Revision as of 08:07, 5 April 2010

Elsewhere

Many people who see it from the outside see nothing but a hut, an old tower, a swinging gate or some other kind of obsolete and unassuming spot near their location. Others see something specia. They see potential. They see a portal, in more than one meaning of the word. From the outside it always looks innocuous. A hut with rickety steps and a worn-down but working door; a silent and deserted tower in the middle of a forest; a door at the end of an alleyway like many others in a dark city; or perhaps a small tunnel in the desert that ends in a hallway. Regardless of what it looks like outside, people see it differently when they truly try to view it. Most simply discard it as some oddity and continue on their way, ignoring it forevermore. Others however, see it and know... they know that it's not simply a portal or a gateway to a room on the otherwise. They feel the relevance of such a portal and simply... step inside.

Inside, things are different from expected. Anyone that steps through a portal that leads to the tavern known as Elsewhere for the first time will be in for a serious shock. Regardless of the time of day or night, upon opening the door they are greeted with a particular view: a tavern full of people. A myriad of types color the inside, from those that seem to be the wealthiest of nobles, to those that would be considered the lowest of the disenfranchised. A person stepping inside needs to step over the threshold and directly into the tavern to actually receive full sensory privilege. Once inside, they are within the tavern, and the door closes behind them with an easy, graceful click.

Elsewhere is a tavern that can be accessed from many different locations in Creation (and occasionally other... places), depending on the hour that one wants to go and have a drink. More than just a tavern due to it's quasi-ambulatory nature, it acts not only as a tavern and tea house, but also an inn with bed and board for those that get... stuck. New patrons who find themselves too enibriated to pay attention to the Abacusith or other, more knowledgeable patrons, (or simply don't want to listen) quickly learn the error of their ways. While the tavern itself is in Elsewhere, and does not move, its entrance is co-located via powerful magics to more than two dozen other locations in Creation. Each hour of every day, on the hour, the portal that grants entrance to the tavern known as Elsewhere changes, moving on to its next entrance according to its rotation. If a patron doesn't pay attention, he could quickly find himself on the other side of Creation, needing to wait almost an entire day for a chance to get back home.

Welcome to Elsewhere. Mind the Abacusith. Watch the hourglass. Don't pay attention to the strange patrons...

... but most importantly? Don't forget to pay your tab.

Description

[Detailed descriptions of the inside of the tavern go here. It'll probably be damn big.]

Tavern

[Physical description, including decorative.]

[Typical climate and ambience.]

Tea House

[Physical description, including decorative.]

[Typical climate and ambience.]

Private Area

[Physical description, including decorative.]

[Typical climate and ambience.]

Staff

In Elsewhere, the patrons are often the strangest types one could possibly meet. The only thing stranger than the patrons, is the combination of patrons one might find at any given time, and how they relate to the permanent and semi-permanent denizens that roam the establishment's halls and rooms at all times. They are an awkward crew, even at first glance, but many of the patrons have learned not to take the staff's appearances, activities, and personalities at face value. There are more things under the skin of the staff of Elsewhere.

The staff of the establishment is divided into three seperate sections, each one representing part of a loose and (usually) friendly and amiable hierarchy that work together to perform the tasks needed to keep the place safe and secure. Management is composed of the owners, and the always active coordinator and administrator of tasks. The Employees are the waiters and the bartenders, those who take care of the patron's every need to the very best of their abilities, serving drinks and occasionally providing nice conversation. Lastly, Security is seperate from Employees due to the encompassing nature, as they are (mostly) mechanical, and provide a very different sort of service than the more amiable employees.

Management

Seventh Sage: One of two owners of the establishment, Seventh Sage is a calm, soft-spoken man apparently in his fifties. His white hair and sharp features cannot hide the dark, cutting eyes with which he looks about at all times, discerning each and every detail. Every single patron that has ever met him comes away feeling a sense of respect for the man. He can usually be found in the back of the establishment, in the tea house section, or otherwise upstairs in his room. Occasionally he will travel amongst the normal and more fluctuating patrons at the front of the local making acquiantances with several of the more... tipsy drinkers. He rarely acts out, and is usually incredibly well-spoken and cordial. On the rare times he is angered, or the loose control he holds on his tavern's patrons is lost, they tend to... disappear, no matter how great and mighty they are. He seems to take special care of his partner, the other owner of Elsewhere...

