@captainsigge / captainsigge.tumblr.com
Big shout out to @thisaccountisagainstmywill @dustdeepsea @captainsigge @grossestjay and @theycallmeratt for help brainstorming and beta-testing! I stole a few questions off Aer who had the idea to write it as a narrative heist, and Dust had the idea for the security measures!
Big shout out to @thisaccountisagainstmywill @dustdeepsea @captainsigge @grossestjay and @theycallmeratt for help brainstorming and beta-testing! I stole a few questions off Aer who had the idea to write it as a narrative heist, and Dust had the idea for the security measures!
Have a little treat for you drow lovers - a name table for your characters! I was trying to find a name for an OC and came across this post in reddit, thanks to u/dalioftheWoods.
I went ahead and found the Dragon Magazine issue they mention on the post in internet archive here. Issue #267 and page 28.
I am putting the transcript of How It Works text under the cut along with Table 1. Tables for the names are already shared in the reddit post.
Minthara's name can also be found on the this table. Min meaning " lesser, minor, second" and thara meaning "glyph, marker, rune" It's up to you to decide what her name could mean. The Second Glyph, Lesser Rune, Minor Marker.
I've also noticed a few other names for the drows used in the game on the table.
Nere - Neer "core, root, strong"
Sorn - enchanted, spell
Nym - lost, skeleton, skull.
Interestingly, Nym is the masculine version of this name but female drows can use masculine names without issues, unlike males who will be labelled troublemakers.
I don't suppose you've heard of Darkhold. It's been many years since folk whispered the name of the place in fear. After all, the Zhentarim, the organization that gave Darkhold its evil reputation, are by all accounts no longer the cadre of thieves, assassins, and evil wizards they once were. And strangely enough, according to my source among the Zhentarim, that change in character can be traced right back to Darkhold. As it was told to me, it came about like this…
Zhentil Keep was burning. The Citadel of the Ravens lay in ruins. The leadership of the Zhentarim died, were captured by the Shadovar of returned Netheril, or were in flight. The vaunted Black Network was shredded. Cells of Zhentarim agents were cut loose, and without connections or direction, they dissolved or were crushed by rivals. The Zhentarim was no more.
Or so it seemed. There was one stronghold of the Zhents that had not fallen and whose leader never wavered in his dedication to the organization. Darkhold stands deep in the mountains of the Western Heartlands, and there the remnants of the Zhentarim quietly gathered. There they swore allegiance anew to the leader who promised to reforge the organization into something stronger than before.
The man to whom this new Zhentarim owed fealty was a dark knight known only as the Pereghost. The Pereghost had long led the armed forces of the Zhentarim at Darkhold, and his vision for the revival of the organization was along military lines. After a time of recruitment and training, the Zhentarim emerged from Darkhold not as conquerors or as bullying capitalists but as mercenaries willing to serve others instead of forcing them to serve.
In the years that followed, the transformation served the Zhentarim well. They earned a reputation for sterling service, and their ranks swelled. Those who knew of Darkhold thought of it as the headquarters of this new version of the Zhentarim.
Membership in the Zhentarim is difficult to assess, but my source told me they might have greater numbers now than before their organization's fall. New leadership for this larger group has led to a shift in focus. While still a source of capable mercenaries, the Zhentarim have diversified into mercantile pursuits. Zhent guards now ride alongside caravans of their own. And whereas a military organization served it well in the chaotic period after its fall, my source frequently described the Zhentarim as a "family" and leaders as "my good friend."
My source also spoke in awed tones of the Pereghost, as though that figure were still alive and a leader of Darkhold. The Pereghost is never seen without his full armour and a face-covering helm. If it isn't an elf behind the mask, then I suspect a series of humans might have masqueraded as the Pereghost during the past century.
If you're looking to purchase or repair a ship, there is no better place to do it along the Sword Coast than in Orlumbor. The finest shipwrights in the world live here, and their joining work is among the reasons Waterdeep remained so strong for so many years. Even when much of the city's navy lay disabled in its harbour, the strong ships of Orlumbor proved sturdy enough that folk could live on and in them while the city recovered.
Orlumbor was once a simple shipwright island, supplying the city-states of the Sword Coast with vessels for their navies. Waterdeep in particular relied on Orlumbor to supply ships for its defence, making the island a wealthy and well-protected place in return. When Lord Neverember sank Waterdeep's navy in his fight against pirates, he arranged to hire mercenary ships to replace the force, funnelling ill-gotten proceeds into his own pockets, and leaving both the coffers and the shipyards of Orlumbor high and dry. After Neverember's ouster, Waterdeep's business returned, and with it much of the isle's prosperity.
Reaching Orlumbor by ship is tricky because of the rocky, cavernous approach to the harbour. Once a ship navigates the route properly, it can find a wider berth, and any minor damage to the new visitor is happily (and cheaply) repaired by the Orlumbor dockworkers. These are folk born and bred to work on ships. The homes on Orlumbor are built into the caverns of the island, and just as well defended as the docks that are its life's blood.
