Wastrel Opus - Hustler of Counterfeit Magick

Wastrel Opus is man of low moral character, but it wasn't always that way.  A long time ago he was a student at the Citadel Fantastick under the tutelage of two great wizards, Andante Sinker and Micro Kilos.  He showed some promise but couldn't get out of the shadow of his two great teachers.

To remedy that, he copied down as many spells he could from his teachers and then left the confines of the Citadel and set up shop in downtown Imajapoor.  He encouraged budding wizards to come  share and develop their magick inside his shop.  But little did they know, he was closely watching what they were doing, and eventually started duplicating various spells and potions.  He kicked out the developing wizards after he copied and sold much of the magick that he stole from the students and from Andante Sinker and Micro Kilos.

Now the problem with counterfeit magick is that it has a tendency to come back to bite you.  It's a pale shadow of the original magick so it might drain some of your Kremm or you could lose control over the spell that is being cast.  So a lot of magick newbies found themselves either with failed spells or injured because of poor quality spells.

This went on for about nine years until a few of the former students noticed some of their work was being sold under the name of Wastrel Opus.  Infuriated they brought it to the attention of the Citadel and Andante and Micro notice their work was also amongst the stolen magick.  The two wizards went down to Wastrel's shop to confront him, along with a couple of Ogres .   Wastrel childishly denied the accusations even though he had just been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.  An infuriated Andante cast him out of Imajapoor and Wastrel was forced to pack up and leave Imajapoor in disgrace.

A few years passed and some counterfeit magick started popping up again in Imajapoor.  The counterfeits are a bit more obvious, and Imajapoorans don't truck with cheap magick.  So somewhere on the outskirts of Imajapoor, an indigent Wastrel lives in a shack and is the butt of a lot of the Hobbillies jokes as he hustles cheap magick.  And if you listen from the walls of the city you can hear him shouting, "I'm still here, people still love me and I'm still important!"

Schools Of Magick In Imajapoor

"Alright class, who can tell me how the schools of Magick are organized at the Citadel Fantastick?" Queried Headmaster Herionymous Posh.

"That's easy sir, by color of course." squeaked a new student "You've got black and white magick wich are oppposites and then you have the various color spectrums like green for druidry, and Blue for..

"Yes yes yes that would be all too simple wouldn't it?"piped in the Headmaster "But here at Citadel Fantastick we do things differently. Instead we opted for smell !  If you think about it smell has a way of getting embedded in your memory, you smell a spell and instantly you know what form of magick it is.  No color charts or bar graphs, it's all up here," said the Headmaster pointed at his head.

"Sweet smells can be identified with Enchantment, rotting smells with Necromancy, organic smells with Druidry, sulphuric smells with Demonology, and so forth."

Sir I'm picking up a smell right now, what magick is brewing?"  Questioned a student standing close to the Headmaster.

"I smell something too, kind of like brimstone.  Is it a summoning spell?"  Chimed a student.

"No, it smells more like a curse" added another student.

"Oh, erm ...sorry I stopped off at the Rat On A Stick before class," said an embarrassed Headmaster "I mean that was a warding spell.  Class dismissed!"

The Cursed Codpiece of Consuming Coruscation

Mondo Pizarro IV Conquering Principe of Imajapoor seeking a cure for baldness (after all a conqueror just can't be seen in oil paintings without any hair) had his court magicians hard at work on it.  One particular magician Don Fuego de la Pantalones claimed to have the cure and produced an elixir that the Pricipe of Imajapoor was to put inside his prized golden jewel encrusted codpiece.  Little did the Pizarro know, that Don Fuego was actually attempting to assassinate the prince and take the crown of the City State of Imajapoor.

Luckily Pizarro had his loyal garment donner try on the codpiece first (after all who wants to wear a codpiece unless someone else had tried it on first)?  The royal donner screamed in pain and ran around the courtroom.  Finally the courts magicians were able to remove the codpiece but the damage had already been done.

Don Fuego was captured by the Imajapoor Guard and thrown in the dungeon awaiting execution.  The codpiece disappeared, some say it was discarded, othere say Don Fuego was forced to wear it, others say it ended up in the Underdrekk of Imajapoor waiting to be claimed by some unsuspecting treasure hunter.

If the Codpiece is donned whether being added to an armor collection or what not it will inflict 6D6 worth of damage.  Otherwise it may be worth a hefty sum just in it's gold weight in gold and jewels (around 1,200).  But otherwise I don't recommend putting on strange codpieces that you just happen on.

