Discord
Changelog
Source: Dreams of the Red Wizards (AD&D), circa 1357 DR
1344 DR (Year of the Moonfall)
Samas Kul (Master of the Guild of Foreign Trade since 1339 DR) arranges the concession of a small Thayan Quarter in the city of Procampur, create the first of the Thayan enclaves.
Source: Lords of Darkness (3rd Edition), circa 1372 DR
The Guild of Foreign Trade is administered by Samas Kul (LE male human Tra7/Red8), a brilliant, ambitious man who stands high in the ranks of the Red Wizards. He is second only to the zulkir Druxus Rhym among those Red Wizards in the school of Transmutation, mostly due to the staggering wealth at his disposal. As the grand master of a government-sponsored guild, Samas Kul is nominally an autharch, but in truth his power and influence exceeds that of all but the strongest tharchions. Corpulent and cynical, Samas Kul goes about his business draped in gem-studded garments with rings worth thousands of gold pieces on each finger, flaunting the wealth that pours into Thay’s coffers (and his owns) through the guild.
Several of the zulkirs are counted as members of the guild’s directing board, although in practice they leave Samas Kul to administer the operation while collecting bribes and payoffs of staggering amounts for their forbearance and continued good will. In theory the Guild of Foreign Trade passes on all profits to the state, but in practice the state received much less than the zulkirs (or other highly placed Red Wizards) who happen to have their hands in the till.
Many lesser Red Wizards are nominally employed in the guild, answering to Samas Kul while they direct the revenues generated through their work back to the zulkirs who sponsored them. The Guild of Foreign Trade purchases items crafted by the wizards laboring in the zulkirs’ workshops and laboratories for sale abroad, and a number of Red Wizards are involved in commandeering the necessary resources to keep up the flow of goods. Other Red Wizards serve in the enclaves as administrators, spies, and guardians, as well as crafters of magical goods at each location. The guild attracts a significant number of the best and brightest low-ranking Red Wizards, who scheme for an opportunity to become a master or grand master of the guild and reach the elite ranks of those who can divert its profits to their own pockets with impunity.
Source: Unapproachable East (3rd Edition), circa 1372 DR
The growing wealth of the Guild of Foreign Trade may be changing this time-honored tradition. The Guild's officers have been catapulted to astounding wealth by the success of the mercantile enclaves. The wisest among them realize that such power can be ephemeral, especially if the more warlike tharchs and zulkirs get their way, so they are doing everything they can to secure their long-term positions. Chief among these is Master of the Guild Samas Kul (LE male human Tra7/Red5), the organization's top officer. He has made himself one of the most influential and powerful Red Wizards, second only to the zulkirs.
The Guild Of Foreign Trade
Thay's foreign enclaves are administered through the Guild of Foreign Trade, headquartered in a vast complex of warehouses, vaults, and fortresslike offices dominating the eastern end of Bezantur's harbor. The Guild has existed for hundreds of years, issuing licenses to Thayans wishing to import or export goods, but in the last twenty years, its sponsorship of mercantile enclaves dealing in magic items has catapulted the Guild from a small, corrupt bureaucracy to a vast, corrupt, state-sponsored industry. The guild is naturally obsessed with the safety of its valuable merchandise, and its vaults are guarded by hundreds of wizards, skilled warriors, and monstrous creatures. Thousands of laborers and slaves toil at its docks and warehouses, loading and unloading the yellow-sailed dromonds that carry the output of magic workshops to Thayan concessions and quarters across the Inner Sea. The dromonds return even more heavily laden than they were when they set out, since most of the goods exchanged for Thayan magic items are bulkier and heavier than a cargo of potions, scrolls, and wondrous items.
The Master of the Guild of Foreign Trade is a brilliant Red Wizard named Samas Kul (LE male human Tra7/Red8). Ambitious and cynical, Samas Kul is known for his acidic sarcasm and urbane manner. He is a tall, corpulent man who flaunts his wealth shamelessly, bedecking himself with gem-studded robes and rings worth thousands of gold pieces. Some of Samas Kul's colleagues have mistakenly dismissed him as a money-grubbing merchant in red robes, but the Master of the Guild is a wizard of no small skill and stands high in the ranks of the school of transmutation.
