Nosos and the Green Tax...

[jamesfirecat]

Okay I'm rereading Quoth the Raven 2 in preperation for possibly writing some stuff that will take place in Nosos.

However, there's one part of it that I don't quite follow.

I get the idea of the "green tax" and how Malus uses it to discourage people from growing things since plant life causes him all manner of problems.

However, I don't quite grasp who the money goes to/who is responsible for collecting it.

Nosos seems like such a wretched hive that it's run by a collection of various robber barons with Malus being the biggest, richest one, but at the same time, I don't think the material as written suggests he has any official governmental power over people who don't work for him.

Is there some sort of communal/agreed upon group of people who take care of collecting the green tax?

Also once the green tax is collected... who is it given to? Once again Malus isn't the governor of Nosos is he? If he isn't, who does it go to? Does it go to the other "owners" and thus the Green Tax might not actually be as effective as Malus wants it to be in certain situations, since if all the owners kept the exact same amount of greenery, they would loose as much to the green tax as they got from their fellow owners (minus Malus granted) paying their own respective chunks of the green tax.


What are you guys thoughts/how would you have this working?

Also are there any sources on Nosos beside Quoth the Raven 2, Islands of Terror and the brief mention in the 3rd edition campaign settings book?

[The Lesser Evil]

You might be able to run Nosos as a sort of company owned town like some of the mining towns out of the 19th century. To live anywhere, you have to abide by the company's rules (as negotiated by contract, etc.) You might be charged fees for growing anything green, to the point where it becomes a defacto tax, since the company owns all the property.

[Garudos Celestar]

I get the idea of the "green tax" and how Malus uses it to discourage people from growing things since plant life causes him all manner of problems.

However, I don't quite grasp who the money goes to/who is responsible for collecting it.

Nosos seems like such a wretched hive that it's run by a collection of various robber barons with Malus being the biggest, richest one, but at the same time, I don't think the material as written suggests he has any official governmental power over people who don't work for him.

Is there some sort of communal/agreed upon group of people who take care of collecting the green tax?

Also once the green tax is collected... who is it given to? Once again Malus isn't the governor of Nosos is he? If he isn't, who does it go to? Does it go to the other "owners" and thus the Green Tax might not actually be as effective as Malus wants it to be in certain situations, since if all the owners kept the exact same amount of greenery, they would loose as much to the green tax as they got from their fellow owners (minus Malus granted) paying their own respective chunks of the green tax.

They never use the title of governor for him, but as mentioned above, I've always thought of him as the most powerful leader of the "company town" as well... and regardless of his "official" position, his potent charm ability means that his "ideas" to squeeze a little more profit (and destroy a little more nature - ironically, Malus is probably one of the least "greedy" members of Nosos' nobility, as his desire to despoil is driven more by anti-nature principle than by pollution-is-cheap profit) always get taken seriously. I do think he is the one ultimately in charge of direction of funds in the domain and the tax proceeds do go directly to him (whether in his name or in the name of the community), and he probably does have some sort of official position, even if his actual title has not yet been detailed.

Also are there any sources on Nosos beside Quoth the Raven 2, Islands of Terror and the brief mention in the 3rd edition campaign settings book?

The only other mention of which I can think is Domains of Dread, which is just a re-hash of the details of IoT except that Malus has gained a fighter level in the interim.

[jamesfirecat]

They never use the title of governor for him, but as mentioned above, I've always thought of him as the most powerful leader of the "company town" as well... and regardless of his "official" position, his potent charm ability means that his "ideas" to squeeze a little more profit (and destroy a little more nature - ironically, Malus is probably one of the least "greedy" members of Nosos' nobility, as his desire to despoil is driven more by anti-nature principle than by pollution-is-cheap profit) always get taken seriously. I do think he is the one ultimately in charge of direction of funds in the domain and the tax proceeds do go directly to him (whether in his name or in the name of the community), and he probably does have some sort of official position, even if his actual title has not yet been detailed.

I think that at the moment my preference is that there is a governor/mayor/similar of Nosos, and that it's not Malus, because that helps him create a aura of not being some sort of tyrant, even if he really is.

I'll assume that the money gathered from the Green Tax goes into the "subsidies" for whatever Malus' latest pet project is, with that project supposedly also always being for the greater improvement of Nosos (possibly research into curing the various diseases that plague the city, or at least that's what the "official" story would be...)

The reason I ask is possibly because of recently seeing the new Assassin's Creed trailers (for Syndicate) I had an itch to scratch for something a bit more technologically advanced than even Lamordia is capable of.

Also it could lead to a story/set up different than most, with the conflict being not doing something like sneaking into Malus' house, and bashing his head in with a rock, but actually properly "defeating" him in the sense of tearing down his entire financial empire, and liberating the people of Nosos from being driven by a short sighted "do onto others and nature before they can do unto you" mentality.

That or maybe a little beating Malus at his own game, with the heroes using the fact that they're independently wealthy (from previous adventures) to "invest" in Nosos and set up their own corporation/similar and start driving Nosos' native robber barons out of business...

