Chapter #1188
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+ THE ADVENTURERS +
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+ Epic VI +
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+ Many of the locations, non-player characters, spells, and other +
+ terms used in these stories are the property of Wizards of the Coast +
+ which has in no way endorsed or authorized their use. Any such +
+ property contained within these stories are not representative of +
+ Wizards of the Coast in any fashion. +
+ The player characters depicted in these stories are copyright +
+ 1991-2025 by Thomas A. Miller. Any resemblance to any persons +
+ or characters either real or fictional is utterly coincidental. +
+ Copying and/or distribution of these stories is permissible under +
+ the sole condition that no money is made in the process. In that +
+ case, I hope you enjoy them! +
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+ the assembled Oligarchs of the Free City of Greyhawk: +
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+ Nerof Gasgal Lord Mayor +
+ Sir Anton Palmirian Guildmaster of Lawyers and Scribes +
+ Bodmi Hollardel Guildmaster of Jewelers and Gemcutters +
+ Cariel Mansharn Merchants' and Traders' Union +
+ Carmen Halmaster Merchants' and Traders' Union +
+ Derider Fanshen Constable +
+ Dernen Nathane Guildmaster of Merchants' and Traders' Union +
+ Glodreddi Bakkanin Inspector of Taxes +
+ Jerome Kasinskaia Patriarch of Rao +
+ Kieran Jalucian Guildmaster of Wizards +
+ Laup Cobrun Merchants' and Traders' Union +
+ Peldor Guildmaster of Thieves +
+ Ravel Dasinder Patriarch of Boccob +
+ Tigran Gellner Captain-General of the Watch +
+ Vesparian Lafanel Guildmaster of Assassins +
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+ Date: 1/1/587 C.Y. (Common Year) +
+ Time: late morning +
+ Place: a sealed chamber somewhere in Greyhawk +
+ Climate: temperate +
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+ "I shouldn't be having this conversation with anyone. I take +
+ serious risks in doing so." +
+ - from _Anna_ +
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MCLXXXVIII. The Ambush at Greyhawk City
Within a sealed, physically- and magically- secure chamber in the depths
of Greyhawk's governmental building complex, the fifteen current Oligarchs
of Greyhawk have convened for their first meeting of the new year...
Nerof Gasgal: -and we must try our damndest not to raise taxes any more,
not this year. (he sighs)
Peldor: (regards the Lord Mayor, concerned)
These had been trying times for everyone, but the worries following the
wars had seemed to weigh heaviest on the Lord Mayor, who led this group
and provided direction for the city and all its people. The man had the
unenviable (and frankly impossible) task of trying to keep everyone happy
all at once...the commoners, the wealthy, the rulers and denizens of the
surrounding territories, even this very group of Oligarchs. Trying for
years to balance all of those needs and wants, and always falling short
in some places even while succeeding in others, had taken its toll on poor
Nerof. The dark circles under his eyes seemed perpetual, he was gradually
losing his hair, and what hair he had left was now rapidly graying. It
was of course still too early to know whether he could steer the Free City
through its various trials and tribulations, but Nerof seemed intent on
staying the course despite the toll it was taking on him.
Peldor himself was headed down a similar path, at least in the last few
months. Bureaucracy and ambition, rather than common sense and the good
of all, seemed to rule the day more often than not. While the bulk of the
challenges resulted from the wars and the problems of other kingdoms, it
seemed to the retired adventurer turned Guildmaster of Thieves that more
than a fair share of the stress and idiocy was coming from some of those
seated at this very table. As his thoughts wandered away from whatever
mundane problem the Lord Mayor was talking about now, Peldor considered
the other Oligarchs...
Aside from himself (who had taken a long and arduous path to becoming
Guildmaster of Thieves after the unfortunate demise of Org Nenshen and a
brief tenure by the treacherous Sharyn Messandier) and Lord Mayor Nerof,
three others comprised the secret inner circle of the Oligarchy. These
five (or in some cases, their predecessors) actually planned and then
supported all major initiatives involving Greyhawk, and were quietly
responsible for almost every success the city had seen in the last few
years. Carmen Halmaster and Dernen Nathane were both members of the
Merchants' and Traders' Union and longtime Oligarchs. Neither had been
adventurers or knew how to fight or use magic, but both had been around
for a long time and had much wisdom about economics in general and the
needs of Greyhawk in particular. Peldor regarded neither of them as any
sort of threat and actually had a long record of shared accomplishments
while working with them. The same, unfortunately, could not be said about
the fifth member of the inner circle. Glodreddi Bakkanin, Inspector of
Taxes, was a middle-aged dwarf with an unpleasant disposition and a near-
permanent sneer on his face. As Inspector of Taxes, his job was to keep
the city's coffers full; the personality and attitude needed to do that
job required a greedy, conniving, wily individual. Glodreddi had all of
those qualities and more. During the Oligarchy's trial of Peldor after
the shapeshifter incidents, more than a decade ago, the dwarf had been
particularly hostile toward Peldor, and they had never really patched up
that animosity. It was a minor miracle that the two of them had worked
to help form and further the aims of the inner circle for many years now,
and there was no doubt that each of them knew or suspected things about
the other that could get them into trouble.
