Dissolution News - 29th of Growth, 721

Over the week after the barbarian horde leaves, citizens and the press have varied reactions to all of the events. A sampling of the main currency of opinion follows.

Sources

• The Courier: the largest and most reputable paper in Ptolus, albeit one with a slight pro-Empire slant.
• The Guilder: a newspaper covering local guilds, currently under the control of the Ironworker's Guild.
• The Market Voice: a reputable paper focused on economic news and information; the source for classified ads as well.
• The Midtown Partisan: a gossip sheet mostly focused on the noble families.
• The Noble Record: once serious competitor to the Courier, now centered on entertainment news, noble gossip and fanciful fictions about actual people.
• The Ptolus Herald: a widely circulated paper largely considered factual but with a clear anti-Empire bias.
• The Monitor: a well made broadsheet the covers the news from a religious angle. Considered to have some of the finest writers in the city, but known to be funded by the Church of Lothian, so generally considered slanted in the Church's direction.
• The Undergrounder: a seedy rag that serves up rumors about the events and people of the criminal underworld.
• others: dozens of other papers exist. Most are very niche or very low quality, more like newsletters.
• rumors: stray talk that gets spread around, misunderstood and mutated.

The Barbarian Horde

The general story of the horde coming to find their king from his chaos cultist kidnappers who intended to use him in some kind of ritual, then leaving once the party rescued the king is widely (and mostly accurately) reported and believed. Almost no mention is made of the particulars of the ritual in the press, or the idea of the Night of Dissolution, leaving the field open for everyone to push "pet theories" of "what really happened", often to further their own agendas. Some of the more prevalent:

• Regardless of the specifics, blame for the whole mess lies at the feet of the Empire, who can no longer be counted on to care about Ptolus. (The Ptolus Herald, The Monitor, others: mostly the anti-Empire lunatic fringe, rumors: in Oldtown, particularly)
• The freedom and initiative of the six members of the party are emblematic of the strength and rightness of the Empire that guarantees such freedom. Cities outside the Empire would have fallen because their people are not as self-reliant and fearless. (The Courier's editorial board, others: mostly the pro-Empire lunatic fringe, rumors: in Midtown)
• The whole affair was largely a distraction, as the city defenders would have obliterated the barbarians in any case. (The Market Voice, others: mostly government-based publications loyal to the Commisar, rumors: mostly Midtown)
• Chaos cults are by far the strongest danger to the city, and should be exterminated. (The Noble Record, The Monitor (which particularly worries about arcane ability of the cultists and the cults being concealed within legitimate churches), The Guilder (which particularly worries about chaositech), others: publications from temples to various lawful gods)
• The details of the Night of Dissolution are critical, and a conspiracy is afoot in the mainstream media and government to suppress them. (others: mostly obscure arcane rags)
• The supposed plot was far too premeditated, planned and ordered to be the work of chaos cultists, who are being framed by religious authorities in the city. (The Undergrounder, others: mostly anarchist organizations)

Vallis Moon

The appearance of the Vallis moon caused quite a stir, particularly in the arcane and religious communities. The explosion of opinion, warnings, debates, open brawling and even suicides was unrivaled until three days later, when the Vallis moon vanished again and the ruckus started anew.

• The spell interference and cancellation effects of the Moon lasted only for the first day, where they caused a lot of havoc. Including:
  • In the Nobles' Quarter, the spells holding the luxury Soaring Idyll apartment building aloft fail, and the building crashes to the ground, killing over fifty people, including some in some nearby manor houses, which were crushed. Within an hour over three dozen people were looting the wreckage, having scaled the cliffs into the district. (The Courier, The Noble Record, The Undergrounder)
  • The aeroship normally moored on the estate of House Shever is missing, and "reliable sources" indicate it crashed much like the apartment building did, but the wreckage was quickly hidden to prevent embarrassment to the house. (The Noble Record)
  • Any doubts that the Inverted Pyramid holds a powerful influence over the city were dispelled when the group's huge headquarters appeared floating over Oldtown. While it did not fall, it took the group nearly five hours to conceal the building again, leading many to question the wisdom of allowing them over the city at all. (The Monitor)
  • In the large exodus of ships leaving the city when the moon first appeared, collisions occurred when a number of ships lost their magical propulsion. Three ships sank completely, spilling their cargo to the bottom of the harbor. (The Market Voice)
• A number impromptu religious debates in the Temple District's Steet of a Million Gods about the importance of the moon erupted into violence, resulting in several deaths. (The Courier,The Monitor)
• Nearly one out of every four babies born in the three days that the moon was visible have runelike birthmarks on their faces or hands, including two born to noble families. (The Noble Record, The Midtown Partisan)
• The moment the moon returned, it released a shower of dust and rock which continues to rain down to the ground. As this previously extremely rare material (called Vallis dust) contains potent magical abilities (it can be used to power spells), a "gold rush" mentality has quietly developed, with arcane geologists secretly grabbing as many flying vehicles and fly spells as they can find to race to collect the stuff. It is likely that, in the coming months, either a few groups will manage to control this new source and ration it to keep prices high, or it will flood the market and make the price crash. (The Market Voice, others: arcane "current events" newsletters, geology publications, astronomy publications)
• Vallis dust is an extremely dangerous substance, known to cause tissue damage just by standing near it, and should be outlawed. (The Monitor, The Undergrounder)

