Subj:
Date: 8/5/99 5:01:26 PM Mountain Daylight Time
From: [email protected] (TIMOTHY FRANTZ)
To: [email protected] (John Payne)
John,
As for Chisaibu. The Twisted Tower scenario was set in Shadowdale, The central community in the dale of the same name in the Dalelands area of the Forgotten Realms setting. The Moonsea is many miles to the north east and has a bad reputation since the Zhentarim are very active in the area. The Red Wizards of Thay also frequent the area. Both of these groups have such unsavory reputations that if a black paladin started marauding through town I doubt anyone would notice.
The moonsea is a large lake, probably the size of Lake Superior. It has inhabited islands within it and many oppressed communities around it. If you have or have access to the Forgotten Realms boxed set you can read up on the area. I won't stick slavishly to what is printed there but it is a convenient starting point. if not I'll provide more details in my next missive as the books aren't with me right now.
In this town he has no problem meeting his residential preferances. He has found an area of town where many of the poorest have strung up blankets to act as shelter in a small, unused common courtyard. He has also found a run down hostel which the only real difference between this and the previous place is the this has wooden walls and charges 8cp pernight. Third there is a stable badly in need of cleaning out that he could stay in. There are of course better places. Mostly free of drafts and with large common areas that might not be too high a standard for him. These charge 2sp a night. Let me know which place he stays at.
Regardless of his choice, he has been here a few days. He's learned it's best to avoid anyone dressed better than he is and most of those dressed worse. Also one here does NOT speak to anyone of an obviously higher station unless first spoken to. Even so, he has managed to make discreet inquires and generally let his curiousity about magic shops and so on be known. He has also heard the following rumors:
1) None of the established temples will allow one of his station to enter.
2) There is a wandering mystic in town looking for disciples.
3) There are regular sweeps of the city by the guard "to convince undesirable elements to relocate".
4) One such sweep is due in two days.
5) The sweeps are actually a cover for the recruitment activities of the local Guild.
6) The Master of the Guard is highly placed in the Guild.
7) The City Underregent is hosting a party for the elite in three days.
8) The party will be a costume ball and very elegant.
9) The magic shops are all controlled by the Red Wizards, at least those still standing.
10) There is a rogue wizard who hides in a secret lair performing research.
11) The rogue has a price on his head from the Red Wizards because he won't join.
12) There is no price, he just enjoys his privacy.
13) There is no rogue wizard, it's just a rumor the common folk use to boost their own spirits.
14) One of the islands of the Moonsea is the site of a cult devoted to madness.
15) The community on the central island of the Moonsea is looking for adventurers to help with its monster problem.
16) No one actually lives on any island in the Moonsea. It's a ploy by intelligent monsters to keep fresh meat coming to them.
17) There is an independent gang of urchins who go around picking pockets and performing minor larcenies for their taskmaster.
18) The local Guild would love to root them out and kill them.
19) The urchins actually work for the Guild.
20) All crimes in this town are punishable by death.
Yes, you've been here long enough to overhear all that. Of course, as with all rumors, one must consider how much to believe.
Early this morning some children having a hoop race ran into you. You and two of the kids were knocked down. They yelled at you for making them lose and ran after their friends saying the race wasn't fair. As they left you quickly checked yourself and found all your possessions intact. In fact you had gained a piece of paper with a map to a local tavern and a time of just after sundown indicated on it.
So now what will you do? Of course you can always ignore all this, leave town and try to find one of your friends that don't want to kill you.
Talk to you later. LONGSHOT
Subj: Hollow idol
Date: 8/6/99
To: [email protected]
Timoteo
Our little friend has been staying the last few nights in the common courtyard. This might worry a lesser man, a man who is concerned about losing his worldly possessions, but Chisaibu is no longer a man of this world. The only worldly possession he is concerned about is his black box. And his magic charms (the lucky sumo diaper, the badgertooth necklace, the spider amulet, the three silver throwing knives, the visa gold card). And his belt of many pockets and his potions and his rock of continual light and his helm of brilliance. And his ju-te (swordbreaker) and blowpipe and darts and knives and walking stick and his thieves' kit and ninja garb. And most importantly, his boomstick. But the actual money, the coins, the filthy lucre, the mammon-- that he's not concerned about at all. Unless he were to awake some night with somebody's hands in his pockets. Then, of course, he'd stick a knife in them. But as a holy man, Chisaibu is above the sort of petty concern with worldly things that plagues the spiritually blind.
