Environsofaufstrag

EXPANSION
THE ENVIRONS OF AUFSTRAG

By STEPHEN CHENAULT
Editor: TIM BURNS
Front Cover: DOUG KOVAKS Interior Art: PETER BRADLEY,Z
Art Direction/ Cartography: PETER BRADLEY
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A GENERAL HISTORY OF THE REGION fooling them into rejecting the gods. And in their long history,
this would be their undoing.
In the long-ago Days before Days, the first men gathered
around the shores of the Sea of Erun. They lived there, content The Vale of Al Liosh, where the Aenochians called home,
in their youth. Eventually, they divided into 13 tribes and began extended from the southern reaches of the Grossewald Forest
to move into the hinterlands. The Aenochians, greatest of in the north to the northern edge of the Kellerwald in the
the 13 tribes, left the shores first, seeking what, they did not south. In the east, it extended for many long leagues beyond the
know. They traveled east, settling in one place for a time, then Uphrates River and in the west, the Vale lapped up against the
moving on, to settle in another. They were restless and hungry Antule Mountains and the Red Hills. The Vale was dominated
but again, for what they did not know. Eventually, the Ethrum by two mighty rivers, the Udunilay and Uphrates. Countless
and Engale joined them on their migrations and they moved far smaller rivers and streams fed these rivers and fed the many
beyond the Sea. pools and lakes that dominated the Vale. Where the two rivers
met the Aenochians built their principal city, Al Liosh, and
Eventually, all three tribes came to dwell in the far north at after ages, it became mighty indeed.
the feet of the Mordius the Green, one of the greatest of all
the Val Eahrakun. But as is told in the Andanuth, her fall sent The Aenochians waxed and waned over the years. At first, their
the Aenochians on a dark journey that in time found them houses, bound by kinship, ruled small principalities, fighting
sundered from their kindred tribes and living wild in the barren one another, or banding together to fight their neighbors. Their
wastes north of the Grundliche Mountains. There the dwarves Kings and Queens held little power over the High Lords of
of Grundliche Hohle took them under wing and guided them Aenoch. When the Goblin-Dwarf wars began, forgetting their
south to the headwaters of the mighty Olgdon River. ancient debt to the dwarves, they played one side against the
other. They learned secrets from both of those people, the art
Upon the banks of the Olgdon, they built stout homes of wood of metallurgy being chief among them. With this, they built the
and stone. They did not stay upon the Olgdon for long, however, foundations of the Kingdoms that would come. In the last of
for one of their number, Baetan, a ranger of some renown, while the wars, they came out against the dwarves and lay siege to
hunting a stag, stumbled upon a broad, open country of rich Grundliche Hohle, one of the remaining Dwarven Realms.
grasses, many lakes, pools, and streams. He was amazed, for
never had he seen such beauty in the world. He called the land When the tide of war passed and the dwarves and goblins were
Al Liosh, the Land of Lakes. broken people, the Aenochian Kingdoms were in their prime.
Their arms conquered people to the east and north and south
He returned to his people and gathered a great host of them to the coast. These conquests fueled the power of the ancient
about and guided them to Al Liosh and there they settled. house of Baetan and through concourse with the demonic
Baetan took as his wife a woman who dwelt in that country, forces, their Queen rose to lord over all the peoples of Al Liosh.
Imbree, by name. She was not of his tribe, and only later was it In time of years, her offspring founded an Empire and they
revealed that she was of the Val Eahrakun, one of the gods from conquered the world. They styled themselves God Emperors
the Days before Days. Together they ruled over the Aenochians and none could withstand them.
and when Baetan passed, Imbree took their son as her consort
and continued to rule. Tribute flowed to Al Liosh from all over the world, from the
peoples of the distant east to the lands south beyond the Amber
Imbree taught the Aenochians many things, sorcery, Sea. The Emperors and the High Lords of Aenoch grew wealthy
necromancy and the like and she set them on paths no other indeed. They built roads, cobbled in smooth stones, bridges to
of the tribes of men followed. She taught them that the gods span the rivers and streams. They built manor houses, palaces,
were flawed and fearful of those made upon the Forge of the and castles of wondrous beauty. Their homes were made of
All Father; she taught them that the gods sought to keep men white marble, covered in many colorful frescoes that retold
in fear and bondage so that men would serve the needs of the stories of old, highlighted family deeds, people of note, and also
gods. The Aenochians devoured this knowledge and took it to paid homage to the God Emperors who ruled in the city of Al
heart, even though it was false. It was as poison and laid in their Liosh. The High Lords, both men and women, knew no want,
hearts a grim purpose that led to their greatest triumphs and nor suffered from anything but their own designs. They lived
eventual fall, for Imbree was Imbrisius of old and the consort of in opulence beyond imagining and were steeped in power, for
Narrheit, one of the greatest of the Val Eahrakun and together they took great joy in the arts of war and personal combat, and
they caused much mischief in the world. though they suffered no priests, many of their learned became
But from her lies came wondrous power. The Aenochians were sorcerers of wondrous power.
the first to dabble in sorcery, to wander the outer plains, to The God Emperors of Aenoch ruled the world for many years.
unravel the Dwarven Runes, and pry the secrets of the gods
from hidden places. They shunned temples and the worship of In time their power waned and they ran afoul of the Val
the Val Eahrakun and built wonderous kingdoms of their own. Eahrakun who played into the destruction of their Empire so
Eventually, their power grew such that they rejected Imbree that it fell into ruin. But even though their realm was reduced,
and cast her and her consorts out. But Imbrisius was satisfied for and the over-lordship of the world returned to one of over-
she had played the Aenochians even as Narrheit had desired, lordship of the Vale of Al Liosh alone, their power remained
2 CASTLES & CRUSADES

and the dream of their lost position proved a drug that few carve out holdings for themselves. Those few who succeed are
could shake off. So it was that one of their numbers rose to given title of land by the Empress and made landed gentry. See
power and through sorceries vile and machinations beyond his more below.
understanding brought Unklar the Horned God to the world.
Risen from the Undeeps beyond the Great Empty, Unklar was HLOBANE REALM
of the highest order of the Val Eahrakun and his power was fresh
Southwest of the Vale stands the Red Hills. These stark hills
and unspent. He came to Al Liosh through a magical gate and
are ruled by the Hlobane orcs. These orcs are well known for
the Aenochians, at last, learned the deceits of Imbrisius and
they served as the rank and file of Unklar’s armies. They are
they knew that the gods were powerful indeed.
well organized, serving a hierarchy established by Unklar long
The tale of Unklar is told in many stories but suffice it to say ago. They cherish his memory, worship the Horned God and
that he overthrew the Aenochains and laid waste to all of Al actively work toward his return. To this end, their lords are
Liosh, turning whole swaths of the verdant valleys into desert or often involved in the inner workings of what remains of the
swamp and barren country. The High Lords rose against Unklar over-lordship of Aufstrag. The Hlobane are often encountered
but were thrown down and their power destroyed. Many flocked throughout the Vale of Al Liosh.
to his banners then, for he promised them everlasting life. And
so he slew them and raised them again in death. And these FREE TOWNS
princes and princesses of a once proud and noble people came The towns of Grafika, Hul, Jamburgand, Magdeburg are all free
to rule as undead lords, over a land wasted and ruined. towns that lay in the Vale or just beyond it. They do not serve
any overlord and are ruled by various factions or guilds.
Though those years are past, and Unklar thrown down, the
Vale of Al Liosh never recovered. The land was poisoned,
flooded and turned to desert or swamp. It was used up so AUFSTRAG
that the once verdant valleys were barren, wretched places. Since Unklar’s fall there has been no overlord in Auftrag as
Everywhere are the ruins of the old world, the palaces and multiple powers vie for control of the tower, Unklar’s armies,
manor houses, the castles, keeps and towers, a testament to riches and the peoples around. The most notable lord is Coburg
the wealth and power of a people long ruined. This is most the Undying. For more on Aufstrag, see Dungeons of Aufstrag
notable in the heart of the Vale, in the land between the two and follow-on books.
rivers, the Grausumland, or Gray Swamps. But it is no less so
in the Blighted Screed and the Toten Fields. ROADS
INHABITANTS OF THE REGION Little remains of the roads of the Aenochians. Most were pulled
up to make fortifications, however, there remain three major
There is no one power that rules the Vale, or the Environs of roads in and around Auftrag.
Aufstrag. Most of it is a wilderness; however, two kingdoms
dominate the border regions, and several smaller independent
FICHLUM WAY
towns lie in the environs. These realms and towns have little
to do with one another as large distances stand between them. The Fichlum Way is the oldest remaining intact road in the east.
Beyond these towns, there are only tribes of humanoids and Construction dates back to the realm of the God Emperors,
men, monsters and other creatures that find no solace in though clearly it has been repaired multiple times. The road was
civilized dwellings. well constructed. Set on leveled ground it consisted of several
layers. The first layer of small stones was covered by the second
Of note are New Aenoch, the Hlobane realm, free towns and layer of gravel and lime. A bed of kernel was laid on top of that
Aufstrag. and then the cobbles placed on the kernel. Edge stones marked
the sides of the road. The cobbles were shaped and angled to
NEW AENOCH allow water to drain through the edge stones and into drainage
Upon the southern borders of the Vale is the realm of New ditches set on the sides of the road. The ditches were paved as
Aenoch. Founded after the fall of Unklar, New Aenoch extends well. All this was bound with rune magic which allowed the
from the Blacktooth Ridge and the Blighted Screed to the Sea. road to survive weathering and time.
It consists of seven powerful political entities who all support a The Fichlum is 40 feet wide and a foot or more above the ground.
semi-independent Empress. The realm is torn by many divisions
and constant fighting that occur between the Empress and In its day it was the main north-south road that leads from Al
nobles. Upon the very edge of the realm stand the twin towns of Liosh to the northern reaches of the realm. Today it takes up that
Botkinberg and Ludensheim, both serve as gateways to the Vale role but officially begins at the Wasting Way, for the southern
and the wilderness. New Aenoch is home to the Crusade. The reaches of the Fichlum are lost in the Grausumlands. Though
Empress called for all free peoples to come to Aenoch, join and the Fichlum is not maintained, it remains in decent shape. The
serve her in reconquering the Vale. This has brought a host of Fichlum extends from the Wasting Way in the south, crosses the
freebooters, mercenaries and adventurers to New Aenoch. They Withing Oaks through the Pass Of Nomenek, then winds its
feed north into the Screed and Blacktooth Ridge attempting to way through the northern plains of Achrothos, along the eastern
THE ENVIRONS OF AUFSTRAG 3

