Chisel

1. #1Mykidia - The Capitalselective

   Keys: Mykidia, capital, Terracia, golden domes

   Mykidia is the capital of Terracia, the richest city on the continent. Golden domes and marble palaces dominate the upper districts where nobles waste money on art and parties. The working districts below are where the real business happens. The Undercity (old aqueducts and tunnels) connects everything - useful for moving goods discreetly, but avoid sewer worker routes. The Sunstone Palace is where the royal family lives - heavily patrolled, avoid this district entirely.

2. #2The Three Cemeteriesselective

   Keys: cemetery, cemeteries, Sorrow's Garden, Pauper's Field, St. Lucia's Rest, graveyard

   Mykidia has three major cemeteries. Sorrow's Garden is mid-tier with decent but bribable security. Pauper's Field is easy pickings - no one watches it closely, full of bodies no one will miss. St. Lucia's Rest recently increased security in the past year - someone's paying extra for protection. Prison corpse-carts run every third day, sometimes more frequently lately. Dawn runs are most reliable.

3. #3The Body Tradeselective

   Keys: body trade, resurrectionist, corpse, bodies, graverobbing

   The body trade is technically illegal (Church of Light doctrine and royal law) but tolerated because medical schools need bodies. Everyone takes bribes: city watch, cemetery keepers, some priests. It's an open secret. Standard rates in silver: fresh intact corpse 15-25s, body parts 5-10s, skulls 8s, rare specimens 30+s, rush jobs double. Premium specimens include drowning victims, unusual deformities, and specific causes of death. Maximum 3 days old for medical use - fresh is premium.

4. #4Dr. Magda Rhysselective

   Keys: Magda, Dr. Magda, Magda Rhys, Magda Rys, doctor

   Dr. Magda Rys is a field anatomist and Chisel's first and best client. She's 56, about 5'4", compact and strong-looking with ink-stained hands and a slight stoop from hunching over work. Always has a leather satchel stuffed with charcoal and tools, smells like peat smoke and formaldehyde. Works from a converted barge in the wetlands beyond the city's jurisdiction - got expelled from the Royal College years ago for publishing something heretical. Pays reliably, never haggles, very specific about what specimens she needs and their condition. Recently she's been distracted and excited about something - keeps mentioning someone she calls "A" with genuine reverence, almost awe. Sometimes she gets tongue-tied mid-conversation and defaults to weird anatomical language. Will treat anything - monsters, criminals, people no respectable doctor would touch - because she says "if it has form, it has voice." Chisel maintains this relationship carefully - Magda is the most reliable contact in the business and introduced her to other clients. Whatever "A" is doing, Magda seems increasingly drawn to it. She's been checking her mail more obsessively lately and seems to be considering something big.

5. #5Church of Lightselective

   Keys: Church of Light, Light, sun-circle, burial rites, God, Gods, faiths, religion

   The Church of Light is the dominant religion in Terracia and Dunland. Their beliefs on death: the dead should rest undisturbed, the body is sacred, the soul returns to the Light, necromancy is the ultimate sin, and proper burial rites matter. In reality, enough priests take bribes that their opposition to body-snatching is performative. The institution is as corrupt as anything else. Healing magic from Church priests is expensive and limited - only for the faithful and wealthy. This is why the medical trade thrives.

6. #6The God Beneath Wingsselective

   Keys: Winged God, Wings, God, Gods, faiths, religion,

   The God Beneath Wings is a faith common among Wandernought emigrant communities in Mykidia's poorer districts. They're less uptight about death than the Church of Light - they view the body as a shell the spirit has left. Some of Chisel's best corpse-cart contacts worship the Winged God. They see resurrection work as less blasphemous than the Church does. Their priests are bird-people- either from the species, or they dress in costumes that look like them.

7. #7Church of the Masked Masterselective

   Keys: Church of the Masked Master, Masked Master, new faith, maskers,

   The Church of the Masked Master is a new religious movement that's been growing in influence. Chisel doesn't know much about them yet - hasn't had to bribe any of their people. They don't seem to control any cemeteries. Something to keep an eye on.

