WELCOME TO THE CITY
You are a native of a port city called Ptolus, or you have recently arrived there. Native or not,you know a few things about this city—it is not without a reputation, to say the least. To call Ptolus a dynamic place with a strange and varied identity is to understate the situation greatly.
Only now are explorers truly discovering how ancient the city really is and unearthing details of its varied history. Ptolus is where that strange breed that calls itself “adventurers” congregates.
It’s a place where people are as concerned with what lies below the ground as they are with what’s above. This is like no place else in the
world.
Ptolus lies in the world of Praemal within the bounds of a very old Empire unsure of whether or not it has toppled. Three different emperors claim the throne, and portions of the once great realm cleave off like icy shards from a melting glacier. This decaying society looks upon previous centuries and sees grander, more civilized, and
certainly better days. Progress seems on the decline—skills and lore that people possessed just a few hundred years ago are lost now.
But this is not a time to lose hope altogether.
This civilization, older than our own real-world cultures, is more sophisticated than our own in some ways, but less so in others. A myriad of races and peoples have come and gone, creating an intricate (and sometimes confusing) amalgam.
Good struggles against evil, and law against chaos. But the shadows only threaten the light— they do not yet consume it.
Not so long ago, the first men and women who would one day be called “delvers” returned from exploring the catacombs below the city of Ptolus laden with gold and magical treasures. Today, hundreds of new would-be delvers pour into the city each month, hoping to strike it rich like others before them. Most never crawl up from the
realms below, but adventurers keep arriving with dreams of gold and fame. Those who do emerge back into the light bring with them tales of surprisingly vast reaches of natural caverns and ancient hewn passages, perhaps dating back to the dark days when this area lay in the thrall of the terrible Skull-King, Ghul, and the region was
pocked with winding warrens and subterranean chambers created by his dark armies.
They also tell of the horrors that dwell outside the life-giving
reaches of the sun: unknown monsters and devious demon-minded things with a cunning unknown to human-, elf-, or dwarfkind. In the city, entire industries have evolved quickly to service the needs of these adventurers.
In the shadow of an unnaturally tall, ancient spire with a very dark past, a whole new form of economics, politics, and social structure struggles to be born.
Creatures and individuals (good, evil, and otherwise) that normally remain in the shadows are drawn to this large gathering of adventurers and magic. The needs of the delvers prompt renewed devotion to magic, science, and religion.
As the Empire of Tarsis dies, Ptolus—for years a backwater town on the edge of civilization—is quickly becoming the center of something much larger than itself. Omens and prophecies of children born with strange birthmarks surface in the city with increasing frequency. No one yet knows exactly what, but something is happening in Ptolus.
Something new stirs in the city… and that something is very, very old.
THE CITY OF PTOLUS
Ptolus is a major city of about seventy-five thousand people. It is located in the land of Palastan near a large bay on the southern end of the Whitewind Sea.
The place was established to serve as the port for an important fortress built at the time of the Empire’s foundation, a citadel called
Dalenguard. More significantly, however, it lies in the shadow of an impossibly tall (almost three thousand feet) and thin pinnacle of rock known simply as the Spire.
The Spire and its surroundings seethe with mysterious legends and rumors. These tales tell of ancient battles waged and cities erected
on the site, of demons and dark lords, of forgotten kings and mighty wizards. Many such stories might be at least somewhat true, for recent developments have revealed vast complexes beneath the city.
Of late, Ptolus has become a city of adventurers. Treasure-seekers flock there to explore and plunder the labyrinthine structures beneath the streets, which they call the “Dungeon.”
If the stories are correct, these catacombs include:
1. The sewers of the city.
2.Vast stretches of subterranean passages and
chambers created by Ghul and his minions
3. The remains of an even older city.
4. An abandoned underground dwarven settlement called Dwarvenhearth.
5. And levels that plunge incredibly deep below the present urban area.
Ptolus lies in a cool, rainy coastal region with harsh winters. It serves as an important port on the Bay of Ptolus off the Whitewind Sea and belongs to the Empire of Tarsis, although a growing faction in the city feels that Ptolus should declare itself independent.
RULERS
The city is ostensibly ruled by a council, at whose head is the Commissar, a representative of the Empire of Tarsis. The other main council members are Kirian Ylestos, the Prince of the Church, and
the Mother Superior of the Sisterhood of Silence (see below).
Other City Council members (with less influence) include guildmasters, the heads of the noble houses, and a few wealthy merchants.
