Holystone - The Oracle of Fishtown

The Oracle of Fishtown

The Oracle is an older-looking woman who sits on a podium at a crossroads in Fishtown. She wears a blue linen dress and often has a shawl draped around her shoulders. She is generally nice to people, though she seems to know if an evil character is asking her questions and will ignore them.

No one knows the Oracle’s real name. She has been on the podium for years, since the founding of the city. The Oracle is obviously human, but has not aged appreciably in 200 years. As far as anyone knows, she has not gotten off the podium in all that time.

She appears to be magically protected. Anyone who would try to harm her or move her from the podium will disappear in a flash of smoke and find themselves standing on the shoreline in the Docks district. Spells just seem to fizzle if they are directed at her. Mages and clerics have talked with her, trying to discover her secret, to no avail. She usually just won’t talk to them if they question her about who she is or how she is still here. 

Everyone in the City knows about the Oracle. There are lots of rumors about her. Adventurers who ask around will hear lots of stories, some true, some false. If a player is a cleric of Luna, the GM should tell him all the relevant information regarding her when asked.

One very popular rumor states that one hundred years ago a demon attacked the Oracle as she was talking with some children. She pointed at it and it was blasted into nothingness. Anyone asking about the Oracle in a local tavern will hear this story.

The Church has declared that she is a Lunar Saint, though she wasn’t very impressed when she was told about it. The locals treat her with reverence, bringing her food and wine every day. She is very kind to them, and often gives them advice about some issue that is bothering them. 

If a noble comes to her with questions, she charges them five gold and will answer one question, with no guarantee of a direct answer. She gives the money to a local church that tends to the poor. 

When adventurers ask for their fortunes to be told, the Oracle often sends them on a short quest. After they complete the quest, she will answer a question for them. The answer is always correct, but may be disguised in a riddle that the adventurer might not understand until the event comes to pass. 

The GM should use the Oracle to introduce new adventures and to leave hints about some upcoming part of the campaign. If the GM needs the adventurers to find a clue that they somehow missed, the Oracle is a great way to provide it. If the players keep going back to the Oracle and use her as a crutch, the GM should have the Oracle quit talking to them for a while. 

In addition, if the GM wants the players to meet the Oracle, have her send a street kid or another adventurer to bring them a message to meet her. 

Quests from the Oracle

1. There is a murderer loose in The Triangle. He has been killing street children and prostitutes. He needs to be stopped.

2. The adventurers must go to Hilltown and get a bouquet of flowers from a halfling merchant who has a store there. The Oracle is playing match-maker with a young couple, and the flowers will be given to the boy to give to the girl he likes. Both of them have asked the Oracle about each other but fate seems to prevent them from getting together. The Oracle is trying to fix that.

3. Beastmen from the forests north of the city raided some outlying farms. The adventurers should travel there and defeat them.

4. The Oracle senses the presence of a demon in South Harbor. The adventurers should locate it and destroy it.

5. The adventurers should spend the day helping the local church meet the needs of the poor, whether by providing food or healing them of disease.

6. A street gang from The Triangle has been burglarizing homes in Fishtown. The adventurers should find the gang and bring them to justice.

7. Something evil has been excavated in the mines of Cliffside. The adventurers should go there and destroy it.

8. The Oracle loves a cinnamon pastry that is sold in the Market. The adventurers must go there and buy her some.

9. The Oracle wants to meet with a gypsy wise woman who lives in Tent City. The adventurers should go there and let the woman know. If none of the adventurers are gypsies, they will have to convince the gypsies to let them meet the wise woman.

10. Ratmen were spotted in Fishtown. The adventurers should find the creatures and dispose of them.

Holystone - Knightly Orders

Knightly Orders

Order of the Iron Sails

This Order is the military knighthood for the city. Baron Jon Thistlewood (F9) is the Master of the Order. He reports directly to the Count. The Master of the Order is traditionally the Captain of the Guard for the Count. The tabard and shield of the Order is light blue, with a sideways black ship with silver sails. The knighthood has accepted a few women during its history, but it is a very rare occurrence.

