NPC Faction: The Makers

[Kaladis Anar]

The Makers

Developed by Kaladis Anar
1) Secrecy is life. 2) Pay your way. 3) Support your fellows. 4) Support Nashaki.

Description: The Makers are a group of craftsmen, wealthy merchants, their guards, some healers and a few working class people who managed to get in. Originally primarily a human group, the Qi'ora that did join have outlived the humans that founded the group, and are now mostly in control. As such while it is a group that looks after its own interests first and foremost, its interests are usually the cities interest, and so it is tolerated by the council. Not least of which because it is rumored a few of the council pull the strings of the Makers at higher levels, and the Makers do a great deal behind the scenes to keep the city safe. There is sometimes friction with the council if they overstep their bounds, but all in all the Makers maintain healing sites for the poor, through to a crafting academy for the wealthy, and are tolerated as a result. If anyone in Nashaki dislikes the Makers it would be jealous traders who rightly feel their members can out compete them at times, council members who dislike secretive societies and those few who cannot be bribed, or raiders who want their mining sites and trade caravans for themselves.

Strengths and Tactics

Less is more, the less they have to do, and the earlier they can do it, the better off they are. Subtle tactics are much preferred over direct measures. Putting someone out of business, disrupting a negotiation, bribing, or just having a quiet word is seen as much more preferable to assassination or torture, but even that is seen as preferable to fighting someone in the street openly. They will maintain a visible presence guarding their overt members, or a location that the city itself benefits from, though this done as a preventative measure as opposed to an oppressive one. The Makers that want to appear noticed wear bronze colored clothing to identify themselves, mixed in with regular desert attire. It is known the group takes a dim view of others wearing bronze in the city, and will quietly have words with those who break this unwritten rule. Their numbers are estimated to be about two hundred and fifty strong in Nashaki and fifty strong outside of it. Although nearly all the Makers exist in Nashaki, they do maintain agents and spies in other cities, rarely interfering in other cities politics, unless it is going to directly involve Nashaki or their organization. That said they can be quite cunning in taking subtle preemptive actions to prevent greater ones in the future from being needed, long before it even becomes a problem, sometimes confusing people as to why they interfered at all. They are rumored to have singers who can charm animals with their voice, but this is surely a myth. What is known, is that they regular employ singers to help mask covert conversations from eavesdropping.

Maker supply and trade caravans do exist moving through the hotlands, for the most part incognito in civilian clothes, others they want to warn people off directly are decorated in bronze and usually heavily guarded, having a large payoff for the brave or foolhardy raider. Their tactics do include scouting in the desert in small parties, looking for eternal empire patrols, raiders, the undead or other monsters that might threaten the city, and definitely the Aurora, one of the competing factions for influence behind the scenes, whom they often find themselves directly at odds with.

It can't be emphasized enough that secrecy and misdirection are their main tools. For example the main chamber members are known only to a few, usually hidden from view when they observe or make rulings, and often having stand ins speak for them in lesser matters.

Leadership

Chamber Members

Name: Geld bas Valshin
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Race: Qi'ora
Birthday/Age: 22nd of Saun 504, 212 Arcs
Title: Chamber Member | Council Assistant
Skills: Etiquette 86, Intelligence 84, Rhetoric 77, Blades 65, Deception 91, Detection 78, Negotiation 81, Leadership 71, Persuasion 61, Seduction 81, Business Management 55
Blessings/Curse Adored by Zanik
Details: Geld Bas Valshin is a rising political figure in Nashaki, seeking to gain membership on the council, her family has long been involved in politics and she sees the Makers as a stepping stone to that goal. She has been groomed since birth, honing her skill for two centuries in the art of subtle intrigues. A powerhouse in both the chamber of the Makers and with her contacts throughout the city, traditional to the beliefs of their race, but fully understanding the benefit for the Makers to do work the council cannot or will not do. Usually seen in places of refinement with at least two escorts, and dressed in the most expensive fabrics the city has to offer. Geld is not easily deceived or won over, many in the city and those outside of it look to gain her favor, but few do because she is a discerning woman who maintains neutrality in almost all relationships. Owning many holdings throughout the city, Geld is a voice of balance and neutrality in the chamber.

