Griffins Gang

The Griffins

Membership

Common Descriptors: Underhanded, charismatic, cunning

Primary Classes: Rogues, fighters, bards

Alignments: N, NE, CG, CN

Locations

Trades Ward bleeding into the North Ward, centered on the Griffin Roost neighborhood.

Ranks

• Fledglings: Rank 1+. Those working to prove themselves are usually under the sponsorship of a member of the gang, who also acts as guide for them. • Griffin: Rank 3+. Only full members of the gang have the right to call themselves "Griffins," and they receive their bracers from the Wing. • Wings: Rank 7+. The gang's lieutenants are called "Wings," and they usually divide leadership of the rank and file between themselves. • Griffin King/Queen (Rank 10): Head of Gang. The leader of the gang is referred to as the "Griffin King or Queen," or sometimes just "the Griff" for short.

Supposedly founded thirty years ago by a pair of bored nobles, the Griffins are a gang who focus their efforts on giving folk the illegal things they want, rather than victimizing folk. They deal drugs, fence, sell smuggled goods, and arrange for illegal gambling dens, all with the aim of thrilling rich folk and parting them from their coin. The Griffins maintain the northernmost territory of any other gang, bleeding slightly into the North and Sea Wards.

Symbols

• Badges: Brown leather bracer, with three slashes as though from talons, on left forearm. Many of the Griffins get tattoos of the gang's sign (the griffin) as well.
• Signs: A stylized griffin symbol, usually painted outside of establishments hosting Griffin Gathers.

Activities

Drug dealing, confidence games, fencing, middlemen for smuggler sales, host illegal gambling dens (in events called "Griffin Gathers"), illegal pit fighting.

Members

	Valesta Griffin Queen (Rank 10) The unassuming Valesta is often underestimated – which is just how she likes it. She is a capable fighter, and a decent tactician, but most of all her manners and comportment are up to the standards of the nobles who most often frequent her Gathers. Though clearly from the streets, she knows how to dress up to meet the standards of the highnoses she's out to fleece. According to rumor, one of Valesta's ancestors was one of the last Waterdhavian griffin riders.
	Saembesta Tumn Wing (Rank 9) Acrobatic and utterly ruthless, Saembesta is Valesta's main bodyguard. The two women are fast friends, though one couldn't tell by their behavior in public: Valesta is the gregarious, charming one out in front, and Saembesta watches with sharp eyes from the shadows.
	Whiteveil Wing (Rank 8) A moon elf with a distinctively acid-scarred face, Whiteveil does not discuss where he got his horrific scars. For all his aloof appearance, Whiteveil is best of companion with all the other Wings, and with a good many of the rest of the gang. Though composed, he is very good at seeming to cut loose in the company of his gangmates, and they love him for it. He is also a magician of some talent.
	Grother Wing (Rank 7) The newest of the Wings, the hobgoblin Grother oversees the security concerns for Griffin Gathers. As such, many of the Griffins who act as security are under his command. He is a former pit fighter himself, and sometimes oversees the training of some of the Griffins' own fighters.

Former Members

Brivitil Flummeth Former boss of the Griffins Though retired for a few years now, Brivitil still seems to be subtly in touch with the criminal underworld of Waterdeep. He often acts to advise Valesta – the two have dinner at least once a tenday – and he also is known to act as a fixer of some sort.

Hangouts

• The Roost: Tavern. A ratty local drinking hole, the Roost has been the defacto headquarters of the Griffins since their founding. Most nights Valesta can be found there, with her lieutenants and whoever else has business with her. The back part of the tavern has basically been claimed by the gang, who urge others trying to sit there to move on.

Relationships

• Enemies: The Drunkard's Own have remained antagonistic with the Griffins for quite a while now, although that antagonism is mostly confined within each gang's boundaries. Recently, the gang of hoodlums raided a Griffin Gather and made off with several thousand gold pieces in coin, plus the jewelry of the attending nobility, and Valesta has sworn to get her revenge for it.
• Allies: None, though the Griffins have hired the Squires to provide extra protection in the form of additional fighters in recent days.
• Treaties: Arulembar's Shields and the Griffins have a non-aggression pact, and both are careful to observe the niceties. Rumors say that the Shields may have struck up an alliance with the Drunkard's Own, however, so it may just be a matter of time before that treaty is broken.

