Post by Richard Loh on Dec 4, 2013 14:51:52 GMT 8
Absalom
Grand Lodge of Absalom, headquarters of the Pathfinder Society. (excerpt from 'Guide to Absalom')
The Grand Lodge is a massive fortress, easily one of the biggest privately owned strongholds in the city. Established 400 years ago, it contains extensive grounds surrounded by a tall stone wall with a single, huge main gate (which is very rarely closed, and is decorated with the Gylph of the Open Road), many yards and outbuildings, and a series of Major Halls. It sits in front of one of the larger plazas in the Foreign District, ringed with shops that cater to adventurers of all stripes (and charge higher prices than most anywhere else in the city). The wall encircles seven sturdy stone fortresses of different architectural periods, the largest of which—Skyreach—is an enormous, white, five-towered palace that stretches high above the others structures and the surrounding city.
The Great Hall within Skyreach is designed to allow large numbers of agents to gather in safety for assemblies and exchanges, and is comfortably appointed but lacks any unifying theme of decor. An ornate fountain magically produces ice-cold water, and an eclectic selection of chairs, rugs, divans, cushions, tables, stools, end tables, and hammocks provide numerous places to sit and spread out maps or goods. The largest table of the Great Hall is the Atlas Tableaux, a mighty table 20 feet to a side that contains an illusory map of the Inner Sea and the lands around it. As new information about regions is sent in by venture-captains, the illusory map is updated to match. The ceiling of the room is also clad in illusion, showing the sky above the city as if it were night, and with astrological markers identifying constellations and the locations of other planets; the Decemvirate can dismiss or reactivate this illusion with a command word, revealing an intricate skylight that lets in the light of day.
The overall look of the room is chaotic in the extreme, and it is usually empty except in the rare event of the Decemvirate calling a large meeting.
Most Pathfinders visiting Skyreach prefer the more intimate setting of a smaller lounge or meeting room, most of which have a number of comfortable chairs, a small table or two suitable for a large map, and perhaps a fireplace. These places have welcoming names such as the Den, the Pipeweed Nook, Second Home, and so on. Frequent visitors to Skyreach tend to develop a favorite room and spend most of their idle time there, and it is common for those who share interest in a particular lounge to become friends or go on missions together. Some Pathfinders leave notices in these rooms or in the Great Hall announcing exotic or magical goods for sale or trade and plans for new expeditions arranged by some venture-captain.
Off the main chamber of the Great Hall are the Lodge Offices, where Janiff Ivulxtin administers the business of running the central command of a world-spanning collection of independent agents. A Garundi venture-captain with many adventures under his belt, Janiff oversees the defense, maintenance, and administration of the Grand Lodge. He ensures that tariffs offered by agents are safely collected and put away, that arguments between agents are settled quickly and safely, and that visitors understand that the lodge’s staff works for the Decemvirate, not individual agents.
Several other halls within Skyreach are named after specific countries (Osirion Hall, Cheliax Hall, and so on), as well as many rooms named after historical figures (the Room of the Undying Pharaoh), professions (the Mage Room), or even just numbers (Room 17). Use of any of the rooms in these halls is available only by arrangement with Janiff, and most Pathfinders never get to see all of the rooms—some reputedly haven’t been opened in years. He signs them out for short private meetings fairly often, but experienced venture-captains can sometimes rent one for a number of days to use as a base of operations in Absalom for an entire Pathfinder team. The decor within these halls does not always match the countries they are named for, and the halls are sometimes unavailable for any use without explanation of advance notice. Though Janiff never denies or confirms any speculation about the halls, many scholars look for clues to the identities of the Decemvirate by examining the decor and times of availability within the halls. The other six fortresses of the Grand Lodge have a wide range of uses but are generally off-limits to visitors without the explicit permission of Janiff or one of the many resident Pathfinders who live and work there, conducting research projects and other experiments in their many specialized libraries and collections.
Like any Pathfinder lodge, the Grand Lodge has housing for itinerant Pathfinders on legitimate business, which is offered at no cost and with no oversight of what each agent’s business may be. Located in rickety wooden outer buildings of the facility, these rooms are each little more than a simple cell with a cot, a ledge to serve as a writing desk, and a stool. Privies and bathing facilities are public affairs, and agents are expected to behave themselves within them regardless of personal ideology or cultural norms. Unlike most lodges, the Grand Lodge offers free food to lodgers, but it is always a simple gruel of unf lavored grains with a few pieces of salted fish—no one eats it unless bankrupt or in too great a hurry to find better options. Official guests of the lodge, ranging from foreign dignitaries to those agents summoned by order of the Decemvirate, are placed in much nicer quarters.
