The Black Lotus
Found near the border with the Market District and
the river, the Black Lotus has a plain storefront marked
with a black half-timbered style. It’s a two-story
building with a simple wooden door next to a streetfacing
window on which “The Black Lotus” is printed
in Trade, Draconic, and the exotic characters of the
owner’s native language. The window is alchemically
reinforced and looks into the curiosity shop. People
come here to buy unusual trinkets and curios from
afar—but that’s not what the shop has a reputation for.
Those looking for magical assistance of any kind can
find it here with no questions asked, so long as they
can meet the price set by the Painted Man.
Tall, fat, and smelling of rare spices—that’s the easiest
way to physically describe the Painted Man. His true
name remains a secret, and the nickname has spread
through the city. He wears silk robes embroidered with
strange symbols and always paints his face in a foreign
style. Friendly and outgoing, if evasive, he speaks
without a trace of an accent. Perpetually dissembling,
he reveals little while constantly learning as much as
possible.
Most claim the Painted Man has lived in Zobeck for
decades. One story calls him an exiled member of a
cabal of eunuch arcanists from a distant land. They once
served their emperor’s court but fled into exile after a
failed coup attempt. Supposedly, the Painted Man is one
of only eight surviving conspirators, biding his time as
he peddles his powers and continues his dark studies.
It’s an open secret that if you need magical assistance
of any kind—from arcane, to divine, to the most illegal
sorts of dark sorcery—you go to the Painted Man.
He always helps for a price. Common magic may
require money or goods, but the more potent effects
demand more outlandish costs. Perhaps he requires
the recovery of a pearl once lost in the Argent. Maybe
he demands the delivery of a potion into a certain
Watchman’s goblet. He could need a lich’s phylactery or
a living basilisk brought back to him. He may not ask
for payment immediately, but he always collects. No
one knows of anyone who has denied his requests.
His curio trade has passed powerful artifacts into his
possession. Perhaps his secret society stays in contact,
or being a eunuch (if he is) grants him access to greater
powers, or maybe he’s an astonishingly powerful
wizard keeping a low profile. Maybe he’s not even
human. Most who go to him for help don’t care, and
perhaps that desperation is the greatest expression of
his power.
Type
Shop, Magic
Parent Location
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