People of the town often refer to this body as the “Council of Coin,” because money is a powerful and influential force among its members.
Guildmaster Delver Sorum Dandubal, also a council member, is quickly becoming another force to reckon with—almost a fourth main member—but the three forces controlling the council dislike and oppose him.
Truth be told, the real ruler of the city is the Commissar, Igor Urnst. The City Watch operates under his direct command from Dalenguard, a historic fortress that still stands in Oldtown. Urnst’s group of advisors in charge of the city’s defense and protection is called the Twelve Commanders. These include Lord Dorant Khatru of House Khatru, Aoska (a half-celestial), and other local luminaries.
THE AUTHORITIES AND THE LAW
To police the streets, the Commissar of the city commands a force of more than eight hundred troops and City Watch guards, including a few
dozen elite individuals (captains, mages, clerics, etc.).
While the constables in many of the Empire’s cities are considered glorified street-sweepers with little competence or desire to actually enforce the law, this is not true of the experienced and well equipped guards of Ptolus, particularly those known as the Commissar’s Men.
Nevertheless, this well-trained and well-paid force has its hands full maintaining order in the city. Helping to enforce the law is a special order of monks called the Sisterhood of Silence. These nonspeaking female monks patrol the streets and apprehend criminals, even though they are not— strictly speaking—sanctioned to do so officially. A
male eunuch always accompanies a small unit of the Sisters of Silence to speak on their behalf.
However, neither the city guard nor the Sisterhood of Silence is willing to go down into the Dungeon and fight monsters. Nor are they
likely to help against well-known and influential noble families such as House Vladaam or House Sadar, or powerful groups like the Church of
Lothian or the Shuul.
Of course, those groups would never break any laws, so there’s surely nothing to worry about. . . .
THE FORCES OF LIGHT
Aside from the law-enforcing authorities, both official and self-appointed, Ptolus benefits from the presence of various forces of munificence. Orders of knighthood like the Keepers of the Veil, Order
of the Dawn, and Knights of the Pale uphold such concepts as benevolence and nobility.
There are even angelic beings in Ptolus—more than anyplace else in the world—from aasimars to half-celestials to true angels. Many of these beings congregate in a place called the Pale Tower and call themselves the Malkuth.
Paladins and clerics of good deities like Lothian, Gaen, and Navashtrom help Ptolus stand against the darkness as well.
And in Ptolus, the dark is deep.
THE DARK SIDE
Like every city, Ptolus has a dark side. Here, criminal lords command veritable armies of rogues and assassins, and war amongst each other as
well as against the law. These criminals deal in extortion, smuggling, gambling, usury, and prostitution.
Chief among these criminals are Menon Balacazar, leader of the oldest criminal syndicate in the city, and the newcomer Kevris Killraven.
They are bitter enemies.
Depraved assassins called the Vai hunt victims for money and to fulfill their own bloodlust.
But worse things lurk in Ptolus than simply criminals. Dwelling among the crypts of the city’s graveyard are the death-loving Forsaken, so
called because the rest of society finds them so abhorrent.
Worse still, chaos cultists—in league with terrible inhuman things—plot the city’s downfall and, in fact, the annihilation of the entire world to sate their lust for destruction.
Lastly, and strangest of all, Ptolus is home to actual demons from the lower realms: Some are merely demon-blooded tieflings, but others are
full-blooded fiends that call themselves the Fallen. These beings dwell alongside the Forsaken in a place called the Dark Reliquary.
THE PEOPLE OF PTOLUS
Ptolus is primarily a trade city, serving not only as a major port but also as a link between the northwest and the central portions of the Empire of Tarsis.
About two-thirds of the population is human, with the remaining third being (from most populous to least): Shoal elves, Stonelost dwarves, halflings, litorians, Grailwarden dwarves, gnomes, half-elves, centaurs (aram), orcs and half-orcs, and others—lizardfolk (assari),
ogres, and far stranger things.
CREATING A CHARACTER FOR THE PTOLUS CAMPAIGN
You will find the following information especially useful when creating characters for the Ptolus Campaign.
Unless otherwise mentioned, use the Core Rules for all other character creation details.
As always, I am final arbiter of what is allowed in the game.
COMMON RACES
All of the following races are available as player characters. They’re also the most common NPC races.
Dwarves
Although most call them “dwarves,” their own name for their race is Haurdir, the Stalwart Kings of Order. There are two great overclans of
dwarves in the known world—the Stonelost and the Grailwardens—but rumor claims there was once another.
