DM Nulb Notes: Lawful Good in the Hornet’s Nest

A Guide to Running a Paladin or Cleric in Nulb without Breaking the TOEE Secrecy

Core Premise

A paladin or cleric from Veluna, Furyondy, or Verbobonc arriving in Nulb is a flare in the dark — every faction notices instantly. Normally, they’d be marked for death. But Hedrack’s orders are absolute:

"No unnecessary provocations. No martyrs. We do not draw the eye of the West until the temple is ready."

This makes the encounter a game of shadow politics — the Paladin is both a threat and an opportunity, and the factions react accordingly.

Faction Reactions & Strategies

Hedrack (via Madame Selentis)

• Orders to observe, mislead, and isolate the Paladin.
• Selentis assigns spies to track the party and steer them toward “red herrings” — petty pirate feuds, false leads on splinter cults, and staged contraband busts.
• Goal: Waste their time, wear them down, make them report back “no temple here.”

Romag & the Waterside Hostel

• Romag plays the genial outlaw innkeeper role through Dick Rentsch, offering safe rooms and “helpful” gossip.
• Wat (Fire Temple spy) uses bar talk to plant false stories about “small cult wannabes” in the swamps, distracting from real logistics hubs.
• Romag avoids open hostility; killing a holy envoy would invite trouble from Verbobonc’s knights.

Belsornig & the Boatman’s Tavern

• Belsornig views the Paladin as a future liability but also a way to throw suspicion on Romag.
• Pirate crews might drunkenly pick fights, but under orders to lose believably — making the Paladin feel like they’re winning battles while learning nothing of value.
• May leak minor “smuggling route” intel that leads to a dead end.

Smigmal Redhand

• Deploys assassins only if the Paladin gets too close to the truth.
• Her preferred tactic: staged “bandit ambush” outside town to make the Paladin look incompetent, damaging their reputation with locals and their order.
• Smigmal uses her “elven” disguise to eavesdrop in taverns and gauge the Paladin’s intentions.

Feldrin & Gefreid Patris

• Keep all Temple supply movements hidden during the Paladin’s stay.
• May even delay shipments through the 55. Hunting Cottage to avoid risk of exposure.
• Feldrin has no interest in direct confrontation — he values efficiency and secrecy over proving a point.

Running the Stay at the Waterside Hostel

• Day 1: Immediate quiet observation. Locals pull back, conversations stop when the Paladin walks in. Dick Rentsch plays the friendly host, Wat listens more than he speaks.
• Day 2-3: Controlled encounters — minor brawls, petty thefts, smugglers hinting at “splinter cultists” far from Nulb. These are designed distractions.
• Day 4+: If the Paladin stays too long, factions coordinate to frame them for an “unprovoked” killing or theft, giving local criminals cause to pressure them to leave without directly attacking.

DM Tools for Maintaining Tension

• Every NPC Has a Script: They’ve all been briefed by their faction on how to handle the Paladin.
• False Leads with Just Enough Truth: Let the Paladin find cult activity, but only remnants or decoys — nothing pointing to the Greater Temple.
• Constant Surveillance: Mention shadowy figures in the background, but never give the players an easy way to catch them.
• Social Pressure: Over time, service prices go up, rooms get mysteriously “booked,” and the few friendly locals vanish — soft-pushing the Paladin out without open conflict.

Misdirection Through Rivalries

One of the most effective tools the factions of Nulb have for removing a dangerous Paladin or Cleric without drawing heat is to weaponize their own rivalries. Hedrack’s secrecy orders forbid open conflict with holy envoys — but they say nothing about using them as disposable pawns against each other’s enemies.

While Madame Selentis coordinates the general misdirection strategy, the lesser Temple leaders see a golden opportunity:

• Romag (Earth Temple) – The Shattered Monastery (an ancient, half-collapsed cloister deep in the Kron Hill west of Hommlet) serves as his outpost. He’s more than happy to leak “credible” rumors that a dangerous splinter cult of the Water Temple has taken up residence at Rivergard Keep, A small but strongly built castle on the banks of the Imerdy Run and the Fens of Tor. or that heretics have stolen Earth Temple relics for Belsornig.
• Belsornig (Water Temple, with Captain Tolub) – From his abandoned river fort on the Imeryd’s Run north of Nulb, Belsornig will fabricate tales of Fire Temple heretics operating from the Etters, initiatiing a 'Cleansing of Nature' ritual to which all Druids have been invited to this event.
• Alrrem (Fire Temple) – Holding the abandoned watchtower atop the Etters (five miles north of Hommlet), Alrrem enjoys spreading word that dangerous Earth Temple fanatics have been seen performing unholy rites in the Shattered Monastery west of Hommlet, or that pirates allied to Belsornig are running sacrifices along the Imeryd.

Each of them sees the Paladin’s arrival as a rare chance to send an armed, righteously motivated enemy to their rival’s doorstep — both removing a problem from Nulb and hopefully dealing a blow to another faction in the race for Greater Temple dominance.

