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--- la_tutelle [2021/12/22 03:22] – maitregob
+++ la_tutelle [2025/12/11 15:20] (current) – external edit 127.0.0.1
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+====== La Tutelle ======
+/* The Trust */
+{{the-trust.jpg}}
+^Domicilebase = [[Korranberg]], [[Zilargo]]
+founded = Two years after the founding of [[Zilargo]]
+leader = The Proctor
+aliases = La Tutelle of Zilargo
+<blockquote>//"Trust that we will always look after the needs of our great family, and that we need your aid as much as you need ours."//</blockquote>**La Tutelle** is a national, non-military {{tagpage>"Organizations of Eberron"|organization}} charged with the safety and security of [[Zilargo]]. La Tutelle acts as a secret police force in [[Zilargo]] and among [[Gnomes]] abroad in [[Khorvaire]].
+====== Histoire ======
+The [[Gnomes|gnomish]] security agency began in [[Korranberg]] as an outgrowth of the [[Bibliothèque de Korranberg]]. The founder of the organization is only remembered by her title of the Proctor, and all leaders since go by this title.
+La Tutelle was first made public two years after the founding of Zilargo, though exact tellings of how the organization secured the blessing of the Triumvirat de Zilargo differ.
+Although the [[gnomes ]]allied with each other, this did not stop the feuds between and within the different city-states. The feuds started to create problems for the new nation of [[Zilargo]]. So La Tutelle was created in order to keep the nation together. Each of the three [[Triumvirat de Zilargo|Triumvirs]] was given the power to select agents from their own city to create a corps of secret police. These secret police place the interests of the nation above all else. La Tutelle soon secured total control over law enforcement and national security within [[Zilargo]].
+La Tutelle has jurisdiction over punishing those it determines guilty of transgression, and its justice is swift and merciless. There is no court of law. Any Zil citizen could be an agent of La Tutelle and, thanks to that, [[Zilargo]] has the lowest crime rate on [[Khorvaire]]. La Tutelle acts only if something threatens society and they use blackmail and intrigue to eliminate the threats. They are fond of using poisons, and maintain numerous observers skilled in encoding secret messages across the continent pulled from the population of [[Gnomes]].
+<ifauth @admin><alert type="warning">
+Tragedy struck at the Korranberg Grand Opera tonight as
+beloved tenor Ilan d’Thuranni fell prey to a sudden stroke.
+This news is only the beginning of what promises to be a
+fascinating story; evidence suggests that Lord Ilan had
+been leading a double life as a highly paid assassin. If there
+is any truth to these rumors, we can count oursElfes lucky
+that Ilan succumbed to this malady before his private performance for the Korranberg Nine! Reached for comment
+in Port Royal, Baron Elar d’Thuranni expressed shock and
+sorrow that his cousin could be involved in any sort of criminal undertaking. Let us mourn with the House of Ombres
+and trust that this incident will be the end of their recent
+string of misfortunes.
+—From the Chronique de Korranberg, 14 Barrakas 988 AR
+The homeland of the gnomes is a joyful place. The
+streets are decked with flowers, and the air is filled
+with laughter and song. Ghost weavers craft entrancing patterns of light and Ombre, and bards compete in
+duels of wit and words. It’s rare to see gnomes carrying
+weapons, even among the wardens who are supposed
+to uphold the law but primarily serve as mediators
+in domestic disputes and tour guides for foreigners.
+To the casual thief, a Zil city seems like a ripe fruit
+waiting to be plucked. Yet the Chronique de Korranberg
+includes many stories like the one above. Crime is
+largely unknown in Zilargo because criminals have an
+unnerving tendency to die before they put their plans
+into action. Guarding the Zil people is the role of the
+Trust, an invisible fraternity that watches from the
+Ombres. Ask any Zil gnome, and she will tell you that
+La Tutelle is always watching, that no whisper escapes
+its ears and no malefactor escapes justice at its hands.
+What is the truth behind La Tutelle? How far does its
+reach extend, and what role can it play in a campaign?
+The Honor Guard
+The gnomes of Zilargo trace their roots to the tricksters of Thélanis, and the power of illusion lingers in
+their blood. Deception is second nature to gnomes,
+and the history of their city-states is rife with
+intrigue and vendettas. Zilargo was formed to unite
+the gnomes in the face of the growing influence of
+the Maisons Marquées Du Dragon and the rising threat of
+Galifar. But how could the great city-states trust one
+another? Given their history, what assurances could
+Port-de-Trolan offer to suspicious Zolanberg?
