Wyvernen
Wyvernen is a tiny village with less than two hundred people, but its circumstances are unusual enough to merit mentioning. Surrounded by a wall of stone and wood, Wyvernen is home to farmers, bandits, raiders, peat-diggers ( a nearby gorge delivers excellent peat, which is sold to Safeton as fuel), and a family of gnome cutthroats chased out of Safeton.
The town is ruled by Hendred Blerrid, a priest of the god of war, massacres, conflict, and tyranny. He rules the town with an iron hand, forbidding anyone from fleeing the village, and rides a trained wyvern. His intense hatred for ores has no known source, but causes him to urge the villagers to prepare for battle; his speeches usually include descriptions of ore blood running down the village walls.
Although ores have tried to raid the village five times, each attack has been driven off with ease, with many casualties inflicted by spells from the riding priest and stones dropped from his pet's claws. Morale among the villagers continues to improve, and they maintain a feeling of security in the face of adversity. In fact, their many victories have given them a derisive attitude toward other towns that have suffered at the hands of the humanoids. Even the evil gnomes have made themselves useful during this state of war. As in Cantona, extensive tunnels have been dug under the roads of W yvernen, allowing the people to move about undetected if the ores make it into the town or make surprise attacks from bolt-holes. They have also created a couple of gnome-sized "ventilation shafts" that lead to hidden spots outside the walls just in case the tide turns against the villagers and the priest refuses to evacuate. Hendred refuses to allow the Greyhawk Mountaineers into the territory near Wyvernen, asserting that his is an independent village. The nearby towns know that Wyvernen will eventually fall, but it is impressive and heartening to see the ores keep trying and failing.
Heroes who enter Wyvernen are likely to be solicited into either attacking an ore camp or acting as decoys to draw the ores into another futile attack against the town. Whether or not they should agree with an evil priest ( even if he is acting to harass and annoy a larger group of evil creatures) is something the heroes will have to work out for themselves, although the circumstances may merit a temporary alliance should the ores attack while the heroes are in the village.
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