NPCs of Jurgenville

This list gives the NPCs that the party has or could deal with in Jurgenville. The description for each NPC will include a line on appearance, a line on personality, then any facts the party knows about the individual. Some PCs have specific knowledge about some NPCs. In that case the fact will be preceded by the name of the PC who knows the information.

If you want to jump to a specific location click on one of these links:

City Organizations:   The City Complex     The City Watch     City Council    
Inns and Taverns:   The Glowing Helm     The Maiden's Kiss     The Ogre's Skull     The Ogre's Eyeballs     The Lady's Spear     The Flaming Mug     The Avalanche    
Stores and Shops:   Neworion Trading Company     Shops     Geryal's General Store     Dry Goods Store     Sembian Dry Goods Store    
Temples:   Temple of Athena     Temple of Tymora     All-Faith's Temple    
The Mining Companies:   Cormyrian Mining Company     Jurgenville Mining Company     Sembian Mining Company    
Powerful Groups:   The Mage's Guild     Midnight's Group     Laila's Retreat     The Truth Seeker's Compound     Thieves' Guild    
Other:  : Background information on power factions    

City Organizations

City Complex

This is the heart of town, where most business is conducted. One of the strange things that the city offers is a "bank", a place to store money, exchange goods, and even "invest" in local interests. Loans from the bank are available to individuals setting up a business in town.

City Watch

Before the Battle of Jurgenville the defense of the town was made up of the members of Enigma. But even those powerful figures couldn't stop the waves of humanoids that swept into town. As a result the city council decided to form an official military force. Due to political pressure from both Cormyr and Sembia it was decided to make the force more police than army, and thus the City Watch was born. Tessalynne, one of the city's founding members, was elected to be the commander.

The watch serves two main purposes. During peacetime they enforce the laws in town (there aren't many) and try to find a balance between keeping the peace and letting the miners blow off a little steam. During wartime the members of the watch serve as leaders of the City Militia.

Members of the Watch are armed with narrow clubs and long swords. They patrol in groups of four. One in every group also carries a net in a magical net-throwing rod. The net is coated with a sticky contact poison that renders a person calm unless they save vs poison at +2. Each patrol is lead by one of the sergeants. There is normally one patrol out wandering around and another on-call at the Watch HQ.

After the recent Battle of Red Vale it was decided that Jurgenville needed a standing army, whether Cormyr and Sembia liked it or not. The City Guard is only a few weeks old and the council is still sorting out its role and duties.

City Council

So far the power struggle between the three mining companies has remained peaceful. This is in no small part due to the efforts of the City Council. Members of the council are responsible for creating the laws governing the area. The Jurgenville group holds a strong grip on power in the Council, but the Cormyrians and Sembians both have a voice. There are twelve members. Four seats are permanent and given to the mining companies (in bold) The other eight are elected every two years. One of the former members of the Truth Seekers (Sane) was recently elected to a seat on the council. Some say the thieves' guild orchestrated the election.

Inns and Taverns

The Glowing Helm

The Glowing Helm was one of the first buildings constructed in Jurgenville in over a century. For the first several years after the death of Flamewing it was the center of town and of activity in the town. As a frontier inn it has heavily fortified walls; it is practically a small keep in and of itself. During the Battle of Jurgenville two years ago the Helm served as one of the few points of refuge after the waves of humanoids broke through the defensive lines. It was to the group holed up in the Helm that Athena first appeared. The Helm is named in memorial of Jurgen, brother of Detee. He willingly destroyed his Helm of Brilliance while spiked to Flamewing's back, killing the dragon and himself. There is an entrance leading to the Nexus under Dragonspeak in the cellar.

The Maiden's Kiss

This large inn would do any city proud. Although it was damaged both in the Battle of Jurgenville and during the Battle of Red Vale it has been rebuilt both times better and larger than it was before. The Kiss features fine food in a luxurious setting. However, its main draw is that is serves as a front for a courtesan service. Both the inn and the courtesan service are owned by Midnight. Although it is rumored that she owns many of the businesses in town, this is the only one publicly acknowledged.

The Ogre's Skull

The Ogre's Skull is one of the newer inns in Jurgenville's central area. It was in the final stages of construction when the Battle of Jurgenville occurred. The inn and accompanying tavern take their unique names from an event that occurred during the Battle. According to local "legend", Thovec (a retired adventurer) and his family holed up in the their incomplete building when the humanoids swept into town. The story goes that a pack of ogres entered the building and attacked the family. Thovec reportedly hit an ogre from behind so hard that he knocked the ogre's head off. The ogre's eyeballs popped out and rolled into the area that would eventually become the tavern. The Skull and Eyeballs are a popular place for the Cormyrian crowd to hang out.

