Ninkash, also known as the Mother of Beer and the Goddess of Merriment, is a much-beloved deity within the Crossroads. Zobeck’s working class drinks ale as if it were water (indeed, dwarven beer is often cleaner than water in the city), and many dwarves from the nearby Iron Cantons now live in Zobeck and extoll their matron goddess’s tenets wherever they go. Since Ninkash has no temples in Zobeck, and her priesthood lacks a central authority even in the Ironcrags, the Beer Goddess’s followers instead heed the authority of master brewers known as the Blessed of Ninkash.   The Blessed of Ninkash have no formal priestly authority, and only a few of them command any divine magic, but they possess such a mastery of the art of brewing that the people of Zobeck agree they must possess the divine gifts of Ninkash herself. Likewise, the Blessed of Ninkash are not an official guild or club; the title of Blessed is often given by patrons of bars who delight in a local brewer’s experimental draughts.   Those who bear the title of Blessed of Ninkash are rarely professional brewers, and those who do make money from their craft are not a part of any guild. The Blessed are typically professional barflies who make a hobby of brewing, gambling, and playing music while keeping a paying job elsewhere in the city.

A set of common clothes or traveler’s clothes, a set of brewer’s supplies and one type of gaming set, a 4-pint cask of homebrewed ale, beer, or mead, and a belt pouch containing 5 gp.

Blessings at the Bar

You feel more at home while in taverns and inns than you do at your own home, your workplace, or your school. Determine with your GM the name and location of your favorite tavern; what city is it in, and where in that city is it located? Before being thrown  into your adventures, you visited that pub every day and know all the regulars. Because of your famed brews, 50 percent of all other taverns in the city also know your name.
When in a tavern that knows your identity and knows of your fame, its bartender will give you and your companions free meals and lodging as long as you spend 4 hours brewing and succeed on a DC 15 Intelligence check made with brewer’s supplies to make them a barrel of your brew. Additionally, while in this tavern, you can call upon its patrons for assistance, provided the assistance you ask for does not risk their lives and you remain in good standing with the tavern’s patrons.

D8	Personality Traits
1	greet everyone I meet with a smile and a free drink. When my enemies come for me, I want to have friends to save my neck.
2	I stay at the bar because it’s the only place that makes me feel happy.
3	I end every statement with a quick blessing to Ninkash. Everything I have is thanks to her!
4	Ha!
5	My language may be foul enough to strip paint, but I would never take the name of the Beer Goddess in vain!
6	I love a pretty face, but if that person can’t outdrink me, I’ll have nothing to do with them!
7	Brewing’s just a hobby for me, but I guess I ain’t half bad at it! What’re the odds?
8	Making drinks is my one true love in life. I wouldn’t survive ten days without it.

D6	Ideal
1	Excellence. I will become the best brewer this city has ever seen! (Any)
2	Secrecy. The key to my success is a secret recipe. If anyone discovers it, I’m ruined. (Neutral)
3	Spite. I started practicing my craft because of an old grudge. Shame I’m so good at it, because it’s not much fun. The only thing keeping me brewing is spite. (Chaotic)
4	Community. The people here are kind to me. It’s only right that I share my brew with them in return. (Lawful)
5	Divinity. Ninkash teaches that all the people of the world deserve to make merry. I hope everyone is able to find solace in a golden beer, even when times are hard. (Good)
6	Treachery. I’ve spent years getting close to my socalled “friends,” learning how to worm secrets out them. If anyone betrays me, their next drink will contain a swift and painless death. (Evil)

D6	Bond
1	I’ve named my brewer’s supplies. Each cup, ladle, and kettle has a name and I love them like the family I never had.
2	I was taught to brew by a woman who passed through town when I was young. I’ve spent all my life trying to find her and show her how much I’ve learned.
3	I was raised by a priest of Ninkash, and I grew up in the temple seeing how happy her blessings made people. I vow to spread my goddess’s blessings wherever I go.
4	My brewmaster was murdered before my eyes by a thief who wanted his recipe. I have spent all my life searching for the murderer’s identity, to no avail.
5	The people in my home tavern treat me like some sort of celebrity. I’ve always wanted to be famous, so I keep coming back!
6	A traveling priest of Ninkash once saved my life when I drank too much one night. I owe her my life.

D6	Flaw
1	I drink too much. It’s cost me friends, family—now all I have left is my devotion to Ninkash.
2	Whenever someone tells me they don’t drink, I get angry. How can they refuse my goddess’s perfect drink?
3	I’m a fraud. My famous brew is actually someone else’s work that I’m profiting from.
4	I’m pretty good at starting bar fights. Not so good at finishing them, ‘cuz I usually run away in the middle.
5	I will do anything for fame. Anything.
6	I once messed up my brew so badly that three people died after drinking it. Turns out they were crime lords, and now their goons are after me.