Cities and You (D&D)

An informational pamphlet I made for my D&D group on Cities in-game.



Cities, though rare and oft times far betwixt, are important places of commerce, trade and learning. Stuffy administration rooms and adventurous conspiracy plots aside, cities and towns offer services that are of specific use to mercenary types.

Taverns/Inns- A room at an Inn is a mainstay for many adventurers spending time in a city. Most Innkeeps demand three days pay up front, as mercenaries have a habit of taking off and or dying suddenly. Inns vary widely, with some catering specifically to mercenaries and locating themselves in the slums or near the markets, and others specialized towards the nobility and upper class. Some Inns both rich and poor feature "Special" services such as companionship, gladiatorial fights and even private zoos. The legality of such services is different in each empire. Some well to do taverns may have their own private brewery or may employ a Wizard or other spellcaster as a bouncer.

Library/Scroll Shop/Wizard's Academy- Wizards and others may go to the Wizard's Academy to get an item identified, go to the Library to research a spell(most of them require a fee to view), lookup some piece of lore, or purchase scrolls from a scroll shop.

Temple/Church- Mercenaries who are on good or neutral terms with a God may pay for spells of healing or lore knowledge from the Priests of a Church or Temple. Those adventurers who are on bad terms with a deity are advised to not go to his followers, as they may be met with much hostility and the God will refuse to grant heling unto them.

Graveyard- Depending on the city, the graveyard may be within or without the city walls. Besides, the only reason one would find interest in a graveyard is if one was dead, being that Necromancy earns you an instant death sentence in every empire.

The Barracks- The City guard of most cities are always on the lookout for wrongdoers. Depending on the severity of witnessed crime, characters may face a single guardsman, a patrol or even a specialized kill-squad with magical and divine support. Wanted players are advised to either turn themselves in, pay/bribe for their crimes or seek a quick escape from the city until the Guard Captain forgets your name.
The chance that public violence will catch the ear or eye of a guard varies depending on where it occurs, as Poorer districts such as the Slums and Market are not as heavily patrolled as the Temple or Government districts. The city prison is often located near the Barracks, although not always.

Arena- Men and women who wish to put their lives on the line for the crowds entertainment and their own chance at fame and glory are common, though most leave the profession after their first brush with death- if they survive that is. The arena is a source of entertainment and combative professionalism. Gladiators compete as either slaves or hired muscle: fighting, killing and dying for the love of the crowd and the ache of their own desperate wallets.

City Hall/Town Hall- Copious record keeping and tight security are features common to all City Hall's. If a character wishes to look up a name or see official documents, a small fee that gain them access to public documents.

Bathouse- The meeting place of choice for most nobles of Arran, the bathouse has somehow spread to Sardia as well. While weapons and clothing are not allowed within a bathouse, it can usually be the perfect place to attempt a deal or an assassination. The talk of relaxed nobles can also be an important source of information.

Castle/Palace- The center of a cities power and the seat of its ruler, the Palace or Castle is usually a grand and awe-inspiring structure, set in the middle of a cities spread. The Royal Guards of the Palace are an elite fighting force, and the King/Queen's Throne room is sometimes open for audiences with powerful people. The treasury often lies beneath the Palace, and the Royal Treasure Vault may hold items rivalling the power of artifacts from Ages long gone.

Market/Thieves Guild/Souk/Bazaar- Markets are the primary trade areas of a city. While most other trade oriented areas of a city are based on pure production and/or storage, the Marketplace is where one can almost always find a market for an item. For illegal substances or goods, the Thieves Guild charges a modest fee to partake of most cities Black Markets. Such markets are held in a different place every week, always out of sight and commonly under the cover of night.
The smaller the city, the less goods and items are available in its Market, and thus the less gold the market will pay for items that the characters sell. Large Cities such as Mallenghast, Sardia or Arran have the most variety in items that may be found there. Usually, items produced by a rival city or not of this world are rarely found in a market, and when they are they are exbortinatly priced.

Markets will always consist of some of the following merchants-

Architect- Can be hired to provide engineering/architectural advice or oversee the construction of a structure or siege equipment. The workforce is a seperate matter.

Mason's Guild- Can be hired for building projects and other labors where a substantial workforce is required. The Mason's Guild is usually blurry on the line of legality, and for the right pay they can be hired to aid in breakins and acts of sabotage. Wainwrights, Carpenters and Stone Masons all fall under this Guild, and thus can all be hired from the Mason's Guildhall if the city has the workforce.

Cartographer- Maps can be made and bought at a Cartographers shop, and most map makers are masters of the lore that surrounds their maps as well.

Slave Stand- Slavery is illegal in Sardia and Mallenghast, making Arran the primary mover in this market. The Slave Stands of Arran are legendary, and the merchants here can sell hundreds of men and women in a day.

Food Stand- Whether one seeks rations for travelling or goods for a feast, food stands are commonplace in almost all cities and sell most of what that city produces in the first place.

Armorer- Leather, mail, chain and plate are all possibilities in an armorers shop. Whether the suits are magical is another deal entirely, yet most Armorers carry at least one magical item.

Armory- A marketplace Armory is different from a City Armory as these sell and produce weapons rather than distributing them to guards and soldiers. Magic weapons are much more common than magic armor, and most shops have one to a dozen magic weapons.

Alchemist- Potions, herbs, incendiary devices and various other bubbling liquids are sold at an Alchemist's shop.

Stables- Whether you need a horse, donkey, camel or giant eagle, stables are always available in a city.

Thieves' Guild- The Thieves' Guilds of most cities hold weekly Black Markets that cater to those who would wish to stay out of the public eye. Poisonmakers, gambling halls, assassins for hire, Thieving Shops, illegal slave markets and fences for stolen goods are the usual fare at these gatherings. It usually takes a DC 15 to 20 Gather Information check to find out the location of the next Black Market, and the fee is usually under 10gp.

Tailor/Cobbler/Clothier- Hats, robes, boots and clothing galore can be found in almost every market across the known world.

Tabernae Vagrantes- These are the mysterious shops from which people buy magical items, only to return when there turns out to be a problem (as there always does), and find the shop is vanished. Most of these shops sell wondrous items that have lurid or unpleasant histories when finally researched, though this does nothing to diminish their power.