Followers of Chaos, Imajapoor

No religion is more evil than those that worship the gods of chaos. Their bloody handed priests offer up unwilling sacrifices to the foulspawn of the void. Thuggee fanatics skulk in the dark alleyways of Imajapoor awaiting fresh victims for their bloody rites. Evil sorcerers recite blasphemous incantations to call up the powers of eternal damnation to do their bidding.

This evil that festers in Imajapoor would be a force to be reckoned with it it weren't for one thing....Chaos has a hard time getting organized.....

Thuggee #1: "Aye, 'ere comes a victim of opportunity. A chance to show the Dark Lord Aaaaactchooolhu my quality as a servant! Pass me the garrote."

Thuggee #2: "Garrote? I thought you brought the garrote? I brought the liverwurst sandwiches."

Thuggee #1: " 'ow are we going to relieve our victims from their mortal coil with a liverwurst sandwich?"

Thuggee #2: " I dunno, it's a few days old maybe we could give 'em food poisoning."

Thuggee #1: "Arrrr yer son-of-a-bachelor!" (Biffs Thuggee #2 in the snout)

Thuggee #2: "There's no call for violence, I was just trying to be thoughtful and pack a lunch for us. And you have to get all cross with me. Honestly I don't know why I try any...."

Victim of Opportunity: "Excuse me sir, is this your garrote?"

Thuggee #2: "Why yes, thank you sir. Very kind of you to return it."

Victim of Opportunity: "Think nothing of it, I wouldn't want it to get into the wrong hands. There's Chaos cultists in these back alleys. Have a nice day."

Thuggee #2: "He was a right sort of chap, wasn't he?"

Thuggee #1: "A real gentleman. You never expect to meet someone with manners in the back alleys."

Thuggee #3: "Hello chums, I brought the tea kettle!"

Thuggee #2: "Cracking good idea! I could go for a cuppa. Did you bring any cups?"

Thuggee #1: "No I didn't, but I have a pocket full of currents. By the way, where did the victim go?"

You get the idea. It's a really evil cult that does really really bad bad things if they ever got around to doing them.

Rat Touched

The Cult of the Rat envy the features of their rodent brethren, and through alchemy and dark magicks they've learned to alter their physiognomy. The cultists refer to this as being Rat Touched. Slowly their front teeth start to turn into the visage of the Ouroborats gnawing teeth, chipping away at the vermin covered sphere of the world. Some start to grow tails and tiny hairs all over their bodies.

The most horrendous of all is the Aspect of Bubo. Hulking ten foot tall, half goblin half rat beast forever roaming the mazes of the underdrek looking to glut itself on man-flesh! Sometimes goblin flesh too, although they consider it a great honor to be chosen by the Aspect of Bubo and to feed the holy World Rat!

Gutter Dwarves

Criminal activity is a way of life in the garbage strewn streets of Imajapoor. A lot of the urban youth start urban tribes also known as gangs. Dwarven youths who grow up in the strict and stoic manner of their parents, find themselves at odds with traditional way of life. Many dwarves choose to leave their ancestral homes of stone (Steinheim) for the streets of Imajapoor. Living on the streets is tough, many of the dwarf kids turn to petty larceny, theft, armed robbery and sometimes murder.

Some time ago a lowlife gang calling itself The Gutter Dwarves formed, and has become quite a nuisance in Imajapoor proper. A lot of the gang members choose to shave their heads and beards (which is a huge taboo in dwarf society), while others spike up their hair and dye it unnatural colors.

The Gutter Dwarves aren't very sophisticated mainly due to their youth, average age is around 40-70 years of age. They stick more to low level of street crime and thuggery, Don't let that lull you into a false sense of security, if you see members of the gang avoid them at all costs!

**Thanks to the good Prof. Gremlin for this idea**

Foulsome Prison Blues - Imajapoor

"But I stabbed a man in Imajapoor, just to watch him die" - popular song in Imajapoor by The Bard In Black

Foulsome Prison is where they throw you when they want to forget about you. You don't necessarily have to do something immoral or against the law to get sent there. In fact, Imajapoor was built upon criminal activity. But if you don't pay off the right people, you might find find yourself shackled to a 40 pound iron ball inside a 4X8 cell with three other room mates.

Getting out of Foulsome can be a bit tricky too. There's plenty of guards inside and on the walls of the prison, plus several beasties guarding the courtyard. If you can get to the storm sewers that would be your best route, but they lead to the mazes of the Underdrek!

