Lorveth Thrask

The Merchant of Misery
Lorveth Thrask, known simply as "The Broker," is a cold-blooded slaver and intelligence asset embedded within the Boatman's Tavern and Market. A calculating opportunist with a charming sneer and a spine of iron, Lorveth profits off the suffering of others, selling bodies and secrets to pirates, cultists, and the rising leadership of the Temple of Elemental Evil. He answers to no flag but gold—yet keeps his cards close when the Temple plays its hand.

“The coin spends the same, whether it was earned in a temple or torn from a corpse. What matters is the ink in the ledger… and whose name gets erased.”

Appearance and Personality

Lorveth is a half-orc who dresses like a gentleman, but his boots are made for standing in blood. His heritage is visible in his broad jawline, gray-green skin, and slight tusks—features he keeps carefully trimmed and shadowed under the illusion of civility. Years of cunning and restraint have earned him a reputation as something more refined than most half-orc thugs, but no one forgets what lurks beneath his polished exterior.

• Build: Wiry but strong, with the intimidating presence typical of his orcish blood.
• Hair/Eyes: Slicked dark brown hair, pale amber eyes with faint green flecks.
• Apparel: Soft suede boots, crimson vest, gilded cuffs; always armed with a poisoned stiletto.
• Racial Traits: Benefits from orcish resilience, darkvision, and a brutal survival instinct.
• Personality: Utterly ruthless, thrives on leverage, and enjoys groveling victims. He never shouts—he simply makes you want to obey.

Role in Nulb

Lorveth is the black vein that pulses through Nulb’s illicit economy. While Lodriss runs the market and Elvanna snares the weak, it is Lorveth who ensures that the town’s slave trade is efficient, discrete, and profitable. He works from a locked office on the second floor of the tavern near the brothel, his ledgers filled with flesh and betrayal.

• Slave Transactions: He evaluates captives, arranges buyers, and negotiates rates with pirates and bandits.
• Temple Liaison: Discreetly coordinates with agents from the Temple of Elemental Evil to provide slaves, spies, and stolen goods.
• Private Quarters: Lorveth's room is fortified, filled with scroll cases, coin ledgers, chains of office, coded letters, and a hidden shrine to the Elder Elemental Eye.

History and Background

Lorveth was born in the city of Narwell, one of the wilder ports along The Wild Coast, where half-orcs rise through blood, grit, and sharp deals. His early years were spent working under brutal shipmasters and unscrupulous traders, learning to value coin over honor and survival over friendship. He ran a smuggling ring out of Narwell’s docks until it was broken up by local enforcers. Rather than face execution, he fled west through the Gnarley Forest, eventually arriving in Nulb —where a familiar darkness welcomed him.

It was Lucius Graeme, an agent of the Temple of Elemental Evil, who brought Lorveth under the Temple’s shadow. Recognizing Lorveth’s ruthlessness and skill with logistics, Lucius helped install him in the Boatman’s Tavern and Market. Since then, Lorveth has orchestrated the sale and movement of slaves, played rival factions against one another, and built a personal empire rooted in fear and debt.

• Origin: Narwell-born half-orc with Wild Coast grit. Dyvers expatriate turned underworld profiteer.
• Recruitment: Rescued and placed by Lucius Graeme under Hedrack's orders.
• Loyalty: Ostensibly loyal to Hedrack, though always watching for opportunities.

Relationships and Connections

Lodriss: Business partner. Lodriss controls the marketplace, while Lorveth oversees the flow of flesh and secrets. Their partnership is mutually profitable, though each suspects the other of long-term treachery.

Captain Tolub & Captain Marad Vesrek: These pirates funnel their human cargo directly to Lorveth. He provides them with coin, protection, and access to the black market. He tolerates Tolub’s brutish style and Vesrek’s sharp tongue but trusts neither.

Elvanna Thorne: Co-conspirator and informant. Elvanna runs the brothel above, and many of her captives are broken for sale by Lorveth. They share intelligence and maintain mutual access to their locked rooms.

Madame Selentis (Nysera Krivaltis): Political ally and rival. Lorveth works alongside Selentis to advance Temple goals in Nulb but suspects she holds ambitions beyond her remit. He tracks her bandit operations quietly, reporting only what Hedrack needs to hear.

Temple of Elemental Evil:

• Romag (Earth Temple): Trades prisoners to Romag through intermediaries.
• Belsornig (Water Temple): Maintains a transactional relationship. Sends drowned prisoners or coastal captives.
• Hedrack (Supreme Commander): Lorveth reports to Hedrack via Lucius. He provides intelligence, personnel, and logistics for Temple growth.

Activities and Operations

• Weekly Slave Auctions: Held in shadow behind the warehouse or in brothel cellars, attended by Temple agents, pirates, and black-market buyers.
• Blackmail Network: Records of brothel visits, intercepted letters, and confession scrolls are used to control local leaders, adventurers, and rival smugglers.
• Smuggling Logistics: Oversees the movement of contraband via river barges, coded manifests, and corrupted port authorities.
• Temple Espionage: Has planted two informants within the Temple's own factions. Sends reports to Lucius on internal disputes and weaknesses.
• Hidden Agenda: Lorveth ultimately wishes to rise above Nulb—perhaps replacing Lodriss or seizing control of the Temple's slave trade entirely.

DM Notes

• Lorveth will never confront the PCs directly. He manipulates events from the shadows, using Elvanna, Lodriss, or hired thugs.
• His room contains ledgers implicating key NPCs from Dyvers and Verbobonc.
• If PCs uncover his ties to the Temple, it could lead to massive political fallout.
• If captured, Lorveth bargains quickly, offering intelligence in exchange for freedom—but he never stops plotting.

Logistics of the Slave Trade Operation

Initial Contact: Pirate and bandit captains such as Captain Tolub and Captain Vesrek dock at the Boatman’s Pier under cover of night or low-tide traffic. Inside the tavern, Lorveth meets them in person—always in the open, usually over drinks in a dark corner. Initial deals are agreed upon verbally.

Processing Flow:

1. Captives are escorted directly from docked ships into the warehouse level of the Boatman's Tavern.
2. Prisoners are then funneled through the pier-facing trapdoor and taken into the basement storage chamber.
3. Once inspected and catalogued by Lorveth or one of his aides, they are led into the hidden iron cage prison room, beneath the tavern.

Storage and Transfer:

• Prisoners remain in the flooded, rusting cages until their Temple escorts arrive—usually bandits from Madame Selentis's Manor.
• The bandits move them to the 33. Old Mayor’s Manor, then onward to the 55. Hunting Cottage, where they descend into a secret tunnel leading beneath the ruins of the Temple of Elemental Evil.
• Especially valuable or beautiful prisoners are set aside for Elvanna Thorne, who evaluates them for brothel work, blackmail, or cult initiation.

Sample Slave Pricing Chart: