"Ah bene; hoped to find you both here. Bring your notebooks, you’ll be wanting them."
- —Rosella Vanvitelli to the Imperial beast scholar Theodosius Schreiber[1a]
Rosella Vanvitelli is the procuratore extraordinari of the Casa di Ruggisce that oversees all of the beasts imported for the great arena combats in the city-state of Remas in Tilea.[1a]
She is a vibrant and striking woman, delighted to accept scholars from different institutions like the Imperial Zoo of Altdorf. It was Vanvitelli's last expedition in the Southlands that brought back the mighty, bestial prizes that caught Chancellor Eberhardt von Festschrift of the University of Altdorf's interest.[1b]
The so-called "House of Roars" handles all "bestia" for the Great Coliseum of Remas. Here the clerks and Vanvitelli are widely considered some of the most knowledgeable experts on every kind of monstrous creature to be found anywhere in Tilea.[1b]
In fact, when the Crustacean Leviathan, Il Potente Granchio, assaulted a ship on the trade route between Remas and Sartosa, the Casa di Ruggisce analyzed the reports of the survivors, as always to give aid and reassurance. The Council of Fifty that rules Remas has unofficially requested that Rosella act in the future to contain the cases of hysteria that similar events can generate in the population of the city-state.[1a]
Casa di Ruggisce[]
"I lost so many people, Signore Schreiber. To the jungle. To disease. To Al Saurim. To them."
- —Rosella Vanvitelli to Theodosius Schreiber[1b]
The Casa di Ruggisce, or "House of Roars," is a mere stone's throw from the Great Coliseum of Remas. Wide, underground tunnels connect the cages of the House of Roars to the amphitheater, allowing for the transport of various beasts directly to the arena floor. The Casa di Ruggisce's cages are among the strongest on the market, of course, and the best are even Dwarf work.[1b]
Beyond a short series of tunnels, there is a tremendous open space that the Casa has excavated. It stretches nearly sixty feet below ground in some places. From a reinforced balcony overlooking several large enclosures it is possible to admire some of the greatest triumphs of the Casa di Ruggisce, including Carnosaurs, Stegadons and Horned Ones brought directly from the jungles of the Southlands.[1b]
Vanvitelli took advantage of a year when two triumvirs fond of the Great Coliseum were in power in Remas and convinced them of the potential glory to be found in funding an expedition to the Southlands to bring back wondrous creatures for the purposes of science, art, and some spectacular bloodshed. She has proved unwilling to talk much about the difficulties of the expedition, preferring to speak of how successful it was and the huge sums the beasts are bringing to Remas.[1b]
In the Coliseum, spectators can assist in several feeding exhibitions of the Southlands creatures, which are always sold-out events. Watching a Carnosaur hunt down and devour a bull running through an artificial jungle is an unique experience. And even Bestiarii gladiators can face these beasts. If somehow the pit fighters manage to survive and even win against such monstrosities, it is common for the crowd to deny permission for the gladiator to execute their bestial foes because of the creatures' great valour in the arena.[1b]
Throughout Tilea, and certainly in the Casa di Ruggisce, cats are exceedingly well-regarded, but it isn't just simple farm cats that make the hearts of the southerners sing. Tileans prefer their deadly creatures to have grace and skill, for they see much of the gladiatore in them.[1b]
As such, the Casa di Ruggisce is ever searching for new Boia Silenzioso for exhibition in the arena. Some they intend merely for display, while others brought in to hunt wild game across the arena floor for the amusement of spectators.[1b]
Far rarer are the "Killer Exhibitions" when one of the Great Cats of the Irrana Mountains, or an Arabyan leopardus, is set against an equally dangerous predator, such as a Tilean Mur.[1b]