City Hall was the chief administrative building for the City Council of Zazesspur in the 14th century DR.[2][3]
Location[]
This building was situated in the central Market Square of Zazesspur.[2]
Structure[]
City Hall was a very large and ornate structure[3] with steps leading up into it,[4] though its architecture was considered to be archaic by the 1360's DR.[3] The building also had a rear tradesmen's entrance, along Needle Street.[5]
Interior[]
The building was divided into two floors, plus a cellar where some barrels of wine were kept. The lobby was spacious,[5] very cathedral-like,[3] and decked out in marble floor[5] of black and white in a parquetry pattern. It had a pointed vault, high overhead, and windows ran down the sides in a clerestory fashion.[3] In each of the southern corners of the building stood stairs leading up to the second floor.[5]
The central room before it was the large council chamber,[5] behind a large pair of beaten bronze doors,[3] where the Council of Lords sat behind long tables plus a large dais at its northern end. Further beyond this was a carpeted smoking room where the Councillors could relax, a kitchen that was equipped with the best stoves and utensils available, a pantry where whole pig carcasses could be hung from meat hooks alongside shelves of fruits and cheese, and a banquet hall where the head of the Council of Lords would hold feasts. This last room was richly decorated, complete with several fine paintings and crystal chandeliers that hung over its large table.[5]
The second floor of City Hall housed its various offices and the city's court room.[5] This room featured rows of benches for permitted onlookers and at the head of the hall a low dais that ran from wall to wall. The seating at this dais was controlled through a rotation schedule that was as equally rigid and as it was cryptic.[3]
History[]
In the Year of Shadows, 1358 DR, a month after the Time of Troubles had concluded, the Knights of the Shield sought to exploit the lingering chaos and the pro-monarchy movement in Tethyr. Inselm Hhune, a member of the City Council and one of the leaders of the Knights,[6] had spent several years at that point using his natural charisma and ring of human influence to amass the trust and support of Zazesspur's citizenry,[7] scheming to have the public pressure the Council of Lords into proclaiming him the "Crown Prince of Zazesspur". The one obstacle to his grander plans was Ernest Gallowglass, the mayor of Ithmong,[6] the second largest city in Tethyr.[8]
Ernest shared similar despotic ambitions for Tethyr,[6][9] having rose to power through underhanded means and planning to one day take the nation over through military might.[9] But unlike Inshelm, Ernest's ambitions were suspected and put him under surveillance by the Company of the Eight. In an effort to an incite an uprising against the political opponent, the Knights of the Shield stationed a group of wizards in the abandoned Freel Manor, led by former Red Wizard conjurer Minshak Keseri, and had them lure various monsters into the area around Ithmong.[6]
The wizards planted ten magical devices called Thayan beacons within the ground, at a distance of 30 miles (48,000 meters) from the city. They also used their magic to summon elementals and lesser baatezu in the areas not covered by the beacons.[10] These efforts succeeded in making both farming and trade untenable for Ithmong,[11] leading merchants like Zarack Shool to reroute to the Trade Way.[10] With winter on the horizon, Ernest had no choice but to instate food rationing and consider the possibility of putting martial law into effect, for the threat of riots breaking out loomed overhead. Inselhm planned to stationed himself as a savior after an inevitable uprising, bring Ithmong food supplies and dispatching its monsters. He would then invite Ithmong to join Zazesspur in a "New Kingdom of Tethyr" and believed that the rest of Tethyr would inevitably fall to heel after achieving such a union.[6]
The Company of the Eight was too overstretched at the time to investigate the sudden rise in monsters,[6] but members Paddy Stoutfellow and Sylvanus Moondrop decided it was best to hire another group of adventurers to do so for them and put a stop to whatever was causing it so that food supplies could reach the city.[11] After one or two weeks of travel, the adventurers made their way to the Ithmong area and the Freel Manor.[10] Inside they discovered a map marking the placement of the Thayan beacons and their range of influence, a list of command words for each beacon, and a scroll signed by Inhelm Hhune that exposed his scheme.[12] After putting an end to all of the wizards housed in the manor, the adventurers rushed to return to Zazesspur.[2]
Having learned of what transpired at the manor through scrying, Inhelm Hhune prepared for the adventurers in advanced and even had wine barrels brought up from City Hall's cell in anticipation of a celebratory banquet.[5] When they finally arrived back in the city they found numerous banners strung across the inns and houses of Zazesspur, all reading "Hhune for Crown Prince" or "Hhune! The People's Choice." The streets were flooded with a massive crowd of people, all converging towards City Hall. When asked what was going on, some citizens said that the Council of Lords was expected to hand rulership over to Lord Hhune within the hour.[2] At the head of the enthusiastic crowd, guards were standing watch at the doors to City Hall, keeping people back, while at the tradesmen's entrance four men-at-arms stood watch. The adventurers managed to find a way to break into the building past the guards and overcome the Knights of the Shield that were stationed outside the doors to the council chamber, leading the irate Speaker Aldegust to bang his gavel and demand to know "What is the meaning of this intrusion?".[5]
Lord Hhune lunges forward, prepared to "fight like a caged tiger", whilst Aldegust sits aghast.
