• W.Thanalan Crescent Cove Docs & Silver Bazzar both have docks. 
  
• C. Thanalan I like to use the Last Hope as a place where illegal plants are cultivated, and the Coffer and Coffin is a nice dive to meet contacts
  
• In the Shroud there are bandit camps galore
  
• La Noscea - just think illegal is the norm, and check out Wolves Den for the non tourist Pirate feel
  
• With the whole Ishgard areas.. I am sure there is even more to weave in
  

(01-16-2016, 03:00 AM)Aya Wrote: An important aspect of smuggling deals with merchandise that is not actually illegal, but being illegally traded.  Whether its avoiding paying taxes, or avoiding restrictions placed on trade by the Syndicate, there should be many avenues for taking risks for profit

(01-16-2016, 01:40 AM)Fen Wrote: I was wondering, what sort of goods might be at a... premium, so to speak. Gunrunning is obviously an option, but are there items of contraband? Eorzean drugs, for instance? Or anything else that would be regulated or outright outlawed in certain places?

J'harll Wrote:You were lent a weapon―a standard-issue flintlock―by one of the Knights of the Barracuda, and now that weapon has gone missing. The unauthorized removal of a Barracuda firearm from the city limits is strictly prohibited under thalassocratic charter. Each and every weapon assigned to a knight is magically engraved with a number that identifies the weapon and its owner, making them easy to track and impossible to sell on the black market. Before you make the mistake of your life, I strongly suggest that you hand over the weapon so we can all return to our blissfully mundane lives.

Chuchuto Wrote:Somnus... That's the mind warping-substance made from dream flowers. Those who overindulge are said to fall into an eternal slumber.

Weggfarr Wideaxe Wrote:'Case yer wonderin', that was pluto! Just a draft of it, an' yer body turns hard as iron! Not even blades can pierce it!

Milkroot Wrote:The thick white sap extracted from this ochu root has the power to grant its user wondrously terrible visions.

Got Milkroot Wrote:Milkroot is a curse upon the people of the Twelveswood, destroying lives and tearing apart families. The sylphs who grow the deadly drug must be dealt with, but until they can be found, we must concentrate our efforts on ridding the forest of the saplings.

Dreamtoad Ooze Wrote:A slippery substance secreted by a dreamtoad. Known to enhance the hallucinatory effects of milkroot.

Dreamweed Wrote:A prohibited substance. Merely knowing of its existence is hazardous to one's health.

Peculiar Herb Wrote:A common weed rumored to have relaxing properties when either ingested or smoked.

The Root of the Problem Wrote:A pack of normally placid antelopes has grown frenzied and begun attacking botanists participating in the Greatloam Growery's reforestation project. After inspecting the carcass of one of the beastkin, it is believed the animals must have eaten the leaves of the blackroot rose, known to cause horrible visions and induce extreme fits of violence. In their current state, the animals are a threat to the botanists, the forest, and themselves, and so to prevent any further incidents, it has been decided that the antelops must be put down. Our guild is searching for adventurers willing to carry out the grim task.

Crone's Catsfoot Chew Wrote:A soft, sticky confection filled with ground catsfoot leaves to give it a bright emerald-green color. Just like grandmother used to make.

Dried Cloudcrawler Wrote:Cloudcrawler is a swift-growing vine that clings to the bottoms of islets found in the Sea of Clouds. When dried, the vines are pliable enough to weave into baskets or even crude armor.

Ul'dahn Incense Wrote:From myrrh to sandalwood, the soothing aromas emitted by these alchemically crafted incense cones will instantly take one back to the Jewel of the Desert.

Florent Wrote:I was bringing lumber to market long before the Calamity. I tell you, the things I've seen in the Twelveswood since then boggle the mind.

Isarmoix Wrote:Antelope and dormice abound in these parts, but we must be careful not to hunt more than befits our need. What the forest gives, it can just as easily take away.

Wood Wailer Sentry Wrote:Even the bounty of the forest has its limits. To loot it for your own gains is to court the wrath of the elementals...

Minfilia Wrote:I assume you are familiar with crystals—the elementally charged clusters of concentrated aether which craftsmen employ in synthesis? Then you will doubtless have gleaned on your travels that crystals can be difficult to procure, especially in the vicinity of the city-states, where demand is greatest.

This shortage is what forces most guilds to purchase the bulk of their crystals from beast tribes who seem, for whatever reason, to possess them in abundance. And that is where a certain trading organization known as the Ashcrown Consortium comes in. The Consortium works as an intermediary between tribe and guild—supplier and buyer.

Of late, however, their agents have reported that more and more beast tribes have begun to refuse all trade. Now, if this trend were to continue, it would not be long before the market price of crystals started to rise, forcing crafters to offset material costs by increasing the prices of their products...or risk going out of business altogether.

