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[-R]

*A man in grey armor flaking gold, now a common sight in the Creep, stencils an initial at the bottom of the note.*


-R

[::OOC::]

::OOC::
 
This is an attempt to help foster some subtle organized crime within the Well itself, operating out of a legitimate front.  The vibe is amateur criminals who slowly get in over their heads.

Open to all concepts, though Good and Lawful alignments may be hard to rationalize eventually.  Approach in-game if interested, or contact Nazey on discord if you want to discuss a concept.

I have a lot of problems placing furniture down and getting it stuck near walls.  I also have trouble getting proper orientation sometimes.

I thought it might be very helpful if there was a player tool that, when activated on a piece of furniture you own, makes it rotate to face you.

[-Maracielo de Rancini]

*Another short message, and a signed endorsement beneath the first.*

I support this measure, to see our arena used proactively will help deter the concerning sentiment of housing vagrants and refugees there.

-Maracielo de Rancini

It really doesn't make sense unless this is applied universally.  The only difference between a sword or a spell being able to subdual someone is a bit of creative thinking.

I do not think it is any less absurd to say you used a non-lethal variant of a spell than it is to say your enchanted magic weapon flail dripping acid can gently bop someone on the head non-lethally and that you can do this in the heat of battle unerringly.

The story we tell doesn't need to transcribe a literal translation of what happens mechanically in game.

[Maracielo de Rancini]

Recluta Connor,

This contract is agreeable to me.  Here it is, signed.  I will meet with you soon to deliver the payment, and take the first shipment of goods from your stores for commissioned sale.

-Maracielo

Limited Protection Contract & Trade Agreement                           Qdim 29th, IY 7787


The Banda Rossa and Maracielo de Rancini enter into an agreement of limited protection. We will defend the undersigned from any and all threats in the Souk and station ourselves at their stall when available and provide security for the their exclusive private events. The Undersigned acknowledges that this is a limited protection contract and greater contracts hold priorty. A sum of 2000 per month with a new contract and possible rate to be negotiated on each new month of contract. The undersigned acknowledges that outside of the Krak De Roses no protection is afforded from the forces of the Legion. 


So as long as the protection agreement holds The Banda Rossa and Maracielo de Rancini also enter into a trade agreement where the undersigned will sell surplus goods of our choosing at an agreed rate of 60-40 commision. The trade agreement holds as long as the security contract holds.

Recluta Connor Bootpolisher

Maracielo de Rancini

[Esteemed Legate Qari Alriyh]

Esteemed Legate Qari Alriyh,

It is unfortunate we have missed each other, but you are undoubtedly a busy man.  As am I.  I have been unable to secure an appointment with you in person, so here it is in writing.

I would like to meet to discuss matters of politics, my candidacy for the magistrate position, and a minor item or two.  Please have your scribes write or send for me with your availability.

-Maracielo de Rancini

[Hziran 10th, IY 7787]

Hziran 10th, IY 7787

My doubts now nag at me irrepressibly.  I read Lhorgul's work and cannot help but feel it all makes sense.  On my pride as a scholar I will not be tethered to superstitions and unfounded leaps of faith.  We have been burned once before - with the lies of the gods of our old world.  If belief is the source of divinity, then is it all smoke and mirrors?  Why not, then, believe in something tangible?  Something you can see, or feel...  "Izdu's wisdom", "the Wheel provides..." - it's all lip service because I fear their zeal and judgement.

I had always thought the Ideal Good was the Moral Good.  But what if it's instead the Practical Good...

My preparations for an extended project are nearly complete - I have the resources I require to start its funding, and I've spent the past week reacclimating myself to the fundamentals and advanced theories of engineering.  Jamileh's advice is that I wait so that trusted professionals can be hired - but trust is a relative thing.  I think I shall proceed soon with some of those I've already interviewed.

I wonder if they will be awestruck, if they will feel the very 'divinity' of the machine around them.  Its unknowable purpose, its unfathomable size, its mysterious function and power.  It is, by description, not so unlike the Gods they revere.

Notes:

• Sol Auk: He has proposed a profitable arrangement, leveraging my alchemical formulae.  If I could only develop a cheaper and more efficient method to produce his vices, it would help fund my endeavors.  I wonder what else I could offer him...?
• Isotta Delmare/Banda Rossa: A hard woman, one might say even cold.  Whatever was said between her and the coffee house owner left him shaking.  I imagine the Banda Rossa carry a certain reputation, and I wonder if relying on independent contractors is not more prudent for my purposes.

