The Trade Triads of Zamarrid

The Trade Triads of Zamarrid

Sometimes it feels like The Rings are least magical things about the Zamarrid, The whole economy seems like it started off with a Dwarf, a Tengu and an Elf walking into a bar, but instead of trading blows they trade a rock, a feather and a glass of water and all come out of that bar with carts of gold coins. - Zamarrid Proverb

Reader's Note : This document is an attempt to explain how the Trade Triads present themselves and function in a broad sense and is not a explanation of how the magics of gold & silver functions in Zamarrid, this type of magic is dabbled in every other part of the Alyah but in Zamarrid; it is managed, mastered, and manipulated to the effect of that baffle and contort the mortal mind where 1 copper becomes 3 coppers and 10 gold becomes 3 silver and you pull a trade of donkey for a fortune such texts are beyond this document. For those spells try text such as, "Thinking Gold & Copper" or "Freakonomics"

A Brief Legend

In the early days of the city when The Magus was still involved in the day to day and the Mages Order was a lot more Fireballs and Eldritch Blasts and a lot less colored quills and ink blots, There were no Trade Triads there were just negotiations between nations as the convivence of the portals allowed Elven Islands, Tengu, and Dwarves to just bring their merchandise into the city in the morning and leave with it at night. Which didn't quite sit right with The Magus, because he had created these portal because he wanted a free city not a desert trading post. So at the back of The Roaming Oasis ( it stayed in one place back then), Legend has it The Magus was sitting way in the back of the bar writing and muttering to himself. The bar was incredibly full at the time so he was soon joined by a Dwarf, A Tengu and an Elf now things were still pretty hostile at this time, street brawls were more common than not and the races didn't always get along but they all wanted what each other had so stuff got done. Normally an evening like this would have ended in disaster of shouting matches so The Magus wasn't particularly happy. Fortunately for The Magus evening things worked out differently as it so happens all three of them were all incredibly ambitious merchants looking to make a deal. The night featured a series of enticing conversations and extravagant courting by the three, which led to each of them having made quite the impression and leaving with ambitious spots in the grand bazaar, special land plots in the city and its underground and the Tengu in particular left with a nice location that would be a council building in the future. In the following days The Magus would initiate the very first of the portal stay laws. That inhibited a person without special authorization from using the portals more than once every three days so people would need to stay in the city for longer than a few hours. Soon after those plots of sand the merchants purchased was suddenly pressed into diamonds, from that those three built the trade Triads.

Member Factions of the Triad.

The Boulder Company

Fearless. Fine. The Few. Boulder Company

The Boulder Company dwarves do not number in a vast quantities of members. With a significant entry cost and costly guild dues only the most elite merchants, craftsman and appraisers make it into the Boulder Company. Members of the Boulder Co. are few and tightly woven together. Often before you can be considered a true success in the city you have to had something appraised of high quality by the boulder company. The Boulder Company has made their fortune, on high cost appraisal that can potentially double the value of an item and the finest gold and silver products in the world. There is nothing finer that a boulder company man, is commonly used phrased amongst members who like to gloat their status.

The Porcelain Feather

Ink & Quill or Blood & Steel there is no difference.

Made organized of Tengu, “Featherheads” as their called by their dissenters. Was the original trade guild in the Zamarid. When the “Water Wars” broke out both the Elven and Tengu population in the city suffered the most. With fewer numbers they found it easier to transition their organization from wide scale trading to legal contracts. While still having a presence in the Bazaar they all but single handedly run The Carousal the cities contract confirmation and debate center, while also holding their own esteemed dispute resolution center dispersed thought-out the city. Featherheads are well known for being strict to the letter of their laws, contracts and deals while also being notoriously merciless to anyone who breaks a contract. Be wary thought, the feather loves its loopholes thought on occasion how its written will be taken over why its written when their benefit is concerned. They resent the Boulder Company for holding their old corner of The Grand Bazaar, that they were forced to sell as a consequence of the Water Waters.

The Wavemakers

Coin comes in waves.

The once the elven trade guild the wavemakers were decimated during The Water Wars. While the leadership of the guild has a strong controlling elven counterpart, The current membership is the most diverse by far of which humans & halflings make up the majority, but a dwarf, tengu or orc and anyone else willing to join are often recruited. You can always find a Wavemaker recruiter in the streets of the Bazaar if you’re looking for one. By sheer number they’ve manage to compete with the boulder company. Without the luxury of holding to the old rivalries they will deal with anyone for anything. Their slogan holds very true, as dealing with a Wavemaker is a bit of a roll of the dice when you find a good one the bargains and deals keep coming but when you find a bad one you can end up broke with your face in the sand.

The Triads Don't Trip

While the Triads are always competing against each other to be the best guild and that has given them immense profits and created great wealth of resources available for everyone in Zamarrid, that doesn't mean that they've created great wealth for everyone they are well known for communicatively stomping out any guild if not owned by a trade triad that starts to do too well. This has created a culture of building something good enough to be bought out by the faction and you'll be set for life, but no one who sells is every set for life and ends up joining one of the factions in the end. While Trade Triads offer lucrative jobs too a select few majority are given very low wages and will often struggle to survive, Its often either Triad or Starve. The Magus has been silent about it for over a decade now and the people of Zamarrid have stated their worries.

Water Wars

A brief period of time when the trade triads the fought over ownership of a new product the Viyah Waters where many backhanded and bloody conflicts occurred. The Water Wars were ended by The Magus who stepped in order to keep the peace, while clearly better for the city overall than constant brawls in the street. The choice to split distribution of Viyah between the city and the three triads lead to dominance of the Triads, ever since the Triads have organized to prevent The Magus from returning to settle disputes. For if The Magus choose to he my upheave the their organizations this time.

Type

Guild, Merchant

Economic System

Market economy