Keyah Beesh

The island of Keyah Beesh probably seemed like a beacon of hope to the migrant caravans of sky ships who arrived two generations ago.   Sanctuary Mountain's twin peaks rising high above the frigid sea must have felt like a protective shield, ready and waiting to ward the huddled masses against the encroaching cold of the Great Freeze. The yawning maw of Beastburrow Cavern must have appeared to be a ready-made shelter from the debris-storms of The Junk. Even the ominous tower of Cobalt Keep likely felt rich with potential treasure and opportunity.   If only they had known the true history of this curse-touched land, perhaps they would have sailed onward, in search of safer shores...  

Mount Sanctuary

  The twin peaks of this mountain rest in the center of the island, split by the Howling Vale. The mountain doesn't appear to be volcanically active, or at least hasn't been during the current era, although its surface is curiously warm, even on the eastern side. A huge tunnel bores deep into the heart of Mount Sanctuary on its southern exposure.   The mountain is rich in iron ore, which the hardy folk of Tokoa mine to create tools and parts for airships, a valuable export. However, this iron-rich environment has proven to be a problem for the Frostlings, fae-touched descendants of some of the earliest Tokoan settlers. Because of their sensitivity to iron, these pixie-like beings founded the community of Glitterglade on the north end of the island, farthest from the mountain.  

Tokoa

  On the southern tip of the "blade" of Keyah Beesh is the rustic merchant town of Tokoa. Since settling on the island after the Great Freeze (AGF), the people of Tokoa have worked to build a sustainable community. After tragically realizing the soil on the temperate hearth-ward side of the island produced toxic vegetation, they settled on the southern cape. Over the past two generations, Tokoa has grown into a bustling, mostly self-sufficient town.   They have a strong artisan class who work the iron brought down from Sanctuary Mountain into highly sought after tools, implements and parts for the airships that connect various communities in the Forge Islands. Because of some of the unique hazards of Keyah Beesh, outlanders have learned that Tokoans have a strong partiality for silver coin (or silver anything).   Tokoans have a generally good relationship with the Frostlings in Glitterglade on the north end of Keyah Beesh, recognizing them as "cousins." However, the Tokoans' heavy trade in iron and the Frostlings' sensitivity to it have created a bit of an awkward situation diplomatically-speaking.   The town is managed by a Clerk-Treasurer, who is elected by popular vote every three years, and cannot serve more than two terms of office. The Tokoans are vehemently opposed to any form of aristocracy. Their former nobles did not complete the long, difficult migration from the Old Country due to a food shortage, during which they insisted the remaining rations should be apportioned by class. The bulk of the migrants strongly disagreed, taking the axiom "eat the rich" to a logical (and quite literal) conclusion.    

Cobalt Keep

  This tower is an artifact of the ancients, and was already a ruin when the Tokoans arrived. It has been very little explored, despite its location on the most temperate part of the island and the strong probability of useful artifacts and treasure within its crumbling stone walls.   The Tokoans consider it a horribly unlucky, cursed place. A "blast radius" of magical radioactivity centered on the tower has made the hearthward side of the island more or less uninhabitable. Many early settlers died as a result of this magical residue, first from consuming magically-poisoned food they tried to grow there, and second during the Great Zombie Incursion of 0 AGF.  

Meadow of Whispers

  This misty plain on the hearth-ward side of Keyah Beesh never quite loses the chill of a foggy autumn morning. Looming over the meadow is the crumbling tower of the Cobalt Keep, where an ancient mage's experiments went horribly wrong. This meadow, more than any other place on this magic-marred island, bears the scars of that unknown sorceror's mistake. The ground is still radioactive with magical residue, imbuing any plants or animals found there with wildly-unpredictable, often deadly effects. The dead who are laid to rest within the Meadow do not rest easy, and rise up as zombies, ghosts or other undead creatures.  

Howling Vale

  Between the twin peaks of Sanctuary Mountain is a sheltered pass known as the Howling Vale. While it is relatively safe during daylight hours, traveling through this valley under the light of the full moon is ... most unwise.  

Glitterglade

  In the early days of settlement, many immigrants died due to consuming magically-poisoned produce. However, some survived, but were changed. These new people, known as Frostlings, had a strong affinity for magic and cold, and a strong sensitivity to iron.   They live as community of feral ice pixies on the north side of the island, and enjoy interplanar travel, windsurfing, ice-fishing and a variety of winter sports. They have a good relationship with the Tokoans, recognizing them as their revered ancestors. They try to protect the Tokoans from some of the dangers of the island when possible, but they're limited in their ability to do so by their aversion to warmth, the Tokoans reliance on the iron trade, and the very large iron-laced mountain between their two homelands.  

Beastburrow Cavern

  At first, the Tokoans believed it to be a mine dug by the ancients, and sent small teams of explorers on expedition within its echoey chambers to determine if there were still any useful resources to be gleaned. However, upon examination, the Tokoan scholars determined that the cavern was neither naturally occurring formation nor a mine, but instead appears to have been dug out by some massive creature. Since the creature has never been seen entering or leaving the cavern in two generations, the Tokoans believe this monster to be extinct.   Show Spoiler   In the present day, the caverns provide storage for grain, as well as a thriving mushroom farming enterprise.       Show Spoiler It is also home to the catacombs where the Tokoans entomb the remains of their dead, having learned that burying them in the magically-radioactive grounds on the hearth-ward side of the main island was a bad idea after the Zombie Incursion of 01 AGF (After Great Freeze).