The other ten members of the Oligarchy were a mixed lot, in Peldor's
experience. Some - such as Constable Derider Fanshen, Kieren Jalucian
(Guildmaster of Wizards), Ravel Dasinder (Patriarch of Boccob) and Jerome
Kasinskaia (Patriarch of Rao) knew one or more of Peldor's former group
of adventurers and were friendly and reasonable. Several of them had
defended Peldor, Belphanior, or both in past incidents...and a couple
had even aided some of those individuals in significant battles against
evil. Kieran was also the temporary President of Greyhawk's Society of
Magi after the demise of the archmage Otiluke - that one a friend, sadly
lost due to the treachery of Rary and Robilar. Until that position could
be filled, Kieran was wearing two hats. Peldor also knew that there was
ever-increasing pressure from other religious heads to add more of them
to the Oligarchy, though the inner circle was quietly doing everything it
could to keep that from happening.
Three members of the Oligarchy were relatively new, having replaced
others for one reason or another. Vesparian Lafanel, the Guildmaster of
Assassins, had replaced Turin Deathstalker during the wars as the latter
resigned his position in Greyhawk and fought humanoids in several lands.
Turin eventually became the commander of the Safeton garrison, in the
northern region of what used to be the Wild Coast southeast of Greyhawk.
Vesparian had been his deputy and took both his position as Guildmaster
and his spot in the Oligarchy. The gray elf was quiet, detail-oriented,
and very intelligent - he also had some measure of skill as a wizard.
Tigran Gellner, formerly the Commander of Greyhawk's Cairn Hills Force,
was now Captain-General of the Watch after taking Sental Nurev's position.
Sental, though few were aware of it, had spent years as an unwilling mole
for agents in the Bandit Kingdoms who had kidnapped his brother. While
that unfortunate situation had been surprisingly remedied by Belphanior
just before the wars, the damage had been done and Sental had been removed
from his role and lost his seat on the Oligarchy. Perhaps due to shame,
perhaps due to the influence of others, he had deteriorated emotionally
and physically before turning up dead under suspicious circumstances this
past fall. As for Tigran, he was a war hero after his work in the Cairn
Hills, and - like Vesparian - Peldor considered Tigran to be a reasonable
peer and potential ally. The third new Oligarch was Cariel Mansharn from
the Merchants’ and Traders’ Union; he had been appointed to the Oligarchy
after Dernen Nathane (who was already a member) replaced Ren o’ the Star
as Guildmaster of the Merchants’ and Traders’ Union after the latter was
found floating in the Selintan River, murdered. Rumor was that his many
creditors had finally lost patience with him and his debts and excuses.
Cariel was fairly close to several of the inner circle, and seemed likely
to join their ranks at some point.
Along with those three new members, who Peldor considered neither allies
nor enemies, were two existing members who also fit into that category:
Laup Cobrun from the Merchants' and Traders' Union and Bodmi Hollardel,
Guildmaster of Jewelers and Gemcutters. Both were rational, reasonable
men who typically showed sound judgment and made decisions in the overall
best interest of the most people. Unfortunately, the fifteenth Oligarch
hated Peldor, and vice versa - which was to be expected after Peldor had
thrown him through a window. All of that had happened when a diplomatic
party from Tusmit came to Greyhawk more than nine years ago, to take Bosco
away for crimes he'd committed while possessed by a demon. Sir Anton
Palmirian, Guildmaster of Lawyers and Scribes, had used poor choices of
words several times during the discussion, and ultimately had been ejected
from the Green Dragon Inn. It was just about the only time Peldor had
truly lost his temper after becoming Guildmaster and joining the ruling
body, and ever since then Anton had hated him with a passion. He had
always suspected that several of his minor problems and misfortunes had
been the result of efforts by Anton to take revenge and get away with it,
but he'd never been able to prove anything.
So overall, out of fifteen members in the current Directing Oligarchy
of Greyhawk, five of the other fourteen were friendly to Peldor, two were
privately or openly hostile, and the remaining seven were neutral. This
put him in a weaker position than before (when Turin and Otiluke had been
there and were counted among his allies.) Still, despite that, Peldor had
been able to keep the Thieves' Guild well in the black financially, even
after a large section of the Guild hall had been damaged by fire. He had
also been able to maintain order despite all of the infighting between
the master thieves of the various city quarters (and their underlings.)
These intermittent conflicts simply mirrored the larger-scale problems
within the Oligarchy...it was always the same thing: people sometimes
just flat-out refused to work together toward any greater goal, worrying
more about their own individual titles and power and funds and influence
than what they should have been worrying about (the greater good of all
in the city and environs.) When he first joined the Directing Oligarchy,
Peldor had been idealistic about solving problems and changing peoples'
views and actions...but now, after all this time (not to mention other
factors, like the foiled shapechanger invasion and his inn burning down)
he was starting to think seriously about whether he could protect himself
and his family from the many enemies (or potential ones) now in Greyhawk.
