains, the town was resettled some miles to the west, away from the foot of the mountain.  The town name of Edgeridge stuck.The town is a kick-off point for those who look for treasures among the old ruins to the west or in the goblin and troll-infested mountain.  There's also work for those willing to act as caravan guards and there is an ancient tale of a dungeon called "Hellsgate" in the wilderness nearby, said to be a backdoor to the treasure vault of the god of the underworld - but protected by some right nasty creatures.The population is maybe 150-200 citizens and perhaps a score of transients looking for adventure-type work.  Main structures in the town are Blue Masey's Inn, The Temple of Harp (god of song and creation), The Prentiss Mansion, The Tabalt Trading House and an open (tent) market.Prominent members include:Blue Massey (F5) - a former adventurer turned barkeep with a jagged scar over his left eye.  He gets his nickname from the blue color of his blind left eye.  Claims he lost it to "the biggest bear in the nearby wilds", and claims its still out in the wilderness somewhere.  Blue Massey is also the town's blacksmith, and he is very skilled at making swords, many which he displays (behind the bar and out of the reach of brawlers) in his inn.Goodlund (C5) - A rotund, cheerful priest who is often having to apologize for his friend Phroper's over-enthusiasm in promoting the faith of Harp in EdgeridgePhroper [Fro-fur] (C3) - A devout priest of Harp who is also the town crier - except on Worship Day, when he makes the rounds about town, announcing the start of worship servicesSir Milestone Prentiss (P5) - Leader of the Prentiss household and supplier of mercenary troops (F1's to F3) for caravans and responsible for the town's defenses.  He also has been given authority to act as judge for local crimes.  Prentiss holds his staff to high standards and deals with Tabalt in a very professional, if cool, manner.Herbert Tabalt (Ro7) - Leader of the Tabalt Trading House.  He has an intense dislike of the Prentiss household and hires his own non-Prentiss guards for caravan duty.  He encourages his staff to harass the members of the Prentiss household whenever they can get away with it.Rictor (W7) - A member of the Klinnian Mapping Guild, Rictor sells minor magical trinkets to caravan guards and adventurers.  He also has an extensive collection of maps of the area, which he copies and sells to interested parties, as well as buys original maps brought to him.  There are rumours that Rictor is seeking a map and a group with which to raid Hellsgate, if it can ever be found.Percival Dezonright (F3) - Sheriff for Edgeridge and eldest son of the mayor, he tends to defer to the Prentiss family in legal matters, which Herbert despises.  He has five deputies (F2) to assist him, but usually only two are on duty at any given time.  When real trouble breaks out, he has been known to draw Phroper into helping and has in several times in the past deputized adventurers to help him with goblin raids or other dangers in town.Mayor Albert Dezonright (Noble 5) - The Dezonrights have held mayorship over Edgeridge for over three generations thanks to a charter drafted up by the Prentiss and Tabalt families shortly after the town's relocation away from the mountain (neither family wanted the other to take power, and the Dezonrights proved to be fine and acceptable mediators).  Albert, like his father, is very adept at playing the two powerhouses - Prentiss and Tabalt - against each other to when he needs to get his way.  Albert's time is generally filled with keeping peace between the two families and fishing.  Though he does handle dealings with the larger government away from Edgeridge, this is generally a task that takes a day or two out of his month.Ezren d'Dezonright (Ro 3) - Albert's assistant, Ezren is secretly taking bribes from Tabalt in return for slanting policy in Tabalt's favor as well keeping a throng of hoodlums (Ro 1) from which he takes a cut of their purse from thefts in the tent market.  He thinks Albert is a slothful fool and has managed to keep his activities secret and avoid Milestone's or Percival's wary eye.Rozzizi K'Evels (Ro 5) - A successful merchant transplanted from far Simera, Rozzizi has become the respected leader of the Free Merchants in the tent market.  He is one of the few non-aligned merchants bold enough to stand firm against Tabalt's attempts to control the town's trade.  Still, after a near-successful attempt at his life, Rozzizi sleeps with his jambaya in his hand, or with his hand on it in his belt.  He employs two imposing mamaluke guards as his personal bodyguards.Sutan [Soo-tan] (Ba 3) - Standing an imposing seven feet tall, covered in swirling tattoos and completely hairless, many whisper that this mamaluke bodyguard of Rozzizi has stone giant blood in his veins.  The mamaluke does not speak, having had his tongue cut out for unknown crimes while he was a prisoner in Simera, before Rozzizi freed him.  He favors a pair of ivory khopeshes as his weapon of choice.Juma [Joo-maa] (Ba 2/Mnk 1) - As Sutan is tall, Juma is small, though lithe.  Rozzizi often calls him "little brother", despite the fact it is obvious they are not related.  This tatooed mamaluke has been trained in the martial arts of far Spi Dak Su as well as the mamaluke styles of fighting and is deceptively deadly with his bare hands as well as with the pair of kukri daggers he keeps sheathed on his back.As you can probably see, I approach things a little differently than Steel - I'm more interested in colorful characters than hard numbers of specific individuals and levels.  I tend to fill in the populace with whatever interests me (and sounds cool) rather that trying to set up a formula for the levels and numbers of NPCs in a given area. (Nothing wrong with the former, I just don't like limiting myself, though I've got nothing against trying to establish a baseline to work from).</blockquote>

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