Stephan's Folly is a former internment camp set in the
Flat Peaks Desert of
Iluvitar, which was originally created late in the Fourth Age.
After the start of the
Tarterian War in 4A 995, many orcs fled
Tarteria to Iluvitar. As a result of the chancellor taking over power in Santeem after illness claimed the royal family, anti-orc laws were put in place and the prison camp was created.
The prison camp still stands in the Fifth Age, now called Stephan’s Folly after
King Stephan, the Last Monarch of Santeem. The animosity felt between these races as a result of the imprisoning of orcish refugees can still be felt in racial relations in Santeem in the Fifth Age.
Description
Stephan's Folly is located in a deep, rounded canyon between several mesas of the northern
Flat Peaks Desert. It is west of the southern stretch of the
Brass Highway.
The walls of the canyon are high and rugged. The primary access into the canyon is a path which decends, running back and forth as it leads down from the upper wall. Defensive fortifications were built at the entrance with a fortified gate, and several wooden platform watchtowers along the perimiter give sightlines both into the canyon and the approaches to the prison. By the Fifth Age, most of these watchtowers have been destroyed or fallen into disrepair.
There is a winding cavern system which connects to the canyon. Many stalgmites and stalagtites fill the spaces in the cavern system, and
claokers hunt here.
History
The Fourth Age: The Age of Shadow
In 4A 995, a prison camp was created in the Flat Peaks Desert to hold orcish refugees. Many orcs from across Iluvitar would be forcibly placed in the camp. The camp was guarded by the Santeem military.
In early 4A 996,
Grupe, the Monster Hunter, snuck into the prison camp and began working to release the orcs imprisoned there. Later in 4A 996, the
Zenethian Heroes helped form a distraction and attacked the prison guards, allowing the prisoners to escape.
