Tag: Lorestaves

The Tavern and Gambling Den at the Sign of the Squandering Snail
Written by Fraser Ronald
Maps and Illustrations by Dean Martin

The Second Floor

The second floor is constructed out of wood. Please note that the storage room on the first floor is two stories tall, and therefore the doorway into the storage room on the second floor merely leads to a set of stairs.

Tavern Balcony

This walkway overlooks the tavern below. There is no furniture here, though the banister has a small ledge on which one could place a cup or tankard.

The walkway is accessed by the stairs from the tavern or through the door to the guest rooms.

Small Guest Rooms

This room has practical but not attractive furniture. There is a bed with a straw mattress and wool blankets. A stool in one corner has a washbasin and there is a jug of water on the floor beside it. Beneath the bed is the chamberpot. At the foot of the bed is a small, iron bound chest, though it has no lock, merely brackets for the lock.

These rooms, unlike those on the first floor, often have residents. Rarely, though, are those residents travelers. It is far more often that the people staying in these rooms are criminals or men in hiding. The comfort of the room is minimal, but it is better than an alleyway or a gallows. The cost for the room for a night is 10 princes (sp).  Like the rooms below, if one of these rooms is available it can be let by the hour. As these rooms are intended for actual guests, the cost per hour is 5 princes (sp).

Gambling Den Balcony

The stairs lead to a small landing with a single door. There is no furniture, though the banister has a small ledge on which one could place a cup or tankard.

Entertaining Room

This room has three settees, set in a horseshoe shape, with a low table in the middle of them. Against each wall is a table, and these tables have glass pitchers and fine, ceramic cups. A stone fireplace is set against the north wall. Faded and worn tapestries adorn the walls.

The tapestries are all that remain of Wessent’s dream. Murnac uses this room to entertain friends or individuals of influence to whom Murnac wishes to remain on fair terms. Murnac has used this room to hold recitals, have drawing room theatre performed and to simply relax and drink. If more furniture is required, Murnac will have it brought from his own rooms.

When not in use by Murnac, he will rent it out to others needing a substantial area with some small luxury. Murnac requires a wren (gp) for an afternoon’s use and 2 wrens (gp) for an evening’s use. If the room is required overnight, the cost goes up to 5 wrens (gp).

Games Room

This room has plastered walls, mostly covered in worn though still presentable tapestries. It has three tables pushed together near the center of the room. Around these tables are sturdy wooden chairs. Against the west wall is a counter and cupboards atop of which sits a collection of cups and a tall, earthenware jug. There are divans against the south wall.

This large room is available for private parties of any sort. The price for the room is 15 princes (sp) for an afternoon, a wren (gp) for an evening and 2 wrens (gp) for overnight usage. Food and drink is extra, as is the cost of staff. Murnac usually charges a prince (sp) for staff and a further 2 princes (sp) per person for food and drink.

Upper Common Room

This room has darkened wood walls, complete with faded tapestries, the figures and themes of which are no longer discernable. A bar runs along the west wall, from the door near the north to the south end of the room. There are three tables here, each with chairs around them. A chandelier hangs from the ceiling, boasting sconces for at least twenty candles. The windows are open and unglazed.

This is a place for Murnac to move “high-rolling” customers or to entertain groups from influential guilds or gangs. While it is the same as the games room below, Murnac will have Dunchad at the bar and will have Faelan and Bressal run the games. If he needs a server, he’ll use Flourette. Except during feast days and festivals, this room is usually closed, though the doors are rarely locked. Nothing of value is stored here.

The Tavern and Gambling Den at the Sign of the Squandering Snail
Written by Fraser Ronald
Maps and Illustrations by Dean Martin

The Tavern at the sign of the Squandering Snail

The dim light of a few candles is all that illuminates this area. The shutters are always closed. Few who frequent this establishment wish eyes upon them. Smoke infuses the atmosphere. The few round tables and the chairs around them have seen too many patrons and too many years. Cracked, chipped and gouged, they serve their purpose but little else.