Crow: Apparently a young girl in her very early twenties, Crow has pale skin and jet hair; her eyes are black as night, and her stare has been known to move men to tears of longing... or frenzies of lust. When she's around, she's usually drinking with what she calls 'the boys,' (which can be any group composed of mostly men). Regular patrons, after a while, notice that while she appears to be completely independant, Crow is never alone. The bouncers and staff of Elsewhere keep extremely close tabs on her with their gazes, and are usually there in the time it takes to blink should anything happen that might endanger her well-being. She is overly protective of younger patrons that may be taken advantage of, and women who lechers might harrass. Though with a word she can call the security of the tavern at her very disposal, no one can say she does not know how to defend herself. Many have attempted to test her limits... and have found those limits painful.

Abacusith, The Counter, God of (Honest) Accounting: Elderly, cordial, and eternally properly dressed, this relatively short looking man roams the establishment known as Elsewhere constantly without a second's pause, unless to strike momentary conversations which are always cut short. In truth, Abacusith was once a very powerful god of the Celestial Bureaucracy. His time in office dates back to before the First Age, when corruption was still young and had yet to truly submerge itself insipidly into the conspiratorial world of business and finance. He continued in his office for many millenia, until one day, the invitations to Heaven's parties stopped coming. He stopped getting letters from his peers. He found bribes waiting on his desk and lies painted on his walls. He realized that finally, after thousands of years of good, honest work, corruption and deceit had made its way into his most prized possession: his job.

So, after five centuries of not receiving any invitations, of having dinners cancelled or (politely) declined, of having his once-called friends stray away into more... enterprising relationships, the lonely god bowed his head and politely placed his letter of resignation on his superior's desk, taking an entourage of small servile elementals with him upon his departure. For the next millenia he roved Creation, looking for a place where his honest methods of keeping numbers and bean-counting could be appreciated and honored. As luck would have it, he found none... but one did find him.

Fifteen years ago he was approached by a man who offered him a job. An honest job. The man presented himself as Seventh Sage, and told him that he could work at the new tavern and inn he had recently opened. Though inquisitive as to how the man could know who Abacusith actually was and what he did in Heaven, he asked no questions, waiting for the answers to come on their own.

His job within Elsewhere is very simple: every day, every hour, and every minute, he keeps count of. Who comes in, where they come from, and how much time they have left before they cannot leave again for a day are all in his little black book. The calculations can be done in front of patrons if they so wish, for which he uses a beautiful black jade abacus that he carries with him along with the book. He always knows how many people are within Elsewhere, and is never surprised by any fluctuation. He is also in charge of letting the patrons know how much they owe and when their window of opportunity to leave is approaching (usually within five to ten minutes before the time comes, so they can pay their tab). He only advices each patron (or group that entered together) once. If they are too drunk or arrogant (or stupid) to pay attention, that would be their fault. He cannot be held responsible. Impressively well-mannered and honest about his work, he is not quickly offended, though when he is, it's best that whoever offended him take care of their tab and leave... quickly.

Employees

Employees are the backbone of business in Elsewhere. When Seventh Sage first opened the place, he and Crow, along with a few lowly little gods had to tend to everyone, having no employees. However, as time went by and Elsewhere picked up popularity, more and more people showed up... and many of them didn't want (or couldn't) pay; coincidentally enough, these patrons who didn't want to pay their tabs seemed to also be those that had run the largest tabs of the moment! The manner of their retrieval can be found below under Security: Rovers, but the future of these would-be skippers can be found here. They are the smiling faces of Elsewhere.

Everyone who tried to avoid paying what they owed has ended up working for Crow and Seventh Sage at the tavern, the tea house, and occasionally, for truly unsavory people... house maids in the private room. There are well over a dozen waiters and waitresses in Elsewhere, all taking shifts, returning to their homes every two or three days to relax, and occasionally working Calibration to pay those extra bills. Some are worthy of note, others are simple men and women who haven't been able to pay off their debts yet.

Six Swingin' Simians: Seven or so years ago a band of six monkeys walked into Elsewhere with a need for booze... and they got it, plenty of it in fact. They spoke and had personalities just like normal people, and explained to their fellow patrons that they were from a kingdom known as Halta, where animals can talk and actually be citizens. They were, if they are to be held to their word, princes in Halta. They spent an entire fortnight in the tavern, swinging and drinking and throwing wild parties. Their tab grew. They kept drinking. It grew some more. They continued to drink.

