Ag-Rakade

Ag-Rakade is the starting point for this campaign.

Geography
Ag-Rakade is a village in Kassithe. It is situated at a significant crossroads along the north-south road between Bushehr on the coast and the Kassithe capital of Bakretah, and the east-west connector road to the halfling cities of Bek and Nahji. It is also close to the swamplands at the confluence of the Tith-Ronta and Zath-Ronta rivers.

As with all settlements in Kassithe, Ag-Rakade denotes not just the village proper, but also the surrounding farmlands. In reality, the boundaries of the village is the unmarked boundary between the ability of the people to make an area safe, and the dangers posed by the creatures of the wildlands.

Map & Key
Reference the map on this page.

Ag-Rakade is set up as a merchant trading post, especially for agricultural products. Because it is a crossroads, it is also a place where many business transactions take place; the town has numerous warehouses to store goods while they are transferred from one owner to another. The two major trading guilds (the Ahti-Wagrah and the Dii’duuresu) both have offices here, although the functionaries there are relatively minor ones and take orders directly from guild reps in the larger cities. There are a variety of independent inns and lodges for travelers, and a marketplace for retail trade. The largest, most important buildings in Ag-Rakade are adobe and stone, most common folk live in houses of adobe and wood or all wood; and there are significant tent communities as well. The important buildings/areas are:

Temple of Nissaba (A)
Nissaba, the goddess of agriculture and fertility, is the patron of Ag-Rakade. It has a small, permanent clerical staff; other clerics of Nissaba live amongst the farmers in the outskirts of town. The temple is surrounded by shrines to the other gods of the human pantheon of Kassithe, they are well-maintained by the staff clerics (as is the custom throughout the land) and available for worship at any time.

Meeting Hall (B)
The Hall is the governing building of Ag-Rakade. It contains the office suite of the Chief Matriarch and the smaller office of the Justice, and a large open area that serves town meetings, criminal trials, and secular ceremonies (like promotions and inaugurations).

Militia House (C)
This building houses the offices of the local militia commanders, as well as training rooms and armories. Behind this building is a tent village for housing of militia troops. Behind the tent village are sparring grounds, archery ranges, and other fields necessary for training members of the militia and their horses & camels.

Misnarta’s Tavern (D)
This is the tavern for the locals, run by Misnarta (see the "NPCs" link below).

Burial Crypts (E)
This cemetery and crypts are available to any resident who passes on. It is maintained by the local clerics. Various divine enchantments prevent defilement.

Ahti-Wagrah Guild Hall (F)
This building houses the offices of the local Ahti-Wagrah merchant guild, its vaults, and lodging for any certified members of the guild in good standing who visit Ag-Rakade.

Dii’Duuresu Guild Hall (G)
This building houses the offices of the local Dii’Duuresu merchant guild, its vaults, and lodging for any certified members of the guild in good standing who visit Ag-Rakade.

Market and Stable (H)
These buildings and tents form the Ag-Rakade retail market. Many goods are here, including halfling produce from the south and exotic objects that come from the free city of Kutesh and the lands reachable beyond the Presett Sea.

Halfling Enclave (I)
Outside of town, in the direction indicated, sits a small (150+) enclave of halflings, living in their stereotypical warren-homes. In their midst are shrines to the various halfling gods found in the campaign. Although all the inns in the town accept halflings, many still like to rent rooms from the halflings in the enclave (it reminds them of home).

Demographics
Ag-Rakade is a small village with roughly 1,000 people in the village proper, plus an equal number in the farm families in the surrounding area. It is at a fairly important crossroads between the main north road between the human communities on the Tith-Ronta and the halfling communities on the Zath-Ronta. As such, it does have more halflings than most towns & villages along the northern road, but is still mostly human (the ratio is about 3-to-1). Because it also lies on a major east-west roadway, most races and cultures can be found travlling through the village at any given time.

Economy
The economy of Ag-Rakade is primarily farming, due to irrigation from the nearby river. There is some ranching as well, and there are significant trading posts in the center of town.

Government
The government is similar to all local governments in Kassithe.
 * The Chief Matriarch (rarely, a Patriarch) who leads the council meetings and has executive powers in cases of emergency or threat. Seat currently held by Entara, a priestess of Nissaba (goddess of agriculture). She used to be the chief cleric of the nearby temple, but gave up that post when elected to become Chief Matriarch.


 * The Council of Elders, who are not necessarily old but are recognized as senior leaders in this sectors. This council is chaired by Entara (as Chief Matriarch), and consists of:

Not part of the Council of Elders, but a key figure in village governance, is Justice Hannasi. A former member of the militia, she studied law with the priests of Aruru in Bakreteh before returning to the village to serve as the village's adjudicator in legal matters.
 * Tat-Babu, commander of the Ag-Rakade militia. He is a hard-nosed commander and a survivor of the Giant Wars.
 * Lib-Loth, the head priest of the Temple of Nissaba. He was promoted to lead the temple upon the elevation of Entara to Chief Matriarch.
 * Ea-Nasir, the head of the Ahti-Wagrah merchant's guild. His election to the council, at the exclusion of Tash-Kanetu (the head of the rival Dii'Duuresu) is a source of much tension between the guilds.
 * Rihat, the farmer's representative. She is a matriarch in her own right, being the chief elder of her own family and its extensive holdings throughout the surrounding lands.

These NPCs are described further here.

Organizations
A full list of organizations operating in Ag-Rakade can be found here.

Other NPCs
A full list of NPCs in Ag-Rakade can be found here.

Locations
Key locations within the village are listed below. Refer to the map at the top of the page for the lettered locations.

Spoilers
Some episodes caused changes to the village of Ag-Rakade, see the links below. Spoilers!!

Episode 11: "Stomp!"