Elturel

Elturel was a city-state lying on the River Chionthar in the Western Heartlands. In the mid–14th century DR, it was a center for agriculture and trade in the region, and was renowned for its elite mounted defenders, the Hellriders. In the late 15th century DR, it was the capital of the realm of Elturgard, a theocracy of Torm the True and defended by its paladin knighthood, the Order of the Companion. The high overseer Thavius Kreeg made a deal with the Archduke of Avernus, Zariel and damned all the city to the Nine Hells. The city now stands suspended over the river styx, chained to Avernus, waiting to be pulled into the river and lost forever.

Geography

The city was situated atop a bluff or tor with a cliff dominating the River Chionthar. This was both a good defensive position and a good crossing-point, as the river below was narrow, shallow, and easily traversed by poling barges; the city was founded here for this advantage.[9] The river linked it with Berdusk, Iriaebor, and Scornubel, and to Baldur's Gate on the Sword Coast. The Skuldask Road ran through Elturel, linking it to Thundar's Ride in the Fields of the Dead in the northwest, and to Berdusk and Uldoon's Trail in the southwest. The lesser-used Dusk Road began at Elturel and went northeast to meet the Trade Way at Triel. It was a major stop on the trade routes through the Western Heartlands. Hellrider ward token A ward token for a Hellrider Lodge. In the 1360s DR, Elturel laid claim to lands along the Dusk Road northeast as far as Triel, along the Skuldask Road northwest to where it met Thundar's Ride and southeast down to Windstream Lodge, and along the Chionthar upstream to Scornubel, and downstream to Stone Eagle Lodge. The border was distinct: within, the land was farmed and settled; without, wilderness reigned, the land covered in shrubs and scrub trees. Elturel's domain was characterized by agriculture, where cattle and sheep grazed, brush was cut back, and farms fenced by hedges and stone walls studded the landscape. After the 1430s DR, a shining orb known as the Companion or "Amaunator's Gift" hung directly over the center of the city, never setting. Only the High Observer knew if this was truly a blessing of the sun god Amaunator. This second sun produced no heat but its light illuminated the city day and night, as bright as the natural sun and burned undead of all kinds. Creatures of darkness could not even bear to look at the city. It could be seen from virtually anywhere within Elturgard, though it faded with distance.