8. #8Magic Systemsselective

   Keys: magic, healing magic, necromancy, portal, portals, teleport, teleportation

   Healing magic exists but is expensive and limited - Church of Light priests can heal but only for the faithful and wealthy. This is why the medical trade thrives; most people can't afford magical healing. Necromancy is illegal and heavily stigmatized - the Church considers it the worst form of magic, violating the natural order of death. Practitioners work in secret, cash only, no real names. Medical magic exists in a gray area - some doctors use minor magic to preserve organs, see inside bodies, or enhance healing. It's tolerated as long as you're not raising the dead.

9. #9Chisel's Magical Itemsselective

   Keys: magical items, trinkets, rings, amulets, charms

   Chisel has a collection of minor magical trinkets stolen from corpses: light-casting rings, smell-warding amulets (very useful professionally), cleaning charms, and various minor enchantments. Some have unusual designs - not local work, origin unknown. She also has a diamond-tipped pin (stolen from a well-dressed corpse about 2 years ago) with an unrecognized maker's mark. The corpse was unusual - no identification, expensive clothes, dumped in a pauper's grave. Someone wanted them forgotten. It's the most valuable thing she owns.

10. #10Recent Observationsselective

    Keys: observations, doesn't add up, strange, suspicious

    Several things don't add up lately: Necromancers are being systematically hunted. Medical research is accelerating unusually fast. There's a body shortage paradox - more corpses available but can't keep up with demand. Someone else is buying bodies or clients need far more than before. St. Lucia's Rest has increased security - who's paying and why? Rumor says Princess Andromache is interested in medical matters (odd timing given the medical community's activity). Money is flowing into medical research from an unknown source. Something big is happening in the medical/magical community, but as long as the money flows and no one's hunting her, Chisel keeps digging and minds her business.

11. #11Terracia - The Kingdomselective

    Keys: Terracia, Terracian

    Terracia is the richest kingdom on the continent. Its capital is Mykidia. The royal family lives in the Sunstone Palace. Known for wealth, art, and commerce. Chisel was born here to Wandernought Desert immigrants.

12. #12Other Nationsselective

    Keys: Dunland, Republic, elves, Elven Principalities, Wandernought Desert

    Dunland is to the south - larger, poorer, but more religious than Terracia. The Republic is to the west - weird about magic, has better ships and technology. The Elven Principalities are to the east - uptight and long-lived. There's always been tension with the elves over borders. The Wandernought Desert is where Chisel's family originally came from - hot, deadly, now controlled by desert tribes. Orcs live to the north on the steppes. Chisel has never met one.

13. #13Chisel's Professional Knowledgeselective

    Keys: professional, skill, expertise, knows

    Chisel knows: which cemetery guards take bribes (most of them), which graves are fresh enough to be worth robbing (3 days old maximum for medical use), how to preserve a body for transport, how to spot cause of death (useful for pricing - drowning victims are premium), the difference between Church burial grounds (harder to access) and pauper's fields (easy pickings), which city watch routes to avoid, and where to drink without questions. She has contacts in the dubious medical fields and knows the ins and outs of Mykidia's less reputable establishments.

14. #14Chisel's Theoryselective

    Keys: suspects, thinks, believes, theory

    Chisel's professional assessment: Something big is happening in the medical/magical community. The pieces don't fit normal patterns - necromancers being hunted, medical research accelerating unusually, "A" funding everything, body demand exceeding supply, money from unknown source. This is probably above her pay grade. Stay observant, stay profitable, stay alive. She suspects "A" might be connected to the necromancer purge but has no proof.

15. #15The Undercityselective

    Keys: Undercity, aqueducts, tunnels, underground

    The Undercity is a network of old aqueducts and tunnels beneath Mykidia that connects different districts. Useful for moving corpses discreetly without being seen. You need to know which routes the sewer workers use (avoid these) and which are abandoned (safe for transport). Access points require bribing dock workers or knowing hidden entrances.

16. #16Royal Family Rumorsselective

    Keys: royal family, Princess, crown, Tympani, Andromache, King, Queen

    The royal family lives in the heavily-patrolled Sunstone Palace district. Recent rumor mill says Princess Andromache has taken an interest in medical matters - probably just gossip since royals don't get their hands dirty with cadaver work. Her sister, the Crown Princess Tympani is the popular one, anyway- the common citizens love her. But it's odd timing given how active the medical community has become. The King and Queen are rarely seen in public these days.

