Mossbite Rats

The Mossbite Rats – Overview

The Mossbite Rats are not just a gang — they are a survival network, a found family, and one of the most tightly knit underground groups in Mosstone. Though made up entirely of street urchins, their intelligence and resourcefulness make them a force to be reckoned with in the town's back alleys and forgotten tunnels.

Structure and Operations

Leader: Thistle "Queen Rat" Marren
Lieutenants: Rilk “Dog-Ear” Brandle (muscle) and Kess “Button-Eyes” (spy)

Headcount: About 15–20 children, ranging in age from 6 to 15.

Headquarters: An abandoned root cellar behind the collapsed section of the town wall, accessible through a drain grate that only a child could slip through. They call it “The Hollow.”

Main Activities:

• Information brokering – They overhear, observe, and remember.

• Petty theft & pickpocketing – Especially during festivals, markets, or when caravan guards are distracted.

• Smuggling small goods – Via tunnels and backways most adults can’t access.

• Messages & errands – For those who pay, including shady merchants, mistresses, or even low-tier Crimson Exchange agents.

• Scavenging and salvage – They’re known to comb through river refuse, burned homes, and corpses left after attacks.
  
  

Beliefs and Codes

The Mossbite Rats operate by a code of survival, which includes:

• “No Rat eats alone.” (Food is pooled and shared.)

• “No Rat talks to town guards.”

• “No Rat leaves another behind.” (This is tested often—and not always upheld.)

• “We bite when cornered.” (If one is attacked, the others retaliate in force.)

Thistle, however, is starting to introduce more complex ideas: loyalty over blood, watching the powerful from below, and perhaps even one day running part of the town above the gutters.

Rivalries and Tensions

❖ The Cutters

A teen gang of ex-apprentices and dockside thugs, aged 14–17. Led by a sadistic youth named “Woad”, they’ve tried to shake down the Rats multiple times. Woad believes in fear, not loyalty.
The Cutters see the Mossbite Rats as vermin—unworthy of turf.

Recent Incident: The Cutters broke Nubby’s arm and stole a week’s worth of food. Thistle wants revenge but is trying to be patient.

❖ The Crimson Exchange (CE)

Some agents see the Rats as useful informants. Others see them as a liability. The CE has made two recruitment attempts—Kess turned them down both times.
There are rumors that a Crimson agent called "Flick" wants Thistle either working for them… or dead.

 Rumors and Secrets

• Under the Town: The Mossbite Rats found a partially collapsed tunnel beneath the Hollow that leads to ancient stonework—possibly older than Mosstone itself. Something dwells in the dark there, but Kess says it "whispers beautifully."
  
  

• Blight Cult Connection: One of the Rats, Pox, has started drawing sigils on the walls that resemble Blight cult symbols. No one taught him.
  
  

• Hidden Treasure: The twins Rye & Grit claim they saw a glowing box being loaded onto a Brightluck caravan, escorted by armed guards. They stole a key but don't know what it opens.
  
  

• A Grown-Up Ally?: A halfling junk vendor named Marlo Sootbelly secretly supports the Rats, giving them cover and odd jobs. He used to be one of them… and fears someone’s coming to wipe the group out.