Networks, Study and Property

Networks
Anyone can waltz into town and just pick up information by bribing some people, that's the easy part. But sometimes people don't want to tell you everything they know, sometimes you just don't know the right people.

That's where networking comes in. By knowing the right people and saying the right word at the right time, well, let's just say that it's good to keep your ear to the ground. It's also good to know when to keep your face down too.

Setting up a reliable network gives you many advantages, but there are possible repercussions as well.

Benefits: Acquiring a network gives you a +1 circumstance bonus on all Gather Information checks made where you have a Domain or Tertiary Domain as long as you can meet informants. This usually takes 2d4 hours, but can vary.

Additionally, your informants will often come to you with any information they may have that they know you're looking for or they think you'll find interesting. Each week, your network will roll a Gather Information check with a bonus equal to the network's level + 1/3 levels against the DC of the item of interest occurring in the relevant domain. If the network exceeds the number, you will be contacted by an informant, or they will bring it up at their next meeting with you.

Disadvantages: Having and maintaining a network is a costly business that may draw undue attention to yourself. Every week, there is a chance (16% - network level) that someone else noticed your informants, or that an informant has been paid off to give either false information or give information to you. Your own network has a chance of discovering this.

Additionally, there are weekly upkeep costs and maintenance costs associated with your domains. A domain costs 1d4 gold and 1d4 hours per domain level each week in continually greasing the wheels and maintaining communication. For each week you miss this, the benefits are reduced by 1. If you spend more than a month without further payments or communications, your network is considered defunct.

In order to start setting up a network, you need to decide a few things though.

Primary Domain
This choice determines what part of the local community you're trying to keep your eye on. It could be the docks, mage's guilds, nobility or even the criminal underground. You'll get a +2 bonus on any Gather Information check you make regarding your Domain.

When you set up your network, you pick one Domain. You can further invest your time and resources into upgrading your domain if you so choose which gives you an additional +2 for each level, to a maximum of +10. You must have at least 4 ranks in the appropriate skill +1 rank for each level of the Domain. For example, if you want a level 3 Domain using bribery you need at least 7 ranks in Gather Information.

You can also add a new Domain to your sphere of influence, but it must first be a tertiary domain.

Tertiary Domain
Tertiary domains act exactly as Primary domains but cannot be more than one-half the level of your primary domain. Additionally, it costs an extra 20% gold to set up/upgrade a tertiary domain for each tertiary domain you possess. (The first one does not cost extra)

Method
This describes how exactly you do business. What exactly makes people come to you and give you information, or what makes them part with it in the first place.

Bribery(Gather Information)
Bribery is one of the most common tools in the arsenal of a spy. A few gold scales exchanging hands can easily seal the deal, and everyone will know that there's more where that came from.

Cost to set up: 200 gp

Cost to upgrade: 200 * Domain Level-1 gp

Diplomacy
Diplomacy, the sweet sound of a honeyed tongue can almost replace the clinking of coins. Almost. Choosing this tactic will save you a fair amount of coin to start with, but expanding your reach will be another matter entirely

Using Diplomacy gives you a flat 5% chance less of having an informant turn on you or feed you false information. However, your informants are more likely to be detected by 5%.

Cost to set up: 100 gp

Cost to upgrade: 300 * Domain Level-1 gp

Intimidation
Intimidation is a lesser used tactic as it can ruffle some feathers. That being said, as long as you keep up your public face as someone who is not to be trifled with, people will be less likely to strike out against you. If you suffer any public humiliations though, the people who were helping you might just decide they've had enough and take matters into their own hands.

Using this gives a 5% increased chance that an informant will turn on you, but a 10% less chance that you will be fed false information unless it is directly harmful to you.

Cost to set up: 100 gp

Cost to upgrade: 150 * Domain Level-1 gp

Study
Libraries As repositories of knowledge, libraries can be very useful for the interested scholar. When utilizing a library, you may claim the following benefits.

For the first day of study, you may elect to either roll or take the indicated number under the "Take" entry and treat that as your roll.

If you spend a second day in uninterrupted study at the library, you receive the "Check Bonus" as a Circumstance bonus to your Knowledge check. For every additional day you spend in uninterrupted study at the library, you receive an additional +1 bonus to your knowledge check up to the indicated maximum.

The following assumes that the library is not specialized and does contain a smattering of books related to your topic.

Small Library
A small library contains one to one thousand assorted books.

Take: 10

Check Bonus: +1

Check Maximum: +5

Moderate Library
A moderate library contains two hundred to a few thousand books.

Take: 10

Check Bonus: +2

Check Maximum: +10

Advanced Library
An advanced library contains one to a hundred thousand books.

Take: 15

Check Bonus: +4

Check Maximum: +15

Grand Library
A grand library contains several hundred thousand books.

Take: 20

Check Bonus: +6

Check Maximum: +20

Specialized Libraries
A library that is specialized for a specific subject gives the researcher an additional +2 bonus on their Knowledge checks.

Generic Study and Research
Many scholars have a field of interest that suits them, such as antiquity, lost relics, or perhaps antiquated customs. Such people can utilize libraries in order to expand their field of knowledge during their down time and learn obscure facts that they may otherwise have no way of knowing.

A DC 30 Knowledge check reveals to the researcher a piece of obscure knowledge related to their field of interest that they may not have previously heard about. The higher the check, the more useful or obscure the gained knowledge will be.

Property
Sometimes it's good to have a place to call a home, whether it's a mighty wizard's tower, an adventurer's headquarters or just a small pony farm, home is where you hang up your armor, prop your wizard's staff up by the door and cool your heels.

Many places in Rasviim are more than willing to take your hard earned money and rent out land or property to you to do with as you please. The sky is ultimately the limit for what you want to do with the land that belongs to you.

We will be using the Stronghold Builder's Guidebook as a base for this mechanic, but I will modify prices as well as effects when I see fit. Please discuss all plans with me.