Velvet Phantasm

D&D 3e (3.0/3.5) Rules

by Jonesy

Entry in the 2006 Nexus Organizations Contest.

History

Shortly after the War of Souls a group of artists and patrons of arts, all fed up with the destruction facing art in all its forms by the constant upheavals plaguing Ansalon, came together to discuss the formation of a guild of their own. They chose as their goal the collection and presentation of any and all Ansalonian art. Thus was born the Velvet Phantasm.

Goals/Motivations

The Velvet Phantasm aims to have in its possession all surviving original Ansalonian art; and then to present them to the public in museums, galleries, and theaters of their own. And all this quite naturally for purposes of survival of the arts and profit (not necessarily in that order).

Headquarters/Areas of Influence

The Waterlily Theater in Palanthas, being currently the most successful venue of the organization, is considered the headquarters. All meetings take place at the grand stage. The Velvet Phantasm own many venues in most of Ansalon's major cities and its numbers of Seekers of Arts and Creators of Arts are rapidly growing all around the continent so that it truly has become in a short period of time the universally Ansalonian organization.

Leadership/Organization

The person whose venue(s) of art produce the highest amount of income at particular times (quarterlies) is the Controller of Arts, and controls which forms of art the organization will seek next. Every venue owner (museum, gallery, theater, etc.) below him is a Displayer of Arts. Creators of Arts are those artists who sell their works exclusively to the organization. All other members are called a Seeker of Arts.

The current Controller is the famed Palanthian noble, and (among other things) owner of the popular Waterlily Theater, Martyn Siphone.

Allies

Any and all parties that aid the organization to preserve art end up on the Luminaries list. Luminaries will be offered increased fees on art they sell to the Velvet Phantasm and all transportation costs will be refunded. Prominently on the list are the Solamnic Knights, the Palanthas Thieves Guild and most of the surviving Wizards.

Enemies

Any and all parties that heedlessly cause the destruction or loss of art end up on the Dark list. Any parties on the list will be shunned by the organization. Any members caught aiding anyone on the list will be expelled. Kender have been on the list from the very first day, mostly because artworks have a funny way of ending up lost (or rather, somewhere else) when around them (or the other way around).

Membership

Members are recognized by a velvet badge presenting the image of a red ghost. The Controllers ghost is on a field of gold, the Displayers on silver, the Creators on blue, and the Seekers on green.

The Controller, being the wealthiest member, usually has his days full just managing his own holdings. He also settles disputes, sets targets for the next quarterly, and keeps track of art in possession of the Velvet Phantasm. The Controller also has personal Seekers, whom he can select freely (though the Seekers asked may refuse).

The Displayers manage their holdings and aid Seekers in their quests to find new original artwork. This often causes Displayers to end up in fights over who gets to aid whom (and also causes many underhanded tactics, such as Displayers outright stealing untracked art from Seekers, or even other Displayers).

Seekers spend their time tracking down facts and rumours of art findings, and then bring them to Displayers for hefty fees. This can be a very lucrative business and many Seekers are very happy to remain as such.

Creators, well, create. Successful ones receive bonuses from their patrons; while unsuccessul ones either starve and create, or change profession.

Joining the Organization

To join the Velvet Phantasm one must seek out a Displayer (or the Controller) and bring him an original piece of art (which one could create himself, thus becoming a Creator) that said Displayer finds worthy of displaying in a venue of his.

Costs and Benefits of Membership

All members must take the Artist's Oath to never intentionally harm or lose works of art, and always work to bring them into the fold of the Velvet Phantasm.

Displayers take the most risks since they must attempt to seek art people want to experience, and therefore must need find reliable Creators and Seekers upon whom to give their monetary aid. Unskilled or unlucky Displayers can quickly fall back to Seekers.

If a member happens to find out about a particularly lucrative site or source (or piece of art belonging to an owner willing to sell) he can receive grants and/or resources (transportation, hired guards, thieves guild hirelings etc.) needed to make sure that any findings are safely brought to the patron providing the funding. Because of this smart Seekers often create competition among the Displayers (and the Collector) for the amount of aid provided.

Successful Creators receive bonuses their fees.

This item has been published here with permission from the author(s) and may not be reproduced without permission. This is a fan submission and its contents are completely unofficial. Some characters, places, likenesses and other names may be copyright Wizards of the Coast.