The Rumor Mill - Week 5

Welcome to week 5 of The Rumor Mill. This week, let's talk about crime, criminals, and the things that people will do to each other when they think they can get away with it. The Lakeside Six have been operating in Fellport for over 300 years, and they will not hurt people if they can help it. They have some recent competition from The Minders, who run a protection racket and offer thugs for rent. Newfair, the latest shadowy group in town, spies on the well-to-do and threatens to sell secrets for blackmail income. Urchins know quite a bit about the streets and locations in Fellport, so they make money as guides augmented by the occasional pickpocketing score.

Smaller, independent groups operate in Fellport, but they all eventually come up against one of these groups in town. The smart ones cut in the established groups. The foolish ones start wars and die off.

1d8	Rumor	True?
1	The Minders hire out thugs for all occasions, and all of them enjoy causing pain.	Yes1
2	You can't smuggle goods in Fellport without help from the Dockworkers' Union.	Maybe2
3	Poor old Nana Bishop has no idea that the Minders use her as a legitimate front.	No3
4	Never trust an urchin guide in Fellport. They'll show you around, but set you up.	Maybe4
5	The Prince leads a group of bandits from an abandoned Ionian tower.	Yes5
6	Newfair excels at quiet assassinations. Disappearances have increased recently.	No6
7	The Merchants' Chamber extorts its members and makes its board of directors rich.	No7
8	The Lakeside Six used to have a headquarters on Lakeside 6, thus the name.	Yes8

1 - The Minders enjoy money slightly more than causing pain, but they do provide reliable muscle for anyone who pays.
2 - Smuggling small packages is easy, but unloading crates from a ship requires a card-carrying Union Dockworker.
3 - Nana Bishop may be old, but she rules the Minders with an iron fist. She runs an amazing long con game.
4 - Pay them well enough and they won't need to steal from you, but urchins will always sell information about your activities.
5 - The Prince is a minor noble from Fellport, and he has enough friends and sway to avoid prosecution for his banditry.
6 - Character assassinations, absolutely. Actual murder-for-hire isn't their modus operandi at all.
7 - They charge membership dues, sure, but dues pay for staff, member services, and advocacy with the Council.
8 - Also, there were 6 original members before it became the oldest, farthest-reaching thieves' guild in Fellport.

Part of T.W.Wombat's Lore 24 project, detailing the world around Fellport.
For all city posts, see the Fellport Index. For posts about the wider world, see the Beneterra Index.