Name: Qin Tara Adosen
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Race: Qi'ora
Birthday/Age: 77th of Vhalar 521, 195 Arcs
Title: Chamber Member | Senior officer in the City Guard
Skills: Shield Fighting 76, Blades 81, Interrogation 87, Negotiation 76, Leadership 66, Endurance 73, Strength 72, Intimidation 65, Tactics 68, Logistics 55, Field Craft 64
Blessings/Curse Favored by Ethelynda
Details: A towering man and veteran of the army, his face shows old scars and long service. As well as serving on the chamber and as a senior officer in the city guard, Qin Tara offers tactical advice to the Makers strategizing any more overt moves that require attention. Assisting Mastion in planning logistics and Maker supply caravans, Qin Tara is rarely in the field himself, but if he ever is there is a much larger than usual operation going on. He often complains that he isn’t able to spend more time guarding the caravans, locations or merchants himself, but his range of skills is simply too valuable to risk exposing him as one of their number openly.

Name:Mastion Hond
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Race: Human
Birthday/Age: 23rd of Cylus 664, 53 Arcs
Title: Chamber Member | Wealthy Merchant
Skills: Business Management 82, Disguise 61, Mathematics 71, Physics 63, Logistics 89, Negotiation 63, Navigation 41, Intelligence 56
Details: The self-named Merchant Prince, a title which isn’t too far wrong. He is arrogant and cocky with good reason. Mastion is one of the wealthiest men in Nashaki, and reinforces that with the Makers’s aid. He owns monopolies on several types of food stuff, herbs, dung fuel, the sandstone trade, as well as having heavy stakes in much of the cities construction generally, and the provision of labor. In short if you anger Mastion, you might well find your labourers simply not turning up to work anymore, yourself underfed or freezing to death in winter. Thrifty for a self-titled prince, all his money is reinvested or vaulted for later, and constantly turning a profit where he can. People know of him, yet they don’t know just how powerful he is, because Mastion is smart enough to play it down, hiding his connections, and greedy enough to always reach for more.

Name:Kilayna Lea Loros
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Race: Qi'ora
Birthday/Age: 31st of Ymiden 540, 176 Arcs
Title: Chamber Member | Healer
Skills: Singing 71, Medicine 83, Persuasion 82, Etiquette 65, Disguise 81, Surgery 83, Negotiation 57, Ranged 42, Agriculture 44, Discipline 41, Gardening 54
Details: If there was a heart and soul of the chambers, it would be Kilayna. Most of the chamber want their city to prosper for different reasons, for Kilayna it is all about her people and their well-being. Running the swell, a clinic for the poor and the needy, Kilayna will frequently give her own time for free, and as such she doesn’t own much. She is well looked after with her position in the chamber, yet most coin she gains go to those around her, in her eyes they need it much more than she does. She is one of the only chamber members known to be a Maker, to those outside the chamber. Being universally loved nobody has dared make a move against her, the backlash from the commoners would likely be fearsome if someone harmed her. Kilayna can usually be found with a small gathering of loyal devotees that she trains in the art of healing as they work. She and her brother have an especially great dislike of the eternal empire, who destroyed their village birthplace of Loros in the north of the Hotlands.

Name: Savaris, other names unknown
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Race: Qi'ora
Birthday/Age: 18th of Ymiden 462, 254 Arcs
Title: Chamber Member | Architect | Alchemist
Skills: Intelligence 92, Rhetoric 43, Alchemy 72, Deception 71, Detection 69, Leadership 61, Disguise 77, Psychology 86, Intimidation 73, Architect 74, Graft 72
Details:
Savaris is an unnerving individual, even to other Makers. He is the biggest coordinator of the spies and agents of the Makers, though Qin Tara does also have a large hand in this. It is never known how Savaris will vote in chamber meetings, and this makes him something of a wildcard. Visibly ugly and malformed, most don’t want to be around him, but they must if they want the best architecture the city can buy. Having a lion’s share of city maintenance contracts, and architects in his employ, Savaris owns a heavy share of several lesser trades in the city, such as weaving and tailoring. He doesn’t squeeze his competitors as hard as Mastion but it has been known, favouring to just buy them up instead of competing with them.

