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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Dalamar" data-source="post: 2748494" data-attributes="member: 358">18R. Covenant of the Return[sblock=Knowledge (Religion) or Gather Information DC 15]In the immediate aftermath of the Masters’ War, the Covenant of the Return was a popular theology, but it has diminished as years have gone by without the promised return.The temple's location a symbol of the respect it once held, while its condition is a symbol of its declining fortunes.[/sblock]According to the precepts of the Covenant of the Return, if the Masters’ War demonstrated anything, it was the immense power of that ancient race: these were clearly beings with powers beyond any mortal’s attainment. Those who follow the Covenant believe that the Masters were deities, or at the very least the personal servants of deities, and they have disappeared from the world not because they were destroyed but because they now battle in the heavens themselves. One day, the Covenant asserts, the Masters will return to judge those mortals they left behind.The Covenant’s temple is located not far from the boundaries of Clifftop. The building is aging and in poor repair, with paint peeling off the wooden window shutters and poorly-patched holes in the roofing.Only two priests remain of the Covenant’s clergy, and the congregation has only a few dozen people at each weekly service. 19S. Golden TowersThis grandiose (some would say monstrous) piece of statuary overlooks the main caravan road from Borat, located not far from one of the Clifftop gates. A 20-foot-high sculpture of bronzed (supposedly gilded) towers jutting out of a graven sea, the piece was commissioned by the council 30 years ago. This work of art is seen by some as a monument to Malador’s wealth, and by others as a hideous eyesore.20E. Lost Angel TheaterThe Lost Angel Theater is the “Best Show in Town” according to the signs on its front wall. It’s also the only show in town. The various inns and taverns might hire a dancer or a minstrel for a few evenings at a time, but none of them offer the varied array of performers that the Lost Angel puts on week after week.The theater is housed in a large brick and wood building on the outskirts of the city. This was the only location where Alban Relt, the theater’s owner, could afford a building large enough to house both the stage and seating for an audience of up to 100 persons. Despite its location, Relt still had to purchase land in a somewhat run-down location, which gives the Lost Angel an ambience of being slightly seedy.[sblock=Knowledge (Local) DC 15]Of course, seediness is a characteristic the Lost Angel would possess even if it were in the most opulent and well-maintained building in Clifftop. It’s not just that Alban Relt looks like an oily shyster shyster—which he regrettably does, despite being a fundamentally honest man— but also the theater’s line-up of acts. As much as Relt would like to host quality theatrical productions at the Lost Angel, the fact of it is that his attempts to do so have met with total disinterest from the people of Malador. In order to keep the theater financially viable, he’s had to hire sub-par acts that draw ticket sales.[/sblock][sblock=Knowledge (Local) or Perform (any) DC 10]The line-up of acts at the Lost Angel is as follows:• Serpentia, Queen of Snakes: A buxom young woman who dances on stage while draped in two constrictor snakes... and very little else;•Mad Jordi Konton: A young man with a seemingly endless repertoire of bawdy songs;• The Malador Players: A distinctively second-rate group of actors who perform short theatrical skits that are either mildly suggestive or outrageously slapstick;• The Brothers Maletti: Two theatrical swordsmen who choreograph mock duels for the stage;• The Veil Dancers: A group of 8 attractive young men and women who dance while wearing only fractionally more clothing than does Serpentia.[sblock=DC 15]This line-up of sex and violence seems quite popular with the folk of the city, including such notables as Councilor Varas Rohdell. If Relt stuck to it and nothing else, he would probably make a tidy sum. However, he regularly sinks his profits into futile attempts to host “real” theatre.[/sblock][/sblock]21L. Malador ArmsThe Malador Arms is the most expensive inn in the city. All the rooms here are opulently, if somewhat tastelessly furnished. Equipped with four-poster beds and thick carpets, the rooms are designed for two people to share. Rooms cost 5 gp a night, which includes hot water for the tin bath located in each room.