Tucker's Paradise

Who Rules: The Council of Elders is made up of 6 prominent citizens from the city, plus 1 ne’er-do-well from the shadier side of the city. The 7th member is meant to be “grounding voice” for the rest of the council and act as a tie breaker, and to voice the interest and concerns of the common folk. He is generally considered unswayable by the other members of the council. The Council serves for life and whenever a member needs to be replaced the 5 prominent citizens choose among themselves. Only the 7th member and his predecessors know how his replacements are chosen. Some suspect murder or bribery, but there is no evidence to support these rumors.

Who Really Rules: The Council of Elders rules completely.

Population: 30,000 (52% human, 15% dwarf, 10% gnome, 8% elf, 5% half-elf, 5% half-orc, 3% minotaur, 2% sarai.

Major Products: Books, iron rations, bread, rigging and ship’s fixtures, and Alagar’s Tears, a dark, slightly salty rum that is particularly popular with sailors.

Armed Forces: 300 specialized troops who are all equally adept at acting as light infantry, heavy infantry, archers, and artillerists. In times of need a militia of up to 300 more can be called up. These act as light infantry. Nearby farming communities have their own militia made up of roughly 250 light cavalry and at any given time about 25-50 of them can be found in the city.

Notable Mages: Tenna Starglow (NG, Elf Female, W25) is a very elderly mage who in her youth new Tucker personally. When Tucker moved on he left Tenna in charge of his tower and library. She spends most of her time wandering the library giving assistance and advice to those who have come seeking knowledge. In her free time she can often be found in some of the seedier taverns singing bawdy songs for the other clients.

Jaxa (CN, Vriss Female, W19) is shunned by all Sarai, especially her fellow Vriss. She specializes in planar travels and it is said that those travels changed her to the point where she thinks more like a “lower humanoid” than one of the Chosen Ones. She is often not in residence due to her travels but when she is she is very approachable for advice on planar travels and the magic of the Sarai.

Conrad Ridgecrest (LE, Human Male, W15) is known throughout the entire city, but no one can say for certain what he looks like. It is unknown if his business dealings are done through agents or if he changes his appearance. He has several “drop boxes” throughout the city where people can leave letters seeking advice on spell research. If he chooses to help someone they are visited by a person claiming to represent Conrad and give them instructions on further contact, payment, etc. His prices are quite high but his information is considered very reliable, and he has a knack of gathering information that others are incapable of.

Duchess Anne of Greenfell (LG, Human Female, W14) is on permanent detached duty from The Ansar Knights. She is one of many mages and priests who reside in cities that contain great stores of knowledge or who have specific experts who can be useful to the Knights. She resides close to Tucker’s Tower in a modest home that belies her royal status. A constant stream of messengers and fellow Ansar knights call upon her home or at Tucker’s Tower where she spends a lot of time doing research. She will speak to anyone of “good bearing” but does require donations for those who are not a fellow Ansarian or who work closely with the Ansar Knights.

Notable Churches: Anthonias, Leandra, Tirdin, Myrielle, a small Pantheon devoted to all of the Alarin, both Northern and Southern, and a small shrine built by a small cult that worship’s Tucker as a Deity.

Notable Rogues and Thieves’ Guild: The Black Hand, an organization that spans many regions and cities, controls the thieves of Tucker’s Paradise. This particular guild is run by Grunth Armripper (NE, Minotaur Male, F14), a former gladiator who uses brute force to keep the guild members in line and focused on profit. Before his arrival the guild was notorious for a high turnover rate of leaders due to unfortunate “accidents” and outright murder. The Black Hand sent Grunth to clean up the guild and he did so in short order. The main guild meeting room is still adorned with the severed arms of those who refused to give up the old ways of this particular guild. His surname is not just an affectation.

Lissa Thunderer (CN, Gnome Female, T9) is currently on the Council of Elders. This has drawn a lot of ire from more experienced thieves within the City but they grudgingly respect the system that determines who fills The Seventh Seat, even if they do not understand the system. Because of her status Lissa is not a current member of the local guild and is treated as an independent thief who has been “granted courtesy” by the guild. No one outside of the guild knows her true profession. Most think her a tinker who mends pots and pans a cover she used a money launderer and fence.

