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====== Rilan, Rakore ======


The city itself was designed to support the Baron-and-the-Bishop [[gaeleth:people:Dwarfendale]]'s fortress of Lok Giran, but it also generates considerable revenues because of its location on the Galanus River. The riverside docks are extensive, and provide an excellent way-station for travelers from all over the kingdom. Because of its prominence in supplying both Lok Giran, and  [[gaeleth:places:Lok Magius]], a wide variety of peoples can be found in Rilan for a wide variety of purposes. Mages, priests, pilgrims, protesters, merchants, farmers, ranchers, sailors, foresters, soldiers, and rangers all use the centrally located, ideally set mountain as a stop-over, and a meeting place. Though the local population is rather moderate, the fluctuating population is considerable.

Rilan is ruled from the Vedis -- which serves as the Baron Complan's court building, the barracks for the soldiers, and the stockades.  The Vedis has its own stables, smithy, and support staff to run the low-slung, heavy stone building.  All of Rilan is built to withstand a siege.  Some of the streets have hollow clay vessels built under them, to prevent too much weight -- like siege engines -- from being used upon them.  Hundreds of suits of chain mail and breast plate armor are stored away in the Vedis.  Prayer-based wards against evil lie in wait for evil-doers, both within the Vedis, and along many of the streets leading up to Mount Rilan -- ready to blast anyone with evil intent.

Overall, the population of Rilan is among the most competent, happiest, and also the most disciplined of all the cities in Rakore.  It is protected by the clerics of Lok Giran and the mages of Lok Magius -- plus the strange creatures and creations that come from both.

The city and its design concepts were tested during the War of the Four Winds -- and though the city fell and was razed down to its foundations, it did what it was designed to do:  it delayed the ogran armies long enough to evacuate the people of Rilan to Lok Giran and Lok Magius.  Rebuilding after the war continues, as most of the populace survived.

====== General Characteristics ======

**Classification:** Large Town

**Population:** 4,500 (67% Slate, 9% Amarans, 4% Toomarans, 7% Sylvan elves, 4% desert elves, 2% mountain dwarves, 7% hill dwarves)

**Spending Limitations:** 275,000 silver maximum

**Economy:**  Rilan was established primarily to support Lok Giran and Lok Magius, and thus it has a lot of agricultural  and servicing clout.  Wheat and seasonal vegetables make up the bulk of the outgoing food supply, and excess is shipped downriver to [[gaeleth:places:Teras]].  Its location half-way between most locations in Rakore means that Rilan is a stopping point for all trade going both up- and down-river.  The inns and warehouses of Rilan generate considerable monies in and of themselves.  The only Mage Academy in the free world requires access through Rilan, and many hopeful peoples (as well as Inquisitors) stay in Rilan until they are admitted or turned away.  The Baron-and-the-Bishop Dwarfendale manages the Church of Galgiran's 1/3 share of [[gaeleth:mercantile:Gideon Enterprises]].  As such, GE has a strong presence in Rilan, with the economic clout to match it.

**Rulership:** The city of Rilan is ruled over by Baron Tadeus Complan, who has sworn fealty to the local Church of Galgiran -- and it's bishop, the Baron-and-the-Bishop Dwarfendale.  Tadeus meets with Dwarfendale irregularly, and must often head out for a week at a time to find the Baron-and-the-Bishop in order to discuss details or hand over greater issues.  Baron Tadeus' personal priest is also the Baron-and-the-Bishop.

**Baron Tadeus Complan:**  He tends to wear a rust-red tabard of a gauntlet with golden rings over his chain mail, decking him out at 5'10" and 160lbs.  He is a master linguist and architect, and actually spends a great deal of his time designing Rilan as a work of art.  Tadeus was a Toomaran clan chief before leaving for Rakore, and is deeply sympathetic to mages.  He speaks the Common tongue, as well as Elven, Amaran, Vridaran, Dwarven, Sholin, Ogran, Toomaran, and Nabrolian.  His architectural renderings are considered works of art, and his skill with the shortbow are equally legendary.  In many respects, Baron Tadeus is a rare man of many, many talents.  He even plays the flute quite well, is a master of cards, and has an insatiable mind.