Dwarves, Stonelost
These are the children of the dwarves of Dwarvenhearth, said to be the greatest of all dwarven cities. Although their small villages lie scattered about the north, since the evil lord Ghul’s forces drove them from their glorious city, they no longer have the centralized focus they once did. Hence the name Stonelost.
When Ghul fell and Dwarvenhearth was liberated, influential dwarven leaders would not allow their people to repopulate the city. No one knows why. Instead, the city was sealed.
Use the standard rules for dwarves when creating a Stonelost dwarf.
Dwarves, Grailwarden
Deep within the mountains of the Prustan Peninsula, the Grailwarden dwarves build large underground cities devoted to industry. Their
name comes from their stewardship of the White Grail, one of three powerful, linked magical artifacts (the Black Grail and the Unseen Grail are the other two).
While the Stonelost dwarves—and the Stonemight dwarves of
Dwarvenhearth before them—developed stalwart fighting skills by warring against evil humanoids and dark elves, the Grailwarden dwarves focused their attention on science, craft, and even magic.
When creating a Grailwarden dwarf, use the standard rules for dwarves except that they enjoy no special bonuses versus orcs, goblinoids, or giants. Instead, they gain a +2 racial bonus to Profession (engineer),
Craft (machines), Knowledge (machines), and Craft (alchemy) skill checks.
Elves
Their ancient name aduel deaistorm refers to the seven “Races of Chaos,” for once there were many more types of elf than one can find today (although the dark elves and Harrow elves are technically additions). Today, the Elder Elves are thought to be extinct.
Elves have always preferred the deep woods or the open sea to the mountains or cities, magic over the mundane, the moon and stars over the sun.
When non-elves simply say “elf,” they’re probably referring to the Shoal elves, or simply the Shoal. Generally dark-haired, these elves are prevalent in the Sea Kingdoms, for they love the sea and ships.
Some can be found in the Moonsilver Forest along the Whitewind Sea as
well, but they care less for the cold, and so are fewer in number than those in the south.
Shoal elves use the standard Core Rules for elves, plus they enjoy a +2 racial bonus to Profession (sailor) and their favored class is sorcerer, not wizard. The other exception is that elves in the world of Praemal need sleep, like humans and other races.
Unlike in the Core Rules, halflings and gnomes are technically distant elven relations. In fact, they were once considered elven subraces.
Gnomes
Frequently mistaken for halflings (or the other way around), gnomes are the rarest of the major races, particularly in Ptolus. Unlike halflings, they are more likely to consort with elves than with humans.
They favor song and magic over just about anything else, often combining the two (in fact, some call them “loresong faen”). They dwell throughout the lands of Cherubar, Rhoth, Palastan, and the Sea Kingdoms.
Use the standard rules for gnomes with this race.
Half-Elves and Half-Orcs
Although understandably rare, these races are more common in Ptolus than in many other places in the world. Half-elves are always half
Shoal elf, while half-orcs usually come from the Ornu-Nom tribes of Palastan and Rhoth.
Halflings
Although members of this race were originally called “quickling faen,” humans named them “halflings” due to their stature, and the name
stuck. They are small, fair, and nimble, but their childish size does not carry with it a childish demeanor.
Although originally considered a type of elf, they do not have much contact with other races of elves—in fact, they interact more with
humans. Nomadic halflings often move about in roaming tribal caravans throughout the nearby lands of Rhoth and Palastan.
Use the standard rules for halflings with this race.
Humans
According to the elves and dwarves, the humans are the youngest of the common races. Despite this fact, they are the most prevalent of all intelligent peoples.
CHARACTER BACKGROUND
You are either from Ptolus or have come to the city from elsewhere. If you are a city native, think about what district you grew up in and where you live now. Think about some of the organizations involved in the city, and decide whether you have any affiliation with them or, more likely, aspire to have one.
If you are not a Ptolus native, you should think about why you’ve come
to Ptolus.
It also is the responsibility of the players to decide how the PC group forms. Some ideas:
•You’ve all come to Ptolus looking to strike it rich (or for other reasons), and you meet on the road and decide to work together.
• Two or more people in the group are family members or long-term friends already.
• Two or more of you met recently and discovered that your goals coincide enough to band together for mutual support.
• Some major patron has gathered you together for a specific task.
CHARACTER CLASSES
Here are a few notes regarding how various character classes fit into the Ptolus Campaign.