Equipment Shops: Full, with prices slightly below normal due to the large number of adventurers that come through the town and the overabundance of stores seeking to cater to their needs. Sailing equipment is also readily available.

Adventurer’s Quarters: Adventurers are welcome throughout most of the city, but in some of the more upscale sections they will most likely not feel welcome. The Haven and The Sixteen Harpies are very popular with adventurers, and for those who can find it The Sideways Glance has some of the finest all in the region and if often a good place to find leads on employment.

Located just off shore on a small island is a cluster of three buildings that are affectionately known as “Tucker’s Outcasts.” The main building, The Salty Eel, is an inn that caters to those who need a break from the crowded city, who are for whatever reason are not welcome in the city, or those just seeking something different. The inn is known for its warm hospitality, great food (try the fried eel!), strong drink, and a small cadre of polite yet firm minotaurs who maintain order when things get rowdy. The other two buildings provide housing for the owner and staff of the inn, as well as a few extra rooms for rent.

The Broken Keel is located along the eastern pier of the dock quarter and is a favorite spot of sailors and ship’s captains. It is the main place to go when one is looking for passage aboard a ship. It is generally a quiet place but it can be an extremely rough place from time to time.

Important Characters: Barrith Warfinger (LG, Dwarf Male, F12) is a retired soldier who served of his life deep in the Dark Regions protecting the interests of his ancestral home. After a long and distinguished career he retired to the surface to explore “The World Above.” He surfaced down in the Crescent League and after about a year of wandering around the Perryn Island region he wound up in Tucker’s Paradise and fell in love with city, which was unlike anything he had seen on or beneath the world. He currently runs The Sixteen Harpies deep in the heart of the city. He also controls several sections of alley ways around his establishment that he keeps clean and free to anyone who wishes to use them.

Gally Three-leg (LN, Elf Female, F4) is so named because she is so fast people say she must have a third leg. She is small even by elf standards, which is of great usefulness to her as she operates as a courier within the city. It is said she knows of secret alley ways known to no one else and has magical shoes which enable her to run up walls. These rumors have never been confirmed, but her reputation for speedy deliveries makes them believable. In addition to her role as a courier she seems to know most rumors before anyone else. She is often sought out for advice on the happenings of the city.

Stewart Tallhelm (NE, Human Male, F8) grew up on the streets of Tucker’s Paradise and quickly gained a nasty reputation as someone fond of murderer those who got in his way as he worked his way up the ranks of one of the petty gangs that populate the city. Despite his youth (he is rumored to be no more than 15 years old) he runs his gang, The Street Knights, efficiently and ruthlessly. His gang controls more than a few alley ways and they make a tidy profit charging for safe passage. One reason for his gang’s success, a reason known to only a very few people, is that he has a working relationship with The Black Hand, offering refuge to those thieves in need of a quick place to hide or a quick escape route. Because of this The Black Hand often hires members of The Street Knights to act as scouts and lookouts. They have also “granted courtesy” to The Street Knights to operate as they see fit in their territory. If you need a place to hide or need to find someone the territory of The Street Knights is often a good, albeit expensive place to start.

Advej Henrison (TN, Human Male, B7) is notorious for being a really horrible singer. Despite this, though, he has become a very successful bard. His specialty is crafting scathing tear downs of people. Some of these he writes simply because he believes someone has gotten full of themselves and need to be taken down a few notches, but most he is commissioned to write. He may not be able to sing, but he can certainly write. He writes these ballads so well in fact that more than a few people have tried to kill him for his songs. Advej has a lot of connections with other bards, criers, and urchins who he often pays to plaster his ballads throughout the city.

Kreellline (LE, Quickling Male, T15) operates outside of the local thieves’ guild, but only because they gave up on catching him years ago. He is a phenomenal pickpocket and is one of the best trackers in the region. He is also very adept at hiding. People have said that they have seen him stop in front of a blank wall and then his simply not there. Even though he is not a member of the local guild he does treat them with some level of professional courtesy. He never steals from them or interferes with their jobs, and he has been known to show up in the middle of jobs, alert the thieves that someone is approaching, and then disappears. If you can find him and can afford his services he is the first choice for tracking or spying.