There are smaller stalls and outbuildings, located between the main halls and the outer perimeter of the Grand Lodge’s expanse. In these are common meeting rooms, storage space, craft shops, roasting pits, small dormitories, stables, and a menagerie of foreign beasts, though many outbuildings are off-limits to visitors. Most of these are arranged around small squares and yards, allowing them to be used as long-term camps for large groups that gain Janiff ’s permission to stay on the Lodge’s grounds for weeks or even months at a time. One of these yards includes a large covered area, which contains an earthen circle ringed with a thick anchor-rope. This is the Lodge’s sparring ring, which is used for training and friendly bouts between agents. The ring is a common place for larger gatherings of agents, featuring drinking, gambling, and challenges to settle disagreements. Near the back of the compound is the doorless, windowless Repository, where 66 geas-compelled convicted criminals transcribe approved field reports to create the latest editions of the Pathfinder Chronicles for distribution. Under the Grand Lodge is a series of tunnels and rooms called the Vaults. The Society uses the Vaults to store things for long periods of time, especially dangerous things they’d like the rest of the world to forget about.
It’s important to realize that while the Pathfinder Society is well-accepted as part of Absalom, they are not seen as local champions or strong supporters of the city tself. The Grand Lodge is located in the Foreign Quarter for a reason—the Pathfinder Society is a collection of individuals from a dozen nations, not an arm of Absalom’s native culture. Though the Grand Lodge is a major stronghold, neither its guards (normally Pathfinder agents and initiates working to pay for use of some facility) nor the Decemvirate takes any noteworthy direct action outside its walls. Though individual venture-captains run missions all over the city, the Decemvirate does not try to inf luence local politics in either the Foreign Quarter or the city as a whole. Indeed, while the Society has occasionally moved itself to neutralize threats to Absalom, the actions of venture-captains are sometimes at cross-purposes.
As long as the Society does not make any move against the city, and seems as interested in foreign adventures as local problems, the Grand Council of Absalom is appy to leave the Pathfinders alone, and trusts the Decemvirate will return the favor.
Venture-Captains in Grand Lodge:
- Drendle Dreng, an old man with frazzled hair. Generally known to summon Pathfinders in the middle of the night for missions.
Sothis
Venture-Captain Norden Balentiir is the presiding Venture-Captain of this branch of Pathfinders in Osirion.
Notes: Due to the diversity of the Pathfinder Lodges in Golarion, when there are updates or descriptions to the various lodges are available, this too will be updated correspondingly.
Grand Lodge of Absalom, headquarters of the Pathfinder Society. (excerpt from 'Guide to Absalom')
The Grand Lodge is a massive fortress, easily one of the biggest privately owned strongholds in the city. Established 400 years ago, it contains extensive grounds surrounded by a tall stone wall with a single, huge main gate (which is very rarely closed, and is decorated with the Gylph of the Open Road), many yards and outbuildings, and a series of Major Halls. It sits in front of one of the larger plazas in the Foreign District, ringed with shops that cater to adventurers of all stripes (and charge higher prices than most anywhere else in the city). The wall encircles seven sturdy stone fortresses of different architectural periods, the largest of which—Skyreach—is an enormous, white, five-towered palace that stretches high above the others structures and the surrounding city.
The Great Hall within Skyreach is designed to allow large numbers of agents to gather in safety for assemblies and exchanges, and is comfortably appointed but lacks any unifying theme of decor. An ornate fountain magically produces ice-cold water, and an eclectic selection of chairs, rugs, divans, cushions, tables, stools, end tables, and hammocks provide numerous places to sit and spread out maps or goods. The largest table of the Great Hall is the Atlas Tableaux, a mighty table 20 feet to a side that contains an illusory map of the Inner Sea and the lands around it. As new information about regions is sent in by venture-captains, the illusory map is updated to match. The ceiling of the room is also clad in illusion, showing the sky above the city as if it were night, and with astrological markers identifying constellations and the locations of other planets; the Decemvirate can dismiss or reactivate this illusion with a command word, revealing an intricate skylight that lets in the light of day.
The overall look of the room is chaotic in the extreme, and it is usually empty except in the rare event of the Decemvirate calling a large meeting.
Most Pathfinders visiting Skyreach prefer the more intimate setting of a smaller lounge or meeting room, most of which have a number of comfortable chairs, a small table or two suitable for a large map, and perhaps a fireplace. These places have welcoming names such as the Den, the Pipeweed Nook, Second Home, and so on. Frequent visitors to Skyreach tend to develop a favorite room and spend most of their idle time there, and it is common for those who share interest in a particular lounge to become friends or go on missions together. Some Pathfinders leave notices in these rooms or in the Great Hall announcing exotic or magical goods for sale or trade and plans for new expeditions arranged by some venture-captain.