Best thing to do is lay low, and keep a low profile when visiting Imajapoor. At least until you have enough geld to pay bribes, or enough muscle to not worry about paying bribes!

Keep on Rockin' & Role Playing!

Imajapoor: Gong The Honeydipper (City Sanitation Department)

There's only one giant living in the city of Imadjapoor, and that's Gong. Gong is also the city's sanitation department, affectionately known as a honey dipper. Somebody has to do the job, and Gong is very good at it!

Every night, Gong walks the city emptying the cities public outhouses of their cache. Each outhouse is equipped with hinged roofs that can be opened from the top, this is easy for a giant. He then dips his giant ladle inside, scooping out the contents and emptying the treasure into his "Honey Wagon" and then moves on to the next one. Sometimes local citizens get quite a surprise if they head out for a late night constitutional, but most of Imajapoorians know better.

The honey wagon is then taken to the sanitary headquarters where the waste can be converted into fuel for the rest of the city. Very economical and green (or brown depending on what people have eaten that day) friendly!

It's customary for citizens to leave a tip in the tip box outside of the outhouses, otherwise certain districts might find their outhouses overflowing. Just a friendly reminder when visiting the great city of Imadjapoor!

Map of Imajapoor

Here's a map I made a while back. It's Imadjapoor (the hub of my gaming sandbox) and the surrounding area.

Sorcerers Enchanters and Illusionists Union

If you want to practice magic in Imadjapoor you must first enroll in the Sorcerer Enchanters and Illusionists Union (SEIU). All practitioners of magic who are already members of another guild must at least obtain a license, usually magic users of other guilds are given the courtesy of a warning with their first infraction but after that the gloves come off. Many a wizard has found his or herself at the bottom of a river with concrete boots, or have had demons set upon their naughty bits. Even worse they could be black balled by the union (of course "black balled" means getting hit over the head by a fifty pound iron ball wielded by the union's Ogre hired muscle).

Rogues are at quite a disadvantage because they never really received their magical knowledge from one of the Wizard's Guild. So if you are a rogue, be cautious about who you use magic in front of.

Make nice, play right, and pay your dues (or bribes) and you'll have a pleasant stay in Imadjapoor.

Goblin Cult of the Rat: Denizens of the Underdrek

In the Underdrek lurks the sinister Cult of the Rat! The cult is made up entirely by Goblins and they worship Bubo the Rat God. Bubo is believed to be the world rat (Ouroborat), completely surrounding the world with the end of it's gigantic tail firmly in his mouth. The minions of Bubo will one day rule the world and glut itself on the refuse of civilization and spread pestilences to the populace. It's rumored that there is a gigantic shrine to the Rat God in the festering tunnels of the Underdrek, with countless treasures sitting underneath a stone statue of Bubo.

The cult doesn't tolerate any killing of rats, so rat catchers are wary of doing their jobs in Imadjapoor. The Rat On A Stick franchise is the main focus of the cults ire. The Cult of the Rat has special shock troops called Terrorats who do seek and destroy missions on various businesses, citizens and members of the local government of Imadjapoor. The terrorats have destroyed several of the popula fast food chain's buildings, and it's patrons have been randomly attacked in the streets of Imadjapoor. The cult has become a little more than a nuisance and they have been outlawed in Imadjapoor.

You can tell a Goblin cultist by his maroon colored robes, and the swarm of rats surrounding him. Not to mention the overpowering stink of the Underdrek on the cultists.

Bubo The Great Rat God (Ouroborat)

Hobbillies

Hobbillies live on the outskirts of civilization outside Imadjapoor City. Most of their dwellings consists of dilapidated wagons resting on cinderblocks. Hobbillies are mostly know for their moonshine which they sell to local Imadjapooran bodegas. Mayor Chairly Madder has made the hobbilly hooch illegal, mainly because the local taxing authority is met with great disdain in the wagon courts of hobbilly land.

Pee Wee: "Paw! I done winged the tax man with mah gunne!"

Paw: "Atta boy! I always knew that big city education would rub off on you! You were always good with triggernometry!"

MR: 20

Combat Dice: 2D+1

Drek Elf: Denizens of the Underdrek

Underneath the city of Imajapoor City, there is an underground sewage system known affectionately known as The Underdrek! These winding tunnels are home to brigands, wandering monsters and unspeakable horrors (those are the nice folks!). Then there are the Drek Elves! Backstabbing, petty thieves and cutpurses all plus they have a psychotic nature.