**Alignment:** Rilan has taken on the attitude of both the Baron Tadeus, and the Baron-and-the-Bishop Dwarfendale -- Chaotic Good.  It's rulers have allowed for a great deal of freedom among both the peoples of Rilan, and its enforcers.  The proximity of Lok Giran, as well as Lok Magius, means that a great deal of manpower, arcane spells, and divine prayers are available to maintain order if things get out of control in Rilan.

**Defense:** Rilan has over 50 full-time guards in rust-red tabards, headed by the [[gaeleth:races:Desolate]] known as Sir Bridar.

**Reeve-Thane Bridaraarayus:** He is a heavily tattooed desert elf that wears dark charcoal leathers -- and carries an ash bow as thick as his forearm.  Sir Bridar lost his family to the ograns long before the War of the Unead, and has since taken a liking to humans.  He has spent many years with the people of Rakore, and took to the position of reeve quite willingly.  Sir Bridar makes his own bows, arrows, and leather armor, and is an expert rider, marksman, and detective.  During the War of the Four Winds, Sir Bridar was never caught by the ograns, harassing them and leading a local group of rangers on continuous raids and strikes, living off of the land and remaining nearly invisible.  On his left breast, he wears his badge of office -- a depiction in steel and gold of the gauntlet of the Fistforger.

Also at the city's disposal are the mounted dwarven cavalry of Lok Giran, the mages of Lok Magius, and an odd assortment of creatures and creations from both.

====== Worship ======
The local farmers and herders tend to worship [[gaeleth:divinities:Barith]] and [[gaeleth:divinities:Elinthar]], but have little need for churches or temples.  The other temples in the region tend to send their acolytes to Rilan for brief stints, staying with one farmer or another, until their missions are complete.  The head of the local druids is Rya Cantherone, who also heads the militia, and keeps track of what mercenaries are available in Rilan.

==== The Soul Smithy (Galgiran) ====
The town's primary smithy, and it's temple to [[gaeleth:divinities:Galgiran]] -- are one and the same.  The Soul Smithy is dedicated to facilitating the faithful of Galgiran on their way up to Lok Giran, or on their way back down the mountain.  The church has a grounds house, in addition to the smithy, a fair-sized temple and hall, several inn-like buildings with cells for visitors, and all the attendant facilities, such as stables, kitchens, gardens, and more.  The buildings are all of stone, with stone roofs, and house a small convent of Mikindim's nuns; these nuns help maintain the buildings, as well as work on Rilan itself.  The structures are all quite new and newly rebuilt, since the War of the Four Winds.

**Prior Telvik Korin:**  The Soul Smithy is watched over by a middle-aged slate human, about 5'5" with the build of a smith and the soul of a priest.  Father Telvik wielded a fiercesome warhammer during the War of the Four Winds, and his personally-made armor shielded him from many attacks.  Father Telvik is a master smith in his own right, but also a devout priest of Galgiran.  He tends to wear a shirt of mithril chain for day-to-day work, but set on a stand in his office is one of the finest pieces of mithril plate ever made -- complete with the dents put in it by the ograns.

==== The Mountain's Bass (Habrem) ====
Despite it's name, the local temple of [[gaeleth:divinities:Habrem]] has more contralto than bass power.  Mother Elishira's temple focuses on the sheer power of music, and some of its performances have been considered otherworldly.  Outside of music, the temple also ensures the local populace is spiritually and socially healthy, by arranging fairs with the Baron Tadeus, bringing in special bards and performers, and care-taking for the local children.