Yoyoka Wrote:For decades, the Ashcrown Consortium has seen to the realm's crystal trade, ensuring that matters run smoothly. By acting as intermediaries between the beast tribes and the guilds, we have been quite successful in preventing a number of...shall we say, unsavory incidents between the two parties.

(01-16-2016, 01:40 AM)Fen Wrote: Also,do the Guilds act as governing bodies for their particular product(s) or export(s)? IE would trees downed by a non-Botanist Guild-affiliated person be a no-no?

Haldberk Wrote:Welcome to Mealvaan's Gate. Hundreds of ships arrive at our docks every year, and to prevent the unlawful import of hazardous materials, we inspect all cargo, crew, and passengers before granting them entry into our fine city. If you arrived via a sea route, then you will have already met one of our upstanding assessors. Our biggest problem at the moment happens to be accomodating all the frightened smallfolk seeking passage from Eorzea to...well, anywhere.

R'baharra Wrote:All vessels that make use of Limsa Lominsa’s ports must submit to a cargo inspection and pay the duties incurred. Please direct all inquiries and complaints to the front desk of Mealvaan’s Gate.

P'tahjha Wrote:All that would pass into Limsa Lominsa must first pass through Mealvaan’s Gate. We levy excises and disallow contraband for the welfare of the market. Trade can only be free when buyers possess the necessary assurances. Without the rule of law, the streets would be overrun by traffickers and cutthroats.

Thosinbaen Wrote:For every item we confiscate, there is sure to be a complaint to follow. I cannot blame most of these poor folk though. Since taking the Admiral's chair, our new leader has doubled the number of items on the restricted list, and more are added every day. One cannot expect every trader and ship captain to stay current on the latest amendments.

Lilina Wrote:I've been assigned to a small trading vessel hailing from Garlemald which is due to arrive in less than five bells. Until then, I must review assessor logs pertaining to goods recently confiscated from imperial soil. We would not have any of their unauthorized technologies falling into the hands of unscrupulous individuals... and this city has more than its share of those.

Willelda Wrote:We have just received word from a caravan of merchants traveling north from Ul'dah. They claim they adhered to the path we indicated, but find the forest to be ill at ease, and dare not proceed any further. They request we send an escort at once.

Gerald Wrote:Thus it was that Admiral Merlwyb outlawed piracy, and put out a call for all citizens of Limsa Lominsa, pirate or not, to present a united front to their enemies. A pact known as the Galadion Accord was signed, and the nation went to war against the Empire. As part of this agreement, the three great pirate powers- the Bloody Executioners, the Sanguine Sirens, and the Kraken’s Arms -were issued leave to raid the vessels of the Garleans.

(01-17-2016, 04:45 PM)Ashe Wrote: Slavers are a thing in this game--as we've seen with the rogue's guild.
If you /do/ deal with human goods though, be prepared to have rogue's come after you.

I think the rogue/ninja questline is a good example of smuggling in Eorzea and how complex some of the pirates and smugglers' operations are.

(01-20-2016, 04:11 PM)Setoh Aliapoh Wrote: My previous character, C'kayah, was a smuggler, and I tended to do a lot of smuggling RP in-character, so I've got a lot of insight into this.

The big question that I think you'll want to answer for yourself is how big of a smuggling operation do you want to have?

Do you want to be one person with their chocobo? If so, then you want to concentrate on small, valuable things. C'kayah operated in this mode for a long time, smuggling rare perfumes, potions, drugs, poisons, and jewelry. You don't necessarily need to find things that are illegal, just things that you can carve a niche out with. For example, C'kayah has ties in the Black Shroud, so he was able to get access to a lot of poisons and potions from the Moonkeeper and Duskwight families living there. Most of these are fairly illegal. But at the same time, he also carried Duskwight jewelry. It was valuable, and it was hard to find (because so many Duskwight families are insular), and it provided a nice cover story.

Do you want to be one person with a wagon? That's actually harder, in my opinion, than being one person with a chocobo. You can avoid official attention by being one person on a bird, but we know from the cutscenes that wagons get stopped and searched. You could either carry larger cargos (liquor, weapons, etc) or carry legitimate cargo in the wagon with secret compartments underneath for small, valuable things. The latter would make you more of a legitimate merchant, doing smuggling on the side to supplement your income.

Do you want to be involved in a larger organization? This is where you start getting into things like caravans of wagons, or ships. This is the scale you'd be operating at in order to get into things like smuggling slaves. If you go this route (and C'kayah eventually did, controlling an organization that ran a fleet of wagons and had connections with shipowners), I'd highly recommend finding other people to do this with. If you're a solo RPer who says "I captain a smuggling ship!", you'll get some pushback from people. If you're part of a group of 6 RPers who all play smugglers on a ship, then suddenly you're a lot more believable.