TANTAVOS

City of Thieves

Tone: A den of vice and iniquity on a grand scale.
Timeframe: -2250 to present
Artifice: Standard, but "acquired" items of all artifice levels can be found.
Region: Tears of Vrylakos
Capital: Tantavos (~3,250,000)
Notable Settlements: None (city-state)
Government: Mayorial (but in name only)
Ruler: Lord Mayor Avaris Orpon
Races: Human (85%), Merren (5%), Other (10%)
Languages: Vrylakian
Religions: Tearic Pantheon
Coinage: Coins from almost everywhere you can imagine, traded by a combination of weight and perceived value.

Synopsis

It is said that in Tantavos, death is but a shadow away. Among the resident cutthroats, pirates, slavers, and assorted scum living isn’t a right, it’s a privilege revocable at will by any more skillful or stealthy with a blade.

Tantavos is a corrupt city peopled by slaves of vice and decadence. Thieves are more common than craftsmen and criminal syndicates rule in all but name, which is well known by all locals.

A person must watch their own back and beware of strangers and "friends" both. Due to the prevalence of criminal syndicates and guilds, it is also often unwise to outright kill an opponent even if they are intent on killing you or else risk blood feud with the opponent's fellows. Therefore it is unsurprising that many take up weapons training, and those that survive a certain while are likely good at it. Assassination isn't just a reality, in some circles it has the provenance of an art form.

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Magic

Various residents of Tantavos practice miscellaneous kinds of magic, but there is no strong, centralized tradition or educational program established with one notable exception.

Alchemy: there are a number of Alchemists based out of Tantavos that are specialized in concocting drugs. Some of their product includes Lucid Black, White Wind and Presh, drugs favored by pirates, sailors, and fools throughout the Core.

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Details

Style of the Crossbone-Mantis: Though there are many styles and techniques taught in the city, the Tantavosani Crossbone-Mantis style is both native to the city and predominant amongst its residents. A two-sword style, it is most recognizable by its hard bitten practicality and distinct lack of flair. In the deadly streets of Tantavos, fancywork will avail you little. Practitioners take up the style for survival, not to impress or for leisure. It is a simple art designed to constrain the opponent and disable them.

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Adventure Seeds

They took my stuff and I want it back!: something of value was stolen a while ago; but word on the streets has come around that the item was recently seen on sale in the Grand Market of Tantavos...
On the lam: A notorious criminal is wanted in Ohjavia for undisclosed reasons, and has a large price on his head. He has holed up in Tantavos; the bounty is just there for the taking by any skilled enough to capture the mark. One small problem: he's a Lichtor in the Black Tongue crime syndicate, a highly placed position of influence and power...

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