The Pampered Traveler

4C4A This inn, with large, conical- roofed, many-windowed turrets at its either end, stands like an exotic castle, dark and somehow inviting, on the northeast corner of the meeting of Selduth Street and the Street of Bells. Room rates here run from 6 gp to 12 gp/night, depending on the room you choose. The Pampered Traveler’s name sets high expectations, and they are not disappointed. Ser¬vants conduct you to your large and well-furnished rooms, which are kept warm but not over¬warm, and come within breaths if you ring for them. Each room has a bell pull by the door. On the main floor is a huge smoking room with a roaring hearth full of old, soft, vast armchairs that can easily swal¬low up smaller visitors, a play- nursery for the children of guests (a rare and thoughtful feature), a gaming room, and three small, private meeting rooms for the use of guests. There is also, surprisingly, a library filled with books hand- copied by the staff and a reading table with a glass top, under which can be seen as full and complete a map of the known Realms as far west as the Moon- shaes, as far east as Thay, and as far south as the Shaar, as I've seen anywhere. (The staff spends one morning a week, each, on the task of hand-copying the books.) The proprietor is keenly interested in exploration. Present in the library along with a chapbook put out by the Mer¬chants' League describing the exploits of the famous Dabron Sashenstar and his mapping of a trade route linking known lands to Sossal, there are even copied letters from sea captains who have reached Maztica, far away across the sea. All of the guests are welcome to read—though I get the feeling anyone who departed with as much as a single page would be pursued by the master of the house until he separated the thief from his head! I have also heard of a man staying free at the inn for a week in exchange for gifting the proprietor with a particular highly valued book. When I cautiously discussed reading matter with the master, he said the only things he didn't want in his library were magical texts. They intrigued him, but they also brought potential danger into his inn and attracted the wrong sort of readers. Twice he had to break down the doors of his library and put out fires— and once run pell-mell through the streets to Blackstaff Tower to call on Khelben Arunsun him¬self to come and bind a sum¬moned abishai baatezu! Most of the staff are middle- aged, motherly, pleasant women ("Young, pretty ones bring only trouble," the master told me). They do a good job of cleaning up after messy guests as they go along and of bringing wine, hot cider, ale or stout to guests upon request. (These drinks are in¬cluded in your room price). In the morning, there's compli¬mentary hot egg, vegetable, and beef broth soup (better than it sounds), and each evening guests are welcome to come down to the common rooms and cut themselves slices of beef, goat, venison, or pork from the side¬board platters. Mustards, pickles, horseradish, and hot southern sauces are on hand to garnish the meat. All of this is included in your room fee—but if you bring in your own guests (who are not staying at the inn) to dine with you, their fare costs you an additional 1 gp/meal per head. All in all, a quietly luxurious place to stay. This is undoubtedly the wealthy scholar’s choice of hostel. Proprietor: The Pampered Traveler is run by Brathan Zilmer, guildmaster of the Fel¬lowship of Innkeepers. He is a solemn, careful, darkly hand¬some man with an air of mystery and wariness about him.