For everyday use, the knights wear mail armor. They favor heavy swords and maces. For battle, they don plate mail and ride heavy warhorses and use a lance.

The Count can grant knighthoods based upon bravery in battle but he leaves the normal raising of squire to knight for the Master of the Order to complete.

Order of the Blazing Sun

This Order is dedicated to Sol. The Master of the Order is Lord Templar Solaran Chalmers (F8). The members are called Templars, and are fighters dedicated to Sol. They are accompanied by clerics if they go on quests or are required for a battle. The Order accepts both men and women. The tabard and shield of the Order are dark orange with a yellow disc.

For everyday use, the knights wear mail armor. They favor the longsword. For battle, they don plate mail and ride heavy warhorses and use a lance.

Order of the Moon

This Order is dedicated to Luna. The Master of the Order is Captain Lares the Gray (F9). The Order is composed almost equally of men and women fighters. The tabard and shield are dark blue, with a silver disc surrounded by silver stars.

For everyday use, the knights wear mail armor. They favor scimitars and bows. In battle, they ride light warhorses and fight as horse archers.

Warriors of the Sidhe

These knights are dedicated to Oberon. The Master of the Order is Belen Oakleaf (elven F12). They are a loose-knit organization of fighters that accepts both men and women. Their tabard and shield are brown, with a green oak tree.

For everyday use, the knights wear leather armor. They favor spears and swords. In battle, they don mail armor and ride medium warhorses.

Order of the Broken Spear

These knights are dedicated to Diabolus. Their Order is illegal within the city. The local Master is Baron Selvy Branson (F13), patriarch of one of the major noble houses. His residence is in North Point. No one suspects that he is a demon worshipper. The knights do not display the tabard of Diabolus unless they are engaged in battle for their god. The Order accepts only men. Their tabard and shield are dark red with a bright red trident.

For everyday use, the knights wear whatever is appropriate to maintain secrecy. For battle, they don plate mail and wield a lance and a heavy mace.

Household Knights

In addition to the knightly orders, all of the nobles have their household knights, who swear fealty only to the noble. Many of these knights live in manors outside the city, providing oversight of the noble’s lands. These knights wear the tabard of their lord and bear a shield with their own personal heraldry.

For everyday use, they wear either leather or mail armor. They generally carry swords. For battle, they wear plate mail or mail armor, ride a heavy warhorse, and wield a lance.

Order of the Rose

This knighthood is composed of persons who have provided service to the city. It is granted by the Count and is purely honorary. The Count uses it to reward acts such as a ship’s captain running supplies to the city during siege, a great poet who lives within the city, or an engineer who designs a way to irrigate the crops and improve the food stores of the city. Members are called “Sir” or “Madam”, but do not have the traditional rights of military knights, such as judicial authority over commoners. The Orders symbol is a pin of a red rose that is worn on the breast. The Count does not reward this lightly, as he feels that even though the Order is non-military, it still should signify that the knight is worthy of praise.

Some stuff reposted

I had to repost a few things because of the Google outage screwing up tags. More new stuff will be on the way starting today. I got a little writing done while I waited for blogger to fix itself. Hopefully, Google won't have any more problems with "routine maintenance".

Holystone - Dueling

Dueling is legal in the city. It is regulated, though. Both participants must be evenly armed and armored. Magic weapons and armor are legal, as long as both duelists have roughly equal items. No other magic is allowed. They must have a second. A person of standing must attend as the judge, whether that is the local innkeeper or a knight.

Commoners may not challenge nobles. Nobles of lesser rank may not challenge nobles of higher rank without good cause.

Duels can be to first blood, first serious wound, or even death. In all cases, the judge present must acknowledge the result of the duel.

Cheating is heavily frowned upon and the opponent is allowed one free strike if a cheater is discovered. If someone cheats using magic in a normal duel, he is immediately executed.