borders of the Grossewald until it comes to the town of Gund. beams, etching sorcery into them to give them strength against
From there it skirts the Black Hills, continues on to Ivangorad, water, fire and time. Once set, granite flagstones were cut to
the Ashen Flats, and on to the town of Maerg. It is patrolled squares and rectangles and set upon the beams, covering the
between Gund and Maerg by the men of Punj. Beyond that, to bridge in stone.
the south, in the lands of the Vale of Aenoch and Aufsrag, it is a
lonely road that winds through a lonelier wilderness. Construction began in the north, on a large rise of land upon
the shores of the Gray Pools. The rise overlooked a shallow lake
Old abandoned way stations, in the guise of small keeps, flank the of murky pools and sucking mud, later called the Sump. They
Fichlum, every 20 - 40 miles. The conditions of the way stations built the causeway over the lake, where it entered the deeps
vary wildly, from foundation stones to fully occupied keeps. of the swamps. Where the lake ended and the swamps began,
they constructed a large two-towered gatehouse, so that any
URSAL ROAD (RUINS) who journeyed to Aufstrag had to cross over the Sump (see
below) before they arrived at the first of the gates (see A11 The
The Ursal Road is an east-west road, extending from Grafika in
Wasting Way).
the east to Brajag Bridge and beyond in the west. It served the
armies of Unklar for many centuries as they tramped into the Beyond the first gatehouse, (or barbican), the causeway inched
west on their way to war. Made much like the Fichlum Way, the its way across the Gray Pools. After 16 miles they constructed
Ursal sported a broad cobbled, thoroughfare raised several feet a second set of gates. They built a third 18 miles further on, a
off the ground, flanked with drainage ditches and bound with fourth 15 miles after that, a fifth gate they set 14 miles beyond
rune magic. It too was 40 feet wide. that. The fifth gate stands 17 miles from the Dike, Portico and
the gates of Aufstrag (see A12 The Paladin’s Lament).
The Ursal has not, however, survived intact. In the west,
where the road crosses the Luneberg, much of it was pulled The causeway covered over 75 miles of swamp. Built 30 feet
up during the Winter Dark Wars by Kain the Godless, one above the marsh and 45 feet wide, it offered safe travel to any
of Unklar’s mercenary captains. He laid waste to the entire who traveled to Aufstrag. In the days of its glory, patrols walked
Luneberg, burning cities, massacring populations, torching its length keeping travelers, merchants, supplicants, nobles,
crops, poisoning wells and destroying the road. Despite this, vans of wagons, and all manner of folk safe from the dangers of
it remains in some places, meandering through the wasteland the swamp.
for several miles before vanishing again. There was no order
to Kain’s destruction. In the east, where the Toten Fields lie, Despite all this, dangers persisted and creatures crawled from
it fared better, and much of the road is intact all the way to the muck to terrorize those who dared its passage, particularly
Grafika. However, its proximity to the Grausumland has led to at night. Creatures that haunted the Gray Swamps learned fast
a great deal of structural damage and in places, it is little more that creatures passing down the causeway were exposed and
than a sunken roadbed. vulnerable, making the Causeway prime hunting ground. In a
strange twist of roles, merchants found themselves protected by
The bridge over the Udunilay was destroyed long ago during the armored orcs fighting beasts out of a nightmare, providing their
Battle of Turegfell (see Toten Fields below), but the pylons still caravans safety as they traveled to Aufsrag. Travelers found true
remain, allowing enterprising travelers the opportunity to cross safety only in the gatehouses, where they could recoup, rest, eat
that mighty river in stages, by crossing from one pylon to the and drink, and plan the next stage of their journey. Few parties
next. The bridge over the Uphrates remains intact. could boast that they began the journey at the first Gatehouse
and arrived at the end of the road without casualties. Thus, the
The Ursal intersects the Fichlum just north of the Wasting Way.
causeway became known as the Wasting Way.
WASTING WAY Today the Causeway is still intact but none guard its gates.
The Wasting Way is a causeway and connects the dry land to All the gatehouses stand abandoned by the lords of Aufstrag,
the north of the Gray Pools, with Aufstrag. The Causeway passes though it is not to say that other creatures haven’t crawled up
over the swamps of the Grausumland for many miles before it from the swamps and made their lair.
ends at the stone dike that lies before Aufstrag’s gate.
Few travel the road now, for it leads to Aufstrag, a hellish tower
In centuries past, giants bound to the Horned God and guided of madness and evil. Few go there and even those that do, find
by dwarven masters constructed the causeway. With hammers the gates closed to them.
as large as trees they pounded great stone pylons into the marshy
For more on the Wasting Way and adventures across the
ground. Bracing their shoulders against the stone, one held the
Causeway see the adventure module A11 The Wasting Way.
stone while two drove it into the loamy earth. The sound of the
hammer blows echoed throughout the swamp as the causeway
took shape. More giants worked upon the bridge itself, spanning A NOTE ON ORGANIZATION
the distance between the pylons with long tree trunks cut All entries are listed in alphabetical order regardless of terrain or
square, each over 40 feet long and designed to overlap between site. They are alphabetized as they appear on the map published
the 30-foot bridge spans. These beams were hardened with fire in the Codex of Aihrde. So for instance, Bowbon Lake is under
and covered in sap to seal them. Master smiths crossed over the Bowbon and Lake of Hul is under Lake. Some of the material

appears in the Codex of Aihrde and other sources such as A1 It snows heavily in the Antule Mountains during the winter
Assault on Blacktooth Ridge and is either copied in whole or months and is dry but cool during the summer. Such weather
expanded. attracted many of the early Aenochians who built lodges and
manors in the mountains and valleys.
THE ENVIRONS Mount Aenoch dominates the range. At 11,000 feet, one can see
The Environs of Aufstrag consist of several major geographic distant Aufstrag as a finger on the horizon. Here the emperors
locations. These comprise what was once the heart of the of old enjoyed a pleasure house hollowed into the mountain
Aenochian Empire and the Vale of Al Liosh. Before the coming fastness, but where it lies none now can say. The mountain feeds
of Unklar, these lands were densely populated, extensively the Buzial River, which in turns feeds the Gray Swamp to the
farmed, and connected through an elaborate series of roads, east. The Vale of Skadi (see below) lies at the feet of Mount
canals, and bridges. An unbelievable amount of wealth lay Aenoch.
concentrated in these regions.
The furthest peak in the south and the second-highest mountain
The modern world reflects only a shadow of that wealth and of the Antule is Mount Brainbridge, a huge mountain of some
power, for all is laid waste and only ruins remain, connected 9,500 feet. Twin Peaks to the north have long been the favored
now by only two roads. breeding ground for copper dragons. Though rare in these latter
days, it is not unheard of to see one of the dragons flying high
ANS RIVER over the range, calling for its mate.
The Ans begins its life in the Grausumland, in a lowland marsh
called the Moors. It wanders south of Utring Akt, entering the AUFSTRAG
Blighted Screed. Here it broadens as it snakes slowly through The history of Aufsrag is covered extensively in many sources,
that dry land. It ranges a hundred feet or so wide, with a depth but suffice it to say that Unklar, the Horned God, when he came
of 4-8 feet. It is easy enough to cross. As it leaves the Screed it to the city of Al Liosh laid waste to it. He threw down its towers
enters the Northern Marches. There it picks up speed from a and dammed the rivers to flood much of the Vale of Al Liosh,
host of small feeder streams, and other rivers such as the Leita. drowning its many inhabitants and their homes beneath the
It broadens to 150-200 feet wide and ranges in depths up to filth of his marshes. Unklar then set about building himself a
20 feet. Where the Gunz River joins, the Ans becomes even citadel. What followed was Aufstrag.
larger and deeper. These mighty waters feed into Lake Asfral
before it wanders on to the coast in a massive stream 300 feet The city of Aufstrag consists of one large tower complex at the
wide and in places 50 feet deep. It, at last, spills its water into confluence of the Udunilay and Uphrates Rivers at heart of
the Gulf of Barachia. the Grausumland. It is 3,260 feet tall and roughly 2,000 feet
in diameter. The city is shaped like a great tree, shorn of all
The Ans is used by the people of New Aenoch from the coast to its branches but three. These three crown its roof, hanging out
the Gunz. Beyond that, it sees little traffic, though some use it in and over the marsh. The city itself consists of wards, levels, and
carrying goods to and from the town of Jamburg. In the Screed, domains.
it is a lonely river with no traffic. It does, however, attract all
manner of creatures seeking water and refuge. There are four recognizable wards in Aufstrag: The Trenches,
Klarglich, The Halls, and the Citadel. The wards consist of a
ANTULE MOUNTAINS variety of levels but are not wholly distinct as they interconnect
and weave together through ramps, split-level rooms, stairs,
These dense mountains overlook the plains of central Aenoch, halls, etc. The tower itself is not divided up into even levels
from the Toten Fields to the Aenochian Forest. The Antule like a traditional dungeon; each level is different than the
consists of a host of small mountains and broad ridgelines often next; each level is roughly 100-200 feet high. There are 21
cut by deep, narrow valleys. They are squat, solid mountains, distinguishable levels. These levels are connected through a
higher in the north of the Antule. In the south the mountains variety of halls, stairs, ramps, elevators, dumbwaiters, shafts,
are ground down, stand lower, and enjoy a higher rainfall. The ladders and chimneys (called “the stacks”).
runoff has created deep valleys and steep cliffs where only the
hardiest of trees gain a foothold. The valleys are verdant, many The tower is further divided up into domains; these domains
sporting small lakes and streams, and play host to a wide variety are either wild and uncontrolled or they are controlled by some
of fauna and flora. The tree line ends at roughly 6,000 feet. power or group. A domain may cover several levels on the same
Above that the country is wide and open, the cliffs and ledges ward or on more than one. They need not be contiguous either.
make climbing difficult but possible. During winter, many of A domain may be part of level 4 and level 17, depending on who
the creeks pour-over rough falls into cascading valleys before and how the creature that controls the domain rules it.
dumping their muddy waters into the Galen and feeding the
Fromia and Nostian Rivers. The most recognizable aspect of Aufstrag is the multitude of
chimneys found throughout the whole citadel. Called the
Narrow tracks wind through them but are little more than game Stacks, these chimneys were designed to vent all the extreme
trails and the like. heat generated on the various levels and wards by the manifold

