This is the Antheon city where the party picked up the job, recorded as they saw it in Session 1 Recap - The Baronet’s Commission.
The mountain
Mount Irae rises out of the Divine Desert, terraced with temples. The grandest crown the summit, and they get smaller as they spiral down the slopes. A single great stair runs from the peak to the plain, crowded day and night with pilgrims climbing and descending.
The city is built of white limestone cut from the mountain, and in full sun it is almost blinding. There is no local water. The city exists only because of the mountain, and water arrives by airship, in bladders and tanks strapped to the hulls.
The sky-dock
Full entry: The Airport
An ivory tower at the foot of the mountain, one of a forest of mooring pillars, about thirty storeys tall.
- Ticket-holders take a lift, with complimentary champagne and an ice mephit cooling the car.
- Everyone else takes a stair that winds down the outside of the tower, an hour’s march in the heat. Mosaics along it show the pilgrim’s journey, from worldly clothes at the top to a brown robe and cord at the bottom.
- Water-sellers work the stair at 2 sp a bottle. Pilgrims die on it.
The foot of the stair
Poor quarters, vendors and crowds. The faiths compete for the stair itself. Lone preachers stand on soapboxes at the bottom; further up are small amphitheatres, then proper temples. A faith moves up the mountain as it gains followers, and the city guard drag off the ones that fail. Pickpocket gangs work the crowds (see The Goblin Guide).
- The House of the Small Gods, a huge inn.
- The House of the Gentle Repose, a temple whose handsome priests (The Acolytes of the Gentle Repose), in black-and-green robes, offer free food, drink and beds to weary travellers.
- The arenas of Gruumsh, which recruit at the stair (see The Priest of Gruumsh).
- The Church of Avandra, or someone using its name.
- The temple of Zehir, the Baronet’s chosen faith, governed by a conclave.
The wealthy ring
Full entry for the Baronet’s home: The Palais de Sorrel
One ring further out and further up the mountain from the stair. Home to The Baronet Sorrel’s palais. The city also has a Guild hall, where Thalan left his spare gold, and temples that sell magical messages.