Making their way inside, the adventurers tried to make their case against Lord Hhune, who denounced them all as liars. When they attempted to pass out what they had discovered at the manor, Lord Hhune lunged at them,[5] recognizing that the game was up.[7] The Councillors kept back, screaming in panic.[5] The adventurers managed to severely wound Lord Hhune in this battle, provoking him into fleeing through the aid of his boots of speed. With the battle over, Aldegust was finely free to pour over the evidence and intensely question the adventurers. They managed to convince him of Lord Hhune's guilt and he stepped outside City Hall to announce the turns of events. Initially there was disbelief, with citizens denouncing him as a liar, but before long the crowd dispersed.[7][note 1]
In the Year of the Wave, 1364 DR, the ruler of Zazesspur, Pasha Balik, was found in his bed assassinated with Knights of the Shield coins resting on his eyes and covered by a scarf. Following this his residence, the Minaret Palace, began being used by the Council of Lords as a central meeting hall.[13] However, City Hall would continue to see use.[3]
In the Year of the Shield, 1367 DR, Countess Zaranda Star was brought manacled before the Council in City Hall to answer for accusations of sedition.[3]
Appendix[]
Notes[]
- ↑ As Inhelm Hhune is still alive in sourcebooks taking place after this adventure, it must be assumed that he managed to escape this fight alive.
Appearances[]
References[]
- ↑ Richard Green (November/December 1992). “A Blight On The Land”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #38 (TSR, Inc.) (38)., pp. 16–17.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Richard Green (November/December 1992). “A Blight On The Land”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #38 (TSR, Inc.) (38)., p. 16.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 Victor Milán (October 1995). War in Tethyr. (TSR, Inc), chap. 24, p. ?. ISBN 0-7869-0184-5.
- ↑ Victor Milán (October 1995). War in Tethyr. (TSR, Inc), chap. 26, p. ?. ISBN 0-7869-0184-5.
- ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 Richard Green (November/December 1992). “A Blight On The Land”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #38 (TSR, Inc.) (38)., p. 17.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 Richard Green (November/December 1992). “A Blight On The Land”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #38 (TSR, Inc.) (38)., p. 5.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Richard Green (November/December 1992). “A Blight On The Land”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #38 (TSR, Inc.) (38)., p. 18.
- ↑ Richard Green (November/December 1992). “A Blight On The Land”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #38 (TSR, Inc.) (38)., p. 8.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Richard Green (November/December 1992). “A Blight On The Land”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #38 (TSR, Inc.) (38)., p. 9.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Richard Green (November/December 1992). “A Blight On The Land”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #38 (TSR, Inc.) (38)., p. 7.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Richard Green (November/December 1992). “A Blight On The Land”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #38 (TSR, Inc.) (38)., p. 6.
- ↑ Richard Green (November/December 1992). “A Blight On The Land”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #38 (TSR, Inc.) (38)., p. 15.
- ↑ Steven E. Schend (August 1997). “Book One: Tethyr”. In Roger E. Moore ed. Lands of Intrigue (TSR, Inc.), pp. 71–72. ISBN 0-7869-0697-9.