The Shadowden

The Shadow Thieves of Driftriver The back alleys and dark shadows of Driftriver are held in the dominion of the thieves, the robbers, the assassins and other figures of the night. When push comes to shove it pays to have fellows to back you up. The rogue-ish types band together into guilds for mutual wealth and protection. Chief among these is the Shadow Thieve's. Finding their home in the Montz moments away from downtown and steps from Reamsburgh they found their home.

The Jagged Dagger

A dim, dusty bar stands as the front for The Shadow Den. A simple sign hanging outfront proclaims for all to see that it is here. If you have the ability you can recognize a bit of Thieve's Cant to know that The Shadow Den can be found in the back.

The Front of the House

Behind the dusty windows lies 11 dusty tables with chairs scattered between them. The bar stands against the back wall with a few surprisingly well maintained bottles behind it. A few regulars can usually be found here. The cast of patrons cycles and changes. But the orc behind the bar and the girl serving drinks and food can always be found here. To the side of the bar a rundown stage can be found. A splintered board here, a missing board there it seems dangerous to play on.

The Back of the House

Through the door behind the bar lies a simple kitchen and storeroom. To the astute observer it seems as if the building should be larger from the outside. Access to The Shadow Den lies in this room. A secret door swings open from the lids of the ale barrels lying in the back corner.

Joining The Shadow Thieves

Driftrivers characters looking to join The Shadow Thieves may join freely. Anyone understanding Thieves Cant can simply walk into the Jagged Dagger and inquire with Gorag (Message in Montz or direct to Myrrh). Other interested parties must make a connection with a member of the guild or be headhunted for the membership.
In order to be eligible for membership a character must be of non-good alignment. Contribution eligibilty is not required. Once a character has contribution eligibility some contribution is appreciated, but the guilds cut of all jobs is automatically taken (as represented by leveling wages etc.) Additionally any potential member must be aware of the expectation to follow The Theive's Code.

The Shadow Den

Passing through the barrels gives access to the main room of The Shadow Den. Many passages lead into the chambers of the guild.

The Training Rooms

New Initiates need to learn their skills somewhere, and the masters need somewhere to pass on their skills. It also never hurts to hone skills even for the masters.
The Combat Room While the true goal is to never enter into combat and instead slip into the shadows unseen, the skills to defend oneself when the unexpected occur are necessary. Archery, hand to hand, and blade work are the crafts taught here.
Masters of Death The crafts of poison and dagger are sacred to the agents of the shadows. Learning the opportune moment to strike without being seen. The most potent of poison applied to the blade to ensure that but a single strike is necessary.
Cloaked mostly in shadows and darkness this room exists purely to learn to kill.
Slipping in the Shadows Learning never to be seen, by staying out of sight or blending into the crowd seamlessly are essential skills. The skill to slink through the shadows is taught here, along with the skills for pickpockets. Cutting a purse without being seen and then slipping away are equally valued.
Breaking and Entering The homes of the wealthy are almost always guarded by atleast a simplest of locks, often more. Members master the ways of slipping through these past guards, and neutralizing spells of detection.
The Rooftops Sometimes the best getaway route is across the tops of nearby buildings leaping from roof to roof. Low mockups of rootops make for practicing this skill. Once members master this they go and become masters on the rooftops of Driftriver.

Residences

All members of the guild have the right to maintain a residency within The Shadow Den. Higher ranking members of the guild have the luxury of single or double occupancy apartments. Lower ranking members are bunked together until they earn their ranking.

The Framery

Consisting of two main rooms The Framery is where the guild does the majority of its planning for big heists and scores.
The Blue Print (Library) All plans begin small. The smaller room of The Framery is where they begin. Agents come together to plot and plan bringing together the intel they have all gathered. As the plan grows it needs more and more space and the tables in here fill. Some plans never need leave here others move on to The Mockup
The Mockup For large heists the guild builds a replica of wherever is going to be hit. The key rooms are built up for practice runs. The massive room can usually hold multiple heists at once. Occasionally a massive plan will come together and require use of the entire space.