The Ogre's Eyeballs

Lady's Spear

The Spear is the favorite hang out for priests and paladins from Athena's Temple. The owner is a retired paladin himself. Not surprisingly, the rules here (both spoken and unspoken) are very rigid. Strangers are not welcome here.

Flaming Mug

The Mug is one of the more rough and tumble taverns in Jurgenville. It and The Avalanche are the favorite hang-outs for miners down on a break. Both have cheap booze and cheap women readily available.

The Avalanche

Stores and Shops

Neworion Trading Company

One of the few publicly known aspects of the Neworion organization, the Neworion Trading Company has stores all over the Heartlands. The stores have proven to be a huge success, in no small part due to the magical teleportation devices set up in each store. This greatly facilitates the movement of goods from one location to another. As a result the Company can get just about anything from anywhere in a short period of time… for a price. While they do deal in mundane goods, their specialty is in rare items and magic.

Shops

Just down the street from the city complex are a row of small shops. The shopkeepers here are, for the most part, locals who have done well as Jurgenville has expanded.

Geryal's General Store

This building is the only one left of the dwarven settlement of Helmsholm. For many years it was run as a trading post by various individuals. Geryal was running it when Enigma came into the valley. He provided them with important information about Dragonspeak. In return the former members of Enigma help him to keep his business running. Geryal himself is almost 70 years old and not quite as sharp as he once was. Midnight makes sure his business operates smoothly.

Dry Goods Store

There are several dry goods stores in town. This one is run by a friend and former adventuring companion of Valdaeron's.

Sembian Dry Goods Store

Temples

Temple of Athena

After Athena saved Jurgenville from the humanoid hordes a large temple to her was quickly constructed with the assistance of the warriors she summoned to help defend the town. The temple is the largest structure in town, and many say it is even more extensive underground. There is a large (50' tall) statue of Athena in full battle gear in front of the temple. While many other deities are honored at the All-Faith's temple, the Temple of Athena is the center of religious life in Jurgenville. It is also home to a group of Athena's specialty priestesses, called Weavers.

Temple of Tymora

Not surprisingly for a mining town, Tymora has many worshipers among the human miners working in all three mines. Although the influence of the temple has waned as Athena's has waxed, it is still large and prosperous.

All-Faith's Temple

Before the Time of Troubles this structure was a Temple of Waukeen. For several years after Waukeen's disappearance Tesefe was able to maintain appearances through the spending of large sums of money out of the temple's coffers. But the coffers finally ran dry and Tesefe had to face reality. Although he still believes Waukeen will return, he has agreed to allow the temple to become an all-faith's temple. The interior was remodeled to create dozens of small shrines dedicated to the goodly powers in the Realms.

The Mining Companies

Cormyr Mining Company

The true power in Jurgenville is money, and the three organizations with the most money (and the potential to make the most money) are the mining companies. The Cormyrian company is the largest of the three in terms of employees and area mined, but the Jurgenville company holds claim to the richest areas. While the compound for the Cormyrians is in Jurgenville, the mountains it mines are in the next valley to the west.

In the power struggle between the three companies the Cormyrians have recently gained ground. This is in part due to the fact that Jurgenville has become a popular summer vacation spot for the nobles of Cormyr. Much of the building boom experienced by the alpine town over the past two years is due to nobles erecting summer homes. The side-effect of this is that the Cormyrians have a greater degree of influence than before.

In addition to the mining company Cormyr now has a detachment of twenty Purple Dragons stationed near-by. During the Battle of Red Vale the Dragons were operating out of the Cormyrian compound and they played in important role in securing the western approaches to the city (although Matar and Nikki did more). Recently the government of Cormyr has built a barracks for the detachment in the valley to the west of Jurgenville. This has resulted in some hard feelings towards the Truth Seekers, since originally the Cormyrians planed on building near to where the Seeker's compound went up.

Jurgenville Mining Company

The JMC was founded by the former members of Enigma when the Sembians and Cormyrians both started to move in. They incorporated Jurgenville itself and declared it an independent city. They also laid claim to all of the mountains surrounding the small town - most notably Dragonspeak and the large dwarven mine under it. Since then the JMC has found itself in a power struggle with the other two mining concerns, a struggle the mirrors the larger struggle that Jurgenville itself finds itself in stuck between two less-than-friendly nations.

The JMC employs a large percentage (over 80%) of demi-humans, mostly dwarves and some gnomes. Rumor has it they were able to lure the remnants of the Silverhelm clan back to work the mine after Flamewing was slain. The McGuyver and Ironfist clans have also relocated to the area.