Magic duels also occur but must be held either in a protected, enclosed space or outside the city where nothing can be damaged. In these cases, a wizard or cleric of note must preside as judge. Both participants must be able to use magic for the duel to be legal.

A champion may stand in for a duelist if the duelist is unable to fight or the challenge is for a frivolous matter. Powerful nobles also have standing champions to defend themselves in duel and generally don't engage in dueling. The issuer of the challenge to a duel must fight, he is not allowed to use a challenger. 

Frivolous or frequent dueling will lead the the banishment of the duelist. While the Count doesn't mind matters being settled martially, he doesn't want people making a habit of it.

Holystone - Law Enforcement

Enforcement of laws throughout the city is not as consistent as it might be. The code of laws is well enforced in the Lord's City, the Merchant Quarter, and the North Ward. City guard patrols are pretty common and only the best of the guard is allowed to patrol these areas. Nobles have their own guards to enforce the law, as well.

Law enforcement becomes a bit more inconsistent from the Market to South Harbor. Patrols are less frequent and most of the guard are locals who may show favoritism. Some are even bribed by the local criminals. They are inspected enough that corruption is not rampant, though. It's more that there are a few bad eggs making the whole look bad. In addition, minor stuff like a drunken brawl will likely just have the guardsmen send the brawlers home to bed, instead of putting them in the stocks.

The Triangle is almost lawless. The local gangs protect people for a price. Brawls are fairly frequent and don't cause any alarm. Every month or so the city guard goes through the area, rounding up wanted criminals and dispersing the gangs. There is a hanging square in the Triangle that gets used a lot the day the guard comes through. A day or two after the guard leaves, everything returns to normal.

South Point and Cliffside are both well-patrolled. The merchants and the nobles do not want their industries impacted by criminals.

Hilltown has a small militia made up of local humans and halflings. They largely just settle matters amongst themselves. There is little serious crime, and any murderers or cultists are turned over to the city guard. A common punishment for criminals is to have a boxing match with the local boxing champion, Hugo of Hilltown (F3). He's a big man and a skilled boxer. He's only lost one fight in the last three years.

Tent City is periodically patrolled by the city guard, though most local enforcement is by the caravan guards that arrive with each caravan. The gypsies have their own enclave in the north side, and take care of criminals according to gypsy laws.

Holystone - Druids (revised)

Druids

Druid is a just a title used by some clerics of Gaia, Oberon, and Titania.  They focus on the natural world and work with foresters and farmers. Druids focus on spells that deal with plants, animals, water, or the earth. Druids usually avoid the Cathedral, not caring for religious politics or the city life. 

Druids usually maintain small shrines in the outdoors. They may hold services in a cave, at an ancient tree, or out in the middle of a plowed field. It depends on the druid. 

Some druids refuse to wear metal armor as a matter of faith, limiting themselves to leather armor. There are even a few who will only use a staff or club in combat. Most druids don’t follow this belief, as they maintain steel armor is made from the earth. In fact, if they know a battle is imminent, they will don plate mail if they have it available. 

This divide leads to arguments between the two sides. The anti-metal druids think the other druids are not as faithful as they should be. The metal-wearing druids think the others are foolish for denying such an obvious protection. 

There have been a couple brawls over the matter, but in general, druids would rather argue over a beer than punch each other over such a minor point of faith.

Blogger outage

Well, the last couple days sucked. And my blog still has problems with the tags, so I'm not posting anything important for another day or so until I know Google actually fixes this mess. I hope no one lost any posts.

Holystone - Crime and Punishment

The Laws of the City

Nobles and knights have the right to pronounce sentence on commoners. This right is not abused, as it can be removed by the Count’s decree. This has only happened once since the founding of the city. The noble in question was himself banished following the stripping of his rights.

Nobles who are accused of crimes are judged by the Count.

Knights who are accused of crimes are judged by a suitable noble, whether it is the knights liege, the Count, or the Master of the knight’s Order.

