The Trumpeter 2-9

The Trumpeter Vol.II, Number 9 was released in September of 1998 and was an in-universe periodical that combined highlights of the Living City campaigns and RPGA announcements.

The Eleint of the issue of the Ravens Bluff Trumpeter was produced by the editor-in-chief Fred Faber, Underdark news column penned by Clio Hesperin, and the society editor, Jacinth Moonspring.

Content Highlights

 * Election Results
 * Underdark Exploration Begins
 * Golden Shield Company Sold

City Holds Elections - Results Final

 * By Fred Faber, editor-in-chief p. 1

The Ravens Bluff Trumpeter published the results of 1371 DR election of the Deputy Mayor and the Lord Speaker of the Council of Lords. Members of the Council of Lords showed displeasure with the edict that made the position an electoral versus an appointment as it was in prior years. Despite the positions being voted by the citizens of Ravens Bluff, the Councilmembers were satisfied with the results.

The Deputy Mayor's position was won by Lord Silverfox, a priest of Waukeen and the master merchant of Potions, Lotions and Notions of Ravens Bluff. He was to give up the master merchant's position in order to take office, but he promised that Lord Silverfox would personally audit all work done by his associates. The second popular candidate was Harmony of Milil, followed by a write-in candidate – Rictor. Lord Silverfox's victory came as a sort of surprise as his campaign was not the center of the priest's attention, and his stall during the city's Summer Festival and its profits were prioritized over winning votes.

Lady Anna Kara Des Solara won the electoral race for the seat of the Lord Speaker of the Council of Lords. She was believed to be the first member of the Mystran clergy to take a leadership position in Ravens Bluff. Anna Kara's race was a close one and required a recount of ballots. Two candidates who came in the second and third were Lord Torik and Lady D.

One disgraceful incident in this election cycle involved Jena Blacktree. Many witnessed her alleged attempts to buy votes during that year's Summer Festival, and thanks to eyewitness testimonies, she was being searched for by the Ravens Bluff Guards, even though solicitation of votes in Ravens Bluff was not illegal. Ironically enough, paying for the votes with fool's gold was indeed an illegal act. She gave out 10,000 gps in fool's gold. The priestess of Mystra was charged with counterfeiting and fraud. Jena Blacktree's relation to the Blacktree family of the Living City was unclear. However, it was evident that her involvement was the reason for the surprising number of write-in votes for Rictor.

Letter in Response to the Elections

 * By Lord Alexi Sharpeye p. 1-2

Following the election, Ravens Bluff Trumpeter published an open letter from Lord Alexi Sharpeye, Commander of the Fort Aleister. The letter praised the Living City's efforts to promote democracy but was saddened by the corruption that was on display for the entire Faerûn. Alexi listed a number of witnessed incidents that undermined the electoral process, including the purchasing of votes by many candidates via fool's gold, money, enchanted items, and even future positions within the administration. Bribing was a major issue as well, according to Lord Sharpeye. He listed bribes given out to ballot distributors, ballot security clerks, and ballot counters. Once again, this was done by many candidates. Magic users were also seen using charm spells to sway the opinions of voters. Lastly, threats and extortion to force folk to vote a certain way became commonplace in Ravens Bluff.

Lord Alexi Sharpeye found all of the above incidents disturbing, stating that these practices end up in the richest or the most corrupt to rise to the top. He theorized that this would eventually lead foreign powers to start pumping money into Ravens Bluff elections to sway the results and promote puppet politicians to power. He believed that voting should be unaffected and unswayed, each voter casting a vote for the candidate they hope would do the best job.

Finally, Lord Alexi Sharpeye proposed for the city of Ravens Bluff to annul the election results and have those still willing to re-enter the race to participate in a new election supervised by a non-partisan election committee from Procampur. Alexi also claimed that he wrote the open letter demanding justice rather than having any interest in any of the candidates running.

According to the editorial desk of The Trumpeter, Lady Mayor Amber Lynn Thoden was informed of and investigated these allegations. But, unless Lady Mayor declared the election invalid, the results stood.

