E1. Freeport Asylum: The mind can only take so much before it cracks. There are many causes for lunacy: the trauma of recurring nightmares, encounters with eldritch horrors, the revelation of dark secrets, and the pain of prolonged torture name but a few. When people become mad enough to endanger themselves and others, they are brought to the Chambers Asylum. Few of those interred ever walk the streets of Freeport again.
History
The Asylum was founded forty-nine years ago during the reign of Marten Drac. When he was Sea Lord, Marten became rich through rampant corruption and taxation. He gained and maintained power by the judicious use of blackmail, double-dealing, and murder. Those who truly angered him faced being locked up in Freeport’s new asylum for the insane, never to be heard from again. At the time, few locals connected the building of this new asylum with the Sea Lord. It appeared to be the work Dr. Chambers, a man from the Continent who claimed to have invented new techniques to treat the insane. In reality, Chambers was a charlatan hired by Marten Drac to run what amounted a private prison for the Sea Lord’s enemies. The Chambers Asylum allowed Drac to confine undesirables in its cells without the pretense of a trial. Once there, anything could be done to them.
When Anton Drac became Sea Lord, things changed at the asylum. Dr. Chambers was run out of town and priests of the God of Healing took it over. Even so, the Chambers Asylum remained a grim place. Those consigned there were often beyond help, and many were quite violent. Even the healers could not bring comfort to the inmates, and over time, the asylum began to affect the priests. It made them harder and crueler. This behavior did not go unnoticed at the temple, so when Milton Drac offered to purchase the Chambers Asylum for a hefty price, the priests quickly agreed. Milton Drac was, of course, a leader in the Brotherhood of the Yellow Sign, a cult dedicated to the madness of the Unspeakable One. During his reign, blasphemous rituals were performed in the Chambers Asylum, and many sane locals went mad within its walls. When Milton Drac and his closest cohorts were slain, the asylum was forgotten in the chaotic aftermath and the ensuing succession crisis. Three years ago, a self-described “life researcher” named Bianka Altanish took over the Chambers Asylum. She was more interested in using the patients as test subjects than in curing them. She leaves the day-to-day running of the asylum to Clement Moore, content to pursue her research.
Description
The Chambers Asylum is a two-story building made of stone. The top floor, where the staff lives, has windows, but the first floor does not. The building has only one entrance, a large, iron-reinforced door. Non- violent inmates are kept on the first floor in small but relatively clean cells. Beneath the streets, there is a basement level with dungeon-like cells where the most dangerous inmates are held.
Prominent NPCs
Bianka Altanish: The chief researcher of the Asylum. A somewhat pretty young woman, Bianka wears her hair in a waist-length, braided ponytail. She is typically seen in a spattered blouse and black pants, carrying a notebook and quill to jot down interesting observations she sees during her workday. She studied at the Freeport Academy for a time and worked at the Crematorium in the Shield Islands as an apprentice priest of Incanus for several years. After losing patience with the boredom of life on the nearly deserted islands, she returned to Freeport with a renewed commitment to work with people who needed her help.
Clement Moore: Clement Moore was the steward of the Chambers Asylum and a low level member of the Brotherhood of the Yellow Sign during the reign of Milton Drac. He was not important enough to draw any attention after Drac’s fall. He quietly kept doing his job, and the asylum was ignored. When Bianka Altanish took over life got better for Clement Moore. Altanish lets him run the asylum as he wishes, so long as she has enough subjects for her research and no prying families start asking questions. Clement has seen no evidence of the Brotherhood of the Yellow Sign since Drac’s death. He assumes the entire cult was wiped out and now just tries to forget he was ever involved.
E2. The Pavilion The Pavilion is the center of the Eastern District, both literally and figuratively. By day, it is a commercial hub, and by night, it is home to cloaked duelists with flashing blades. At all hours, it is the heart of the Syndicate, the criminal organization that controls the Eastern District.
History
In the early days of Freeport, the pirates lived by a code of fellowship. Disputes that could not be settled in any other way were decided by formal duels outside the city walls. For hundreds of years, those duels were fought at a location known as the Pavilion. When the city expanded over this area, it was preserved as a spacious plaza in memory of Freeport’s past.
Nowadays, the Pavilion is the hub of the Eastern District. Important businesses are located on the plaza, and nearly all transport in the district moves through it. The Halfling Benevolent Association is also here, a constant reminder of Finn’s control of the district. During the day, the Pavilion fills up with hawkers’ carts, but these clear out once it gets dark.
Several years ago, a group of young, bored locals, attracted by legends of the old pirate code, revived the practice of dueling at the Pavilion. Their duels were tame compared to the combat to the death that used to occur on this spot, but the fights nonetheless agitated many of the local merchants. In response to this ire, the duelists changed the fight times to the deep of the night, when all the businesses in the area were closed. Finn’s Syndicate, never an organization to pass up a moneymaking opportunity, began placing odds on the fighters. Now the sounds of clashing blades and clinking coins can be heard in the Pavilion almost every night.
Description
The Pavilion is a roughly circular plaza three hundred feet in diameter. It is cobbled with a rose-colored stone imported specially for this arena. During the day, the plaza is mobbed with people on foot, in rickshaws, or in carriages. Everyone must dodge their way through the hawkers’ carts that fight for a spot each day.
Prominent NPCs
Darius: (male human) Darius is a feature on the Pavilion. He only has one scam, but it’s one he perfected with years of practice. Darius poses as a lost human child, frantically searching for his mother. While grabbing onto sympathetic (and wealthy) looking passersby and weeping for his mother, Darius filches purses and other valuables from his victims. Once he’s fleeced someone, he pretends to see his mother in the crowd and dashes off. With his halfling stature, it only takes the right clothes, a bit of makeup, and a change of vocal pitch to pull off the impersonation. The fact that Darius is somewhat childish, despite being nearly thirty years old, also helps. His downfall is a very adult habit though: gambling. He loses money as fast as he steals it, which puts him back out on the plaza every day looking for new marks.
Nalini: Nalini is a young scribe that works daily in the Pavilion. She writes and reads letters for the illiterate. It’s not the best job but Nalini gets by. She lives in Drac’s End but has found the Pavilion is a better place to ply her trade. She aspires to become a wizard, but she has neither the money nor the contacts to do so just yet.