magical and mundane fires that burnt within. The chimneys other even more evil and malignant creatures who prefer the
range in size from very small to very large and because they dark depths to the open sun. There are several trails that lead
often bypass whole levels, they became roads for the clever and over the ridge and into the Ornlaw Valley.
agile denizens of Aufstrag. One could travel great distances,
unimpeded, in a short amount of time by using these chimneys. After the coming of the Horned One, the Blacktooth Ridge
The risk that a fire might be lit and the heat of it floods the became a significant source of creatures with which to people
chimney is slight, particularly after time saw many of the his armies. Eventually, guard posts, fortresses, treasuries, and
chimneys interconnect with each other. Since Unklar’s fall, barracks were built in the caverns beneath the ridges and
these roads have become home to many creatures, who now huge hosts of troops were housed here under the command of
dwell in their relative safety and enjoy the security of rapid powerful lieutenants and captains. After his fall, many of these
movement up and down the towering structure. were abandoned and left uninhabited for many years. Now it
boasts many renegade elements of that ancient and most foul
For more on Aufstrag see The Dungeons of Aufstrag box set. evil as the ridge offers safe hiding and deep holes -- easy defense
from those who seek to kill them.
BEARCOAT ROUGHS
The history of the Blacktooth Ridge begins with the Ineng Tree.
The Roughs lie in the southern Luneberg, between that wasteland In the Days before Days, this tree wandered the earth; twisted
and the Toten Fields. They consist of broken, steep hills and with evil, it took the shape of a troll, indeed it was the first of the
deep gulches. This low range of hills is dominated by one large trolls, and wreaked havoc on the world at large. In time, Ineng
mountain, Mount Pendlton and a second, Mount Erasum that grew weary of his struggles and settled upon a small patch of earth
overlooks the town of Magdeburg. Both these mountains are along a ridgeline overlooking a river. The river tumbled in slow
part of a series of steep cliffs that border the Bearcoat Roughs gyrations to the east before it turned south. Here, Ineng settled
and the Luneberg, creating something of a fence between the into his new home. The roots of his evil grew deep, spreading
wasteland and the mountains. These cliffs climb step-like up through the ridge, cutting tunnels that became caves, breaking
into the Roughs, ranging in height from 50 to several hundred rocks and opening fissures deep beneath the ridge. The ground
feet. Entering the Bearcoat Roughs from the north is extremely rose until the depth of his evil pushed the ridge up, breaking the
challenging. Crossing south the terrain does not get much easier earth into many gulches, banks, crags, and escarpments. Ineng
as it is marked by high peaks and stark, deep valleys. The rock did not pass into stone but melded with the earth and the magic
is porous, making travel even more difficult as it often crumbles of his being fed the whole region, attracting many creatures who
beneath too much weight or suffers constant weathering. Only knew not its source, nor its evil. So, the jutting finger of broken
hearty creatures dwell here, those apt at mountain climbing hills that men later called the Blacktooth Ridge became more
and living in stark environments. Griffons, some lammasu and than a landmark.
sphinx are known to aerie here, high up, far from the threats
of the terrestrial world. Furthermore, they are home to a host The land changed. The ridge now dominated the area; high
of creatures who hunt the surrounding plains. Dangerous and and barren, it pushed the river south and flooded the lowlands,
unfriendly, the country is avoided by most except the die-hard making the land fertile and ripe. Many small rivers and creeks
crisscrossed the area, as did ponds and lakes. A forest took root
In the southern flank of the Bearcoat, that range of hills that and grew, birch and oak mostly, but also a generous amount of
lies south of Lake Radlbey the country softens and the hills are sycamore and broad-leafed popular trees.
less steep. Here the roughs are marked by low, rounded hills
and ridges, surrounding broad, shallow valleys. In the spring the Wild tribes of Aenochians settled in the forest, which they
region is flush with mountain grasses which draw all manner of called the Saelic Forest, but most did not stay, for they deemed
creatures. it an evil land, and they moved further south to the fertile
coastlines. But the elves came and made the forests their home.
There was some settlement in this southern range, but most The ridge called to them and they knew it possessed great
of those have been abandoned, leaving only a few stout willed magic. They named the place the Avishean Ridge, that is in
communities of humans and some dwarves. These people are their own tongue, the “Wellspring” and the forest and river they
generally standoffish, avoiding other people. called the Hruesen River Valley, though later the forest took on
the more sinister name of the Barren Wood. They made peace
The Runoff from the Roughs feeds both Lake Radlbey and the
with those wild men who remained and they did not fear the fey
Fromia River.
that came and settled in this enchanted country. So, they lived
BLACKTOOTH RIDGE for many long years.
The Blacktooth Ridge is a rocky outcrop dotted with But the world’s ages turned, and so with them the fortunes of
innumerable fracture caverns and deep natural caves on the those who lived along the Blacktooth Ridge.
western edge of the Plains of Achrothos. The escarpment above
and to the east of the Blacktooth Ridge is forested with scrub Long ago, beyond the memory of most that now live in the
oaks and evergreens and is littered with huge boulders, detritus Hruesen River Valley, the region came under the rule of the
of glacial contraction. For ages beyond count, the caverns of the Kings of Men, the Lords of Aenoch; and they ruled from their
Blacktooth Ridge have attracted orcs, ogres, goblins, giants, and city of Al Liosh for many long centuries. When the Winter Dark

began, the men and elves fought the Horned God, but that long follow on a daily basis to keep the evil spirits away and to mollify
and bitter war ended in their defeat and the ridge and lands the various fey that still reside in the surrounding forests.
south of it became a wilderness. Only after Unklar’s fall did men
return and begin resettling the lands. Dark and dangerous and There are roughly 300 people living in Botkinburg, with an
wild, many fell and others fled, but those who stayed began to additional 50 halflings. Unless noted otherwise, all the human
carve holdings out of the river valley, all in the shadow of the inhabitants of Botkinburg are treated as humans. In times of
Blacktooth Ridge. conflict, a militia can be called up. It consists of nearly 30
adult humans.
BOTKINBURG Total Population: 300
Botkinburg is located deep in the Barren Wood on a rise Human: 250
overlooking a bend in the Hruesen River. Much of the land
surrounding the town has been cleared of trees and now Orc: 0 +/-
serves as pasture and farmland for row crops. A road leads to Hobgoblin: 0 +/-
Botkinburg from the south, and another less-traveled road heads
Gnome: 20 +/-
off to the north. The town consists of small wooden and stone
houses with thatched and shingled roofs. These are clumped Halfling: 50 +/-
together around a large stone keep located on the highest point Dwarf: 0 +/-
of the rise. Botkinburg is mostly inhabited by humans but has a
sizable halfling population who live close to one another around Elf: 0 +/-
several large hills on the west side of the village. They interact Government: The town is loosely run by the Botkin family.
freely with the rest of Botkinburg’s population, though they are The family was the first to settle the region and founded the
viewed with caution and circumspection by some of the human town. They occupy the keep. Some style the head of the family,
members of the community. Volkmar, a Baron, but it is not clear whether he ever earned the
Botkinburg is not a wealthy community. Its inhabitants are title from the Empress to the south.
mostly farmers or fishermen, with a few skilled tradesmen Military: The town can raise a small troop of lightly armed
amongst them. It is self-sufficient, though it trades with other militia that numbers about 30 with 5-10 halfling archers and
communities for rare foodstuffs or manufactured goods in slingers. Additionally, the Botkin family can field up to 10 men-
exchange for salted fish, lumber, and dairy products. Every at-arms as well as several members of the household.
month during the summer an open market is held at the Oak
Grove, a sacred place near the town’s square. This usually Economy: Botkinberg has a Tier One economy, producing little
attracts several outsiders pawning their wares. Other than this, but agricultural goods. It imports manufactured goods from the
most commerce and trade is conducted between families and south or Ludensheim. It is largely a trading center.
individuals and is generally in the form of barter rather than
with coin. The closest Botkinburg has to a store is the Bent Religion: There are no specific gods worshipped here, but two
Hook, a local tavern. The proprietor stocks a small number of major holy sites, the Chanel and the Oak Grove. Many sacrifice
items imported from the wealthier communities to the south to Ore Tsar as well as the Faerie Queen.
and north which the locals may find useful.
Language: The Vulgate, the common tongue, is spoken here.
The days of most in Botkinburg are spent in the pastures, on the
river, or in gardens with the crops. The pastures have a mixture Major Guilds: No guilds operate houses here.
of sheep and dairy cattle grazing in them during the day. These
are brought in every evening and taken out every morning to BLASTED HEATH
the cacophonous sound of cow and sheep bells, bleating sheep, See Great Morass below.
mewing cows, barking herd dogs, and the calls of herdsmen. Crops
are plentiful and cheaply purchased, as most have full larders. BLIGHTED SCREED
Most in the community worship at the Chancel, a temple The Blighted Screed is a wretched stretch of forsaken land
devoted to the many deities who watch over the lands of man stretching from the Blacktooth Ridge and Ludensheim all the
and halfling; fertility, herding, or harvest, and the Hruesen way to the Grausumland in the west and the Eastern Opens to
River in particular. Rituals and devotionals to the deities are the north. It is dry, reaping little rain from the Ursal Wind that
held on numerous occasions and are often accompanied by large so heavily waters the Opens and the swamps.
communal gatherings during which beer and food are plentiful
and served freely. On other occasions, fasting and abstinence Blasted by the icy cold during Unklar’s reign and the massive
are called for. Most of the farmers and fishermen, as well as the run-off which occurred after the sudden melting of the various
halflings, also worship at the Oak Grove, a shrine serving the snowfields and mini-glaciers to the north, it has yet to recover
deities of the sun and moon, plentitude and harvest, and the and grow to its naturally lush state. It is a horrible land where
fairy queen. There are many rituals the people of Botkinburg only the thorniest brush and weed can wrangle a living. Naught
but ragged stone, cracked rock, brittle chat, and razor-sharp

obsidian await those who cross this land. Its tangle of ridges, The shallow waters draw all manner of creatures to the area.
ravines, cracked and broken earth are all a monument to the Alligators in large numbers dwell here, hunting the small deer,
many who have, by fire and sword, died in battles that have wild boar and smaller game that come to drink. Wolves hunt the
raged across the Screed from time immemorial. It is a skeletal shores as do smaller predatory canines, such as fox and coyotes.
land; dead and soulless. The waters are teeming with fish which draw all manner of
predatory birds, the large bald eagle and osprey being the most
Three rivers flow through the Screed, but they are slow-moving, common. Bears to come to hunt the shallow water. But it is not
shallow in their course. They do not enrich the soil and little just wildlife that plunders this deciduous forest. It is a favored
vegetation grows on their banks. This is true throughout the hunting ground for the catoblepas, bogtilts, and beaked dragon.
Screed where only small scrub oaks, cedars, scrub brush, and
weeds grow and those primarily near springs and the few small BUZIAL RIVER
lakes found in the region.
This small river runs from the Antule Mountains to the
Not much lives here – or can live here. Ground squirrels, Grausumland. Once, long ago it fed fertile valleys of farmland,
moles, chipmunks, rabbits and the like can be found. There are but now it feeds only the Pete Bogs. The river itself begins in
grey deer, small antelope, and wild sheep, though in no great the high peaks of the Antule Mountains, fed by the glaciers that
numbers. Occasional bobcats and mountain lions adapted to form there. The mountain water is pure and cool and believed
the region hunt along its periphery. Wolves are found in its to possess healing qualities. If nothing else it offers a momentary
interior, and rarely, bears that have wandered in from other respite in a land battered by the depredations of evil.
lands in search of greener pastures. None of these pose dangers
as all are wary of man, humanoid and demi-human. Even the It has a swift current in the mountains but slows markedly after
least of them can sense the coming of death and make to hide it enters the plains, where it widens. It is not more than 150 feet
or run away. Catching food here is no small feat, as the region is at its widest. It is generally shallow and except during spring,
overhunted by the inhabitants of the fortress. easy to cross. The river is fed by several feeder streams before
it reaches the bogs in the east. There it broadens into a slow-
There are dangers though. The Blighted Screed is infested with moving, torpid stream.
the most horrible creatures that Aufstrag has vomited forth
over the years. Chimera find the Screed a good home, its dry EASTERN OPENS
earth a comfort to the beast. The gorgon is known to haunt
Called the Opens by most who pass through there, the wide, rich
these wastes. Other monsters of a similar bent dwell here as
grasslands are a spur of the Plains of Achrothos. Well-watered
well. The orcs, ogres, kobolds, goblins and other more grotesque
by storms brought south by the Ursal winds, they are home to
beasts wander this land waylaying and consuming all they can.
wild horses and bison herds. They are the common hunting
Some wander freely across the lands, others have holed up in ground for the easterners, Madriu (see Codex of Aihrde) who
one of the many hundreds of abandoned camps, forts, palaces, enjoy hunting men as much as wild game.
treasure houses, guardhouses, dungeons, castles and caves
dotting the land. This was once, one must know, a staging ESTANG FOREST
area for the countless legions that poured out of Aufstrag that The Estang lies between the Blacktooth Ridge and the Blighted
headed to war in the south and east and lands beyond. For many Screed. It is a small wood comprising a host of elm, locust and
centuries it served this purpose alone. hickory trees. Gnarled black-jack oaks grow in the southern
reaches of the wood. In the east, the forest is well watered by
There is little reason for anyone to enter the Screed unless one
the Hruesen River. Here the trees grow thick and tall. Travel is
simply wanted to die beneath a scorching sun at the hands of
easier and there are hosts of noticeable trails. In the west the
the brutish servants of that long-dead god, Unklar.
forest thins out, the trees become smaller and tangle with huge
patches of briars, sometimes several acres wide. Travel is a little
BOWBON LAKE more difficult here and often requires circumnavigating the
Bowbon Lake is a broad wetland valley fed by the Udunilay bramble. The Estang attracts all manner of beasts. Colonies of
River. The river passes through the valley on its way south, stirges hunt the wood as well as boalisk and kamadan.
flooding the entire region. At its widest it is a dozen miles from
east to west, and roughly 25 miles long. Aside from the deep FESTUNG AKT
channel in the middle, where the river itself flows, which ranges
Festung Akt was constructed ages ago during the early Winter
up to 100 feet deep and about 200 - 300 feet wide, the lake is
Dark when Unklar reigned over the world. Originally a way
relatively shallow, often not more than a few feet deep. This has
station that marked the final drainage of the great system of
allowed all manner of grasses, reeds, and shrubs to grow far out
canals that sprawled out from the roots of Aufstrag, Festung Akt
into the water. It has also become the perfect environment for
only later became the tower and fortress it is today.
cypress trees, which grow along both banks of the lake.
It was built in order to watch over the canals that channeled the
In the rainy season, the valley floods more and the water
filth of Aufstrag. Here the wastes of Aufstrag slowed to a crawl
deepens, but usually not for long.
and emptied onto the fertile plains, the source of their original

