The patron

A craftsperson who reaches level 12 gains Patron: a well-to-do burgher in Cēaptūn who buys their best work.

Where is the patron?

In the north-east corner of the Gæsthūs, Cēaptūn’s inn. The patron is of your own race and speaks as your people speak. Only a craftsperson’s run has one. If you have been to Cēaptūn before level 12, the patron moves in the moment you gain the talent; otherwise they are there when you first arrive.

What does the patron want?

Talk to the patron and they ask for one piece of work: something one of your trades can make that can be Fine or better, such as a sword, an axe, a bow, a shield, a helm, a suit of armour, gloves, or boots. Never jewellery, potions, tools, or arrows. The piece is picked at random from every recipe of every craft you are trained in that your skill is high enough to make.

With the request the patron hands over the stock for it: the metal, wood, leather, or other pieces the recipe takes, as much as one piece takes, and any other material it needs (a bow’s sinew). Never a gem: that is yours to add. Whatever would leave you overloaded is set down at your feet.

The commission shows in your quest log while it is open. It is not a quest: it gives no experience and does not count toward your guild rank or a town’s goodwill.

Delivering

Talk to the patron again with the piece in your pack. They take the first one you carry that is Fine, Marvellous, or a Masterwork (one you are not wearing or wielding first), and pay 100 % of its worth in gold. Its grade counts: a Fine piece is worth twice a plain one, a Marvellous one three times, a Masterwork five times. A shop pays far less. Every delivery trains Negotiation.

A piece that bears your maker’s mark is worth half again, so it is paid 50 % more than the same piece unmarked.

Magic you know of counts as it does in a shop (see Magic items).

The patron never asks who made it: a Fine piece you found will do. A plain one will not (“I asked for Fine work”), and a damaged one is no better than plain.

How many?

One commission at a time. Deliver it and the next talk brings the next. There is no limit and no waiting. The road to town and the hours at the anvil are the only price.

If you never deliver, nothing happens: the patron waits, and the stock is yours to keep, sell, or salvage. If the patron dies, the commission is off, and no one takes their place.

See also: the craftsperson, Crafting, and Shops.