The Unlikely Six

Both the press and the public talk a lot about the PCs. One of the first stories to cover them, a special edition of The Courier put out hours after the barbarians left, contained an editorial on the group mentioning, among other things, how the collection of races and backgrounds made the group uniquely Ptolusian, saying "the city owes a huge debt to this unlikely six, but can be proud of the fact that their like would not even be possible elsewhere." Lacking a true name for the group, the press latched onto the phrase "unlikely six" and even began to capitalize it as if it were the group's official name. Opinions are mostly positive, losing only a bit of luster as the week goes on and a few contrarians emerge.

• Of the group as a whole...
  • The Ironworker's Guild does everything it can to associate itself with members of the group and the group as whole. The large beer bash they hold in the group's honor is the "social event of the season". (The Guilder)
  • The group has an insanely complex and impressive history, corroborated by numerous "friends" and "experts" the group has never actually met. (The Noble Record)
  • The group may not fit in very well in the Nobles' Quarter, and it remains to be seen how the neighborhood will react to them. (The Midtown Partisan)
  • During the ceremony when the city awarded Rosegate House to the group, someone used detect alignment spells to determine that only two of the group are good and two are chaotic and, therefore, it is clear that the group is really playing the city and were, in fact, the ringleaders of the whole plot. (rumors: mostly in South Market)
• Caralaria
  • Caralaria gives the most candid and complete (and largely factual) telling of the group's activities, though provides few details about more arcane matters and is strangely silent on certain portions of the machine encounter. (The Guilder which gains a lot of prestige from the story)
  • The Church of the Iron god has done a fair bit of recruiting based on Caralaria's prowess. (rumors: the Guildsman District, Midtown)
  • Caralaria and the other monks of the Path of Iron are in league with a vast conspiracy connecting House Shever, the Shuul, the monastery, the temples of Teun and the Iron God and the Iron Mage. (The Midtown Partisan)
  • The unusual hair color, clothing and "punchy attitude" of Caralaria seems to have caught on with a group of girls and young women who gather in Star Crossing Plaza to see and be seen. (other: one newsletter from South Market directed at the clothing industry)
  • There has been a bit of a rush on disguise self scrolls caused by high cost (illegal) prostitutes using them to match Caralaria's hair color and appearance for their clients. (The Undergrounder)
• Lostwhite
  • Lostwhite speaks of the events publicly only briefly, in a short appearance in the temple of the Lady.
  • Lostwhite "turned heads" in a custom dress made by Garner Chevril, a up-and-coming designer in South Market, at a members-only party hosted in her honor by the Order of Iron Might (of which Lostwhite is a member) at their citadel in Oldtown. (other: the same South Market newsletter for the clothing industry)
  • Several hours after this party, the City Watch chased Lostwhite and three human male paramours (thought to be students from the nearby Imperial University) out of the Arena in Oldtown in the middle of the night, after their loud cries of passion disturbed residents in nearby houses. (The Noble Record)
  • As a half-orc, clearly Lostwhite is in league with the barbarian hordes, so cannot be trusted. (rumors: the Warrens)
• Naerai
  • Naerai frustrates the press with silence, which causes them to dig into his past. The only real fruit they find, however, is an interview in the Courier with Karetsan, leader of a community of harrow elves called Zar'at. He speaks highly of Naerai's character, and extends a public offer for him to live in Zar'at, but says little else.
  • Naerai bears the brunt of "the group were the ringleaders of the whole plot" conspiracy theory, where his being a harrow elf is used as "strong evidence" of the group's real evil agenda.
• Oreni Erthuo
  • Oreni gives a short interview to The Market Voice which, while not actually containing much information, lends legitimacy to the group's story.
  • One of the earliest stories about the group claims Oreni, being part of a noble house, is obviously therefore the leader of the group and the mastermind behind the defeat of the cultists, who is driven to excel in order to make up for the failings of his father Otan Erthuo. In spite of no legitimate evidence of any of this, many in the press and the public assume it to be true. (The Midtown Partisan)
  • Oreni's mother Zaria Silmarwen Ertho is furious with him for thrusting the family into the spotlight. Head of the household Peliope Erthuo is none to pleased either, but is using the attention to attract more elven blood into the house by throwing a party in the group's honor and inviting a high proportion of elven guests. (The Noble Record)
  • Oreni clearly has connections to the Balacazar crime family and has been seen at the homes of family members. (The Undergrounder)
• Scoffney Shever
  • Scoffney gives a rambling, not-very-coherent interview to the Urban Herbalist, a monthly newsletter dedicated to medicinal plants (with a strong slant towards their narcotic properties). Almost no one reads this, but it elevates him to nearly demigod-like status among a portion of the newsletter's dedicated readers.
  • Scoffney, who was originally identified as Goodwin Flint, is an estranged member of House Shever, in spite of being a dwarf. The rest of the family will not confirm this, or give any other comment about him. Sources close to the family who wish to remain anonymous reveal a rift between Scoffney and his parents. His father was adopted into the family while very young. (The Midtown Partisan)
  • Scoffney was single-handedly responsible for destroying the large chaos machine. (The Guilder)
  • Scoffney is a high-ranking officer in the Longfingers Guild, but Oreni's rumored connection to the Balacazar family point to a broader plot against one or the other syndicates, perhaps both of them. (The Noble Record)
• Sikarsis
  • Sikarsis talks to anyone in the press who approaches him, but turns questions into a homily on the virtues of Engelan, God of the Present, so often that the press quickly tire of him.
  • A strange "apathetic schism" is brewing in the Temple District. While Sikarsis seems to be increasing the number of visitors to the shrine of Engelan, this doesn't sit well with many regular worshipers of the god. Largely comprised of halflings, many in this group seem put off or intimated by the assarai and are resentful of the newcomers; however, as follows of Engelan are not known for far-reaching plans, no real action has been taken on either side. (The Monitor)
  • The example of Sikarsis seems to have inspired a number of his fellow assarai to become more active in the community. Anyone who can get those scaly layabouts off their asses is OK in my book. (rumor: The Docks)