Barbarians: Human barbarians likely come from the recent invasion from east of the Grey Mountains (known as the Eastern Hordes). There are no elven or dwarven barbarians (unless you’ve
got a really interesting backstory).
Bards: This being an urban-based campaign, bards fit in very well. Minstrels with talent are well received in the city, where the taverns are outnumbered only by the temples. An organization of martial bards called the Knights of the Chord dwells in Oldtown.
Clerics: Clerics are, not surprisingly, among the most respected people in society. Clerics of Lothian have some political clout (but in turn have to cope with the Church’s byzantine structure
and politics). You can work with the DM to choose a deity appropriate to your needs.
Druids: A long time ago, there were many more druids in the area than there are now, and they belonged to a group called the Circle of Green. No major druid organizations exist anymore. Druids are mostly loners now, and—truth be told—aren’t often found in Ptolus. They are almost certainly the least common character class.
Fighters: The campaign includes a number of orders of knighthood that you may wish to join one day. There is also the warriors’ guild, the Order of Iron Might, to consider. Many fighters
get their start in Oldtown’s combat arena.
Monks: The monk tradition, it is said, comes originally from the far south. Now it is very pervasive, and orders of monks are quite common—usually dedicated to a particular cause or belief.
Unlike the way they are presented in the Core Rules, many temples treat monks as religious figures. In this way, they become like very different sorts of clerics, but remain representatives of a deity and a belief system.
Paladins: The campaign includes a number of orders of knighthood you may wish to join one day. Also, look at the cleric’s discussion above regarding religion, as most paladins in the campaign have a close connection with a specific deity.
Rangers: Rangers are uncommon but certainly not unheard of in Ptolus. Human rangers are likely to be from the Viridian Lords of Palastan. Elves are very often rangers, particularly elves from the
Moonsilver Forest north of the city.
Rogues: While there is a major thieves’ guild in Ptolus (the Longfingers), remember that as a rogue, “thief” is just one option. Rogues make excellent scouts, spies, and even merchants and artisans, due to their skillfulness. This may be the most common PC class in the city.
Sorcerers: Sorcerers were the first mages, born with magical abilities innate within their very blood. They command great respect. Many sorcerers aspire to join the Inverted Pyramid mages’ guild, although no character can begin the game with such an affiliation.
Wizards: Wizards, as opposed to sorcerers, are extremely scholarly—they look upon magic as a science and attempt to learn its rules and utilize its loopholes. Because people acknowledge and respect their power, wizards often figure into the military, City Watch, etc. Elves are only very rarely wizards—they become sorcerers
instead. A surprising number of Grailwarden dwarves are wizards in Ptolus. Many wizards aspire to join the Inverted Pyramid mages’ guild,
although no character can begin the game with such an affiliation.
LIVING IN PTOLUS
What does the average Ptolus resident know about his or her community? Here are some basics:
• Humans are by far the most common race in the city.
• The Ptolus year has 364 days, with twelve months and a seven-day week.
• The Ptolus climate is cool, with many overcast or rainy days.
• Commoner men typically wear white shirts and vests, sometimes with a widelapeled coat. Hats are frequently worn. They usually keep their hair short and their faces clean shaven.
• Commoner women wear dresses, often covered with an apron. They wear their hair long, sometimes styled up.
• The typical commoner earns 1 to 3 sp per day. A silver piece is often called a “shield” or a “shiny.”
• There are no banks, as such, but you can rent out a small personal vault to store your valuables at places such as Hammersong Vaults in Oldtown.
• Buildings have glass windows that hinge open.
• Most buildings, but not all of them, have indoor plumbing, including privies that pump water in via hand pumps and drain it away into the city sewers.
• You can hire a messenger to carry notes and packages anywhere in the city. This typically costs 1 sp per delivery. There is also a magical messenger service.
• Carriages are widely available for hire to take you wherever you want to go. This service costs about 1 sp per trip.
• While no stranger to magic or monsters, the typical Ptolusite fears the undead rumored to stir in the Necropolis. Even more real, however, are fears of thieves, fire, and plague.
• The Ptolus City Watch is extremely competent. Despite this fact, the city has a terrible crime problem.
• Ratmen live in the sewers.
• Rumors speak of Cults of Chaos finding new members about the city these days.
• Imperial law requires that everyone carries identification papers. Written law favors citizens over noncitizens, but practical law favors the upper classes over the lower.
• Spells that make people do things they normally wouldn’t, like charm person, are illegal in Ptolus. So are spells that create undead or spread plague.
