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pukunui
Seeker
63 Posts |
 Posted - 10 Jul 2015 : 14:13:08
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Hi folks,
The PCs in my Scourge of the Sword Coast campaign have gotten themselves lost in the Forlorn Hills north of Daggerford. Unfortunately, I can't seem to find any info about that area in any of my FR products, and there's not a lot to go on in the adventure text itself.
Anyone know where I can find out a bit more about the area? What's the terrain like? What sort of creatures live there? That sort of thing.
Thanks in advance!
Cheers,
Jonathan
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Gary Dallison
Great Reader
United Kingdom
6351 Posts |
Posted - 10 Jul 2015 : 15:56:08
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Heres what i have from various pre 1375 sources, the other areas are in or right next to the Forlorn Hills (at least according to some maps).
Forlorn Hills: The slow collapse of dwarf-ruled Dardath in centuries past eventually gave rise to the name that the hills east of Ardeep Forest now bear. Also known as the Fallen Hills, the Forlorn Hills are cold and empty, home only to scattered flocks of wild sheep and the leucrottas and wyverns that prey upon them. Ruins and abandoned mines are scattered throughout the rolling landscape, largely hidden from creatures flying above by the shadows of sheltering tors and the cloying mists that rarely burn off before midday.
Crumbling Stair: In all likelihood, a fine mansion once stood here, harking back to good times during the years of the Fallen Kingdom. Now, only this marble stair and a mouldering foundation remain. A ghost or haunt is said to lurk in the ruins around the stair.
The Crumbling Stair is all that remains of Taeros, a grand, turreted mansion that once stood proudly amid fanciful gardens adorned with fountains and pools. The house sprawled along a curving ridge in the heart of the human-ruled barony of Loravatha. Originally built by a merchant lord, Taeros became a school of arcane study for young lasses seeking to master sorcery under the direction of his widow, the sorceress Ybrithe. Twenty years after the founding of the school, the mansion was torn apart by southern mages seeking to plunder whatever they could. But before they could seize Ybrithe’s treasures, a latent magic trap blew apart the ridge, Taeros, and all the surviving attackers.
The Crumbling Stair now rises up from broken lands overgrown with scrub woods. The weathered staircase, made of green-veined white marble, rises six or so steps into the air from a dark hole at its base.
Beyond this aperture is a long corridor with a few attached rooms that once served as extensive cellars. The fore chambers are home to the maddened ghost of one of the attacking wizards and some sort of creature— possibly an all-consuming hunger - that leaves glowing slime-trails on the walls, floor, and ceiling. In addition, the phantom of a half-elf sorceress sometimes appears to point out collapsed tunnels and forgotten secret doors leading to a large warren of catacombs, which are said to be home to some sort of beholder.
This broken marble spiral staircase rises out of overgrown foundations on a ridge in the Sword Hills east of Waterdeep, between Ardeep Forest and Uluvin. It was once the mansion of Taeros, home to the sorcerer Ybrithe, who founded a wizards' school for young women here. Their fading spells hold aloft the fragmentary stair (which apparently leads up to nothing), where a will-o'-wisp lurks. The staircase is also haunted by a murderous ghost: a floating, glowing sword, helm, or human form.
Its other end descends into extensive underways, haunted by such apparitions as a disembodied human hand cupping a glowing selection of (sometimes whirling) gems; a dark, shadowy, and swift-gliding cowled human figure that points, beckons, or waves a sword; and a wild-eyed, finely gowned lady elf in chains, who screams soundlessly and gestures imploringly to be rescued. Their origins and purposes are unknown, but some of them lure intruders into deadly traps. The cellars are prone to ceiling collapses, and may harbour beholders.
In all likelihood, a fine mansion once stood here, harking back to good times during the years of the Fallen Kingdom. Now, only this marble stair and a mouldering foundation remain. A ghost or haunt is said to lurk in the ruins around the stair.
Torstultok: Torstultok, or the Hall of Grand Hunts, is a temple-fortress of Haela Brightaxe. The place is well known among the Stout Folk of the North for the all-dwarf and mixed-race adventuring companies its inhabitants sponsor to reclaim long-lost dwarven relics from orc held halls.
Torstultok lies within a sprawling complex of tunnels and grand halls beneath the eastern end of the Watchers of the North — the line of tors that marks the northern edge of the Forlorn Hills.
