Black Dragon Inn
Nestled within the parchment-and-ink heart of Clerkburg, not far from the bustling lecture halls and scriptoriums of Greyhawk’s universities, stands the Black Dragon Inn—an establishment as steeped in rumor as it is in wine. Unassuming from the outside, with soot-stained timbers and a tarnished iron sign depicting a serpentine black wyrm coiled around a tankard, this inn is a fixture of scholarly gossip, clandestine dealings, and philosophical excess.
While it lacks the grandeur of the High Quarter’s posh establishments or the raucous charm of River Quarter taverns, the Black Dragon has a reputation: not for comfort or cuisine, but for conversations that could shift the course of empires.
Notable Staff and Features
- Olgar “Wyrmtongue” Maron, the innkeeper, is a heavyset, one-eyed veteran of some unnamed war. He claims to have once poisoned a real black dragon—hence the trophy above the bar. Whether he’s lying, mad, or deadly is uncertain. He remembers names, faces, and debts with eerie precision.
- Seshani, the half-elven barmaid, is rumored to have once been a student of the Guild of Wizards. She still practices small cantrips to amuse (or subtly disarm) patrons. Her charm disguises a razor intellect.
- A “back room” exists but isn’t on the floorplan. No one admits to using it, yet certain patrons simply disappear for a time, returning more informed—or more worried—than before.
- The ale is strong, the food is tolerable, but the wine list is impressive, especially if you know the coded phrases for the bottles hidden behind the false wall.
The Black Dragon Inn is the soul of Clerkburg in its truest form: cerebral, layered, a little dangerous, and full of secrets that don't want to stay buried. For those who value information over gold and conversation over steel, it is one of the most vital—and volatile—places in all of Greyhawk.
Purpose / Function
More than just a watering hole, the Black Dragon Inn acts as a neutral ground for intellectuals, outcasts, and agents of larger powers. It's one of the few places where a scribe from the Guild may debate a warlock over ethics, or where a rogue might find work copying a banned treatise for a scholar too afraid to be seen doing it himself.
It’s also an ideal starting point for adventures: an overheard name, a found scroll, a meeting gone wrong—everything begins with a drink at the Dragon.
Architecture
Inside, the inn is dimly lit, the windows intentionally grimy to soften the light. Candle sconces flicker against cracked wood paneling, and the air smells faintly of old books, spiced brandy, and wax. Every table seems to have been carved with generations of initials and coded marks. The hearth burns with a low, steady fire—even in summer.
The walls are lined with crooked shelves filled with outdated scrolls, odd trinkets, and copies of banned treatises. A black-scaled dragon skull, cracked and partially reconstructed, looms above the bar—whether real or fake is a point of frequent debate, which the innkeeper refuses to settle.
Silence is respected here, though not enforced. Voices are kept low, not out of politeness, but habit. Patrons speak carefully and listen closely. It is a place for secrets, schemes, and strange friendships.
History
The Black Dragon Inn is wrapped in stories:
- That the Thieves’ Guild uses it to vet new recruits—those who ask too many questions at the bar are never seen again.
- That a hidden library exists beneath the cellar, containing forbidden texts and prophecies.
- That a shapechanger poses as a regular, collecting secrets for an unnamed patron.
- That the dragon skull was once animate—and may still be.
Whether true or not, these tales only increase the inn’s mystique.
Tourism
Despite its name, the Black Dragon Inn is no den of villainy—at least, not in the obvious sense. Its guests are primarily:
- Clerks, scribes, and sages from the nearby Guild of Lawyers and Scribes or the Grey College.
- Adventurers recovering from wounds, seeking old lore, or meeting contacts.
- Spies and information brokers, hidden in plain robes, quietly exchanging code-phrases or coin.
- Mages in training or exiles from the University of Magic, looking for unrestricted discussions and forbidden lore.
- Priests of obscure deities, drawn by the inn’s neutrality and the presence of ancient symbols hidden in its architecture.
A seat at the Black Dragon is never just a seat—it’s an opportunity, a risk, or both.
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