Serkan: Serkan is the undefeated champion of the Pavilion duelists. In his homeland, he was a renowned swordsman until his life took a dark turn. His storybook romance with a young princess ended in blood when he discovered she made him a cuckold. Serkan flew into a rage, killing his wife and her two lovers. He became an exile, wandering from port to port and working as a hired killer. He came to Freeport and stumbled across the duelists. Here, he thought, he might win back some small part of his honor. For the past year, he has beaten all challengers, his whirling yatagan unstoppable. Now he refuses to kill for money. Instead, he fights non-lethal duels at the Pavilion and makes a living schooling eager young duelists. Serkan teaches swordsmanship and a code of honor. To practice the former without the latter, Serkan says, is to be little more than an animal.
E3. Golden Pillar society The Golden Pillar Society is a fraternal organization for the wealthier members of Freeport’s middle class. They sponsor many charitable works in the Eastern District and beyond. Some folks say that the members of the Golden Pillar try so hard to act nobly that they must have something to hide. Others say that view is unfairly cynical, and no-one has seen reason to dispute the group's charitable reputation.
History
Not everyone in Freeport is a crook, conman, or corsair. There are plenty of respectable burghers who own shops, keep scrupulous records, and take pride in the merchandise they sell. These are the folk who inhabit the Eastern District. While many Easterners are young and hungry, there is an “upper crust” of the middle class who has managed to hang onto their wealth over several generations, while never quite making it to the Merchant District. They live in tasteful townhouses— not fancy by any means but comfortable enough to afford a lifestyle worlds away from the average Freeporter—a closet full of clothes, a gaggle of children with eccentric nannies, handcrafted furniture, a cellar for wine and awkward heirlooms, and an attic for mad aunties. Among this enlightened bourgeoisie, wealth has bred a strong sense of social responsibility. They may have money now, but searching just a few branches down the family tree reveals tradesmen and servants. Go a bit further, and you may find beggars or—heaven forbid—adventurers. So the upper middle class of Freeport are especially generous to people needing a hand up. Anyone who’s anyone in the Eastern District is a member of the Golden Pillar Society, a fraternal organization that specializes in charity work founded seventy-eight years ago. The society runs fund raisers for orphanages and hospices, creates jobs for criminals trying to go straight, and hosts summits on any number of cultural flashpoint issues, inviting speakers to lecture on “The Half- Orc Question” or the economic effects of the Great Green Fire. Among this enlightened bourgeoisie, wealth has acted as a spur to charity; it also has become an ever-tightening steam valve. The burghers see the extravagant life of the Merchant District’s wealthy, of the Captains’ Council, and of the famous privateers who make the town their home—and they quietly lick their lips. They want the license that goes with excessive wealth, but wild living would cost them the station they’ve carved out—generations’ worth of crawling up from the gutter blown to bits with one indiscreet night in a brothel.
Description
The Golden Pillar Society is based out of a well-appointed townhouse near the walls of the Old City. The building has three stories and the aforementioned basement. The small staff works on the first floor, organizing the various charitable works from well-appointed offices. Paid watchmen can be found here from dusk to dawn. The upper two floors consist of various meeting rooms and studies for society members. The offices of the society president, Jeroen Vanderzee, and the exchequer, Tasin Berthain, are also on the top floor.
Prominent NPCs
Jeroen Vanderzee: Jeroen Vanderzee has been the president of the Golden Pillar Society for over thirty years. He ran the family business, the Vanderzee Glassworks, for all of his adult life. He is now in his sixties and has passed on the glassworks to his son, Willi. However, he retained his office at the Golden Pillar Society and now fills his days running the organization. His mind is not as sharp as it once was, and this has begun to become apparent to the rest of the organization.
Tasin Berthain: Tasin is the treasurer of the Golden Pillar Society and the leader of its inner circle. His mother, a war widow, brought the family to Freeport and found success as an importer of fine wine and spirits from the Continent. Tasin dutifully took over the business when his mother retired, but he felt trapped by his family obligations. He wanted to break free, leave the city, and find his own path. Yet he had sworn to his mother he would keep the business running and take care of his two sisters. For decades, he has played the part of respectable merchant, which led him to join the Golden Pillar Society.
E4. Halfling Benevolent Association The HBA is an organization that serves the interests of Freeport’s small but influential halfling population. It does everything in its power to protect them from being exploited by their stronger neighbors, a problem that is even more prevalent in Freeport than in most other places.
History
Founded over a hundred years ago, the Halfling Benevolent Association (HBA) began as an effort to protect Freeport’s smallest citizens from injustice at the hands (and feet) of the larger races. The HBA used money to buy clout with the city’s powers. Once the organization was established, it was able to provide loans to members to purchase and build homes and businesses. Donations from the HBA’s success stories, plus some prudent investments, allowed the organization to prosper and grow. For a time, there was even a militia (known derisively as the “Short Swords” by other Easterners), but the HBA leadership decided it was more expedient to simply hire bodyguards when needed.
It was only a matter of time before some enterprising halflings tried to take advantage of the HBA to get rich. Thirty years ago, a group of ambitious entrepreneurs took over the organization. They used the treasury of the HBA to bankroll a huge convoy to Amador. If all went according to plan, the rare commodities they imported would triple their money. The journey took over six months, but it seemed that the convoy was going to make it. They were but a day’s sail from Freeport when disaster struck. They were caught in a freak squall, and the heavily laden merchant ships were swamped or driven into nearby reefs. In the end, only a single ship made it back to the port. The rest were destroyed and the cargo lost.
The next five years were hard for the HBA. The organization was nearly bankrupt, and it lost its influence quickly. Soon, a criminal gang was preying on halflings, breaking into their homes and robbing them on the streets. The gang then began to prey on other Easterners. The whole district was soon beset, and it seemed only a matter of time before it became another Slums District. It was at this point that halfling former adventurer named Finn Tarbeck appeared in Freeport. He soon took control of the HBA, rebuilt the organization, and then went toe to toe with the gang that had been plaguing the Eastern District. Many bodies hit the cobblestones, and within a year, Finn had driven them out of Freeport entirely, never to return.
Description
The HBA’s headquarters is a large, two-story building in the center of the Eastern District, right on the Pavilion. Made of brick and spurning ostentation, the building, like Finn, is all business. The building is filled with offices of various HBA officials, and visitors from domestic and foreign contacts can always be found. Visitors to the HBA come and go all hours of the day and night on business legitimate and otherwise.
Prominent NPCs
Finn Tarbeck: (male halfling) Finn is well into middle age, but he has avoided developing the paunch so common to his people. He remains thin and lithe and his reflexes are lightning-quick. He maintains an enormous, ever-changing wardrobe, ranging from near rags to the height of garishness. When people meet Finn for the first time, they are often surprised to find out what an agreeable fellow he is. He smiles frequently and always has a jest ready. His sarcasm and quick wit are indeed legendary throughout the Eastern District.
