Some in the city do not like the Baron aligning with the North. They have formed a resistance to this and protest in the streets. They mark houses and buildings with graffiti. They attack elves and other non humans. They have strong leadership and funding, but no one knows who pulls the strings.
When seen, they wear silver masks that look like demons, mimicking and ridiculing the masks that the Orovari wear.
Categories: Kowal City
Companions
Called a thieves guild by some in Kowal, the companions see themselves as a specialized workforce for hire. Sure, they may be hired to relieve someone of a valuable item, but they also provide spying and infiltration for the nobility and governing body of Kowal. They are allowed to exist because they are beneficial to those with money and power.
The above-board side of the guild is run out of a large building in the Oldtown district. All services offered through this building are legal, such as protection, finding buyers, or research. This guild is run by a single president and has several contract groups for hire.
In truth, the Companions is run by a three-person council, and the identities of those individuals are kept secret. They go by the titles of Hand, Eye, and Hood. This higher-tier service system provides services beyond the law. To gain access to these services, one must be vetted and trusted.
While decisions are made for the whole guild by the council of three, each is in charge of their own company. The Hand is in charge of the thieves. They are not your common pickpockets or cutpurses; these are highly skilled cat burglars and thieves. The Eye is in charge of the spies of the Companions. For a fee, they will infiltrate and report back on any confidential information you can imagine. The Hood specializes in those who want a new life or smuggle in goods with no records.
The Companions House is a sprawling mansion found on Bulwark Lane. The large four-story manse is a maze of rooms, studies, offices, and halls. Those who visit often leave from a different door than they entered, leaving them disoriented. Across the street is the towering Friend and Foe Inn, a business linked to the Companions.
Crane Company
Crane Company Mercantile is a trading companies that trades up and down the Weron River. They have a lot of funding and a wide trade network.
They are also well known for the collection of ancient art and artifacts. They often sell and trade these goods to the rich and powerful of Uteria.
Craven’s Hollow
Craven’s Hollow is home to outcasts, thieves, and the unwanted. The home of those who want to escape notice. Many did not choose this residence, but the small group of ramshackle buildings welcome any who do not have any other place.
Once it was Tower Five, the last defensive line of the Kowal barony. It got its nickname as it was the most dangerous post, so often the soldiers stationed here would desert their posts. After they would be found, they were brought back to serve the rest of their days in the dark and gloomy outpost. Even hundreds of years later, as the tower fell into disuse and disrepair, the area never lost its nickname.
Statistics: Crime 7; Danger 8; Economy 2; Law 1; Knowledge 3; Magic 5
Highest Stat is 10, lowest 1
Size: Tiny
Government: Anarchy
Economic System: Capitalist
Population: 37 (Diversity: 97% Human, 3% other)
Notable NPC’s:
- Vrede: An old Ishian man who lives in the Tower. He is knowledgeable and helpful. He is badly scarred and missing his right leg.
- Vesson: a middle aged man who owns the Quick Trader. He is generally grumpy and unpleasant to be around. But he runs a fair establishment for trade.
- Di: A secretive person who lives on the edge of the forest. They are never seen without their hood and oversized scarf on.
- Face: A newcomer, he and his band of followers live in the Tents. It is rumored that they are bandits using the Hollow as a base.
- Grogrem: A dweran who lives in town. He is handy with a hammer, and is known as a general handyman.
- Wez: An ex-guardsman who was exiled owal
- Raine: An elfling who lives out in the woods.
- Dagmara: An older woman who lives out in the forest somewhere. She comes to Town to trade poltices, black rock, and other alchemical items.
- Tolin: A teenage boy who is very charismatic. He is a minstrel who is quite good at the lute.
Notable Places:
- Quick Trader: A small general store run by Vesson, a human from Tiren. Rumor is he is a disgraced merchant wanted by the city guard. There are also a few tables and chairs set up and Vesson brews his own vodka.
- Tower: The old guard tower. Considered haunted by many, so most stay clear.
- The Tents: A tent city where inhabitants come and go.
- Junkpile: The trash pile of the community. It’s free to take anything left in the pile.
- Town: when the inhabitants refer to “town”, it is the small gathering of buildings that surround the Quick Trader.
Cult of the Crimson King
A rumored cult of religious followers who seek the knowledge of Nithiel, a long-dead eldar king who sought to bring order to Uteria.
They are gaining power in Kowal, especially now that they are being led by a mysterious figure named Holloweye.
Dael
Dael is a very old blind man. He is weak, and has never adventured until now—this is his very first. He is out of shape and suffers from myriad aches and pains, though he does move around well enough.
He was born without vision, though his hearing is exceptional, and he feels a deep connection with music, particularly rhythm. When he was a child, he would beat rhythmically on items around the house, until his parents bought him a drum. Using his drum, and beating varying rhythms, he learned that he could control the moods of the people around him. He could help them sleep. He could give them and himself surges of energy. It was a subtle gift, but he found it to be powerful as he learned to give small nudges to himself and the people around him as necessary. For this reason, though he never became a man of means, he always survived handily. He is resourceful, and knows how to shift people’s psychological states to help get them through their rough periods.
His parents died of plague when he was a child. When he became an adult, he married, then had a son. A decade ago, his son died in a hunting accident. Then, several months ago, his wife died of natural causes, as she, like him, had grown quite old. It was too late for him to start a new family, and he could not just sit around an empty house, singing along with his drum to no other ears but his own. So he left and began to wander until he found a group of people on an important quest. They recognized his resourcefulness and asked him to join them. They warned him of the danger, but he had nothing to lose, and hoped that if he were to die, it would be while helping others, and preferably with some excitement.
Dael hums to find his way around places, it slows him down, but less than you would imagine. The hum is quiet, most people don’t even notice he is doing it.
Disadvantage: Deaf – Slows speed to 20?, -3 to melee attack.
Advantage: Darkvision 30?, Immune to darkness and blindness magic.
Darkwinter Tavern
Darkwinter Tavern was opened after the long winter of ’93. Owned and run by Rob Bevaskin, a war veteran and ex merchant. He made his money taking supplies through the harsh lands between the neighboring cities, but “retired” by opening the tavern.
It is a popular place in Kowal for travelers, adventurers, and soldiers.
Menu:
- Poached Eggs and Kielbasa 8 sp
- Rabbit Stew and Hazelnut Bread 5 sp
- Bread Loaf 2 cp
- Cheese, hunk of 1 sp
Drinks
- Rye, shot 2 sp
- Rye, bottle 3 gp
- Ale, Pint (Breaker’s Brew) 4 cp
- Wine (Tiren Red Blend), pitcher 2 sp
Death Takers Guild
A guild of morticians and embalmers.
They were very important to the city during the many plagues, as they disposed of the diseased bodies. Since then, they have continue to serve the cities in their time of grief, for the right price.
Druid Grove of Thay
Thay is a human magic user who came to Kowal with a knight named Roe. He was a traveler from the Tiren Druidic order, sent West to find knowledge and start his own grove. The attitude towards magic in Kowal was much more closed minded than the kingdom of Tiren.
In the face of such bigotry, Thay knew his mission was to create a place of safety and knowledge for those seeking refuge from persecution. He built his grove hidden away in the Lesh Forest, where a close friend had shown him a waystone. This place of power was hidden deep in the forest and Lesh found this the perfect place for his abode. The grove is small now, but with the right guidance it shall grow.
Duke’s Arena
An arena built outside the Northern Wall of Kowal by the Uthgard Army. Uthgard uses the Arena to entertain the people, train warriors, and recruit new soldiers.