Clerics who are accused of crimes are judged by their church leader, possibly with the Archbishop and the other church leaders getting involved if the crime is serious enough.

Women are treated the same as men under the law. There are no special circumstances due to sex, with the exception of adultery.

The City Prison

The City Prison is located in The Gates district. It is run by the City Guard. Most of it is above-ground, and is used as a Guard base and to hold non-violent prisoners. There is a dungeon level for the torturers to use and for especially dangerous prisoners. A mage is stationed here to deal with arcane threats, and there is a platoon of Guardsmen here at all times.

Sir Robert Granvel (F9) is the officer in charge. He is a knight and isn’t very happy about this duty, though he performs it well.

Arister Corwell (M8) is the mage assigned here. He spends most of his time reading magic tomes, and rarely has to deal with magical problems. He gets on well with Sir Granvel.  

Ortho Nine-Fingers (T3) is the Head Torturer. He is a small, quiet man, who takes professional pride in his work. The regular Guardsmen avoid him and he doesn’t care.

Crimes and Punishment

Adultery – A fine is paid to the wronged husband by the man involved. The husband may then file for divorce. There is no penalty for a husband with a mistress. The husband may request a duel, instead of a payment, at his discretion. Special Case: If the woman involved is a powerful noble or important merchant and was wronged by her husband, she may pursue her own trysts with no fear of reprisal and will even receive support in society.

Arson – The arsonist is hanged in a public square. His assets are seized and used to pay for any damages he incurred. 

Assault upon a Noble – Commoners who assault a noble are given twenty lashes with a whip and put in the stocks in a public square for one week. This sentence can be dropped to one night in the stocks if the noble instigated a drunken brawl, or it could be increased to death by hanging if the assailant intended deadly harm with no provocation from the noble.

Assaulting a City Guardsman – The thug is fined and sentenced to three nights in the stocks in a public square. If a weapon was used in the assault, the attacker is fined, receives 20 lashes from a whip and is put in the city prison for one month. If magic was used, the criminal is charged with Sorcery. If a City Guard was killed, the attacker is charged with Murder and may be executed.

Attempting to Free a Prisoner – The criminal is fined and sentenced to twenty lashes of the whip and one month in prison.

Blasphemy – The blasphemer must pay a fine to the Church.

Brawling – Brawlers are sentenced to one night in the stocks in a public square.

Bribery – Bribers are sentenced to one night in the stocks in a public square for something minor. If the situation is serious enough, the briber could be sentenced to more time in the stocks or even death by hanging. Officials who receive a bribe are fined, and may lose their position and even be executed, depending upon the situation.

Child Abuse – Depending upon the situation, the child abuser may be sentenced to the stocks in a public square, a public whipping, or even castration followed by execution by hanging.

Cowardice in Battle – The coward is beheaded in front of his regiment.

Debtor – A person who cannot pay his debts will be indentured to whomever he owes money for the period of one year. If the debtor owes more than one person, he will serve each person for one year as part of a consecutive sentence.

Demon Worship – The cultist will be tortured to discover his accomplices and then beheaded in a public square. Noble rank will not spare the cultist.

Destruction of Merchandise, Farmland or Produce – The person involved must pay a fine equal to 150% of the value of the product destroyed.

Destruction of a Ship – Anyone who willfully brings about the destruction of a ship for financial gain is sentenced to a public hanging.

Murder of a Commoner – If the murderer is a commoner, he has his right hand removed and spends one year in the city prison. If the murderer is a noble, he pays a fine to the victim’s family. Nobles who are guilty of multiple murders may be banished or beheaded, depending upon the situation.

Murder of a Knight or Noble – If the murderer is a commoner, he is publicly tortured and then hanged. If the murderer is another noble, he may pay a large fine or be beheaded in a private setting, depending upon the situation.

Piracy – The pirate is suspended in a cage in a public square in the Docks district until dead. If the pirate was important enough, he might be given water every day to lengthen the time before he dies.