When Finn was younger, he had the good humor and devil-may-care attitude common to his people. Though a rogue to be sure, Finn joined an adventuring band and distinguished himself repeatedly over the course of several years. Indeed, half a world away from Freeport, Finn is still known as a hero. Such heroism, however, had its price. Finn watched his best friends die in the defense of a small outpost called Lonely Shore, during which he had nearly every bone in his body broken when a demon threw him through a wall. He survived thanks to the timely application of healing magic, but while he recovered physically, no spell could regenerate his spirit after that day.
Twenty-five years ago, Finn came to Freeport. He felt he had given enough to the world, and it was time for him to take care of himself. At that time, a crime wave was crippling the Eastern District. Sensing opportunity, he used the loot from his adventuring days to take over the Halfling Benevolent Association and build up a group of followers. He then went toe-to-toe with the gangs of thieves terrorizing the Eastern District. His gang bloodied them to such a degree they all left the district and never returned. From then on, Finn has become the most powerful Crime-lord in Freeport.
Orm: Orm is the most visible member of the HBA in public. He is small, even for a halfling, but as one of Finn’s key lieutenants, he is untouchable in the Eastern District. He spends most of his time in the HBA offices managing the Syndicate’s finances. He has a weakness for gaudy jewelry, and his hands are always heavy with finely made rings.
Trask: Trask is another of Finn’s lieutenants. He is responsible for security, which is an important concern for halflings in a city as rough as Freeport. The halflings in the District know that Trask will ensure revenge for injustices inflicted upon them, and so are generally willing to pay him the money needed to hire some "additional assistance".
Portia Potbelly: Loud, arrogant and self-centered, Portia is surely the world's fattest halfling. She is carried about on a litter, while wearing ostentatious golden robes, jewels, perfume and make-up. Her voice is deep and wheezy, and she usually wears a wig. She has been a loyal supporter of the HBA for many years, and periodically throws lavish feasts for the organization's senior members. Despite her generosity, rumors occasionally circulate about her strange menus, as well as the fact no-one remembers her ever looking younger than she does now.
E5. The Hellhound: Run by Finn's lieutenant Dunbar, the club is a members- only institution located just off the Pavilion. The place has no windows, so what goes on inside is a mystery to passersby, and that is just how Dunbar likes it. From this quiet, anonymous building, Dunbar runs the HBA'a peacekeeping and protection efforts.
History
After the HBA had finished its cleanup of the Eastern District, Finn wanted to reward one of his most talented subordinates, an ex-mercenary named Dunbar. He gifted the young tough with a beautiful home right off the Pavilion. Dunbar decided he didn’t need such a large home, so he brought in workers to remodel it and turned it into the headquarters of his informal police force. Thus, the Hellhound Social Club was born.
Dunbar and his crew moved into the club twenty-two years ago. Since then, the Hellhounds have become a ubiquitous presence in the Eastern District. There are three elements of Dunbar’s operation. First, there are collectors, who are responsible for collecting the "taxes" the HBA levies to pay for its protection campaigns. There are currently fourteen collectors, each responsible for a neighborhood in the Eastern District. Second, there are stoolies. These are neighborhood busybodies who act as informers in exchange for a bit of coin. They keep an eye on their areas and send runners to the club in case of trouble. Last are the Hellhounds proper. These are the mercenaries that keep Finn’s peace. Unlike the City Guard, they do not have regular patrols. However, at least a dozen of them are always on call at the club in case a runner comes in, and more can be gathered in short order. Dunbar has trained the Hellhounds to a high standard. New recruits are carefully screened, and only the best may join. Life as a Hellhound is good, so open spots are hotly contested. Other Hellhounds are specially trained Halfling assasins.
Description
The Hellhound Social Club is a large building with an enclosed courtyard. Although called a social club, remarkably little of it is designed for comfort. Only the south wing is for entertainment, and it consists mainly of a bar. The rest of the place has more in common with a military barracks, which is no surprise considering Dunbar’s background. The courtyard is used for training, and the sound of clashing blades is heard here every day. The east wing is the armory, the north wing is living quarters, and the west wing is the private domain of Dunbar and his chosen men.
Prominent NPCs
Dunbar: Dunbar is a tough and disciplined ex-mercenary from Eldara. He originally came to Freeport because Finn had enough coin to pay him. Having worked for the Syndicate for over twenty years now, Dunbar has become a loyal soldier to Finn and his the organization. He is continually impressed by Finn’s shrewdness and deviousness, and he decided long ago that it would be suicide to raise a blade against the halfling.
Hassel: (male human) Hassel is the Hellhounds’ commander. He trains the Hellhounds to fight with rapier and dagger in a style perfected by Dunbar. These weapons are far handier in street fighting than cumbersome axes and longswords. The Hellhounds also eschew heavy armor, preferring the mobility of leather. Hassel drills his bravos in tactics and makes a special effort to teach his students every street and back alley in the Eastern District. This gives the Hellhounds another advantage in the street fights that are their trademark. Like Dunbar, Hassel is an ex-mercenary soldier. He fought across the length and breadth of the Continent before coming to Freeport, and he has a cautionary tale for every occasion.
E6. Cafe ilkin (TAVERN) Kafe Ilkin is a hotbed of political radicalism in the heart of the Eastern District. It is a place where foreign exiles meet and make grandiose plans of reform and revolution while sipping endless cups of kahve, an exotic drink from the south.
History
About fifty years ago, a young storyteller named Ilkin arrived in Freeport with a bag of kahve beans and a simple idea. He wanted to open up a kafe in Freeport like those in his homeland. He bought a failing tavern in the Eastern District from its aging owner and christened it Kafe Ilkin. He hoped that middle class locals who’d had enough of drunken brawling would embrace his new venture. Kahve was a rare commodity in Freeport—one he suspected would prove an attractive alternative to beer and ale.
Success did not quickly come his way, and Freeport’s middle class proved elusive customers. But slowly, Ilkin built a clientele. Kafe Ilkin was discovered by a group of exiles from the Mark, who adopted it as their meeting place. Other exiles and immigrants followed, and soon, Kafe Ilkin was thriving. It became a place for heated political debates over steaming hot cups of black kahve. Interestingly enough, the political anger in the kafe was always directed outward towards the various Continental governments. Freeport had provided a safe haven for these revolutionaries and dissidents, and they showed little interest in reforming the city. The few regulars who flirted with Freeport’s politics were looked down upon because the consensus was that the local situation was far too limited in scope to bother with.
Ilkin died eleven years ago, and his daughter Arzu, who had grown up in the place, took over. She pays her protection money to the HBA, keeps the kahve coming from distant ports, and kicks out anyone that gets too rowdy.