blight. The distance from the city being as great as it is, the harvest their souls and bind them to him. The nightmare that
flushed filth only arrived in a slow-moving slag. After a while, had been Festung Akt, became a little more twisted.
the canal (along with its many sister canals) became clogged
and its upkeep was forgotten. Festung Akt became a forgotten Total Population: 50 +/-
post with no purpose. Ungern: 50 +/-
In time, the lords of Aufstrag tore down the small way station Orc: 10 +/-
and built a fort in its place. The new masters of the tower forgot Ogres/Giants: 50 +/-
the canals if indeed they ever knew of them. At first, Festung Akt
Trolls: 50 +/-
served as little more than an outpost overlooking the Avishean
Ridge (the Blacktooth), but as Unklar’s empire expanded ever Government: Deuranimus the Crow, a powerful druid, rules
outward, it became an administrative center for much of the here. He holds an edict from Aufsrag, but it is outdated. He has
Blighted Screed. Eventually, its utility as such declined and it a very loose allegiance to Coburg the Undying.
has been used variously as a prison, military headquarters, and Military: There is a permanent garrison of 40-50 Ungern here
other similar mundane purposes. with half a dozen ogres and some orc scouts.
In the last century of the long Winter’s Dark, Festung Akt had Economy: None
become a prison where criminals, traitors, suspected traitors, Religion: Unklar.
those who had fallen out of favor and others were bound,
tortured, interrogated, and then killed. The fortress earned a Language: The Vulgate, the common tongue, is spoken here.
new name from its Ungern commanders, Iggth Nag Teerg, the Major Guilds: None
Torture Gardens.
FORTRESS OF HUL
In the declining decades of Unklar’s rule, Festung Akt received
little attention as other wars and battles distracted him. The During the early days of the Winter Dark, the Hlobane were
post languished, troops and administrators dispersed or were but one of many tribes of orcs. Unklar, however, saw in them
withdrawn to other realms and few were left to watch over a power greater than the rest. He beguiled them and brought
the fortress and the country. The minor lords who concerned them to Aufstrag. There he remade them and brought them to
themselves with the management of Unklar’s vast Empire the fore of his armies. They soon proved their fighting prowess
sought a mere lieutenant who might manage the region without and became the rank and file of his armies. He granted them
much assistance, for there were few aides to spare in these latter lands in the Red Hills, lands they could call their own. There
years as the wars to the north and west were costly. Festung they tunneled beneath the earth and built small keeps above it.
Akt’s new lord would need knowledge of the very lands and Soon their towns and castles dotted the southern flank of the
animals to serve his needs and make the fortress a realm of Red Hills.
its own. A druid of dutiful mind, Deuranimus the Crow, was
Greatest of all their houses was the Fortress of Hul. Here the
ordered to Festung Akt and told to manage the affairs, the
clans gathered to debate what courses to take. They trained
castle, and the region. Deuranimus took his post shortly before
their young at Hul and taught their chiefs the intricacies of the
the final collapse of Unklar’s realm.
art of war. In short order, Hul became the center of the Hlobane
Deuranimus had served as a minor assistant to a troop in the Nation. Trade from the north and south passed through Hul and
Blighted Screed for a number of years and his assignment to enriched it, allowing the orcs to build ever greater fortifications.
Festung Akt surprised him as much as his immediate superiors.
During the Winter Dark Wars, Hul avoided the devastation
Perhaps it was a sign of the decline of Unklar; a portent really,
dealt to much of Unklar’s realms. However, the Hlobane
for such a person as Deuranimus would never have been offered
were slaughtered in great numbers. So great was the loss that
a position like this in times past or perhaps a more spiritually
many abandoned their towns and castles and moved to Hul. It
influential Unklar would have kept Deuranimus’ one small
was during those days that the Council of Elders, made up of
personality defect in check. Deuranimus, it must be known,
warriors tried and true, was formed. The fortress has stood ever
had a conscience and was capable of feeling guilt. For many
since, lingering on the edge of the civilized world, unmolested,
long years, he buried these emotions and acted faithfully to
and slowly rebuilding its strength.
the cause which bound him. Once in charge of Festung Akt
however, the sheer volume of his heinous deeds got the better Hul consists of a massive network of fortifications that occupy
of him. Remorse, guilt and an effort at repentance guided his 5 hills and the valleys between. It stands upon on the southern
actions over time. flanks of the Red Hills. The fortress is well watered with several
springs that begin in the stronghold before they wander south to
For years Deuranimus had been torturing people for information
join the Dobra River. The fortifications are well organized and
and executing them for the slightest of wrongs. After a time, he
highly defensible, with each hill post being accessible from the
quit ‘completely executing’ the prisoners and he saved many
other four. They also possess interior fortifications so that if one
whom he felt were not deserving of such a punishment. He even
is taken, the other four are not compromised.
began seeing that the goodly-minded men of the world might do
a better job at ruling than had Unklar. To that end, he began to

Hul has a peculiar look to it as it is fashioned from the rust- The upper courses of the river and many feeder creeks attract
red brick of the Red Hills. The walls and keeps are made of prospectors of all kinds, as it is rumored that out of this region
red stone, cut from the mountain itself by an army of masons. of the Antule Mountains come their only precious metal - silver.
Tall towers connected by walls with battlements give the orcs a In truth, it must be said that few dwarves or gnomes ever bother
commanding view of the entire region. with the region, indicating the lack of veracity behind this claim.
There are few aside from orcs who dwell in Hul. Some who Where the river spills into the sea lies the Formian Ostiary, a
serve the Paths of Umbra and assassins from the Crna Ruk wide wetland.
dwell therein sparse numbers. Merchants to come up from
the Confederation of Torrich, trading with the orcs for raw GRAFIKA
materials and some manufactured goods. The orcs are passable
Grafika is not so much a city or town, rather it is a safe haven
smiths and make wheel hubs, barrel hoops, and chains as well as
for bandits, outlaws, murderers, thieves, necromancers, traitors,
weapons and armor. But more sought after is the pottery, shaped
and similar people. The place is, by all accounts, a brutish den.
of the red clays of the hills, the orcs are skilled artisans when
It was not always such a place.
designing bowls, cups and the like. These merchants live within
the city fortress in a small district set aside for them. During the reign of Unklar, Grafika was a large town, the last
stop on the way to Aufstrag. Sitting only a score of miles from
For more on the Hlobane see Monsters & Treasure of Aihrde.
the Great Causeway, it was a safe haven. Wealth poured into the
Total Population: 16,000 (includes villages around Hul) town. Coin from traveling merchants, smiths, and other skilled
laborers and plunder from the outlands came on the backs of
Human: 250 ox and horse. Wild beasts captured for the pits of Aufstrag and
Orc: 16,000 +/- wealth in tributes paved its roads. Its halls grew, and its citizens
Government: Hul is governed by a Sanjak, a title that roughly lorded over men. Many lived there in comfort, relatively safe
equates to General, one they picked up long ago during their from the malignant evil of Aufstrag and far from the constant
service to Unklar the Horned God. Hul also contains the wars that fueled the Empire. The town prospered and grew as
Council of Elders that govern the whole Hlobane Nation that such gateway towns are wont to do.
dwells in the Red Hills. But in the end, the wars came to Grafika. The armies of Aufstrag
Military: Hul is a large fortification, encompassing several marched forth but never returned, devoured by the Princes of
large hills, and the valleys between them. This is the heart of the west. The horned god fell, his might cast down by sword
the Hlobane Nation and there is a standing garrison of 1,200 and sorcery. In the end, the Princes came to the Causeway, the
orcs in the castle proper. In the deep warrens beneath the castle, bridge that crossed the great swamps to Auftrag. Grafika stood
warrens that fan out into a dozen different communities beneath too close and the city that had known a thousand years of peace
and above the Red Hills are another 7,000 warriors that can be was sacked and burned. Many of its inhabitants were put to
transported to the castle with ease. death. The smoking ruin then stood abandoned for many years.
Economy: Hul itself is a large fortress but is connected to an Grafika is a shadow of its former self. Most of the buildings have
underground series of roads that lead to other villages, as such, fallen into ruin. Those that remain are almost never repaired
it is able to produce manufactured goods for use or trade. This or when they are, they are done so in the laziest and minimalist
makes Hul a Tier 3 economy. manner. The streets are awash with dirt, debris, and trash
becoming muddy rivers during the frequent rains. Most of the
Religion: No religion but the worship of Unklar is permitted in cobbles that once lined the main streets of Grafika have been
Hul. To speak another god’s name is to invite being drawn and pulled up and are now used to shore up falling buildings. Most of
quartered. the remaining buildings are made of stone, as the wooden ones
have burned, rotted or fallen into a state of disrepair.
Language: Hlobane, and the Vulgate, the common tongue, is
spoken here. There is no city government. There are essentially five factions/
groups which ‘run’ Grafika. Each faction has some control
Major Guilds: There are no guilds here, however the Crna over an area of the ruins. The central portion of the town
Ruk have a presence as do the Paths of Umbra. is controlled by Idius Branfeeter, the owner of the Impaled
Griffon. He and his cohort of thugs maintain a semblance of
FROMIA RIVER order in this part of town. The northern portion of Grafika is
This muddy river tumbles out of the northern Antule Mountains held under the sway of a massive ogre, Gudgerot his tribe and
into the lowlands of Aenoch where it wanders for many associates control the Cudgel. Hirten von Dirbild and his band
hundreds of miles until it reaches the sea. It is a muddy affair in have taken up residence in a keep just outside of Grafika
its early courses, cutting down through steep valleys and over and maintain influence in the Dirbild, by both strength in
precarious falls, pulling dirt, soil, and clays along with it. Where numbers and location. The Old Man and his cohorts invest
the Olgdon spills into it, it clears and widens, consuming that a small keep in the southern portion of Grafika and control
massive volume of water and pushing it all down to the sea. that area; people call it Old Town. A relative newcomer to

