Title: Chief Investigator of Lygos
Alignment: Lawful Neutral
Location: Offices of the City Watch, upper floors of the Bastion (Bastion)
Emblem: A silver badge shaped like an open eye above a city wall
Appearance
Constable Farthing is a tall, angular Human in his late fifties. His once-dark hair is now iron-gray, pulled back in a neat tail, and his sharp green eyes peer out from beneath heavy brows with the focus of a hawk. He wears a dark wool coat, usually dusted with ash or chalk, and his boots click like accusations down the stone corridors. He carries a Glass of Identifying.
Personality
- Calm, meticulous, and piercingly intelligent
- Holds an encyclopedic memory for criminal cases, poisons, alibis, and lies.
- Speaks little, listens much—but when he does talk, every word lands like a nail
- Known for utter impartiality, which makes him respected and feared by nobles and commoners alike
- He has a dry wit and a deadpan sense of humor, which tends to catch suspects off guard.
Quote
- “Everyone has a motive. Even saints. Especially saints.”
- “There are no puzzles—only poor observations.”
Methods & Tools
- Carries a folding satchel filled with charcoal, chalk dust, lock picks, mirror shards, wax vials, and blank parchment
- Uses a trained Mink named Patter, expert at sniffing out blood or rot
- Occasionally consults with diviners or necromancers—but always demands independent proof to corroborate magical claims
- Known for reconstructing crimes from the smallest clue—a cracked hinge, a disturbed candle stub, a misaligned boot print
Role in the City
Farthing is not a Watchman in the traditional sense. He answers only to the Commander of the Watch and the Crown, and often intercedes when high-profile or particularly disturbing crimes occur.
He may also be sent to investigate:
- Crimes involving nobles, temples, or other city officials
- Mysterious deaths involving no signs of struggle
- Disappearances tied to arcane activity or strange symbols
- Cover-ups or corruption among the Watch itself
He is one of the few officials the King trusts implicitly, and he has no political allegiance to any of the three founding families.
Reputation
- Feared by the guilty, admired by the honest, and hated by those with secrets Known to solve murders no one else can, but often refuses to share how he cracked them
- Some whisper he made a pact with an extraplanar entity, while others say he’s simply the smartest man in Lygos
Adventure Hooks
- He may recruit the party as temporary agents, needing muscle or magical help during an urgent case
- The players might be suspects or witnesses in a case he’s investigating
- He’s discovered a conspiracy that reaches the Assembly itself, and must decide whether to trust the adventurers—or frame them as scapegoats
- Someone is trying to frame Farthing—and he needs the party to prove his innocence before it's too late