Torstultok was known as Firehammer Hold before the Fallen Kingdom fell, and much treasure is still ascribed to the latter name in the tales of the North. Those same legends claim that the dwarves of Firehammer Hold perished in a plague shortly after the founding of the Kingdom of Man, but in fact the dwarves’ numbers had dwindled over time, and the leaders of the hold planted false evidence of a deadly plague to increase the security of the dwarves who remained.
An unexpected consequence of this action was the arrival in subsequent centuries of treasure-hungry adventurers seeking long-lost hoards of dwarven gold. To assuage the anger of such would-be plunderers, the dwarves hired them to seek out other dwarven holds that they knew to be occupied by orcs. From this tradition evolved the hold’s current role as a clearinghouse for battle-loving dwarves and adventurers of other races who sought glory amidst the ruins of long-fallen dwarven kingdoms. In recent times, Haela’s clergy have even begun to lure adventurers to the temple deliberately with ancient-looking, incomplete maps and other enticing items. Such a map may be found on the walls of a not-so-secret hidden room in the Singing Sprite—a slate-shingled, many-gabled stone inn located in the bowl at the centre of the three hills upon which the village of Secomber is built.
Uluvin (Hamlet, 30): Most traders dealing with Delimbiyr Vale avoid Uluvin, instead using the Delimbiyr Route west from Secomber, meeting up with the High Road south of Zundbridge. It's a dusty, spartan place with few trees, thirsty throats, a bad tavern, and a surprisingly pleasant and clean inn. Uluvin's a sleepy place where peddlers sell trinkets and folk turn out to chat with travellers to hear the news.
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SaMoCon
Senior Scribe
USA
403 Posts |
Posted - 10 Jul 2015 : 18:34:27
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A map I acquired during some intensive research into Athalantar shows a detailed overview of the Forlorn Hills with features and locations. Torstultok, Hardstone, Crumbling Stair, and Loghann's Route are inside the Northern Forlorn Hills where the dwarf realm of Dardath seems to have been centered. Bordering this area are the Moon Tower of Elembar, Stoneturn, Halangorn Uplands (seems to be plains nearly surrounded by the hills), and Watchers of the North (more high plains but these just skirt the Northern hills and seem to be a buffer region between the hills and the Iron Road). Mount Illefarn & Runedardath are only separated from the Forlorn Hills by the Delimbiyr Route. The central and Eastern expanse of the Forlorn Hills is empty of any content on my map.
Pages 46 & 47 in the Ardeep - Realm of the Moon pdf by Phasia has some information on the Moon Tower of Elembar bordering the Halangorn Uplands & Forlorn Hills to the West as well as Mt Illefarn to the South.
Eric Boyd also briefly mentions a broken runestone and its origin under the Forlorn Hills here at the bottom of the page. |
Make the best use of the system that's there, then modify the mechanics that don't allow you to have the fun you are looking for. |
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pukunui
Seeker
63 Posts |
Posted - 11 Jul 2015 : 00:02:49
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quote:
Originally posted by dazzlerdal
Forlorn Hills: The slow collapse of dwarf-ruled Dardath in centuries past eventually gave rise to the name that the hills east of Ardeep Forest now bear. Also known as the Fallen Hills, the Forlorn Hills are cold and empty, home only to scattered flocks of wild sheep and the leucrottas and wyverns that prey upon them. Ruins and abandoned mines are scattered throughout the rolling landscape, largely hidden from creatures flying above by the shadows of sheltering tors and the cloying mists that rarely burn off before midday.
Excellent! Thank you. Perhaps the PCs will encounter a wyvern or two on their way through the hills.
quote:
Crumbling Stair: In all likelihood, a fine mansion once stood here, harking back to good times during the years of the Fallen Kingdom. Now, only this marble stair and a mouldering foundation remain. A ghost or haunt is said to lurk in the ruins around the stair.
Thanks for that. I didn't realize there was so much info about the Crumbling Stair! It's on the map that goes with Scourge but it doesn't feature in the adventure. I don't think my PCs will be heading that way, but you never know. If they get lost, they just might end up there ...
quote:
Torstultok: Torstultok, or the Hall of Grand Hunts, is a temple-fortress of Haela Brightaxe.
That's interesting. In Scourge, it's referred to as Firehammer Hold. Not much of the history of the place is included in the adventure, of course, but that's partly because it's been overrun by duergar by the time it features in the module (which takes place during the Sundering).
quote:
Uluvin (Hamlet, 30): Most traders dealing with Delimbiyr Vale avoid Uluvin, instead using the Delimbiyr Route west from Secomber, meeting up with the High Road south of Zundbridge. It's a dusty, spartan place with few trees, thirsty throats, a bad tavern, and a surprisingly pleasant and clean inn. Uluvin's a sleepy place where peddlers sell trinkets and folk turn out to chat with travellers to hear the news.