Grafika is a powerful priest, Linderin of Grausamland. He Economy: The economy of Grafika is mixed as certain areas have
has built a wall around several buildings in the west side of little or nothing. But for the most part, it is a Tier One economy,
town and is attracting an ever-growing number of followers needing outside trade for most of its manufactured goods.
and slowly expanding his ‘keep,’ affectionately called Little
Aufstrag. Religion: Mixed with a heavy component of Cult of the Swords
and Unklar.
The areas in between these districts are veritable no man’s
land where mendicants, homeless, brigands, drifters and Language: The Vulgate, the common tongue, is spoken here.
monsters roam.
Major Guilds: The Crna Ruk are embedded in the Hubb. The
There are no laws in Grafiak, but there are understandings and Tinkers Guild is powerful in the Cudgel. Beyond that only the
traditions. As a general rule, each of the factions leave one Baldheads in Castle Dirbild offer any organization.
another alone and pay little attention to one another. Disputes
For more details on the town and all its personages see to A10
occur, however. These are, as often as not, settled with blood
The Last Respite adventure module.
rather than agreements or arrangements. Few pay much heed
to newcomers.
GREAT MORASS
The town, being on the northern terminus of the great swamp At the mouth of the Hruesen River lies a deep, verdant flood
and the southern terminus of those hills called the Withing plain. The plain yielded an abundance of crops during the height
Oaks receives a lot of rainfall throughout the year. of the Aenochian reign, making many families rich beyond
imagining. Crops of wheat, soya, cotton, and tobacco flowed
During downpours, the town is essentially separated into five
from the region. The inhabitants built an elaborate system of
parts that generally equate to spheres of influence for the
roads that wound their way to the capital Al Liosh. Their manor
various factions mentioned above. These rains rarely turn
houses and palaces dotted the countryside as did small towns
to snow in winter but become a slushy frozen mess. In spring
that housed craftsmen, merchants, freemen, and serfs mostly
and summer, rivers of mud and debris wash around the town
gathered from the lands of the Ethrum to the west. A sprawling
eventually draining off to the south and are the only thing
trade town, Menentak, with a massive castle, was built on the
keeping the place half-way habitable.
east bank of the Hruesen as well. It served as the cultural and
Total Population: 9,375 +/- economic center for the river valley.
Human: 4,700 +/- All that ended with the coming of Unklar. The lords and ladies
Gnome: 270 +/- of Menentak stood against Unklar and were destroyed. Few
survived the slaughter that followed. They did, in the end,
Halfling: 190 +/- declare Menentak an open city and called upon the mercy of
Dwarf: 475 +/- Unklar soldiers to not destroy it. They agreed, leaving the city
Elf: 300 +/- intact but carted its inhabitants off to the slave pits of Aufstrag.
Some few eked out a living in the aftermath of the wars and
Ungern: 400 +/- tried to rebuild but it proved fruitless. The many dikes and
Orc: 2,350 +/- canals became impediments to the waters flow and the land
suffered from a series of floods that wreaked havoc on everyone
Hobgoblin: 510 +/-
and everything. When the Winter Dark came, the land froze
Ogres/Giants: 130 +/- over and yielded no more crops. Those who remained fled. They
Trolls: 50 +/- cursed their homeland, calling it the Great Morass, Blasted
Heath and other such names.
Government: There are five separate governments in Grafika.
The Hub is ruled by Idius Branfeeter and his edicts enforced by Few dwell there now. It is wild, open country. Ironically, the
his massive mace called Long Arm. Gudgerot the Ogre rules town of Menentak remains, largely intact, left as it was during
the Cudgel like a tyrant. Castle Dirbild is ruled by Hirten von those wars long ago. Frozen in time during the Winter Dark it
Dirbild. Old Town is ruled by Old Man and his Council of 5. was thought to be a haunted place. The modern era has not
The High Priest rules in Little Aufstrag but they have a clear seen that diminished as not a few of the Aenochian High Lords,
chain of command beyond him. undead creatures of unspeakable horror, have returned from
their long bondage to the city of yesterday, occupied, no doubt,
Military: Idius commands an army of 50 battle-hardened with dreams of their youth.
mercenaries and an auxiliary force of about 200 lightly armed
individuals. In the Cudgel, Gudgerot commands 50 ogres and
GRAUSUMLAND
300 or so orcs. Hirten commands a force of some 320 archers,
spearman and warriors, and 25 heavily armed fighters called the The Grausumland, the Gray Pools, is a mire of stinking, fetid,
Irontops. The Old Man commands 67 knights and archers, all rotting swamps. The swamps are dark, cast in thick fogs and
hardened with years of battle. And the Priest can put together smokes. Unklar created this grotesque bog to protect Aufstrag.
some 3000 orcs and other humanoids, most lightly armed. He churned the land with his malice, and vomited the filth of

Aufstrag upon it, creating a wasteland twisted and foul. Into this the goblins who reside, to this day, beneath their eaves. They are
he drained waters from the Uphrates and Udunilay rivers, flooding as gnarled and knuckled as a pit fighter, with thick gray and ocher
the whole region. The waters carried the filth to the fore turning barks, and bent and twisting limbs creeping towards the earth.
the morass black and releasing foul vapors that ever hang over They are green trees whose broad-lobed leaves never brown or
the swamp. Nearer to Aufstrag the swamps become a dangerous yellow with the season, but withstand the encroachments of age
mire, for there, sprawling out for miles around the mighty fortress and time, perhaps without dignity, but with great fortitude. These
lay the ruins of Al-Liosh, buried now, lost to the corruption of peculiar abilities allowed the forest to thrive during the Winter
the Gray Pools. But beneath the waters lies a world of ancient Dark. The forest is friendly to the sun, allowing it to shine hither
houses, palaces and the armies of ancient Aenoch, where streets and yon into verdant green glades.
are roofed in the mire, and the dead wander in hopelessness.
It was upon the northern flanks of the Grossewald that the
The ground swells and bubbles, spewing sulfurous odors and red Aenochians first settled, and through its long trails that
mud. The land abounds in sinkholes, mud slicks, quicksand, Baetan hunted the stag (see “The Andanuth”) that guided
and slimy pits that suck down anything that happens to step the Aenochian lord to his consort Imbrisius, there to snare his
upon them. Huge skeletal remains of long-dead trees crowd the people ever after.
lower reaches, as time and water wear them to nothing. The
stench from the Gray Swamps is overwhelming, knocking lesser The forest spreads wide, dominating central Aenochia, from
men to their knees; the smell carries far beyond the swamps so the Hammers Wood to the Minden Deeps. The great rivers
that even those who travel on the plains to the north, west, and Udunilay and Ordavar flow mightily beneath the limbs of
east, or the Blighted Screed to the south must travel beneath these trees. There, within the forest, creatures never seem to
the depressing blanket of its stench. die, for ‘tis told that eldritch goblins, the sorcerers of old, still
move about in freedom. All manner of beast is found within,
The Gray Swamps are home to great hulking trees, many the remains of the All Father’s imaginings, as well as those cast
hundreds of feet tall. Called by the locals the Grunlere Trees, aside by Unklar. After the reign of that unholy lord, many a
the “arms of the earth.” Their roots are like gnarled beasts; their minion fled into these uncharted wildernesses, biding their time
branches, both high and low, droop with curtains of green moss in dark anticipation for his return.
and drapes of yellow lichen, bark thick and gray, constantly
peeling and falling to the muck below to slap the water, the Along its frontiers, though, dwell clans upon clans of halflings,
echoes of which carry far and wide. The high branches leaf the only untainted ones in all Aihrde willing to brave both the
out, narrow, thin leaves as thick as a wasp swarm crowning forest and its horrible minions. They are led by the battle lord,
the whole. Other trees grow in the shadows of these monsters, Witterkind, he who bears a Font of Narrheit upon his belt (see
cypress, prickly ash, and swamp willows. And plants grow in Monsters & Treasure of Aihrde). These stout folk lives both
abundance. Flesh-cutting saw grass, eelgrass, horse-tail, sedge, in laagers of wagons and villages built into the hills, valleys, and
and cane crown knolls of mud and line the trails that meander forests.
the swamps. Mixed with the swamp’s grasses are arrowhead
HRUESEN RIVER
weeds, devil’s thorn, knotweed, and skunk cabbage. Hosts of
other plants crowd the swamp, from chokeberry to greasewood, This river spills out of the Great Morass or Blasted Heath far to
milkwort to bridal wreath. the north and lazily makes its way through the Eastern Opens
until it abuts the Blacktooth Ridge. It has many feeder streams
This place is crowded with denizens of one’s nightmares. along its width and breadth. Its course narrows and becomes
Unklar’s breath lingers, and the life he gave to many a foul tumultuous some 50 miles north of Botkinburg as it enters the
creature echoes in the cruel and wretched beings that stalk the rougher hilly lands of the region. Beyond the ridge, it tumbles
waters. There are many and more besides, most hidden from the on south until it spills into and passes through Lake Elweth
eyes of the world and left to find their way in these swamps, who before it wanders its way to the Gulf of Barachia.
stop any would-be interlopers. There are great blood-drinking
bats, mud-breathing lizards, and flying snakes. Dragons are said The river is plentiful with fish and offers a wealth of food to
to be here, as well as ungern in great numbers, and orcs and settlers, bears, and others who depend upon fish for food. But
goblins from old. this also attracts fell creatures of all sorts and makes travel
along the river perilous in that upper river, far away from
The plunder from a thousand years is stored in deep holes and the settlements of man. Further south the river plays host to
massive treasuries in these swamps. Arcane magic is found and small skiffs, boats, and barges as fisherman ply its waters and
weapons from the wars at the beginning of time. The swamp merchants carry goods up and down the river.
rests upon the ruins of ancient, and Al Liosh, the wonder of the
world, and all the treasure contained therein. Many a strange and ancient creature can be seen in its blue
waters.
GROSSEWALD (SOUTHERN)
IAOLEMETA RIVER
This is an old forest. Its birth stretches back to the dawn of time
and it has grown, inexorably, ever since. The trees are neither This small river originates in one of the ancient canals of the
massive nor awe-inspiring in their beauty, but they are as hardy as Aenochians. The canal itself was built to connect a market valley

with the Kasda River and Udunilay River beyond. During the early town itself. It attracts a host of undesirables, people who have
days of Unklar’s reign, the people here built a large dike to keep drifted up from New Aenoch, leaving that realm for whatever
out the waters of the inundation. It flanked the northern edge of reason, or who have come down from the north. The town is
the canal. It works for some time until soldiers in Unklar’s employ only loosely governed, and its citizens a very rough and in many
broke it in several places and flooded the land and the canal. Since cases, vile sort of people.
those days the canal has served to drain the swamps into the Kasda
and it has become something of a natural waterway. Jamburg is poorly maintained and its “streets”, many of which
still resemble the trenches they were during the siege, barely
The Iaolemeta is a slow-moving river, at times almost standing paved and in many places only covered with wood planks.
still. Only when it reaches the Blighted Screed does it pick up During the rainy seasons, it becomes a mud pit, and winter sees
steam. It is only 20-30 feet wide in its beginning, but within a these same streets blocked by untended snowdrifts. Some of
few miles broadens beyond the original canal and ranges up to the buildings are in decent shape, most little more than wood
50 feet wide. It can be very deep in places, up to 30 feet. In the cabins. The main tavern and inn, the Butternut, is a stone
Screed, it is roughly 100 feet wide but shallow. Travel up the building with a wooden second floor, overlooking the river.
Iaolemeta is relatively easy as the current is almost nonexistent. Other taverns are not so well made. The permanent citizens
are an unruly lot, well-armed and prone to violence. Strangers,
Though weathered, the dike remains. It serves many travelers however, are rarely bothered, almost never questioned and find
in the swamps as a landmark, for it stands high above the water it easy to blend in. For this reason, it is something of a haven for
and the river/canal. It is visible for miles around, easy to travel those on the run or seeking amenity.
up or down and broad enough to camp on. It is roughly 20 feet
wide at the top. Jamburg is a center for trade in stolen and acquired goods. Many
adventurers come here to purchase items or sell plunder they’ve
JAMBURG taken in the Screed or Grausumland, or from the Aenochians.
The years after the fall of Unklar were hard years. The great
wars had ended, but countless battles continued to be fought Total Population: 4,000
by small armies attempting to carve a living out from the new Human: 3,000
world. Such an army, numbering about a thousand disaffected
soldiers of Aufstrag, ruffians, drifters, and others, rode into the Gnome: 500 +/-
Northern Marches of New Aenoch not long after the Winter Halfling: 300 +/-
Dark Wars ended. They lay waste to several small holdings before
Dwarf: 200 +/-
they brought the wrath of the young Empress down upon them.
Pursued, they fled north to the borders of the Blighted Screed Elf: 70 +/-
where her army, at last, overtook them. Pinned against the Ans Government: Jamburg is only loosely run by the Mayor,
River they occupied a high bluff overlooking the river. There they presently one called Fletcher. He commands a small armed
dug in, constructing a network of trenches and redoubts to hold guard, but these serve as little more than bodyguards and gate
off the knights and their men at arms. A siege soon developed. wardens. They do exact a toll from all entering the town.
For over a year the Aenochians besieged the encampment. Military: Fletcher can call on the town militia, a rough and
Their army, however, was never large enough to encircle it, so tumble crew of up to 300 individuals. In times of dire need, that
that raiders could easily obtain food and water from the Ans. At number breaks a thousand as all able-bodied are pressed into
last, they quit the field and left the raiders to their own devices. service.
Economy: Jamburg is a Tier One economy.
From this little battle the town of Jamburg was born, for a year
dwelling in the bluffs allowed the raiders to dig in, building Religion: All the gods are worshipped here. A temple to
underground bunkers, trenches to connect them, fortify mounds Narrheit, unusual in any city, stands on the bluff, not far from
of earth and carve out caves to allow them to fish and use the the Butternut.
river as needed. When the knights retired, the raiders remained Language: The Vulgate, the common tongue, is spoken here.
and slowly the rough-cut fortifications took on the shape of a
town. The trenches and the connecting trenches became paths, Major Guilds: Muddles Inc., as well as the Rat’s Den, have a
soon paved with wood and later stone. Homes were carved presence here. They are often at odds with each other. Beyond
into the bluff, half underground, half above. Houses sprang up that, only the Cult of the Swords has made itself openly known.
between the trenches and more solid, stone houses on the bluff KASDA RIVER
above. Eventually, the whole was walled in with a semi-circular
wall that stretched around the bluff and lay anchored on the The slow-moving Kasda originates in the heart of what is now the
river both above the town and below it. One large gate emitted Blighted Screed. Long ago it was a rich river valley that sported a
people to the strange town on the river. dozen large manor houses and palaces, homes to the Aenochians
who dwelt there, and several small towns. Now it carries the sand
Jamburg is a free town, ruled by a Mayor and his council, all and waste of the Blight west toward the Udunilay.
are members of the city guard or prominent members of the