Two weeks after their arrival they thanked everyone for the good time and made for the door. They didn't get very far. Stopped by the hard hands of the Bouncers, the now (by popular demand) denominated Six Swingin' Simians were questioned as to their tab. When they finally confessed that they had no way of paying, Seventh Sage shrugged and smiled.

Now, these six Haltan ata-monkeys leap, swing, and run through the legs of the patrons and other employees, carrying trays full of drinks and plates full of food, wiping tables, taking orders, and otherwise making themselves a nuisance... but doing their jobs. They have been at Elsewhere working for the past seven years, and have not yet be able to pay off the tab they ran... only the Management known how much the monkeys will have to keep working, and they're not telling.

Absinthe: There's been one person in the history of Elsewhere that has run up a tab larger than the Six Swingin' Simians. Several years ago a young Dynast found her way into the tavern with her entire party. She organized a grand feast, one that overshadowed even the fortnight that the ata-monkeys created in the tavern. Her entourage was enormous, and filled the establishment quickly, over two dozen soldiers and assistants, and a dozen or so slaves running amuck and creating havoc. She, of course, was the center of attention, drowning her pelasure and gloriousness in her favorite venom: absinthe.

So drugged on her own addiction did she become, that they stayed for days on end, drinking and feasting to no end, inviting each newcomer to the tavern to more and more drinks. However, one night she awoke to find herself alone. The sodilers she had slept with, the slaves she had tortured, her subjects... and her belongings... they had all disappeared. She rampaged through Elsewhere until confronted by Abacusith and Seventh Sage, and made aware of her situation. Her entire entourage, all three dozen or so people, had taken their things, themselves, and her money, and left her there just as the entrance to her home disappeared.

Absinthe is ashamed of what happened to her... but more than that, she is incredibly furious about it. A Dragon-blooded of the aspect of Fire, her temper is quick to rise. However, due to her immense debt to the Management, she is unable to actually act out on the threats she makes in private. She attempted several times, and each was met with quick and painful reprimand.

Forced to be somewhat docile and perky, she has no choice but to dress with her old clothes (all of which are rather showy and scandalous) and to accept her new nickname: Absinthe.She has never spoken her real name since the day she was left behind by her guard, and Seventh Sage enjoys teasing her viciously by making her recall what got her into her predicament. She has since not been so fond of the substance, though still has trouble giving up her addiction in full. Occasionally, she attempts to make a break for it... she never makes it to the door anymore.

Saryn Yu: Calibration is always a strange time in Creation, but it is even stranger within the establishment known as Elsewhere. Every year, for five days, those within the place are taken to unexpected places. One of these places was a strnage, mechanical land. Though only there for a day (not enough time for anyone to pick up the valor to step outside and explore, and perhaps miss their only way back home), they did receive a visitor.

In the dead of night, mere hours before the entrance shifted once more, a man rushed into the tavern with fear in his eyes... and extra arms on his torso. Tall and well muscled, he had an additional set of arms that came from his torso. The most interesting fact was that they were mechnical. He was amiable enough, and so Seventh Sage saw no reason to not let him stay... except of course that he had no money. It was quickly arranged that the man would work at the bar, and live in Elsewhere as many of the employees did.

Saryn Yu is a friendly guy. Most of the time he can be found behind the bar, working his shift, or having a drink during his free time. He speaks with an extremely odd accent, and except for his arms, is human-looking and even handsome. He is, perhaps, the friendliest face of all the employees, always a quip at his lips nad a wink in his eye. He loves dealing with the ladies, and shows off his talents as a bartender as often as possible.

Made of brass, his arms are shaped exactly like his human ones and come out of a portion of his torso that has been replaced by mechanical contraptions. They are able to swivel further forward, so that he can tuck them together against his stomach and chest. Though the usual topic of conversation brought up by most people, he tends to be quiet about them, leading the conversation towards other issues... since the people he talks to are usually drunk, it's not a difficult thing to do.

Security

Every establishment that caters to the public needs security. It doesn't matter what kind of people you accept inside, trouble is never far behind. For places that take in supernatural beings such as the Exalted, spirits, mutated mortals and the occasional demon, it's not a bad idea to have the best type of security you can possibly find. Luckily, the tavern called Elsewhere came with its own immune system.