Against the far wall, opposite the main doors, runs the bar. It is uneven, lower to its left, a fact apparent when looking at it from across the room. Still, it is even enough to stand at, and the tilt does nothing to disturb the tankards atop it.

A door is set into the wall beside the bar and a stairwell beside this door leads up.

The tavern is not Murnac’s main focus. It’s always second on his list of priorities, and if it weren’t attached—physically—to the gaming hall, he would likely sell it. Still, it nets him some small profit, and he can’t argue with that. Strangely enough, Murnac places his most trustworthy and competent staff in the tavern. This is because he visits the tavern so rarely and the workers are without any real supervision.

Dunchad will be at the bar in the tavern from about noon until well after midnight. While he occasionally leaves the tavern for errands, he is a constant most evenings. If the tavern is at all comfortable or at least not uncomfortable, this is due to Dunchad. He uses his carpentry skills on slow days. The beer and ale served here is not the worst in the Temples, and is certainly palatable given its cost.

The food in the tavern is limited. In the morning, meaning from the first bell of the new day until the fourth bell, porridge and bread are available. A bowl of porridge and a slab of crusty bread costs 2 dublings (cp). After four bells, the menu becomes more varied. One can have a bowl of stew and bread, a slab of cheese and bread, or a slab of meat and bread. These gastronomic threats will set the customer back a hefty 5 dublings (cp).

A mug of beer or ale is 1 dubling (cp). A pitcher of the detestable wine available is 4 dubling (cp). The beer and ale is better than the wine, though few patrons of the Snail are connoisseurs of the finer things in life.

The Tavern Kitchen

Between the oil lanterns ensconced on the walls and the fire in the great hearth, this room is both well-lit and extremely hot. Atop the fire is a cauldron, steam rising from it, as is the scent of meat stew. A long, wood table dominates the center of the room. There is little room in which to manoeuvre around it. Beneath it are stacks of pots, mostly iron, and bowls, mostly wood.

Tathan works here, alone. She will not abide interference in her kitchen. No one ever bothers her there. She works all day long and at night, she disappears into the Temples. She doesn’t speak to anyone except Dunchad, and then only in short, terse sentences.

The Guest Rooms

This room is small and dank. Its windows are covered in a thin layer of oiled skin, tattered and torn, letting in filtered light and offering some privacy. The wood shutters hang on leather hinges. A single bed with a straw-filled mattress abuts one wall while a small chest sits against the other.

These rooms are intended to be rented for nights. They were intended for travellers. They’ve become something else. Most of the time they are rented for an hour or two. While the bed gets messed, people don’t usually sleep in them. The cost for renting a room is 10 princes (sp) per night, though they can be rented for 3 princes (sp) per hour.

The Interior Guest Room

This room boasts stone walls though no windows. Oil lamps at either end light the cramped room, which offers only a small bed and a foot locker. The mattress, though, is filled with goose feathers and there is a clean wool blanket atop the dingy sheets.

This is the one guest room regularly used for its intended purpose. Due to its stout walls and relative assurance of safety, it is one of the few rooms in the Temples travellers or those required to stay the night in the area regularly hire.

Due to the higher quality and utility of the Interior Guest Room, it runs at 15 princes (sp) per night. It isn’t rented by the hour. If it looks like the hirer can afford it, Dunchad or Murnac will try to run him for a wren (1 sovereign or gp)

Storage

This is the dry storage room. The walls are lined with shelves on which sit bags of grain. Barrels fill the centre of the room. They are each marked as beer, meat or fish. Stacked atop the barrels are amphora.

In the southeast corner, there is a wood plank door on the ground with a simple, rope knob.

The wood plank door in the southeast corner covers the stairs down to the basement. The amphora are filled with wine. The meat and fish in the barrels are salted and stored in brine.

The Gambling Den at the sign of the Squandering Snail

Double doors lead into this round hall, with a ceiling some three stories above and balconies overlooking it both from the second and third floors. A collection of round tables, each with a half-moon sized section removed, cover the area. Around each table are a few chairs. At the half-moon section is a man. At some tables, the man holds playing cards, at others he gathers up and hands back thrown dice.