Rape of a Commoner – If the rapist is a commoner, he is castrated. If the rapist is a noble, he must pay a large fine to the victim, and will likely be ostracized by other nobles.

Rape of a Noble – If the rapist is a commoner, he is castrated, then tortured, then hung in a cage in a public square to die of exposure. If the rapist is a noble, he will have to pay a massive fine to the person raped. In addition, he will likely be banished or even executed.

Slavery – The slaver has all property and assets seized by the Count. He is then hanged in a public square.

Sorcery – Use of magic to commit evil deeds is punishable by torture, followed by being burned at the stake. The Church will oversee all such cases, with advice from the Court Mage. Examples of sorcery include: mentally controlling someone, fireballing a group of non-criminal citizens, summoning demons or other evil beings, using magic to torture someone, or becalming or sinking merchant ships or naval warships. 

Tax Avoidance – The person involved must pay a fine equal to 150% of the value of the original tax he avoided. If he cannot do so, he is considered to be a Debtor.

Theft – The thief is branded with a T on his left cheek and spends three days in the stocks in a public square. If caught again, his right hand is removed and he spends a month in the city prison. If caught a third time, he is publicly hanged.

Treason – The traitor is tortured and then hanged in a public square. This sentence includes any who would help the ratmen who live below the city or who willfully attempts to endanger the city militarily.

Holystone - Druids

Druid is a just a title for clerics that are nature-based. Many priests of Gaia call themselves druids, for example. Some of them refuse to wear metal armor as a matter of faith, but many druids will happily don plate mail before a major battle if they can.

Holystone - Religion

The Cathedral

The Cathedral is dedicated to the High Church. It is run by Archbishop Reginald Atwater (C 12), a cleric of Sol. He is in general charge of the entire Church. He got his position after the last Archbishop passed away, following a vote of the senior clerics of all three branches, which is the typical election process. He is well regarded by the Count and all three of the Bishops, though he has a friendly rivalry with the Lunar Priestess.

The High Church

The High Church was formed centuries ago, combining the worship of three powerful deities. Clerics consider themselves to be priests of the High Church and specifically clerics of one of the three gods.

Church laymen worship all three gods, with a slight bias towards the god that is most likely to help them with a specific prayer. Many pray to all three gods in the same prayer, asking Sol for rain, Luna for luck with dice, and Gaia to heal their sick relative.

Sol (The Sun)

Church Leader: Bishop Arvik Jonston (C10) is the head of the Sol Church, though he defers to the Archbishop on major decisions. He is a methodical man, and is very humble.  He gets along well with all of the nobility.

Holy Symbol: Golden disc

Cleric attire: A yellow tabard with an orange disc worn over armor. In church, priests wear yellow robes with an orange disc on the back.

Alignment: Good

Favored Weapon: Longsword

Areas of Concern: The Sun, Fire, War, Weather, Justice

Sol’s followers include nobles, clerics, halflings, monks, judges, city watchmen, soldiers, and paladins. 

Luna (The Moon)

Church Leader: Lunar Priestess Elwyn Erindor (Elf Cleric 10) has been at the Cathedral for almost 200 years, and has led the Lunar Faith for the last 150 years. She has no interest in being the Head of the Church, being much more interested in her own congregation. Elwyn is great friends with the city admiral and the pilot, but is distant with the Count. She is considered something of an anomaly by her elvish kin, as she does not follow the Faerie Lords.

Holy Symbol: Silver disc

Cleric Attire: A dark blue tabard with a silver disc worn over armor. In church, they wear dark blue robes with silver discs on the front and back.

Alignment: Neutral

Favored Weapon: Scimitar

Areas of Concern: The Moon, Prophecy, War, Luck, The Sea, Magic

The port and the lighthouses are dedicated to Luna. Her followers consist of clerics, gypsies, mages, admirals, pirates, and sailors.

Gaia (The Earth)

Church Leader: Mother Jeri Holystone (D10) is the grandmother of the current Count. She tries to stay out of city politics, finding the Church politics more than enough to deal with. She spends much of her time outside of the city making sure all the neighboring farmlands are bountiful.

