Salty Sisters

The Salty Sisters are an enigmatic and deadly criminal organization in Lygos, a shadowy network of all-female assassins whose influence reaches into every corner of the city. Known for their unparalleled ability to make their murders appear as accidents, the Sisters have gained a fearsome reputation among those who whisper of them. Yet, to the untrained eye, their existence is nothing more than rumor.

Operations and Tactics

The Salty Sisters are masters of subtlety, relying on precision, patience, and deception to achieve their ends. Their assassinations are carefully staged to look like tragic accidents, illnesses, or other natural causes, allowing them to operate with near-total impunity.

Methods of Assassination:

- Poisoning food or drink with tasteless toxins.
- Sabotaging structural elements, such as causing "accidental" falls or collapsing balconies.
- Manipulating social situations to provoke fatal conflicts between rivals.
- Employing slow-acting magical curses that mimic natural illnesses.
- Infiltration: With members embedded at every level of society—servants in noble households, merchants, street performers, and even clergy—the Sisters always have eyes and ears in critical places.

· Network of Safehouses: The Salty Sisters maintain a series of discreet meeting spots and hideouts, often disguised as legitimate businesses like tailor shops, tea parlors, and, most famously, The Muffin Top Bakery.

Leadership

At the helm of this deadly organization is Rhea Diollo, a figure as unassuming as she is terrifying.

Rhea Diollo: A halfling woman of advanced age, Rhea is often seen as a sweet grandmotherly figure who bakes the best muffins in Lygos. Her bakery, The Muffin Top, is a favorite of nobles and commoners alike, and her warm smile and kind words disarm even the most skeptical visitor. Beneath this façade, however, lies a ruthless killer and shrewd tactician.
- Appearance: Rhea’s small stature, rosy cheeks, and twinkling eyes give her the perfect cover. Few would ever suspect that the frail-looking baker is the most dangerous woman in Lygos.
- Personality: Outwardly cheerful and charming, Rhea has a steel-hard resolve and a chillingly pragmatic outlook. She views murder as a craft, something to be executed with precision and artistry.
- Reputation Among the Sisters: To the Salty Sisters, Rhea is both mentor and mother figure, offering wisdom, encouragement, and occasionally, a sharp reprimand. She is the heart of the organization, and her word is law.

Members and Hierarchy

The Salty Sisters are organized into cells, each operating independently to reduce the risk of exposure.

The Harbingers: Senior members who act as Rhea’s lieutenants, overseeing operations in specific districts. They are highly skilled assassins in their own right.
The Shadows: Rank-and-file assassins who carry out most of the Sisters' contracts. They blend into society, using their day jobs as perfect covers for their darker activities.
The Initiates: New recruits who undergo rigorous training in stealth, poison-making, and deception under the guidance of senior members.

Role in Lygos

The Salty Sisters maintain an air of mystery, their existence known only through whispers and unproven accusations. Their influence spans all levels of society, from the slums to the royal palace. They are often hired by the desperate, the vengeful, and the ambitious, their services available only to those who can afford their steep price.

While the City Watch has heard rumors of their existence, no concrete evidence has ever surfaced. Captain Audra Daggerlace suspects their presence but has been unable to root them out.

Rivals and Allies

The Iron Congregation: A tenuous relationship exists between the Salty Sisters and this smuggling guild, as both benefit from staying out of each other’s way. However, tensions rise when their interests overlap.
The Hellish Maulers: The Sisters view the Maulers as a nuisance, but one not worth addressing—yet.
The Luteslingers: Occasionally, the Sisters purchase intelligence from this bardic spy network to ensure their assassinations remain undetected.

Ambitions

Under Rhea’s guidance, the Salty Sisters have remained small and untraceable, but whispers suggest Rhea’s ambitions may be growing. Some believe she seeks to extend the Sisters’ reach beyond Lygos, creating a network of assassins that spans the entire region.

For now, the Salty Sisters remain an invisible hand in the shadows of Lygos, feared by those who know of them, and unnoticed by those who should. The Muffin Top remains a bustling bakery, serving its delicious wares—and the occasional deadly secret—to the city’s unsuspecting populace.

1. Maribelle “Boomer” Tumbletank (Halfling Rum-Maker)
A loud, boisterous halfling woman with a booming laugh and a knack for brewing. Maribelle runs a dockside rum shop famous across Lygos for its spiced bite and smooth finish. Every sailor swears by her bottles. What few realize is that every so often, a bottle leaves her shop with something extra tucked inside—hidden notes, smuggled contraband, or even a dose of poison if the Sisters demand it. She calls it “special reserve.”

2. Ysandra Fenn (Human Waitress)
A tall, fastidious woman with neatly tied hair and a perfectionist’s touch. Ysandra works as a server at one of the city’s finest restaurants. Her professionalism is admired by patrons and peers alike, but her composure hides deadly loyalty. With the subtlest nod from a Sister, she can slip a powder, drop, or shaving into a dish or drink—leaving her unsuspecting victim to savor their last bite.

3. Velithra “Vel” Noctewyn (Drow Poisoner)
A voluptuous drow woman with silken hair and dark, smoldering eyes. By day, she pushes a broom across the cobblestones, appearing as nothing more than a common street sweeper. By night, she dons her hidden arsenal: throwing knives, slim daggers, and a wicked rapier, all tipped with fast-acting poisons. Her reputation among the Sisters is one of elegance laced with lethal precision.

4. Skrixxi “Ledgerfang” (Lizardfolk Treasurer)
A young, scrappy lizardfolk woman with bright mottled scales and an uncanny resemblance to a gecko. She spends her days in a dusty warehouse, pushing parchment and filing endless cargo manifests. In truth, she is the treasurer of the Sisters, keeping their finances in meticulous order. She has a sharp mind for numbers and a talent for making coin “vanish” from official records.

5. Hagra Bloodtide (Hobgoblin Dockhand)
A broad-shouldered hobgoblin woman with iron-hard muscles and a perpetually grim expression. Wrongly imprisoned years ago for killing her abusive Tiefling husband, Hagra clawed her way back to freedom and now labors on the docks hauling crates. Though she keeps her head down, the Sisters call on her whenever brute force is needed. With her strength and her scars, she makes an intimidating enforcer.

6. Tilly “Quickstep” Morren (Human Errand-Runner)
A bright-eyed human teenager with unruly hair and boundless energy. Tilly runs messages and errands for the Sisters, always eager to prove herself. Though young and inexperienced, her quick feet and quicker wit make her valuable. She dreams of one day earning a “real job” in the gang, and she mimics the older women constantly, desperate to grow into their shoes.