• Most shops and places of business stay open as long as the sun is up, which means that business hours are longer in the summer than in the winter. Many are open seven days a week.
Details on City Districts to Follow....
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DISTRICTS OF THE CITY
Ptolus lies between the Spire and the sea. The highest portion of the city, the Nobles’ Quarter, is built on the base of the Spire. From there, the level of the city drops down a sharp cliff to Oldtown, and then down again into Midtown.
The final cliffs at the edge of Ptolus drop into the bay, with the only area of dry land at the bottom of those cliffs occupied by the city’s docks. Wellworn paths connect the various elevations and
help make Ptolus very defensible (although the city has never been attacked).
The King’s River flows through the city, spilling into an eroded chasm in the northwest corner and flowing down to the Bay of Ptolus near the docks.
The bottom of the chasm, called the King’s River Gorge, is eighty feet below the level of the ground on the north side, but more than two hundred feet below on the south side. The south side still holds the old city walls and fortifications. A bridge built atop two massive pillars, themselves erected atop natural rock columns, stretches
across the King’s River Gorge at a steep angle, leading into the area of the city known as Oldtown. Another bridge stretches across the
chasm to join Oldtown with the Rivergate District. Although Oldtown is higher, the difference in elevation between these two districts is
not steep, so the slope of this bridge seems far less noticeable than that of the other.
The Docks
Far below the level of the city’s streets, the Docks rest at the bottom of the city’s eastern cliffs on a narrow strip of land. The wooden buildings here sit slightly askew from one another, because the
entire small district is built upon slowly sinking sand. Even the streets are sand. A dozen or more ships moor in the deep waters here at any given time.
This is a particularly rough area of the city, thanks to the influx of sailors and its isolation from the other districts. A single winding road provides access up a steep incline to the city proper.
The Docks area is full of warehouses, shipyards, hostels, and taverns, all catering to sailors and merchants. Isolated from the rest of the city by the cliffs, sometimes it seems as though the Docks area has had to become its own little community.
Many Ptolus residents live their whole lives without going there—but, of course, they probably haven’t been to the Nobles’ Quarter, either.
Guildsman District
Ptolus teems with guilds. Every type of artisan, smith, or other professional belongs to a guild of similarly trained and employed individuals. These guilds enjoy a strong voice in the City Council.
This district in the south end of the city holds many tanneries, smithies, foundries, textile houses, grain mills, paper mills, brickmakers, bookmakers, woodworkers, and other production facilities, as well as warehouses, granaries, coalhouses, stockyards, and similar storage sites.
Not surprisingly, this district has a distinct odor. Unless one works here, a local rarely finds a reason to visit, although this district sports a few taverns and other businesses catering to the working class. The Guildsman District’s rough reputation prevents most people from frequenting the area at night. Those who live there often join a
guild for protection.
Just a few of the guilds in this district include: Drapers’ Guild, Goldsmiths’ Guild, Herbalists’ Guild, Ironworkers’ Guild, Masons’ Guild, Silversmiths’ Guild, Tanners’ Guild, Weaponsmiths’ Guild, and Woodworkers’ Guild.
The Sages’ Guild, Shipwrights’ Guild, a warriors’ guild (called the Order of Iron Might), and a few others are headquartered elsewhere in the city.
Midtown
As the central area of the city, Midtown is both a commercial and a residential hub. It is also where one finds many local entertainment offerings, in the form of pubs and taverns as well as theaters, dance halls, gambling dens, and more. Visitors looking for a place to stay usually find themselves directed here, as most of the temporary lodgings in the city are found in Midtown.
Midtown is home to both Tavern Row and Delver’s Square, where many employers seeking to hire adventuring parties can post their announcements. It also has a few shops and plenty of residential areas, such as Emerald Hill, where most elves choose to live, and Narred, a centaur neighborhood.
Besides the Delver’s Square shops that adventurers frequent (Rastor’s Weapons, the Bull and Bear armory, Ebbert’s Outfitters, and Myraeth’s
Oddities), those in the know also appreciate Saches clothiers on Yeoman Street and, of course, the Row Bathhouse. Potions and Elixirs offers a large stock of potions for sale.
The most popular adventurer hangout is the Ghostly Minstrel tavern and inn in Delver’s Square. Many folks seem leery of both the Onyx Spider (on Tavern Row) and the Black Swan (which is mainly for dwarves). Danbury’s, also in Delver’s Square, caters to spellcasters.