There are several vague rumors drifting around town that the JMC has made a very lucrative strike recently. Castinar heard mention of True Silver (mithril) during the Battle of Red Vale. When Thengal tried to follow up on those rumors with Angus the owner of the Helm asked him to please stay quiet about anything he had heard. There are apparently dwarven religious overtones to whatever is going on down there.

Security in and around the mine is very tight. The party was captured at one point by a JMC security patrol. Several party members are also aware of the fact that Valdaeron Windsong controls a drow mercenary company called the Dark Stalkers. The Stalkers patrol the lower levels of the mine.

Sembian Mining Company

The Sembians have watched their influence in Jurgenville wane recently. Most of this can be attributed to political problems back home. The SMC is controlled by a group of wealthy merchants, and these merchants don't always see eye-to-eye on how the SMC should be run. Lord Javad does an admirable job in keeping the group together, but he is always walking a thin line.

The Sembian compound was badly damaged during the Battle of Red Vale when the largest group of monsters to make it to town focused their attention there after being repulsed by Midnight's forces in front of the Maiden's Kiss.

Powerful Groups

Mage's Guild

Much like the Trading Company the Neworion Mage's Guild is one of the few public aspects of the Neworion organization. It has branches in many major cities across Faeurn. One of the benefits of joining the Guild is that a member can gain admittance to any guildhouse anywhere in the Realms. The Guild itself is headquartered on the floating city of Neworion on one of the Tears of Selune. In the city is a library rivaling Candlekeep's. (In fact, there are accusations of plagiarism and illegal copying from Candlekeep.)

The presence of the Guild in Jurgenville is somewhat of a mystery. It is not clear why such a powerful organization would have a branch in such an obscure little town. Perhaps the Guildmaster himself is the link.

Midnight's Group

One of the more mysterious and powerful figures in Jurgenville is Midnight. Rumors about her influence range from ownership of the Maiden's Kiss to ownership or influence over practically every aspect of life in town. The truth is probably somewhere in between. Besides the mining companies she is the only person in town to have her own private army, a squad of Turmish Jannisaries utterly devoted to her. For the most part the party may have seen the individuals listed below, but are unaware of their role or even membership in Midnight's group. The only party member to penetrate this veil of secrecy is Katrina.

Laila's Retreat

Unlike the other former members of Enigma, Laila has chosen to reside on the demi-human side of town. She lives about three miles up the road leading to the Jurgenville mine. She has built a large building set back in the woods. It is a very peaceful place (perhaps not just naturally). It is a place of healing that is quickly becoming well known in the Realms for its ability to deal with strange and deadly diseases.

Not quite as widely know is that most of Laila's students are psionic. Laila herself is Deryni, a psionic sub-race of humans. While she knows the population at large isn't ready to accept psionics yet, she quietly works towards that day.

Truth Seeker's Compound

This obviously needs a lot of work. It should be done by the next time you come back to town.

Thieves' Guild

It is a public secret that Jurgenville has a thieves' guild. Most people think it is a collection of petty criminals who aren't good enough to merit the attention of the Watch. Sane and now Mogo have both penetrated the veil of secrecy around the Guild and discovered that it is in fact a rather powerful organization. The strange thing is that the Guild works with the City instead of against it. In fact, most of the "law enforcement" in town is done by the Guild, not the Watch. In return the Guild members get a sizeable kick-back from the city. Sane also knows that the Guild operates an extensive intelligent network in both Sembia and Cormyr.

Other Information

The following was provided to the party just before Red Vale and may provide some additional insight on the politics of the town:

As the party is going to stay in Jurgenville for several months, you get a good sense for who are the power players in town. There are three main groups. They are:

The Jurgenville Locals: This group is the most powerful in that it includes the Jurgenville Mining Company, Enigma (the former adventuring company which founded the JMC (including Angus, Tessalynne, Val, Jondon, Saeros, Laila, and a few others)), and the local demi-human population (which lives mostly on the other side of the river). The locals run the City Watch (Tessalynne in charge) and hold most of the seats on the city council. Although not yet considered "local", the Temple of Athena is closely allied with this group. There are also rumors of a thieves' guild which works with the locals.

The Cormyrites: This group is the second most powerful. It is centered around Baron Tren Voltari, who manages the Cormyrian Mining Company and also has command over the detachment of Purple Dragons (about a score). Last year this group was roughly even in power with the Sembians. However, over the summer a large number (about two dozen) of Cormyrian nobility built villas in and around town. While most of the nobles themselves have returned to the low-lands for the winter their staffs (and at times guards) have stayed in town, boosting the number of Cormyrian subjects.