Off the main chamber of the Great Hall are the Lodge Offices, where Janiff Ivulxtin administers the business of running the central command of a world-spanning collection of independent agents. A Garundi venture-captain with many adventures under his belt, Janiff oversees the defense, maintenance, and administration of the Grand Lodge. He ensures that tariffs offered by agents are safely collected and put away, that arguments between agents are settled quickly and safely, and that visitors understand that the lodge’s staff works for the Decemvirate, not individual agents.
Several other halls within Skyreach are named after specific countries (Osirion Hall, Cheliax Hall, and so on), as well as many rooms named after historical figures (the Room of the Undying Pharaoh), professions (the Mage Room), or even just numbers (Room 17). Use of any of the rooms in these halls is available only by arrangement with Janiff, and most Pathfinders never get to see all of the rooms—some reputedly haven’t been opened in years. He signs them out for short private meetings fairly often, but experienced venture-captains can sometimes rent one for a number of days to use as a base of operations in Absalom for an entire Pathfinder team. The decor within these halls does not always match the countries they are named for, and the halls are sometimes unavailable for any use without explanation of advance notice. Though Janiff never denies or confirms any speculation about the halls, many scholars look for clues to the identities of the Decemvirate by examining the decor and times of availability within the halls. The other six fortresses of the Grand Lodge have a wide range of uses but are generally off-limits to visitors without the explicit permission of Janiff or one of the many resident Pathfinders who live and work there, conducting research projects and other experiments in their many specialized libraries and collections.
Like any Pathfinder lodge, the Grand Lodge has housing for itinerant Pathfinders on legitimate business, which is offered at no cost and with no oversight of what each agent’s business may be. Located in rickety wooden outer buildings of the facility, these rooms are each little more than a simple cell with a cot, a ledge to serve as a writing desk, and a stool. Privies and bathing facilities are public affairs, and agents are expected to behave themselves within them regardless of personal ideology or cultural norms. Unlike most lodges, the Grand Lodge offers free food to lodgers, but it is always a simple gruel of unf lavored grains with a few pieces of salted fish—no one eats it unless bankrupt or in too great a hurry to find better options. Official guests of the lodge, ranging from foreign dignitaries to those agents summoned by order of the Decemvirate, are placed in much nicer quarters.
There are smaller stalls and outbuildings, located between the main halls and the outer perimeter of the Grand Lodge’s expanse. In these are common meeting rooms, storage space, craft shops, roasting pits, small dormitories, stables, and a menagerie of foreign beasts, though many outbuildings are off-limits to visitors. Most of these are arranged around small squares and yards, allowing them to be used as long-term camps for large groups that gain Janiff ’s permission to stay on the Lodge’s grounds for weeks or even months at a time. One of these yards includes a large covered area, which contains an earthen circle ringed with a thick anchor-rope. This is the Lodge’s sparring ring, which is used for training and friendly bouts between agents. The ring is a common place for larger gatherings of agents, featuring drinking, gambling, and challenges to settle disagreements. Near the back of the compound is the doorless, windowless Repository, where 66 geas-compelled convicted criminals transcribe approved field reports to create the latest editions of the Pathfinder Chronicles for distribution. Under the Grand Lodge is a series of tunnels and rooms called the Vaults. The Society uses the Vaults to store things for long periods of time, especially dangerous things they’d like the rest of the world to forget about.
It’s important to realize that while the Pathfinder Society is well-accepted as part of Absalom, they are not seen as local champions or strong supporters of the city tself. The Grand Lodge is located in the Foreign Quarter for a reason—the Pathfinder Society is a collection of individuals from a dozen nations, not an arm of Absalom’s native culture. Though the Grand Lodge is a major stronghold, neither its guards (normally Pathfinder agents and initiates working to pay for use of some facility) nor the Decemvirate takes any noteworthy direct action outside its walls. Though individual venture-captains run missions all over the city, the Decemvirate does not try to inf luence local politics in either the Foreign Quarter or the city as a whole. Indeed, while the Society has occasionally moved itself to neutralize threats to Absalom, the actions of venture-captains are sometimes at cross-purposes.
As long as the Society does not make any move against the city, and seems as interested in foreign adventures as local problems, the Grand Council of Absalom is appy to leave the Pathfinders alone, and trusts the Decemvirate will return the favor.
Venture-Captains in Grand Lodge:
- Drendle Dreng, an old man with frazzled hair. Generally known to summon Pathfinders in the middle of the night for missions.
Sothis
Venture-Captain Norden Balentiir is the presiding Venture-Captain of this branch of Pathfinders in Osirion.
Notes: Due to the diversity of the Pathfinder Lodges in Golarion, when there are updates or descriptions to the various lodges are available, this too will be updated correspondingly.