The Postwizards Service Net
by Pol GinésWe have 2 highly magical countries in Known World: Glantri and Alfheim (not counting Alphatia). And we have 2 merchant countries: Darokin and Minrothad.
It's evident that there is a regular (daily) teleportation service from each great city to Darokin City. In Darokin city teleporting postmen (or postwizards) have a central office, the Central PostHouse. The management is ruled by a neutral Consortium of all Merchant Houses, in the usual respectful Darokinian way. In Central PostHouse they receive letters from all over the world.
So, if you live in Specularum, you don't need a wizard for teleporting letters to Minrothad and another for teleporting to Alpha in Norwold. You teleport to Darokin CentralPostHouse or go to your local Teleporting PostHouse and send your letter.
The Minrothad and the Alpha postmen are everyday a 11 o'clock in the PostHouse in Darokin city, shouting: "are there letters to Alpha, are there letters to Minrothad?" They take the letters and return home.
Remember this post-wizards can also take many things with them: jewels, a sack of platinum coins, bank orders and notes, magic potions, scrolls, etc...
You do not need high-level wizards for this. Merchant Houses simply pay some high level-wizards for creating "wands of teleportation, 30 charges". Usually postmen are 5th level wizards or elves, with "fly" spell for fleeing if in trouble, helping with teleport (if they appear too high, but this never happens because they know well their destinies, they do it daily) and helping if they have to give an special box or message quickly to a rich merchant or noble at home. (They usually have also Protection from evil, Shield spell, Mirror Image, invisibility... to escape if a powerful group of thieves have conquered a PostHouse and is robbing all the postwizards that arrive there. They activate this protections when returning, for the Darokinian CentralPostHouse is as save as the Merchant's Guild).
Anyone can go to the PostHouse in Darokin, Thyatis or other major cities at 9am and pay for having a box, bag, or letter delivered the same day in any of the cities in the net: this is the Regular Service. You can also go at any other hour an ask for an urgent sending, but this is 5 or 10 times more expensive.
FEES (from Darokin to a net city, from net city to Darokin)
Each letter: 50 gold pieces or coins
A box up to 100 cn: 500 gp
Each cn weight over 100: 1gp per 1cn
CENTRAL POST HOUSE: a fortified manor next to Darokin city walls.
CITIES in the net:
DAROKIN: Akesoli, Port Tenobar, Port Athenos, Akorros, Corunglain, Selenica
GLANTRI: Glantri City
ALFHEIM: Alfheim town
FIVE SHIRES: Shireton
YLARUAM: Ylaruam, Warga, Tameronikas, Cinsa-Men-Noo
SODERFJORD: Soderfjord, Castellan
VESTLAND: Norrvik (they tried to open an office in Rhoona, but something nasty happened and the project was abandoned)
OSTLAND: Zeaburg
KARAMEIKOS: Specularum
IERENDI: Ierendi City
MINROTHAD: Minrothad City (no doubt they have also a parallel, only Minrothaddans, service)
ROCKHOME: Dengar
THYATIS MAINLAND: Thyatis City, Kerendas, Retebius, Tel-Akbir, Hattias
THYATIAN DAVANIAN HINTERLANDS: RavenScarp
HELDANN FREEHOLDS: Freiburg
ETHENGAR: the teleportation post service (and any foreign teleportation) is forbidden. Only an exception: the Ethengarian PostHouse nearest to Broken Lands is the only place were foreigners and traders are allowed to teleport their messages, but they are asked by powerful Khan keshak and hakomon officials to show all the letters and trade goods (jewels, magic items) they bring. The Khan official read all mail. Traders and teleporting post-men have to pay high taxes and they need an special permission.
[Edited]
OCHALEA: Beitung
PEARL ISLANDS: Sea Girt, in Nuar Island
THYATIAN ISLE OF DAWN: Newkirk, West Portage (this is the main trading place in the Thyatian side of the island)
ALPHATIAN ISLE OF DAWN: Dunadale, East Portage (the twin city of West Portage, a trading gate)
ALPHATIAN NORWORLD: Alpha
ALPHATIAN MAINLAND: Sundsvall
Darokin City is the centre of the Teleport Net in the KW; but Alphatian Empire has its own net, and the centre is Sundsvall. ALL cities and half towns in Alphatian mainland have this regular teleport post-service. In Bellissaria and Esterhold, at least each capital city in each kingdom has the service. Dozens of teleporting post-wizard meet each morning in Sundsvall from all over the Empire.
Farend, Qeodhar capital town does not have this system (but baron Norlan does have a personal teleporting system for his use, not for citizens).
Alpha, in Norwold, has two systems: the Alphatian net and the KN (Darokinian) net.
So, information flows quickly in the capital cities of Mystara. Heroes are not hired to send a secret letter or message: teleporting it is easier... unless you go to a remote, wilderness area. [Heroes are hired to protect somebody going to a place, or a heavy, clumsy cargo of armours and weapons going by sea, or caravan...]
Remember also that the use of "Bags of Holding" allow coins, gems and jewels travel very easily; as well as magic items. So in a well-connected city such as Darokin or Thyatis you can buy anything by paying the additional teleporting costs.
[In my campaign, heroes discovered a "Scroll of Shelter" -Companion rules-, which is a "portative room". Six heroes can enter in the "scroll room"; then, the wizard closes the scroll and teleports: by spending 1 teleport spell, you can transport a whole room of things or people. I have decided that this magic items is unique or nearly-unique (may be there are two more in Alphatia) because if frequent they would make ships and caravans useless.]