Location The Calico Lumber Company

[Abstract]

x x Calico Lumber . Company For a city that floats, good lumber is more than just important; its life. For Ravok, this is has been an undeniable fact since the inception of the great Temple itself. For the Calico clan, its more than just a matter of pride and prestige to be the source of all this wood however; its business. Originally constructed nearly two centuries ago, the Calico sawmill was one of just many up and coming lumber businesses cropping up all along the Ravokian shoreline at the time. As need and demand within Rhysol's capital skyrocketed to unprecedented heights, many flocked to the great lake in hopes of capitalizing on the untapped riches of the wilderness laying just off the coast. With competition so stiff, Tasha Calico, the first and fiercest matriarch of the Zeltivan lumberjacks, proved she and her kin were no strangers to neither honest woodwork nor a good fight. Cunning in matters of business as much she was prone to violence as a means of settling it, Tasha managed to begin an alarmingly unscrupulous campaign to outbid, outsmart, and outwit her competitors until she alone controlled many of those that once threatened her strive for fortune. It was a crusade that finally came to a victorious close at the hands of her three daughters many years after her mysterious death. Today the Calico sawmill is the Calico lumber empire, a sprawling network of mills, work camps, warehouses and lumberyards that stretch all across the southern reaches of Lake Ravok. Based primarily out of the Southern Outpost, many of those who work and live there are often, in one way or another, part of the massive workforce that plays a part in the Calico's monopoly. All of its sawmills rely on equal parts man and water to power the numerous saws and machinery that near constantly fill the lakeside air with the sounds of crunching bark and buzzing steel. From the biggest to the smallest, all mills are an impressive sight of productivity to behold. Usually two or three stories tall and swarming with sweat drenched employees, its a rare thing to see when there is not a great deal of wood being chopped, sorted, or shipped at every given moment. Often times work can run deep into the night as the mills and yards hustle to complete old orders, only to receive new ones just as fast. As one can imagine, the literal army of lumberjacks under the company's employ has a reputable tenacity when it comes to stripping bare any patch of forest they're thrown at with alarming speed. With such an extensive operation, Ravokian lumber can be found all over the rugged Syilras region, from their neighbors in Nyka to the port city of Zeltiva. With that said, its not an uncommon occurrence to hear of a stray workman or entire prospecting team go missing after unsuspectingly stumbling upon the lair of some terrible monster or beast. Losses are always acceptable however, as long as profits are not jeopardized. As shrewd men and women of business, the Calico clan is unabashed when it comes to who they sell to. As devout followers of Rhysol however, no lumber will ever knowingly find its way into the hands Syliras or her knights. A lesson learned the hard way when the rulers of Ravok took notice and harshly intervened early in the company's rise. While the involvement of the Black Sun in the past kindled a small amount of animosity among the clan who saw their profits take a definitive plunge, it could hardly compare the resentment they hold for one Norvis Barton, head of Barton's Wood and Wares. In recent times, competition has become considerably rare in the Ravokian lumber industry, this is mostly due to the fact that as they have rights to almost all of the forest in the southern quarter of the lake, Calico owns the safest and most prized lumber land in the nearby region. Over the past few years however, the Calico company has found itself at odds with another fast growing and equally uncompromising lumber baron. Led by Norvis Barton, a shady, backstabbing businessman from Sunberth, the two companies have been at each other's throats for years following a botched hostile takeover attempt. Despite their best efforts, neither company has made much headway in the timely decimation of the other, though the open conflict that once plagued the two businesses has since simmered into a seething stand off. While the ever expanding Calico may own and dominate the southern reaches, it is Barton and his ilk who managed to conquer the east first, driving back his rivals and locking the two companies in the long lasting feud they now find themselves in. A great deal of blood has been spilled in the past over the fight these two unwavering powerhouses wage with one another on a daily basis, and its likely a great deal more will be spilled in the future as well, for in Ravok, good lumber is more than just important; its life.   