Inhabitants of the world. Any need for illustrations?

[12rounds]

LOL! Ok ok! I succumb under the (admittedly justified) criticism. I have now revised the dwarf image. I removed the bolts altogether and replaced them with a closed cylindrical quiver. And yes ... I wouldn't want them bolts sticking that close to my head either if I were travelling the forests like Mortimer.

@redrobes: no heavy crossbow in 4e? Wow, I didn't know that. I haven't played with D&D (and AD&D) rules since the early 90's when I switched to Rolemaster and GURPS. Why on earth wouldn't there be a heavy crossbow in 4e?

[12rounds]

Name: Thaddeus Petite
Race: Human
Location: Raedis (and it's environs), Akron


Thaddeus Petite is a tax collector by profession. He is responsible for collecting all the taxes from both the rural areas and cities that fall under the leadership of Raedis. There's been some disputes between Karthis and Raedis regarding Raedis' aggressive tax collection in areas southeast of Roym. There aren't any big settlements in the mountainous wilderness, but some very small villages (of only couple of dozen of inhabitants) have been forced into paying taxes to both Raedis and Karthis. The situation is quite recent and mostly initiated by Thaddeus who seems to extend tax collection boundaries beoynd those that have existed for quite some time. Now there isn't any official boundaries between Karthis and Raedis and it's uncertain whether Thaddeus is acting under orders; certainly Karthis is put into an uncomfortable situation by this.

Mr. Petite is very efficient at his work and unfortunately the efficiency comes at a price - lack of empathy is his biggest personal asset and disadvantage at the same time. He also seems to handle tax collection in large settlements much more gently than how he acts in the strictly rural regions. There has been many accusations against him from the rural regions - such as demanding sexual activity from teenage girls in order to lessen the tax burden of their families. Largely these accusations have gone without notice and most certainly Thaddeus has interpreted this in a way that his behaviour is silently being accepted because he is so damn good at his job.

Thaddeus yields unprecedented power in Raedis. He has direct access to soldiers belonging to any feudal lord within Raedis. If he needs to take 10 soldiers along him to a tax collection trip in the countryside south of Tavor, he only needs to demand the soldiers from the ruler of Tavor. He doesn't need to request, he simply demands. This power is enforced by the governing bodies in Raedis up and including lord Roberto Romano and is thus being accepted by the feudal lords in the rim areas of Raedis. And since Thaddeus collects taxes for them as well as central government, it's being tolerated fairly well.

Thaddeus usually moves with a retinue of few men. Some are soldiers and some are responsible for actually carrying the stuff gathered as taxes. Thaddeus also prefers to use locally known men; it gives a psychological advantage to get the people to pay up more easily. He behaves like he is a noble man himself. He acts arrogantly and looks down at the citizens. He doesn't give "extra time" to anyone and speaks with rude words. As a result, he is not at all liked as a person, but since the taxation levels in Raedis are not that high, he is not meeting much opposition either.

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