MAGIC

“I was just walking past the tower when it turned into green slime and poured down into the sewers. Try explaining that to the watch captain.”

—Cholak, city watch rookie

Social Class: Upper.

Power Center: Often—magical (spellcasters guild).

Buildings: Exotic trades (18%; 3% magic item dealers), fine trades (29%; 9% spellcasters for hire), temple (Boccob or Wee Jas), fine food (8%), fine services (15%), fine residences (28%).

Description: Magic districts are as varied as the arcane casters who dwell there. Some buildings are luxurious but mundane, barely distinguishable from noble estates. Others fl aunt impossibly tall and slender towers, float above the earth, consist of impossible or malleable shapes, or feature even stranger sights. Pedestrians appear ordinary in the more subdued magic districts, while the streets in overtly arcane districts might be traveled by outsiders, elementals, undead, and fey. Visitors experience unique sounds and scents—even if no individual stimulus is alien, the bizarre combination can be disorienting.

Special: The presence of a magic district increases a city’s gp limit by 25%, though it does not affect available assets. This adjustment reflects the higher-than-normal availability of expensive magic items. Multiple magic districts in a city do not increase its gp limit further.

Plot Hook: A cabal of powerful wizards has declared the magic district an independent city-within-a-city, and refuses to acknowledge any rule of law other than its own. The city’s ruler cannot afford to let this situation stand. Not only is it an affront to the city as a whole, but the loss of income from the magic district would be a major economic blow. In addition, many of the district’s inhabitants do not support the cabal. The city cannot muster sufficient forces to confront the rogue wizards. The lord needs a group of stalwarts capable of navigating the district to deal with the problem—without destroying the area, or the city around it.