Sunday, November 26, 2017

The Gloamingwald



The Gloamingwald is several hundred acres of ancient elms, pine, oak, and beech. The trees are so close and the canopy so thick that the forest itself appears gloomy and ominous. Recently, the Merchant Road was extended past the Gloamingwald's western edge, heading south toward Ironstar, Huron, and the Borderlands.

Rumors abound about an order of druids that the locals call the Gray Owls. The Owls protect certain sacred areas within the Gloamingwald and have been linked to several disappearances over the years.

The Merchant Road's expansion has allowed several groups of bandits to use the forest as their headquarters causing Ironstar, the village closest to the Gloamingwald on it's southern border has been seeking help in defending the Road from Huron to the south and Jarlsburg to the north.

Evana Thunderstone has become the most notorious bandit leader of late with those who have survived her cadre's attacks speaking of her knowledge of sorcery and ability of her and her comrades to disappear at will.

Eustace Pauley, a retired Warden of Huron, has unofficially become the commander of the local efforts to make the Road safe. It's his contacts that have allowed negotiations with the southern city to get a few experienced Wardens and some much needed equipment.

About two miles before Ironstar is Buford's Brige which crosses the Poke River. For several generations the legend of Shipman's ghost has been told by locals in the Jackdaw Public House within the village. Locals claim that Isaak Shipman's wife and her lover lured the cobbler there one night and murdered him. They claim that he lurks upon the bridge luring unsuspecting travelers to their doom.

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Monster Monday: Obstrevoi for Shadowdark

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