[- Arterian Lunesco]

'Fergus',

A skilled martial guard for the expedition may very well be called for.  I would like to commit a brief interview before I place you on retainer.  Payment will be offered thusly; a pool of eligible mercenaries will be recorded, and any who can attend the current expedition will be paid per trip.  You can expect a minimum of 300 dinari, plus hazard pay.

Seek me out when at the Krak de Roses for an interview when you are available.

- Arterian Lunesco

A sending rings out in the early hours...

This Arterian Lunesco. Tonight, some hours from now, I will be conducting a preliminary expedition to determine the viability of an extended research project... if we've spoken on the matter, you may attend and expect payment. If you have not and are interested, seek me out or send for me.

((Around 4-6 PM EST.  This will be a small player run event/expedition.  Of particular interest to people hoping to participate long-term in a 'research-gone-awry' plot, or Pra'raj...))

[- Arterian Lunesco]

Jamileh,

The advice is welcomed and appreciated - I do value discretion in this endeavor, not out of a wish to conceal knowledge gained, but to ensure its collection is accomplished properly.  I will be happy to receive some candidates from the Competition.  I may vet a few interested parties, and only contract a few at a time according to whom is available for the day's expedition.

Send for me or send them my way, I will be beginning in short order - but I predict the work will be long.

- Arterian Lunesco

[By Arterian Lunesco]

By Arterian Lunesco

The city of Qa'im, ruled by its supposedly mechanized and ageless sovereign Zojhir al-Maribid, is undoubtedly one of the biggest growing threats facing the sanctity of Ephia's Well.

The heretical cult of Pra'Raj has great presence there, practicing their esoteric ideology of self-improvement.  Little information can be gleaned from the city, other than from the influences that can be felt across the Great Ash, and the mechanized patrols that occasionally pour forth to scour the desert.

Details on the cult are few and difficult to corroborate; the only publicly available sources being anonymous texts and pamphlets of dubious authenticity.

Their influence can be seen throughout the Great Ash, and even quite close to Ephia's Well; in an abandoned makeshift lab, titled "Sawbones Sanctum" by the locals, an amateur attempts to recreate some of the mechanized experiments through bioengineering of grotesque, decaying creations.  According to this researcher's notes, the creatures are unsustainable, even with necromantic animation - he muses that Ephia's waters could be used to sustain the creations, and is the reason that 'Qa'im seeks the Waters', lending a strong motivation for Pra'Raji interests in increasing their influence over Ephia's Well.

Finally, this author has personally witnessed an instance of what has been colloquially referred to as the 'Iron Rot'.  During an expedition to find a missing Groknak offspring, the beast was found inside of a cave - eyes glowing red, whirring with mechanized internal organs, belligerent and inconsolable.  It breathed steam and fire, and its flesh had been turned into a metal alloy, the organs interconnected with wiring instead of veins. 

Despite common superstitious belief, 'Iron Rot' is not a malady by this author's estimation, but a deliberate work of grotesque and admittedly impressive engineering.  Within the corpse of the creature, a small device was found - a chip of metal with small internal components. 

This chip seems to have the function of controlling the host in a preprogrammed manner.  It could even be removed from the former host and repurposed, either to control a new host, or to have its function altered.  Though it is difficult to discern, the mechanization of the host's flesh is likely a transmutative property, combined with the engineered chip - and possibly sourced from it.

Did the heretics in Qa'im devise such advanced technology themselves, or repurpose it from elsewhere?  An imperative question to answer.

[- Arterian Lunesco]

Archaelogist Kali,

Thank you for displaying interest.  I would be happy to conduct an interview at the Krak, at your earliest convenience; your skillset could certainly prove useful, but I only have so many resources to spare and will have to be somewhat selective.  Voluntary participation may also be welcomed, depending on the results of certain perspectives.

We may speak more on the subject of research and your qualifications in-person.  Send for me, or seek me out when I announce that I am meeting with interested parties.

- Arterian Lunesco

[- Arterian Lunesco]

Arcanist Gers Geiger,

Thank you for displaying interest.  Experience with machinery in particular is not crucial, but depending on candidates that present themselves, and my resources being limited, I will have to be selective to a selection of skillsets that covers all grounds required for the endeavor.

Find or send for me to conduct an interview.

- Arterian Lunesco

[- Arterian Lunesco]

Recluta Isotta,

I am glad to hear it; but I will have to emphasize that I am looking for individuals more than I am an entire organization.  That is to say, any arrangements between us would be by individual contract and not towards the Banda Rossa as a whole.

If that is agreeable, I would be happy to receive you both for an interview when time allows.

- Arterian Lunesco