+La Tutelle was the brainchild of an old gnome
+whose name has been stolen from history; today she
+is known only as the Proctor. The Bibliothèque de Korranberg had long served as a home to gnomes from
+all cities and families, and they had already faced
+the problem of establishing trust among city-states.
+The Proctor countered the threat with a secret corps
+pledged to enforce the honor code of the library and
+keep personal feuds from spilling over into the public
+realm. She proposed to use this corps as the foundation of a wider organization that would span the
+newborn nation.
+At least a dozen accounts describe the meeting at
+which she made her fateful announcement. In some
+the Proctor discusses the methods she used to recruit
+her corps—how she found those who could see the
+library as a family greater than their own flesh and
+blood. In other accounts, the Proctor blackmails the
+Triumvirs and forces them to give her the resources
+that she needs. Whatever the truth of the matter,
+two years after Zilargo was founded, a pamphlet distributed across the nation announced the existence
+of La Tutelle and the role it would play in the days to
+come. This tract lauded the shared virtues of the Zil:
+ingenuity, curiosity, love of family, and the ability to
+overcome adversity through wit and wisdom. The
+pamphlet acknowledged that friendly competition
+between neighbors is the whetstone that keeps wits
+sharp. Competition would be accepted, but crime
+would not. However, the precise definition of crime
+was vague. The tract ended with these words:
+“To those who follow the proper path, we shall be as
+invisible as any ghost. Trust that we have your best interests
+at heart. Trust that we will act only when we must. Trust
+that we will always look after the needs of our great family,
+and that we need your aid as much as you need ours.”
+Records of the period that followed are murky.
+Most gnomes would have you believe that the Zil
+embraced La Tutelle with open arms, but a sage who
+dElfes deeply will find a remarkable number of
+curious deaths in the following decade. No records
+exist of any family openly challenging La Tutelle or
+seceding from the Zil union. Most likely, the Proctor waited to make the announcement until she was
+sure that she had a sufficient number of agents in the
+major families—people who would steer public opinion in the proper direction.
+Regardless of any doubts that might have existed
+when the organization was founded, modern gnomes
+wholeheartedly embrace La Tutelle. Most Brelon are
+shocked by the group’s ruthless summary justice,
+questioning how anyone could accept a system that
+is willing to kill a person before he or she commits
+a crime. The typical Zil responds that such doubts
+are understandable in a system where the forces of
+law and order are corrupt and inefficient. Agents of
+La Tutelle care only for the good of the nation, and a
+corrupt hand would be eliminated by the fraternity
+itself. The people of the Cinq Nations simply can’t
+understand how much information La Tutelle has in
+its hands. The group doesn’t make mistakes. And if
+somehow it did—or for that matter, if an innocent had
+to die for the good of the multitude—that is a price
+the Zil are willing to pay. The gnomes firmly believe
+that those who do nothing wrong have nothing to
+fear from La Tutelle. Most foreigners envision Zilargo
+as a place where people live in fear, but the opposite
+is true. The Zil know exactly how much they can
+get away with, what intrigues are allowed, and what
+behavior crosses the line. At the end of the day, most
+Zil truly have faith in La Tutelle.
+The other side of the coin that the Brelon can’t see
+is the degree to which the Zil love intrigue. For the
+people of the Cinq Nations, the thought that anyone
+around you—even your friend or lover—could be an
+assassin is a quick path to paranoia and madness. For
+the gnomes, it’s a glorious game. Trying to identify
+Trust agents and coming up with schemes that can
+slip by the group’s omniscient eyes are favorite pastimes of Zil children. The gnomes take pride in their
+peaceful society, but they also love to dream of ways
+to outwit their guardians.
+Tools of La Tutelle
+La Tutelle’s power comes from numerous sources.
+One is the sheer number of informants at the organization’s disposal. The King’s Citadel of Breland
+estimates that as many as one in three Zil gnomes
+serve as ears of La Tutelle. Although most of them
+are simple observers, a significant number of
+sleeper agents can be called into active service as
+required. Some spies are recruited at the university,
+whereas others are born into the work. The informants know little about the overall structure of
+the organization, and one agent might unwittingly
+report on the suspicious activities of another. It’s
+up to the provosts and the current Proctor to sift
+through all the data to create a clear picture. If a
+criminal identifies and eliminates an agent of the
+Trust, another agent or team in the same area might
+be called into play.
+The weapons in La Tutelle’s arsenal speak to the
+gnomish roots of the organization. The Zil are known
+for their love of language and their gifts for illusion,
+alchemy, and Élémentaire binding. Over the centuries,
+La Tutelle has developed four unique languages, along
+with innumerable codes, ciphers, and other ways to
+deliver secret messages. A typical observer knows
+only one of these secret languages, which he uses
+when dealing with his handler; a provost might know
+all four. Agents use arcane marks to pass information
+or provide intelligence about the local area. Illusion
+is used in many ways, including invisibility, concealment, disguise, and distraction. Observers hone their
+innate talent for ghost sound, which can be used to
+deliver messages to a contact, coordinate an assassination, or deliver a warning to a criminal who might
+be dissuaded by a good scare.
