The Establishment

Not all strongholds are mighty fortresses made of stone. If you’re a rogue or bard, you have little use for an army or your own bespoke spell. However, being able to summon allies in combat would be advantageous, albeit requiring a pledge of service to a deity—something that doesn’t align with your nature. Instead, you prefer to have people owe you favors, rather than the other way around.

In this case, a business proves to be much more suitable. Businesses can be small, lucrative, and, most importantly, provide no indication of what truly goes on behind the scenes. A legitimate business that conceals your covert operations is commonly referred to as a “front.”

An establishment serves two primary purposes: generating income and gathering information, often from the same clientele. Your establishment could take various forms, such as an inn, a general store, or even a blacksmith’s shop. While you may lack expertise in blacksmithing, you can employ a skilled blacksmith who would appreciate having a warm, dry, and well-equipped space to conduct their work.

Meanwhile, you can actively listen to the interesting information customers unwittingly reveal to the smith. Alternatively, you could choose to stay away from the shop entirely, having the blacksmith deliver your share of the profits along with any valuable insights shared by patrons. The more convincing your front appears, the more likely individuals are to speak openly and divulge useful information.

Revenue

Revenue from your establishment is generated every season, or every four months. The amount of revenue generated is calculated as 1,000 gold pieces per establishment level.

If your establishment is integrated into a castle, you have the option to allocate this revenue towards upgrading your castle without any issues.

Rumors

Rumors can be a valuable asset for adventurers, providing crucial information about the challenges they may face during their quests. To gather rumors, you can spend 100 gold pieces per establishment level. Upon a successful Gather Intel check, you will learn specific details about the quest, such as the type of creatures you’ll encounter and their approximate numbers.

In addition to creature information, the GM may choose to reveal other details, such as the location of secret doors, traps, riddles or puzzles, and powerful magic items. This information can greatly enhance the preparation and strategic approach of the adventurers, making them feel empowered and ready to tackle the challenges ahead.

Gathering Intel

The Gather Intel skill, acquired through owning an establishment, allows you to gather information about organizations and individuals. While Investigation focuses on the whereabouts and activities of individuals, Gather Intel broadens this scope to encompass larger and more complex entities such as organizations, guilds, orders, and even countries.

Through your establishment, you collect information from various visitors, enabling you to spy on organizations and people. The intel you gather provides insights into the actions and intentions of your enemies, allies, and neutral organizations. However, the specifics of what you learn are determined by the GM and may be somewhat generalized. For instance, you might discover that a certain organization is planning to retrieve a powerful artifact you possess, or that the king is implementing trade restrictions along the southern border.

It’s important to note that while Gather Intel provides valuable narrative information, there are no mechanics tied directly to these insights. Instead, the information you obtain serves to enrich the story and provide context for your actions and decisions in the game world.

Organizations

Indeed, an organization encompasses any group of individuals who unite under common rules and hierarchy to advance a shared agenda, goal, or philosophy. This can include diverse entities such as orders of knights, wizard colleges, thieves’ guilds, duchies, baronies, or churches. Even a church extends beyond the physical building to encompass the network of priests and followers who adhere to the same beliefs and doctrines.

What’s interesting is that you don’t necessarily need prior knowledge of an organization’s existence to gather intel on it. In fact, this scenario presents a classic opportunity to utilize the Gather Intel skill. For instance, if you suspect there’s a conspiracy to infiltrate the Knights of the White Hart but lack specific information, you can still attempt to gather intel. The GM, aware of the nature of this potentially villainous organization, sets the Difficulty Class (DC) accordingly. If you succeed in your Gather Intel check, you may learn the name of the organization and perhaps glean insights into its composition and objectives. This mechanic allows for intriguing storytelling and investigative gameplay, as players uncover secrets and unravel mysteries within the game world.

Range

The geographical scope of your establishment’s intel-gathering capabilities is essential to consider. Essentially, your establishment acts as a hub for information gathering, but its reach is not infinite. Instead, it’s limited to a specific radius around its location.

For instance, a 1st-level establishment can effectively spy on organizations within its hex and the six hexes surrounding it, forming a one-hex radius. This means it covers a relatively localized area, providing insights into nearby organizations and activities.