A Candidate Speaks Out

 * By Trish Brooks p. 2

Trish Brooks of The Trumpeter interviewed one of the candidates, Sir Tyrell Darkmoon. She caught him leaving his lodgings at the Seven Tigers Inn. In the interview, Tyrell voiced his confidence in Lady Anna Kara Des Solara and Lord Silverfox and wished them Tymora's favor. When asked if he held a grudge against Lord Silverfox, Sir Darkmoon answered with a definitive no, voicing his confidence in the people's of Ravens Bluff will. Darkmoon did note his disappointment that the electorate seemed to care more about commerce in the Living City over freedom and safety. Trish Brooks asked Sir Darkmoon about his future plans, to which the candidate replied that he was planning on venturing into the Underdark to aid in search of the way to end the Heart of Bane crisis in Ravens Bluff. Apart from that, he was vague about other endeavorers on behalf of the Bluff before riding off on his warhorse.

City Quiet, No Tanar'ri Attacks This Month

 * By Fred Faber p. 2

On the bright side of the news, Fred Faber reported that attacks on Ravens Bluff by the denizens of the Outer Planes seemingly had come to an end, temporarily at least. There were no reports of creatures from either Abyss nor Baator appearing in the Living City, to the citizens' relief.

Underdark Exploration Begins

 * By Lord Charles Blacktree IV p. 2

The Trumpeter published an official announcement penned by Lord Charles Blacktree IV, who supervised the start of the expedition into the depths of the Underdark in search of the ancient Orb of Protection – the weapon that would end the Heart of Bane's threat to the city and planar attacks on Ravens Bluff. The first group to descend consisted of wagon-fulls of supplies and explorers for whom it would take over a week's journey to reach the future settlement site. This was possible thanks to the valiant efforts of the Living City's adventurers, who cleared the path for the expedition of all monsters and dangers and brought back invaluable reconnaissance data. The adventurers' accords brought back information of strange new priesthoods and new types of dragons that inhabited the Underdark underneath the Vast, which, in turn, affected the expedition's defensive plans.

Lord Blacktree planned the next two months of exploration out, with the new Underdark settlement being the expedition's heart and headquarters. He had fully staffed the defense and exploration branches of the expedition, as the endeavor's timeline was far from clear. Neither the sages nor scouts knew where the Orb of Protection was hidden, and it would take much time to be uncovered. However, the Underdark expedition was urgent – the Heart of Bane reportedly began affecting the city in more ways than just unwanted demonic interest. Druids of the Bluff were worried about animals being born twisted and deformed by the evil artifact's influence. Lord Charles Blacktree hoped his expedition would end the threat before the corruption spread on the humanoids of Ravens Bluff.

Soulstorm Abates, Threat May Be Over?

 * By Morris Teltree p. 2-3

With the strange magical phenomenon called Soulstorm beginning to fade, the Ministry of Art and the Wizards Guild made a joint announcement regarding the prolonged effects of the magical veil over Ravens Bluff. The sages and mages of both organizations believed that Soulstorm was over. Still, they continued studying the phenomenon and tried to determine if it left any sort of lasting effect on the Living City. Despite that, the Ministry and the Guild continued to enforce a ban on conjuration for at least one more month in fear of unexpected consequences of summonings. Divination magic barrier was gone with the storm's end, which was a great relief for the Clerical Circle of Ravens Bluff.

The list of banned arcane spells was as followed: mage armor, cantrip, find familiar, grease, mount, unseen servant, glitterdust, melf's acid arrow, Quimby's enchanting gourmet, summon swarm, flame arrow, ghost armor, monster summoning, phantom steed, Caligarde's claws, sepia snake sigil, Evard's black tentacles, conjure elemental, Leonmund's secret chest, Mordenkainen's faithful hound, summon shadow, conjure animals, ensnarement, invisible stalker, and Forest's fiery constrictor. Cleric's spells that were banned by the city were: call upon faith, draw upon holy might, summon insects, abjure, animal summoning, call woodland beings, dispel evil, aerial servant, animate objects, conjure elementals, wall of thorns, weather summoning, word of recall, control vapor, sentry of Helm, exaltation, summon spectator, boon of Lathander, shield of Lathander, battle song, and luck bolt.

Those individuals who violated the ban were fined 1,000 gp per spell level, the caster's spellbooks were confiscated and destroyed.

The Checkmate Lists His Demands

 * By Tessa Desmodona p. 3

This column was an update on a possible threat to Ravens Bluff that materialized a month prior. This threat was someone who called themselves the Checkmate. This individual followed up on their first letter mailed to the offices of Ravens Bluff Trumpeter with another that was to be printed in the broadsheet, this time listing demands and explaining their intentions. The letter was published in its entirety, addressing the citizens of Ravens Bluff.