**Vicar Elishira:**  She is an older sylvan elf whose hair has gone to white.  A tiny thing at 4'9" and 70lbs, she never-the-less wears elven chain under her robes, and walks everywhere with a quarterstaff carved and covered in leaves.  Elishira is a professional singer, as well as priestess, and has walked the world for many centuries in service to Habrem.  During the War of the Four Winds, Mother Elishira helped keep calm among the evacuees, and ensured a safe withdrawal from Rilan.

==== The Hidden Vow Monastery (Lul and Curiss) ====
When the Church of [[gaeleth:divinities:Lul]] found out that the fabled book of the dead had been kept within the granite walls of Mount Rilan for nearly five centuries, the Chosen of the Church of Lul nearly had an apoplectic fit -- especially because Rakore was a mage-friendly nation.  The Chosen sent two of his best Inquisitors to ascertain the abilities of the local priests -- and returned chagrined, their own holiness turned against them.  The two dozen desert elves that run the monastery are devoted solely to studying the mountain, the book of the dead, and the events of the War of the Undead.  They hunger for all knowledge regarding their god's former status as the God of the Dead.  The monastery also has a dozen monks of [[gaeleth:divinities:Curiss]] that stay there to study alongside their brethren, and learn of the new tenants of their own God of the Dead.  The monastery grudgingly fulfills other mundane tasks of the Church of Lul, such as checking currencies and taking in diaries of the fallen.

**Bishop Kai Vinaalaalus:**  Brother Kai is a short desert elf at only 6'0", but he more than makes up for his stature in religious fervor and physical prowess.    Brother Kai and his fellow monks helped Mother Elishira maintain order as the people of Rilan evacuated, and it was then that the monks demonstrated incredible physical prowess, using only their bodies to deflect ogran arrows, destroy ogran bodies, and intimidate ogran spirits.  Brother Kai's fists and feet and forehead glowed with the teal-purple light of Lul, and it is said that he plucked the balance of ogran souls from their very hearts that day.

====== Taverns and Inns ======
The taverns of Rilan tend to cater to either business types or travelers, as well as the locals.  The taverns of Rilan are famous throughout Rakore because of this.

==== The Blue Tyven (tavern and inn) ====
Named for the fallen drow city of Tyven, the Blue Tyven is run almost exclusively by drow elves.  The facility has four barmaids, four cooks, and nearly a dozen maids to maintain the nearly five-dozen well-kept rooms, varying in size from singles to suites.  The stables have their own farrier, and four stable-hands.  The Blue Tyven reeks of money, and yet offers fair rates.  The inn is owned by the Duchess Genea as a profitable side business, and helps in the smuggling of information about the drow.  The inn's main room serves as a meeting place for most businessmen in and traveling through Rilan.  A bard by the name of Tramin McNeilson can often be found performing in the Blue Tyven -- he is the Firestorm operative for the region.

**Levantith T'serusk:**  A slight drow elf of 5'0" and 90lbs, Levantith dresses in pastel colors, and speaks with what can only be considered a 'flaming gay' voice.  He flirts indiscriminately with men and women alike, declaring, "Darling!" at inopportune times.  Despite his questionable sexual orientation, Levantith runs a first-rate inn -- and a first-rate intelligence network.  His eyes miss little, and he fluently speaks the Common tongue, elven, Nabrolian, and Ogran.  His dark, pointed ears have been known to listen in on a conversation half-way across the inn in the middle of a very loud minstrels' performance.

==== The Broken Bow (tavern and stage) ====
The Broken Bow is a large tavern near the docks, with three dozen tables and a fair-sized stage for performances.  The fireplaces on either end of the stage are large enough for two men to lie next to one another, inside of them.  A small bevy of attractive barmaids ply the ale, and the member of the guard drink at half price to help keep the sailors off the barmaids.  Gyven occasionally hires acolytes from the Mountain's Bass to perform, especially each Prayer's Eve night (the night of the sixth day of the week).  The Broken Bow has 8 barmaids, and 5 cooks, to keep up with the high demand.