The Necropolis
A city several centuries old tends to have a large graveyard, and Ptolus is no exception. The vast Necropolis in the city’s northeastern corner sits on a few rolling hills, now completely covered with mausoleums, crypts, and graves. The entire Necropolis is surrounded by a wall, with guards posted at each of its four gates. These guards’
primary duty is to warn people not to stay in the Necropolis after nightfall and to watch for grave robbers. Most people know that undead roam the Necropolis, but various churches and holy orders, such as the Keepers of the Veil, do their best to contain the menace.
Nobles’ Quarter
Ptolus has no shortage of wealth or wealthy people. Technically outside the city’s walls, the Nobles’ Quarter, with its row upon row of manors and estates, climbs the city’s western cliffs abutting the Spire itself. Travelers can enter the area only via a single avenue up from Oldtown that runs through the fortress of Dalenguard before reaching the Nobles’ Quarter. The heights where this district now sits were easily defensible in the city’s younger days; originally, all Ptolus residents could gather here in times of emergency, secure behind
Dalenguard’s stout gates. However, as time passed and the city grew, members of the elite class claimed these enviable heights for their residences, leaving the less wealthy to expand into the lower quarters.
The largest estates in this section of town belong to the ten noble families that have held power in the area—to one degree or another—for
centuries. In addition to the homes of the wealthy and the services that cater to them, this district houses the Holy Palace, where the Prince of the Church lives; lately he is joined by his father, the
Emperor of the Church, visiting from his eastern capital. The Nobles’ Quarter holds the Crown Theater opera house, the Imperial Academy of
Music, fabulous eating establishments, a floating apartment building, and other luxuries and sites of interest.
North Market
When one enters the city from the north, one is greeted with the sights and smells of a busy marketplace. Well-worn cobblestone streets are packed with vendors occupying wooden booths, pushing carts, or simply hawking wares they tote in massive baskets on their backs. Fresh foods of all kinds—fish and shellfish from the sea, fruit from the orchards to the north, and breads and pastries from the city being favorites—are available in any quantity. Other goods are for sale in small shops, tents, or from the backs of wagons. The City Watch patrols this busy area to keep thieves and pickpockets from running rampant. Rumor has it that the guards employ sorcerers to patrol the area invisibly, using spells to keep an eye out not only for tradtional thieves, but for magically aided ones as well. They watch for invisible robbers, overt use of charm or compulsion magic, and similar tricks.
If you’re looking for tasty baked goods, try Tavoh’s Bakery; a good clothier, try Endle’s Finery; for a fair weapon shop, go to Mitoren’s
Blades, although Rastor’s Weapons in Delver’s Square (in Midtown) is probably better for traditional arms. A small firearms emporium called the Smoke Shop opened recently as well.
Oldtown
Ptolus was founded three centuries ago as a small community surrounding a fortress called Dalenguard. The fortress’ original purpose was to keep the area clear of evil creatures drawn by the power of Jabel Shammar, the citadel at the top of the Spire. It also sought to watch over Goth Gulgamel, the fortress halfway up the Spire
built by Ghul, the Half God. Dalenguard was constructed more than seven hundred years ago, just after the defeat of Ghul, to serve as a symbol of the union of elves, dwarves, and humans in that war.
Over time, the community grew into an important port, and the need for Dalenguard as a wilderness bastion waned. Today the old fortress is still used by the Imperial-appointed ruler of the city, the Commissar, and the area surrounding it on the city’s near west side is known as Oldtown.
It sits atop a ridge higher than most of the rest of Ptolus, but still lower than the Nobles’ Quarter. The stone and marble buildings of Oldtown reflect a grander, earlier age. Graceful columns, majestic entrances, tall stone towers, and buildings of three or even four stories are common sights here. Yet all bear the signs of age and wear. Today many of these buildings house the bureaucracy the Empire forces upon the city. Still others are museums or homes for the wealthy
(those not quite wealthy enough to live in the Nobles’ Quarter). There are wonderful theaters, auditoriums, and even a grand Arena in this large district of the city. The Arena provides a spot for tournaments, fairs, and sporting games of all sorts. Nearby, the Inverted Pyramid mages’ guild sponsors a magical ball sport simply called “the
Mage Game,” held in an indoor coliseum in Oldtown.
This is where citizens go to get licenses, like those needed to carry a firearm. The City Courts are located here, and as are the City Council’s meeting chambers. Both the Delver’s Guild Library and Maproom (but not the guild’s main office) and the City Library are here. Oldtown has a fair number of parks, monuments, and other touches of class and beauty.