The Runebearers

The runebearers get more than the expected attention for two reasons. One is the resurrection of Tarthia Kor, which strikes a patriotic, do-gooder, working-man-unite sort of chord with much of the public. Second is the activities of Helmut Itlestein, the high priest of the Temple Observatory of the Watcher of the Skies as well as the head of the republican movement (which wants to secede from the Empire and setup Ptolus as a representative democracy, an unheard of idea many dismiss as "government by the rabble"). He used to rail and vent in public about a growing threat he read in the stars that would be signaled by "harbingers of doom", which made him sound crazy, so many dismissed him. But his warnings were always about how children would be born with runes on their faces. So, suddenly, he doesn't seem so crazy; however, being convinced that the runebearers are evil, he started screaming even louder. He vocally opposed the resurrection of Tarthia Kor, organizing a protest that attempted to blockade the family from delivering the body to the church. His antics, and reactions to them (such as an attempted arson at his temple) gained a lot of press.

Here is a repeat of the runebearer information, along with a few rumors:

• Dullin Balacazar, human male, age 8. Delivered to 1 Outer Ring Row, Rivergate. Dullen is the grandson of Menon Balacazar, a "wealthy financier" who everyone knows is really the kingpin of city's most powerful organized crime family. He previously offered a 5,000gp bounty for the safe return of Dullen, which Dullen's mother paid immediately. She also asked lots of questions about the cults who took Dullen, and the ritual in which he was to be sacrificed.
  • In all the coverage, Dullin is mentioned the least. This is because his family is "using influence" to keep his name out of the papers. (The Undergrounder)
• Darata Chornim, human female, age 6. Delivered to 6 Dawn Path, Nobles' Quarter. Darata lives only with her mother Tara in a fairly small house (for the Noble's Quarter) with an extremely well tended garden near the Holy Palace of the Church of Lothian (which is the home of what is sort of like the "pope" of the whole church). Tara clearly is strongly devoted to Lothian, and can cast divine magic (she cast bless on Oreni), but doesn't appear to be official associated with the church. She was nearly beside herself with joy when her daughter was returned, and took a holy symbol from her own neck to give to Oreni, forcing him to take it, insisting "the blessings of Lothian would watch over you". The symbol is an exquisitely made and detailed Lothian ankh, fashioned from platinum and a number of small, tasteful sapphires. Oreni detected magic in it and has since determined that once per day, a short prayer to Lothian will create a resilient sphere around the location of the symbol at the time of casting. This sphere does not move once cast.
  • It cannot be a coincidence that the home of this runebearer is right next to the Soaring Idyll apartment that fell. (The Noble Record)
• Corrent Epathi, halfling male, age 10. Delivered to 3 Princes Street, Nobles' Quarter. Corrent is an orphan, cared for by a female human named Zellath Kory. Ms. Kory was not home when Corrent was returned, but her house staff was ecstatic. Corrent demanded that Oreni come see "his bird house", which turned out to be a small metalworking shop in the basement. In this shop, Corrent makes stunningly realistic statues of birds out of silver, most of them actual size. Clearly gifted with skill far beyond his years, he gave a rather stern looking (and somewhat fragile) owl to Oreni in thanks. Days later, an invitation to dine with Zellath Kory and Corrent at the start of the month arrived for Oreni at the Ertho estate.