**Gyven Furlong:**  He's a medium-height, older man who saw considerable battle during the War of the Undead and the War of the Four Winds.  Gyven is a no-nonsense, retired mercenary that's 'seen it all', and has a thousand stories to swap.  He also has the occasional round on the house, is free with drinks in exchange for good stories or information, and makes enough profit off of the tavern to keep a ready supply of ale and wine casks in the basement.  But just in case, he keeps his battle-axe hanging under the bar.

====== Shoppes ======

**The Silver Gauntlet:**  Access to Lok Magius is difficult to obtain because of constant threats by the Inquisition, as well as dark mages.  Because of this, the Silver Gauntlet exists in Rilan, to determine who should have access to both Lok Magius, and to Lok Giran.  The building is run by a pair of elderly twins, Andrew and Caleb, who delight in children, strange magic, and old books.  They are authorized to purchase magical items that they understand, but can send items they do not 'up the mountain' for further study or purchase.  The Silver Gauntlet is right next to the Blue Tyven, with a lawn of flat rock faces and several stone benches, leading up to a stone building two stories in height, with a low-peaked roof of covered stone.  Inside the Silver Gauntlet are several small ante rooms for waiting guests, as well as the main library and conservancy where the twins work.  In the back, accessed only by a key, is a permanent teleportation circle.  The circle can only be used by someone wearing one a special token -- made of silver, in the shape of a gauntlet.  The other end of the teleportation circle goes to a heavily guarded room in Lok Magius.  The tall twins, **Andrew** and **Caleb**, are 6'1" and rather slim, wearing the traditional robes and pointed hats of wizards.  Both of them barely survived the War of the Four Winds, but survive they did -- hurling arcane fire and magical powers at ograns left and right.  Both twins are extremely intelligent, and have specialized in evocation style spells, but also are good scultpors, historians, and even armorsmiths.  Battle-hardened old fellows, they never-the-less have nothing but smiles for children or interesting trinkets.

**Animal Merchant/Equestor:** 	Stovan Kemal is an Amaran man that wears dark green leathers, and always has a grin splitting his dark face.  He deals primarily with horses and ponies, but also deals with hippotauns, anklosaurs, and other rare beasts.

**Armorer/Farrier/Weaponsmith:** The Soul Smithy's primary blacksmith is Therdan, an enormous mute whose apprentices understand his every gesture and intent.  His workmanship is exquisite, and tends to fetch a higher price -- while any of the apprentices and acolytes from the Soul Smithy can do standard work at a standard price.

**Apothecary:** Cutheros' Apothecary is both a curiosity shoppe, and a place to obtain rare items, herbs, spell components, and more.  Cutheros is a nervous and wary man that likes magic, but fears the Inquisition.  His brother is Lantheros, the local manager for Gideon Enterprises.

**Cartographer/Scribe/Travel Master:** 	The local manager for Gideon Enterprises is Lantheros, a scribe, book-keeper, and cartographer that somehow juggles all the schedules, work, cargos, and more for GE in his head.  He manages the GE workers available for most scribe or cartography work.  A rather skittish and nervous man, he is often flanked by two well-paid and very experienced bodyguards.

**General Store:** Hurdelan Orcbane is a friendly, mercantile dwarf that runs the Shipwreck Zone -- a three-story mercantile building and general store.  The Shipwreck Zone has its own warehouse in back, and employs nearly a dozen staffers, seamstresses, tailors, jewelers, and more.

**Rangers/Mercenaries/Guides:** The best guide money can buy in Rilan, is Rya Cantherone.  She leads the local militia and druidic circles, as well as care-taking for the herders and farmers in the region.  A hand-to-hand combatant, she distrusts arcane magic, but has a weakness for music, as she runs around the mountain in her camouflaged leathers.  Her 'office' is a small stone building near the city's park.

**Tanner:** Perhaps the greatest leather-worker and tanner in all of Rakore is Ye Sival, a Toomaran plainswoman of the Spring Buds clan.  A small, forceful woman in her prime, she pours her heart into her leather-working, for the right price.  Even her regular work is above-average in quality and durability.
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