Amn is ruled by the Council of Five, a tribunal of feuding merchant lords slavering at the chance to grow their power. The council is based in capital Athkatla and acts as a sort of regulatory body, preventing any group from crippling the flow of trade into and out Amn.
The Cowled Wizards, in order to control and regulate all magical knowledge, have banned the open and unregulated use of arcane magic through out the region; their power is most felt in the cities but a few caravans of agents criss-cross the sparse eastern settlements. Mages are distrusted throughout the nation.
The Shadow Thieves exert their influence through subtle and unsavory means, slowly subverting the dominance of the many merchant houses and building their own little empire; they rank among the 10 wealthiest organizations in Amn.
These potential patrons are among the many factions vying for power, secrets, and wealth in the Lands of Intrigue.
Adventure can be found not only in the cities, such as Athkatla or Murann, but also in the ruins and wastes to the east. As you move away from the fertile coastal region, Amn quickly becomes a rough and unforgiving land with only a few scarce settlements strewn about. Many people, places, and things have been lost in those wastes, both purposefully and not. Are the rewards that lurk in these caves, swamps, and ruins worth the risks that might lurk within?
The players we be taking on the roles of problem solvers, tomb raiders, bounty hunters, mercenaries, etc. You work together as a group of professional adventurers, a not uncommon endeavor in the Lands of Intrigue. You're veterans of a few small jobs, but now you're looking for your first big contract together. You'll be starting in Athkatla, the City of Coin.
Some of you might know Amn and its capital city Athkatla from the Baldur's Gate 2 video game. I'm mixing that nation with the Border Prince's region from Warhammer Fantasy along with a big dash of the 2nd edition setting of Al-Qadim.
System with 5th edition with the Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide supplement; I'm thinking of starting at level 2. I probably will be using the exploration turns from the D and D Next playtest with correlated torches etc, along with the LotFP encumbrance rules because they are my favorite. The exploration turns will result in more overall dice rolling, but the hope is that this improves the actual experience of "exploring" by expanding the number of encounter types. Also, increasing the options and level might lead to a longer character creation session, but hopefully our familiarity with 5E will overcome that.
