Starting Town

A game Josh is starting
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Joshua
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Starting Town

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Twelveday (Previously called Thirtyday)
Nearest towns: Oaklake (280 miles west, only 5 years old and yes, that's about 12 days travel), Langmore (600 miles west)
Population 150 - 175 (depending on season, monster attacks, and visiting adventurers)
About 96 Humans, 15 Dwarves, 15 Elves, 7 Halflings, 8 Half-elves, 4 Gnomes, 3 Half-orcs, and 1 or maybe 2 others... My initial thought was Kobold, Werebear (way too powerful though), or something like "Orc with one leg, exiled form his tribe". If you got ideas, I'd like to hear them. And Yes, this is insanely diverse for a po-dunk town. Part of the reason is it's one of the least civilized places that still counts as a town. So, it attracts some of the oddballs.

The mayor is democratically elected, largely because no one else wanted the job.
There is one Tavern, One general store, a Smithy (Weapons, Armor, and horseshoeing), and a tailor (although, you may have to provide your own cloth). There's one ranch that takes care of horses, and a number of farmers (farms are always to the west of town... odd that.) The modest Church (think one-room frontier church) does triple duty for all major good deities, and some of the minor ones.

If you have ideas or want to make sure something is in town, let me know. This thread is for brainstorming.
Last edited by Joshua on Mon Nov 27, 2017 11:27 pm, edited 10 times in total.
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Re: Starting Town

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Moon's Rest Inn
Is your basic tavern with rooms for rent. It's large enough for half the town (WAY WAY too big), because of the occasional expedition that goes into the nearby wilderness. Also, a group of mid-level adventurers poured almost 10 years of gold into the place.

The fare is decent, if not normally exotic. (And when it's exotic, it's because some adventurer brought back a dead owlbear or something.) Rooms are high-quality, if sparse. Each has it's own mini-hearth for a fire.

Rooms are normally 1sp a night, 5sp a week. Fare is around 1 sp a day, depending. Ordering family-style generally cuts that in half.

The first floor has a semi-prominent locked planning room, and a room for private parties.

The planning room is the basis for the budding adventure guild. On the negative side, said fellowship vanished a year ago and has not returned. On the plus side, quests and other postings are still updated sort-of regularly. There is also a small library of lore-books available, and a few sketches of the local area, with notes.

Adventurer Special: A monthly fee of 1gp covers basic meals, a reserved room (with a lock. Due to a limited number of rooms, you may be asked to share with another party member), a cellar-lockbox service, daily chamber-pot service and twice a week linen cleanings. Also allows access to previously mentioned locked room.
It is assumed that as an adventurer, you will be taking part in the town's defense, and working on some of the town's problems (with compensation, of course).
Lockboxes have been warded by a previous adventurer, Warden Cloudseeker. If pressed, it will be admitted that that elven wizard could open the boxes if he returns...
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Re: Starting Town

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Ironically, The Half-Orcs are coming to me easier than the others.

"Bat": A waiter at the Moon's Rest, age 36-ish(?). He's mute, and absolutely terrified of both the dark and being alone. He took the job about 12 years prior because the inn is the only place where there's always lots of people.

Arrol: A female farm-hand at one of the local farms. She's about 17, and never speaks of her past. She arrived last summer and offered her services. She hates being called Carrol, and is fairly popular with the local kids. (Ya know. Cause she's hot.)

Zugk Braid: arrived about 5 years ago (same timeframe as Oaklake's founding). He was a lone hermit that was displaced by the town. Since his arrival, he fell in love with Eppa Braid (a human) and they were soon married. (He took her last name.) He also 'adopted' Eppa's son, now 11 years old.
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Re: Starting Town

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Shop Keepers:

Moon's Rest
Owner: Pyrle Stonekeep: Human matron of the Moon's Rest Inn. She's an old battleaxe who is highly protective of her family and the inn itself. She has a husband, Isaiah Stonekeep, and three children. Ages 16, 14 and 8. Rumors speak of a fourth child, from a previous encounter.

Waitor: "Bat" The half-orc (see above)

Trade and Trinkets
Owners: Chippen and Urdal
Last edited by Joshua on Tue Oct 31, 2017 10:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Starting Town

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Gnomes (names are grabbed from Races of Stone, if you know gnomish.)

“Chippen” Wanbar: She's not a rogue, we swear. This middle-aged gnome runs the general store: "Trade and Trinkets" along with her partner Urdal (below). She's the one who will haggle your ears off, but overall, her store has a lot of goods for being so isolated. She's the one who makes the most of the quarterly caravans, and can almost always sell the odd things adventurers bring to towns. She's a rock gnome, so often building trinkets and doing repairs. While she's not the one to call for the a broken wagon-wheel, if you need delicate work (or a lock opened), she's the best choice in the town.

Urdal: A female forest gnome, Urdal is never without a bird, bat or other small animal perched on her shoulder. A basic illusionist, she can identify unknown magic, and can do some basic spells and enchantments. (Nothing past first level stuff.) She's also blind, but has gotten used to using the shared senses from her familiar to prevent her from crashing into things. Usually she lets Chippen handle the haggling, but it is usually Urdal who does the appraisals.

"Bae" Baerchik: Is the house-husband of Chippen (and Urdal). A rock gnome, he keeps their home and loves being a homebody. It's not uncommon to be invited to his (their?) house for a home-made dinner. He is often the one who experiments with strange ingredients that are brought back or helps dispose of the odd owlbear that has attacked the town. Recipes that go over well are traded to the Moon's Rest inn.

