Post by Velaryon on Nov 30, 2011 3:58:04 GMT -5
The Bone Claws were a long-standing thieves' guild in the city of Myratma, having established their presence there sometime during the Reclamation Wars. While never the most powerful guild in the city at any given time, the Bone Claws had two main strengths in their favor which allowed them to endure long after many of their original competitors had ceased to exist.
First, the guild was extremely loosely organized. Rather than having a singular head, the Bone Claws had a loose confederation of leaders that each maintained their own spheres of influence. They would work together where necessary, but each prominent member of the Bone Claws worked independently and maintained their own safe houses and minions. This allowed the guild to scatter and lie low whenever the situation called for it, as even if one safe house was discovered the rest of the guild would still be safe and able to respond to the threat.
Second and perhaps more importantly, all the upper echelons of the Bone Claws guild were composed of intelligent undead. While most of the lower-level thugs were ordinary mortals, many unaware of their masters' true nature, the guild leadership was made of the unliving, most able to create their own undead minions or lieutenants one way or another.
By mid-1375, the Bone Claws had risen to become possibly the second most powerful thieves' guild in Myratma, with the Eyes of Night being by far their most significant rivals. When they learned of a band of adventurers that had become enemies with their greatest rivals, two of the Bone Claws' leaders, the warlock Aginor and the vampire lord Seth, decided to try and use them to the guild's advantage.
Offering aid, they supplied the location of the Eyes of Night's hidden guild complex, which they had recently obtained through the capture of someone in possession of that information, and offered assistance. The adventurers preferred to attack in broad daylight, so the Bone Claws declined to provide physical aid as they would have preferred to muster at night.
Unfortunately, the adventurers learned that Seth had imprisoned an ally of theirs, whom Seth claimed had been caught snooping around their headquarters. Seth turned her over to their custody, but still the damage was done.
Whatever trust there might have been was broken, and two days later, the adventurers returned to Seth's hideout in the ruins of the Jhannivar mansion ready for battle. In addition to Seth, two other guild leaders (Aginor and Bone Claw McGraw, who was actually a living man with numerous undead grafts attached to his body) were present and dragged into the conflict. Of the three, only Aginor escaped safely. Seth was staked and burned, and Bone Claw was slain as well.
The status of the Bone Claws remains a mystery to outsiders at present. With the escape of Aginor, it's entirely possible that the Bone Claws may yet survive. However, it is unknown what if any resources he might have left upon which to call.
First, the guild was extremely loosely organized. Rather than having a singular head, the Bone Claws had a loose confederation of leaders that each maintained their own spheres of influence. They would work together where necessary, but each prominent member of the Bone Claws worked independently and maintained their own safe houses and minions. This allowed the guild to scatter and lie low whenever the situation called for it, as even if one safe house was discovered the rest of the guild would still be safe and able to respond to the threat.
Second and perhaps more importantly, all the upper echelons of the Bone Claws guild were composed of intelligent undead. While most of the lower-level thugs were ordinary mortals, many unaware of their masters' true nature, the guild leadership was made of the unliving, most able to create their own undead minions or lieutenants one way or another.
By mid-1375, the Bone Claws had risen to become possibly the second most powerful thieves' guild in Myratma, with the Eyes of Night being by far their most significant rivals. When they learned of a band of adventurers that had become enemies with their greatest rivals, two of the Bone Claws' leaders, the warlock Aginor and the vampire lord Seth, decided to try and use them to the guild's advantage.
Offering aid, they supplied the location of the Eyes of Night's hidden guild complex, which they had recently obtained through the capture of someone in possession of that information, and offered assistance. The adventurers preferred to attack in broad daylight, so the Bone Claws declined to provide physical aid as they would have preferred to muster at night.
Unfortunately, the adventurers learned that Seth had imprisoned an ally of theirs, whom Seth claimed had been caught snooping around their headquarters. Seth turned her over to their custody, but still the damage was done.
Whatever trust there might have been was broken, and two days later, the adventurers returned to Seth's hideout in the ruins of the Jhannivar mansion ready for battle. In addition to Seth, two other guild leaders (Aginor and Bone Claw McGraw, who was actually a living man with numerous undead grafts attached to his body) were present and dragged into the conflict. Of the three, only Aginor escaped safely. Seth was staked and burned, and Bone Claw was slain as well.
The status of the Bone Claws remains a mystery to outsiders at present. With the escape of Aginor, it's entirely possible that the Bone Claws may yet survive. However, it is unknown what if any resources he might have left upon which to call.