[sblock=Knowledge (Local) DC 15]Unlike the other inns in the city, the Malador Arms is not privately owned, but operated by the city itself. The staff at the inn can be more than a little impersonal, and sometimes even rude toward guests. Slipping them a few silver pieces each night does wonders for their attitude, however.[/sblock]The Malador Arms is a two-story stone building with a massive crest of the city on each of its walls. It has eighteen rooms available for rent.22J. CourthouseThis impressive stone building has the crest of Malador emblazoned on its wall, but with the familiar ship and tower overlaid by a pair of giant iron manacles. Most of the time the building goes unused, but once a week Judge Mawen holds court, administering sentences to the criminals brought before her. Sentencing usually takes a matter of only a few hours, making the judge’s job one of the easiest and most profitable in the city. It’s probably not a surprise that Judge Mawen is related (by marriage) to Councilor Chyra Delorri.The building is not especially large, despite its fortress-like walls. It contains a single courtroom (designed to hold a maximum of 20 persons), a chamber for the judge, and four holding cells for the criminals who are due to be tried. The judge’s chamber and the courtroom are opulently appointed to convey a sense of power and authority (and corruption, according to the more cynical—or astute—of Malador’s inhabitants).23C. StockyardsWhile many people who live in the Foot maintain a few chickens for their eggs and an occasional meal, there is little room within the city itself for larger animals. Instead, creatures such as sheep and cattle are raised in villages outside boundaries of Malador and then shipped to this Stockyard when they are ready for slaughter.The stockyard contains twenty pens, each 40 feet to a side. Roughly three-quarters of these are given over to sheep, from which mutton is sold to the inhabitants of the Harborside and the Foot; the remainder of the pens contain cattle, whose more tender (and expensive) meat goes mainly to the people of Clifftop.The stockyard is located on the edge of the city furthest from the ocean, downwind of the city proper.24L. The Old PirateProudly proclaiming itself the loudest, crudest, and most boisterous inn in Malador, the Old Pirate is owned by Pesk Dannitch, a retired guard. Whereas most of the guards viewed the adventurers who entered the towers as nothing more than hired mercenaries, Pesk always admired their courage, and when she retired she decided to establish an inn where these often larger-than-life folk would feel at home.Pesk, a gray-haired but still spry woman in her mid-fifties, adopts a motherly attitude to any adventurers who cross her doorstep. She feeds them hearty meals, warns them about the dangers of the towers, and then sees them off on their dangerous task with a cheery wave. More than one adventurer has wondered if she’s entirely sane—before reflecting that he probably isn’t the best person to judge…Pesk has a variety of rooms available, nine in total: three capable of holding one person, three that hold two, and three for four persons. A single-person room costs 4 sp per night, the two-person is 7 sp, and the four-person 12 sp. She also offers a ferry service to the Harborside from a short jetty below her inn. She can ferry two people across at a time, in a round trip taking about 10 minutes. The trip costs 2 cp per person per trip.25L. Sardoc’s TavernSardoc’s is really just a drinking hole, and a fairly rough and ready one at that. However, while it has no rooms for hire, Sardoc is willing to rent out his tap room floor to those who are desperate. This isn’t the most restful of options; many people end up fatigued the following day due to insufficient rest. However, at 4 cp a night, it is cheap.Sardoc’s serves ale and wine at the usual prices, and sometimes offers cheap and greasy food to go along with it. Sardoc himself is a retired dock-hand who chose the location of his bar because it was as far from the Harborside as he could get: after 40 years working on the waterfront, he has no desire to go anywhere near it ever again.27G. Council HallLocated at the highest point of the Clifftop region (“So they can look down on everyone,” according to popular wisdom…), the Council Hall is as much a monument as a government building. Standing a square 60 feet to a side, it towers an impressive four stories into the air with a capacious attic above that. The walls are basalt, purchased at great expense, while the roof is constructed of slate tiles. A gigantic depiction of the city’s emblem, over 20 feet across, is set into