MarkOliva

08/04/2013

1381

We're back from vacation with the 116th Map of the Week we take a look at the Water Rat Tavern in the Slovanian city of Mine Docks. The Water Rat is a dark and dingy tavern that opens only at 18 bells. The tavernkeeper, Matylda, never opens the shutters in the months when days are shorter. Illumination comes from a few wall torches and table candles. The only outdoor illumination is from torches on the outhouse and woodshed walls. The Water Rat is the hangout of raftsmen, dock workers, warehouse workers, teamsters and other laborers who work in the district. It is owned by the 48-year-old Matylda, a human female spy who gathers information for various trade interests in Windland. Sleazy joint is a perfect description of the Water Rat. It's a dirty dive where the customers enjoy brawling with one another. The customers all are nobodies. As a result, the city watch has no interest in the tavern. It goes there only when it's seeking a suspect in a crime elsewhere or a fugitive. If a customer dies in a brawl, some of the other customers simply bring the corpse to the river and send it on its way downstream. Should anyone be foolish enough to report such a voyage to the watch, they will be told only, "We'll look into it." At that point the case is closed. Matylda brews her own low-quality lager beer in the communal brewery. She sells it only in quart/liter tankards at 3 copper pieces each. There is one unusual item in the Water Rat. A bronze golem stands at the door, one that has been ensorcelled to obey certain commands from Matylda. If customers cause damage in a brawl or otherwise and try to skip without paying for it, Matylda tells the golem to whack the deadbeats' heads off. The golem usually succeeds. It then sends the pulped heads and their formerly attached bodies downstream. The golem was created for Matylda by a wizard who was her sometimes lover. Unfortunately for him, he crossed her, and she told the golem to whack his head off. The dead wizard also went for a posthumous swim.

Key to the Floor Plan of the Water Rat Inn:

1. Outhouse. A two-seater.

2. Main Entrance.

3. The Bronze Golem.

4. Public Room.

5. Tap Room.

6. Trapdoor to Storage Shelter. Not mapped.

7. Stairway to the 2nd Story. Matylda has her apartment there. She lives alone.

8. Dock Sheds. (Not a part of the tavern)

9. Docks. (Not a part of the tavern)

10. Fjörm River Bank. (Not a part of the tavern)


You can get this floor plan in two versions:

1. The Fractal Mapper (TM) 8 version in FMP format, fully editable (10 MB) from the Jörðgarð website.

2. As a JPG flat map of 1360 Pixels x 1360 Pixels (630 KB) with the hyperlink below.

Both versions are released for personal and commercial use under the Open Game License Version 1.0a, which you can read on the Jörðgarð website at:

www.vintyri.org/joerdhgardh/joerdhgardh.htm

Next Week: Mine Docks - The Market Tavern

Mark Oliva
Webmaster, the Vintyri Project (TM)
www.vintyri.org
info@vintyri.org
Celebrating 20 Years of RPG Freeware