He has now disguised himself as a mendicant (beggar) priest. He wears all of his stuff, including his leather armor, underneath his priests' robe, which shouldn't attract too much attention, because most halflings are fat. So he thinks it's okay to look a little bulky.
Here's what he thinks about the rumors. He believes them all. They are all interesting, to one degree or another. And probably all true, in their way. After all, to be interesting is to be true, if you look at things the right way. But one thing is for sure-- Chisaibu certainly is a curious little fellow. He loves rumors.
He thinks it only good sense that temples will not allow him inside. Although he thinks a little bit about entering one at night, and stealing some gold incense-burners or something just to spite them. But as a humble priest, he has come to realize that he is in the service of the gods, not in the service of the temples, which are full of fat and prideful priests, grown rich like leeches by sucking the blood out of stupid worshipers.
The wandering mystic sounds a lot more up Chisaibu's alley. Chisaibu would love to follow him and become his disciple if he runs into him. But it would be wrong to seek him out. To seek is to desire, to desire is to sin. No, this should be left in the hands of the gods. If they bump into each other, Chisaibu will be ready to leave all (well, not all) and follow the holy man.
He is not worried about the guard's sweeps. He can avoid those clumsy apes. Besides, he is a priest, a holy man. Surely they are not concerned about people such as himself. All the same, when the sweep is due, he will try to watch himself and make sure he has places to bolt to when the guard starts running down the riff-raff. Chisaibu isn't into going to jail, and he's not too sure he wants to run into the Guild, either. He hasn't got along too well with any of the other guilds he's run into, and he doesn't like the idea of handing over a percentage of his earnings.
The party for the elite sounds interesting. There's nothing quite so fun as a costume party. If he could find one of his old friends who looks halfway respectable, maybe they could sneak in together. He could be costumed as a pet monkey or something. That really appeals to him. He really wishes he could find Shayli, because she looks good in fancy dresses. Somehow, he wants to go, but he doesn't think he can pull it off by himself.
He doesn't know who the Red Wizards are, but our little friend is always anti-establishment. He doesn't like the idea of a monopoly on magic shops. The guys who run those always charge an arm and a leg, even without having monopolistic control. Chisaibu doesn't think he can trust them. But all the same, he's desperate to know about that black box, and so he is going to go to a magic shop and ask them how much they would charge to figure out what it is. But he is not going to let it out of his hands. So if the man behind the counter asks to hold it, the little nip is out of there.
Now, this 'rogue wizard' sounds a lot more interesting. Chisaibu is going to try to find him. He will pursue any rumor about the whereabouts of the rogue wizard.
He also really wants to find out more about the madness cult on the island. If he hears any more about this, he's going to try to find out which island this is on, and how to get there. After all, he himself was raised in a cult devoted to madness. Maybe he could erect a shrine to Tinkginchgoonk on the island.
If there is one thing that Chisaibu is not interested in, it is monsters. He doesn't want any part of that at all. He does not want to go to the central island, now or ever. It's not that he particularly believes that nonsense about the intelligent monster ploy. He doesn't believe monsters are that well organized. It's just that he doesn't care if monsters eat all the people on that island, or really every person who lives within a hundred miles of the Moon Sea. As long as they don't try to eat Chisaibu, he's okay with that.
Likewise, he doesn't care about the urchins as long as they don't take his stuff. Although, as a priest, of course, Chisaibu doesn't concern himself with worldly matters such as these. As a thief, though, he thinks the idea of a ring of urchin thieves is a great idea, and he wishes he could pull it off himself. And he thinks it's great that all those young people are out there learning valuable skills for a useful trade.
And, last of all, he doesn't fear death. But, of course, as a holy man, he would never stoop to commit a criminal offense. But if it comes to that, the eternal and unbreakable laws of the gods carry more weight than the so-called "laws" of mere mortals.
Now, about that map. Chisaibu will of course go. There is no way he could keep himself away. You have to follow a map, like you have to push buttons that say "don't push." But he isn't sure that it is such a good idea that he go as he is. So he thinks he will don his ninja garb and sneak around, and try to enter the tavern by the roof and check things out from the rafters. Before that, though, he thinks it would be a good idea to find somewhere to ditch some of his stuff. So he will spend the day looking for a spot that he could hide some of his things. Maybe a secret compartment somewhere, or in a hollow idol in a temple, or buried under a tree, or tucked away in a bundle in the rafters of a common building, or under the floorboards in someone else's house, or tacked up on a roof, or hidden in a stable, or something. Let me know what the possibilities are. He wants to find somewhere to stash his stash before the sun sets.