Name: Gwala Selien
Created by: Basilisk
Race: Qi’ora
Born: 636
Title: Chamber Member | Councilor of Glass
Skills: Glassblowing 85, Leadership 60, Politics 50, Blades: Hidden Blade 20
Other Information: An ambitious Qi’ora glassworker, Gwala is known to have obtained her Council position partially due to her genius in her field, but also because she has the favor of Councilor Ekene Narane and is expected to be his successor.
Maker Related Details:
Gwala brings an additional air of authority to the Makers, having a heavy say in the chamber, more than she likely should have. She does grant the Makers some degree of cover from council agents, but cannot protect all their activities, if they cross the line or interfere with the councils wishes openly. Such things are usually rare though, more often than not the group will be supporting a council’s position, only from the shadows. In return Gwala’s council ambitions are given coin, influence and additional support.

*The final seventh spot in the chamber is left to be named in player’s plots, easy assassinations of a made up chamber member, or new faces you need to use for your story.

Sand Walker Spies

Name:Alias: Tiberron, Real Name Unknown.
Eron Berit Loros
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Race: Qi'ora
Birthday/Age: 67th of Zi’da 565, 151 Arcs
Title: Coordinator | Sand Walker | Former Tower Agent
Skills: Stealth 88, Blades 63, Logistics 61, Detection 61, Deception 68, Running 41, Endurance 58, Poisons 43, Navigating 57, Intelligence 56, Pick Pocketing 57
Details: Tiberron, brother to Kilayna, although the Qi’ora last name is not a surname, it is from the same memorable event. Loros, a village that used to be in the north of the hotlands before they fought the imperials. The villager’s resisted till the last man or woman, though many were captured, equally as many children were evacuated to Nashaki, with Tiberron and Kilayna among them. Ever since Tiberron has been driven to work against the Eternal Empire from the shadows. Serving as a tower agent, he loves Nashaki but he is devoted and loyal to the Makers, because more than Nashaki he loves his sister, eventually joining their ranks to see to her well being. His sister’s position in the chamber, as well as her personal safety, is her brothers first and foremost concern. Tiberron’s primary weapon of subterfuge is never being seen or heard in the first place.

Name:Alias: Tals, Real Name Unknown,
Mira Pallas Pirkii
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Race: Qi'ora
Birthday/Age: 4th of Cylus 628, 89 Arcs
Title: Sand Walker | Healer
Skills: Acrobatics 67, Surgery 51, Medicine 62, Stealth 54, Detection 84, Deception 92, Persuasion 77, Lock Picking 72, Disguise 84, Pick Pocketing 71, Seduction 67
Details: Tals is very rarely in Nashaki, a beautiful woman by all accounts, magnificent skin and dark alluring eyes. Her primary weapon of subterfuge is disguise to avoid notice, having a costume for every occasion. It is said even her face changes depending on what role she is assuming, so gifted at makeup and masking her identity. Little is known about Tals by anyone, which is also her weapon, with deep anonymity masking her whereabouts, the only Makers she ever comes into contact with are Maker coordinators or other spies. One of the most skilled liars on Idalos, Tals can talk her way out of almost any situation with just a few words. Tals loyalty to the Makers has been questioned on occasion, but suspicion that she is part of more than one organization, has been squashed as merely vicious rumor.