Description
Kafe Ilkin is a two-story brick building. The first floor has three rooms: a main room, a hookah room, and a small kitchen. The second, much smaller story is the living quarters for Arzu and her younger sister Dilara. The entire establishment is decorated with brightly colored wall hangings orginally set up by Ilkin to remind him of home.
Prominent NPCs
Arzu: (male human) Arzu is the proprietor of the Kafe Ilkin, which she inherited from her father. She is a vivacious woman in her mid-thirties with dark hair and smoky eyes. While not a radical, she is very protective of her clientele and does what she can to keep them out of trouble. She has a difficult relationship with her younger sister Dilara, who helps run the kafe but takes no joy in it. Arzu knows it’s only a matter of time before her sister strikes off on her own.
Corbus: (Male elf) Corbus is an elf from Highforest. In his younger years, he was a singer and poet amongst the noble houses, specializing in an ancient pastoral form that was out of vogue in high society. Corbus’s work was ridiculed, and he was all but driven from Sanction. He traveled deep into the woods, connecting with his woodland kin and learning their ways. It was there he decided that the very idea of kingship was antithetical to the original ideals of the elven people. Kings, nobles, and urban living had bred a corrupt culture that was no worthy successor to the ways of their ancestors. Since then, Corbus of the Vale has worked to organize like-minded elves and overthrow the king. A small group of these elves meets at the Kafe Ilkin, and Corbus keeps them fired up with a constant stream of fiery songs and poems.
E7. Sterick's Brewery: Strebbeck’s Beer Hall is an Eastern District institution. Hundreds of locals drink and eat there every day, just as they’ve done for the past century. While the place has always been popular, the introduction of a new beer, Battleaxe Brew, fifteen years ago ensured its tables would be crowded every night.
History
Audley Strebbeck, an entrepreneur from Arnonia, founded his beer hall over one hundred years ago. He bought up several buildings near the East Gate of the Old City, demolished them, and then began construction. Local tavern owners predicted Strebbeck would go out of business in less than a year. Audley proved them wrong, and by the time he died, he had a thriving business to pass on to his family.
Two more generations of Strebbecks took their turns running the beer hall. Some forty years ago, Hayley Strebbeck, granddaughter of Audley, had an affair with an elven privateer. The product of this Guild was a half-elf bastard named Nathan. Like his siblings, he was brought up working in the family business. Unlike them, he wanted to see what was beyond Freeport.
When Nathan was twenty, he joined a company of adventurers and traveled to the Continent. He apprenticed with a sorcerer and learned how to harness magic. He spent several years exploring the wilder areas of Emic and Amador, but didn't become as wealthy as the characters in his favorite old stories did. Eventually, he returned home, and launched a new brew based on one he had discovered during his travels. Nathan dubbed it Battleaxe Brew, and it was introduced at Strebbeck’s Beer Hall fifteen years ago. It was an instant hit, and since its debut, the brew and the beer hall have become legendary.
Description
Strebbeck’s Beer Hall is a large, brick building next to the East Gate of the Old City. It has two main sections: a three-story brewery and the beer hall proper. The beer-making process starts on the top floor of the brewery and proceeds in stages down through the building until the finished barrels are deposited in the deep, cool beer cellar. The beer hall is attached to the brewery. It’s two stories tall—though really only one story with a high, vaulted ceiling. The beer hall has three public rooms: a main taproom and two smaller rooms that are sometimes rented for private functions. All of them are crammed with pine tables and chairs; a kitchen and several storerooms are in the back of the building. All told, the beer hall can seat four hundred customers.
Prominent NPCs
Ethlyn Strebbeck: Ethlyn is Nathan’s older sister and the current proprietor of the Strebbeck Beer Hall. Her job keeps her on her feet for twelve hours a day, and this active life has kept her fit despite her age. She jokes that her graying hair gives her an air of authority. In truth, she’s had that air for decades. Ethlyn runs a tight crew that can service hundreds of customers, day in and day out. She pays a fair wage and expects hard work in return. Long-time patrons call her Ethie, her childhood nickname, but others do so at their peril.
Nathan Strebbeck: Nathan (male half-elf master) is Strebbeck’s brew master. He doesn’t practice magic as actively as he used to, but it comes in handy when fights get out of hand. Nathan has never revealed the source of the yeast he brought back from his travels, not even to Ethlyn.
E8. the Steelfist Regiment The Steelfist Regiment is a storied mercenary outfit from Corwyn. Their Freeport outpost serves several important functions for the Regiment, though the presence of an organized military unit in the city makes some uncomfortable. The Steelfist Regiment takes its name from the fact that its members are clad in full plate armor.
History
The Steelfist Regiment owes its success and longevity to the driving ambition of one man: Titus Baldwyn. He founded the Regiment forty years ago and molded it into a fearsome fighting force. Now the Regiment has many detachments fighting in far-flung corners of the world and even owns four warships to facilitate their deployment. Titus and his staff coordinate those efforts from one of several permanent outposts. Although Baldwyn is approaching sixty years of age, he still dons his armor every day and leads mercenary campaigns every summer. The outpost opened for business three years ago and has three main functions. First, it acts as a recruiting and training station for the Regiment. With all the people who pass through Freeport, there is always new blood to be found. Aspiring mercenaries sign on to the company, receive some initial instruction, and then sail to another company outpost elsewhere to complete their training. Second, it is a rest center for the company. Men who’ve been on the front line for too long are periodically rotated to Freeport for relaxation and recuperation. Third, it sells mercenary services to the people of Freeport. Few jobs require more than six men, and they are commonly hired as bodyguards. The Steelfists are not cheap to hire, but they have an excellent reputation. Publicly, Enoch Holliver reacted to the concerns of other councilors by limiting the number of Steelfist Regiment men in Freeport at any one time to fifty. The watchmen on the street, however, have been told not to worry about the Regiment. Since mercenaries are constantly coming and going, and some of the men on leave stay in inns anonymously, the true number of Steelfists in the city on any given day would be difficult to judge in the best of circumstances. Typically, there are twenty men stationed at the outpost, another thirty to fifty recruits undergoing training, and a similar number on leave.
Description
The Steelfist Regiment, located southwest of the Pavilion on the fringe of the Eastern District, looks like a warehouse from the outside. Outside flies the regimental banner; a grey mailed fist on a red field. The interior, however, has been transformed over the last three years into a small fortress. The doors are thick oak reinforced with iron, and interior stone walls were built behind the original wooden ones. Those wishing to hire the Steelfists are welcome in the front office. The rest of the outpost is off limits to anyone outside the company. Most of the original building consists of a training area for the new recruits.