Holy Symbol: Mountain inside blue circle

Cleric attire: A plain brown tabard over armor. In church, they wear brown robes with dark green sashes.

Alignment: Neutral

Favored Weapon: Staff

Areas of Concern: The Earth, Animals, Plants, Healing, Farming

Gaia's faithful gather in parks in the city and sacred groves and stone circles in the farmlands. Her followers include dwarves, halflings, druids, rangers, farmers, witch doctors, midwives, and herbalists.

Faerie lords

While not technically gods, the lords of the fae are so powerful that they can grant cleric spells just as a god would. The Faerie Lords do not have an organized religion. Their followers tend to gather in clan-sized groups instead.

Oberon (King of the Seelie Court)

Holy Symbol: Oak tree

Cleric attire: A green tabard with a brown oak tree over armor. At services, they wear green robes with a brown sash.

Alignment: Neutral

Favored Weapon: Spear

Areas of Concern: Animals, Pacts, War

Oberon’s followers include elves, drow, halflings, druids, rangers, nobles, merchants, and soldiers.  Oberon maintains no temples, though small shrines are found in the homes of his followers.

Titania (Queen of the Seelie Court)

Holy Symbol: Tiara

Cleric attire: A red tabard with a golden tiara over armor. In services, they wear sheer, very revealing, red robes.

Alignment: Neutral

Favored Weapon: Shortbow

Areas of Concern: Fertility, Plants, Love, Poetry, Song

Titania’s followers include elves, drow, halflings, lovers, poets, bards, rangers, and druids.  Services to Titania are held at ancient trees or large hills.  Mushroom circles are also favored by her.

Mabb (Queen of the Unseelie Court)

Holy Symbol: Crescent moon.

Cleric attire: A black cloak with a silver crescent moon over normal armor or clothing. During some services, they only have the cloak on, and are nude underneath it.

Alignment: Evil

Favored Weapon: Dagger

Areas of Concern: Magic, Trickery, Lust.

Mabb’s followers include elves, drow, mages, thieves, harlots, and gamblers.  Mabb does not care for temples or shrines. She has been known to place a geas on wayward followers, forcing them to complete a quest if she thinks they have been ignoring her.

Demon Cults

Demons cults are found in the city, and are always hidden from general view. All three cults are illegal, and cultists that are captured are executed. Nevertheless, unscrupulous nobles and merchants seem to be prone to joining them.

Diabolus, Lord of Hell

Holy Symbol: Forked trident

Cleric Attire: A dark red tabard with a black trident over armor or no obvious symbols. All services are held while wearing armor.

Alignment: Evil

Favored Weapon: Polearm

Areas of Concern: Pacts, Destruction, Evil, Fire, War.

Diabolus’ followers include nobles, generals, knights, merchants, and assassins. His temples are usually austere and spartan, with braziers and bonfires present.

Lilith, Queen of the Succubi

Holy Symbol: Nubile cambion woman

Cleric attire: No obvious symbols are worn while in public. The entire congregation is completely nude during normal services. Some clerics might wear a holy symbol necklace during services, but that’s it.

Alignment: Evil

Favored Weapon: Dagger

Areas of Concern: Lust, Illusion, Evil, Greed, Knowledge, Subterfuge.

Lilith’s followers include scholars, harlots, jilted lovers, ratmen, thieves, and merchants. Her temples are often houses of ill-repute or in the homes of rich merchants.

Orcus, Master of the Undead

Holy Symbol: Skull-head mace

Cleric Attire: A black tabard with a silver goat head over armor. All services are held while wearing armor.

Alignment: Evil

Favored Weapon: Mace

Areas of Concern: Chaos, Undeath, Evil, Gluttony, Wrath.

Orcus’ followers include berserkers, ratmen, necromancers, and psychopaths. His temples are often in out of the way places like sewers, swamps or the darkest forests.