Acquisitions Incorporated

ASCETfC BUSINESS PRACTICES
Plenty of monasteries turn out business-minded monks.
After all. it's not money that's the root of all evil: it's the

love of money. So if you just like money- you know. as

a friend- then it's all good! Many Acq Inc franchises ac-
tively try to recruit monks into entr epreneurship. know-
ing of their reputation for versatility both in and out of
combat. lfyou hail from a particularly profitable monas-
tery, you won't need to be convinced of the benefits of a
w ell-run business- you'll already be on board.

COMMERCIAL MONASTERIES

dlO Monastery

Monastery of the Eternal Spirits (legendary distillers)

2 House of the Upright Arches (creators of quality

footwear)

3 Dome of the Curious Quill (makers of parchment,

ink, and writing quills)

4 Crystal Bastion (makers of crystal goblets and

ornaments)

5 Monastery Actuary (underwriters of reasonably

priced insurance policies)

6 House of Hot Ki (delicious barbecue take-out)

7 Sage's Retreat (custom research services)

8 Monastery of the Wayward Grape (vintners of fine

wines)

9 Spider's House Retreat (drow trainers of giant spi-

ders as mounts and companions)

10 Hall of Mysteries (investigators for h ire)

NONTRADITIONAL TRADITIONS

The diversity of monk traditions makes those traditions

different from each other in abilities as well as in atti-

tude. And since an Acquisitions Incorporated franchise

runs mostly on attitude, it's important for the philosophy

of a monk's monastic tradition to mesh with the philoso-

phy of the franchise.

WAY OF SHADOW

Monks following the Way of Shadow fill an important

role in an Acq Inc franchise: that of an infiltrator. As

a shadow monk, you're likely more adept than even a

rogue at moving around without being seen, slipping

into dangerous places unnoticed, and getting away with

no one the wiser as to what you've stolen. And it's a

safe bet that your fellow franchisees will quickly learn

to search the shadows before they say something they

don't want you to hear.

WAY OF THE DRUNKEN MASTER

The most dangerous adventurer in the room is the one

that no one knows is an adventurer. As a monk who

follows the Way of the Drunken Master, you excel at

keeping your true threat level under wraps. Your ability

to literally spend days hanging out at the tavern and

never be noticed makes you a valuable addition to any

franchise that needs to keep its collective eyes and ears

on happenings in town. Plus. you're a guaranteed riot at

company parties!

CllAPTER^3 I PLAY ER OPTIONS

WAY OF THE fOUR ELEMENTS

.Most enemies who take on a monk expect to get a few

punches or kicks for their trouble. So when flames,

cold. and thunder come streaking toward them instead,

they'll never know what hit them. As a monk of the Way

of the Four Elements, you combine the striking power

of a typical monk with the versatility of a wizard. Espe-

cially in a franchise without a dedicated combat spell-

caster. your elemental affinity comes in handy.

WAY OF THE KENSEI

Monks following the Way of the Kensei often appear

to care more about their weapons than they care about

the people around them. Because they do. As a monk

following that tradition. you make a perfect fit for a mar-

tial-focused franchise. Your skill with weapons makes

you an asset in combat, and your practical knowledge

makes t rading in arms a natural sideline. For you. battle

is business and business is always booming.

WAY OF THE OPEN HAND

It's always nice to have someone in a franchise who

can slap an enemy so hard that they shrivel up and die

several days after the characters have left town and

arranged their alibis. As a monk following the Way of

the Open Hand. you know that others think of you as a

mysterious figure. You might sit by yourself for hours

on end, humming strangely. You might say weird things

that you expect others to treat as great wisdom. Frankly,

as long as your fellow franchisees can count on you to

break skulls when necessary, you can probably get away

with anything.

WAY OF THE SUN SOUL

Many benevolent monks have a reputation for being all

punching and sunshine. As a Sun Soul monk. you epit-

omize this reputation. Except for the benevolent part.

Whenever a fight is in need of area-effect damage. your

fellow franchise members understand that you're their

best friend in the world. And if your reputation for ex-

ploding in anger (literally) makes for easier negotiations

with suppliers and business rivals, so much the better.

PALADIN

My companions did what!? The screams could be heard

from howfaraway!?

When many hear "paladin," they can't help but envision

a knight in shining armor, helping innocent people in

distress and living a life of utmost virtue and chastity.

Yawn. In the world of Acquisitions Incorporated, at least

some small part of a paladin's dedication is focused on

the code of business. Morals and ethics are all good. But

an Acq Inc paladin knows that nothing puts food on the

plates of the poor and roofs over the heads of the dispos-

sessed better than cold. hard cash.

And virtue and chastity are more guidelines than

rules anyway. Right?

Stand up as straight as possible. Being a p~ladin.is

mostly about posture, and most people don t realize

that. Evil drow sl ouch, but in this house, we are

turgid to the point of discoml'ort!. ,

-Donaar Slit zen