Prominent NPCs
Grimgor: (male dwarf) The commander of the Freeport detachmenrt. He is one of a handful of survivors of the original company— most died or retired years ago. His dwarven longevity and incredible toughness have made Grimgor a mainstay of the Steelfist Regiment. With a big nose that’s been broken one too many times and more scars than a pit fighter, Grimgor is no one’s fool. He is, however, a skilled captain whose command presence keeps his troops in line. In mere moments, he can reduce new recruits to quivering piles of jelly. he does not like Freeport and would rather be leading troops in the field, but he’s extremely loyal to Titus Baldwyn and accepted the assignment without complaint.
Driskoll: (male human) Driskoll leads the Steelfist Regimen ’s recruiters in Freeport. Every day he heads out to the the Harbor District to extol the virtues of the mercenary life. He frequents taverns to sing martial songs and tell exaggerated tales of the company’s exploits. Though he was once a campaigner, years of eating and drinking to excess have made him portly. Nonetheless, his voice is strong and clear, and his songs and stories are suitably rousing. Many Steelfist Regiment mercenaries have joined up after a chance encounter with Driskoll Layton.
E9. Pete's (TAVERN) Pete's is a small tavern located just outside the gates to the Old City. It is one of the more expensive establishments in the Eastern District, and therefore many of its customers come from the various offices inside the walls. Unlike most Eastern District businesses, it does not associate with the HBA.
History
Pete's has been around, in its present location, since shortly after the founding of the city. Local legend claims that it was one of the first building to be built outside the Old City walls, and that it is the oldest surviving building in the Eastern District. Inevitably for such an old structure, there are several ghost stories associated with it. The most prominent of these claims that it is still haunted by the spirit of its founder, who roams the upper floor still looking for his lost love (though the identity of the woman in question depends on who is telling the story).
Kamangar, its current owner, inherited the store from his father about fifteen years ago. He claims to be a descendant of the original Pete, but nobody really believes him. Still, he is a competent and trustworthy man, and he tries as well as he can to keep the inn's reputation for quality food and drink.
Description
Pete's sits in a building that definitely looks as though it has been around since the District was first built. However, as it has always been occupied by a reasonably productive and peaceable tavern, it has been well looked after during that time. Consequently, it is in generally good condition. The building has stone walls around the first floor, with two floors built of wood above them. The walls have been painted several different colors over the years, and there are places where these older layers show through. This gives the building much of its character, although it is a source of some embarrassment to Kamangar.
Prominent NPCs
Salar Kamangar: A swarthy, stoutly built man who looks like the stereotype of an innkeeper, Kamangar has run Pete's since inheriting it from his father some fifteen years ago. He is proud of its reputation as perhaps the classiest dining location in the District, and also of the number of Old City workers and residents who travel the short distance outside the walls to dine there. He does everything in his power to defend the quality and reputation of his inn, and is noted for having higher standards for his staff than most of the city's tavern keepers.
E10. Seacat's folly (INN) The Seacat's Folly takes its name from the giant stuffed seacat mounted over the bar. This creature has the body of a tiger and the tail of a seal, and has been the centerpiece of the barroom ever since it was brought back by an expedition to the jungles south of Arnonia. Current customers and staff of the inn are happy to expound at length about the great submarine civilization of such creatures that can be found there, explaining how the great seacat empire plots to invade and enslave the coastal communities there. Only the occasional spoilsport asks if any of the storytellers have ever actually been anywhere near the jungles….
History
The Seacat's Folly was set up by a retired pirate and maritime adventurer named Deacon Aelian, who finally decided he'd had enough of the sea life and wanted to settle down. He set up the seacat as an emblem of his travels, and because he figured (correctly) that such an emblem would help his bar develop a reputation. After just a year of innkeeping, however, the Deacon decided he preferred life afloat after all and went back to his ship. He left the inn in the care of his girlfriend at the time, and she still runs it.
The inn is located immediately adjacent to Chambers' Asylum, a fact that its patrons generally try to ignore. They, along with Silion and her staff, decline to talk about the local rumors that ghosts of some of the Asylum's more notorious inmates stalk the darker corners of the Seacat'a Folly. However, these rumors are very persistent.
Description
The Folly sits in a solidly built wooden house, originally constructed to serve as the home of a well-regarded local lawyer. Deacon tore out most of the dividing walls on the ground floor to provide space for his bar, and Silion has largely completed the job of creating sufficient kitchen and storage space. She has paid to build an extension to fit all the necessary storage room, which prompted further rumors about why she wouldn't use the basement.
Prominent NPCs
Silion Ankismar: An attractive young woman with longish red hair, Silion runs the inn. She does not officially own it, but she is universally regarded as the real owner. Deacon has not been seen in the city since he left nearly three years ago, and locals increasingly do not expect him to return at all.
Silion has done a good job of getting the inn going. She is careful to pay her dues to the HBA, as her inn sits right on the border of Slums District and she is aware of the dangers the gangs from there can pose to the successful operation of a tavern. Indeed, she does her best to encourage Finn's staff to use her inn as a meeting place, and they have begun to take advantage of her offers of discounted food and beverages.
E11. the Purple Dragon (TAVERN/INN) The Purple Dragon is an old tavern and Inn, located right next to the Pavilion. On warm days, patrons often sit outside, on benches positioned by the staff, and watch the activities in the square in front of them. Bets are frequently exchanged, and the Dragon has developed something of a reputation as a center of gambling. However, its greater claim to fame is the story that, in the early days of the city of Valossa, it was the residence of the rebel leader Arthos Drac himself. In those days, Freeport did not have the collection of large and luxurious houses it does now, and so Drac found himself needing somewhere to live. He did not stay with any of the city's wealthier merchants or adventurers, as he did not wish to seem allied with any of them. Then, a local innkeeper offered to let Drac use the top floor of his establishment as his home and office when he was in the city. Drac accepted the offer, and the tow became such good friends, the innkeep named the place after the Purple Dragon; Drac's personal vessel.
History
As the rumors about it suggest, the Dragon has been around a long time. It was founded by a man who had saved up money earned working in other inns in the young city, and who was finally ready to start out on his own. Shortly thereafter, he gave the Sea Lord a home, and the rest is history. Margery bought the inn a few years ago, after immigrating from Kendar. She has made few changes, except to quietly encourage the gambling activities on the inn's porch. She feels that this both attracts business and gives the place a new, more daring reputation than its stories of the Sea Lord in decades past.
