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Message: <blockquote data-quote="airwalkrr" data-source="post: 6740750" data-attributes="member: 12460">Fortune's Fools, Day 2, Starday, Readying 8th, 576 CYIt is a chill morning as you awake, a touch of frost on your windowsills. The sky is mostly clear, but you note clouds in the distance, and by mid-morning there is a light drizzle. As a native of the Free City, Helmut knows the best place to find weapons such as nets on Starday is the Low Market (also known as the Petit Bazaar). Once a week, on Starday, the Low Market swells in size and truly comes into its own. Virtually any item can found here, even a few not-so-readily-obtained items. It is not long before Helmut tracks down a merchant named Belhaus who is selling a variety of second-hand goods that come from the Free City Arena. His wares includes tridents, bucklers, light armor, and also a variety of nets. Although some of the nets are a bit tangled, Belhaus agrees to give Helmut a slight discount on the price considering the used nature of the items, asking only 9 nobles (sp) each. While passing through the bazaar, Helmut notes a game of skill being played. A game master has arranged a number of targets upon a wooden wall, and challenges players, for the mere cost of 2 commons (cp) to toss a dagger at a target, winning a prize if they hit the center of the target. (If Helmut would like to play the game, roll a ranged weapon attack roll with a dagger made at disadvantage as the targets are more than 10' away).You each gather your things that morn, making sure you will have enough for the trip to Steaming Springs. According to Curly Craye, the journey will take a couple of days since you are traveling on foot, so you make arrangements to secure rations for a two-day journey. There is one final arrangement you must make. According to Curly Craye and Ricard Damaris both, you must each pay the city's Freesword Tax, a one-time licensure required to be allowed to legally approach potential employers as a mercenary for hire within the city and Domain of Greyhawk. Ricard says that without paying this tax, you would be unable to claim the bounty, would be unable to trade plunder, and would not be able to perform any other actions or transactions of a similar sort. The license can be obtained at any city watchstation or city gate and costs 3 orbs (gp) per person. You can already feel your purses begin to tighten. Those who have spent their life in the city know the taxes can be a bother, and to those from elsewhere they seem quite burdensome, but it does seem to be a necessity. Curly Craye notes that you could try to pass yourself off as a commoner, but most of your are better dressed and equipped than such people, and the ruse might be detected. Craye claims not to know the penalty for being caught acting as an unlicensed freesword, but assumes it would be rather severe. Greyhawk takes the collection of its taxes quite seriously. After you pay the Freesword Tax, you are each given a written license which you are expected to present any time you introduce yourself to claim a bounty, hire out as a mercenary, or trade in plunder. (Anyone wishing to avoid the Freesword Tax will have to make a Charisma [Deception] check when engaging in such activities or devise some other plan of their own.)You meet at the Druid's Gate as arranged. Your business in preparation has taken up much of your morning, especially the matter of obtaining your Freesword License. The Free City of Greyhawk almost seems to revel in bureaucracy. The matter of paying the Freesword Tax is as simple as giving a Watch Captain 3 gold orbs. The matter of actually obtaining your written license requires being shuffled among a variety of low-level functionaries until you finally arrive at an office of the Inspector of Taxes, whereupon, after waiting a considerable time to meet with someone who is actually "qualified" to issue the license, you finally acquire the piece of paper you desire."So then, everyone have all they need?" Curly Craye asks about as you stand near the Druid's Gate preparing to leave, "If not, there is a shop I know of not a block away that might have what you require before we set out."[ooc]Let us have everyone pay for lifestyle expenses one week at a time to reduce bookkeeping. You may go into debt if you wish for this expense only. If you cannot pay your lifestyle debt by the end of the week, there will be consequences. However, this should not be an issue for much of the campaign as you will have more coin in your purses as time goes on (we hope).And yes, the Green Dragon Inn does let rooms for adventurers who can afford a Modest lifestyle. There are tenement houses in the River Quarter and the area known as the Old City (which is comprised of the Thieves Quarter and Slums Quarter) for those who are paying Poor or Squalid lifestyle. I will assume no one chooses a Wretched lifestyle unless otherwise noted (you would be homeless).[/ooc]</blockquote>

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