Prices and Jobs Local - 7 GM/50lb Unusual - 10 - 25 GM/50lb Exotic - 26 - 50+ GM/50lb Lumberjack - 3gm/day Surveyor - 3gm/day While there are a great many jobs that go along with the extensive work the company does along the shores of lake Ravok, common laborers come and go in countless droves with each passing season. Because of their shear staggering numbers, many are quickly and quietly forgotten for the most part. With time however, any employee who proves his loyalty and skill will often find they can earn more for their menial labors in Ravok's lumber industry than they can almost anywhere else. For any jobs one may think applicable, check the jobs listings in the Price List   Cyrus Name: Cyrus Calico Race: Human Age: 72 Skills: Leadership: (75pts), Negotiation: (45pts), Carpentry: (42pts), Carving: (35pts), Construction: (23pts), Story Telling: (24pts) Patriarch of the Calico clan, Ravokian businessman and filthy rich bastard, Cyrus was once a man who lived everyday of his life as if it were literally his last. Passionate and intense to a fault, he was both a savvy negotiator and an intimidating brute when he needed to be. Was, as it turns out, being the prime word in the man's description. Today, Cyrus is simply an old coot for all intents and purposes. Wealthy beyond reason in the aftermath of his hard life's work, he now keeps himself quite content with simply sitting back and enjoying the power and prestige he has garnered over the years through his empire. Most days he spends his time sitting on his sizable mansion's front lawn, sipping lemonade and watching his many grandchildren chase each other about till they tucker themselves out, inevitably giving him a chance to regale them all with his grand achievements and marvelous adventures from the good old days. Unfortunately, most of his tales are far from suited for the ears of young children, but this has rarely ever deterred the baron from recounting a good story. Interestingly enough, Cyrus isn't Cyrus's given name. In fact, Calico is often rumored to be an adopted name as well, something the family of exiles took for themselves when the entirety of the clan was forced to flee from the Zeltiva for their unknown offense centuries ago. While the family name had long since evolved into a thing of pride by the time Cyrus came along, up until then the Calicos had always been led by a matriarch, the first daughter of the first daughter. Cyrus's mother never had a daughter, but that didn't stop her from naming her son like one anyway. No one's quite sure what this mystery name is, but after reportedly crippling two of his younger brothers for accidentally uttering it during heated business negotiations with the Barton's, few people are exactly lining up to unravel the dangerous secret.   Mattias Name: Mattias Calico Race: Human Age: 47 Skills: Leadership: (50pts), Hatchet: (32pts), Organization: (43pts), Rhetoric: (35pts) Heir apparent to the Calico legacy, Mattias is a dark and gloomy man who grew up learning, living, and breathing the trade of his ancestors since the time that he could first walk. Groomed to be as much a brutal businessman as his father Cyrus, the young prodigy failed to disappoint when finally coming of age. A fact met with much bitter resentment by his eighteen brothers and sisters, all of whom had each been plotting and planning his overthrow the moment they could first walk. The Calico clan, massive as it is, is not a family that breeds the weak or unambitious, and competition is always encouraged among kin, both at and away from the family dinner table. As the first son of the very first son, Mattias rose to the top through harder work and more determination than his many kin, a pair of ideals that earned him the seat of power he now proudly claims for himself. In all but name, Mattias is the one who runs the family business. As the face and guiding hand of the company, Cyrus has seen fit to leave all matters lumber with the heir, a position that once sated the young lumber lord in his early days of rule, but ultimately has made him bitter and resentful of his father. As said, the Calico family tree has not been kind to any member who allowed themselves to grow complacent, and while Mattias embraces the concept of pruning away the worthless wholeheartedly, he knows his father is still more of a threat to him than the elderly old man act he may put on for others. None the less, there will come a day, very soon, when the mantle of Patriarch will have to be passed down from father to son. It is a day the ambitious Calico heir has eagerly awaited for nearly two decades, but patience has always been one of Mattias's strongest attributes. Patience and planning. Location Credit to Elias Caldera