Description
The Dragon is a well-kept, relatively large tavern, with rooms above for rent. It has a prominent front porch, with a collection of benches and seats placed on both the porch and the road in front of it. These benches are usually filled with a lively crowd, especially when duels are taking place in the Pavillion. Margery has added a prominent wooden statue on one side of the porch, showing a regal-looking woman with a shield decorated with Freeport's colors. She says this statue represents the wife of Arthos Drac, as she was reputedly the reason he settled on this city as his place of residence. Other people, however, point out that it looks a lot like the statues often found in several other cities.
Prominent NPCs
Margery Von Rustal: A weather-worn yet still lively middle-aged woman, Margery came to Freeport from Kendar some years ago. She brought a fair amount of money with her, and used it to buy the Lady from its former proprietor, who was looking to retire. She has made herself into a prominent member of the Eastern District community, using her ready smile and always-friendly personality to cultivate a broad web of friends and acquaintances across the District.
E12. Gentleman John's (TAVERN) Gentleman John's sits right on the border with Bloodsalt, and only a block or so from the border with Slums District. Appropriately, it is the dirtiest and rowdiest bar in the Eastern District, a place viewed as something of an embarrassment by most other inhabitants of the area. The local Watch are well aware that this tavern is often the busiest and most dangerous part of their patrols, and so they seldom come in groups of less than three.
History
Gentleman John's has only been around for a year or so. John set it up in an abandoned storefront, taking advantage of the fact that proximity to Bloodsalt had lowered local prices to the point he could actually afford to buy it. He planned the inn to be similar to those found in the small towns of the interior of the island, and so spent little on decorations, furniture or fancier types of food and drink. This meant that most Easterners continued to go to other establishments, but it did allow him to attract a steady supply of patrons from Slums District, Bloodsalt and Drac's End, as well as poorer parts of the Eastern District.
Description
This building was once a general store. It was abandoned shortly after the establishment of Bloodsalt, as its owner and his family did not want to live near the violent greenskin area. The old store is not in the best of shape, and the regular fights in the tavern have not helped. John tries his best to keep it up, but the rate of damage has so far exceeded his abilities at restoration.
Prominent NPCs
John Lawley: A weather-worn old man with a flinty manner and a short temper, John came to Freeport from a small town in the interior of the island. He had been a tavern-keeper there, and he planned to use the money he had saved to become one in the big city. He found a perfect place in the old abandoned store, and figured the locals couldn't be much worse than the drunken farmworkers he was used to. So far, he has managed to keep things under control, although he deeply resents paying Finn and the HBA for security.
Moradon of Far Amrii: A tall, handsome and imposing man, Moradon is a paladin of Sul who is devoted to spreading the word of his goddess into the darkest corners of the city. He wears his armor just about everywhere, and always carries a large crowbar he refers to as Sul's Lockpick. He spends most of his time in dives like this one, trying to convert the wayward.
Unfortunately, he doesn't usually get very far. He is neither humble nor abstinent, and never passes up on opportunities to introduce himself (especially to younger women). As a result, men tend to detest him on sight, and he winds up in plenty of brawls. His habit of smiling broadly and healing his foes after the fights does not help, and neither does his cheerful proclamations about how Sul's gifts allow him the opportunity to make the acquaintance of even the least salubrious women.
E13. Assad's Smoke Shop Originally a simple tavern, Assad's has come to be better known for its range of tobacco and related substances. It sits on the Pavilion, and has become a popular place for people exploring the events and attractions of the Field, or simply shopping, to rest and enjoy a quiet smoke. In the evenings, the Smoke Shop attracts people looking for a slightly classier evening than the drunkards in the various local taverns.
History
The Smoke Shop was started up relatively recently by Assad, an immigrant from the Free Cities. He saw that the city had plenty of places to drink and fight, but no vendors of quality tobacco products. He had some contacts through his family business, and so set up a store to sell tobacco and smoking paraphernalia. The Shop has steadily gained in popularity, and has become a popular place for Easterners to meet and discuss the affairs of the city.
Description
The Shop was originally a clothing store, but Assad has spent quite a bit of money on upgrading it over the years. The front of the tavern has a large sign displaying a pipe with smoke curling up from it, and a series of benches placed outside. Inside, the building has no cloth wall-hangings or curtains, as these trap the various smells that fill the emporium. Instead, it has a series of brightly painted murals across all its interior walls, each showing a different smoking-related scene.
Prominent NPCs
Assad: A charming, well-built man getting on in years, Assad prides himself on dressing well. He has a large collection of expensive and well-tailored outfits, and takes care never to wear the same one on consecutive days. His family has a long history of trading tobacco across the seas, and he knows where to order high-quality products from. He is often seen in the the Harbor District, haggling with one of his suppliers over the price of a new shipment.
E14. Alchemist oddities This store sits amid the quieter part of the Eastern District, near Drac's End. It is known as perhaps the best place in the city to buy alchemical supplies and potions, as well as healing poultices and similar products. It has a somewhat sinister reputation, and those who live near it take care not to offend Havan.
History
Havan set up his own store immediately after he arrived in the city. He chose the Eastern District because it was obviously more secure than the the Harbor District or Slums District, while still being more affordable than the Merchants District or the parts of Drac's End near the Freeport Academy.
In the years the store has been running, it has never caused any serious trouble. Despite that, its proprietor's secretive manner has led to the development of all manner of rumors, and caused its neighbors to become progressively more afraid of him. Some have begun to wonder why Finn won't remove the problem for them.
Description
Havan tore down a dilapidated old house and had a new building constructed on the site. The structure features several unnecessary towers, and looks rather more fortified than it actually is. Havan says this is in honor of his original hometown in Eroth, but other travelers don't recognize the style.
Prominent NPCs
Yul Havan: A slightly-built, swarthy man of indeterminate age, Havan runs the store without any visible help from anyone. He buys alchemical supplies from various importers, and sells both them and potions made from them. He charges fairly high prices, but he offers consistent quality, and so does a steady trade.
Dorendun: A typical middle-aged dwarf, Dorendun is a major supplier of herbal ingredients to the store. While he is as fond of gems as the next dwarf, his real passion is growing plants. This passion led him to depart his ancestral underground home and apprentice himself to a Freeport herbalist, whose store he eventually inherited. He applied the normal dwarven dedication, and has become known has the best source of herbs to be found in the city.
Dorendun is a quiet loner, often seen talking to his plants as if they were family. Despite that, he is invariably pleasant to all those he meets, and delights in the sounds of the neighborhood children at play. As with all dwarves, his beard is a major source of personal pride; however, he is probably the only dwarf to weave peppermint and other aromatic herbs into it to compensate for his lack of bathing.