In its early courses, it is a shallow, narrow river roughly 60-80 The lake is a source of pure, cool, freshwater and attracts all
feet wide. After the Iaolmeta River joins it the Kasda broadens manner of creatures. There are several aquatic beasts that hunt
to several hundred feet but does not pick up much speed, the lake, and not a few monsters who dwell along its shore.
meandering its way to the larger river in the west. The river There are fish in great abundance, though few fish its waters
is easy to navigate, both up and downstream, as the current is unless they come from the Fromian River Valley. It is said that
never terribly strong. the fish in Radleby grow as large as a wagon.
It runs a rusty yellow-brown for much of its course and where The ruins of a score of palaces of the Aenochians, long
the river spills into the Udunilay the water of that river becomes abandoned, remain on the banks of the lake. It was here that
cloudy. But that effect lasts for only a few hundred yards as the the Princess Nem-et-Uhl ruled in her gold and topaz palace. A
volume of water coming down from the north breaks it up. powerful sorceress born at the height of the Aenochian Empire.
She came to embody the great spirit of that people and their
LAKE OF UL unknowing cruelty, for in her court lesser men were slain for
a pittance. She saw this as a favor, a goodness given to her
The huge sprawling Lake of Ul lies in the Grausumland and
subjects, for who, indeed would lead the life of lesser men. The
is fed by the Udunilay River. The lake was created by one of
Princess disappeared in her youth, leaving her sprawling palace,
the God Emperors who sought to replicate the Amber Sea in
vast wealth and magics behind. Such was the fear of her that
the South. He loved to sail, and he loved boats so he set his
her domains remained untouched during all the long years of
might toward excavating a vast area of the Vale and channeling
the Winter Dark.
the river’s waters into it. Huge dikes were built to contain it
and several islands left in its course. The region flooded and
became a place of wonder and beauty in the days of its glory. LUDENSHEIM
The Emperor called it the Waters of Laemonoth, after his wife. Ludensheim was once called Geerdes Gag and ruled by evil
Floating palaces were built upon the waters and large sailboats princes who served Unklar. Geerdes Gag, when initially
passed between them. Barges too, elaborately outfitted were put designed, consisted of little more than a bridge over the Hruesen
in the water and all the wealth of Aenoch enjoyed the inner sea River and several towers to guard that crossing. Many giants
and the beauty of tame water. and trolls labored long and hard to make the bridge and towers
to the exacting specifications of Unklar’s engineers. Their work
But all that ended when the Empire fell and Aenoch came to was a wonder then and is even now. So well were they made,
ruin. The cost of maintaining the lake became too great and the they stand undiminished 1000 years later.
floating palaces were abandoned. Like much of the glory of old, it
lost its luster with time. When the Darkness came, the lake was Geerdes Gag changed in size and scope over the centuries.
filled with evil creatures that hunted its shores and slaughtered all After the armies of orc and ungern poured over the Hruesen,
they found. Foul demons and devils from the underworld settled the Captain Kings of Aufstrag decided to make Geerdes Gag
into its deeps and it was renamed the Lake of Ul. a fortress to oversee the nearby lands and barrack the many
troops needed to keep the region under their dominion as well
Today it is a foul place and dangerous. It is deep in places, over as those moving through the area. A keep was raised, walls
300 feet. Where the river runs the current is swift, pushing wrapped around it and a labyrinth built beneath it.
through the lake, but elsewhere it is slow and lethargic. The ruins
of Al Liosh remain in the water and out of it, plain for all to see. After the banishment of Unklar, Geerdes Gag was forsaken by
all but the most stalwart of Unklar’s soldiery. The crusaders of
LAKE RADLEBY New Aenochia eventually made their way to Geerdes Gag and
This large inland lake lies within two arms of the Bearcoat laid waste to it killing all its inhabitants and pulling the keep
Roughs. It is fed by melting glaciers that lie on the high slopes of and portions of the walls down, though leaving the bridge and
Mount Pendlton. Lake Radlbey avoided most of the devastation towers beside it intact. Thereafter, Geerdes Gag was named
of the Winter Dark Wars. The Lake layout of the path of Kain Ludensheim after Prince Luden, the commander of the army
the Duke of Altengrund when he lay waste to the Luneberg which brought the orcs of Geerdes Gag to their knees, after he
Plains. And they were just far enough removed from the Toten decided to occupy the towers. A slow trickle of people moving to
Fields when those areas were devastated by several armies. Ludensheim quickly became a flood once gold was discovered in
the Hruesen River and the place has grown into a walled town
The lake is generally placid, her calm waters inviting sailors yet again. Thus, the Barony of Ludensheim was born.
and fisherman. However, this is subject to violent changes as
the Ursal Wind coils around the great Plains of Achrothos The gold has since given out and fewer and fewer crusaders
and thunder across the Grausumland. Here the wind picks up make their way here as internal strife in Aenochia is beginning
moisture and violent storms evolve. The Ursal Wind drives these to consume their time and efforts. As a result, the power
storms into the Roughs, and the two arms of the mountains structure of the town has changed and those knights and their
channel them across the lake. At such times the waters become orders have diminished greatly in power.
extremely hazardous, large waves whipped up to thunder across
the open water. The storms develop suddenly and as suddenly The town is ruled by a descendant of Prince Luden, Dietbold
spend themselves. Heimer and his family. It vies with Botkinburg to the east for

the Crusader traffic coming up from New Aenoch. It is a larger The Thieves Pit exists “beyond the walls” as the outer town is
town than Botkinburg, but less hospitable, leaning toward the called. Here, the town quality declines rapidly; rickety houses
tyrannical. The Baron commands both the royal guard in the of wood and slate jumble in a cacophony of architectural noise.
keep and the city guard. Dirt streets, hardly more than alleys, snake and twist between
buildings which sport shops, taverns, opium dens, and brothels.
Ludensheim is a vibrant trade center, offering much more than
its neighboring town. It is often the recipient of traffic from the Magdeburg is a dangerous place where weapons are borne
west but also suffers from raids coming down from that region openly. The city guard has authority only in the inner city.
and the Blighted Screed. “Beyond the walls” belongs to the Thieves Pit.
Total Population: 2,500 Total Population: 5,350 +/-

Human: 2,300 +/- Human: 4,000 +/-
Gnome: 100 +/- Gnome: 500 +/-
Halfling: 50 +/- Halfling: 300 +/-
Dwarf: 25 +/- Dwarf: 100 +/-
Elf: 10 +/- Elf: 50 +/-
Government: The Baron holds hereditary rights to Ludensheim Government: Mabdeburg has two active governments. Lord
and the surrounding areas. He rules with little direction from Enternich rules as Mayor, though one with absolute power, in
the Empress in far off New Aenoch. the Inner City. The Thieves Pit, an extraordinarily violent and
Military: The Baron can call up to 60 men at arms, half a rapacious thieves guild, rules Beyond the Walls.
dozen clerics, 20 odd mercenaries and about 200 individually Military: Enternich can field a mercenary army of roughly 200
armed militia in times of need. warriors. He has a house mage that travels with him as well.
Economy: Ludensheim has a Tier Two economy. Economy: It is a Tier One economy.
Religion: All the gods are worshiped here, but Ore Tsar is the Religion: All the gods are worshipped here.
most common. Language: The Vulgate, the common tongue, is spoken.
Language: The Vulgate, the common tongue, is spoken. Guilds: There are several trade guilds here. The Cult of the
Guilds: There are several trade guilds active here as well as Swords has a strong presence, particularly with Enternich. The
Muddles Inc. Thieves Pit keeps all other guilds from taking root.
MAGDEBURG MOORS
During the Winter Dark Wars Kain, the Godless was set by his The moors extend from the Blighted Screed on either bank of
master, Unklar, to destroy the enemy. He crossed from Aufstrag the Iaolmeta River in the south for some 75-90 miles into the
into the Luneberg Plains, a region in which the Council of north, flanking the south-eastern edge of the Grausumland.
Light, Augsberg and her other allies hotly contested. Kain They consist of broad plains of thick sphagnum moss, peat and
lay waste to it all. He burned cities and towns, putting their saw grass, broken up by countless small pools and lakes and
populations to death. He pulled up the Ursal Road. Burned sandbars. The ground throughout the Moors is damp, almost
crops and polluted the fields. Forests were cut down and sponge-like and makes travel here difficult. There are hidden
burned out. Wells, lakes, and ponds were poisoned. The sinkholes and quicksand spread generously throughout the
Devastation of Kain is known in book and song throughout all whole region.
the Lands of Ursal (see Codex of Aihrde).
Small stream links ponds and open water, as do some ancient
But as in any apocalypse, some survive. In the Luneberg, only canals. Town streets from the ancient Aenochians often serve
two towns did so, Unspt and Madgeburg. this purpose. But all are narrow and emit only small boats,
canoes and skiffs.
Located in the southern plains near the Bearcoat Roughs, built
upon the ruins of an old city, Magdeburg is essentially two The land is hot, hunted by large vultures and wyverns who nest
towns. Within her, thick wood and stone walls are a wedge of on the flanks of Aufstrag and hunt the Moors for carrion or prey
stone houses and buildings, shops and the like. The streets are as suits them. It is a favored hunting ground for a small breed
paved and in places well lit. This is considered the inner city of wolf as well, large predatory cats and other such creatures.
where Mayor the Lord Enternich rules. A mercenary by trade,
he settled in the town after overstaying his welcome in the Few live in the Moors. It is an inhospitable land that grows little
Rhuneland. Through muscle, he has taken control of most of and yields less. Even so, some have settled in the deeps of the
the burg but continues to vie for control with the Thieves Pit, place, building small houses or shacks and carving a living out
a motley collection of rouges, brigands, prostitutes, and thieves. of the wilderness. It is a favored haunt of naga, the witches who
breed them, will-o-wisps, and other fey.

