Innkeeper
Innkeepers own and run the establishments that allow the economy of the Old World to flourish. Many innkeeping families have owned their establishment for generations. They cater to all customers, regardless of social class, so long as they can pay. In a time when the majority of folk are insular, Innkeepers have learned information is valuable and they're usually good for news from afar. A number of Innkeepers supplement their incomes by making introductions between customers. This varies from finding agreeable companionship for their guests to putting interested parties in contact with those who can permanently remove troublemakers with no questions asked.[1a]
In towns and villages throughout civilised lands, taverns are a welcome retreat for hard-working men – a place where they can drown out the rigours of life with ale and song. As a consequence, innkeepers enjoy a respect among this class usually accorded only to priests. Those same priests castigate innkeepers for promoting drunkenness, gambling, and other vices which lead men astray from family and temple.[2a]
In remote areas, innkeepers are the saviour of all weary travellers. When darkness falls, the warm glow of the roadside inn is a welcome beacon to those abroad. Rural inns are not just refuges from the chill of night. Many, particularly those along the forest roads, are effectively small fortresses. Palisades protect them against the fearsome denizens of the dark, and their innkeepers are renowned as much for their fighting ability as for the quality of their ale.[2a]