the front wall over a pair of bronze double doors.Anyone entering the hall finds herself in a marble-tiled lobby with a ceiling two stories high. Elegant, sweeping staircases lead up to a series of offices on the second floor, as well as the grand staircase to the meeting hall on the third story. There are also numerous offices surrounding the lobby on the first floor.Visitors are immediately interrogated by a group of guards as to their purpose at the building, and directed either to their appointment (if they have one) or to the exit (if they do not). Those who ask how they can make an appointment are grudgingly directed to a desk on the far side of the lobby. There, two officials take requests for appointments. Depending on whom they want to see, visitors can expect to wait a couple of hours (for a public servant) or a few days (for a Councilor, assuming one agrees to meet the visitor at all).[sblock=Knowledge (Local) or Gather Information DC 15]The Council’s meeting chamber dominates the third floor of the building. It has mahogany-paneled walls, thick carpets, and a massive oak table surrounded by large leather-upholstered chairs. Oil paintings of previous Councilors look down from the walls, while a huge window in one wall provides a view of the ocean. A drink cabinet, filled with expensive spirits in crystal decanters, sits against one wall. The Council meets here three times a week to discuss city affairs.[sblock=DC 20]The fourth floor of the building contains a private office for each of the seven Councilors. Only the Councilors themselves have keys to these rooms, each of which has a quality lock and a sturdy door.[/sblock][/sblock][sblock=Knowledge (Local) or Gather Information DC 15]The attic space of the building is used for filing the copious paperwork generated by Malador’s government. Some of the books and scrolls stored here have not been opened since they were first penned fifty years ago.[/sblock]28G. Councilor Rohdell’s HomeCouncilor Rohdell’s home is an object lesson in excess. It has floors of marble and rare hardwood, vaulted ceilings adorned with murals and supported by pillars of engraved stone, works of art on all the walls, and substantial gardens carefully tended by servants. Even the carriage house, located in the north-west corner of the grounds, is larger and more luxurious than most homes in the Foot. Everything about the estate, which is bounded by a 10-foot-high stone wall set with two wrought iron gates, is designed to show the wealth and power of its owner.29G. General Juthe’s Mansion[sblock=Knowledge (Nobility & Royalty) or Gather Information DC 15, or Borat or Clifftop resident]As the King of Borat has announced his intention to send an official envoy to Malador, there is considerable controversy as to where the Borati representative should be housed. The people of Clifftop are far from happy about having the envoy —whom they see as a representative of a hostile foreign power— living amidst them. Some on the Council argue that, since the King has chosen to send an envoy, it is the King’s responsibility to arrange housing. This stance is opposed by those who wish to avoid any potential insult to the ambassador: If Borat is hostile, they argue, it is vital not to give the King a pretext for hostilities. In the end, prudence wins out, and the Oramo House (empty since the last of that family married into the Delorris) is made available to the ambassador.[sblock=DC 20]The Oramo House is one of the smaller homes in the district, the family having never been amongst the city’s true leading lights. More than one Clifftop local takes some small pleasure from the relative impecunity of the Borati envoy’s accommodations. Of course, what the people of Clifftop consider “impecunity” is still the lap of luxury by most other standards.[/sblock][/sblock]30S. Malador FountainConstructed in the midst of Clifftop at tremendous expense, including the construction of an underground channel bringing water from the river, the Malador Fountain is notable not only for its great ugliness (constructed of pink marble, it is a truly hideous edifice), but also for the fact that it’s never actually worked. According to the design, the flow of water through the underground channel was supposed to power the mechanical pumps that would lift the water up 95 feet to the fountain above. Unfortunately, the pumps simply weren’t capable of lifting that much water that far, and in the 18 years since it was installed, not a single drop of water has sprayed from any of the fountain’s many apertures.The only reason the Council hasn’t torn the fountain down is that then they