Peldor's daydreaming ended abruptly due to the sudden, annoying voice
of the Inspector of Taxes.
Glodreddi Bakkanin: I do have one additional agenda item to discuss.
Several of those present had to stifle groans, as this seemed to happen
all too often: a long and stressful meeting would be about to end, and
they all had other things to do...and then someone (always the same one
or two people) would pipe up with something they could have and should
have put on the agenda or mentioned earlier. Then the meeting would go
on for another half-hour. Usually, the offender wouldn't even be ready
to discuss whatever nonsense they wanted to discuss.
In this case, however, the person in question was fully prepared - even
over-prepared - to talk about their topic.
Glodreddi Bakkanin: Ahem. (he makes a show of ruffling some paperwork)
As you all know, the Free City's funds are always of prime concern in
these difficult times, and we have to generate - and keep - revenue in
any and every way we can.
Nerof Gasgal: And as always, you're doing a fine job of making sure we
succeed.
This comment drew some chuckles from the table, though it was completely
true - and assuredly the greatest achievement of the Inspector of Taxes.
Glodreddi Bakkanin: (absolutely undeterred, he continues) It is for
that reason, the financial well-being and future security of our great
city, that I must now bring to your attention a matter most grave.
That silenced the chuckles and got everyone's attention - even those who
hadn't been paying attention.
Glodreddi Bakkanin: After a great deal of diligent and thorough research
and double-checking, it has come to my attention that Greyhawk is at
great financial risk, at this very moment.
There were shocked gasps and concerned looks from everyone at the table
now, for such a problem would affect every one of them to some extent.
Nerof Gasgal: (quietly wondering to himself why this matter was not first
discussed within the informal inner circle of the Oligarchy) And how is
this, good Glodreddi?
Dernen Nathane: Yes, indeed...this news, if true, is deeply concerning.
Glodreddi Bakkanin: (his fat, bearded face flushes in triumph) Oh, it's
true. I wouldn't have spent all this time checking into it, or bringing
it up here, if it wasn't. (his gaze subtly shifts, to stare directly at
Peldor)
Peldor: (gets a sinking feeling in his stomach)
Glodreddi Bakkanin: The rogue elf Belphanior - who this very group has
had to discuss on multiple occasions, and who has committed numerous
crimes within our city and in defiance of our laws, and who went on to
blatantly attack the Hold of the Sea Princes and murder hundreds, and
who, most importantly of all, is now said to be part of a group that
has forcibly taken over the Bright Desert and started building a new
kingdom there- (he pauses, having a coughing fit from all this talking)
Belphanior actually owns the deeds to almost a dozen parcels of land
around the Free City or within its domain!
Reactions to this proclamation varied...some people were stunned, some
were merely surprised, and the more level-headed (or those who knew the
elf, which tended to be the same as the level-headed people) just frowned
and waited to hear details. Unfortunately, the Inspector of Taxes wasn't
yet done with his verbal attack.
Glodreddi Bakkanin: But hear this! Worst of all - the unimaginable and
terrible truth - is that these land purchases were facilitated by a
member of this very body! (unable to contain himself any longer, the
now-red-faced dwarf points a stubby finger right at Peldor) It's him!
It's Peldor!
next: deliberation, some clever twists, and a fateful ruling
map: http://www.peldor.com/world/atlas/Bright-Desert_1156.jpg
www: http://www.peldor.com/download.html
homepage: http://www.peldor.com/
email: tmiller@peldor.com
released: 12/19/2025
notes: Pro tip: when you need to write about a large group of
powerful people, some of whom are idiots, one good way to strengthen
their personalities for your writing purposes is to put real people
behind the fictional ones. I took each of the friendly and hostile
Oligarchs and found someone from my former job to match to each one.
This made it a hell of a lot easier to come up with their lines and
attitudes. (So yes, many of the problems Peldor ponders in this one
also happened in my workplace...and possibly yours too!)
As for this episode...to bring the Directing Oligarchy from the old
days into modern times (several years in game time) I had to research
multiple sources (the City of Greyhawk boxed set, the From the Ashes
boxed set, and even the Greyhawk: The Adventure Begins accessory,
which takes place in the future of 591 C.Y. All that work served to
better align my current stories with events in the published/canon
world, as best as possible (remember that some alternate paths I took
before now are irreversible.)
About the Belphanior land situation...this was something that had
to surface sooner or later, as many could (and probably should) think
that the elf (as a member of the Bright Alliance, and given what that
group has been up to) is now positioned to be a possible adversary to
Greyhawk. It's not feasible or reasonable that the Free City would
allow him to be a major holder of property within their realm. Plus
it was time to show the headaches that Peldor (and the Lord Mayor
Nerof Gasgal, and in fact the city itself) have been facing and will
continue to face for the foreseeable future. So I came up with this
side arc and lit the fuse.
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