1344 DR (Year of the Moonfall)
Samas Kul (Master of the Guild of Foreign Trade since 1339 DR) arranges the concession of a small Thayan Quarter in the city of Procampur, create the first of the Thayan enclaves.
Source: Lords of Darkness (3rd Edition), circa 1372 DR
The Guild of Foreign Trade is administered by Samas Kul (LE male human Tra7/Red8), a brilliant, ambitious man who stands high in the ranks of the Red Wizards. He is second only to the zulkir Druxus Rhym among those Red Wizards in the school of Transmutation, mostly due to the staggering wealth at his disposal. As the grand master of a government-sponsored guild, Samas Kul is nominally an autharch, but in truth his power and influence exceeds that of all but the strongest tharchions. Corpulent and cynical, Samas Kul goes about his business draped in gem-studded garments with rings worth thousands of gold pieces on each finger, flaunting the wealth that pours into Thay’s coffers (and his owns) through the guild.
Several of the zulkirs are counted as members of the guild’s directing board, although in practice they leave Samas Kul to administer the operation while collecting bribes and payoffs of staggering amounts for their forbearance and continued good will. In theory the Guild of Foreign Trade passes on all profits to the state, but in practice the state received much less than the zulkirs (or other highly placed Red Wizards) who happen to have their hands in the till.
Many lesser Red Wizards are nominally employed in the guild, answering to Samas Kul while they direct the revenues generated through their work back to the zulkirs who sponsored them. The Guild of Foreign Trade purchases items crafted by the wizards laboring in the zulkirs’ workshops and laboratories for sale abroad, and a number of Red Wizards are involved in commandeering the necessary resources to keep up the flow of goods. Other Red Wizards serve in the enclaves as administrators, spies, and guardians, as well as crafters of magical goods at each location. The guild attracts a significant number of the best and brightest low-ranking Red Wizards, who scheme for an opportunity to become a master or grand master of the guild and reach the elite ranks of those who can divert its profits to their own pockets with impunity.
Source: Unapproachable East (3rd Edition), circa 1372 DR
The growing wealth of the Guild of Foreign Trade may be changing this time-honored tradition. The Guild's officers have been catapulted to astounding wealth by the success of the mercantile enclaves. The wisest among them realize that such power can be ephemeral, especially if the more warlike tharchs and zulkirs get their way, so they are doing everything they can to secure their long-term positions. Chief among these is Master of the Guild Samas Kul (LE male human Tra7/Red5), the organization's top officer. He has made himself one of the most influential and powerful Red Wizards, second only to the zulkirs.
The Guild Of Foreign Trade
Thay's foreign enclaves are administered through the Guild of Foreign Trade, headquartered in a vast complex of warehouses, vaults, and fortresslike offices dominating the eastern end of Bezantur's harbor. The Guild has existed for hundreds of years, issuing licenses to Thayans wishing to import or export goods, but in the last twenty years, its sponsorship of mercantile enclaves dealing in magic items has catapulted the Guild from a small, corrupt bureaucracy to a vast, corrupt, state-sponsored industry. The guild is naturally obsessed with the safety of its valuable merchandise, and its vaults are guarded by hundreds of wizards, skilled warriors, and monstrous creatures. Thousands of laborers and slaves toil at its docks and warehouses, loading and unloading the yellow-sailed dromonds that carry the output of magic workshops to Thayan concessions and quarters across the Inner Sea. The dromonds return even more heavily laden than they were when they set out, since most of the goods exchanged for Thayan magic items are bulkier and heavier than a cargo of potions, scrolls, and wondrous items.
The Master of the Guild of Foreign Trade is a brilliant Red Wizard named Samas Kul (LE male human Tra7/Red8). Ambitious and cynical, Samas Kul is known for his acidic sarcasm and urbane manner. He is a tall, corpulent man who flaunts his wealth shamelessly, bedecking himself with gem-studded robes and rings worth thousands of gold pieces. Some of Samas Kul's colleagues have mistakenly dismissed him as a money-grubbing merchant in red robes, but the Master of the Guild is a wizard of no small skill and stands high in the ranks of the school of transmutation.