Against the east wall is a bar, curved along the wall, presenting a crescent. Behind it is a door. Across from the bar, a set of stairs lead up, following the curvature of the wall. At the far south end of the room is another door.

Though not the largest gaming establishment in the Temples, the gambling den at the Sign of the Squandering Snails is certainly one of the most unique. Unlike the tavern, the walls of the gambling den are wood.

The gambling here is usually fair. It isn’t necessary to cheat, most times. There are always five hulking guards moving around the room and two more at the main door. Cheating the house will get one beaten within an inch of one’s life (basically, they’ll try to beat an individual to -1, though sometimes mistakes do happen). If a cheater is caught a second time, they are killed and dumped in the alley. In the morning, Murnac will report the suspicious death to the authorities, who will come and collect the bodies, ask questions and threaten Murnac.

Should someone who obviously doesn’t belong enter the gambling den, for example someone who appears to be wealthy—maybe a slumming aristocrat, a young thrill-seeker—Murnac will politely warn them that this is a very rough area and that they might want to move along. If they remain, Murnac will detail one of the thugs (whoops, I mean guards) to watch over the wealthy patron. If a wealthy patron cheats, they will be held and the authorities called. Murnac doesn’t want any trouble with the duke, so in these instances, he scrupulously plays by the rules, including laying a charge and going to court. Murnac even has an advocate on his payroll for just such occasions.

The gambling den offers the same selection of drinks as the tavern, but they cost 1 dubling (cp) more. They taste no different and their quality does not improve when they are served in the gambling den. For food, there are only sweetmeats (basically, organs of small animals, like weasel intestine or fox liver) and pastries (thin bread with sugar). Either cost 5 dublings (cp), the same price as a meal at the tavern.

The Kitchen at the Gambling Den

This large room has worktables lining the walls. The work tables are lined with canisters and jugs. In the centre of the room, a great fire burns in a stone housing. Above the fire is an oven. Smoke rises up past the oven, through a set of grills, and along to the chimney. The design is quite ingenious.

This kitchen rarely sees the amount of activity seen in the tavern’s kitchen, but oddly enough, it has a much larger workspace. The only thing regularly prepared here are sweetmeats and pastries. Often, Tathan comes here in the morning to bake bread for the tavern, and she will help to prepare the pastries, though she will not spend her day here, preferring to work in the smaller though more familiar confines of the tavern kitchen. During the day, the barmaids working at the gambling den will work here, preparing whatever foods are requested.

Office

This is the only room with stone walls in the gambling den. It has a single window with waxed skin and shutters. This allows in some light while protecting the occupant’s privacy. A single desk is set against the south wall with a single chair. A strong box sits beside it. Along the walls are shelves which hold ledgers.

This is Murnac’s office. In easy reach, under the desk, is a short sword. In the desk are a collection of knives, a bottle of good whiskey, a deed to the gambling den and tavern which was the first job Murnac had his advocate complete. Other than that, the other papers and documents on the desk are beyond Murnac’s comprehension. He does not read. The ledgers on the shelves are from before Murnac’s time. He doesn’t really keep records.

Gambling Rooms

This room is spacious, with a single, round table in its centre surrounded by six simple chairs. Against the far wall is a sidetable on which sits two decks of cards and a collection of dice. Candle holders line the walls and torch sconces flank the door.

The Gambling Rooms can be rented for private games. If they are rented, for the minuscule fee of 5 princes (sp), one of the gamesmen from the gambling den can conduct the game. A constant flow of the Snail’s sub-standard brew or wine is part of the rental price of 10 princes (sp) per night. Of course, if one would like something a little better, it can be provided—at an additional cost, of course. Further, for the low, low price of 2 princes (sp) per night, a guard can be assigned to guard the door from the inside or out. Three guards come at the special rate of 5 princes (sp). What a bargain!

The Tavern and Gambling Den at the Sign of the Squandering Snail
Written by Fraser Ronald

Years ago, both the tavern and the gaming den were separate establishments. The round, tower-like structure that became the gambling den was a hostel run by a benevolent charity. That charitable organization went the way of so many well-meaning individuals and entities in the Temples—it disappeared. The tavern had always been a public house with rooms for let.