MOUNT UTRING dozen small villages of orcs and ungern lie within his domain.
He aims to conquer all of the Screed and the northern forests of
Across the broken and ragged ground of the Blighted Screed,
the Kellerwald as well.
one massive outcrop of rock and slag thrusts up from the
tundra. This 2000-foot-tall hill dominates the landscape. But Total Population: 1,400*
the hill itself is dominated by a mass of huge dark clouds that
seem to cling to its flanks, dumping huge amounts of snow or Human: 100
frozen rain across the crags, ledges, into the ravines and crevices Orc: 1,000 +/-
and all across its surface. Even when the season is warm these Ungern: 300 +/-
thunderous clouds dump snow across Mount Utring’s flanks.
Though the mountain itself is locked in winter’s embrace, the *This is the population within the fortress city of Mulien Akt,
land around is not. Here lies the lacerated landscape of the not the total population of Bule’s Kingdom.
Blighted Screed, where temperatures vary with the season, but Government: Murlien Akt is ruled by the self-styled King Bule
where it is never as cold as Mount Utring. The weather that Man Slayer, an ungern warlord from Aufstrag. He rules as an
comes from the Screed causes a constant melt-off upon the absolute monarch in his fortress and the kingdom around.
slopes of the mountain so that many small rivulets of water run
Military: The fortress is garrisoned by some 300 ungern and
down the ravines, pass beneath the snowpack or in underground
houses, in the dungeons beneath another thousand orcs. He
caves to collect in shallow basins and creeks at the base of the
can raise a further 500 ungern and another two thousand or
mountain. For the most part, the waters from the melting snow
so orcs from the lands about. There are a smattering of other
and ice are absorbed by the parched earth around the mountain
creatures that King Bule can call upon, including wizards of the
and several fertile and well-watered areas now exist there. There
Paths of Umbra and assassin of the Crna Ruk.
is one creek, on the east side of the mountain, which trails off to
the south and east to another larger Ans River. Economy: Murlien Akt itself is but a fortress, but the economy
of the small kingdom around it is a Tier One economy, as they
There are three villages located at the base of the mountain. derive most of their wealth from raids or tribute.
Mount Utring houses the fortress Utring Akt (refer to Utring
Religion: The only temple here is to Unklar. Worship of all
Akt below).
other gods is prohibited.
MURLIEN AKT Language: Ungern is spoken here. It is forbidden to speak
any other language in Murlien, except for ancient Aenochian.
Murlien Akt was built during the Winter Dark and served as a Anyone using any language aside from those two is fined, those
small station for messengers. It consisted of a motte and bailey heard using Ethrum are put to death.
castle upon a hill overlooking the edge of the Grausumland. From
its height, the Udunilay River was east to see. It was occupied by a Guilds: The Crna Ruk and Paths of Umbra both have
small garrison commanded by Bule, an ungern chieftain. representation in Murlien Akt.
After Unklar’s fall, Bule remained at his post, and though many NEW AENOCH
around him sought to flee to Aufstrag to join in the fight, he
Aesperdi, Barachia, Dundador, Kourland, and Meteira, as well
refused. Knowing his master was banished he husbanded his
as the cities of Vilshofen and Heimstat, rebelled against the
strength. In those early days, Murlien became a haven for those
tumbling might of Unklar’s Empire in 1030md. These cities
fleeing the turmoil of war. Bule welcomed them and began to style
lived under the shadow of Aufstrag for a thousand years. They
himself a lord. He recast Murlien as a refuge and holy ground
grew wealthy through control of the overseas trade routes and
and set about building it anew. Employing many dispossessed he
they suffered little from the hand of Unklar. In consequence,
raised a new wall and added several keeps. He built a temple on
a powerful, educated merchant class came to rule these cities.
a rise nearby and made sacrifices to Unkar. More flocked to his
When war came to the Empire, the lords of Aenoch banded
banner and he built ever greater fortifications until the castle of
together in a loose confederation and prepared to rebel.
Murlien Akt commanded all the country about.
Pryzmira, the last daughter of the House of the Old Empire of
He gave refuge to all who fled the chaos from the west, allowing Aenoch, came to them and promised the wealth and power
the construction of villages and farmsteads. Enlisting soldiers of of the Council if they would support her claim to the ancient
Unklar’s old army he fleshed out his ranks until he commanded lineage. She bore the dagger mark on her shoulder, the sign of
an army of some size. In time he raided the river as far south the ruling family. and they believed her. They agreed to league
East Branch River and into the west, even so far as the shores with Pryzmira under the stipulation that each of the seven
of Lake Bas in the Confederation of Torrich. Many men, great lands, the Duchies of Aesperdi, Barachia, Dundador, Kourland
and small fell to his blade. More flocked to him until at last, he and Meteira and the city-states of Heimstat and Vilshofen, be
crowned himself King Bule Man Slayer. given the rights to elect the Empress and her heirs to the throne.
In turn, she demanded that their borders be permanently fixed,
His kingdom extends from the Kasda River in the south to the that they give her the city of Ascalon to rule from, and that they
banks of Udunilay in the west. He claims all the land north to grant her wide privileges of taxation and expansion. In 1040md,
the borders of the Moors and some of the Moors besides. A the 30-year-old Pryzmira became Empress of Aenoch.

The Empress then turned to the western lands and called for mocked it and his ghost. To this day it has not been retrieved
a crusade promising land and wealth. The summons generated and appears to haunt those who cross the bogs. It has led to the
wide enthusiasm in the west and hosts of adventurers came to strange name for all-around call the bogs the Pete Bogs, Pete
carve holdings for themselves. Though the coming years saw Marsh, or Peter’s Water and similar names.
many victories and some expansion, the Empire failed to expand
much beyond its original borders. The worship of Ore Tsar, PLAINS OF ACHROTHOS
however, came with the crusaders and the seven lands became
The vast grasslands of Achrothos dominate all the land east of
powerful supporters of the new religion. Heimstat is ruled by a
Aufstrag. They are hemmed in by the Black Hills in the north,
Bishop in the church of Ore Tsar.
the Grausumland Swamps and the Grossewald forest in the
Pryzmira still rules in Aenoch. She is the last of the rulers who west, and the Blacktooth Ridge in the south. Marked by long
emerged from the wars of the Winter Dark. The last two decades hot, summers and cold winters, the grasslands are hard on those
of her rule have seen little in the way of military expansion. She who live there. Home to herds of bison, wild horses, and other
struggles with increasing the commercial power of Ascalon in herbivores, the plains attract wolves of all stripes, large brown
the face of the seven lands, maintaining the worship of the elder bears and other predators.
gods in the face of the church of Ore Tsar, and ensuring her
Few humanoids except gnolls make their home on the plains.
daughter Neratite’s elevation to the throne.
The gnolls travel in small bands of 20-50, though these are
Aenoch promises high adventure and quick wealth. The usually part of a larger tribe. At times they gather under one
political and religious unrest cause constant feuds between the leader and raid the lands to the west, south or north. The gnolls
seven lands and the Empress, between the old and new gods. contend with the horsemen of the Maduan tribes, humans, and
The continuous calls for crusaders to rid the lands to the north fierce warriors whose mounted skills are unmatched but for
of wild orcs and remnants of the horrors of Aufstrag make the greatest of the knights in the west. The Maduan travel the
Aenoch a beacon for would-be glory hunters. plains in bands that range from very small to very large. They
have a tribal organization but are very sophisticated people who
ORNLAW VALLEY trade with both New Aenoch, Grafika and Punj to the north.
They are the traditional enemies of the Aenochians.
The lush grass-covered valley lies between the Stone Ridge
and Blacktooth Ridge. It was once farmland but has long since Lesser dragons hunt Achrothos as well, feasting on the rich
returned to the wild and now plays host to two small herds of variety of herd animals. Griffons, roosting in the south also hunt
bison. The remnants of old stone farmhouses dot the valley, the plains. Other creatures come to the plains seeking prey and
offering shelter to those who pass through. Water is plentiful as often lair up in the many ruins that dot the countryside. These
is small game. Its wealth in wildlife makes it a favored hunting ruins are the remnants of the old Empire, consisting of manors,
ground for very large wargs who come from the Blighted Screed palaces, castles, and keeps. It is rumored that vast wealth lies
to hunt. They are a danger to any who pass through the valley. abandoned in the Plains of Achrothos as Unklar’s people left
the area largely intact.
PETE BOGS
The swamps of the Gruasumland give way in the south to a RED HILLS
series of broad, flat bogs. Beginning at the edge of the Toten The Red Hills are part of the southern chain of the Antule
Fields, these bogs extended 15-20 miles into the swamps around Mountains. In the south, they rise gradually out of the Illumbrian
Aufstrag and from the Buzial River in the north, down to the Plains and overlook the Toten Fields in the north. These hills
Serit River in the south. They are shallow, roughly one to 4 and valleys undulate for many miles, increasing in height and
feet deep. These bogs formed after the fall of Unklar. When the depth the further into the mountains one travels. The northern
Winter Dark ended the marsh, shallow here, attracted a host reaches of the mountains become steeper though they are not
of shrubs, mosses, and grasses. These in turn died and settled topped with the jagged peaks and steep cliffs found throughout
beneath the water, creating a thick, clinging mud. The water much of the Antule Mountains. The upper slopes are sparsely
remained; the sphagnum moss continued to grow until the forested with a mixture of aspen and stunted junipers while
whole region became an impassable quagmire. wispy grasses grow over much of the remainder.
Travel here is slow, movement rates cut in half and the risk of The southern slopes are usually dry, being washed only by
sinking into mud too deep to escape is prevalent everywhere. gentle winter rains and summer showers. During the winter, the
Many fey have settled in this region as well, will o wisps and runoff forms small creeks and streams that pour down into the
witches, boggarts and bog hags, cearbs, spriggans and the like. plains to the south, filling its many lakes and ponds. These rains
The bogs come by their peculiar name for a knight of Kayomar have also cut into the deep red and black clays that form the
fell here during the final battles of the Winter Dark Wars. lower slopes of the mountains. These clays are highly prized for
Peter of Lansdale led a troop of his house knights into the bogs making pottery and many a village depends on their export and
pursuing part of the host of Aufstrag. He became lodged in the processing for their livelihood. The upper reaches are poorly
mud and was slain there. The fey who came to dwelt in the explored and little used, but the grasses do offer summer fodder
bogs, took up his lifeless form and made a marker of it. They for small herds of bovine, elk, deer, and other grazers.

