League Of Boot And Trail

Members of this unusual organization regard every road as a classroom and every inn as a laboratory. Devoted to travel for its own sake, they accumulate little lore but see much of the world—and worlds beyond as well. Anything of interest to travelers is of interest to the League of Boot and Trail. Although it is organized much like a college, the guild offers no formal academic studies; instead, its members are renowned guides and scouts. They know, for example, the last known location of a floating isle, the best way to cross the Basiran Glass Desert, and which tribe now rules the Gold Mountains in Onatah.
Because its members are rarely in the same place for long, the League of Boot and Trail has little formal organization and no central leadership. Nearly every city of any size has a league station, where members can file reports on their travels, conduct research for future journeys, and share drinks and tales of the road. A senior member serves as station head at each location. If a crisis affects the guild as a whole, as many station heads as possible meet somewhere and reach a solution by consensus. Each league member must help to run a league station for one month out of every year. The most senior league member of a given month’s working group serves as station head.
Each member who stops at a league station must file a report describing his or her travels since the last station stop. The report should include hazards, weather conditions, encounters, and any other information that might prove useful to other travelers.
Each of the guild’s stations bears a red boot symbol. This same symbol also appears as a tattoo on each league member’s left forearm. Though wearing actual red boots is not required, most members do put red trim on their boots. In addition, every member carves two small notches in each boot heel so as to leave distinctive tracks.
Occasionally, league members band together to bring to justice to anyone who displays a league tattoo but isn’t actually a member. The league pays handsomely for such services out of its own coffers, but most members would take on such tasks even without pay to protect the league’s reputation.
To join the League of Boot and Trail, a prospective member must present a station head with three gifts, all originating from at least 300 miles away. One of these gifts must be a case of liquor worth at least 250 gp, one must be an object of art worth at least 300 gp, and the last must be a riding horse or warhorse. If the gifts meet all the requirements, the candidate is tattooed with the red boot and accepted as a member after a riotous party. Dues are 500 gp per year, payable at the time of the member’s one-month service at a station.

Organizations

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