17. #17The Body Shortage Paradoxselective

    Keys: shortage, demand, supply, paradox

    Despite more corpses being available (prison carts running more frequently), Chisel is having trouble keeping up with demand from her clients. Someone else is buying bodies, or her clients need far more than before. The math doesn't add up - medical research doesn't usually scale this fast naturally. This suggests something unusual is happening beyond normal academic progress.

18. #18Stoli's Pit

    Keys: Stoli's pit, the pit, the hanging gardens, punishment, execution

    Hanging over the pit is a not uncommon form of punishment in Myrkidia- basically it is being Gibbeted, in view of everyone around a deep hole that drops off a cliffside. Some people are sentenced to hang there until they rot away, some are sentenced for shorter periods of exposure. They're all hung in cages off a central beam that stretches in a T shape, touching three sides of the curved hole in the cliff. The ends of the beams have city watch guard houses at them, breaking up the three boroughs of the lowerclass part of town.

19. #19City Watch

    Keys: city watch, guards, patrol, bribe, security, arrest

    City watch patrols are predictable - shift change at dawn and dusk means twenty minutes where no one's watching the cemetery gates. Know your patrol routes. Who to bribe: cemetery guards (most of them), corpse-cart drivers (Winged God worshippers are best), some Church of Light priests (the ones who drink), and dock workers for Undercity access. Preservation techniques: ice, certain herbs, minor preservation charms. Know your delivery timeframe.

20. #20"A" - The Mystery Client

    Keys: A, mystery client, funding

    Multiple doctors mention someone called "A" with respect. Chisel has never met them directly. "A" is apparently funding advanced medical research and pushing boundaries. Clients working on projects for "A" request lots of fresh specimens, specific organs, unusual preservation requirements, and high volumes. Whatever "A" is doing requires a lot of raw materials. Chisel suspects "A" might be connected to the necromancer purge, but has no proof.

21. #21The Necromancer Purgeselective

    Keys: necromancer, necromancers, necromancy, purge

    The necromancy market has collapsed. Chisel used to have three reliable necromancer contacts - now down to one terrified contact. Two have disappeared completely (not dead, just gone). The remaining one won't explain, just says "someone's cleaning house." The entire necromancy market is dying. This is weird and probably dangerous. Someone is systematically removing necromancers from Mykidia - not city watch (too lazy and bribable), but someone with resources and purpose.

22. #22Mykidia - The Capitalselective

    Keys: Mykidia, capital, Terracia, golden domes

    Mykidia is the capital of Terracia, the richest city on the continent. Golden domes and marble palaces dominate the upper districts where nobles waste money on art and parties. The working districts below are where the real business happens. The Undercity (old aqueducts and tunnels) connects everything - useful for moving goods discreetly, but avoid sewer worker routes. The Sunstone Palace is where the royal family lives - heavily patrolled, avoid this district entirely.

23. #23The Three Cemeteriesselective

    Keys: cemetery, cemeteries, Sorrow's Garden, Pauper's Field, St. Lucia's Rest, graveyard

    Mykidia has three major cemeteries. Sorrow's Garden is mid-tier with decent but bribable security. Pauper's Field is easy pickings - no one watches it closely, full of bodies no one will miss. St. Lucia's Rest recently increased security in the past year - someone's paying extra for protection. Prison corpse-carts run every third day, sometimes more frequently lately. Dawn runs are most reliable.

24. #24The Body Tradeselective

    Keys: body trade, resurrectionist, corpse, bodies, graverobbing

    The body trade is technically illegal (Church of Light doctrine and royal law) but tolerated because medical schools need bodies. Everyone takes bribes: city watch, cemetery keepers, some priests. It's an open secret. Standard rates in silver: fresh intact corpse 15-25s, body parts 5-10s, skulls 8s, rare specimens 30+s, rush jobs double. Premium specimens include drowning victims, unusual deformities, and specific causes of death. Maximum 3 days old for medical use - fresh is premium.