E15. Edgar's apparel Edgar's Apparel is the most prominent clothing store in the Eastern District. It has developed a reputation for providing reasonable quality and fair prices, and also for employing several different tailors able to make clothes in a variety of different styles. Their use of tailors from outside the city means that they are one of the few places in Freeport to buy clothes that do not look like poorly-repurposed sailor's outfits.
History
Edgar's has stood on its current spot for three generations. It was founded by an immigrant from Kendar, who saw an opportunity to make some money by providing classier clothes than those available in the dockside naval clothiers that were then the only viable source of apparel in Freeport. Since then, it has generally kept to its original mission, and has become something of an institution in the District.
Description
The store has been in operation for a very long time, and successive generations of owners have spent some money to keep it up. The building is well looked after, but nonetheless has never looked very good. It was built by combining a pair of older stores and adding rooms on top or behind as extra space was needed. This unplanned method has led to a distinctly unusual-looking structure, and Watt periodically declares her intention to rebuild in a more coherent manner.
Prominent NPCs
Salicha Watt: A gruff, businesslike middle-aged woman, Salicha is the granddaughter of the store's founder. She inherited it some years ago, and is focused on training one of her children to take her role at some point in the near future. She is not much of a tailor herself, but she has an eye for talent that has allowed her to build up a talented staff. Despite this, she never seems happy with her role, and sometimes talks half-seriously about running off to sea.
E16. the Store The Store is the largest single business in the Eastern District. It sells a dizzying assortment of goods ranging from foodstuffs and household accoutrements to traveling gear, and is always looking for new products to sell. Merchants who find themselves with goods they cannot sell anywhere else often take them to the Store, as they figure they should be able to offload them there. This approach makes the Store an excellent place to go to find pretty much anything, though it does mean that quality and price can be very different from day to day.
History
The Store started out as a simple general store, selling a standard assortment of household products made mostly by Freeport craftsmen. After Nox figured out that he could make money by selling the relatively wealthy inhabitants of the Eastern District a wider range of products, he bought his current building from the church of Tempest and began buying leftover luxury items from sellers in the Old City and the Merchant District. This approach has made his store a hit, and he has even begun to attract customers from the richer parts of town quietly looking to save a few silvers.
Description
The Store's current building used to be a temple to Tempest some years ago. After the clerics moved to their current, much grander, home in the Temple District, they used the building as a storehouse and training center. Eventually, they sold it to Nox when they decided they didn't need it any more. As befits a temple to Freeport's patron deity, the building is an imposing stone structure, with a variety of nautical motifs carved and painted on it. A large statue of a mermaid sits over the front door, brandishing Tempest's sacred trident. Nox has not dared to touch any of these symbols, and so his store is still occasionally mistaken for a temple.
Prominent NPCs
Buele Nox: A cheerful, ever-sunny half-elf, Nox owns and runs the Store. Invariably dressed in colorful clothes from his native Arnonia, he spends much of his time talking to emissaries from various merchants and other businessmen trying to offload inventory onto him. He tries to get away from his backroom obligations to meet and greet his customers whenever he can, with a special focus on the newer ones from the Merchant District and the Old City.
E17. Corben's Swords Corben's Swords sells weaponry. Most of its business is in swords and daggers, but the store also sells maces, morningstars and other hand held weapons, as well as tools. Since most of its inventory is imported, prices are higher than they are elsewhere in the city. Despite that, the quality of the metalwork and the opportunity to own weapons made in the most famous smithies in Rennsfar, Serathyr, and Kendar ensure that the store does not lack for customers.
History
Corben began his career as a sailor on one of Freeport's famous privateers. He sailed all over the oceans between the continents of Corwyn and Azoria, and fought in many skirmishes. He earned a fair amount of gold from this, but spent it all as fast as he acquired it. Then, in one battle against another pirate crew, his sword snapped and he suffered wounds that nearly killed him. This left him with a lasting belief in the importance of reliable weaponry, but he still had no blacksmithing skills. During his voyage home, he used his share of the proceeds from the trip to buy swords in Kendar. He then sold them in Freeport for enough of a markup to allow him to set up his own store.
Description
Corben has no interest in architecture or interior decorating. His store is a simple, solid wooden building notable mostly for the thick walls that he feels give him security for his expensive collection of imported weapons. The building has no evident paint scheme, and a plain, flat roof.
Prominent NPCs
Corben Dremain: Corben still has some of the wild, flashy personality of his younger years left, but has become steadily more responsible as he has aged. He has a family now, living in the space above the store, and feels a normal measure of obligation to provide for them. Still, he has a notable soft spot for those living the freebooter's life he used to love so much, and has been known to cut his prices somewhat for sailors who strike him as particularly bold and fearless.
E18. the Turtle's Shell One of the Eastern District's most well-regarded armories, the Turtle's Shell custom crafts every suit of armor they sell. They work in both metal and leather, and so have a wide variety for customers to choose from. As befits a nautical city, they specialize in lighter armors, especially studded leather and chain shirts. Many of Freeport's better-known privateers and adventurers wear armor with a turtle shell carved somewhere.
History
Despite its impressive reputation, the Turtle's Shell has been around for only a few years. Tanner is an experienced dwarven craftsma, and his work did not need extended exposure to be noticed. In its earlier years, the store tended to focus on the heavier armors typically preferred by dwarves, which limited its market considerably. However, Tanner is more than smart enough to understand his situation, and he quickly learned to make the lighter gear his customers demanded.
Description
The Shell sits in what used to be a city-administration office building. Tanner has steadily reworked the structure to better fit his needs, with space for the firepits needed to support his work as well as room for the leatherworkers he has learned to incorporate. The building was once somewhat grand, with maritime symbols carved and painted in several different places. Tanner's dwarven pride ensures that it stays well-maintained, but he has committed himself to repainting it in a style more appropriate to his background.
Prominent NPCs
Kerrik Tanner: Tanner is a dour, bitter dwarf, renowned for his surly manner and sometimes erratic temper. He came to Freeport from Verdentor after his home city surrendered to the Verdish military after a long, stubborn resistance, and he has a typically dwarven unwillingness to forget the humiliation. He works at his traditional craft, as he needs to support himself, but he makes it very plain he would rather be somewhere else.
E19. Herberts demon While officially noted as a pawnshop, Herbert's deals mostly in gems, jewelry and art objects. It is also a moneylender, and the best place in town to change foreign coins for local ones. People from all walks of life come to Herbert's store to buy valuables, as he has acquired an impressive reputation for knowing anyone and everyone who has something of value to offload.