Before Murnac’s time, a man named Wesent (no relation to Wesent Tailor) owned the public house, under the sign of the Mouse and the Moon. Wesent took control of the tower. He didn’t purchase it, as there was no one from which to purchase it. Wesent hired a group of thugs to clear the squatters out of the tower, then he hired some workmen to refurbish it and attach it to his existing public house. Wesent had dreams for this newer, bigger public house.

As is common in the Temples, Wesent’s dreams led to Wesent’s doom.

The cost for the realization of his dream put Wesent seriously into debt. He owed that debt to many people. He struggled to pay off most, but lowest on his list was Murnac. At that time, Murnac was only known as muscle for another loan shark, one of the few sharks to whom Wesent didn’t owe money. Though Wesent owed Murnac money, he didn’t consider Murnac a priority. When he came to collect, Wesent dug his grave. He treated Murnac with unconcealed distaste. He had come alone, without the usual show of toughs. What Wesent forgot was that Murnac didn’t need toughs. He was a tough.

The next week, Wesent had disappeared. Murnac had a note, giving him control of the new, combined establishment. It reflects well on Murnac’s intelligence and understanding that he paid off those debts Wessent still owed. He had the establishment free and clear. The sign of the Mouse and Moon came down and the sign of the Squandering Snail went up.

The Snail opens its doors every day an hour or so before sunset. It does not close until sunrise. During the day, the structure is silent, save there may be some locals attending the tavern. The tavern serves meals through the day.

There are two main entrances to this structure. One is to the right, leading into a three-story structure with a slanting roof. The second leads into a circular tower built into the structure. A wood sign hangs beside each entrance showing a snail burrowing through a pile of coins. The ground floor is walled in stone, while the upper floors are built of wood.

The Squandering Snail

Sign of the Squandering Snail: Causens’ Corner
Written by Fraser Ronald

Causens’ Corner is the Temples writ small. Filled with desperate individuals barely eking out an existence and cursing fate and their own circumstances with equal venom, the Corner is on the outskirts of the Temples. The result of this is that the Corner is not as dangerous as many other parts of the Temples. Individuals with at least some small reservoir of self-esteem and personal integrity might be found in Causens’ Corner. Still, most of the residents would be as happy to deliver a knife in as a slap on the back.

The Red Fisher

The three story building has a stone walled first floor, but its second and third floor are built of wood and project out from the first floor wall a few feet. The windows on the first floor, and there are a few, are all shuttered. The windows on the second and third floors are open and wisps of pink curtains are visible. Dangling from the second floor’s overhang, two pink lanterns flank the doors. The doorway requires a few steps down as it is a foot below the level of the street. Hanging from a bracket beside the door is a crudely painted plaque with a red bird holding a fish in its beak.

Fishmonger Gereslack is the master of this brothel. While somewhat clean and in good repair, this is still a dark and hopeless place for the whores, and even for Gereslack who had some hopes of moving beyond his place as a pimp.

Fishmonger Gereslack, a pimp
38 year old Male Human Rogue 3: CR 3; Size M; HD 3d6+6; hp 22; Init +2; Spd 30 ft.; AC 14; BAB +2; Atk +3 melee (1d6+1, shortsword), or +4 ranged (1d4, dagger); SV Fort +3, Ref +5, Will +3; AL CE; Str 12, Dex 15, Con 15, Int 13, Wis 15, Cha 13.
Skills: Bluff +8, Disable Device +5, Gather Information +6, Hide +8, Intimidate +8, Knowledge (Local) +7, Listen +5, Move Silently +7, Open Lock +6, Search +5, Sense Motive +8, Spot +8.
Feats: Combat Expertise, Dodge, Persuasive.
Class Feature (Rogue): Evasion.
Possessions: Dagger, leather armor, pouch with 25 princes (sp) and 5 wrens (gp), shortsword, traveler’s outfit.
Background: It’s not as though a person grows up dreaming of becoming a pimp. Still, Gereslack had few options. He might have become a thug, he could have become a loanshark, but the fact is, he prefers trading in flesh. He pretends it isn’t a crime, that no one is hurt, forgetting that he took women and girls in desperate situations and forced them to sell themselves. He is not a romantic, though he will often say that he is. Along with pimping, Gereslack sometimes involves himself in people smuggling, moving young women and boys to use as slaves elsewhere.

