The Market

Threat Assessment: The Market and Its Services, an excerpt

Composed by General Ren Carston

…The Market is Solitude’s most powerful trade syndicate, controlling more wealth than many of its nations. Its members very quietly include wealthy merchants, landowners, ship captains, caravan haulers and powerful nobles. Though the exact extent of its operations are known to very few, the Market is known to control a vast array of legitimate and profitable businesses. Mining, shipping, farming, manufacturing, transportation, storage and hospice are only a few of the industries in their wheelhouse. The influence of the Market stretches to almost every corner of Solitude and their members include some of the richest and most influential people in the world.

What’s more, there is a dark side to the Market. Woven within its legitimate fabric and accessible only to members and trusted customers are the five “grey services”: Procurement (theft), Information Brokering (espionage), Tributation (bribery), Negotiations (protection and intimidation) and Diplomatic Relief (arms dealing). These services provide access to specialized professional criminals under the Market’s employ. Though they don’t typically deal in murder – officially or unofficially – Market operatives are often at the top of most city’s wanted lists…