Golden Grin

The Golden Grin, or simply the Grin, is a secret society, originally founded in Tal'Dorei, that promotes freedom and self-expression.

History
During the time of the Kingdom of Drassig, a group of bards and other performers joined together in opposition, with the goal of providing hope to the people as well as doing what they could to encourage rebellion and unseat the despots. Following the fall of the Drassigs, the Golden Grin has functioned as a secret society, looking for oppressed groups to aid and inspire.

The Golden Grin spread to Wildemount via the trade routes across the Lucidian Ocean. As of 835 PD, the Golden Grin had a strong foothold on the Menagerie Coast, fighting corruption within the Clovis Concord, and were looking towards the Dwendalian Empire.

Grinners often communicate with each other via code-songs: folk songs which they use to seek out allies or communicate messages.

Goals
The goals of the Golden Grin are to inspire and teach the downtrodden and to fight corruption among the powerful, whether through subtly inciting rebellion or, rarely, direct involvement. The Golden Grin more generally encourages freedom of expression and a belief in the potential of the common folk, even engaging in acts of heroism themselves if there are no local heroes to be found.

Relationships
The Golden Grin is a secret society and as such has no formal alliances, although individual members have held government positions on occasion. As of 835 PD they were attempting to make a connection with the Cobalt Soul, as both organizations share an interest in fighting corruption.

Members

 * The White Duke: A founding member, legendary bard and wielder of Mythcarver.
 * Theona Balmhand: A wandering healer from Kymal.
 * Dr. Dranzel: The leader of Dr. Dranzel's Spectacular Traveling Troupe, a petty criminal, and spy for the Grin.
 * Shakäste, also known by his nickname Hush: A blind man roaming the Dwendalian Empire who seeks out those in need of help and liberates slaves.
 * Master Duasad Keef: An affluent noble of the Clovis Concord who uses his psychic talents to help others deal with trauma or seek more fulfilling paths in life.
 * Sir Linus Denwallop: A former smuggler, now wandering minstrel who entertains children and poor folk while undermining cells of the Myriad.

Trivia
Heroic Deeds of the Golden Grin, a series of novellas published from Deastok by an anonymous author, recount folktales of the Golden Grin, including those of "Hush", the secret identity of Shakäste. The stories are presumed to be largely fictitious with grains of truth throughout.