The Arcanaeum

Perhaps the most identifiable landmark of the Starboard Metro and a frequent subject of cheap art for tourists, the Arcanaeum (arr-KANE-ee-um) is the commercial wing of the mage towers of Anthur-Ro.
Surrounded by beautiful and fragrant lavender cherry blossom trees and blueberry bushes, the Arcanaeum is a glass-and-obsidian structure whose windows shimmer in shifting hues like a soap bubble. It soars alone above the small park in which it resides, several city blocks from the nearest structure.
It is a mystery to outsiders exactly what goes on in the upper floors of the Arcanaeum, though it is common knowledge that the windows are frequently being replaced. The ribbed obsidian awning over the entranceway seems to be at least as much a means of protecting customers from the occasional falling shard as it is from the rain.
Its welcoming environs are a very pleasant offset for the extraordinarily tight security within the structure, which often unnerves first-time visitors.

Commercial Structure

Anthur-Ro goes through a lot of material components. Like, a lot. The Circle discovered long ago that it was much easier -- and safer! -- to rely on adventurers having gems and magical crap to drop off on the Shell than it was to organize its own adventuring parties, and accordingly set up a trading-post: surplus magical items produced by students and adepts for valuable non-magical ones. Over time, this trade became so lucrative (particularly given the average adventurer's deficiency of business sense) that the trading-post became a number of consolidated business enterprises under one roof:

• The Arcanaeum proper (or "The Warehouse", "The General Store" or "Fantasy Costco"): a marble counter set in front of crystal antimagic bars. A gnome of the Circle, typically a washout journeyman, mans the counter flanked by generally amiable but imposing mercenaries. The counter staffer takes customer orders from a monthly printed inventory sheet, which can be delivered to customers' homes upon request. Browsing is not permitted for security reasons. Prices are not negotiable, as anything that is not selling well is relegated to the Lottery Chamber.


• The Lottery Chamber (or "The Clearinghouse" or "The Dump"): a popular tourist hangout due to its unique and impressive architecture, the Lottery Chamber has the appearance of having been carved roughly out of pink crystal, with benches and tables having been shaped out of the glistening material. Gears, cogs and pipes of unfathomable purpose run in and out of the crystal walls in every direction. A well-reputed cafe serves lunch from a kiosk in the corner and at the rear wall is another staffed counter with antimagic crystal bars -- this one with an unusual eight-foot-long steel drawer similar to a mail slot built into the wall alongside it. Above the drawer is a shifting die with hundreds of faces, built into the wall but capable of being spun freely. For the price of 50g, the die will be activated and a customer can spin to obtain the "junk" magical item in the clearance bin tagged with that number. Items of higher quality are tagged at every 25th number to encourage customers to spin. In general, these items are worth more than 50g -- sometimes substantially more -- but there is no guarantee that they will suit the needs of the customer. Not everyone wants a perfectly effective Wand of Mimic Taming.


• The Auction House: The most powerful items for sale at the Arcanaeum are so valuable that they cannot be easily priced, and thus are put up for a monthly auction. Items that do not sell (which are most of them) are returned to the mage towers and placed back in rotation. A credit check with the Mirrorblack Bank confirming a minimum 25,000g balance is necessary in order to be granted entry to the auction chamber. A traditional Gnomish dinner with senior mages is served prior to the auction, (presumably to fling out detect evil and good spells in every direction) and this has not yet proven enough of a disincentive that the practice has been discontinued. The Circle guarantees safe delivery as part of its service but then disclaims responsibility for any burglary thereafter.


• The Services Counter: Infamously slow with a long queue just to get into the admittedly nice waiting room, the Services Counter provides the general public access to Anthur-Ro's commercial services. Generally this involves enchanting contracts or credit notes, cursing or de-cursing items, enchanting and identifying items, providing medical or other arcane services, or -- most popularly -- "Bottling": Oa's most efficient means of long-distance transport. Just be sure to set the day aside and to leave first thing in the morning.


• Intake (or simply "Reghyxesh", or the "Salon of Broken Dreams"... okay, no one calls it that): In a setup similar to the Arcanaeum proper on the opposite side of the building, the maimed runt of a Beholder Reghyxesh (REG-ee-sesh) inspects and makes purchases of magical items and reagents for the Circle. Adventurers without private magical item fences are often frustrated by his otherwise seeming to be the only game in town and exploiting that apparent monopoly to the hilt.

This Month's Menu

Homebrew Item Descriptions

Several of the items on each month's menu are not standard Fifth Edition items. Some are Dis Boxes, and the descriptions of the rest of the items on offer are listed below:

• Coriander's Clock
• Dithering Dice
• Ornithopter
• Staff of the Extraplanar Bear
• Wand of the Tentacular Spectacular

All other items should be available by Googling its name thus: "dnd 5e brooch of shielding".

Type

Shop, Magic

Parent Location

Starboard Metro