[jason taylor]

Ghost Pubs:

Found on a number of worlds including Capital, these are restaurants, taverns, coffeehouses, hotels and the like which the high and mighty traditionally visit incognito. Sometimes the incognito is only nominal but it at least allows them to shed their titles and take the privacy of anonymity for awhile. These vary a lot. Some of these are indeed palaces of decadence and these kind of course are the most talked about among the tabloids, while others are, aside for their informality, respectable enough to fit the most exacting Vilani standards(Though during the Zira Sirka the existence of such places was less openly admitted then it is know).

Romantic tales of such places are common throughout the Imperium. According to legend these are havens of organized crime, espionage and political intrigue. They also are well known as places of secret romantic liasons(productions with a Romeo and Juliet style plot for instance, often have members of feuding families visit these places to elope). Other stories abound such as amiable truce zones where cops and mobsters meet to share drinks. While there is much truth to these legends many ghost pubs have their own internal rules for who can use their services and will not hesitate to have security expel those who don't follow them.

A Noble among the adventurers might have familiarity with Ghost Pubs as part of Area Knowledge. Places like this might also of course, serve the traditional roles as places to recruit adventurers or gain information, though naturally CoH(professional) as applied by the employees at such places tends to include Keep Client's Secrets. If a crime takes place at a place like this Law Enforcers might have a difficult time investigating. On the other hand, managers of such places if rich enough, have been known to put bounties on the heads of clients who disturbed the peace of their establishment.