The Workshops

The various members need somewhere to ply their trades. Some of these have access out to the streets nearby through hidden doors and some are off in other parts of town. When a member needs a space, a space is found.
Hycis' Workshop (Healing Sanctum) Hycis keeps a clean workshop for his experimentations. The key to this cleanliness is to never let anyone in. Only by needing medical attention or agreeing to be experimented on do you gain entry. The other members of the guild would not reccomend attempting to force entry otherwise. No one who has gone in has any memory between entering and exiting.
Strange noises and flickering lights emanate from behind the door. And that's when Hycis isn't in his workshop. When he is in there it is strangely silent. Somehow no sound escapes the room. But the lights grow only more intense violent.
The Spirit Chamber Fortune telling is a relatively simple con to run on willing marks. Telling distraught sould that their ancestors forgive them is far easier than actually summoning them up to say the grudge is still being held. Once the mark is trusting Klarinda she finds it very easy to milk them of everything in their wallet, send them on their way and send theives in the night to finish cleaning them out.
The Dagger Forge Owing to the nature of the work The Dagger Forge is forced to find a home somewhat away from The Shadow Den. The ringing of hammers on steel draw attention from quite far away. Even though the forge looks impressive the quality of blades being sold is rather mediocre, unless you are shown into the backroom proper where the masterwork pieces are held in reserve for members only.
Roo's Fine Faces Even though it may be dangerous to use his real name for the storefront Roo is just too proud to use anything else. The store may not be in the best part of town, but the wealthy are willing to occasionally put up with a little bit of grit (or at least send a servant to do it). Roo finds plenty of business from his little store front, and has a hidden door behind the massive portrait of himself on the backwall.

The Thieves' Code

All members of The Shadow Thieves are sworn by honor to uphold the code among thieves. A member found to break the code will be brought before a trial and potentially excommunicated from the guild, losing all protection and benefits.

The Tenets

A thief is bound by Code:
1. Not to act against the interests of fellow thieves.
2. To keep the confidence of the fellow thieves and the guild.
3. To enforce the interests and territory of the guild.
4. To demand an inquiry and judgement by peers in the event of conflict between thieves.
5. To participate in inquiry if requested.
6. To abide by and enforce decisions of arbitration.
7. Pass on the trade to youth with potential for the trade.
8. Not to cooperate with outside authorities if detained.
9. Not to testify against or provide evidence against fellow thieves.
10. Assist fellow thieves through moral and monetary means as necessary.

Guild Heirarchy

Shadow Theives members are sorted into ranks by seniority within the guild and the responsibilites given to them. As members rise within the ranks more difficult jobs are assigned and perhaps will even have others assigned below them. Additionally, with higher ranking comes a larger share of profits.

The Shades

At the very top of The Shadow Thieves leadership there are eight councilmembers known as The Shades. Each member has ultimate control of the guilds under their control. No member of the Shadow Theives in Driftriver has met ths Shade over seeing them. But the cloakmaster will recieve directions occasionally though.

The Cloakmasters

The Cloakmaster of Driftriver oversees the grand direction of the guild within the city and is ultimately held responsible for the city by the Shades.
Cloakmaster of Driftriver - Vex the Shadow

The Guildmasters

Working directly under the Cloakmaster, the Guildmasters are responsible for their area of specialty. They oversee the day to day operations of the guild and have access to any agent they deem necessary for an operation.
Guildmaster of Art - Roo Whitesurge
Guildmaster of Assassination - Jetto
Guildmaster of Code - Vie Spiritdancer
Guildmaster of Coin - Tariq Zunzaava
Guildmaster of Extortion-
Guildmaster of Infiltration - Nicollete Freesworn
Guildmaster of the Street -
Guildmaster of Poison - Renault Rivercutter
Guildmaster of Smuggling - Srirx
Guildmaster of Theft - Stroburg Ironhead

The Agents

The agents of The Shadow Theives make up the majority of the guild. They are responisble for carrying out jobs from as simple as pickpocketing in the market, to planning a major break in of a nobilities manor and excecuting the plan. If they have the skills and knowledge to pass on to initiates or newer agents this is also expected of them.

The Initiates

The newest members of the The Shadow Thieves are given the rank of Initiate. Children showing talent are often given a home and training to one day become full members. Once an initiate has proven themselves and grown to adulthood they will be made into agents and welcomed into the guild to perhaps one day rise to Guildmaster

