Current leader: Jacques the Hook, Male Human Aristocrat/Rogue
This gang is composed of the young members of Stormreach’s most respected families. Dragonmarked scions, heirs to wealthy merchant families, and even the child of a Storm Lord or two are all counted among its crew. Most of these dandies think of the “gang” as a social club. On any given night, the Lions are just as likely to go out to a high-end tavern as they are to hit the streets and bust heads. For a select few among the Lions’ upperlevel members, the gang is a training ground for the vicious political wheeling and dealing they will eventually tackle at the helm of their family’s power. Rumors assert that many of the Lions’ parents are members of the mysterious Aurum. Powerful families with deep pockets encourage their children’s involvement with the Lions. Some view the gang’s activities either as a sowing of their kids’ oats or a means of grooming them for a place in the Silver Concord when the time is right.
Jacques the Hook’s father is a powerful shipping magnate with a twenty-frigate fleet, which moves everything from Karrnathi nightwood ale and bitter cheese to dream serpent hides and Aundairian magic items. Jacques’s adolescent violent tendencies developed into psychotic rage. After the boy beat one of his tutors at Morgrave University to death, his father thought some time off from formal studies and an education in Stormreach’s underworld might temper Jacques. Instead, the young man’s violent nature flourished, and he rose quickly to the gang’s helm. Jacques’s moniker comes from his penchant for torturing people with a large silver hook.
The Golden Lions are not powerful by any means, but they command respect from other criminals for two reasons. The first is money. This gang is better financed than any other, with the possible exception of the Bilge Rats. The Lions’ weekly allowances alone from their gold-heavy families exceed what most gangs’ illegal businesses net in a month. Second, their enemies in the underworld fear the retribution that the Golden Lions’ parents could bring to bear if one of the gang members was maimed or killed.
The Lions engage in a range of crimes. Some enjoy irresponsible violence and their freedom to beat and maim their lesser members. Others focus on more sophisticated crimes, from blackmail and extortion to elaborate gambling schemes. When the Aurum comes calling, these Lions are likely to make the cut.