Festering Holt

Hamlet, Population: 200

According to the Book:

The nearest humanoid habitation to Ashtakala is a charnel pit of ramshackle structures and ill will. How this hamlet came into existence and why the fiends allow it to remain is one of the many mysteries of the Wastes. What is known is that Festering Holt serves as a way station of sorts in the middle of nowhere. It sits in the western shadows of the Icehorn Mountains, not far from the northern twists of the Labyrinth and a few days south of Ashtakala. While the Holt doesn’t have many comforts to speak of, it can look like paradise to a traveler coming across it in the midst of the Wastes. A visitor to the Holt must be as strong and capable as possible, however, for the inhabitants of the hamlet make a tradition of taking advantage of the weak and the unprepared.
The Holt has a livery of sorts, though the last time it actually housed mounts not even its proprietor can say. The general store, tavern, and inn can be found under the same roof, in the largest structure in the Holt—Dead Before Morning. The innkeep, Karbal (male bugbear), opens the doors every evening and starts the festivities with the same toast: “Drink well, lads, because it’s a sure bet we’ll all be dead before morning!” The name stuck. Goblinoids, orcs, a few humans, a handful of the other common races, and even a few monsters have found their way to the Holt. Though the place has an air of despair, it is really one of the few beacons of light in this desolate land. However, travelers should be aware that there’s another saying in the Holt—“What the Wastes don’t kill, the Holt eats.”

Type

Hamlet