First Sighting of Mordain the Fleshweaver’s Blackroot Tower in Droaam

Miscellaneous

The first confirmed sighting of Blackroot—Mordain the Fleshweaver’s new tower—occurred in 873 YK. In the heat of the Silver Purge against the lycanthropes of Khorvaire, a troop of Aundairian templars of the Silver Flame pursued a few werewolves far to the south of modern Aundair. Weeks later, another patrol encountered a lone survivor, half-mad and delirious. He spoke of a tower “with blackened, leathery walls, twisted as the limb of a dragon reaching up to grasp the sun.”

The first confirmed sighting of Blackroot—Mordain the Fleshweaver’s new tower—occurred in 873 YK. In the heat of the Silver Purge against the lycanthropes of Khorvaire, a troop of Aundairian templars of the Silver Flame pursued a few werewolves far to the south of modern Aundair. Weeks later, another patrol encountered a lone survivor, half-mad and delirious. He spoke of a tower “with blackened, leathery walls, twisted as the limb of a dragon reaching up to grasp the sun.” The Aundairian soldier could not account for his companions, and his own condition was testimony to the horrors he had seen. His upper torso had been fused to the lower body of what was posthumously confirmed to be a werewolf. His mental state quickly deteriorated and he soon died of self-inflicted wounds.   Blackroot’s location in what is now Droaam has long since been confirmed, though the tower is shielded from both scrying and divination. Virtuous champions have set out to destroy the foul wizard and his works. Emissaries from the Five Nations sought his aid in the Last War, and mages have dreamed of stealing his secrets. However, few gaze on the face of Mordain and return unchanged.   Blackroot is surrounded by a twisted, warped land that the gnolls of Droaam call KhreshtRhyyl in the Abyssal tongue, “the Forest of Flesh.” Early in his tenure in Blackroot, Mordain released horrid aberrant creatures called skinweavers into the woods. These beasts weave webs, much as spiders do, but instead of producing silk, skinweavers craft their nests using the recycled flesh of their victims, stretching entrails, strands of muscle, and flayed skin between trunk and bough. Many of these are long abandoned, like cobwebs drifting in the wind. Nonetheless, gnawed bones and glistening strands of flesh are a common sight in the forest, and they serve as a clear warning to turn back.   The woods of KhreshtRhyyl are unusually dense and humid for Droaam, which is one more sign of the power Mordain holds over this region. The canopy above remains dense throughout the year, and even at high noon, only dim light makes its way to the forest floor. Anyone knowledgeable in such matters as herbalism can recognize certain plants that are usually found only underground; this includes phosphorescent fungi that create paths of light snaking through the darkness. Other plants are unknown beyond the forest. These include potent hallucinogens; bloodvines, which produce human blood in place of sap; banshee’s boughs, trees that howl in agony when disturbed in any way; and many others. The ghoul’s rose produces the stench of rotting flesh to attract insects, and the deceptively beautiful stormflower can release blasts of lightning on the unwary.   The creatures of the region are as diverse and dangerous as the plant life. Some are aberrations, though most are bestial creatures unique to the area as opposed to being servants of Xoriat or the Dragon Below. The skinweavers, which look like spiders with a human head attached, are one example of Mordain’s ingenuity, but tales speak of skinless wolves, insane elementals, and frenzied beasts formed from the combination of two or more of the creatures found elsewhere in Droaam. Adventurers might stumble upon a troll with the voice and wings of a harpy, or a hydra with a medusa’s head sprouting from each of its six necks. Rot scarabs, bloodweb spiders, and strange insects chitter in the darkness. Vine horrors, oozes of colors never seen in the world beyond, and aberrant dryads linger just off the phosphorescent paths. The standard biological laws of nature have been shattered here. Many of these unusually predatory monsters have been fleshwarped to survive with minimal sustenance, and hunting instincts and reproductive systems have likewise been altered; some beasts reproduce at a remarkable rate needed to maintain their numbers, and others are sterile and could be exterminated by travelers. Because of this, even the most innocent creatures can pose a deadly threat. The tryyl, a rodent found in the horrific forest, is a little creature possessing the adorable traits of both the rabbit and the hamster. But a tryyl also has poisonous flesh, a venomous bite, and an uncanny reproduction rate held in check by its diet within the forest. Should a few of these creatures be brought to Breland or Aundair, they could quickly spread across the land and become an environmental menace.   And finally, at the heart of the Forest of Flesh, lies a tall tower made of what appears to be the flesh of a black dragon, a tower that will actually bleed if cut or slashed. Somewhere within lies the Fleshweaver himself, and whether he will greet any visitors as guests or more raw material for his insane experiments is truly a gamble. Mordain is reclusive and fully concentrated on his research…he leaves the Daughters of Sora Kell alone and they do likewise. However, some rumors coming out of Droaam whisper that the Fleshweaver’s true goal is to find a way to reopen the portal to Xoriat, the Plane of Madness…