Mournland
A wall of dead-gray mist surrounds the remnants of Cyre. Beyond the mists lies a land twisted by magic, a wound that will not heal. The blasted land is strangely transformed. In some places, the ground has fused into jagged glass. In others, it is cracked and burned. Broken bodies of soldiers from various sides litter the landscape- soldiers whose dead bodies refuse to decompose. The Mournland is a vast open grave. In that horrific landscape, vile magical effects linger, and monsters mutate into even more foul and horrible creatures. Magical effects continue to rain upon the land as storms that never dissipate. Stories speak of living spells-war magic that has taken physical form, sentient fireballs and vile cloudkills that endlessly search for new victims. And angry ghosts continue to fight their final battles.
The only thing predictable about the Mournland is that nothing is predictable; any sort of monster or horror could lurk within its borders. And yet it also holds the wealth and treasures of an entire nation, along with the secrets of House Cannith and everything else that was left behind. It's dangerous. It's mysterious. But it's also a dungeon the size of a nation, with opportunities for those brave enough to enter the mists.
The Mournland is the physical embodiment of the Last War — bloodshed and destruction made manifest on the face of Khorvaire like an open, gaping wound. And just as Cyre was arguably the greatest victim of the war’s beginning, so it suffered and gave all for the war’s end. So ingrained is the Mournland in the cultural consciousness of Khorvaire that it’s hard for people to remember that the Day of Mourning occurred barely two years before the war’s end. But then, it’s always the greatest wound that ends a fight. And it’s a wound that did more than kill the nation of Cyre. None of the people of Khorvaire have yet recovered. The destruction of trade routes and fertile lands has had a far-ranging impact. More fearsome still is the notion that, to date, none have determined with any certainty what caused the Mourning. The fear that it could happen again keeps many a Khorvairian up at night.
The Mournland is the physical embodiment of the Last War — bloodshed and destruction made manifest on the face of Khorvaire like an open, gaping wound. And just as Cyre was arguably the greatest victim of the war’s beginning, so it suffered and gave all for the war’s end. So ingrained is the Mournland in the cultural consciousness of Khorvaire that it’s hard for people to remember that the Day of Mourning occurred barely two years before the war’s end. But then, it’s always the greatest wound that ends a fight. And it’s a wound that did more than kill the nation of Cyre. None of the people of Khorvaire have yet recovered. The destruction of trade routes and fertile lands has had a far-ranging impact. More fearsome still is the notion that, to date, none have determined with any certainty what caused the Mourning. The fear that it could happen again keeps many a Khorvairian up at night.
The Mournland Today
The Mournland frightens and fascinates no less today than it did when the deadly mists first swept Cyre from the face of Khorvaire. Border sentinels stand alert against monstrous incursions, and the Five Nations—still militarily on edge—sometimes view its fog-shrouded depths as a means of toughening up soldiers, or at least bleeding off excess hostility. House Orien desperately seeks some means of restoring safe travel through the region.Brillik's Tomb
Although New Cyre's citizens have an understandable interest in exploring and taming the Mournland, a few explorers have a much more specific purpose when they venture into these dark and twisted depths. Several surviving soldiers believe that General Alvos Brillik, one of Cyre's greatest military minds, was leading a legion out of Metrol on the Day of Mourning. Explorers want not only to recover his banner or his signet ring as a sign of solidarity, but also to locate Hillcrusher, the legendary flail he carried into battle. Even if explorers were to discover Brillik’s resting place, it’s unlikely they would live to report its location.The Cannith Cache
All House Cannith branches, particularly Merrix's Cannith South, seeks to reacquire some of the lost research and creations from Whitehall and other strongholds. Merrix has offered a standing reward for any information leading to the rediscovery of such research. In addition to the known house holdings, rumor speaks of an enormous cache of Cannith weapons and creations hidden somewhere in the Field of Living Spells. Depending on what stories one hears, this cache contains traditional magic weapons, advanced warforged or golems, an actual creation forge, eternal staffs, or even a magic generator that allows the creation of items without drawing on the life energy (experience points) of the creator. If any of these rumors are true, the value of this cache could be incalculable—assuming anyone can locate it and survive long enough to retrieve its contents.The Mistblades
Precious little is known about this mysterious sect. Born only months after the Day of Mourning, it appears to be made up of assassins whose only goal is to prevent the spread of information about the Mournland. Several explorers and soldiers who intended to enter the Mournland have been found slain days or weeks afterward. Left beside each body is a dagger hilt with a blade made of illusory fog. Only once have the Mistblades actually been encountered within the Mournland itself, in the ruins of the Cart and Horse, a roadside inn north of the Broken Tower. Some theorize this place to be the Mistblades' central redoubt, though no evidence exists to support this, and those who have proposed expeditions to find out for certain have been slain before they could finish organizing the journey.
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