Location idea resource

[Dirigible]

The Bleaching Plains

Spanning ten-hundred miles of the central flatlands, the Bleaching Plains (also know as the Aisles of Biers, a name that has led many a sailor on a wild goose chase) are a vast ossuary, the remnants of the old necromantic empire of Guldor. The tradition of the necromancers was to leave the deceased out on stone pallets, waiting for the vultures, scapel-worms and carrion dogs to do their grizzly work, and finally for the sun to turn the bony remains into that shade that most pleased the Guldoran necrmancers.

As regular as paving stones, the biers remain to this day, although many have been broken or eroded. They stretch out as far as the eye can see in all directions, oppressing anyone who travels this forsaken land. Near the heart of the Bleaching Plains the last towers of the Guldorans remain standing, gnarled fingers of black stone that jutt threateningly into the sun-bright sky.


Man, I'm happy this thread has been reanimated

Nextup
Kleavdstone

 

[Bran Blackbyrd]

Damn, well written, Bran Blackbyrd!

Thank you very much.

They get the name Wireworms from their method of ferrying travelers from one side of the Gorge to the other; through a series of pulleys and wires.

Very clever take on the Wireworms!

The tradition of the necromancers ... this thread has been reanimated

Necromancers? Reanimated? Hehehehe. Nice post.

 

[Buttercup]

Kleavdstone

At the halfway point on the road between Rindor and the Dwarven stronghold of Irongate lies the Kleavdstone. It is a huge, basalt pillar that is spit from its tip, halfway down the stone, as though cleaved with a god's axe. The Kleavedstone lies in no one's territory, yet the road and land about it remains completely clear for 1/4 mile in every direction. Leaves from the surrounding forest do not blow onto the ground around the Kleavedstone. No bird perches there. No lizard suns itself on its black face. Travellers take pains to arrange their journeys so that they do not need to rest near the Kleavdstone. For the place has a forbidding aura about it.

Legends say that during the long war between the dwarves and the people of Rindor, these lands were disputed territory. Both peoples were heading toward complete destruction, and their gods grew tired of the childishness. So Estrella, the patron goddess of Rindor, took a star from the heavens and forged it into an axe. She gave this axe to Grimbold, god of the dwarves, and he hewed the land itself, right in the middle of the disputed territory. A fountain of black molten rock errupted from the wound, and formed the Kleavdstone, which became the center of a no-man's land between the two peoples. Estrella and Grimbold commanded their peoples to cease hostilities, forbid them from settling within a day's walk of the stone in any direction. To this day, the dwarves and the Rindorians live in peace. Though there is still no love lost between them, as yet none of them have been foolish enough to restart a conflict that the gods themselves ended.

Next up:
Bloodstone Caverns

 

[Bran Blackbyrd]

Bloodstone Caverns

Known to most as the Bloodstone Caverns, this system of caves is holy ground for kobolds. Kobold shamans, who insist their race is descended from dragons, say that the caverns are actually the insides of a colossal, petrified red dragon. Supposedly this dragon gave birth to the creatures that would become the first kobolds. The shamans call this place, The Mother’s Womb. The shamans routinely coat the walls with blood. Sometimes it is gathered from slain dragons, but more often than not it is gathered from the kobolds themselves.
Each chamber of the Bloodstone Caverns has a purpose. Females are brought to the birthing chamber to bear their young, there is a room where young males are brought (kicking and screaming, usually) to endure painful rites of passage. There are also rooms for the shamans to pray to their gods and to their “mother”, a room where offerings are left, and rooms where aspiring sorcerers are soaked in dragon’s blood and the blood of other sorcerers, so that they may inherit the power of the blood.
Strange rumblings can be heard sometimes, coming from the openings of the cave that sound not unlike the roar of a dragon. Despite the reek of old blood that issues from the caverns and gives them their name, most carrion eaters and insects stay clear of the place. Perhaps they are afraid of the dragon?
No kobolds live there, though the shamans sometimes spend weeks in the cave performing various rituals. Visitors are not welcome at the Bloodstone Caverns, which are guarded by many kobold warriors and it is not uncommon for the shamans and sorcerers who travel there to defend against trespassers; though blood donations are always welcome.