The letter began with Checkmate acknowledging the departure of Ceraphane, a protector of the Living City, and was amused by the Golden Roosters being sent to patrol the city streets, something Ceraphane equated to "sending lambs to the slaughter." This individual also mocked the city over its efforts to recover the Orb of Protection to once and for all end the threat of the Heart of Bane, insinuating that this would not end the Bluff's troubles. Checkmate mocked the city's population of adventurers and claimed that they would not be able to stop Checkmate's cold and calculated attack on the Ravenaar temples that could be carried out "with a blink of an eye." The only way to avoid this future attack was to follow Checkmate's demands: each temple in the city would soon receive individual tasks delivered to them via messengers. Failure to comply would end the temple.

Temple of Lathander Construction Delayed

 * By Tessa Desmodona p. 3

The article talked about recent complications in rebuilding the ruined temple of Lathander as the new Halls of the Glorious Dawn. The original temple was destroyed relatively recently by the Circle of Four. According to the Head Contractor Raphieonas, the construction paused due to the low quality materials purchased. However, Raphieonas placed a new order with the supplier and the construction was to resume. By some of the laborers' accounts, the materials Raphieonas was trying to find were extremely rare and possessed magical properties, but no specifics were provided to the Trumpeter. The Halls of the Glorious Dawn would be one of the largest buildings in Ravens Bluff after its completion.

Submitted Apology

 * By Sir Justin Time p. 3

Another letter published in the Trumpeter's Eleint issue was an open apology letter from Sir Justin Time. The apology was issued to all citizens of Ravens Bluff with the full backing of the Keepers of the Mystic Flame, over Justin's recent actions whilst performing a covert mission for his order. His actions, reportedly, offended some.

Strange Happenings in the Dock District

 * By Jennylou Brightleaf p. 3

Jennylou Brightleaf reported on the recent eyewitness accounts of Lord Lorien Keltree Darkarrow in the wharf district of Ravens Bluff being in the company of adventurers. But that was not the strange part. Lorien Keltree Darkarrow's skin was reported to be red, and a horse's tail was growing out of Lord's arse. He was accompanied by Joydancer Tellasi of Lliira who also acted in a strange manner, seemingly being a foul mood, she berated a mother in mourning over the death of her son. She was heard insensitively screaming, "He's DEAD, DEAD, DEAD! Get over it!" When Jennylou Brightleaf contacted Lord Darkarrow, she found his appearance to be quite mundane, and he claimed to had just had a bad day. However, Tellasi of Lliira was unreachable, and her temple claimed she was in seclusion at the time. Some rumors claimed that a strange gypsy curse was to blame for the strange happenings in the dock district.

New Bands Attacking Ravens Bluff

 * By Jacinth Moonspring p. 3-4

The next article noted the recent death of The Cobalt Flame and announced that the musical scene in the Bluff was being invigorated by the formation of a new band and a single well-known bard, an aspiring politician who recently lost an election – Harmony of Milil. She assembled a choir of romantic youths. In contrast with the Harmony of Milil's group was The Burning Truth, a rambunctious band of drummers accompanied by heavy pyrotechnics. The Burning Truth consisted of Aranwe Nauril on vocals and bongos, Javert Lorrell on chanting and percussion, Jennith Maelstrom on chanting and a kettle drum, Gnorris Kneebreaker who played a bass drum (from within) and was in charge of pyrotechnics, Demonius Othello Tiburian Lethario III who played a Kara-Turan war gong and manned fire, and lastly, the band's "religious advisor" – Dirtbeard, who also played koto drums. According to Jacinth Moonspring, The Burning Truth was looking for another singer, or, as she put it in print, "a true singer." Jacinth also complimented the band's grand pyrotechnics and found the music to be quite enjoyable.

The new band was in a bit of a brewing storm, however, as they worshiped Kossuth, the God of Fire, and their performances openly venerated the deity without approval or authorization from the Clerical Circle. Jacinth did note that despite the performances of Harmony of Milil being veneration of Milil and The Burning Truth's – worship of Kossuth, for most of those who listened to their music – it was just that – music.

Golden Shield Trading Company Sold

 * By Candren Pallinthe p. 7

The biggest news in the Living City's mercantile community was the Golden Shield Trading Company's changing ownership. Sir Jacen Tachi, the coster's previous owner held a long auction and despite many bids from large trading companies, the final bid that won the auction came from Lady D of the Temple of Sharess and Drew the Gold of the Temple of Waukeen. However, the amount was never disclosed.

