The Crimson Brotherhood

The Crimson Brotherhood was a thieves guild that operated throughout Xerros. They wear matching ruby pendant necklaces signifying their ties to the gang.

**History**

Originally based in the alleys of Scarlet Gate as a small gang of cutpurses led by a human named Jeremy Twobuckle, a charismatic scoundrel with ties connections in the smuggling business. The gang eventually grew in size and began strong-arming local cargo ships into getting cuts of their profits. Many ship captains would refuse, only to find a grim end. As the organization gained more gold and more members, The Crimson Brotherhood started using an offsite cargo warehouse in Greywatch owned by Torbin Steelhaven to store their stolen goods.

The gang expanded its territory and started a second base of operations in Saltport (adding Grubwick to their ranks). Eventually, Jeremy Twobuckle was killed in a drunken tavern confrontation with the Gang's Saltport branch leader; a young human nicknamed The Strangler by the other gang members. The Strangler seized control of the gang for himself, ruling over his minions with an iron fist. Word eventually reached The Strangler that the Crimson Brotherhood members stationed in Scarlet Gate were caught by the city guards and publicly executed. He pulled his forces together and the gang went on the run through the forests and backroads of the coastlands, surviving via highway burglaries. The gang at some point came across an Elf wizard whom they took hostage. The Strangler took the wizard's staff for himself and the gang grew wearier of his thirst for power.

After months of living on the road, The Crimson Brotherhood reached the small village of Greenfall. Seeing the sleepy town as a good place to hide out, the gang overtook the town's tavern, The Black Toad. One night the drunken gang members threw Grubwick down the town well where he uncovered a secret underground complex. The gang overtook the complex for themselves to use as their new hideout. The gang kidnapped a local family who refused to give them "protection money", eventually feeding the father to an ancient creature living in the hideout's sewer system. The Strangler forced their wizard to place a charm spell on the hideout's suits of armor, animating them into guards that would attack anyone not wearing the gang's signature ruby pendant necklace. After the wizard completed the spell, she was stabbed in the belly.

When The Axenforge Accord arrived in Greenfall, Chachi mistakenly went to The Black Toad Tavern instead of The Sleeping Giant Inn. A gang member recognized Chachi from a previous incident in Scarlet Gate and grew hostile toward him. Luckily, Creed, Rolf, Amaranth and Kazuhara walked into the tavern and intervened. The gang retreated after the tavern was visited by Krull, the Archvile, and retreated to their underground base. During the night, a few member's snuck into the Sleeping Giant Inn and kidnapped Allison Brightshield, locking her in their hideout's prison cells. The Axenforge Accord discovered their hideout, rescued Allison and the innocent kidnapped family, and even recruited Grubwick as a sidekick. Wielding the wizard's staff, The Strangler attacked the heroes but they managed to kill him. The hideout was then visited again by Krull and the bodies of all of the gang members were taken through a green portal.