Lil's
The place doesn't really have a name, certainly there is no sign out front. People just call it Lil's because the proprietor is simply known as Lil. Priscilla Mosslow came to Narwell about six years ago. The officious gnome quickly wormed her way into the soft underbelly of a place filled with cut-throats and thieves. Helping her keep order are a pair of thugs named Zane and Bane. Zane is an imposing half-orc with a chain shirt and a large club with several rusty nails pounded into the end. At least, the reddish tinge to the nails is probably rust, right? Bane, on the other hand, is a beefy human who wears leather and is known for his prodigious strength more than his melee fighting abilities.
The entrance to Lil's is around back, down an alley between a couple of warehouses. There is no door on the main level, just a basement walkout with a heavy oak door braced with iron, which contains a Judas hole. If you know the password, which any street kid can tell you for a copper or two, you enter a small anteroom with a door to the main floor of the place and a cloak/weapons check. All weapons larger than a knife/dagger are checked with the hostess for 5 cp. Entry to the 'club' is an additional 1 sp. Zane normally mans the anteroom.
The main room is a large, windowless (being underground) space with a cashier to the right, a bar to the left, and a maze of about two dozen gaming tables filling the rest of the place. It is smoky and somewhat dimly lit with a raucous atmosphere as people shout their thrills and disappointments. The tables are mostly a variety of card games, including poker and blackjack, dice, and wheels of chance. Reasonably attractive hostesses, mostly humans, elves, and half elves, ply the patrons with drinks. All table games have a house advantage or rake but are otherwise fair.
The bartender is a very attractive half-elf called Dawn Goldentongue. She is a master at disguising the potency of her drinks, either to get someone smashed quickly or to pawn off watered-down drinks to the inebriated. Other than Lil, she is the only female in the place that you should definitely never proposition.
There are two sets of stairs toward the back of the room. One heading down to "The Pits" and the other heading up to "The Loft." Bane is stationed at these stairs. The Pits are a place for ratting, cock fights, pugilistic events, and other such amusements. There are four 'pits' that can be used for different events. Admission to the pits is 1 sp.
The Loft is a place for assignations. Those interested in charging for 'entertainment' can purchase and display a small red ribbon for 1 sp. Customers can query those wearing such a ribbon for their price list and if acceptable, escort them to the Lofts. Entry to the Lofts costs 1 sp or the red ribbon. In addition to entry, rooms cost 2 sp per hour for a normal room with a bed and an additional 1 gp per hour for a hot bath as well, with assorted lotions, perfumes, and incense.
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Astrid finds the alley to Lil's without any difficulty, although it is not a section of town she has frequented. She notices the dwarf sitting on the bench nearby smoking a pipe but it seems that she does not appear to pose a threat, so he does not signal whomever is watching from Lil's.
The alley is pleasantly devoid of shadows, so Astrid walks confidently to the building and down the stairs to the iron-bound door. The Judas hole opens and she says, "I'm thirsty," the code word the kid on the street told her. The trap shuts, several heavy bolts are drawn, and the door swings open to reveal a large half-orc in chain mail.
Seeing no weapons, he gestures toward the other door, "one silver to enter. Another if you are offering services." Astrid hands over one silver, not having sufficient interest or desperation to sell herself for money just at the moment.
The main room is dimly lit and hard to navigate. Seeing the far wall can even be a bit of a challenge. Having no immediate interest in drinking, she spends about 15-20 minutes wandering around the tables, trying to avoid getting pinched or groped, before settling on a coin tossing. She spends a few hours playing.
Narwell
Last edited by CaptainHellrazor, August 11 2025 11:19:49. Open game article. You can edit it once you log in.