would have to admit it was a failure. Instead, it is permanently listed as “requiring renovation.”LEADERS OF MALADORUnless otherwise noted, all of the following information can be uncovered with a Knowledge (Nobility & Royalty) or Gather Information DC 10. As before, an inner sblock with just a DC connotates that the information is available according to the original roll, while an sblock with full information requires/allows a different roll, even if it is of the same type as the original.Councilor Chyra Delorri[sblock]The only daughter of Brotus and Nydia Oramo, Chyra was the last of the her family. An extremely attractive young woman, she caught the eye of Rellam Delorri, a man twenty years her elder and on the cusp of becoming a member of the Malador Council. The two were soon married and Chyra left her family home (which became empty when her parents died) to join her husband’s household.For the next four years, the new Councilor and his young trophy wife were the center of the Clifftop social scene. Rellam’s political acumen combined with Chyra’s natural poise forged success for them both, and they appeared a happy, contented couple. They had a young son, named Brotus after his maternal grandfather, and were talking of further children when Rellam was murdered by one of his own guards.[sblock=Knowledge (Local) or Gather Information DC 20, or Knowledge (History) or (Nobility & Royalty) DC 25]The assassin was a young man, apparently driven to an insane rage by his infatuation for his master’s beautiful wife. Dozens of rambling love letters to her were found in his quarters, letters he apparently never sent. There were whispers at the time that perhaps the young woman had led the guard on, but such rumors were never given serious investigation, and the killer was himself slain while trying to flee the murder scene. [/sblock]After her husband’s untimely death, Delorri announced her intention to stand for his seat on the Council. Most assumed the young widow had no chance of success, but they had not reckoned for her judicious use of bribes and the way she played on the sympathy engendered by her recent bereavement. She won the position, and in the twenty years since then has gone on to become a leading member of the Council. Now in her mid-forties, Delorri has not re-married, nor shown any interest in so doing, even though she has not lacked for suitors. Her focus appears to be entirely upon her work in the Council, and in building both her wealth and power to the utmost extent possible.[sblock=DC 15]Delorri is generally considered to be both one of the most hardworking Councilors, and also one of the most corrupt. Under her leadership, the Delorri family has won majority control of the Excise House, as well as four of the fortress rafts at the Drowning Towers. The income from these interests, as well as from various properties in the city which they rent out, makes the Delorris one of the wealthiest families in the city.Currently, Delorri leads the “Sea Captain” faction within the Council. Named for the nautical interests of its three constituent members, this faction regards Borat as a hostile power seeking to take control of Malador for its own purposes and profit. The Sea Captains warn that any kind of union with Borat will result in increased taxation to pay for Borat’s army, an end to private expeditions to the Drowning Towers, and many other measures designed to increase the power and prestige of Borat, all at Malador’s expense. Of course, while they do not say so publicly, their most important objection to Borati rule is their belief that it will lead to a serious decline in their own personal power and wealth.[/sblock][/sblock]General Maxxen Juthe, Borati Envoy[sblock=Knowledge (Nobility & Royalty) or Gather Information DC 10, or Borat resident]General Juthe has come to the city to present King Darragan’s proposal of a union between his realm and Malador. He is a veteran of the Borati military who has participated in several of Darragan’s campaigns to expand his territory. A career soldier, he is known to have come up from the ranks and has only recently been promoted to the upper echelons of Borati society. Now in his mid-fifties, he is a balding, weathered-looking man with a gray beard. He wears a dress uniform whenever he is out in public, including a decorative but functional sword.[sblock=DC 15]As a military commander, Juthe demonstrated subtlety and skill in his battle plans. In person, however, he is known to be direct and pragmatic, with little patience for those who dissemble or flatter to get their way. He tends to be brusquely formal in his conversation, every inch the military man. The only crack in this stern façade is Juthe’s doting affection for Borxus, his dog. This vile little animal is almost hairless, with a squashed-in face and the prima-donna temperament of a thoroughly spoilt pet.