+The most remarkable tool employed by La Tutelle
+is the whisper bond. This technique binds a minor
+air Élémentaire, known as a whisp, to the agent. A
+gnome who masters the bond can extend his senses
+into his spiritual partner. Whisps serve as spies and
+swift flying couriers, and they can deliver messages
+across long distances; one can also capture sound and
+reproduce it for its master. Whisps are weak spirits
+and easily dispersed if exposed, but they are small,
+stealthy and invisible—little more than a faint gust of
+wind—and eventually re-form if destroyed.
+Poison is La Tutelle’s favorite weapon, and the
+group has a dedicated corps of alchemists that
+has spent centuries devising new toxins. Contact,
+ingested, and inhaled poisons are Commun, along
+with more complex toxins—venoms that take effect
+only when two components are mixed or when an
+otherwise harmless substance serves as a catalyst.
+The poisons employed by the assassin class are good
+models for the tools of La Tutelle, but other toxins can
+be employed as necessary. Although the Zil abhor
+physical violence, La Tutelle has a force of silent killers trained to slay with darts and daggers. A rumor
+claims that La Tutelle maintains ghost agents in all
+the major cities of Khorvaire. These assassins live
+shrouded in invisibility and communicate solely
+through whisps and sending, waiting for orders to
+strike.
+Despite these impressive forces, La Tutelle’s most
+formidable weapon might be its reputation. The myth
+of the fraternity’s omnipotence is greater than the
+reality, but few people take the chance. Imagine a
+group of adventurers plotting a theft when they hear
+a ghostly warning: “Abandon this course of action
+before it is too late.” It could be a spectral assassin
+waiting to strike; the innkeeper, ready to poison their
+next round of drinks; or simply an observer, stirring
+up doubts and fears. Who’s willing to take the risk?
+Contrary to popular belief, La Tutelle isn’t obsessed
+with killing all wrongdoers. If a crime can be averted
+by frightening away the would-be culprits, so much
+the better.
+Adventure Hooks
+La Tutelle is strongest in its home base of Zilargo,
+but its agents—gnomes, Élémentaires, and others—have
+spread across Khorvaire. They monitor possible
+threats to Zilargo that grow beyond the nation’s borders. However, just as agents won’t kill a potential
+criminal if they can scare him or her away, they
+rarely interfere in the affairs of the wider world. A
+secret becomes less valuable as more people know it,
+and La Tutelle values secrecy above gold.
+If adventurers are determined to do something forbidden in the Land of the Wise, they must find a way
+to outwit La Tutelle. Here are a few ideas to consider.
+Stalking Horses: Although the characters don’t
+know it, the Proctor is using them to expose and
+eliminate a branch of La Tutelle that has been compromised by L'Aurum. The adventurers’ apparent
+victory over La Tutelle is a test that draws them deeper
+into the web. A gnome character might be recruited
+directly into the organization; other adventurers are
+kept at arm’s length.
+Masters of Whispers: Maison Siri has supported
+La Tutelle since the organization was created, and
+a number of foundlings with the Marque de l'Écriture
+belong to the group. The adventurers discover evidence that the current Proctor is a Siri lord and that
+Maison Siri has secretly controlled La Tutelle for centuries. What does the house want? Is it just looking
+out for the Zil people, or is it using the power of the
+Trust to pursue its own mercantile agenda? Can the
+adventurers break La Tutelle away from Siri without
+shattering this pillar of Zilargo?
+The Hoard of Secrets: La Tutelle has been
+gathering information from across Khorvaire for
+hundreds of years. The adventurers need a piece of
+information known only to the Proctor. But how do
+they find the most secretive member of this hidden
+empire, and what must they offer in exchange for the
+priceless knowledge they seek?
+Ombres Versus Whispers: Over the ages,
+Maison Phiarlan and Maison Thuranni have Perdu
+some of their finest agents at the hands of La Tutelle.
+Now one of L'Ombre Houses is out for revenge.
+Assassins face off on the streets of the Cinq Nations’
+greatest cities. Which side will the adventurers take?
+If they refuse to become involved, how far will the
+conflict escalate?
+</alert></ifauth>
+{{tag>["Organisations"]}}
+{{tag>["Gnomes"]}}
+{{tag>["Agences de Renseignement"]}}