On the other hand, a more advanced 2nd-level establishment expands its reach. It can spy on organizations within its hex and the 18 closest hexes, creating a two-hex radius. This wider coverage allows for a broader understanding of the activities and dynamics within a larger area surrounding the establishment’s location.

Understanding the range of your establishment’s intel-gathering capabilities is crucial for strategic decision-making and effective information gathering within the game world.

Making the Check

Gather Intel is a skill that relies on the capabilities of your establishment and your investment in gathering information. Here are the key points to remember about using Gather Intel:

1. Maximum Bonus: Your stronghold level determines the maximum bonus you can add to Gather Intel checks, rather than an ability modifier. For example, a 1st-level establishment allows you to make Gather Intel checks with a maximum bonus of +1.
2. Proficiency: If you own an establishment, you are automatically proficient in Gather Intel. You add your proficiency modifier to your Gather Intel checks.
3. Cost: Gathering intel comes at a cost. It requires payment to individuals who gather information on your behalf. The cost is 100 gp per level of your establishment. Larger establishments with higher levels require more funds to maintain their information-gathering activities.
4. Bonus Increment: You can increase your bonus to Gather Intel checks by paying additional funds. For each increment of 100 gp paid beyond the base cost, you gain a +1 bonus to your Gather Intel checks.
5. Frequency: You can make a number of Gather Intel checks per season equal to your establishment level. However, you cannot make more than one check against the same organization during the same season.

By understanding these mechanics and investing resources wisely, you can effectively gather information and gain insights into various organizations and activities within the game world.

Setting the DC

Setting the Difficulty Class (DC) for Gather Intel checks involves considering several factors related to the organization being spied on. Here’s how these factors can determine the DC:

1. Size of the Organization: Larger organizations are generally easier to spy on because they have more members and activities, providing more opportunities to gather information. For example, a well-known church or duchy might have lower DCs for gathering intel compared to a small, secretive group like a covert guild of spies and assassins.
2. Covert Nature of the Organization: Covert organizations are inherently more difficult to spy on because they operate clandestinely and take measures to hide their operations. Even if their existence is known, their secretive nature makes gathering intel challenging. Therefore, the DC for spying on a covert organization like a secret order of knights sponsored by a church would be higher compared to a public institution like a duchy or church.
3. Protectiveness of the Organization: Some organizations are more protective and proactive in detecting and thwarting espionage attempts. Organizations with counterintelligence measures, such as spies or surveillance systems, make it harder to gather intel without detection. For instance, a powerful rulership or a thieves’ guild might deploy trained agents to prevent spying, resulting in higher DCs for intel gathering.
4. GM Discretion: Ultimately, the GM has discretion in setting the DC based on the specific circumstances and narrative context of the organization. They may consider additional factors such as the players’ previous interactions with the organization, the level of risk involved in gathering information, and the resources available to the establishment conducting the espionage.

By considering these factors, the GM can set an appropriate DC that reflects the challenges and complexities of gathering intelligence on a particular organization within the game world.

Favors

Here are the options for choosing a favor with the associated strongholds:

The Keep:

• Spend 1,000 gp to buy mercenary units equal in number to your establishment level.
• Upkeep for these units costs 50% more because your establishment is not a Keep.
• You can maintain these units as long as you pay the increased upkeep.
• The units are housed in temporary barracks outside the city or town where your establishment is located.
• This is a one-time purchase, and if you want to buy more units, you’ll need to pay for another favor.

The Tower:

• Spend 1,000 gp to choose a modified spell researched by an NPC ally or another party member.
• You can cast that modified spell a number of times equal to your establishment level before forgetting it.
• Once you forget the spell, you must pay for another favor in order to cast it again.

The Temple:

• Choose an allied NPC or party member with a temple.
• You can petition their deity and use their concordance once.
• If you summon a servitor, it remains for a number of rounds equal to your establishment level.

The money for the favor goes to the ally. A PC ally could refuse to grant the favor, but they cannot change how much the favor costs. They may want to negotiate better terms or get something else in return, but the benefits of the favor originate from the establishment and the power of the network of people in your employ to manipulate the situation. As a rule, an NPC ally will not try to negotiate and will accept the money, granting the favor to the establishment’s owner.