[Brandi]

You might be able to run Nosos as a sort of company owned town like some of the mining towns out of the 19th century. To live anywhere, you have to abide by the company's rules (as negotiated by contract, etc.) You might be charged fees for growing anything green, to the point where it becomes a defacto tax, since the company owns all the property.

And if you don't want Malus as the sole Biggest Bad of Nosos, well... read "Red Harvest" and be inspired!

[The Lesser Evil]

Other (unofficial) sources for Nosos:

The Knox Family (The Book of Secrets 106-108)
http://fraternityofshadows.com/wiki/The_Knox_Family

Marshal Ulok (the Forgotten Children, p.36-37)
http://fraternityofshadows.com/wiki/Marsal_Ulok

both of these netbooks available here: http://kargatane.com/

"Nosos Gaz" at the Alanik Ray Library Archives "Places" PDF on this website:
http://fraternityofshadows.com/AlanikRa ... Places.pdf
(pg. 236)

Not Nosos specifically, but a domain that would go with it (perhaps as part of the Shining Bay Cluster
Immerabt (Undead Sea Scrolls 2002), p.244 http://fraternityofshadows.com/wiki/Immerabt
available for download here:
http://fraternityofshadows.com/Library.html

[jamesfirecat]

Other (unofficial) sources for Nosos:

The Knox Family (The Book of Secrets 106-108)
http://fraternityofshadows.com/wiki/The_Knox_Family

Marshal Ulok (the Forgotten Children, p.36-37)
http://fraternityofshadows.com/wiki/Marsal_Ulok

both of these netbooks available here: http://kargatane.com/

"Nosos Gaz" at the Alanik Ray Library Archives "Places" PDF on this website:
http://fraternityofshadows.com/AlanikRa ... Places.pdf
(pg. 236)

Not Nosos specifically, but a domain that would go with it (perhaps as part of the Shining Bay Cluster
Immerabt (Undead Sea Scrolls 2002), p.244 http://fraternityofshadows.com/wiki/Immerabt
available for download here:
http://fraternityofshadows.com/Library.html

Thanks for all this info!

[Zettaijin]

I find that Nosos Gaz to be more than a bit silly.

I should know, I wrote it myself! Ha!

I also wrote a bit about my revised views on Nosos here and there. One of my thoughts was that the green he so hates is also haunted by the spiritual remains of his father creating a sort of more primal Swamp Thing-like (as per Moore's rendition) adversary. Search the forum!

[jamesfirecat]

I find that Nosos Gaz to be more than a bit silly.

I should know, I wrote it myself! Ha!

I also wrote a bit about my revised views on Nosos here and there. One of my thoughts was that the green he so hates is also haunted by the spiritual remains of his father creating a sort of more primal Swamp Thing-like (as per Moore's rendition) adversary. Search the forum!

The version of his curse that I like best is the one in the Quoth the Raven bit where he has a "speak with plant life" spell active all the time... and so the only way he can avoid going insane is to make sure there is next to no plant life anywhere near him. It makes his approach to life seem "logical" or at least internally consistent when otherwise given the way that D&D magic works, you have to be TRYING to create serious pollution (or at least have it stick around), since you can can use magical work arounds for most of the things that created so many problems for us in the real life industrial revolution (purify food/water is a cantrip after all...)

That said, I am going to incorporate the idea that while Malus likes to hold maskerade parties (I figured his favorite mask is a simple metal cog/wheel rather than some kind of animal) but if you look closely at the masks he lays out for his guests... there's always one mask designed in the shape of a green leaf like the one his father's ghost/spirit/whatever wore that one time at a party/in his nightmares, and no matter how many times he burns it, rips it apart/tries to hide it, another one will always show up somewhere for his guests to find.

Malus does not react well to anyone who chooses to wear that mask.

Also I did love your wererat exterminator who got his head on backwards and started "exterminating" humans to make life better for rats... do you mind if I private note you a few questions about him?

[ScS of the Fraternity]

I like your masquerade idea. Its wonderfully full of cinematic possibilities. Malus might explode into a screaming rage, or better yet, get cold and calculating.
"What a lovely choice for a mask. Surely you are person of singular tastes. Perhaps you would care to see something else that is equally... unique."

[Zettaijin]

Also I did love your wererat exterminator who got his head on backwards and started "exterminating" humans to make life better for rats... do you mind if I private note you a few questions about him?

Go ahead! Although that Gaz is like what over 16 years old now and my memory of it is vague.

[Garudos Celestar]

One other little tidbit that could be interesting... Farelle. In the excellent "The Jackal Who Would Not Be a Coward" article (by Ryan Naylor, in the Book of Sacrifices), Jack Karn's curse is that he wants Farelle to remain wild and unspoiled, but it's advancing technologically at an accelerated rate. I can easily see a delightful little conflict in which Malus parks Nosos on a Mistway to Farelle, helping fuel Farelle's growth while indulging Malus' need to despoil.

Just a thought.

[Zettaijin]

http://www.fraternityofshadows.com/foru ... ilit=nosos

A thread where I outlined some more recent ideas about Malus and Nosos.