Next: Jopfor’s Candle House

 

[thol]

Jopfor’s Candle House

Never been to ole Jop's before, eh? It's a sight no traveller should miss. That, and he's got some right useful stuff tucked in his little house.

Need directions? Well... on the western edge of the Old City, on a little cul-de-sac off the Beggar's Run, somewhere between the Rusted Rook Tavern and Captain Shay's Cartographic Emporium, lies Jopfor Jiles' Candle House. Most call it Jop's for short. At least those who know about the place do. There's a good number of folks who'd give you a blank look if you asked 'em after it, but that's the way anywhere I suppose. Though maybe not.

Why? Well, ole Jop ain't what you'd call usual. Sure, he sells what any good tallowmaker would. Candles. Big. Small. Green. Black. White. Scented. Carved. Plain. You want it, he's got it. But that ain't all. He's got some 'specials', if you know how to ask for 'em.

What kind of specials? That depends. Some say Jop used to work for a man by the name of Faldomer Granth. By that look I can tell you've heard of him. Yeah, supposedly he learned some extra skills from the most dangerous man these parts ever saw. They say he picked up some herbalistic and eldritch knowledge from Granth, and that he'll put it to use for a price. But that's just what they say.

What do I say? I don't say anything. I keep my mouth shut. Jop's a better friend than an enemy, that's for sure, and I'd like to keep it that way. You'd likely do the same, if you were smart. And you look like a smart one.

Interested in some slightly used gemstones? No? Well, you'd best get a move on to the Candle House before dark. He likes to get rid of the customers before dark. He does his best work at night.

Next: Two-Penny Thicket

 

[Dirigible]

Two-Penny Thicket

In the heart of the hamlet of Prieststumble there is a sprawling expance of tangled blackberry bushes. The villagers avoid it carefully, being well aware of the sharpness and cloak-tearing potential of the thorns, the knottiness of the roots and branches... but children often sneak in to play, and are just as aware of the sweetness of the berries.

Every spring, the Fest of [Fertillity Deity of your choice] is held around the borders of the thicket. Bonfires, seed-blessings and dances go on on all fronts, and the blackberries, harvested with much care and just as much blood and scratches knuckles, are mae into famously delicious pies.

The rest of the year, the thicket sees one use... bilking gullible adventurers of their coppers. In the very centre of the thicket, a permanent illusion of a tall storm-grey wizard's tower, worn with age and weather-stained, stands, tempting mercenaries and tomb-raiders with tales of gold and glory sealed their by an ancient sorceror.

For a meer two coppers, the grinning villagers will show the travellers the entrance to the path that winds though the thicket, and promise to help carry out the vast stacks of loot they will no doubt return with. After a few hours of hacking through the bushes, though, the adventurers will probably figure out the trick... the tower is like the end of the rainbow, it moves as you approach it. So, bloodied and nicked, they trekk out again and sometimes stay the night at the inn, maybe a little wiser. The villagers are more than willing to share the joke with good humoured parties.

However, they do avoid playing this trick on parties full of half-orcs, drow, one-eyed men in spiked armour and anyone using a bardiche (the polearm of evil!).

Next: Rollthunder Falls

 

[Tonguez]

come on people - had to chase this down to page 7!!!

Rollthunder Falls
In the valley of the winds, 2 miles east of the the Temple of 10,000 Thunders you will find the Rollthunder falls, a spectacular sheet of water that falls 100 feet from the mountain above where it begins as a simple spring. The water strikes the rock below and roars as it gouges out its pool and then flows forth through the valley.
Look more closely now and you will see humanoid figures, monks from the Temple of 10000 Thunders, suspended in the waterfall, each one focussed on overcome the limitations of his mortal flesh. Those who fail to leap to the top of the fall are plunged down and crushed beneath the waters awesome weight, their bones ground into the bedrock beneath, others find themselves forever suspended in the waters flow, their dessicated flesh torn away beacons of the cost of failure. But for those few who survive the test of the Rollthunder falls eternity awaits, for they overcome the limitations of mortal flesh and join the Prestigious ranks of the immortal Raijin -Lords of the Rolling Thunder

Next: The Grassy Gnoll

 

[Dirigible]

The Grassy Gnoll

Sheng-Tokkola, Reaper of the Flatlands.