Gereslack always carries his weapons with him and he wears his armor, but under his clothing. He always wears a heavy, large cloak in the hopes of hiding armor and weapons.

Tactics: Gereslack doesn’t like physical confrontations. He will try to talk his way out of any fight, either by bluffing or intimidating. Once the conflict has been avoided, he’ll pay someone to kill or otherwise remove the threat of the individual with whom he was in conflict. If forced into a fight, Gereslack likes to feint. He’ll take whatever advantage is available and fight as dirty as necessary to win. If things look particularly bad, he’ll try to flee, or at least fight defensively if retreat is not possible.

The Cooper

Open barrels are piled one their sides beside this small, squat building. Smoke slowly snakes from the tin chimney reaching up from the roof.

This is the cooperage of Alassorn of Karnhorn. Along with the usual brewers, dry goods merchants and smugglers, Alassorn also sells barrels for other purposes, such as storage for a dead body and rocks, to be dropped somewhere out at sea.

Alassorn of Karnhorn, the local cooper
37 year old Male Human Expert 2: CR 1; Size M; HD 2d6; hp 11; Init +2; Spd 30 ft.; AC 12; BAB +1; Atk +1 melee (1d6, club), or +3 ranged; SV Fort +0, Ref +2, Will +2; AL CN; Str 10, Dex 14, Con 11, Int 14, Wis 9, Cha 13.
Skills: Sleight of Hand +7, Craft (woodworking) +10, Disable Device +4, Forgery +7, Hide +7, Knowledge (local) +7, Listen +3, Move Silently +6, Profession (cooper) +4, Search +3, Spot +3.
Feats: Alertness, Skill Focus (Craft [woodworking]).
Possessions: Artisan’s outfit, club, dagger, pouch with 30 princes (sp).
Background: Alassorn is something of a success story. Once a career criminal, a turn at the oars of one of the Duke’s galleys killed Alassorn’s anti-social tendencies. Finally released after he had served his time, Alassorn apprenticed with the only craftsman who would accept him, Hesrick, the cooper at Causens’ Corner. Hesrick, unlike Alassorn, knew nothing of the criminal elements in the Temples and worked only for legitimate businesses. While he survived, one could not call him successful. Alassorn, meanwhile, was willing to help out his old criminal cronies by supplying things like weighted barrels to easily dispose of a body in the bay, or false-bottomed barrels in which to smuggle goods. With the money made through his illicit dealings, Alassorn did something completely out of character—he acted honestly and in good faith. He purchased the cooperage from Hesrick for a price everyone had to agree was more than fair. Hesrick went to live with his eldest son who had a fairly prosperous farm outside the city and Alassorn was free to contract with whomever he pleased.

Tactics: It’s been quite some time since Alassorn has needed to protect himself, but he still remembers how to fight. He’ll try to escape from any fight, though, before he’ll willingly engage in one. If forced, he’ll fight defensively while trying to get a feel for his opponent. If he has a few rounds in which he has successfully protected himself, so his opponent has not landed an attack, Alassorn will actually attempt to fight as regular, until he gets hit, at which point he’ll return to fighting defensively. If he has a chance to escape a fight, even one in which he’s doing well, he’ll take it.

The Tailor

A small shack rests against a taller, four storey structure. The shack has a single door and two windows beside the door. Hanging in the window are bolts of cloth. Beside the door is a small plaque with crossed needles over a spool of thread.

This is the abode and workshop for the local tailor, Wesent. As there are so many Wesents in Bowden, this Wesent is known as Wesent Tailor. As most of the individuals of the Temples cannot afford to pay someone to make their cloths, Wesent works mostly for Gereslack’s doxies and those single men who have some small coin in their pockets, such as Murnac, Gereslack himself and Alassorn.

