The Ghost is using this table to unite the city's cast-out behind his coup. The buried bomb: Ahra does not know the Ghost is the man whose explosion orphaned her. Getting her to sit at his table without it detonating is the emotional spine of the night. Everything else — Mira, the raids, the succession — hangs off whether the pluralists cohere or the anti-magic bloc splits them.
The through-line to hold
Track one line all night: pluralist ↔ anti-magic. The pluralists (the Ghost, Sharif's cats, a won-over Deniz) want a city where the magical and the non-human are left in peace; the anti-magic bloc (Hano and her strongman Murad, and whatever of Ahra's kill-the-casters creed survives) wants them leashed. The party is the swing, and they hold the trump: Mira.
Part 1 — The run-up (delegation, ~45 min)
The party carries the Ghost's invitations. Run each as a quick beat; the roll sets that faction's posture at the table. Let them split up to cover more ground.
| Invite | Who carries it best | Roll → outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Ahra | Gizem or Jean-Zera (Osman's old credential) | Persuasion/Insight DC 15. Success: comes wary, armed, expecting a trap. Fail: comes hot, or sends a lieutenant to scout. She must not learn the Ghost hosts it until she is in the room. |
| Sharif / the cats | Miray or Sidra (Undercity) | The Crown-vs-cats moment. Offer the Crown of Sargon → cats come allied (bring palace-spy intel + interference for N22). Withhold → come neutral, price everything. |
| Chique Manu | Jean-Zera | Auto-yes; comes amused and transactional. Free info on request, loyalty to no one. |
| Giannis | (tie burned) | Won't come for the party. Either skip him, or he comes for himself — and is the likely leak to Aziz. GM's call whether to dangle him. |
| Hano | anyone | Comes as a spoiler (or sends Murad as proxy). She is scouting for Murad's claim and may already suspect "Ahmet". |
Party assets to spend here: Osman's Lodge credential, the Crown (for the cats), Gizem's harem channel (Emine — but she is watched), Jean-Zera's Manu tie, Miray's Deniz accord (a druid voice for the pluralist side).
Part 2 — The table (faction cheat-sheet, ~90 min)
Seat them, then go round for opening positions.
| Faction | Wants | Will trade | Red line | Voice |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Ghost (host, patron) | A united front of the cast-out against the Palace; quietly, Bergüzar removed (he won't say the last part plainly). | The Undercity's protection, his network, legitimacy. | Leaving the Harem's power unchecked; a turn back to Mejid. | Cold, courteous, Rumi on his tongue. |
| Ahra 'the Wolf' | The Janissary corps restored; the common folk shielded from predation. | Steel and legitimacy — if she believes the cause is the people's. | Subjugation to the Sekban; peace with casters who prey on folk. And she does not know the Ghost caused her grief. | Blunt, soldierly, watches the Ghost like a wolf half-remembering a scent. |
| Hano / Murad (the fracture) | A strong, decisive hand — Murad's — over a Padishah "too much in his head"; the magical orders leashed. | The underworld's muscle and coin, to the anti-magic side. | A pluralist settlement. Will try to peel Ahra and to expose non-humans in the room. | Warm, reasonable, knife under the table. |
| Sharif / the cats | The Undercity left autonomous and safe; the sick cats tended. | Eyes everywhere (incl. the palace) and interference — if the Crown was given. | Anything that threatens the Undercity's self-rule. | Dry, feline, speaks in favours owed. |
| Chique Manu (weathervane) | His rackets (the races) protected; to back the winner. | Information, introductions, money — to whoever is ahead. | None worth dying for. Leaves the instant it turns dangerous. | Charming, gossipy; name-drops Jean-Zera's father to needle. |
The agenda (what is actually on the table)
- A united front — the Ghost's ask; Ahra's inclusion is the crux, Hano/Murad the wedge.
- The succession & the heir — the party alone knows the Wish stake; how much do they reveal?
- Mira — everyone suspects the party holds the key; her fate is the trump card. How much do they show?
- The Undercity vs the raids — the pluralist haven against the anti-magic crackdown.
Part 3 — Running the room
- Treat it as a positional contest, not one roll. Track each faction's lean on the pluralist ↔ anti-magic line. Persuasion/Insight/Intimidation (DC 13–16 by disposition) nudges a faction one step; a blunder or a Hano gambit nudges it back. Deniz's accord and Sharif (if bought) start pluralist; Hano/Murad start hostile; Ahra and Chique Manu are the swingable middle.
- The party's trump is Mira — revealing they hold her wins leverage but paints a target; keeping her hidden keeps them safe but weakens their hand. Make them weigh it.
- The Ahra/Ghost fuse: every scene near the two of them, call for the party to actively keep the lid on (Insight to spot Ahra's dawning suspicion; a quick word to defuse). If they don't tend it, it slips toward the disruption.
Part 4 — The disruption (pick one; ~mid-table)
Keep it from being a flat talk-scene.
- (Recommended) A Certain Community moves. Aziz's people found the venue (Giannis sold it, or they tailed Emine). A spy in the room, or a raid at the doors mid-negotiation — forcing the factions to scatter or bond under fire. Cleanest way to forge the coalition and crystallize Aziz as the finale enemy. Ties off the "Emine is watched" thread with teeth.
- Alexander crashes it hunting Ahra (the Nadia vendetta) — the party must manage the blood-feud the Ghost needs buried, in front of everyone.
- Hano/Murad's gambit — Hano outs Mira, or "Ahmet's" nature, or Murad arrives with warriors to strong-arm the table anti-magic.
You can stack the recommended raid with the Ahra/Ghost fuse: under attack, Ahra fights beside the Ghost — and starts to wonder who he really is.
Part 5 — Landing it → what N22 needs
Aim to leave the table with three things fixed:
- A coalition (who is in) and the party's committed aim — protect Mira, and (seed it here) the first whisper of sparing Bergüzar.
- The cats resolved (Crown traded or not → whether palace intel is in hand for the infiltration).
- The pivot set: the plan to reach Bergüzar / the palace — the N22 infiltration. Hano/Murad + Aziz crystallized as the opposition to beat.
If it fractures instead of coheres, that is fine — it just means N22 opens with the party working a thinner coalition and a bolder infiltration.
Sources
Keeper's own prep, built on the module's Grand Negotiation beat (city-of-crescent/campaign act-three arc) and the live state in Open Threads. Endgame framing from The Acts and The Real Plot.