[/sblock][/sblock][sblock=Knowledge (History) or (Local) DC 15]Juthe’s arrival as envoy to Malador caused a considerable stir in the city. Rumor has it that all the negotiations he has ever been involved with in the past have been with defeated opponents, and his resolutely military demeanor is seen as a not-so-subtle reminder to Malador that Borat possesses a vastly larger, more experienced, and better organized military than Malador. Some have gone so far as to say that if King Darragan really meant to negotiate with Malador, he would have sent a diplomat, not a soldier.[/sblock]Councilor Varas Rohdell[sblock]Varas Rohdell is an obese, self-indulgent libertine of some 45 years, notorious throughout the city for his debauchery and licentiousness. In a city like Malador, such notoriety is not easily earned. Rohdell is the last member of his family, or at least the last legitimate member—there is no telling how many illegitimate children he has fathered and abandoned.[sblock=DC 15]Some have wondered how, even in Malador, such a thoroughly reprehensible person became a Councilor. The answer is simple: extravagant bribery. Varas bought his way into office 10 years ago, using a liberal portion of the massive fortune his family had accumulated. The Rohdells own large swathes of the Harborside, and have somehow gained almost total control of the lumber industry. Given the vital importance of lumber to Malador’s building and ship construction industries, this has been very lucrative for them.[sblock=DC 20]Rohdell is known to exert only the bare minimum of effort on his role as a Councilor. He attends the thrice-weekly meetings of the entire Council, but does not otherwise venture to the Council Hall, preferring to spend his time on his own entertainment and leisure. He is known to be a regular patron at the Lost Angel Theatre.[/sblock][/sblock][sblock=Knowledge (Local) or (Nobility & Royalty) DC 20]Ever since his election, Rohdell has been a thorn in the side of the other Councilors. He votes erratically, more or less according to his whim. He even has the gall to vote against a motion after accepting a perfectly good bribe to vote for it, or vice versa. Despite his unreliability, however, few feel they can afford to cross him. As the Council becomes increasingly polarized between the Unionist and Sea Captain factions, Rohdell’s influence and importance has grown. He is the deciding vote between two opposed camps, and such a powerful position would engender corruption in characters far more ethical than he. However much his fellow Councilors dislike it, they must endeavor to keep Rohdell’s favor.[/sblock][/sblock]Councilor Toban Wellaw[sblock=Knowledge (Nobility & Royalty) or Gather Information DC 10][sblock=DC 15]Toban Wellaw is a tall, austere man in his early 50s. Silverhaired and long-nosed, he is every inch the regal patrician, overlooking the city with a stern but fatherly eye. At least, that’s the image he wants people to have. Despite his considerable political acumen, there is an air of rigidity and condescension in his personality that often undermines his efforts. People are willing to work with him because they know he gets things done, but they rarely like and respect him the way he wants them to.[/sblock]Wellaw is one of the most prominent Councilors, as well as the leader of the Unionist faction, a group within the Council that favors closer relations with Borat. The fact that Wellaw and the others have taken bribes from Borat is universally assumed by the people of Malador, but few can work up any great outrage over the fact. They know that the Sea Captains oppose union with Borat for reasons just as selfish and mercenary.The Wellaw family can trace their ancestors back to the original village. They were farmers of the land then, and they remain connected to the land now. They own large portions of the Foot, Toban’s grandfather Ilthan having been the civic designer of that district and architect of many of the buildings there. The company Ilthan founded, Municipal Construction, has since been sold to the Neele family, but the Wellaws continue to receive a portion of the profits as well as substantial income from rents.Toban attempts to live in a manner that befits his self-image as a patrician of the city. He is a faithful husband and has been a caring (if somewhat distant) father to his three children. Like his rival Delorri, he is one of the hardest-working Councilors.