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Gizelle’s Fine Herbs and Potions
City Guide I Gizzele’s
Gizzele’s Fine Herbs and Potions
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2) The Melting Room
Shop Description:
1)Storefront
A large lean-to style tent serves to protect the small wooden benches that make up this simple shop. A flap in the back of the tent is buttoned closed, and a stretched piece of hide bears the words “Melting Room” in a red ink eerily similar to blood.
A wrinkled old woman sits on a three-legged stool near the back of the tent, her demeanor quiet and placid as customers browse her strange wares.
The words “Gizzele’s Fine Herbs and Potions” are scrawled on what appears to be an old piece of a shattered door.
Three wooden planks are set at various heights within the tent and each holds a variety of strange and unique items. One holds vials and flasks made of clay, wood, and metal, some empty and others full. A second plank holds charms and jewelry made of animal skins, teeth, and bones.
None of the pieces appears particularly valuable, though their expert craftsmanship is apparent to any that make a successful Appraise or Craft (Jewelry) check (DC 12). Finally, the third plank holds wooden bowls of various sizes filled with rocks, dust, feathers, and other obvious components for arcane spells. Interested buyers can find all manner of components, often even rare bits such as ki-rin eyelash or strips of displacer beast hide (20% chance for any rare component that does not have a listed gp value). This room feels a bit cramped due to its low ceiling, from which several glass vials hang by leather straps. The vials vary in shape and color, but they all hold the same gelatinous substance.
Underneath each vial is a small candle that causes the gelatin inside to cough and gurgle, releasing a thin green smoke into the air.
Soft cushions of local and exotic design and rugs of stripped bark are piled on the floor.
This unique attraction is a favorite with local ladies, who are always on the lookout for inventive ways to spend their coin and enhance their reputation. It is built in half of the wooden structure that also serves as Gizzele’s home. The only entrance is a wooden door that remains open during the day, allowing access only through the tent flap in the front of the store. At night this door is locked. A bead curtain is drawn across the doorway during sessions, and small vents are built into the ceiling to allow the smoke to slowly drift out of the room. These vents are too small to provide access to the room.
The room can comfortably hold up to eight patrons at a time. The cost is 2 gp for a 15-minute session. Sitting in the room and doing nothing but inhaling the smoke for an entire session allows a person afflicted with disease to automatically succeed at his next check to resist the ailment. In addition, the beneficiary heals half of any subdual damage he has suffered.
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City Guide I Gizzele’s
3) Gizzele’s Room
This small room smells like a damp forest. Piles of herbs, plants, and sticks cover the floor, and a grass palette lies just to the left of the door. Next to the palette is a finely woven and embroidered pillow. The pillow is silver in color, quite large, and sags toward the middle. Streaks of dirt and scratches can be seen on its surface. A desk sits against the opposite wall and next to it is a locked wooden box with a latched lid. A small oval mirror trimmed with sea coral lies flat on the desk amidst an array of jars and makeup trays.
Built onto the back of the Melting Room, this simply furnished living space is where Gizzele sleeps when she is in the city. An open window provides light and air to the room. The window is closed and latched from the inside when Gizzele is not home.
The grass palette serves as her bed and her dog, Quetrien, sleeps next to her on the pillow. She stores her gear in the wooden box next to the desk, which is where she applies the makeup to make herself appear as an old human woman.
Treasure: The contents of the box are as follows: 8 gp, 44 cp, a coral necklace (35 gp), 2 vials of oil of insect warding, 3 antivenom poultices, 2 potions of cure light wounds, 1 potion of invisibility, a set of travelling clothes, a leather collar with the name ‘Quetrien’ etched into it, and a wooden cudgel.
Goods
Aside from mundane items such as clay jugs, flasks and nonprecious jewelry, she has a variety of useful items to offer interested shoppers:
Antitoxin [5]- 35 gp, works only against natural poisons Scentbreaker Pouch [4]- 5 gp Tanglefoot Bag [2]- 65 gp Tindertwig [30]- 1 gp Plant and Animal-based Spell Components- varied Unique spell components- 100 gp per unit Potion of Cure Light Wounds [3]- 65 gp Oil of Insect Warding [2]- 40 gp *new item Antivenom Poultice [3]- 75 gp *new item
Services: In addition to the sale of these items, Gizzele is a sage knowledgeable in local geography and history, wilderness lore, and flora and fauna.
In addition, she offers the “Melting Room,” where she boils herbal concoctions that provide a healing smoke. Although they smell bad, they will allow anyone afflicted with a disease to automatically succeed at their next check to fight the ailment. A fifteen minute session costs a mere 2 gp and she has built quite the side business catering to noblewomen of the area, who scramble to appear to have the most delicate constitution of them all.
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City Guide I Gizzele’s
Traveler Knowledge: Travelers will likely not have heard of Gizzele, as she keeps to herself and doesn’t hawk her wares. She is generally regarded as a “local secret,” though anyone asking about herbs or potions around the city is likely to be referred to her.
Resident Knowledge: Gizzele is known to almost everyone around town, as her medicinal compounds have been used to great effect by rich and poor alike. Her prices are always reasonable, though an astute shopper will notice that they seem to fluctuate according to the buyer’s ability to pay. Gizzele is a kindly old woman who never seems to run out of energy or ingredients. Many wonder just how much longer she will be around, and who, if anyone, will take her place when she finally passes on.