The southern portion of these mountains is dominated by the TOTEN FIELDS
Hlobane orcs of Fortress Hul. These highly organized orcs were
The Fields of Alpa were once fertile lands where people lived
the pride of Unklar during the Winter’s Dark, and have not
out their lives in the relative peace of the Winter Dark. Villages
forgotten it. They worship the Horned God still and slay any
and farmsteads dotted the landscape, and so close were they
who transgress in their lands (see Fortress of Hul above).
to Aufstrag that few molested them even during the height of
the Winter Dark Wars. This changed in 1137md when the final
SERIT RIVER battle between the dark and the Young Kingdoms was fought.
The Serit’s origins lie in the Pete Bogs to the north. It’s a small
river, 60-100 feet wide and 20 feet deep. It meanders its way For months, humans, dwarves, and elves gathered in the
through the marsh until it breaks out into the grasslands south of wilds of the Luneburg, and in the high summer of 1137md,
the swamp. It does not stay there long however; within a few miles, the allied host crossed the Udunilay River to attack Aufstrag.
it spills into the Udunilay River. The river is small, overgrown But the imperial forces had not been idle. They had gathered
with reeds and brush and difficult to navigate. It is easy to hide the flower of the empire and called on those dragons who still
in, however, and many a bandit, raider or adventurers has found lived, devils and wild fiends of the pit. Several of the foul mogrl
refuge in the crowded banks of the little Serit. joined them, as did many wizards. All the hosts of the west met
them in battle, the flower of Anglamay, Kayomar, Augsberg,
THE STONE RIDGE Grundliche-Hohle, and Norgorad Kam as well as many other
diverse nations. The battle waged far and wide across the plans
The spur of the Blacktooth Ridge is roughly 30 miles long and was called the Turegfell, the Battle of the Tree. Turegfell
and half as wide. The Stone Ridge is stark, consisting of shook the land to its foundations and left the whole land west
staggered cliffs that climb 5-600 feet above the plains, to a of the swamps a desolate wasteland. Many of both hosts fell,
narrow ridgeline before they climb back down on the north including such lords as King Morgan of Kayomar and Princess
face. There is one trail, Tailors Walk Road, that leads up to the Elisa. Coburg too, lord of the tower died as well. So great was the
top of the Ridge and down again. It is narrow and steep. The carnage that men left their brothers on the field, and even the
ridge itself is only a few hundred feet wide. The inaccessibility dwarves’ stout hearts failed to pull the fallen from the calamity
of the ridge top made this an attractive place to build. During and ruin of the war. Mounds of dead lay where they fell. The
the Winter Dark, several towers were built here. They lie in magic of the magi blasted the earth beyond healing, charging
ruins now but are home to several marauders and it is said a the very air with arcane power. Even the druids failed to break
wizard of some repute. the horror which hung over the fields of Alpa.
SUMP In time, the place became a stinking morass of silted pools and
poisoned earth. The Plains of Alpa were renamed then, called
The Sump is a broad lake on the northern edge of the
the Dead Lands, or the Toten Fields.
Grausumland and at the mouth of the Wasting Way. Anyone
who wishes to travel the Wasting Way must first cross the Sump. The earth eventually swallowed up the dead and the land
healed some little, but the lands of the Toten Fields were ever
The Sump is a deadly dangerous place to find oneself in. The
after haunted places, plagued by the howls of the dead and
ground here is utterly saturated, the water turning the clay-
damned. It is said that on warm days the goodly Princess Elisa
filled earth into a vast patch of thick, clinging mud. The water
(see the Codex of Aihrde, Aachen) can be seen calling for her
is rarely over a few inches high, even during the rainy season.
lords and her father to come to her and find her. Untold wealth
What water the ground cannot drink runs off in rivulets to the
and magic lie buried in the Toten Fields, sunk deep into the
south. This makes boat travel impossible.
earth, but the ghosts of the fallen wander the hills, calling out
The ground itself is broken and pockmarked. Some areas are their pain. Necromancers thus frequent the land in search of
relatively flat, with the earth just beneath the surface of the the power of the dead.
water. However, the water does cover deep holes and gulches
The only thing of value in the whole land is a small worm that,
filled with a murky, muddy liquid. Falling in one of these holes
when coaxed right, produces the finest silks in the world. A yard
is dangerous, as mud lines them from their bottoms to the top
of the silk can easily sell for 20gp in Anglamay. Reputed to be
edges. Falling in means getting stuck, and getting out is not as
used only by the Horned God himself in times past, the silk is
easy as going in.
now available only rarely, for few brave the wasteland to cull it
Some paths exist through the lake, but these only lead to the from the stricken earth.
swamp and are known by only a few rangers and animals.
Otherwise, entering the mud is dangerous. The mud is thick, UDUNILAY RIVER
clinging to boots, feet, legs, cloaks and anything else it touches. A mighty river, perhaps the most fearful of all rivers upon
The weight of the thick, clingy mud serves to drag one into the Aihrde, the Udunilay begins high up Mount Ud, deep in the
Sump where one is likely to remain until the Gonfod, the end Grundliche Mountains near the Hohle of the same name. It
of days. is said that the water flows from the eye of the All Father, so
clean and pure is its beginning. It is called the River of Eternal
See A11 The Wasting Way for more.

Life, for, like many things in this part of the world, it seems UTRING AKT
indomitable and endless.
Utring Akt refers to the fortress that lies within Mount Utring.
It tumbles and careens over falls and mountains, fed by an It is the home of the Frost Lord, a powerful elemental lord, and
ever-increasing number of streams, spring melt, and glaciers member of the order of Val Eahrakun who came to the world
until it dumps a mighty gush of water onto the broad plains of in the Days before Days. The Frost Lord served Unklar for
Aenochia. From thence it flows through the Grossewald, the many years. In those years he fortified Mount Utring against all
Grausumland, and the Kellerwald before arriving at the Amber enemies, both mortal and otherwise. Within the mountain, he
Sea. It is fed by the Ondovar and the Uphrates, making the lorded over those realms Unkar doled out to him, accumulated
river’s southern courses a league or more in width. mountains of treasure and built an army of frost ogres.
So powerful is its flow, the Grausumland could not absorb it, There he remained, even after the fall of Unklar.
though Unklar bent much of his will towards taming it, and it
The mountain itself is difficult to climb and has only one path
filled all the ruins of Al-Liosh.
that leads up its flanks. This path circumnavigates the mountain,
The Udunilay stood as the main avenue of traffic for centuries, however, to use it one must first pass through a fortified
until the creation of the Grausumland, carrying goods north gatehouse. Once through the gatehouse, the path offers seven
and south. It fertilizes all the central plain, watered the people different entries to Utrink Akt beneath. Each entry is guarded
of Al-Liosh and later Aufstrag. It is here that the first of the by a tower. Breaching a tower leads one to the underground
Aenochians dwelt. dungeons that are the Frost Lord’s lair.
Each of the seven dungeons is interconnected through a central

UPHRATES RIVERS hub, which itself is multi-layered. Here, it is rumored, the Frost
This major river begins in the well-watered Plains of Achrothos. Lord dwells.
Fed by hosts of small streams and rivers it broadens very quickly
so that by the time it reaches Three Bends, about a hundred Total Population: 60
miles into its course, it is a large body of water. South of Three Naga: 5
Bends the river is a good 300-400 feet wide, moves at a slow,
Orc: 0
almost languished pace as it flows south of the Withing Oaks.
Frost Ogre: 40 +/-
After the Withing, the Uphrates widens to roughly 500-600
Goblin: 15 +/-
feet. Here the fish are plentiful and men ply those waters all year
long, plucking a harvest from the waters that once fed all the Government: The Frost Naga Queen rules in Utring Akt. The
Vale of Al Liosh. Beyond the lake the river tightens its course, Frost Lord takes no active role in Utring Akt.
passes beneath the Great Bridge of Aremin and onto the south, Military: If called upon the Naga Queen can gather 40 frost
feeding the fertile plains, or what was once the fertile plains, of ogres, half a dozen goblins and 3-4 naga. They obey her every
central Aenoch, before it enters its sister river, the Udunilay. command, however, the frost ogres are not apt at listening.
The water of the Uphrates was always seen as pure and cleansed Economy: There is no economic development here.
the souls of those who partook of it. Religion: Unklar is worshiped by all but for the Frost Lord
himself.
The Uphrates was worshipped by many of the ancient
Aenochians. Its peaceful journey, broad watered plains, Language: The Vulgate, the common tongue, is spoken.
bountiful harvests of fish, all served to enrich the lives of those Guilds: There are no guilds here.
who lived near its banks. Sacrifices were routine as people
dropped foodstuffs into the slow-moving water. In later years, For more on Utring Akt and the Frost Lord see the adventure
temples were built on the banks and homage paid to the river. module A7 Beneath the Despairing Stone.
The sacrifices became more extravagant as did the wealth of the
inhabitants. Some of the most powerful Aenochians lived along VALE OF SKADI
its banks, and the ruins of their houses mark it still.
In the mountains, nestled between the Nostian and Fromia
The Winter Dark ended that as the lands were despoiled and rivers and south of the Toten Fields, rests a small and forgotten
the inhabitants enlisted in the Horned Gods service or were put valley referred in local legends as the Vale of Skadi. In this valley,
to death or bound in chains. The river itself was left unchanged a large and prosperous town named Brunhille once existed. Its
but it no longer watered the fertile plains, but spilled into the citizens dwelt under the dominion of Aufstrag. With access to
Gray Swamps, the moat of Aufstrag. Then the waters grew foul, mines, the town grew in power and wealth through trade and
poisoned with the reek of Unklar’s thought. Despite this, its commerce. Unfortunately, Brunhille tried to remain neutral
course is unaltered, and though no one travels it any longer, its when Unklar’s powers waned and the Winter Dark Wars began.
waters, even in the Grausumland can heal the weary and bring
It was under the rulership of Aurion the Black that Brunhille refused
strength to those struggling in the swamps.
the increased demand for resources which Aufstrag mandated.

Retribution was swift as many of the townspeople were rounded WITHING OAKS
up and put to death as sympathizers to the newly formed Council
of Light from the west. Brunhille rose up and rebelled against the Called the Wall of the North by the Aenochians the Withing
imperium, but as the forces of light closed in on Unklar’s seat of Oaks are a low range of hills that lie some 30-60 miles north of the
power, armies of darkness were closing on the valley. Gruasumland. They extend from the Uphrates to the eves of the
Grossewald, giving out some 10-15 miles from that mighty forest.
In desperation, Brunhille called for aid and, according to stories, The Oaks rise from the grasslands quite precipitously, climbing in
giants came from the mountains and hills, whereas gnomes rose a series of hills and valleys to several hundreds of feet. Travel here
from hidden places in the earth and came to fight the invaders. is relatively easy, as the hills are broad and round. Gulches can be
Rumors say that an unknown renegade archmage summoned deep and climbing out sometimes difficult, but even then, it is in
demons to do his bidding and fend off the enemy. Other tales the shade of tall White Oaks or the hills themselves.
tell of a warrior, carried on a dragon mount, that led the charge
against Aufstrag’s folk. The Withing Oaks plays host to tall-growing white oak trees
that range up to 100 feet high. Their narrow canopies allow the
But it was to no avail. By the time the reign of Unklar came to trees to grow relatively close to each other. They prefer the well-
an end, so ended the existence of Brunhille. It is believed the watered valleys as opposed to the high, hot hilltops and mostly
very mountains came down and crushed much of the invaders grow there. They are a strong tree and have long since choked
and the town itself was destroyed, leaving nothing but ruins out underbrush and scrub, making for a pristine old-growth wood.
and abandoned buildings. It was a massacre and meant to be an Their absence on the hilltops however does allow quite a few
example for any others thinking of rising up against Aufstrag. smaller oaks, red maple and hickory to grow. Though the soil on
Some survivors remained and settled a small village on the the tops of the Withing is dry and rocky, affording enough ground
outskirts of the ruins, but in the years that followed, the fate for only a few of these trees. For this reason, it is not uncommon
of Brunhille, the village, and its stories were mostly forgotten. to spy a red maple, alone atop a hill, her brilliant red leaves a dash
of color in the green and browns of the Withing.
But whispers remain. Whispers of a fortress belonging to giants
up in those mountains. Whispers of a warrior’s tomb and The Fichlum Way passes through the Oaks at the Pass of
the dragon that guards it. Whispers of a wizard tower at the Nomenek, but beyond that, there are no roads in the Oaks,
center or a town in ruins. And whispers of untold wealth lying only animal paths and trails cut by rangers.
unclaimed in the ruins and the mines not far off.
There are only a few hardy people who live in the Oaks, hunters
and some woodsmen who seek to be far from the paved roads of
cities and towns.

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EXPANSION

THE ENVIRONS OF AUFSTRAG

1818 North Taylor, #143, Little Rock, AR, 72207

Printed in the United States of America

2 CASTLES & CRUSADES

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Total Population: 2,500 Total Population: 5,350 +/-

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Each of the seven dungeons is interconnected through a central

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