Urchins

"A suspicious number of orphans call the tangled streets of the Fifth City home. The child-gangs that plague us include: the Fisher-Kings, the Naughts, the Crosses, the Regiment, and the Knotted Sock."

Urchins: the probably futureless street-roaming orphans of London. They have territory throughout London, but they're particularly noticeable around Spite and in the Flit. There are several infamous gangs, listed in the sidebar snippet above; each has its own peculiar customs and traditions, some allegedly dating back to the Second City. For example, the Naughts and Crosses seem to be playing a giant game of, well, naughts and crosses (aka tic-tac-toe), and the Fisher Kings actually fish for head adornments! The urchin gangs have an age limit and will cast out members when they grow too old. Urchins are often used as couriers and informants.

In Sunless Sea

The zee god Storm exerts influence over those who live in or spend a lot of time in high places. The Flit, home of many urchins, is one of the highest places in the Neath. This is why the Urchin factions are associated with Wild Words items in Fallen London. Slivvy, an urchin who talks to the wind, reveals that he answers to the zee god Stone and sometimes kills people at her request by dropping large rocks on them from the great heights of the Flit. It is revealed that the wine-stain birthmark on Slivvy's face along with his stutter are signs of "The Lightning's Kiss," which he got during a storm. Slivvy uses mutersalt to help with his stutter.

Seeking Mr Eaten's Name
After Saint Beau's Candle: For the right price in Jade, Slivvy can use an Aeolian Scream to partially heal the ravages of Seeking Mr Eaten's Name. He can't make a Seeker free of the Name, cleanse a stained soul, heal a Weeping Scar, or erase a Memory of Chains.

At Hallowmas, if one pays a rather valuable Night-Whisper...
...one will learn an interesting snippet of knowledge: the Knotted Sock doesn't get its name solely from the nail- and brick-filled socks they wield as weapons. Their name comes from an ur-sock said to contain a star. Also, during Hallowmas, Slivvy will purchase secrets and confessions kept from a previous year, if one has any.

At Sacksmas...
...the urchins gather up the best lacre available from the streets and rooftops of London and collect it into pails of "snow," which they sell at exorbitant prices.

The Cave of the Nadir

If one wants to sell the location of the Cave of the Nadir, Slivvy will offer to buy it in exchange for a Correspondence-covered stone called a Starstone Demark (worth over 300 Echoes). During this exchange he reveals that the urchin gangs may go back even further than the Second City. He hints that the urchin gangs may originate from the "other children" of the Bazaar. Inside the Nadir, one may learn that the Ministry of Public Decency will pay urchins to join the Choir.

Those who seek their Heart's Desire...

...will be told that Knotted Sock is one of the only urchin gangs that is brave enough to venture into the Forgotten Quarter. Their headquarters are located in a building in Spite known as Old Downy, which is rumored to be haunted. Later, one will learn that the building isn't haunted; rather, it is alive due to the influence of a large shard of the King with a Hundred Hearts' heart which they have stolen. This is the gem in the ur-sock mentioned in the Hallowmas content.

Hostile To

Docks: One of the Urchin gangs uses a clock-tower mounted cannon to extort protection money from dock residents.

The Gracious Widow: The Widow sometimes attempts to convince an urchin girl to leave her gang and become the Widow's adopted daughter.

Hell: Devils will often try to take advantage of the impressionable urchins in order to collect their souls.

Who Works with the Urchins?

• 
  Tricksters
• 
  Conjurers
• 
  Crooked-Crosses

Hiring These People As Workers At One's Orphanage
Conjurer: Convinces urchins to join up with the devils of the Brass Embassy. Correspondent: Teaches the Correspondence to urchins. Midnighter: Regales the urchins with terrifying tales from their work as a spy disguised as ghost-tales.

What do the Urchins Deal In?

Urchins, since they live on the rooftops and are the closest to the sky of all the people of the Neath, often deal in wild words (since these are like the wind).

• 
  Maniac's Prayer
• 
  Correspondence Plaque
• 
  Aeolian Scream
• 
  Storm-Threnody
• Rookery Password (a mark of recognition)
  Rookery Password (a mark of recognition)