enom from a Viper which wounded a virgin, vertebræ from a Heretic, nails from a coffin that was Intended for someone other than its occupant... these things and others more Horrific form the components of a ritual, one of the darkest of the Dark Arts, necessary in the creation of a staff fit for focusing Death's pure spirit. Such staves form the backbone (as it were) of the Necromancer's equipment, but their sale is forbidden in civilized lands.

The Black Market

While it may seem Unfair that the primary tool of the reanimator has been declared anathema, a moment's observation will confirm that this has not in any way prevented the necromancer from purchasing what is required. Clearly, there are vendors who carry such accoutrements.

How is this accomplished? The method is at once both absurdly Simple and deviously Effective. All staves created for merchant sale are required by King's decree to show the profession for whom they are intended, the better to avoid accidental or intentional deception in sales. Necromantic staves have no such marker, only runes suggestive of their intended use. Thus, should the merchant's inventory be inspected by one of the King's guard, the forbidden tool will appear to be merely a “found” item acquired in trade – with no indication that there are hundred more hidden in a padded box beneath the floorboards.

The savvy Necromancer will, of course, be intimately familiar with these macabre runes and have no trouble in distinguishing which staff may be best suited for personal use. The only challenge is in finding the merchants who ply this proscribed trade.

The Albion Mainland

The sordid and enlightening tale of the Egasa Family having been exposed in great detail in another document, their story will not be here repeated. Who now knowing these terrors could believe the façade of the simple purveyors of wizardly wares?

The City of Camelot
Name	Cardowen Egesa
Locale	The main hall of the Academy.
Favorite Color	Inky Black
Hobbies	Assisting with shelving in the Library, scribing historical journals, singing Madrigals, replacing the Library's archives of Forbidden necromantic lore with clever forgeries piece by piece and adding the Originals to her private collection.
Black Mountains South
Name	Eabae Egesa
Locale	A simple merchant shop in Ludlow Village.
Favorite Color	Blood Red
Hobbies	Baking pastries, sweeping, supplying spiced cider for Highland games, seducing Innocents into sealing unholy bargains with demoniac forces bent on Consuming their life essence in exchange for talismans of power.
Camelot Hills
Name	Doreen Egesa
Locale	A simple merchant shop in Cotswold Village.
Favorite Color	Bone White
Hobbies	Gardening, arranging gifts of coin and worn clothing to the needy, memorizing Tavern ballads, violating graves to sever corpses' hands with a silver-bladed Sickle on nights of the new moon.
Campacorentin Forest
Name	Loretta Egesa
Locale	The central tower of the Lethantis Association.
Favorite Color	Yew brown
Hobbies	Carving and shaping staves with a fierce single-mindedness that is both legendary and Frightening to behold.
Avalon Marsh
Name	Daisi Egesa
Locale	The interior of Adribard's Retreat.
Favorite Color	Ooze green
Hobbies	Studying heraldry under the tutelage of Lord Adribard, brewing Alchemical potions, acting as Brother Caun's occasional courier, carefully eliminating all living blood relatives of a certain long-dead Roman general through the use of Subtle poisons.

The final fate of Lord Egesa is still unknown, and may remain so eternally. Divinations agree that he no longer walks among the living, but neither can his soul be found in the stygian vastness of the Underworld by any known necromantic evocation.

The Shrouded Isles of Avalon

The residents of the Avalonian settlements, realizing as they do their dependence upon necromantic assistance to defy Morgana's undead legions, are less Strict in enforcing inconvenient decrees.

Isle of Glass
Name	Jane Knobs
Locale	A comfortable stone cottage in Gothwaite Harbor.
Favorite Color	Sunlight Gold
Hobbies	Hiding her nervous twitch, thinking about dropping her last name and moving like Jessica did, sewing dolls without Heads, wondering if those Inconnu meant what they said about her chances in the Underworld.
Name	James Yoryk
Locale	Facing the central square of Anniogel.
Favorite Color	Dirt brown
Hobbies	Singing songs of Infinite jest, kissing princes, setting tables on a roar with flashes of Merriment, fighting off unsettling Premonitions on the eventual fate of his skull.
Avalon Isle
Name	Ysbaddaden
Locale	A worn porch in Wearyall Village.
Favorite Color	Misty gray
Hobbies	Repairing holes in the roof, complaining about how Avalonians get all of the Consignment jobs, wondering if it's too late to join the Guild of Shadows since necromancers keep grumbling about an apparent Lack of infiltrators to do the Guild's spying, making fanciful maps of phenomenally dangerous areas to encourage exploration without lessening the thrill of surprise.
Dales of Devwy
Name	Ridley
Locale	The main hall of Ft. Gwyntell.
Favorite Color	Mottled green
Hobbies	Sticking knives in the wall, pacing, listening to the Echoing sounds of maniacal rampaging objects that ought never have Moved of their own volition, wondering why everyone else looks so calm.
Aldland
Name	Jessica
Locale	A well-appointed building in Caer Diogel.
Favorite Color	Pale lavender
Hobbies	Trying on new robes, learning the art of training giant dragonflies, hoping no one ever Uncovers her embarrassing past, waking up in the middle of the night Screaming at dreams she can't remember.

The Shores of Atlantis

Although the Avalonians may appear somewhat Lax in their treatment of contraband, those who have taken up residence in the Atlantean ruins are the embodiment of Disinterest. Focused as everyone is on their own Projects, a merchant could likely sell Arthur's very bones without fear of notice.

Ruins of Atlantis
Name	Alifa
Locale	A tent in the archaeological dig near the Hall of Heroes.
Favorite Color	Deep indigo
Hobbies	Smiling at passers-by, listening to the Soothing sound of waves lapping upon the shore, admiring pieces of newly-uncovered Atlantean inscriptions, waiting for the slightest Opportunity to snatch the halberd from its rack and Show these people the true meaning of misery.

The canny may wonder at their observation that the Inconnu do not make trade in their one most Needed piece of equipment; and indeed, any Necromancer is exquisitely careful to avoid concurrent possession of more than a few ensorcelled staves, certainly never keeping the inventories required of a successful merchant. When questioned upon this fact the Inconnu remain silent, offering only the shadow of a smile before turning away.

[Translator's Notes: The above-referenced document concerning the fates and fortunes of the Egesa family could not be found. Whether this was due to said document being lost to time, or whether some Conspiracy on the part of the family kept it from my hands, I cannot say. – B]