How to Run This at the Table

When the Paladin and their companions begin poking into Nulb’s affairs, the following can happen:

1. Casual Seeding of Rumors – NPCs at the taverns, docks, or markets drop hints about “splinter cult activity” in the Viscounty — each rumor pointing to one of the three faction outposts.
2. Faction Courting – The leader’s agents may approach the Paladin directly, offering coin, supplies, or “blessed” gear if they deal with the supposed cultists.
3. Layered Lies – Each faction uses partial truths: yes, there are dangerous forces at those outposts, but they are legitimate holdings of a rival Temple faction, not stray heretics.
4. Built-In Conflict – If the party attacks, they’ll encounter genuine cultists — but from a rival faction, not the “splinter group” they were told about. Survivors will inevitably recognize the party’s holy banners, fueling inter-faction grudges.
5. Possible Fallout – Upon returning to Nulb, the Paladin may be praised by their “patron” faction — and unknowingly deeper in that faction’s debt.

Tavern Hooks for the Misdirection

• Waterside Hostel (Romag’s Reach) – “A group of river cultists been seen up at the fort… strange tides there, not natural.”
• Boatman’s Tavern (Belsornig’s Den) – “The fire-mad zealots up in the Etters been lighting beacons again. Might mean raids.”
• Shared Marketplace Gossip – “Monks at the old monastery… not right in the head, I hear. They chant all night. Folk vanish in the woods.”

Faction Misdirection Block Chart – Paladin/Cleric Arrival in Nulb

DM Guidance:

• Hook Delivery – Have agents or tavern regulars drop these “rumors” casually, using the party’s holy reputation to appeal to their sense of justice.
• Faction Rivalry Layer – The chosen target is always a legitimate outpost of another Temple faction, not a rogue cult, ensuring the mission weakens a rival while maintaining Hedrack’s secrecy.
• Aftermath – Surviving cultists may recognize the attackers as holy agents, escalating factional paranoia and deepening the political game in Nulb.
• Optional Twist – The “patron” faction may reward the party with coin, information, or equipment, tightening their perceived alliance.

Constable Edrick Malvaar at 47. Nulb Constable

using the updated political reality and his broken position in Nulb:

Interaction Overview

A Paladin expecting the Constable to be the voice of the Viscounty will be quickly disillusioned. Malvaar is the embodiment of a man worn down to dust — still clinging to the badge, but fully aware that in Nulb, his authority is worth less than a pirate’s empty promise.

Scene Setting

The Constable’s office smells of damp parchment, stale liquor, and mildew. Rainwater seeps through cracked shutters, pooling near stacks of neglected case files. Malvaar sits behind a battered desk, his uniform threadbare, eyes shadowed by too many sleepless nights. The badge glints faintly, the last surviving piece of the man he once was.

Likely Reactions to the Paladin

• Suspicion and Weariness – He’ll immediately understand what such a figure represents: trouble for every faction in town and possibly the final nail in his own coffin.
• Helpless Candor – He won’t lie about his impotence; in fact, he may overshare, out of a twisted desire to warn the Paladin away.
• Political Deflection – He’ll make it clear that the “real law” here isn’t him — it’s the faction bosses, pirates, and Temple agents. If the Paladin wants to survive, they’ll need to understand that.
• Cynical Humor – Sarcasm is his only armor left. He’ll use it freely.

Example Dialogue

Malvaar (leaning back in his chair, badge catching the light):
"Law and order? In Nulb? Friend, you’ve mistaken the place. This isn’t Verbobonc, and I’m not the gallant lawman you’ve been praying for. I’m the scarecrow they prop up so the crows think someone’s watching the field."

Malvaar (grim chuckle):
"The Viscounty sends me a stipend and a title. The Temple sends me reminders to keep my head down. And the pirates… well, they send rum now and then, to keep the nights from feeling quite so long."

Malvaar (leaning in, voice low):
"You want to know who runs things? Dick Rentsch down at the Waterside — Earth Temple man. Lodriss at the Boatman’s — she plays nice with the Water Temple. And somewhere behind all that, Madame Selentis… she’s the spider, and we’re all just web-fodder. I sign papers and look the other way. That’s the job."

Malvaar (with a sigh):
"If you came here to fight evil, you won’t need to look far. But if you start swinging without watching your back, you’ll be a corpse before sundown — and I’ll be the one digging your grave."

DM Notes for the Interaction

• Malvaar will not openly betray the Temple’s presence — Hedrack’s orders are clear: keep the uprising secret.
• Instead, he’ll redirect the Paladin toward “safe” targets that are actually rivals of the faction that currently keeps him alive.
• He may warn them about bandits or “splinter cults” in the Shattered Monastery, Etters Watchtower, or River Fort, subtly serving the Temple’s internal feuds.
• If pressed, he will drop heavily coded warnings — phrases like “The leaders here don’t take kindly to sermons” or “Fighting the wrong devil will make the others cheer”.