Wesent Tailor, the local tailor
36 year old Male Human Expert 2: CR 1; Size M; HD 2d6; hp 7; Init +2; Spd 30 ft.; AC 12; BAB +1; Atk -1 melee (1d6-2, quarterstaff), or +3 ranged; SV Fort +0, Ref +2, Will +5; AL LN; Str 7, Dex 15, Con 11, Int 14, Wis 14, Cha 5.
Skills: Appraise +7, Craft (clothing) +10, Diplomacy +2, Forgery +7, Hide +4, Knowledge (local) +6, Listen +4, Move Silently +5, Profession (tailor) +7, Search +4, Spot +3.
Feats: Dodge, Skill Focus (Craft [clothing]).
Possessions: Artisan’s clothing, pouch with 10 dublings (cp) and 10 princes (sp), quarterstaff.
Background: Wesent Tailor’s parents were indentured to a rich family who lived on an estate just outside of Bowden. Wesent escaped at a very young age and has not seen his family again. He arrived in Bowdern destitute and afraid. He spent some time running with a gang of young thieves but never felt as though he belonged. He had come to know many people in the Temples, and had only found one man he through he could trust. He became an apprentice to a small, insignificant tailor who only succeeded in keeping their two bellies full. When his master grew ill, Wesent took over the business. What little money they had stashed away, Wesent spent on a funeral for his old master. Now, Wesent does what he can. He is not particularly good, but he makes a living. He cannot see a time when he will have enough wealth to marry and start a family, but he has no other skills on which to fall back.

Tactics: There’s very little that Wesent will fight for, save his small shop. He’d just as soon receive a beating as fight back, hoping that by not fighting back, the enjoyment the bullies and thieves take from beating will be minimal, and that will persuade them to move on. If his life or shop is threatened, he’ll take up his quarterstaff and hope to drive off the attackers with a show of strength. Since that won’t be forthcoming, he better hope they are worse fighters than he.

The Carpenter

This building, though small, is clean and sturdy. It has a door with a handle and its shutters open upward rather than to the side. A plaque on the door shows a hammer, pegs and two boards of wood.

This is the home and workshop of the carpenter, Cessforn. He is known as Cessforn the Younger, as his father, Cessforn the Elder, also lives in Bowden. While he is a denizen of the Temples, Cessforn has some real carpentry skills and he has worked in some of the better sections of Bowden. Because he fears moving his father—whose care would cost more coin than a carpenter could raise elsewhere in Bowden—Cessforn remains in Causens’ Corner.

Cessforn the Younger, the local carpenter
51 year old Male Human Expert 2: CR 1; Size M; HD 2d6; hp 9; Init +1; Spd 30 ft.; AC 11; BAB +1 Atk +0 melee (1d6-1, quarterstaff), or +2 ranged; SV Fort +0, Ref +1, Will +3; AL LN; Str 8, Dex 13, Con 11, Int 13, Wis 11, Cha 10.
Skills: Craft (Carpentry) +9, Diplomacy +5, Disable Device +4, Gather Information +2, Hide +2, Knowledge (local) +5, Listen +5, Move Silently +3, Spot +7, Tumble +6.
Feats: Alertness, Skill Focus (carpentry).
Possessions: Artisan’s outfit, pouch with 15 princes (sp) and 5 wrens (gp), quarterstaff.
Background: Like his father, Cessforn the Younger grew up in the Temples. It’s all he knows. He apprenticed under his father and actually has some skill in carpentry. He could likely move out of the Temples, but he has a wife and children and not much actual coinage, rather his wealth is in his business. Finding another place where he could live with his father close by for as little as the Temples would be difficult, if not impossible. As such, Cessforn works throughout Bowden, earning a fair amount of money, but lives and has his shop in the Temples.