The Sembians: Over the past year the merchant Sembians, lead by Lord Chrandlo Javad, have watched their power wane. Political chaos in Sembia itself has undermined the support for the Sembian Mining Cooperative. Rather than build summer homes up in the mountains like the Cormyrites have done, most of the powerful Sembians have spent their time at home, seeing to their own fortunes and at times very survival. However, this has all changed recently. Ahur Powji, Javad's right hand man and a Mongol, has brought in a group of "mercenaries" to help "defend the interests of Sembia" in Jurgenville. These mercenaries are not all they seem to be, but more on that later.

The party has, by and large, allied themselves with the locals. Sane has numerous contacts within the locals group. Sigurd has obvious ties to the Temple of Athena. All of the mages are members of the mage's guild, run by Valdaeron. Matar has made some contacts among the Cormyrites. Sigurd also knows Baron Voltari personally. Nobody has made much contact with the Sembians.

As time passes and people get organized you also are able to zero in on the main "armed camps" within the city. They are as follows:

The City Watch (locals): This organization, numbering about 50, is more a law-enforcement than a military force. However, Tessalynne has been working with them and for the most part they are learning to be sergeants so that they can lead the local militia in case of battle. There are several mages working with this group.

The City Militia (locals): The largest group in number, around 300, both human and demi-human. By and large these are 0-level people, with a few 1st level fighters or thieves thrown in. Most other locals who have more experience have allied themselves with one of the other groups. Tessalynne and the City Watch drill these folks every time the weather permits.

Athena's Defenders (local): The most powerful military force in town right now is the militant clerics and paladins housed at Athena's temple. Remember, the temple was established after Athena's avatar rescued the town from invading humanoids two years ago. The people of the city agreed to worship her in exchange for her protection. There are about half a dozen paladins, two dozen knights, and two score crusader priests of various levels who train on a regular basis. These are all in addition to the normal number of priests in a temple. BTW, the large number of Defenders does come as a surprise to most of you. The temple doesn't look like it would hold this many.

The Dwarves (local): A large number of the miners working in the three mines in the area are dwarves. The mines have been shut down due to the war, so most of these dwarves are now in town. They hang out at the various bars, for the most part not causing too much trouble for the Watch. It is common knowledge that if the city is attacked the dwarves (which number around 40) will all head to the Glowing Helm. Considering the construction of the Helm (all stone with large and thick stone walls around it), the combat abilities of most dwarves, and the fact that Angus will be leading them, the Helm should be able to withstand just about any attack.

The Turmish (local): You find out about this group through Katrina. One of the more mysterious figures in town is a woman by the name of Midnight. She owns the Maiden's Kiss and several brothels (at least, those are the businesses the public knows about). You learn that she has a small private army of her own in town for security. Kat estimates that there are a score veteran warriors and a handful of spell casters. The warriors are all Turmish (OOC: Turkish Jannissaries - tough!) and are lead by Midnight's Chief of Security, Kaj Mizak, a Turmish warrior himself. While a smaller force, they are among the most experienced in town and regularly drill as a unit.

The Sheriffs (local): The demi-humans have their own version of the City Watch which patrols their side of the river. This force is called the Sheriffs, and is lead by Scorpion, a halfling who also works as a bartender at the Kiss. The group numbers about a dozen, but another dozen or so demi-human ex-adventurers have joined the group, significantly bolstering their combat ability. While most of the force is made up of gnomes and halflings, there are a few half-elves and humans also (mostly from Laila's Retreat).

The JMC Guards (local): During normal times this is by far and away the most powerful group in town. However, a large number of the guards (who are trained in Underdark combat) are either down guarding the passage ways leading to the surface or have gone off with Valdaeron and Jondon to fight the drow under Bethamine. The guards that are left spend most of their time patrolling Dragonspeak and the tunnels under the mountain and under the town.

The Purple Dragons (Cormyrian): A detachment of around 20 Purple Dragons has been in town for several months now. When they initially arrived there was some resentment, but now that the town is threatened most are happy to see them here.

The CMC Guards (Cormyrian): This group is made up of those guards not guarding the mine itself (which is about 20 miles west of Jurgenville) and the miners from that mine. There are about 50 in all.

The SMC Guards (Sembian): Pretty much the same as the CMC guards above, but only around 35 strong.

The Sembian Mercenaries (Sembian): This is an interesting force which has Tessalynne quite worried. She suspects these are not simply mercenaries, but rather forces in the employ of the Iron Throne. The Throne is an alliance of young merchants which has arisen in Sembia over the past several years. They use extortion, intimidation, force, and other less savory tactics to spread their influence. They were recently expelled from Cormyr by King Azoun. Tessalynne is afraid that the Throne wishes to use Jurgenville as a base of operations for activities against Cormyr, and that they are using the chaos caused by the war to infiltrate the town. There are about 50 mercenaries in all. They tend to keep to the SMC compound on the far east side of the city.

The Truth Seekers: A rag-tag group of misfits... oh, you already know.