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Add an NPC that buys gems at full price/sells gems at just under full price so that they can actually be a viable alternative to gold and not just another 12 gold pieces for that rare diamond, or what have you.

[The Death of Axelmaria]

The Death of Axelmaria
 
In the year 150, the Spellguard completed an audacious plan to keep the city of Traensyr in civil war by resurecting the undead lich Temariel. In the year 153, the lich Temariel slew the powerful brass dragon Axelmaria as it journied across the Underdark to slay Etorix, and lead the people of Sanctuary to safety. The fates are fickle, feckless, and truly cruel.
 
The drow city of Traensyr was kept in perpetual civil war by rivaling great houses in service to Lolth, the remenants of the disgraced house Noctovir, and the chaotic and wicked drow of Ghaundaur living in the sewers. These factions fought eachother, and kept the drow from imposing their will on the nearby settlements of sentient races. It was this civil war that kept the city of Sanctuary free. The Spellguard sought to skew the balance of power even further and spread chaos amongst the Drow. By chance, this opportunity was given to them, and they successfully aided the drow of the sewers in returning to power the Lich Temariel. Upon the coming of Temariel the streets of Traenysyr ran with bloody ooze, and the Spellguard patted themselves on the back, and were content to watch the misery of what they had unleashed unfold itself on the drow.
 
Three years later, the city of Sanctuary still stood, though the end of times was near. The streets of Lower Sanctuary had been lost to the ravenous Chosen Hoards, the Dragon Etorix, despite the promises it had made, did not come to save the people it 'protected,' and the great houses of Traensyr had united to crush Temariel. As all this was taking place across the underdark, a champion and her knight were making their way to Sanctuary. She was the powerful brass dragon Axelmaria, and she was coming to slay Etorix, and lead the people of Sanctuary to safety. As she swept across the Dark Lake on gossamer wings, she was ambushed by the lich Temariel, whom had set out to prove his superiorty over all creatures in the underdark. For five days they fought, Axelmaria's wings melted away by the lake of acid and ooze that Temariel made to rise up against her. For five days she withstood this brutal tide, only to be defeated on the sixth. Temariel, weakened, could not celebrate his victory as he was caught off guard by the agents of the new Traeynsyrian Matriarch and crushed to dust.
 
Two weeks later the drow began to arrive at Sanctuary's gates from the united drow city. One week before the drow came, Jarcy, Axelmaria's companion and knight arrived to tell the tale of her fall before recklessly hurling himself after Etorix, undersupplied and underequipped. Axelmaria, the city's salvation, never arrived in Sanctuary. Never lead the people up The Way. Never united the city before the brutal civil war tore it apart. She never saw her brood hatch. She died because of the city of Sanctuary's sins, and so all of that city must remember her, for she was to be our savior.
 
~Murien Zirkin, Flamerule 25th Year 153

[The Myth of Sanctuary's Republic]

In this work, I attempt to clear up some misconceptions the Sanctuarian system of governance, which others seem to idealize falsely. It was never truly effective or democratic.
 
The Myth of Sanctuary's Republic
 
To call Sanctuary's government a council, as so many did, is incredibly naieve. The system was held togeather by the office of the mayor, a charismatic dictator whom held the will of the people to such a degree that the offices powers were never truly tested. Though the system had its hiccups, such as the Ubel Rebellion, it was skillfully saved from disaster time and time again by the office of the mayor. To forget the mayor's role would be folly.
 
Sanctuary's government nominally functioned for a hundred and fifty years. It was comprised of seven councilors, and a mayor, whom served to execute the laws of the town. The council was elected by the people using a system of votes cast into a strange machine created by the Office of Engineering. The Mayor was always a Bresley, and was sworn in for life. He had the power to veto any law, and was the commander of a select few elite and loyal Watchman. In practice, however, Mayor Bresley was such a cult of personality that he could do whatever he wished. He rarely exercised his powers, content to oversee elections, and offer guidance to the council as a voice of benevolent reason. The limits of his powers were never truly tested. Without him though, as will be explained later, the government quickly failed.
 
The council’s job was to write laws which the Watch, the Spellguard, and rarely the Seekers would enforce. If it was an administrative law then the Office of the Herald would be tasked with seeing that it was carried out. The council system worked on a simple majority, but was checked with the powers of the mayor. Often, the council would be plagued by a lack of active councilors, as demands of living or dying in the Underdark quickly drew their attentions away. The council’s largest task was to create a budget, and allocate the resources of the city to various defense and administrative organizations. When the mayor was killed and no Bresley was ready to take his place, the council was quickly co-opted by the man of ambition, Demetrius Bhast.
 
It became clear at this time that the Bresley line had served as a series of wise and just dictators whom willingly surrendered some of their power to the council as a means of giving voice to the people. The real power always remained in the guidance of the mayor’s office, which was able to put an end to squabbling and power mongering amongst council members. This system of a benevolent cult of personality checking the powers of the council was essential to the stability of the city’s government. For one hundred and fifty years the council served as a means to make laws and was thought to be successfully ruling the city. Then, as the last mayor died, the entire system collapsed. The council was unable to project power over the city, and eventually, First Citizen Bhast seized complete control of the government. In the two years following Bhast’s assassination the city suffered a series of conflicts, as it splintered into various systems of governance. It was a less then benevolent dictatorship by the Thrall, Azrus Azzam, that once again led to stability in Sanctuary and the resurrection of a ‘functioning’ council. This stability was once again torn apart by his death, ushering in an age of civil war, and the end of Sanctuary.
 
To presume that the system of governance used in Sanctuary will work once more upon the isle of Ymph is to presume that a dictatorship is needed. There is not a benevolent Bresley to guide us, and so the island of Ymph would have to accept whichever councilor, or sheriff decided to seize control and rule. Sanctuary’s council was never effective as a form of rule, it at best served as a means of informing the dictator of the time. At its worst it distracted the people from the fact that they were in reality ruled by a single individual, and gave them a false sense of empowerment. The well documented failure of the council's powers following the death of the last Mayor is indicative of its impotence. Such a mistake as the Sanctuarian Council should not be repeated on the Isle of Ymph. If we are to have a dictatorship, let it not hold a council of puppets, and if we are to have the people rule, then let us devise a system that shares the power, lest once again we repeat the failures of Sanctuary.
 
~ Murien Zirkin

Suggestion: Increase the range on the spell Cloud of Bewilderment

This spell has a much shorter range then equivalent cloud spells, and that is silly, please change it to a longer range.

Suggestion: Increase the range of the Slow Spell.

The spell range on this pretty cool spell is quite short. It would be nice to see it used more often, and a means to do that would be to extend its range to that of say, fireball. Other spells such as hold monster/person that serve a similar purpose have good ranges. This spell is almost worthless for PvP, and less then good for PvE, simply because of its sucky range.

When logging into EFUSL, it should show what DM's are on, and if they've been active in the last half-hour.