The Security of Elsewhere is divided in three different types of reactions, two active and one passive. A host of, according to rumours, inexhaustible automatons that are always present and come out of the woodwork (literally). Those who attempt to skip paying their tab find that there isn't a more difficult thing to do, thanks to the spherical globes that seem to appear whenever someone attempts it; no one has ever gotten away with not paying at Elsewhere. Lastly, there is an gigantic hourglass, with powers all its own. [Optional stats for automatons and Rovers will be provided, but Storytellers should balance these according to their PCs' power levels and their general story.]

Automaton Bouncers: Whether it's a tavern, a pub, a bar or a restaurant, the denizens of Creation will always find a reason to come to blows. When these denizens don't have anything but place and chosen mode of enibriation in common, the blows come faster, they come harder, and they're almost impossible to control. Seventh Sage was content when he found that the tavern he had decided to reopen came with it's own bouncers. Automatons, designed not only to keep powerful beings in check, but also to repare themselves when broken.

Not even Seventh Sage himself knows exactly how many of these mechanical security guards there are within the complex. They apparently have the ability to literally come out of the walls, ceilings and floor, forming themselves in an instant and taking charge of any violent situation that has gotten out of hand. They aren't very sensitive, however, as it usually takes a lot to put them into action. If one of the members of the Management is attacked, they will enter into action unless told otherwise by the attacked member or Seventh Sage.

Levels of violence between patrons and employees in any combination must escalate to levels of serious Essence use, though even if no Essence is in use during the fight the bouncers will stop anything that becomes too brutal and near death. Abacutish can count on the fingers of one hand the number of times that the automatons have not been able to stop something from occurring, and he has never seen anyone win a battle within Elsewhere against them, as they tend to simply become more if more are needed.

Spherical Rovers: In any establishment that caters to the public, someone is going to attempt not to pay for services rendered. It happens all the time, but some people simply cannot see it. The designers of Elsewhere obviously foresaw this sort of thing, and created a particularly unique retrieval system to capture tab-skippers and other charlatans. The Rovers are, to the eyes, transperant globes that emerge from nothingness to pursue patrons that do not with to make clean their debts.

Quick and effective, Rovers only come into play in two situations, both directly related. The more common one is the retrieval of those that would attempt to skip their tabs. If someone makes it out of the tavern without paying for their meal, drinks, or anything else, the Rovers are deployed automatically and bring back the miscreant by engulfing them and floating them back towards the establishment. It usually ends there, as the skipper realizes he's not going to get anywhere. However, some don't know when to give up, and things become complicated.

When a tab-skipper does (and very very few have ever been able to do this) avoid the Rovers enough to get away, a wanted poster is placed inside the establishment. Those who owe money or cannot pay their tabs may, if their tab is worth less than the tab of the person who got away, make a deal with Seventh Sage to go and act as a bounty hunter. In exchange for bringing back someone who effectively eluded the Rovers, their own tab would be considered paid. These bounty hunters are always accompanied by an entourage of Rovers (the number depending on how powerful the fugitive is estimated to be) and must personally escort the Rovers back to the tavern before their tab is nullified.

Ending Opportunity: When all is said and done, Elsewhere is, at its core, a simple building which has had its very essence fused with that of a powerful First Age Artifact: Ending Opportunity, the Hourglass of Elsewhere. At a height of nine feet, this massive artifact floats comfortably in the center of one of the courtyards of Elsewhere. While metallic in strcuture, it doesn't actually appear to have glass or crystal keeping the sands inside it... they simply seem to remain where they belong, without any obvious barriers to keep them within the hourglass' parameters. The sands themselves are orange and black, for each half of an hour, respectively. The sand will continue to fall even though the hourglass itself spins, and so they may indeed seem to be falling upwards as the hourglass shifts position erratically.

This hourglass performs many functions, most of them kept completely secret from the patrons and the majority of the staff, some of them even being kept secret from Seventh Sage himself. Upon superficial magical inspection, however, the hourglass can be linked to a few functions of the tavern itself. First and foremost is coordinates the switching of the entrances that lead to Elsewhere with perfect accuracy. While it can be reprogrammed, it takes a lot of effort to do so. Additionally, the sands within it state which half on an hour the current patrons are spending inside the tavern, and with a quick look one can tell if they need to leave or have more time left.