For a decade, he was terror, death and pain personified. A giant of his kind, ten foot tall, furr matted with blood, teeth glittering like hungry quartz. Fifty thousand gnolls howled at his beck and call.

Sheng-Tokkola, Gatherer of Man-Skulls.

Pallstown fell to his ravening mob, the village of Errloc burned, and he held a feast of human and halfling flesh, lightly spit-roasted in the ruins of Castle Lorehame. The Covenant of Ten Kings was broken by his flail, and he wore the crowns of King Faultor and King Brytani as his shoulder-armour.

Sheng-Tokkola, Chosen of Yeenoghu.

He was the beast-lord of all he surveyed. The Flailing King. The Breaker of Lands. And he died under the holly-staff of Lyra, the Druid Queen.

Sheng-Tokkola laughed at her enchantments, growing in stature and power with every spell she called forth, Yeenoghu's gift letting him drink from the very magics Lyra wielded. Until her last spell.

A sweep of her staff, and Sheng-Tokkola fell to the ground, yelping in pain. His minions watched as his body became heavy and earthy, flesh to soil, blood to streams, bones to stone, fur to grass. And there was a new hill, under Lyra's staff.

Sheng-Tokkola, The Grassy Gnoll.

Next: The Diamond Web

OOC: A pune, or play on words! Oh, how witty I am!
Also, what Tonguez said. Keep 'em comming!

 

[thol]

The Diamond Web

The Southlands are known for many things. There are dense jungles, strange animals, the Gorge River Falls, and the ruins of the Old Dhrom. But what they are known for most are precious stones.

At the mouth of the Gorge River lies the Great Mines of Njambe [JOM-bay] the Warrior-King, the most heavily guarded place ever known. King Njambe has always been quite paranoid, and by right, as his mines produce the only source of diamonds besides the ancient ruins that lie hidden in the forgotten places across the Southlands.

He protects his rule by assuring his might, which comes from his vast wealth. The guarding forces of the Mine, known simply as the Mineguard, are more organized than most armies, with elaborate procedures and specialized training. The men in the Mineguard are the elite of Njambe's warriors, second only to his private guards.

His paranoia comes through most in the fact that for each aspect of the mining operation, there are two units assigned to protect it. They each watch each other, and the men are extremely loyal to their individual commanders, having been brought up with their unit from childhood.

From the mining itself, to the sorting, cutting, setting, transport, and eventually sale, there is a layer of protection given by the Mineguard. Retribution is quick for those who dare steal from the Warrior-King, and as such, since his rule, the Mines have seen attempted thievery virtually eliminated. Of course, there are fools who try, thinking they are smarter than the Guard. There has been the occasional magic-user who has tried to infiltrate the Mines by various magical methods, but all have been caught in the act, and put to public death for all Njambe's subjects to see. Some call him Njambe the Spider-King, and his network of protection the Diamond Web.

Next up: The Shrine of Fortune

 

[Piratecat]

The Shrine of Fortune

Rumors seem to keep spreading about the Shrine of Fortune. For those who worship the god of luck, it's said to be a place where peace can be bought and donations can perhaps give you a taste of heaven. No others can find it, and some who have tried report only an empty ramshackle barn at the end of a rutted dirt road near crossroads.

The old barn is the entrance to the shrine, but not in the way that most people think. The side door is a portal that is activated by a holy symbol to the God of Chance. Those who pass through the opening with such a holy symbol on their person are instantly transported to a tiny slice of paradise. There the sun is warm, the sky a deep blue, and an ancient cleric lives out her last days by offering succor to those in need. She can tell fortunes and foresee the future, but asking her to do so seems to trigger a future run of bad luck that strikes at the worst possible time. [In game terms, each character accrue "bad luck" points equal to twice the level of the divination spell that the cleric emulates. These points are used to penalize the player-rolled die at some time in the future, at the DM's whim. for this reason, the advice gained from the cleric should be valuable.)

A group of lawful neutral Knights of Order, holy warriors loyal to the God of Law, have also been seeking this shrine. If they can find it they intend to burn the barn, as they consider it an affront to the natural order. Any who patronize such a place are by definitions heretical, and would become enemies of the church.

Next: The Squirming Pool.