Putting some sand in the sandbox...

Courtesy of the inimitable Jeff Rients...
1. What's the deal with my cleric's religion? Clerics worship a pantheon of saints, who are theoretically paragons of humanity who impressive characteristics and deeds make them worthy of worship today. They have also been known to worship the divinity of nature.

2. Where can we go to buy standard equipment? Even the smallest town should have a general store or outfitter which can provide basic equipment, and weaponry up to daggers and short bows. Anything beyond that (armor, larger swords, heavier bows, etc.) will require either a blacksmith, or a larger town.

3. Where can we go to get platemail custom fitted for this monster I just befriended? Good luck... plate mail is extremely hard to come by, often possessed only by the most powerful of rulers, military commanders and religious officers.

4. Who is the mightiest wizard in the land? Depending who you ask, either The Old Man On The Mountain, the Faerie Queen, the necromancer Lim-Dul, or the elvish mage Daerk-xi-Daer
(yes, I am wholeheartedly stealing names from Magic the Gathering. I make no apologies, mostly because none of my players play MTG, so they won't know the difference. Plus, it gives me lots of good ideas to loot)

5. Who is the greatest warrior in the land? Lord Caernavon of Caernave, Whispers-In-The-Dark or the Black Knight of St. Erebus

6. Who is the richest person in the land? The great King Mithraz of the southern kingdom of Ghog is the richest man in the world, although others say the hoard of the wyrm Longfang rivals it.

7. Where can we go to get some magical healing? For simple healing, many local hedgewizards and wise women would be able to provide simple magical healing. For more grievous wounds, one would have to seek out a cleric with knowledge of the suitable prayers and orisons of healing of the various saints.

8. Where can we go to get cures for the following conditions: poison, disease, curse, level drain, lycanthropy, polymorph, alignment change, death, undeath? Poison: most local hedgewizards or druids would be able to heal natural poisons, but for more exotic poisons, one might need to seek out agents of the Guild of Mute Assassins; Disease: appropriate clerics, probably of St. Asclypus; Curse: most curses can be lifted by witches, but beware - a curse can rarely be truly removed, and often can only be replaced...; Level drain: that would probably require some sort of divine miracle, or a mighty impressive wizard...; lycanthropy: that would need a druid; polymorph: if a wizard did it, then probably a wizard should UNDO it, right?...; alignment change: umm...... CAN that be undone?; death: wow, you don't ask much, do you? I mean, there's only been a couple of saints who have ever come back from being DEAD dead... I dunno....; undeath: umm..... death again?

9. Is there a magic guild my MU belongs to or that I can join in order to get more spells? All mages require a master until the 6th Level of Secrets has been attained, at the very least. There is rumoured to be the Illuminated Order of Agamotto that mages may join, but you don't find them, they find you...

10. Where can I find an alchemist, sage or other expert NPC? Most people who advertise themselves as alchemists are charlatans and frauds. One MAY be able to find an alchemist of limited usefulness in a large city, but the best alchemists would be elves, who are few and far between, and do not advertise their services. A reliable sage would only be found in a large city, or perhaps in one of the larger cloistered abbeys. Most other expert PCs would reqiure a sizable city or noble court.

11. Where can I hire mercenaries? Most taverns or union halls will have strong-armed, weak-willed individuals willing to hire on for wealth or adventure. However, for quality sell-swords, you will likely either have to "know someone who knwos someone", or advertise in some rather esoteric channels.

12. Is there any place on the map where swords are illegal, magic is outlawed or any other notable hassles from Johnny Law? Many of the town which have sprung up around religious centers look down on open weapons. Magic restrictions tend to depend on when a mage last wreaked havoc in a town. There are always some out of the way places that may have "interesting" laws, however...

13. Which way to the nearest tavern? Taverns are easy to find, with almost every small town having somewhere for the locals to gather and gossip. They are also frequently found in the roadhouses along well-traveled routes. 1

4. What monsters are terrorizing the countryside sufficiently that if I kill them I will become famous? The Immerwolf of Harrowdown Hills and the Beast of Lake Bezan come immediately to mind.

15. Are there any wars brewing I could go fight? There are always petty conflicts brewing between petty nobles on the frontier, and there are always humanoid incursions on the far borders of the realm that require quashing.

16.How about gladiatorial arenas complete with hard-won glory and fabulous cash prizes? There are rumours that in the deserts of Ahbahz in the far south, there exists such savagery...

17.Are there any secret societies with sinister agendas I could join and/or fight? Many... the Guild of Mute Assassins, the Order of St. Hermas, the Path of Thorns, the Illuminated Order of Agamotto, and many we probably don't even know about... YET.

18. What is there to eat around here? Please.... try the fish?

19. Any legendary lost treasures I could be looking for? The Sword of St. Hermas; the Compleat Book of Orisons, Benedictions and Prayers; the Necronomicon; the Lion's Eye Diamond

20. Where is the nearest dragon or other monster with Type H treasure? Longfang dwells in the Spires of Shadows, and his hoard is said to be the largest in all dragonkind...

Any questions? I'll post operative house rules later.