The Shifting Sands of Katapesh
An Organic Experience In A Unique Setting
Everything is legal in Katapesh. It is an Anarcho-Capitalist's fevered dream of unfettered commerce and lawless enjoyment. Only a single true mandate comes down from the mysterious rulers of Katapesh, "Do as you will, but to not interfere with the trade." Only across the desert region of Katapesh can the most rare, illicit and often bizarre of goods and services be purchased openly. From powerful hallucinogens to fine weaponry, exotic arcane writings and even slaves, the unfettered trade of Katapesh makes anything available to he who possesses enough coin. So long as an individual does not conspire against the Pactmasters or any of the mighty guilds and other financial powers, one is free to do whatever brings pleasure and purpose to one's life.
In "Great Katapesh", the sea-port capital and center of the desert's commerce, the Pactmasters and their mouth-piece, Pactbroker Hashim ibn Sayyid rule from on high, using the fearsome Zephyr Guard and their massive aluum golems to enforce the peace and uphold it's few Laws. Each merchant-kings in their own right, the wealth of the desert flows through the Pactmasters and their Capital at all times.
The large town of Solku is located near the western mountains of Katapesh (the Barrier Wall mountains), where it is relatively cut off from the rest of the nation. The settlement is frequently besieged by gnoll slavers, and thus rests within a tall wall, though this does not always provide enough protection to keep the townspeople safe. Fort Longjaw is located northeast of Solku, near the Brazen Peaks. It is a wooden stockade that stands as a symbol against the gnolls' aggression. Today the town itself is guarded by a small band of paladins of Sarenrae known as the Dawn Vigil who prepare for the rumoured war ahead, as gnolls amass in the mountains under the banner of Noor, the Red Sultana.
The harbor city of Okeno, located on the southern coast of Stonespine Island off the eastern shore of Katapesh, is the third-largest city in Katapesh. Its bustling slave markets are the most profitable in all of Katapesh, known commonly as the Fleshfairs. The slaves are carried by Okeno's well-known yellow-sailed slave galleys. Criminals in the city are usually sent to the slave markets, hence the city's surprisingly low crime rate. This method of punishing thieves and other criminals through indentured servitude has helped to keep Katapesh a profitable and stable nation.
Although Katapesh is home to a plethora of drugs including the expansive Pesh trade (a mild narcotic culled from the spoiled milk of a once-rare exotic cactus) the desert Bazaars are also home to many regular and novel pursuits. The fierce competition among the Guilds and their many businesses makes for an exciting and dynamic playing field for entrepreneurs, investors and yes - adventurers! The sale of one's own talents is the hallmark of everything that makes Katapesh both great and terrible, and many adventurers offer their blades and knowledge to the wealthy elite of Katapesh, working as hired guards, explorers and profiteers. The region is even home to the newly founded Pathfinder's Lodge of Katapesh.
Whether a visiter from a distant nation, a nomad just passing through or a life-long native of Katapesh, this desert realm offers adventure - and profit - to all who dare to seize it! From abandoned and forgotten ruins lost and buried beneath the dunes to the intrigues of the Guilds, from the gnolls of the Brazen Peaks to the expansive and mysterious spy networks and their information brokers, Katapesh offers something for all who posses the ambition to better themselves.
Solo Mixed
Player-Driven narrative delivered against the back-drop of a grand conspiracy and a myriad of dangerous motives about to be set into motion all across the desert-nation of Katapesh.