Hidden Knowledge: Although she appears to be an elderly human woman, she is in reality an adult elven druid who ages herself using magic and makeup. Though some have come close to uncovering her secret, it has not yet been revealed. She has been tending to the community for over a hundred years, apparently aging only slightly less than she should. The humans of the village tend to die off before they become suspicious, and the more long-lived residents of the village pay her little mind. It is not known why she perpetrates this disguise, nor is it likely anyone in the village would care.
History: Gyzzillu Tytholissias took up the mantle of the druid after deciding that her race was just as culpable in the destruction of their surroundings as was the human one they fought and spoke out against. She believed that the elves’ constant warring diluted their spiritual connection to the land and that they were betraying the memory of their ancestors. Sad but resolute, she left her home to start a new life, her only companion being the dog that she had raised from birth.
Over the next few years she wandered the forests and wetlands of her home, learning the druid’s art from any that would teach her. She fought many battles during this time, helping other druids to protect the land from the predations of evil humanoids, sport hunters and even dragons. It was during this period that she had her first experience with humans. She approached the group cautiously, unable to completely shake the inherent prejudices of her people. When she found them friendly and approachable, she called her dog to her and sat down to share a meal with the group. Speaking over dinner they found many things in common, not the least of which was their stewardship of the land. She had run across a ranger’s convocation, and after some convincing she agreed to accompany them to the nearest town.
The energy and resourcefulness of the humans awed Gyzzillu, and she was surprised to find those of other races living side by side with the hardy folk. She realized just how much the isolation of her people had created a false understanding of the humans and their ways. Certainly their manners seemed coarse and the way they treated one another was alien, but the young elf woman was overjoyed by their sense of community and benign hearts. It was at this time that she resolved to learn more about the ways of the humans and at the same time to teach them some of the old ways that her people observed.
For the past 80 years Gyzzillu has sold herbs and potions to the people of the small town, all the while imparting small bits of wisdom and learning all she can about the culture of the humans. She uses makeup, dress, and occasionally a spell to hide her true nature, posing as an elderly human woman. To facilitate this disguise, she altered her name to sound more human. Some suspect that all isn’t right with Gizelle, but she has become an entrenched part of the town and most are content to leave her alone.
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City Guide I Gizzele’s
Appearance: As an elf, Gyzzillu has just reached adulthood and is quite beautiful. Her long brown hair frames a strong-boned face, which is dominated by her large, almond eyes. She enjoys reverting to her natural appearance during long forays into the forest, during which time she gathers plants, herbs, and other components for her potent brews. In her human guise, she appears to be an elderly human woman with frizzy gray hair and badly wrinkled skin. She wears heavy layers of patchwork clothing, often combining utilitarian tunics and pants with smothering shawls and wraps. In addition, she almost always wears some sort of head covering, her favorite being a bright red turban interwoven with strands of platinum and gold. Even when disguised, her almond eyes remain, and anyone looking into them deeply enough detects a mysterious spark that is inconsistent with her outward appearance.
Gizzele is rarely found without her canine companion, Quetrien. Quetrien is a sleek greyhound, standing roughly half the height of its master. Her tail wags constantly and she is trained to fetch a variety of items for Gizzele. She is able to identify many plants and herbs by smell, and is a competent hunter and tracker as well.
Personality: Gizzele is quite happy living in the city, although she does get out to the forest whenever possible. She displays a light humor when dealing with customers and will listen patiently to whatever problems they might be having. She is genuinely concerned for the health of the people of the city, and often recommends time in the wild, especially if the person is feeling mentally drained or depressed. She takes time off every few months to travel with the rangers of the area and dispose of any dangerous creatures that may be infringing on the town’s territory. During these “runs” she keeps the mood of her companions light and is quite valued for her skills in the healing arts and natural lore. The only thing she does not condone is intolerance toward other races. She firmly believes that this type of thinking is responsible for the hatred and antipathy felt between the races and she would like to see them put their differences aside and work together for the benefit of all. Gizzele: Female elf, Druid 4/Wiz3: CR 7; Medium-Size Humanoid (5 ft. 1 in. tall); HD 7d8; hp 41; Init +2; Spd 30 ft.; AC 14 (touch 12, flat-footed 12) Atk +3 melee (1d4-1, dagger) or +6 ranged (1d4, sling); AL NG; SV Fort +6, Ref +4, Will +11; Str 8, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 16, Wis 18, Cha 14.
Skills: Concentration +8, Disguise +4, Heal +11, Knowledge (Arcana) +8, Knowledge (Nature) +11, Profession (Herbalist) +10, Spellcraft +8, Wilderness Lore +11.
Feats: Alertness, Brew Potion, Scribe Scroll, Spell Mastery
SA: Animal Companion (small dog, “Quetrien”), Find Familiar (none), Nature Sense, Resist Nature’s Lure, Trackless Step, Woodland Stride
Druid Spells Prepared (5/4/3; base DC = 14 + spell level): 0 create water, detect poison, know direction, purify food and drink, resistance; 1st animal friendship, cure light wounds, detect animals or plants, goodberry; 2nd produce flame, wood shape;
Wizard Spells Prepared (4/3/2; base DC = 13 + spell level): 0 daze, detect magic*, light*, read magic; 1st change self*, charm person*, mage armor; 2nd alter self, invisibility*
Possessions: masterwork dagger, amulet of natural armor +2, cloak of resistance +1, potions of cure moderate wounds (2), potion of neutralize poison, scroll of change self (2).