History
Herbert started his store after arriving in the city. He had always been a storekeeper, and a pawn shop had the major attraction of not requiring him to spend money he didn't have on buying inventory. He started out in Drac's End as a humble pawnbroker, but soon made enough money to move to richer quarters in the Eastern District. His personality quickly made him a hit, and his store soon grew. He was able to follow his heart, and started to deal more of the jewelry and art that reflected his passions for beautiful things.
Description
The store sits in a building that has been used by merchants and storekeepers for as long as anyone can remember. Herbert has decorated it with bright, welcoming colors, and the main room is full of artworks of all kinds distributed around the normal collections of tools and household goods. The really valuable items are kept in a guarded backroom that has so far eluded all attempts at forced entry.
Prominent NPCs
Dionys Herbert: A famously warm and friendly man, Herbert spends all day in his store. If there are no customers in it at any given time, he will stand in the doorway and call out to passersby, proudly describing the variety of quality goods on offer inside. He was born in a small town on the coast of Eroth, and dreamed of running away to sea. Eventually, he did so, but soon discovered that he was not cut out for the sailor's life. He jumped ship in Freeport, and went back to his family's traditional vocation. He has devoted considerable time to learning more about art, as he wants to become better at setting prices for the artworks that pass through his store.
Irene Lukas: A young woman with pale skin, dark brown eyes and short reddish hair, Lukas is a locksmith. She currently rents space from Herbert, but aspires to buy a place of her own. She suffers from the belief that dwarves make better mechanics, but has begun to make a name for herself. That is important to her, as she is the first member of her family to escape from Drac's End. He elderly parents depend her her income for support, and she is determined to make enough to support them.
E20. the Devil's luck. (BROTHEL) A large gaming house and brothel, the Devil's Luck is perhaps the most famous of Finn's properties. It offers a full range of gambling games, as well as a similar breadth of selections for those searching for a little extra companionship. Unlike most gambling dens in the city, its patrons generally believe the games offered to be honest. This fact explains much of the house's popularity….
History
The Devil's Luck started out as one of the plentiful backroom gambling dens found throughout the city. When Finn returned to the Eastern District, he took it over after its previous owner fled town with the gangs he defeated He realized that it had considerable potential, as there was no well-regarded casino anywhere in Freeport. He proceeded to devote a significant effort to building it up, and placed one of his more able lieutenants in charge. Since then, Vestman has kept a sure hand on the house, and he has made himself and his boss a great deal of money.
Description
The Devil's Luck sits in one of the larger buildings in the Eastern District. The structure is decorated with images of smiling, cheerful devils, mixed in with luxurious wallhangings and liberal use of marble and gold paint. All in all, it is one of the classier establishments in the District, despite sitting close to the border with Bloodsalt.
Prominent
NPCs Lancil Vestman: A smoothly professional operator, Vestman has run the Devil's Luck since Finn took it over. He prides himself on his knowledge of everything that goes on within his establishment, and ensures that everything is run fairly enough to keep the customers coming back. He also makes a point of running a similarly efficient security operation, which also contributes to the popularity of his operation.
Terreth Inchin: A slender man of average height, Inchin is a regular gambler in the Devil's Luck. He is a determined, perpetually grim-eyed player, but fun and amiable to be around when not actually playing. He has earned a reputation for intelligence and discretion, and is sometimes reputed to be involved in one of the smaller gangs attempting to infiltrate the property.
E21. Alice’s house. (BROTHEL) For discreet encounters, there's no better place than Alice's House. Set well away from the Pavilion and its related commercial centers, the House is a luxuriously appointed residence that serves to provide privacy for those looking to conduct extraneous relationships away from the prying eyes found in the rest of the city.
History
The House has been around for years, and has developed a notorious reputation in many of the wealthier portions of the city. It was founded by a former Slums District madam, who had carefully saved up enough money to move to the Eastern District into a somewhat run-down old mansion. She steadily improved the building, while carefully maintaining an iron reputation for discretion. This eventually made it a common destination for younger couples from the Merchant District looking for some privacy away from the constant surveillance of their parents.
Description
The building was once a mansion, built in the marble-heavy style often found in Verdantor. It had been allowed to decay for a while, but was still more or less intact when Alice took it over. She rebuilt it, steadily reinvesting in improving the decoration with an assortment of imported art and fabrics. It is now perhaps the best furnished building in the Eastern District.
Prominent NPCs
Rondella Loyath: A short, slender woman of uncertain heritage, Loyath runs the House. She inherited it after its founder retired to Seaport some years ago, and has continued to run it carefully and discreetly. She is known for her willingness to make arrangements for her clients, especially those who she considers her favorites, and has managed to extricate more than one from potentially difficult situations.
She dreams of turning this into a real social role in the Merchant District, but has not yet figured out how to do this. She has money, but realizes she needs to find a more socially acceptable occupation.
E22. The old stage While it may not be able to compete with the Freeport Opera House in the Merchant District, the Old Stage does have some generous patrons and manages to put on some excellent performances. It has a small resident company of actors who run a selection of common plays, and occasionally attempt more adventurous efforts from more difficult playwrights. Despite that, however, performances are periodically disrupted by audiences jeering actors they dislike - or even throwing assorted missiles at them.
History
There has been a theater in the Eastern District more or less since the city first spilled out of its walls. Originally, it was little more than an open field hosting performances that were little more than strip shows for pirate-heavy crowds. As the city grew, the theater grew with it, and eventually acquired a purpose-built home in the Eastern District, almost exactly on the site of the fields where its initial performances were held. The theater is now owned by the Roberts family, who recently hired Eddarth to serve as a full-time artistic director.
Description
The Old Stage is actually the name of the building the theater occupies. It was built only recently, largely using money donated by Captain Roberts. He built it in emulation of the famed theater in Sanction, albeit on a smaller scale. The building is an attractive structure, with a facade built largely of imported Erothian stone for greater authenticity. Inside, the stage is allegedly made from planks used in the flooring of the first permanent theater built on the site, a claim that gives the building its name.
Prominent NPCs Barad Eddarth: The artistic director of the Old Stage. A flighty, verbose man, he seems almost a stereotype of the artistic temperament. He took the job after leaving his previous employment in Seaport in an angry dispute over money, and he has already been embroiled in several of those since taking his current position. He loves organizing and hosting plays, but struggles with budgets and managing his various staff. He is trying to import some better actors from other cities, but has not yet been successful.
Prominent NPCs
Rikard Burbage: A well-built and handsome half-elf, Burbage has become a regular subject of the Freeport News. His steady supply of bar brawls and torrid love affairs have become better known than his achievements on stage, but he shows no sign of caring. He wears his hair long and wavy, with a pencil-thin mustache. He conducts himself like one of his swashbuckling characters, and takes every chance to find and seduce a new female target. Young or old, single or married.
