Posted on by Magnus Seter

The Marble Baths

Altdorf is a grimy city, filled with waste and filth. But even so many of its inhabitants take great care to stay clean and bathe once every week. The manner in which they do so varies with social stature and income, but there is a sizeable portion that go to the public bathing houses that exist in the various Bezirks of our capital. Of course som baths are more splendid than others. Most common folk, the poor and the workers, simply use a barrel to scope cold water from, apply soap to strategic bodily locations, wash it off and rub themselves with rough towels to get dry. Not something you do every day, mind you.

For the upper class or for those of means, there are bath-houses where you get heated water in tubs or in pools. Some have rooms filled with heated rocks which you throw water on, creating steam to clean your body. Some rooms have cold pools of water so that you can alternate between hot and cool baths. There are also lounges where you can rest, eat a sausage or pie and drink a glass of wine or a flagon of cold beer.

For clients who can afford it, herbs or oils produced locally or imported from Estalia, Tilea or even Araby are added to the water to release a pleasing fragrance and promote good health and cleansing of the skin and lungs. Among the herbs commonly used are camomile, lavender, lemon balm, mint, rosemary and thyme. Oils are often scented with sap from birch or pine, or from the skins or peels from oranges, lemons, apples and pears.

Of all the bathing houses in the Empire, The Marble Baths in the Reikhoch Bezirk is probably the most well-known. The interiors are constructed from exquisite marble in Arabyan style, with beautiful mosaics depicting flowers, planets and stars. There are two sections, one for the men and one for the women. The bathers dress in simple linen trunks or dresses for the women. Curiosly both sexes often dress in something known as an Altdorf Wig, a kind of bathing hat of varying lavishness. Female bath-house keepers, often devout Shallyans in sleeveless dresses serve the bathers with buckets of hot or cold water and scrubs or lashes in the case of the more devout attendees.

Adolphus Altdorfer

Backertag, Sigmarzeit 24, 2522 IC

Posted on by Magnus Seter

The University

After a long while and several wrong turns I finally made it to the University. In hindsight it wasn’t difficult to find it, but the twisting and turning alleyways of Friedwang Bezirk surprised me many times. Finally I had to give a pie seller a penny to show me the right way, and finally I arrived. Now that I think of it, it was obvious that the Uniersity would be the largest structure of the Universität Bezirk. I came in via the Ruckusplatz, or Speaker’s Corner as it is also called. Due to the wintry conditions only a few rabble rousers and agitators were poised on their crates and barrels delivering their fiery dogma onto the cats and dogs that made up the audience.

Adolphus Altdorfer

Angestag, Nachexen 3, 2522 IC

university

The University is made up of several small and large buildings, societies, museums, clubs, libraries, and so on so forth. On the map above you find a few of the more noteworthy, but exploring the University can be an adventure in itself, and a place where you as a GM can start many adventures, or use as a place for researching clues or asking old professors for advice.

Magnus

Posted on by Magnus Seter

Waking up at The Burning Table

As I awoke to screaming and the smell of fire I hastily donned my britches and my overcoat and ran downstairs. I was certain that the inn I was stying in was being overrun by mutants and beastmen, and I was intent on making my way out of the building and find refuge with the City Watch before being slaughtered for my sins! As I burst down the stairs I found myself in the middle of a colossal drunken brawl. One of the … clients … had tried to lift the purse of a gigantic Kislevite warrior passed out at the bar. The man from the east had woken up in the middle of the process and the ensuing chaos had shaken me from my sleep. It was still night, and I retreated to my room. After a while the din died down, and quiet once again settled over the inn. Finally I fell asleep again. I was staying at The Burning Table in the Friedwang Bezirk, an inn along the main street not far from the North Gate. It was supposedly a clean and reasonable place to stay, and at least the innkeeper Matthias Tafel was a friendly fellow. But his clientèle was not. When I arrived I spotted a filthy group of thugs or adventurers and overheard them talking about a wizard and some magical item they needed to find, but I soon moved along when they noticed my presence. There were a few sell swords, ruffians and harlots there as well. My money could only pay for one night at the inn but I was too tired to look for other accommodations so I stayed.

Adolphus Altdorfer
Angestag, Nachexen 3, 2522 IC

North Gate Surroundings

The Burning Table inn appeared on page 48 in Spires of Altdorf (SoA), the second installment of Paths of the Damned (PotD). I was disappointed that SoA didn’t include a more detailed map of Altdorf and also that it didn’t place the locations or gave clear information as to where they are to be found. Although I haven’t used the PotD I have gone through SoA and tried to place all the locations somewhere on my campaign map. I placed The Burning Table close to the North Gate which seemed a logical choice given the fact that the characters were coming from Middenheim.

Magnus