Located just outside the Southeast corner of the city is Castle Ferrin, home to Count Ferrin (NG, Dwarf Male, F12), a former slave gladiator of the Sarai who won his freedom. He then continued fighter and amassed quite a fortune before retiring. He now runs a gladiator school in his castle and operates a small arena that is mostly used for training, though severals time a year he hosts small tournaments. He also rents out the arena and provides neutral arbiters for those seeking to settle disputes through non-peaceful means.

Important Features in Town: After wandering for years Tucker found himself standing upon the easternmost point on Perryn Island. Content for a while he set about building a tower upon a stone pier just off shore. As was common with his wanderings he had a fair number of people traveling with him or following after him. They followed suit and started building homes. The new settlers built their homes along a single road that extended inland from Tucker’s tower, but through some unknown quirk of fate they did not build in a straight line. And thus was started one of Tucker’s Paradise’s most unique features. Most of the city is built along a single 30' wide street that wanders seemingly aimlessly from one end to another. This street, known as Tucker’s Way is just over 3.5 miles long. Side streets have sprung up over the years but they do nothing to shorten this distance.

The city is also honeycombed with alley ways that shorten travel distances immensely. One of the shortest routes using streets and alleys is just over ½ a mile. However, most alley ways are controlled by various organizations, businesses, and enterprising individuals who charge a toll to pass. Some charge a little and some charge a lot depending on how much distance can be saved by any one particular shortcut. A scant few are free to traverse.

Unlike many other cities there are no distinct areas outside of the docks. Instead as one travels along Tucker’s Way one passes through neighborhoods that are poor or wealthy or somewhere in between. The docks and most of the warehouses, along with a small traditional dockside neighborhood, are just outside the main city. On the western side of the city is the main entrance and on the eastern side is the Sea Gate that leads to Tucker’s Tower. Traditionally visitors who disembark at the sole East dock located at Tucker’s Tower do not have to pay an entrance fee into the city. Those that disembark at the docks must pay a freight fee to the harbor master.

Tucker has long since moved on and is believed to be dead. His tower, which is 150’ in diameter at the base and tapers up to 50’ diameter at a height of 150’ houses his now sealed personal rooms and laboratory and the massive library he accumulated while living here. His former home is not a center of learning for mages from all over Icengale and his library is one of the best available. The tower also has extensive basements that extend deep underground. Only a few permanent residents know just how far they extend.

Scattered throughout the city are several squares, most of which have markets set up a couple days a week and one, The Mains, is a daily market of various wares. There are few “secret” squares that can only be reached via alley ways. These tend to be “private” locations where visitors are either actively discouraged or treated with great disrespect. Along Tucker’s Way can also be found The Fair Landing, a park where the main street splits in two and passes along either side of the park. The park is a popular location for many in the city.

The lands that surround the city are considered quite safe and are a mixture of farmland and oak forests. Many lumberjack camps exist in the woods where, overseen by local druids, they harvest the wood for various uses, including a small shipyard about 20 miles east of the city and on the North shore of the island.

Local Lore: Tucker’s Paradise is an unusual city, and not just because of its unique layout. They city is a mix of those seeking knowledge (mages, sages), those seeking wealth and power (merchants, adventurers), sailors, multiple gangs, and those who serve the needs of all of them (barkeeps, tanners, cooks, blacksmiths, etc.). It is commonly accepted that Tucker’s Way is neutral territory and those that cause trouble along it are treated harshly, either by the town guard or residents. On the side streets and alley ways, though, it is a different story. Some areas are quite safe and some are best left to those who dwell there.

Aside from the excitement found in a city of 30,000+ there is not much excitement in the surrounding areas. Monster incursions are very rare and pirates learned long ago that raiding a city that his home to hundreds of wizards is now a smart thing. In addition to the main residents the city is often home to several thousand people who are passing through. During the summer months that number can rise and make the city quite crowded.

There are two rumors that have persisted in the city for years. The first is that the cellars deep beneath Tucker’s Paradise are the entrance to a secret passage that connects with the City of Onyx nearly 500 miles away on the Belthurl Peninsula. The other is that throughout the city there are magical gateways that lead to other parts of Icengale. Some claim that if you know the right location you need only “step behind a mote of nothingness” and step through the gateway and be instantly whisked hundreds to thousands of miles away.