[/sblock]Councilor Shelith Arco [sblock=Knowledge (Nobility & Royalty) or Gather Information DC 15]Arco is a slender, dark-skinned woman in her early 50s, with spiky white hair and a scar on her cheek that pulls the right side of her mouth upward in a permanent sneer. She got the scar during an expedition to the Drowned Towers as a young woman. Embittered by the results of her misguided adventure, she has a hostile attitude toward those who successfully enter the Towers on the Council’s behalf. Arco is a member of the Sea Captain faction. Together with Delorri, Arco controls the Excise House and commands the personal loyalty of the guards on two of the defense rafts at the Drowning Towers.[/sblock]Councilor Atrem Neele[sblock=Knowledge (Nobility & Royalty) or Gather Information DC 15]A squat, barrel-chested man in his late 40s, Neele has close-cropped gray hair and a broad, weather-seamed face. He walks with a slightly rolling gait, reminiscent of someone who has spent many years at sea. [sblock=Gather Information DC 25]Actually the gait is the result of a bad case of hemorrhoids[/sblock] Neele has a brusque manner and a tendency to pace as he talks. He is a member of Wellaw’s Unionist faction. His Municipal Construction company employs the best architects and engineers in the city, and “wins” most of the city’s improvement contracts.Councilor Lox Virrenet[sblock=Knowledge (Nobility & Royalty) or Gather Information DC 15]A near-sighted septuagenarian with only wispy white tufts of hair on his head, a councilor for more than 30 years, Virrenet is a member of the Sea Captain faction. He often appears vague and confused, but this is simply because his hearing is poor and he often misses parts of the conversation. He owns the boatyards and controls the income from mooring licenses in the harbor. His loyalty to Delorri’s faction stems from an innate fear of change.[/sblock]Councilor Reyna Yoth[sblock=Knowledge (Nobility & Royalty) or Gather Information DC 15]At 38 years of age, Yoth is the youngest of the Unionists; in fact, of all the Councilors. She has served on the Council for only eighteen months and was the surprise winner of the last election. Although her family is one of the oldest and richest in the city, she was considered too young and green a candidate by most of her kin, and did not have their support. How she managed to buy enough votes to win the seat isunknown. [sblock=Gather Information DC 25]Those with an ear to the ground say that all evidence points to Councilor Wellaw. Certainly, this would explain her loyalty to the Unionist faction.[/sblock]Yoth and her family make their money as landholders: they own dozens of buildings in the Harborside, which they rent out to merchants.[/sblock]KING DARRAGAN'S PROPOSALLocal lore has it that King Darragan stands fully 7 feet tall and has the strength of a giant. While this is a colorful exaggeration, Darragan’s prowess as a warrior and general is quite genuine. He has forged his kingdom at the head of an army, cowing other nations and settlements into obedience or conquering them if they choose to resist.Despite his success in achieving control, it is yet to be seen if the King can maintain it. Many inhabitants of the region feel no attachment to the nation of Borat. They are loyal to their family, their neighbors or, at most, their home settlement. Those who feel loyalty to a “country” imposed on them by outsiders are rare to the point of non-existence. It’s true that there are equally few who are willing to risk their lives to oppose Borat’s authority, but it takes more than a lack of opposition to sustain a nation: it needs officials to implement and maintain the laws, workers to build the roads and buildings, and troops to protect them all. Most of all, it needs money to pay for all these people.King Darragan has learned this lesson, and he needs more gold for his treasury—a great deal more gold. And on the New Coast, the one name associated with gold is Malador. Unless Borat can get access to some of the wealth that flows through Malador, his nascent nation will remain financially crippled for years, with an ever-increasing risk of collapse.At a minimum, the King needs a steady flow of gold from the city: a permanent (and extensive) trade treaty, or an “alliance” where Borat promises military protection to Malador in exchange for a regular payment of gold.More to come tomorrow morning (my time, which is GMT +2), while I'll be starting up the game itself tomorrow evening (again, my time).</blockquote>

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