The Court of Shadows
Perhaps it was inevitable that in Avencourt, home of the King's palace and the royal court, that the thieves guild would be called the Court of Shadows.
Structure
The Court of Shadows is organized by criminal specialty and divided into 4 Minor Courts -
- Clubs, who are hired muscle, leg breakers, bandits, robbers, and common thugs.
- Hearts, who work as con artists, tricksters, forgers, prostitutes, hustlers and gambling cheats.
- Coins, who are traditional thieves of various types, from common pickpockets to cat burglars.
- Cups, who work as beggars of all types.
Culture
The Court of Shadows is a parody of the royal court in many ways. Thieves and criminals called to attend the Court are expected to wear finery, doublets and hose for men, wimples and gowns for women. Most will dress in purloined fashions. The other tradition is that masks are worn at all times. Members who are not part of the leadership are permitted half-masks or domino masks, which simply cover the eyes and forehead. All members of the leadership wear full face masks, in part to hide their identities. In truth, no one knows the actual identity of the current King, Beadle or Knave of Shadows.
Criminals are often given fanciful titles the denotes their specialty and the part of the city they are permitted to operate in. For example, a cat burglar named Darius who has been permitted to burgle the homes and shops of the Chalk Gate neighborhood might be called Lord Darius Cloudwalker, Marquis of the northern Chalk Gate.
Assets
The Court of Shadows collects protection money from almost every shopkeeper in Avencourt's "Low Court" or western half of the city. The Court maintains the Thieves Highway, a path across the rooftops of Avencourt, and patrols the sewers and maintains careful routes through them as the Shadow Paths. Both can be used by members of the guild to move around unseen, although there are tolls to be paid.
The Court of Shadows has a headquarters that is only reached through the Shadow Paths. Along with the main audience chamber where the full Court meets, there are changing rooms, an armory, practicing rooms, sparring rooms, and the treasury, which has a larger locked door than most banking houses. The tale that if you can get inside the Treasury you become the next King of Shadows is entirely false, but still gets told.
Artistic depictions of the four Minor Courts of the Court of Shadows
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