Under the new ownership, the coster would be renamed to Goldeye Trading Company but would continue dealing in a vast variety of non-magical goods. Lady D and Drew the Gold pledged to turn the Goldeye Trading Company into the largest trading company in the Vast. The new owners organized new trade routes to Zakhara, Maztica, Shou Lung, as well as other exotic locales.

The grand opening ceremony was announced to take place during that year's Andonian Games with fully developed and rolled out new catalogs and services.

Clerical Circle Investigating Guardians

 * By Gilbert Gottlied II p. 9-10

Following an incident that involved the Guardians of Paldir Isle slaying a group of adventurers and raising them right after using unknown spells from some other plane of existence, the Clerical Circle opened an investigation into the propitiators, with pressure from the Mayor of Ravens Bluff. The Clerical Circle's investigation proved that the weakness and loss of vitality caused by the strange raising magic was temporary. It was advised to all affected to refrain from strenuous physical activities for about a month.

During the same incident, the adventurers recovered numerous artifacts from a tomb of the Paldir Isle. Many of them began waining in power after being removed from the tomb itself; however, a single item retained all of its magic – an ever burning torch.

Letter to the Editor

 * By Doctor Aiden Black p. 10

Yet another open letter printed in the issue of the Trumpeter came from Doctor Aiden Black, a cleric of Azuth and a Circle Initiate of the Wizards Guild. He expressed disdain against most of the other letters printed by the broadsheet over the course of previous months. Aiden called the authors of those letters "bleeding heart liberals and soft-willed simpletons," accusing the Trumpeter of being predisposed in favor of such opinions. Doctor insisted that disenchanters, some of whom found their way into the city through the Grand Griffon Inn a year ago, posed a real threat to Ravens Bluff and claimed that the Wizards Guild agreed with him on the matter. He berated Squire Hollybow's opinion on the humane approach and ranted about the inaction typical for her kind. Aiden Black continued accusing the Knights of the City and adventurers of mishandling the situation as the said disenchanted "rampaged" across the inn as others refused to attack it, and some even had the audacity to pet the magical beast. Doctor praised his own initiative in response as he conjured servant creatures to dispose of the disenchanter. Lastly, the letter's author continued denouncing all who tried to protect the creature, showing "sobbing ignorance" and lack of any "intelligent discussion" in the aftermath. Doctor Black stressed that disenchanters were monstrous products of a mad mage's manipulations, just like other deadly beasts like owlbears and hook horrors. Any wizard who did not seek to rid Faerûn of all such creatures could not call themselves a true mage.

Activity at the Clan Compound

 * By Fred "Porky" Porcine p. 10

Another piece of news involved the compound of the adventuring Clan Shado. After observing the compound, Fred "Porky" Porcine came to the conclusion that the clan was preparing for something major. Yet he failed to find any corroborating statements from the clan members. Fred spent time in the park across the compound, picnicking, and witnessed at least five wagons full of supplies driven into the Clan Shado's abode. When he tried to bride a drover with alcohol, Fred was met with a less than enthusiastic response. At a later date, Fred "Porky" Porcine interviewed the Clan Shado spokesperson Clarisa Half-Elven, who refused to comment on the activities and stressed that any and all rumors that Clan Shado was preparing to leave Ravens Bluff over the crisis caused by the Heart of Bane, were false.

Elminster Visits Wizards Guild

 * By Nadd Parker p. 10

Lastly, this month was notable for a celebrity's visit to the new Wizards Guild facility. Elminster Aumar of Shadowdale was given a tour and shown the magical protections of the compounds. The Old Mage offered the Wizards Guild some suggestions on architectural and magical improvements. Additionally, Elminster personally sponsored a group of young mage applicants, all of whom were rumored to have elven blood and had their roots in the Dalelands. The three new members were Arroc, Rafim Cinder, and Glithander Ej-lahona.

Later the same evening, Elminster attended a closed-door discussion with Chancellor Simon Regulus of the extraplanar threat unleashed on Ravens Blue by the Heart of Bane. Nadd Parker reported on many other meetings on the topic, continuing into the early hours of the next morning. Many mysterious visitors arrived to participate in them. Some thought that the visitors were from Harpers. Elminster graced the Trumpeter with an interview on the topic of meetings but was secretive, revealing naught.

RPGA Materials

 * Rogue Gallery: Alexander Theodore Vuchovich, Kalib Goldweaver, Alexi Sharpeye p. 4-7
 * Wizards Guild - FAQ p. 7-9
 * Campaign News by Daniel S. Donnelly p. 11