Pin: the 20 year old son of Chippen and Bae. He's just about of age where they're trying to get him apprenticed to someone in town. Still, gnome-wise, he's got almost a decade or two before they kick him out. At the moment, he often does seasonal work at the local farms, where he's made a glorious mess by trying to automate some things that shouldn't be automated.
Last edited by Joshua on Tue Oct 31, 2017 10:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Starting Town

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Elf(?)

Ragman: While presumed to be a leper or other unclean person, the bandage-clad person known as the Ragman does not beg. Although, he often dines with Bae (the gnome) when the ladies are busy at work. He only refers to himself as Nimviaki, an elven name which loosely translates to "Untouchable" or "Unclean one". He is often seen skulking around the outskirts of town, and occasionally, helping out at a farm. Usually, catching a runaway horse or cow before people notice it's even gone.

His name and appearance is consistent with elven traditions of untouchables, although, such a practice has almost never been seen in modern times. In addition, although he has an powerful, almost deformed, accent, he speaks elven with a subtlety one only really gets from a hundred years of practice. Rumors as to why that range from a curse to a simple birth defect. (Such a defect would be an affront to the elven idea of beauty...)
If asked if he's an elf, he will always say 'no'. Although, again, an elf of an untouchable caste would not refer to themselves as an elf.

Anyway, he's a drifter, never speaks of his past, and somehow manages to eat and occasionally drink without taking off his bandages. Seeing him is considered an omen by the townsfolk, although he hasn't been around long enough for that to really catch on yet, having only arrived mid-fall. (About 4 - 5 months prior.)
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Re: Starting Town

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Elves

"Bruce" (Erus) Amala: She's the local tailor. She's relatively butch, with a very down-to-earth, purely functional design ethic. This lack of an elven love of beauty has caused a lot of trouble in her life, and she is currently under exile from the elven homeland.
Her name means Boar-kin, and even in Elvish, it's a man's name.

"Steel" (Sheael) Amala: He's the major blacksmith of the town, and husband to Bruce. He's a rare elf with a powerful build, leading to rumors he's actually a half-elf, or has orc-blood in him. Like his wife, he enjoys the beauty of the simple. Unlike many elven smiths, he's more content making horsehoes and working with iron than making jewelry with silver. Not that he can't do that, just he prefers the rough honest simplicity of iron and steel. His swords are highly in demand, understated but effective.
His name means: Of an ancient time. (the pronunciation implies pre-civilization.)

Carl Amala: Son of the tailor and blacksmith, Carl has inherited his parents love of simplicity. He owns a farm, and likes nothing more than doing honest work in the soil.
He actually doesn't have an elven name.

Rummus: He's a bit of an alchemist and herbalist. He offers non-magical healing and herbs, and is a good source of spell components. his specialties are rare oils and perfumes like one would use in a bath. As there was not one when he arrived, he found himself starting up a bathhouse, which has increased his sales, especially among caravan visitors.
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Re: Starting Town

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Halflings

Mayor Baris Thumbletack: (Stout halfling) Is our glorious and esteemed mayor. Or at least... well, when the town was founded 45 years ago, there was an election, and everyone else kinda took a step back. Still, Baris has risen to the occasion, and has decided to do what he can to make the town a better place. He even instituted the "IOU" system of town credit that helped prevent adventurers from bankrupting the place. He's honest, or about as honest as someone stuck above their station can be. Occasionally, he gets roped into some weird schemes, but, no more than any other quirky mayor. While the town might prefer a more down-to-earth leader, no one fitting that description wants the job. Borris is getting near his first century, (haflings live to about 150-ish) so might be looking for a replacement in the next decade or so.
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Re: Starting Town

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Dwarves:

Bolthen: Is the local potato farmer and backup blacksmith. He loves nothing more than tilling and working with the living earth. Unlike most dwarves, he has little interest in unliving things like rocks or metal. Still, he knows he way around a forge (he is a dwarf), and when the town expands for a caravan or military exercise, he helps take some of the workload off of Steel.

Orip: A rock gardener. She lives perhaps half a mile from town. Her zen-like gardens are a favorite of the more tourist-types that are on the caravans. She chose to live above ground to study the art of the rock garden, meditation and the true art of stone. (Like, ya know, putting your fists through it. Not that she can, it's just something she aspires to.)
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Re: Starting Town

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Half-Elf

Thomas of the Crossroads: The local cleric, while technically of Civilization, he also outreaches to all other religions. And not for conversion, more for inclusion in the civilization. For those who are not interested in joining civilization, he still tries to be inclusive. He wears a specialized holy symbol with emphasis in the center of the arrowhead (where the two center-lines cross). He has the light domain and has used that against the undead from the cemetery more than once.
It is common knowledge he is an orphan, and took his last name in an effort to reduce the prejudice he faced growing up.

Void: She's one of the acolytes of Orip (the dwarf monk), and the one who often makes candles and similar for them.

Peter of the Greenvale: Notable here mostly as a half-elf landowner and one of the town founders. Half-anythings do tend to be looked down upon and a lot of towns (and some cities) have laws against half-elves owning property. He was raised by his elven mother, but left when the bigotry of the elven lands became too much. He's named after his father, with his mother's family name.
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