  • When the press learns about Corrent's talent, he becomes something of a hot ticket in the art world.
• Tarthia Kor, human female, age 8. Tarthia, the runebearer who was killed, is the daughter of Lac and Brellyra Kor, who live at 5 Stout Street, Midtown. Lac is a metalworker and so a member of the Ironworker's Guild. Oreni didn't meet them until after Terthia had been resurrected. Of the four clerics in the city capable of casting true resurrection, the Kor family preferred Maeda von Rustal, the High Priestess of the Temple of Teun, the Mother of All Machines. Once it became clear that the child came from a working class family, donations flooded the temple, with the temple itself donating a third of the cost of the spell (30,000gp total). Upon the return of his child, Kor provide each member of the group with a rose made from iron, forged by his own hand.
  • This story gets caught up into the "iron conspiracy" story surrounding Caralaria as well.

The Ledger

News of the ledger taken from the White House is barely noticed among all the other stories, only being reported by the The Noble Record and, later, The Midtown Partisan. Stories are heavy on speculation and short on actual facts. Here are some of the rumors being reported.

• The ledger would damage the reputations of several men and women in the city by exposing them as unfaithful to their spouses. (true)
• The ledger would damage the reputations of several men and women in the city by exposing them as homosexuals. (true)
• A chief suspect in the theft is Erepodi, a tiefling prostitute who recently disappeared. (true that she is a suspect)
• The book contains the names of nearly all of House Dallimothan as clients. (false. None of them, in fact)
• Oreni's father Otan Ertho is listed several times for appointments with Erepodi. (true)
• Scoffney Shever (under an assumed name) is listed several times. (true)
• Kirian Ylestos, Prince of the Church of Lothian is a regular customer. (true)
• Rehoboth Ylestos, Emperor of the Church of Lothian is a customer. (false)
• The ledger contains records of numerous bribes paid to cover up violent acts perpetrated by clients against the staff. (true)
• One of the largest of these bribes came from House Vladaam, to cover up a magical experiment Aliaster Vladaam conducted on a pair of prostitutes (one male, one female). (???. The largest bribe in the book is for 50,000gp, but the notation just says "compensation for the 'wiggling incident'".)
• The Commissar is a loyal customer. (false; however there are several 10,000gp payments over the years to the brothel labeled "compensation for the Commissar's 'guns'".)
• The ledger contains concrete proof of a connection between the brothel and a notorious illegal gambling den thought to be in South Market called the Cock Pit. (true)
• Both the Cock Pit and the White House are secretly run by a mysterious figure named Aggah-Shan. (???)
• Aggah-Shan takes great pains to keep his organization out of the hands of organized crime syndicates. (???)
• Aggah-Shan possesses a book of secrets about the Balacazar family, which he uses to keep the family off his back. (???)
• The stolen ledger is actually this book of secrets. (false)
• Aggah-Shan is a lich and a wizard. (???)
• A wizard like Aggah-Shan should be able to easily find the book using locate object and clairvoyance spells. (Wait... what?)