Name:Alias: The Marked Man or Drenan, Real Name Unknown, No name, former slave.
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Race: Qi'ora
Birthday/Age: 81st of Vhalar 492, 224 Arcs
Title: Sandwalker | Torturer
Skills: Stealth 91, Detection 63, Deception 57, Lock Picking 68, Disguise 54, Aberration 64, Appraisal 79, Torture 81, Intimidation 43, Intelligence 61
Details:
Drenan or the marked man as he is often known, is tattooed all across his body in ritual symbols. It makes him a poor spy when he is spotted, which is very, very rarely, being almost an unrivaled master of stealth. Drenan doesn’t have the luxury of being as adapt at disguise with his unique appearance, but he is extremely able at avoiding notice in the first place. He is a highly skilled torturer, when other agents or spies have failed, the Markers sometimes call upon this skill. At other times Drenan remains well hidden within harmless organizations, which keep him out of the public's eye. Nobody knows why he supports the Makers, only that he does with zeal, perhaps he just loves the thrill of the job or the chase to uncover secrets, or perhaps he seeks his own chamber position.

Senior Guards

Name: Venalam Blagan
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Race: Lotharro
Birthday/Age: 3rd of Ashan 675, 41 Arcs
Title: Senior Guard
Skills: Detection 51, Endurance 82, Blade 62, Polearm 64, Strength 62, Navigation 51, Field Craft 43, Gambling 31
Details: Venalam is not quick to anger, remarkably reserved for a reborn Lotharro. When he is angry however, he is more than a handful and few desire to test what he is capable of if pushed. A steadying presence within the marketplace, like a rock, he wards off harm to Maker merchants or more visible people they are protecting overtly. Venalam has worked for the Makers since being a young boy, having saved a merchant that was in trouble in the hotlands, he returned home with the man. Luckily for Venalam the man he saved was connected to the Makers, ever since that day he has proven loyal and dedicated to the preservation of the organization.

Name: Endonath
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Race: Human
Birthday/Age: 66th of Zi’da 684 , 32 Arcs
Title: Senior Guard
Skills: Detection 41, Endurance 72, Blade 81, Thrown Weapons 72, Strength 33, Climbing 55, Tactics 71, Investigation 42, Discipline 88, Acrobatics 61
Details: Endonath is quicker to react than Venalam but has a cool under pressure that few can match. Usually seen commanding a few guards, Endonath is steadfast when danger or a threat is present. His skill with a blade is unrivaled, and he is often seen escorting the more valuable individuals that the Makers need protecting. Second in command to Venalam, in practice the two usually know each other well enough to not give commands between each other. Endonath always has more than one blade on his body, and prefers a large curved scimitar as his weapon of choice.

Recognized Merchants

Name: Nillat Karvain
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Race: Human
Birthday/Age: 45th of Ashan 678, 38 Arcs
Title: General Merchant
Skills: Appraisal 61, Business Management 48, Negotiation 56, Forgery 77, Intelligence 41, Writing 68
Details: Born somewhere far in the east, Nillat is a weasel plain and simple, known for leveraging the Makers influence to his advantage at every turn. Having his hand in everything that Mastion doesn’t, to a lesser or greater extent, Nillat sells all odds and ends. His preferred trade is glass, but he has heavy competition from the council towers, and so makes his main living off of livestock, weapons and armor. Few smiths in the city don’t feel his pinch, as he undercuts them every time it suits him. It is rumored he once left a large amount of precious livestock outside the city, holding them there, and all the time driving up the price of food, till it suited him to bring them in. It is not completely unheard of that Nillat’s own caravans coming into the city get a bounty or two on them in revenge, and it is also thought he keeps more than a few dozen slaves of his own at his whims.

Name: Ramos Ishander
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Race: Human
Birthday/Age: 41st of Ymiden 687, 29 Arcs
Title: Rare Items Merchant
Skills: Appraisal 82, Business Management 32, Negotiation 71, Persuasion 66, Resistance 60, Research 41, Jewellery Crafting 61.
Details: A flamboyant man if ever there was one. A collector of everything rare and everything luxurious! If you want the best quality or hardest to find goods, Ramos is your man. Be careful though, it is likely he will have sold you three times what you wanted by the end of it! One of the more liked Maker Merchants, he still does from time to time become the target of brave or foolish criminals going after his expensive stock, and so is usually kept under obvious guard. Ramos has many friends among the poor, as he keeps a small flophouse where many can find a rough bed and shelter for free, or almost for free if they are overcrowded. These same friends make for useful contacts when he wants to find rare items or artefacts, so it is not all done out of the kindness of his heart despite what he will tell you.