Guild Members

Serafiya Hearttrap (Domestic) This young lady is a new agent of the guild. She is quick to learn and ever cheerful. While not spending time in training she works in The Jagged Dagger.
Gorag (Brewer) Gorag all but lives behind the bar. He is an orc of questionable morals, but rarely participates in any of the crimes committed by the guild. This works to the advantage of the guild as he manages to keep a low profile from the law and keep the entrance a secret.
Tariq Zunzaava (Administrator) Tariq Zunzaava was sent to Driftriver to act as the book keeper and accountant for the guild. Taking on a position as the Guildmaster of Coin he directs members involved in betting at the Elcho arena and other establishments. When he isn't tied up in The Shadow Den managing the money brought in by members who don't seem to care for paperwork he can be found taking bets from high profile clients.
Roo Whitesurge (Artist) The Guildmaster of Art, Roo is the greatest forger around. Not that anyone would ever know as his copies are indistinguishable from the real piece. Since he doesn't need to spend every waking second making copies he also brings in money for himself by painting portraits for wealthy citizens. While he is in their home he can gather information for when the guild later returns to take all their valuables.
Renault Rivercutter (Apothecary) Renault mixes his herbs and poultices to revive members of the guild, and to bring swift death to their targets. The Guildmaster of poisons spends most of his time in The Shadow Den teaching those less experienced in the art of death, and being there when something goes horribly wrong to apply his expertise and save them from their mistakes.
Knox Mirthdrifter (Courier) This tabaxi can be found darting through the streets of driftriver at all hours of the day and night. Some believe he requires no sleep. Knox knows this to be untrue as he always feels tired, but has a job to complete, perhaps the most important job of all. Knox carries little else but a length of chalk and moves from dead drop to dead drop, inconspicuously leaving behind marks giving orders for the various members.
Tirum-Vah Grayglory (Craftsperson) Tirum-Vah found himself owing far too much to The Shadow Thieves after a spree gambling in the Elcho Arena. Unable to pay his debts he was offered a job within the guild. He know acts as a master blacksmith for the guild, making blades that slip between the ribs of even a halfling delivering clean death. Vie Spiritdancer (Interpretor) Vie Spiritdancer is the Guildmaster of Code. She invented the series of symbols unique to The Shadow Thieves and ensures that all new agents understand them and their purpose before allowing them to undertake their first mission. She also works to break codes and gather intelligence for the guild. Luck of the Draw (Ward) Luck for short, Luck of the Draw is a young tabaxi initiate who once tried to pick Knox' pocket while he was on the job. Noticing the obvious potential Luck had he brought her back to The Shadow Den and gave her a home. Now she trains to one day help Knox deliver for the rest of the guild.
Nicolette Freesworn (Merchant) Nicolette is a master of finding the best deal around. As the Guildmaster of Fencing she works tirelessly to sell the goods stolen by the guild. To this end she owns a pawnshop outside of The Shadow Den to sell some of the smaller goods. The hottest items require a more careful approach to find the right buyer. With contacts all across Faerun she can find a buyer for anything.
Reifag Lockbreaker (Fortifier) Reifag hails from Gauntlgrym where his preferences for finding the valuables owned by other dwarves overshadowed any desire to go get the valuables himself. Learning to enter the fiercely guarded vaults and homes of wealthy dwarves proved to be good learning for him. After being run out of Gauntlgrym, the Ashaba brought him to Driftriver. Hycis "Mishap" Valdi (Physician) Hycis has never actually been viewed without his mask on, at least not by anyone who is still alive, so no one is really sure what he looks like. Working as a doctor of last resort for the general populace of Driftriver he usually uses these patients as experimental subjects. Within the guild he hasn't lost a patient, but those treated by him are never truly the same after. It would be ill advised to call him Mishap to his face. Srirx (Provisioner) Srirx is a goblin you definitely do not want to mess with. His business is in bringing in illegal goods for anyone who will pay and he is good at it. He carries a big stick with him and isn't afraid to use it to get his way. Klarinda Duskspeaker (Spiritualist) Klarinda is a rare fortune-teller. One who actually has power. Not that she would use it for your average telling when it is far easier to know what they want to hear and tell them that. Klarinda gets the information she can from these poor fools and lets the rest of the guild use it. Snicker-Snacker (Weaver) Snicker-Snacker likes his cozy comfortable clothes. He works tirelessly to make knit scarves that wrap around and around his body. If you can convince him to stop for a bit the repairs on whatever you need will be of masterful quality. Trust the warnings that underneath the layers of cozy cloth there is a goblin with sharp knitting needles and he knows how to use them.

The Shadow Symbols

A series of series invented and taught by Vie Spiritdancer. All members of The Shadow Thieves. the symbols are left in the dead drop locations to let Agents know information from the den, or to inform each other of necessary information on potential targets.

Founding Date

26 Tarsakh, 1494DR

Type

Bar

Parent Location

Montz

Owner

Vex

Characters in Location

• Vex