More than once down the years, Waterdeep's protection has kept Orlumbor from falling to Mintarn, Luskan, Arnn, or Baldur's Gate, all of which have sought to claim the islands and its shipyards for their own. None of these other places ever considered that Orlumbor might simply choose not to build ships for them, but thankfully, it's never come to that. Now, Orlumbor once again serves Waterdeep, in exchange for coin, foodstuffs, and other goods from Faerun.
source: Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide pg. 57-58, top map
If you're looking to purchase or repair a ship, there is no better place to do it along the Sword Coast than in Orlumbor. The finest shipwrights in the world live here, and their joining work is among the reasons Waterdeep remained so strong for so many years. Even when much of the city's navy lay disabled in its harbour, the strong ships of Orlumbor proved sturdy enough that folk could live on and in them while the city recovered.
Orlumbor was once a simple shipwright island, supplying the city-states of the Sword Coast with vessels for their navies. Waterdeep in particular relied on Orlumbor to supply ships for its defence, making the island a wealthy and well-protected place in return. When Lord Neverember sank Waterdeep's navy in his fight against pirates, he arranged to hire mercenary ships to replace the force, funnelling ill-gotten proceeds into his own pockets, and leaving both the coffers and the shipyards of Orlumbor high and dry. After Neverember's ouster, Waterdeep's business returned, and with it much of the isle's prosperity.
Reaching Orlumbor by ship is tricky because of the rocky, cavernous approach to the harbour. Once a ship navigates the route properly, it can find a wider berth, and any minor damage to the new visitor is happily (and cheaply) repaired by the Orlumbor dockworkers. These are folk born and bred to work on ships. The homes on Orlumbor are built into the caverns of the island, and just as well defended as the docks that are its life's blood.
More than once down the years, Waterdeep's protection has kept Orlumbor from falling to Mintarn, Luskan, Arnn, or Baldur's Gate, all of which have sought to claim the islands and its shipyards for their own. None of these other places ever considered that Orlumbor might simply choose not to build ships for them, but thankfully, it's never come to that. Now, Orlumbor once again serves Waterdeep, in exchange for coin, foodstuffs, and other goods from Faerun.
source: Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide pg. 57-58, top map
Hello folks, a new AU long fic for you.
AU set in Luskan 1480DR. Rugan has assumed leadership over the Coin Spinners gang and taken the name Clearlight. When a Waterdhavian noble comes snooping around for Illuskan Netherese relics under the gang's headquarters Rugan steps up to put them in their place. What he instead finds is the chance at an amazing payday and an unexpected prize.
This AU is straight out of the filthy mind of @fistfuloftarenths. She head canoned the idea of Rugan of Clearlight based off the screenshots of @captainsigge. Fistful also came up with a lot of the scene ideas, so I'm bordering on being her ghostwriter at this point. Also thank you to @dustdeepsea for helping me with the title and summary. Big shout out to all three for beta reading for me. These fics are pretty much written for the Zhentil Keep Perverts at this point.
Banner by the lovely @coreene
Chapter One below the cut or here on AO3
It's a good thing that Gale got out of Waterdeep when he did, because that city has been going through it. Excerpts from the Forgotten Realms wiki page about the year BG3 is set in:
A conflict between the Xanathar's Thieves' Guild and the Zhentarim in Waterdeep escalates into a street war.
A skirmish between members of the Zhentarim and the Gralhund family becomes known by Waterdhavian broadsheets as the Gralhund Villa Bloodbath.
A clone of Manshoon appears in Waterdeep and strives to exert control over the local Zhentarim from his base at Kolat Towers.
Waterdeep's City Watch is overwhelmed by violence throughout the city, leading to factions stepping in to help fight gangs and monsters, including the Emerald Enclave, the Harpers, the Lords' Alliance, the Order of the Gauntlet, and even the Zhentarim.
The Burnt Tongue Cult begins kidnapping travelers along the Trade Way between Waterdeep and Daggerford.
The ghost of a girl named Sarah manifests in Candlekeep alongside her journal, which seems to detail disturbing information about Lord Viallis Yellowcrest of Waterdeep.
A young bronze dragon named Zelifarn takes up residence in the Waterdeep Harbor.
Dagult Neverember sends agents to Waterdeep in hopes of reclaiming the half a million gold dragons he embezzled during his tenure as Open Lord.
Gale finally returns home from his adventure and his mother's only response to his tale of woe is that he'd picked a good time to take a vacation because the city has been positively dreadful while he was away.
Berdusk, the Jewel of the Vale, a Harper stronghold—just another city on the caravan route. Wherein: The Gate crew try to teach Olly some life lessons; Nora decides how much danger she truly wants in her life; it's a strange feeling to be young in a world that wants you to grow up as soon as possible.
aka Dust gets way too deep into D&D lore research, and writes a YA romance
I feel like I need to preface that this is very different from most of my other explicit work, so if you're here looking for smut, you will be disappointed. The characters are of age, but young—in their late teens/early 20s. The raciest thing that happens is a kiss. Be forewarned!
p.s. this is Olly, in case you forgot :)
photo credit @captainsigge
Fandom: Baldur's Gate 3, Forgotten Realms (D&D)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Relationships: Olly (Baldur's Gate)/Original Female Character
Additional Tags: Zhentarim (Dungeons & Dragons), Mistaken Identity, Young Love, Drunken Kissing
Read on AO3 (3190 words)