Faction Perks

Agents of the Griffins in good standing might receive the following benefits:

• Call for Help: Rank 2+. When in Griffins turf, you can call for help from your fellow gang members. If they have been established as being on-scene, they come running. If this hasn't been established, there is a 30% chance that 1d4+2 thugs associated with the Griffins are nearby and within earshot. If this roll results in a 5% result, one of the upper echelons of the gang with them.
• Doss Space: Rank 2+. You always have doss space with members of the gang. It's not always the best accommodations, of course, but beggers can't be choosers, right? You may always receive the Poor Lifestyle benefits for free as long as you are in Waterdeep. This will always be padding down with some other Griffins, and so is almost guaranteed to be within Griffins turf.
• The Good Life: Rank 3+. Griffins like to live it up. You only pay half the cost for alcohol and other intoxicants. Additionally, when taking the Carousing downtime action, the cost for lower class carousing is halved.
• Pulling Jobs: Rank 3+. At full membership, you are expected to do work for the gang's interests. You must spend one tenday of downtime per month tending to this effort. You may choose one of the following types of downtime performed for the gang.
  • Crime: When taking the Crime downtime action, you may choose to get the aid of your fellow Griffins. This reduces the cost to perform the action by 10gp, and gives you advantage on up to three of the checks involved (minimum one). For each check you gain advantage on, you have to give over a quarter of the takings, assuming there are any. So, help on just one check requires you relinquish a quarter of the Loot Value, on two checks, it is half, and three-quarters if you take advantage on all three. Additionally, you are expected to hand over half your take to the gang, but only one one such heist per month.
  • Gambling: xxx
  • Pit Fighting: xxx
  • Work: xxx

• Living Quarters: Rank 1+. Those in good standing with the House are given quarters within the House's Waterdhavian villa appropriate to their role in the House.
• Living Expenses/Salaries: Rank 1+. Those in good standing with the House also receive a stipend of 1gp plus 5sp per day per point of Rank. This is not actual cash, but simply familial credit towards payment of Lifestyle costs. This stacks with the same kind of familial credit received from the Waterdhavian Noble Background (see Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide).
• House Lore: Rank 2+. Every De'spri of any kind of potential is taught the skills of the household. Gain proficiency in either alchemist's supplies or an herbalism kit.
• House Labs: Rank 2+. Scions and retainers of the House gain access to the House's labs. When crafting alchemical goods or potions using herbalism, half of the cost of the goods is paid by the House's stores. Using the Solve et Coagula alchemical rules, these labs have a great many slots, but a character may claim only one of them for use.
• Business Opportunities: Rank 3+. Lynchpins to the House's operations receive access to a variety of business opportunities within the House's money-making endeavors. This is handled as "Running a Business" in downtime months. This does not incur a business expense, but if too many of the character rolls results that end in a loss of money, he can and will find his Rank in the House reduced.
• Heir or Consort (Title): Rank 3+. The holder of one of the legal titles Heir of House and Consort of House, as recorded with the city of Waterdeep, is entitled to an additional 2gp per day in familial credit, per the "Living Expenses/Salaries" entry above. The heir is also accorded certain privileges within the legal system of Waterdeep, including the ability to speak on behalf of his House in some legal proceedings and the like.
• Alchemical Lore:' Rank 3+. Alchemists are given access to some of the House's alchemical formulae as they advance in the House's esteem. For each rank starting at 3, the De'spri alchemist is given 3 Uncommon and 1 Rare formula. At Rank 6, they may swap out the Rare formula for a Very Rare one.
• Private Lab: Rank 7+. Household elders and leaders are given their own private labs to work out of, avoiding the hustle and bustle of the familial labs. These are standard alchemy labs, with three extra slots, two athanors (uncalibrated), and a greater alembic in one of the lab slots.
• Wealth of the House: Rank 10. The patriarch of the House is in total control of the House's finances and various holdings, established by the laws of Waterdeep. This includes the vast library of alchemical formula maintained by the House.