Locations

The Swell

Name: The Swell
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Details: Established way back in 492 in southern Nashaki, the swell is a place to heal the sick who can’t afford better care, a place for the desperate to take shelter in the harshest of winters, and a place where the Makers win over the poorest members of society by saving their lives, at the barest minimum of costs. The real gain is their public perception and image, as well as the free information or favors many will give in exchange for healthcare.

A large stone structure, it is simple inside, with sleeping areas both on simple cheap beds as well as bedrolls, or just the floor when it gets overcrowded. Doctors and healers have their own rooms, in reality these rooms often end up as makeshift sleeping accommodation when times get tough. In the desert times are often tough at the extremes of temperature at both ends, especially when famine or disease strike to further complicate matters for the poorest in Nashaki.

There are heavy doors to seal any infection in rooms to prevent the spread of it, sadly in an outbreak of illness there will simply not be enough of them, and in that case the main doors are sealed. Made out of extremely thick wood, and two huge metal locks, no amount of hammering will get them open. This is one reason the council likes that this building exists, the ability to seal the infected inside if an illness gets out of control, is a valuable option

Don’t expect miracles when visiting the swell for healing, it is not equipped as well as a regular doctor might be. They have good healers here but they are working with substandard equipment, always with too many patients, and as a result their herbs or supplies are always stretched thin.

Kilken Crafting Academy

Name: Kilken Craft Academy
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Details: Established in 584 by Tirius Kilken Vills in Eastern Nashaki. While the swell scores popularity points with the poor, the Kilken crafting academy definitely ingratiates the Makers to the wealthy. An expensive place to study at, the Kilken academy is a small compound with its own walls and guards, having several buildings that cater to both children and adults with enough coin. Covering a variety of crafts, the teachers here are some of the best craftsmen in Idalos, being the best just because they’ve lived sometimes up to two centuries in their profession. Although relatively large, places at the academy are often sort after, with people coming in even from outside the city to gain entry. Coin and influence speaks louder than anything in gaining a place here, the Makers and indeed the council both benefit from the arrangements and education going on here. Costing on average 20gn a day to undertake a class, the fee is sometimes reduced if someone has the right name, or title.

The Makers Hall

Name: The Makers Hall
Created by: Kaladis Anar

Details: Located in eastern Nashaki, the Makers hall is the central greeting place for new people contacting the Makers. Outside lays a precious healing herb garden, which is guarded by at least four guards, inside you will find at least another four more in the main room. At the thick front door, as a mark of respect, all arriving take off their shoes until they reach the main hall, though some rumor exists it is so people can’t run so easily, given that the floor and walls are carved with beautiful but somewhat sharp patterns. A visitor will see two side doors below, and two balconies exist above, the balconies are entered from somewhere else in the building, not directly or easily accessible, because at official gatherings the chamber members appear to make judgements, observe or pass rulings. The balconies are usually not lit to preserve the chamber member's identities, while the hall downstairs is well lit to help spot any deception, but it is not uncommon for a member to send another to speak in their place regardless. Pillars which are ornamental in nature line the walls, with various inscriptions to figures of note throughout Nashaki history. Some people swear that peep holes exist in these pillars, for curious or spying eyes on supposedly private meetings. There always seems to be a soft singing and melody in the background going on, which helps mask any conversation in the hall from those waiting outside, further masked by often sealed, thick doors as it is.

While training, debate and meetings go on in the main chamber, the side chambers offer more casual seating for members, how big the Makers hall is hasn’t yet been discovered, but it has multiple rooms, and several secret passageways leading to different locations within the building, seeming to go on forever. These secret passageways give people a quick way out if necessary, or the ability to move about unhindered and unnoticed into the city itself.