IIRC, Uluvin was destroyed by a dragon during the last dracorage. Since my campaign takes place in the 1480s, when the PCs went through, I described it as a desolate place with only a few people living amidst the ruins.
quote:
Originally posted by SaMoCon
A map I acquired during some intensive research into Athalantar shows a detailed overview of the Forlorn Hills with features and locations.
Cheers. FWIW here's the map from the adventure: http://mikeschley.zenfolio.com/p588705089/h31cf670d#h31cf670d
I've noticed that on older FR maps, the Forlorn Hills aren't labelled. They're just a patch of hilly terrain with a few noteworthy locales, like the Crumbling Stairs. |
Edited by - pukunui on 11 Jul 2015 00:04:24 |
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Cards77
Senior Scribe
USA
745 Posts |
Posted - 11 Jul 2015 : 00:18:19
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| Check out the free web enhancement called "Environs of Waterdeep" it has locations and descriptions for the Forlorn hills and other areas close by. |
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pukunui
Seeker
63 Posts |
Posted - 11 Jul 2015 : 00:26:07
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quote:
Originally posted by Cards77
Check out the free web enhancement called "Environs of Waterdeep" it has locations and descriptions for the Forlorn hills and other areas close by.
I will do! Thanks. |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 11 Jul 2015 : 13:57:44
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quote:
Originally posted by SaMoCon
A map I acquired during some intensive research into Athalantar shows a detailed overview of the Forlorn Hills with features and locations. Torstultok, Hardstone, Crumbling Stair, and Loghann's Route are inside the Northern Forlorn Hills where the dwarf realm of Dardath seems to have been centered. Bordering this area are the Moon Tower of Elembar, Stoneturn, Halangorn Uplands (seems to be plains nearly surrounded by the hills), and Watchers of the North (more high plains but these just skirt the Northern hills and seem to be a buffer region between the hills and the Iron Road). Mount Illefarn & Runedardath are only separated from the Forlorn Hills by the Delimbiyr Route. The central and Eastern expanse of the Forlorn Hills is empty of any content on my map.
The 'Halangorn Uplands' was a fix of mine. There was a 'Halangorn Forest' in that area a thousand years ago that was burned down by the Mage Lords of Athalantar (see the Athalantan Campaign article in Dragon #228). The older (1e/2e) maps allowed for extra room everywhere, but the 3e map was crowded, especially in that region, so I had to create a spot where it would have been. Its still part of the Forlorn Hills, but more of a 'rolling hills' region (where the forest once stood). In even more ancient times, it would have connected to the High Forest (the whole north was one massive forest during the time of the Crown Wars).
Loghann's Route was my add, and it was originally 'Loghann's Run', but Eric thought it was "too cute" so the name was adjusted.
A group of adventurers discovered an unknown dwarven ruin in the Forsaken Hills (a small cluster of hills near the SW corner of the High Forest) and had recovered a decent amount of treasure from there. They traveled south (along the Iron Road) with their loot to Uluvin, where they proceeded to get drunk and brag of their discovery. The next morning, all of the adventurers save one were found dead in their rooms. The survivor - Loghann - had fled during the night, presumably from whoever had killed his comrades. He fled back west along the Iron Road, cutting-off south into the Forlorn Hills in hopes of making it to Waterdeep for help. Alas, he made it as far as the Dessarin before the assassins caught up to him, where they butchered him on the shore in plain sight of the few humble fisherfolk that had settled in that spot. The nameless settlement has been know as 'Loghann' from then on, as was the route he had taken through the hills.
No-one knows the identity of the killers, and no trace of the lost dwarf hold has ever been rediscovered. Rumor has it that a map to the place was hidden by Loghann along his flight, but that, too, is unconfirmed. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 11 Jul 2015 14:00:15 |
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Gary Dallison
Great Reader
United Kingdom
6351 Posts |
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SaMoCon
Senior Scribe
USA
403 Posts |
Posted - 12 Jul 2015 : 09:15:48
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quote:
Originally posted by MarkustayThe 'Halangorn Uplands' was a fix of mine.
Looks like it was. Thanks, it really helped my game. There might be more here where I first found that map. |
Make the best use of the system that's there, then modify the mechanics that don't allow you to have the fun you are looking for. |
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Gary Dallison
Great Reader
United Kingdom
6351 Posts |
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Forlorn Hills
