Dunryd Row

"Dyrwood is a rebel country. Conflict is in its blood. If you think a few guards posted in our cities keep chaos at bay, you are very new to town indeed. We are Dyrwood's cipher investigators. Of course. But what we really are is its last barrier against anarchy. People are more at ease when they believe they are watched over by someone more enlightened than they are. It pacifies them. So that is the image we foster."

- Lady Eydis Webb

The Dunryd Row is the intelligence and domestic security agency. Ciphers form an integral part of the group.

Background
The origins and practices of Dunryd Row are difficult to nail down. When asked, everyone seems to know how Dunryd Row started and how long it’s been in operation. Yet every person asked gives a different account of its creation and a different date. The only thing everyone can agree on is that it seems to have been around as long as anyone can remember. Without fail, everyone recalls hearing about the exploits of Dunryd Row when they were children, a remarkable feat for an organization that was founded in 2800 AI.

Aside from the organization being comprised of special investigators (most of whom seem to be ciphers) and the fact that they seem to have their hands in everything (yet never admit to it), anything reported about Dunryd Row walks the line between truth and outright hearsay. Information abounds, but no one can say which fragments are truth and which are fiction, which is just how Lady Eydis Webb, the head of the agency since its founding, wants it.

The organization is named after the street where its headquarters are located, in the Hadret House, a mansion that belonged to the extinct line of Dyrwoodan ducs responsible for orchestrating its independence. It is said in some circles this is just the name they want people to think they're known by, with their real headquarters elsewhere. Misdirection abounds, but this is the rare instance where the Row tells the truth, if only to ensure their enemies look elsewhere.

People who have had interactions with agents from Dunryd Row invariably describe them as ‘unmemorable.’ No detail as to their appearance, behavior, or anything - beyond the fact that they were there - seems to stick with anyone. Their ciphers deliberately use their powers to remain anonymous and conceal themselves. As a result, few details about the agents are ever reported, with one "fact" that all people agree with is that they are primarily orlans and Glanfathan elves, though theories as to why this may be are many and conflicting.

The Dunryd Row was destroyed less than a quarter of a century after its founding, during the animancy riots that rocked Defiance Bay in the wake of duc Aevar's assassination. Lady Webb's murder at the hands of Thaos certainly didn't help its survival.

Organization
Lady Eydis Webb is the head of the agency. Though no one seems able to pinpoint the time of her arrival, nobody can remember a time when she wasn't around. Many things are hinted at behind closed doors about Lady Webb, but few are willing to elaborate, as she is a cipher of tremendous power, and supposedly she can read the thoughts of the entire city at will. Theories abound regarding her age, her reasons for what would seem to be a lifetime of seclusion, and even of her secret control over all of Defiance Bay, if not Dyrwood itself. But as with all other matters regarding the organization, no one seems to be able to say anything for sure.

The Lady herself states in no uncertain terms that she considers the knowledge gathered by the Dunryd Row to be the Dyrwood's standing army in many ways, allowing Dyrwoodans to sleep peacefully while the Row works tirelessly to preserve that state of affairs.