Joining Ranks and Roles

Beyond the chamber members the Makers don't have ranks, they have roles, meaning seniority is a tricky thing, involving influence, time served and how popular you are. Because of all the upsides joining is not easy, it requires sponsorship for half an arc, in which time your sponsor is responsible for you, making people wary to take anyone on, or share the benefits with too many people. After that period you become a full member entitled to all the benefit that brings, while under sponsorship you won't have access to anything but the crafting academy, the Maker's hall and the Swell, but you will be looked after if you are in trouble. When you are a full member the Makers will support your businesses growth, look after your interests, and protect you openly, in exchange for you supporting them financially, with information, or an alternative arrangement. There are no hard and fast rules as to how you contribute but you will be expected to. There is one rule set in stone, secrecy is life here, breaking secrecy is dealt with very harshly indeed, and not forgotten.

Roles within the organization are what people already specialise in, and probably why they were allowed into the Makers in the first place. Information gatherers, spies, contacts in different trades or governments. Wealthy merchants, respected guard members or council members are often a key recruiting option. Working class people can get in, but this is usually rarer, as they bring less to the organization.

History

425: Founding and Intent. The Makers were founded in 425 by three wealth human merchants, Dania Shalan, Rinmere Camas, and Isabond Fogmun, as a way to monopolise trade. Originally an organization that was very pro human in city politics, over time more and more Qi'ora joined, and because they lived considerably longer, more and more Qi'ora would slowly rise to seniority within the organization, but not for about a hundred arcs. This meant over time, the intent has changed to be a pro Nashaski organization.

445:The Sorching of the south. After a great fire saw up to a quarter of the southern city damaged, these three founding merchants and their associates saw themselves in a position to offer aid, and at the same time earn a sizeable fortune, gaining a further stake in the city. Some question whether the Makers were involved in the fire, truthfully they were not, but when they found who was responsible, the merchants agreed that there was a need for a body independent of the council looking after their own interests, and of course those of the city. They found out the one who lit the fire was a councilor's son, who disappeared in tragic circumstances not some five arcs later. It has long since worn down, but the cities south gate has a carving thanking friends for the rebuilding of the gatehouse there.

512: The Aurora Collides. Coming into contact with a growing organization in the Eternal Empire, the Aurora, a clandestine organization rumored to have backing or ties from the Eternal Empire itself, has proven to be the most difficult obstacle the Makers face in their expansion. The Aurora are considerably more direct in their methods, still covert but direct, meaning they compete on every level the Makers operate, information, contacts, trade, subtle alliances or movements. True the council tower agents from Nashaki keep the Makers activities curtailed sometimes, and raiders can hamper their caravans, but the Aurora outright assassinate their members, and target them directly. Several small skirmishes have happened over the arcs in back alleys, in taverns or when defending a senior member of their organization.

613: The Day of Bronze. Since the first founding day their growth has been intentionally slow, slow to trust and slow to let anyone into their organization. Growth has however been steady, now reaching some three hundred members in total, specialists in their own fields. It can't be said that every Maker that now joins is loyal to the organization, it is a shady world they work in with lots of double dealing, but they have become quite good at rooting out any bad apples. This was demonstrated in the day of bronze, where a dozen of their members were dump far from the city with no food, weapons or armor, wrapped up in a cloth colored in bronze. Every last one of them a double agent of the council, a member of the Aurora or just someone that had broken their greatest law, andnot one of them survived the walk home.

Secrecy is life.

Player Information

This faction is available for anyone to plot with, write with, join or anything else. It is a neutral and run by no players. No NPCs need moderation here, but please give them some consideration for their abilities, and secrecy. If you could replace any you kill off, and leave an obituary up holding the ones you replaced, that’d be great.

[Kaladis Anar]

Reserved for any additional updates, an obituary and noting any player members.