Physically they resemble a sort of goblinoid elf (although the goblins won't admit to any kinship with these buggers). Light grey skin, black hair and long fingers with 2 inch long claws. Watch out for the claws, after all they are called Drek Elves! They're slightly smaller than elves, average height being around 4.5 - 5 foot tall. And they are slight of build but don't let that fool you, they aren't weaklings.

They tend to run in gangs of about 4-5 but can be ferocious one on one.

MR:40

Combat Dice: 4 + 1

Special Abilities:Poison Claws 2D6 damage+1 point every round until wound is cleaned or healed.

STR 13, CON 20, INT 12, WIZ 12, LK 15, DEX 17,CHR 7, SPD 14

Armor Hits: 10

AP Award: 35

(subject to changes and updates)

That Rat Bastard Necromancer

This is a sandbox campaign that has been ruminating in my mind for quite some time. I've decided I'll be running it next week, hopefully some people will show up. I've decided to use Tunnels & Trolls, mainly because of the humorous nature of the world, and T&T is great for that!

Here's what I have so far...

Imadjupoor is a port city full of all sorts of culture and character....although most of it is bad character! Think of Chicago in the 1920's only as a fantasy setting. Illegal substances, prostitution, gambling, murder, political corruption, evil sorcery...you name it. The inspiration for the setting comes from hardboiled fiction of the 30's and 40's, film noir, exploitation films, gangster and horror movies. And with just enough Terry Pratchett inspired humor to get through the dark bits!

Ju Ju Jones is the main crime boss of Imadjupoor. He owns much of the city, including the mayor. So he's pretty much untouchable. Oh, and by the way, he's a necromancer. He's got plenty of undead doing his dirty business.

Cederic - "I saw Bill's got a job finally, he's working for Ju Ju now."
Fred - "What do you mean, Bill has been dead for 3 months.
Cederic- "I did mention he's working for Ju Ju."
Fred- "Right, I forgot. Well I suppose that if Bill didn't do any work in life, he might as well do it afterwards."

Gangsters rule the streets of Imadjupoor, and most of the gangs are split along ethnic lines. There's Ju Ju's undead, the Drek Elves, Gutter Dwarves (thanks Dr. Gremlin), Goblin followers of the Cult of the Rat (murderous followers of the cult are known as "Terrorats"), plus an overzealous Wizards union that uses strong arm tactics that would make Jimmy Hoffa cringe.

The underground sewer system (The Underdrek) will be a source for delving, it's filled with cutthroats, the dreaded Drek Elves, wandering monsters, and unspeakable horrors created by discarded magicks.

On the outskirts of town live a community of Hillbilly Hobbits (Hobbillies), in their mobile home park (basically dilapidated wagons on cinderblocks). They are the source for illegal hooch that the local speakeasies in Imadjapoor carry. The local crime bosses are none too pleased with this because it undercuts their profits, so that throws another conflict into the mix. (Thanks to Toad-Killer-Dog for that one)!

As far as PC's go, I think I'll have 6 types... roll 1D6

1. Imadjupooran local - You know who not to cross and you know how things work in this town, but know very little outside of Imadjapoor.

2. Outsider- You're new to town and ignorant of the way things work here. Watch your step! Although you do have a lot of outside knowledge that will help.

3. Criminal - You're wired into the underground of the city, and you make things work behind the scenes. You could be an enforcer, street criminal, hooch runner...etc.

4. Gumshoe/Vigilante - You're also wired into the criminal community but you're also not very well liked. You have your ear to every door and every informant knows how to contact you.

5. Seadog - You're a salty sailor of the salty sea, but not necessarily the salt of the earth! After months on the open sea you need to raise some hell. What better town to do that in than Imadjupoor?!!!

6. Highwayman - You make an honest dishonest living robbing people to and from Imadjupoor! And then head into town to spend your hardly hard earned money on the finer things in life!

I'll keep posting as more ideas come to light!

Here's a link to Vin's Trollbridge where I've been bouncing ideas off of people!

Imajapoor Blog

This is basically a repository of all my ideas for my gaming world of The City State Of The Conquering Prince: Imajapoor!  You'll see previous posts, just to get everything collected onto one blog and also I'll be posting more info on my sandbox ideas and maybe even fiction.

Drop by and let me know what you think!

Chad