The Emperor's Folly
The Emperor's Folly is a small tavern on Dovecote Lane, in the Roaringside district of Renelestre. It once functioned as a bakery before being left abandoned during the great fever of 538. It seems the previous owners suffered from the disease and the survivors left town in the aftermath to settle in the countryside. During the intervening years, a sinkhole opened in the insoluble rock under the structure, though the exact timeframe is hard to pin down, as it seems that no one entered the old bakery to discover fate of it until the senior officers of The Free Jackals stumbled upon the near-ruin while attempting to track down the path of the Fair Elf "Sunlight Falls on Golden Plain," who had left his post defending the long-lost Kingsgrave in a deluded attempt to warn the Emperor of its breech.
Since finding the the old bakery abandoned, the Jackals set about purchasing the title from the Roaringside Clerk, and began to remodel it into the bar it is today. Once the Jackals had a functioning establishment, they turned the loft into a lounge, council chamber, and office space for the senior members of the order. The folly allowed them to guard the access to kingsgrave, manage their presence within the city, gather intel, and use it as a front for recruitment all at the same time.
Purpose / Function
Originally a family bakery owned by a family with the name of Rovinari. It was in the family for 2 generations before the fever visited Roaring Side. Before the Rovinari family bought the property, it was owned by a Rincentian shoemaker who used it as his house and shop. Previous to that, nothing is known about the property.
Alterations
The The Free Jackals have made numerous interior and structural alternations to the property. They demolished all exterior walls before reinforcing the floor joists and creating a brand new bar along the northern wall, and an interior wall across the back of the building, creating a moderately secure back of house. From there, they continued to add a storage pantry with a hatch door in the floor concealing access to the sinkhole chamber below. In addition to all of this, the loft was modified, replacing the simple ladder with a wrought iron spiral staircase, a second hearth, a sitting area, a council table, and five offices to house the different senior leadership of the jackals, with some flexibility.
Architecture
The building itself seems to have been constructed during the reign of Prince Alberto II, around the year 390-400. The butter-coloured white-wash stonework, combined with the red-tile roof in a simple formation with a front/rear gable, exposing dual balconies (one in front and one in the rear) is typical for Albertan architecture. In addition to the architectural arguments, Roaring-side was undergoing something of a small business boom at the time, with the granting of official status to the guilds by Prince Alberto II in the last decade of the 4th century.
On the other hand, the dual-flue chimney and bakery oven is, as one might expect, a much more recent addition, likely added by the Rovinari family when they first purchased the property.
Maps
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Kingsgrave: Medusa Carcer
The 1st level of Kingsgrave, under the district of Roaringside in Renelestre. -
The Emperor's Folly
The tavern (once bakery) reclaimed by the Free Jackals as their base of operations.