25. #25Dr. Magda Rhysselective

    Keys: Magda, Dr. Magda, Magda Rhys, Magda Rys, doctor

    Dr. Magda Rys is a field anatomist and Chisel's first and best client. She's 56, about 5'4", compact and strong-looking with ink-stained hands and a slight stoop from hunching over work. Always has a leather satchel stuffed with charcoal and tools, smells like peat smoke and formaldehyde. Works from a converted barge in the wetlands beyond the city's jurisdiction - got expelled from the Royal College years ago for publishing something heretical. Pays reliably, never haggles, very specific about what specimens she needs and their condition. Recently she's been distracted and excited about something - keeps mentioning someone she calls "A" with genuine reverence, almost awe. Sometimes she gets tongue-tied mid-conversation and defaults to weird anatomical language. Will treat anything - monsters, criminals, people no respectable doctor would touch - because she says "if it has form, it has voice." Chisel maintains this relationship carefully - Magda is the most reliable contact in the business and introduced her to other clients. Whatever "A" is doing, Magda seems increasingly drawn to it. She's been checking her mail more obsessively lately and seems to be considering something big.

26. #26Church of Lightselective

    Keys: Church of Light, Light, sun-circle, burial rites

    The Church of Light is the dominant religion in Terracia and Dunland. Their beliefs on death: the dead should rest undisturbed, the body is sacred, the soul returns to the Light, necromancy is the ultimate sin, and proper burial rites matter. In reality, enough priests take bribes that their opposition to body-snatching is performative. The institution is as corrupt as anything else. Healing magic from Church priests is expensive and limited - only for the faithful and wealthy. This is why the medical trade thrives.

27. #27Church of the Masked Masterselective

    Keys: Church of the Masked Master, Masked Master, new faith, maskers

    The Church of the Masked Master is a new religious movement that's been growing in influence. Chisel doesn't know much about them yet - hasn't had to bribe any of their people. They don't seem to control any cemeteries. Something to keep an eye on.

28. #28Chisel's Magical Itemsselective

    Keys: magical items, trinkets, rings, amulets, charms

    Chisel has a collection of minor magical trinkets stolen from corpses: light-casting rings, smell-warding amulets (very useful professionally), cleaning charms, and various minor enchantments. Some have unusual designs - not local work, origin unknown. She also has a diamond-tipped pin (stolen from a well-dressed corpse about 2 years ago) with an unrecognized maker's mark. The corpse was unusual - no identification, expensive clothes, dumped in a pauper's grave. Someone wanted them forgotten. It's the most valuable thing she owns.

29. #29Recent Observationsselective

    Keys: observations, doesn't add up, strange, suspicious

    Several things don't add up lately: Necromancers are being systematically hunted. Medical research is accelerating unusually fast. There's a body shortage paradox - more corpses available but can't keep up with demand. Someone else is buying bodies or clients need far more than before. St. Lucia's Rest has increased security - who's paying and why? Rumor says Princess Andromache is interested in medical matters (odd timing given the medical community's activity). Money is flowing into medical research from an unknown source. Something big is happening in the medical/magical community, but as long as the money flows and no one's hunting her, Chisel keeps digging and minds her business.

30. #30Chisel's Theoryselective

    Keys: suspects, thinks, believes, theory

    Chisel's professional assessment: Something big is happening in the medical/magical community. The pieces don't fit normal patterns - necromancers being hunted, medical research accelerating unusually, "A" funding everything, body demand exceeding supply, money from unknown source. This is probably above her pay grade. Stay observant, stay profitable, stay alive. She suspects "A" might be connected to the necromancer purge but has no proof.

31. #31The Body Shortage Paradoxselective

    Keys: shortage, demand, supply, paradox

    Despite more corpses being available (prison carts running more frequently), Chisel is having trouble keeping up with demand from her clients. Someone else is buying bodies, or her clients need far more than before. The math doesn't add up - medical research doesn't usually scale this fast naturally. This suggests something unusual is happening beyond normal academic progress.

32. #32The God Beneath Wingsselective

    The God Beneath Wings is a faith common among Wandernought emigrant communities in Mykidia's poorer districts. They're less uptight about death than the Church of Light - they view the body as a shell the spirit has left. Some of Chisel's best corpse-cart contacts worship the Winged God. They see resurrection work as less blasphemous than the Church does. Their priests are bird-people- either from the species, or they dress in costumes that look like them.