Tactics: Cessforn isn’t a fighter, but if his family is threatened, he’s more than willing to use the stout staff he always carries with him. He knows the Temples, which means he knows violence. Not much of a fighter, Cessforn will fight defensively. He’ll try to give his family a chance to escape. That done, he’ll attempt to escape himself. If he is in his own neighborhood, he’ll try to get those people who know him involved, at least to find help. Cessforn has plenty of friends—for a man of the Temples, he’s honest—so there might actually be people willing to help.

Jileforis’ Tenement

This building, made of chipped and marked wood, rises some four storeys. It is girded with many wood staircases and landings. Doors open onto these landings. There are many windows, some with shutters, some with merely the remains of shutters.

This is a tenement, barely still standing. The landlord, Jileforis, lives elsewhere in the Temples, but frequents Causens’ Corner to keep an eye on one of his many investments. Whenever Jileforis is in the area, he has two of his Toughs with him. Residents of the tenement include Cessforn the Elder and some widows making an honest living as seamstresses, doing work for Wesent Tailor. Cessforn the Younger also pays the widows a small sum to help watch over his father, who is slowly losing his mental faculties.

Jileforis, a landlord
47 year old Male Human Expert 3: CR 2; Size M; HD 3d6; hp 14; Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; AC 14 (+4 Dex); Attack +2 (+2 Base) melee, or +6 (+2 Base, +4 Dex) ranged; SV Fort +1 (+1 Base), Ref +5 (+1 Base, +4 Dex), Will +6 (+3 Base, +1 Wis, +2 Iron Will); AL CE; Str 11 (+0), Dex 18 (+4), Con 11 (+0), Int 14 (+2), Wis 13 (+1), Cha 16 (+3).
Skills: Bluff +10, Diplomacy +10, Gather Information +8, Hide +6, Intimidate +11, Knowledge (local) +8, Listen +6, Profession (landlord) +7, Spot +3.
Feats: Iron Will, Martial Weapon Proficiency (longsword), Persuasive.
Possessions: Courtier’s outfit, daggers (3), longsword (masterwork).
Background: Jileforis came to the Temples as a child. His father was a failed businessman who had lost almost everything, including the family home. As a young man, Jileforis left home with the intent to make money. He remembered the life he had previously led. Jileforis became the practical partner of three, the two other offered money and connections. Jileforis brought the ides and insured their implementation. Soon, Jileforis no longer needed his partners and so he took what he could and left. They soon faded into the Temples, while Jileforis rose to the top. Along with properties, Jileforis owns boats, warehouses, and a trading company. He continues to visit his tenements in the Temples, always bringing some hired muscle.

Jileforis does not carry coins with him because he does not pay for anything with his own hand. If payment is required, one of his toughs will deliver the payment. Jileforis always travels with at least 4 toughs. One of the toughs will have Jileforis’ purse, which will include 35 wrens (gp) and 10 braces (pp). Jileforis always carries his longsword, and is not adverse to using it, though only when doing so presents no danger to him.

Tactics: Jileforis has thugs to do his fighting. He didn’t rise to his position so he could dirty his hands in fisticuffs. He’ll have his toughs level the opposition, or at least screen his retreat. If absolutely forced into combat, Jileforis will fight defensively, all the time attempting to intimidate his opponents, or buy them off. Any opponent that stops his attacks based on threats or promises will have a price on his head the second Jileforis is out of danger.

Toughs, the guards and other toughs hired by Jileforis
Male Human Warrior 2: CR 1; Size M; HD 2d8; hp 12; Init +2; Spd 30 ft.; AC 14; BAB +2; Atk +3 melee (1d8+1, longsword) or +4 ranged (1d4, dagger); SV Fort +3, Ref +2, Will -2; AL LE; Str 13, Dex 15, Con 11, Int 9, Wis 7, Cha 10.
Skills: Climb +1, Hide +4, Listen +1, Move Silently +3, Spot +1.
Feats: Blind-Fight, Power Attack.
Possessions: Dagger, leather armor, longsword
Tactics: These toughs aren’t particularly smart, but they are smart enough to try to flank opponents and to gang up when they can. After two rounds of combat, they might try power-attack, but only if they have regularly hit an opponent.