The only times that Ending Opportunity ceases to move is during Calibration. This of course seems to imply that something else is in charge of moving the entrances to Elsewhere during this time, but no one has been able to figure out exactly what that is... or at least, no one has come out and said they've discovered the truth. Automaton Bouncers and the Management will make their very best attempts to stop anyone attempting to tinker, tamper, or otherwise affect the gigantic hourglass. While it is perfectly fine to look at the monstruous beauty, touching it is forbidden, and anyone seen coming too close will be stopped immediately.

Conduits

[General Information]

Southern Conduits

[Chiaroscuro, An-Teng, City of the Mad]

Eastern Conduits

[Nexus, Thorns, Rathess]

Nothern Conduits

[Whitewall, Cherak, Diamond Hearth]

Western Conduits

[Sunken Luthe, Abalone, 40th Gate to Yu Shan]

Calibration Conduits

[Imperial Mountain, Stygia, Yu-Shan, Malfeas]

Secrets

[Every location in Exalted has its secrets; it'd be a crime to deny Elsewhere its very own.]

Suggested

[Secrets that are strongly suggested for this setting to make sense as designed.]

Optional

[Secrets that are entirely optional and don't affect the design of the setting.]

Credits

While the original idea isn't very... well... original, I will take credit for thinking it up for Exalted. However: Moxiane, Xyphoid, and Zergplex all deserve credit for giving me a whole bunch of wonderful ideas, and also helping me fix some of the stuff that didn't quite work out right with the original concept. This is just the kind of guy I am.

Commentary

Suggestions, concerns, tidbits, discussions, and running commentary. They all go here. Please, contribute! ~ Seiraryu

Fantastic work. This is perfect for the setting of Exalted, even if you don't feel it to be the most original idea in existance. It's definately a store for all kinds of creative ideas; and you've certainly put an Exalted spin on the old idea of the standard Fantasy setting tavern.

Only idea I can suggest would be a (perhaps accidental) gate into the tavern, or a series of them that lead into all kinds of bad places. The one that jumped to mind was some kind of back store room door, that, if opened at some odd hour of the night, leads into Autocthonia. Just a suggestion. - Bassist159, who's going to be watching this now...

The "dangerous places" thing is already in effect in some way. Two of the regular stops are, after all, Sunken Luthe and Thorns. I mean, who wants to step out into Mask of Winter's territory? Or even worse, a flooded city at the bottom of the ocean?! But I see where you're going, and I'll consider it... maybe as one of the optional secrets. Hmm. Will think! Thanks for your encouragement! And yes, please keep watching! ~ Seiraryu who's feeling a tad proud now, dammit!

What happens / is there to see if you open the door to the flooded city? Are you looking at some kind of wall of water or will the tavern get *really* wet? As for the rest of it, the tavern is wonderful! -- MadFreddy

Well, I'm going to describe it in detail later on, but for now: have you ever seen Stargate? Like that, only less silvery. It'd actually be quite dark (the depths of the oceans are almost completely light-less). Or maybe not, depending on where in Luthe (since the city is still semi-active, what with Leviathan's children taking care of it. ~ Seiraryu

Bravo! Bravo! Bravisimo! I love this idea and will be snagging it for my next exalted campaign to bring my DB PCs a little closer to the wide world around them. I'd like to see one of the staff be like a big brother to PCs (unbeknowest to management of course) who is willing to give up fatherly advice in their times of trouble.~ Insanewizard jumping up and down in his office chair

Huh, I didn't know more people had posted! Thanks for compliments! If you do use it, let me know how it goes! A big brother figure could certainly be worked in as Abacusith, or Saryn Yu. Seventh Sage is a bit of a mystery to really work with that. ~ Seiraryu

This is indeed insanely nice! And I think I just might snag this for my next exalted game if I run one. ~ haku who gives 3 thumbs up{

Haku! Glad you liked it! As above, let me know how it works out! ~ Seiraryu

Those who want to use this in their campaigns may be interested in Sandman: World's End, which deals with a tavern much like this. Additionally, the last story in the collection, "Cerements" is what I always think of when dealing with Sijan. - Wordman

It is a little inspired by The Inn Between. ~ Seiraryu