Descent into Avernus

(Jeff_L) #1

206


NOBLE


The patriars of Baidu r's Gate live in the Upper City.


where they host grand galas and flaunt cosmopolitan

fashions, but are walled off from the poverty and squalor


of the less fortunate districts and their neighborhoods.
Although they might visit prosperous Bloomridge to try

a fashionable restaurant or boutique, or watch a specta-


cle at the Oasis Theater, the patriars have little reason

to venture into the dirtier, more dangerous parts of the


city. If they do, it is generally as thrill-seeking tourists or


enclosed by a retinue of armed guards, not as friends or


neighbors. As a result, many patriars are at once acutely


attuned to the nuances of royal courts half a continent


away and shockingly ignorant of what life is like for the
poor outside their own doorsteps.

This combination of worldly savvy and local blindness


characterizes almost all the nobility of Baldur's Gate.
As a result, for those who wish to play patriars, the Pa-

triar feature below replaces the Position and Privilege


feature of the noble background. Those who wish to use


the background's standard feature might have gained


their standing in Baldur's Gate from business rather
than inheritance.

BALDUR'S GATE FEATURE: PATRIAR
As a member of one of the elite families of Baidu r's

Gate, you may pass through city gates without paying


tolls, mingle among the Gate's nobility unquestioned,

and impress those on the lookout for wealthy patrons.


You are welcome in the Upper City and may stay there


after dark without being harassed or evicted. Your word


is accepted over others' without question, and any cor-

ruption among guards or government officials tends to


work in your favor, not against you-at least until you


make some effort to expose it.


OUTLANDER
Coming to Baldur's Gate might seem like a good idea for

a spectrum of reasons. Profit, excitement, and cosmo-


politan opportunities all present tempting prospects, but

rarely does one start on the path to Baldur's Gate fully


understanding the complex social morass that awaits.


You enter the city an outsider, and it's likely that-no


matter how long you spend in the city- you'll leave an


outsider, if you leave at all.

BALDUR's GATE FEATURE:
IMMIGRANT EXPERIENCE

Even after your s hort time in Baidu r's Gate, you've


learned the city holds more walls and gates than those


the Watch and Flaming Fist patrols. You are known


within the city's immigrant communities. Should you
ever need to learn about a foreign land, people, tradition,

or history, you know where to find someone with first-


hand experience-likely somewhere in the Outer City.


OUTLANDER ORIGINS
Foreigners of all kinds come to Baldur's Gate daily,

drawn by countless reasons from countless lands. The


Outlander Origins table provides ideas for bow your
character might have come to Baidu r's Gate.

8ALDUR'S GATE OAZE'ITEER

OUTLANDER ORIGIN S
d6 Origin
Someone stole something precious from your peo-
ple. You tracked the thief to the city gates, but find-
ing clues in an urban environment is very different
from tracking someone across the wilderness. You
don't know where to go from here, but your people
need you to succeed.
2 You've always been fascinated by the glitter and
glamor of city life, so different from the slow pace
of life in your homeland. Now you're here, ready to
make your mark in the world, but unsure how to
begin.
3 War, plague, famine, or a marauding monster rav-
aged your home, forcing you to flee for your life. You
don't even know how many of your people survived
or where to find them. Alone or accompanied by a
handful of equally bereft survivors, you must navi-
gate a new life that you never asked for.
4 You were captured by kidnappers and taken far from
your home. The Knights of the Unicorn freed you and
brought you here, but now you're on your own.
5 You were exiled for breaking a trivial-seeming taboo.
For this seemingly minor transgression, you lost your
friends, family, and homeland in one felt swoop, and
were given little choice but to strike out on your own.
6 A peddler once brought something astonishing to
your homeland-a Gondan clockwork, shimmer-

SAGE


ing cloth of gold, a trained speaking bird, or some
other small wonder-and told you that it came from
Baldur's Gate. You've come to see the source of such
wonders, and perhaps learn to create them.

Baldur's Gate has a modest academic community


centered around the libraries of the High Hall and the
various temples dedicated to gods of learning and inno-

vation. Lecturers, researchers, and historians all partic-


ipate with passing scholars from Candlekeep in a lively

exchange of ideas, debating and collaborating in book-


filled halJs across the Upper and Lower City. The city is


also rife with opportunities for arcane study, although


its masters are dispersed across individual wizards'


abodes and lack concentrated communities.

BALDUR'S GATE FEATURE: RUMOR MONGER
Via your personal rumor mill and articles published

in Baldur's Mouth, you can surmise a great deal about


Baldurians' secrets- who's practicing necromancy,

who's involved in spying or smuggling, who would pur-


chase or craft dangerous magical wares without batting


an eyelash. Whenever a noteworthy crime or mysterious


happening occurs in the city, you immediately have a

list of ld4 suspects who, if they aren't involved, have a


strong chance of knowing who is.

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