A8 Sarcina Manor

A Beacon of Nobility and Grandeur in Verbobonc

Sarcina Manor rises behind pale stone walls at the edge of Temple Square, directly across from the soaring Cathedral of Trithereon and under the shadow of Castle Greyfist’s hill. Twenty-foot curtain walls and 30-foot corner towers give the estate the look of a modest castle, yet within lies a world of chandeliers, music, and courtly intrigue.

Lady Kathryn Sarcina—witty, widowed, and utterly at ease among princes—rules both the house and its salons. As matriarch of House Sarcina, she wields enormous influence in the Court of Lords, shaping policy and economic ventures that bind Verbobonc ever closer to Veluna and Furyondy.

Appearance & Atmosphere

From the street, the manor shows crenellated walls, a gated carriage arch, and a handsome central house of red brick and white stone framed by round towers. Lanterns bearing the Sarcina arms—a quartered shield with wolf’s head, roses, and golden eagle—burn each evening, casting warm light over the cobblestones and the steady flow of liveried servants and visiting coaches.

Inside the walls, the compound spreads around a formal courtyard:

• Servants’ Row: A three-story wing of tidy windows and balconies houses the numerous staff.
• Guest House: Another tall wing is reserved for diplomats, visiting nobles, and bards favored by Lady Kathryn.
• Grand House: The main residence contains ballrooms, private parlors, and Lady Kathryn’s famed library.

Architectural Marvel and Social Hub

The Manor's Grand Design

• Fortified Elegance: Surrounded by 20-foot high walls and towering 30-foot fortifications, the manor combines the security of a fortress with the grace of a noble estate.
• Servants and Guests Quarters: The outer compound includes three-story buildings dedicated to housing the manor’s many servants and esteemed guests, ensuring comfort and privacy.

Center of High Society

• Venue for Grand Events: Lady Sarcina’s Manor is renowned for hosting grand ballrooms, lavish banquets, and a myriad of social events that draw the elite of Verbobonc and beyond.
• Preparation and Decoration: With a significant portion of the staff and manor space devoted to event planning, the compound is a constant whirlwind of activity, always in preparation for the next grand occasion.
• Cultural Influencer: Through her grand social events, Lady Sarcina plays a pivotal role in shaping the cultural and social landscape of Verbobonc, with her manor serving as the stage for the city’s most memorable gatherings.

Security Measures and Personal Pursuits

Vigilant Protection

• Castle-Type Fortifications: Guardsmen patrol the grounds, supported by magical glyphs of warding, creating a secure environment within the High Quarter.
• Suitors’ Guards: A unique aspect of the manor’s security is the presence of guards posted by Lady Sarcina’s numerous suitors, each with their own secret missions and agendas.
• Guarded Access: Guards maintain a vigilant watch, ensuring that only those with legitimate business gain access to the High Quarter, safeguarding the district's exclusivity and security.

Lady Sarcina’s Quests and Library

• Adventurers for Hire: Lady Sarcina has invested heavily in hiring adventurers to seek out Horrus, though none have yet returned successfully from their quests.
• Private Library: The manor boasts an extensive personal library, containing rare volumes and texts that are sought after by scholars and magic practitioners alike. Some rare volumes that are unavailable anywhere else (even in the Silver Consortium).

Life Within the Manor

Sarcina Manor is almost never quiet. The household staff lives in a permanent state of preparation—decorating ballrooms, arranging flowers, cycling musicians and chefs, and coordinating with clothiers, jewelers, and wine merchants. The estate is the default venue for:

• Grand Balls & Banquets: Where alliances are announced, rumors are seeded, and fortunes rise or fall on a single evening’s impression.
• Private Salons: Smaller gatherings where Lady Kathryn cultivates thinkers, artists, and spellcasters, quietly steering opinion in the Court of Lords.
• Knightly Receptions: As patrons of the Knights of Verbobonc—whose Grandmaster is Lady Kathryn’s brother, Parcival Sarcina—the manor regularly hosts armored guests, oaths of fealty, and victory celebrations.

Security & Secrets

Though renowned for its hospitality, the manor is no soft target.

• Castle-Style Defenses: The outer walls and towers are patrolled day and night. Guards maintain control at the carriage gate, admitting only those with written invitations or personal recognition.
• Magical Wards: Subtle glyphs of warding and other protective magics lie inscribed in stone lintels and courtyard paving, ready to punish thieves or violent guests.
• Suitors’ Men: Several of Lady Kathryn’s admirers maintain their own guards within the compound—ostensibly for her safety, but each hunting leverage or gossip for their patron.

Lady Kathryn herself quietly employs adventurers in the long, frustrating search for Horrus—Wilfrick’s missing younger brother—turning the manor into a hiring hall for discreet, capable parties who can move in both noble and rougher circles.

The Sarcina Library

One of the city’s truly great private libraries occupies a dedicated wing of the main house:

• Rare Tomes: Works on trade, history, law, planar theory, and Trithereonite theology, including volumes not found even in the Silver Consortium’s archives.
• Restricted Stacks: Locked cases hold controversial treatises on Velunan and Furyondian politics, early Verbobonc charters, and correspondence speaking too plainly of Temple of Elemental Evil survivors.
• Research Haven: Scholars, wizards, and bards may be granted supervised access in return for favors, performances, or reports from the wider Flanaess.

Adventure Hooks & Use at the Table

• Ball at Temple Square: The PCs receive an invitation—earned or forged—to a grand Sarcina ball. Within a single night they can eavesdrop on nobles, court patrons, and learn which factions within Verbobonc stand for or against a looming policy, treaty, or crusade.
• Search for Horrus: Lady Kathryn privately hires the party to pursue a new lead on Horrus’s fate, tying them into both House Sarcina’s fortunes and the Viscount’s personal grief. Success could win them noble allies; failure might expose them to Temple of Elemental Evil reprisals.
• Library Favors: A PC scholar, wizard, or bard seeks a specific rare text only found in the Sarcina library. Access requires performing at one of Lady Kathryn’s salons, escorting a foreign diplomat, or quietly retrieving a “misplaced” Sarcina ledger from a rival house.
• Noble Cold War: As House Sarcina maneuvers among other great houses, the manor becomes the backdrop for tense negotiations, subtle blackmail, or even a masked assassin slipping through the gallery during a crowded feast. PCs can serve as neutral mediators, bodyguards, or pawns in a larger game.