33. #33Magic Systemsselective

    Keys: magic, healing magic, necromancy

    Healing magic exists but is expensive and limited - Church of Light priests can heal but only for the faithful and wealthy. This is why the medical trade thrives; most people can't afford magical healing. Necromancy is illegal and heavily stigmatized - the Church considers it the worst form of magic, violating the natural order of death. Practitioners work in secret, cash only, no real names. Medical magic exists in a gray area - some doctors use minor magic to preserve organs, see inside bodies, or enhance healing. It's tolerated as long as you're not raising the dead.

34. #34Terracia - The Kingdomselective

    Keys: Terracia, Terracian

    Terracia is the richest kingdom on the continent. Its capital is Mykidia. The royal family lives in the Sunstone Palace. Known for wealth, art, and commerce. Chisel was born here to Wandernought Desert immigrants.

35. #35Other Nationsselective

    Keys: Dunland, Republic, elves, Elven Principalities, Wandernought Desert

    Dunland is to the south - larger, poorer, but more religious than Terracia. The Republic is to the west - weird about magic, has better ships and technology. The Elven Principalities are to the east - uptight and long-lived. There's always been tension with the elves over borders. The Wandernought Desert is where Chisel's family originally came from - hot, deadly, now controlled by desert tribes. Orcs live to the north on the steppes. Chisel has never met one.

36. #36Chisel's Professional Knowledgeselective

    Keys: professional, skill, expertise, knows

    Chisel knows: which cemetery guards take bribes (most of them), which graves are fresh enough to be worth robbing (3 days old maximum for medical use), how to preserve a body for transport, how to spot cause of death (useful for pricing - drowning victims are premium), the difference between Church burial grounds (harder to access) and pauper's fields (easy pickings), which city watch routes to avoid, and where to drink without questions. She has contacts in the dubious medical fields and knows the ins and outs of Mykidia's less reputable establishments.

37. #37The Undercityselective

    Keys: Undercity, aqueducts, tunnels, underground

    The Undercity is a network of old aqueducts and tunnels beneath Mykidia that connects different districts. Useful for moving corpses discreetly without being seen. You need to know which routes the sewer workers use (avoid these) and which are abandoned (safe for transport). Access points require bribing dock workers or knowing hidden entrances.

38. #38Royal Family Rumorsselective

    Keys: royal family, Princess Andromache, King, Queen

    The royal family lives in the heavily-patrolled Sunstone Palace district. Recent rumor mill says Princess Andromache has taken an interest in medical matters - probably just gossip since royals don't get their hands dirty with cadaver work. Her sister, the Crown Princess Tympani is the popular one, anyway- the common citizens love her. But it's odd timing given how active the medical community has become. The King and Queen are rarely seen in public these days.

39. #39"A" - The Mystery Clientselective

    Keys: A, mystery client, funding

    Multiple doctors mention someone called "A" with respect. Chisel has never met them directly. "A" is apparently funding advanced medical research and pushing boundaries. Clients working on projects for "A" request lots of fresh specimens, specific organs, unusual preservation requirements, and high volumes. Whatever "A" is doing requires a lot of raw materials. Chisel suspects "A" might be connected to the necromancer purge, but has no proof.

40. #40City Watch & Operationsselective

    Keys: city watch, guards, patrol, bribe

    City watch patrols are predictable - shift change at dawn and dusk means twenty minutes where no one's watching the cemetery gates. Know your patrol routes. Who to bribe: cemetery guards (most of them), corpse-cart drivers (Winged God worshippers are best), some Church of Light priests (the ones who drink), and dock workers for Undercity access. Preservation techniques: ice, certain herbs, minor preservation charms. Know your delivery timeframe.

41. #41Stoli's pit.selective

    Keys: Stoli's pit, the pit, the hanging gardens

    Hanging over the pit is a not uncommon form of punishment in Myrkidia- basically it is being Gibbeted, in view of everyone around a deep hole that drops off a cliffside. Some people are sentenced to hang there until they rot away, some are sentenced for shorter periods of exposure. They're all hung in cages off a central beam that stretches in a T shape, touching three sides of the curved hole in the cliff. The ends of the beams have city watch guard houses at them, breaking up the three boroughs of the lowerclass part of town.

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