Sign of the Squandering Snail: Basics
Morvia and Bowden the creation of Dean Martin
Written by Fraser Ronald

This product was devised both as a generic setting supplement that can be dropped into any campaign and as part of an ongoing adventure series—The Lorestaves. As such, the background information and some of the NPCs are based on the Lorestaves adventure. You can simply remove or ignore anything here that doesn’t interest you and use whatever you like however you like.

For example, while the area is called the Temples, perhaps in your campaign the player characters have already heard of an area in the city of Thatplace called “Dark & Gritty Quarter.” No problem, the Temples becomes Dark & Gritty Quarter in Thatplace. Your players are in a city and decide they want to do some gambling and go off in search of a gambling den. You can use the Snail without using the Temples. You can even use the descriptions of the Snail or the maps of the Snail separately if you so desire.

Bowden, in the Duchy of Algorn
The default setting for this adventure is the city of Bowden in the Duchy of Algorn. The duchy is part of the Divided Duchies in Morvia, which was to be the default setting for SEP’s Arcane Kingdoms line. Bowden is Algorn’s capital city and home to the ruling Duke, Javarre, and his Duchess, Hollis. Duke Javarre rules from within the impressive Stonewell Castle. Bowden is a coastal city of some 80,000 inhabitants and is the centre of Algorn’s powerful navy. The naval dockyards and shipwrights are the foundation of the Algorn economy. This city is also the site of the Divided Dukedom’s first university.

When prices are given, the local coinage will be used with the generic term in brackets. As such, were one to purchase a slab of meat and bread at the tavern, the price would be listed as 5 princes (sp). The gold coins of Bowden are sovereigns, known dismissively as wrens. The silver coinage is the princemark, often called princes. The copper coin is the dubling. Very rare and used only among merchants for large purchases and transfers of wealth, the brace is a platinum coin.

The Temples
The Temples District abuts the naval dockyards. The origin of the name is lost to history, as there is no record of a temple ever existing within the district. However, the Temples was once filled with places of worship dedicated to the elder gods, long before the One God arrived. The adherents of the One God, on their ascension to power, destroyed the temples of the elder gods and cursed the very land on which those temples had been built. They erased from history even the existence of those structures, though the people of the city that became Bowden continued to call the area ‘the Temples.’ Folk knowledge once again maintained that which historic records lost.

The Temples became a shunned area. For almost a century after its razing, only the homeless and the hopeless would venture into the Temples. Slowly, as the city grew, the abandoned area near the docks, avoided by the ‘good folk,’ became home to an underclass, those not recognized officially by the government. From the ruins, these individuals built homes and then businesses. The residents of Bowden found a new reason to shun the Temples—the danger they found there. Criminals of all kinds congregated in the district. While one could find legitimate businesses in the Temples—even criminals needed clothing, shoes and food—most of the prosperous businesses catered to needs and desires frowned upon or openly condemned throughout the rest of the city. The term ‘pink lantern’ and its links to prostitution come from the Temples.

Successive rulers attempted to eradicate or at least control the Temples, but the effort required proved too great. While the city vocally detested the Temples and its residents, many in the city patronized its businesses. Smugglers made their contacts and deliveries through the Temples, assassins found sponsors and whores their ‘mules.’ The Temples housed the underground economy of loan-sharks and coin shavers. The finances of the Temples are an important facet of the economy of Bowden, and this has contributed to the longevity of the district, protecting it to a degree from the campaigns against it.

Duke Javarre has enacted a hands-off approach to the Temples. He officially announced that he would enforce the peace and laws within the district, but at the same time he did not wish to expend the amount of wealth and manpower necessary to bring order to the Temples. However, most of the residents of the Temples feared that if they pushed this duke too far, he would force law onto them. A détente now exists, in which the depravities of the Temples are hidden behind closed doors and the streets are as safe as any street on the dockyards—perhaps not perfectly safe, but the district is no longer a jungle. The duke, for his part, sends his troops to police the district during daylight. While the troops disappear at night, there are plenty nearby should a grave disturbance arise.