The Sword Coast North

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Capital: None Population: 660,960 (humans 65%, dwarves 10%, orcs 5%, half orcs 5%, elves 4%, halflings 4%, gnomes 2%, half-elves 1%) Government: Diverse city-states Religions: Nearly all Imports: Books, manufactured items, magic items, miners, pottery, spices Exports: Gems, leather goods, mercenaries, Neverwinter's crafts, precious metals, timber Alignment: All A region of coastal mountains, forests, and cities of smoke-wreathed ironworks, the Sword Coast North is dominated by Waterdeep at its southernmost end. The City of Splendors is detailed separately in the Waterdeep entry, below.) The Lords' Alliance, a loose league of like-minded rulers led by Waterdeep, allies the good cities and small settlements of the Dessarin valley in this region. The Arcane Brotherhood of Luskan and the insidious Kraken Society oppose their efforts, seeking to rule this region by spell, sword, and trade. Major Geographic Features Between Waterdeep and the Spine of the World lies a wedge-shaped land along the coast of the Sea of Swords, roughly seven hundred miles north to south and almost two hundred miles east to west at its uppermost extent. Around the westernmost end of the Spine of the World is Icewind Dale, the northernmost settled land in this part of Faerûn, which lies between the Sea of Moving Ice and the Reghed Glacier. The Long Road stretching from Waterdeep to Mirabar defines the eastern extent of the Sword Coast North. Ardeep Forest: A short day's ride outside the walls of Waterdeep, Ardeep was the home of moon elves who could remember when their forest had stretched all the way to the High Forest and beyond. Some echo of elven power still remains in the woods, and evil creatures do not feel comfortable among its tall blueleaf, duskwood, and weirwood trees. Mere of Dead Men: Centuries ago, thousands of human, dwarven, and elven warriors died in this salt marsh beneath the swords of an invading orc army. Between infestations of bullywugs, sivs, lizardfolk, and the black dragon twins Voaraghamanthar and Waervaerendor, the mere has gone from bad to terrifying. Drawn by tales of treasures sunk in half-submerged castles, adventuring parties continue to trickle into the area, emerging somewhat reduced in number. Neverwinter Wood: This charmed forest to the east of the city of Neverwinter is perpetually warmed by the Neverwinter River that flows from beneath the dormant volcano Mount Hotenow. Humans, and even orcs, fear the wood and tend to avoid it. Unlike other forests with dangerous reputations, the Neverwinter seldom disgorges great monsters or evil forces - the unease felt by those who know they do not belong in Neverwinter Wood stems partly from a terrible anticipation that the wood could do them damage it if chose. The Sea of Moving Ice: Arctic ice floes pivot around permanent rocky outcroppings in the Trackless Sea. The floes are home to orc tribes, animals, and other creatures who can or must survive in the cold. Important Sites Roads and trails crisscross this corner of Faerûn. Few of them are entirely safe. Banditry and brigandage threaten travelers, especially on the wilder stretches of the road. Goldenfields (Small City, 7,988): Tolgar Anuvien of Waterdeep (NG male human Clr16/Dis3 of Chauntea) founded this city thirteen tears ago as an abbey to his deity. Under his careful administration, Goldenfields has grown into a fortified farmland covering more than thirty square miles, making it by far the North's largest city in terms of area. Unlike the great fields of Amn and Sembia that seek only profit, Goldenfields is an ongoing act of devotion to Chauntea. Waterdeep and other cities of the North depend on Goldenfields for grain and produce. Tolgar relies on adventurers and alliances with powerful wizards for defense against frequent barbarian raids, orc attacks, and worse. Icewind Dale (Confederation, 10,436): The northernmost human land below the great glaciers and the sea of ice, Icewind Dale is a collection of ten towns and villages populated. by former nomads, tundra barbarians, rangers, hardy craftspeople, ice fishers, dwarves who live beneath the ice, and merchants willing to brave its harsh climate to purchase ivory and gems unavailable in the south. Reindeer, polar bears, elk, and yeti are more numerous than people. White dragons are thankfully not as numerous, but any number of dragons counts as a lot. Luskan (Large City, 14,173): Also known as the City of Sails, Luskan is one of the dominant cities of the northern Sea of Swords. It is populated by Northlanders from Ruathym, most of whom sailed as pirates in the past. A council of five High Captains, all former pirate lords, rules the city, but the true power lies in the hands of the evil mage society called the Arcane Brotherhood. The Brotherhood generally avoids conflicts with Waterdeep and Amn, preferring to pick on smaller cities and merchants who cannot defend themselves. In 1361 DR, folk of Luskan conquered the native isle of the Northlanders, Ruathym. They were forced to withdraw by the Lords' Alliance, and are so bitter about their 1055 of face that they now turn a blind eye when pirates who dock in their waters attempt to prey on Waterdeep's shipping. Mirabar (Small City, 10,307): Mirabar is the mining center for the Sword Coast. The city's shield dwarves live underground to over see their workshops. The humans above cooperate with the dwarves to handle the mining, move the ore to market, and defend the city against magical threats. The nominal ruler of Mirabar is a hereditary marchion, but the true power is an assembly called the Council of Sparkling Stones, a dwarven and human group that meets once a year to determine target production quotas and whether or not to threaten current clients with reduced output. Neverwinter (Large City, 23,192): A walled city of humans and half-elves, Neverwinter is cultured without being arrogant, bustling without being greedy, and charming without being quaint. The city is best known for the products of its master craftsfolk: lamps of multicolored glass, precision water clocks, and exquisite jewelry. It is also famous for its gardens, heated by the supernaturally warm waters of the Neverwinter River. The gardens fill the markets with fruit in the summer and enliven winter with flowers. The city's three architectural marvels are its bridges: the Dolphin, the Winged Wyvern, and the Sleeping Dragon. Each bridge is intricately carved into a likeness of the creature it is named after. Neverwinter and its ruler, Lord Nasher Alagondar (LG male human Ftr1/Chm4 of Tyr) nearly always side with Waterdeep against Luskan and the orcs. Stone Bridge: This massive stone arch, a mile long and one hundred feet wide, reaches a height of one hundred fifty feet as it arches over the River Dessarir. The massive stone statues of four dwarves, two at either end, stand fifty feet tall. Dwarves built the bridge five thousand years ago to give themselves a walkway over the river no matter how high it flooded. Something in the magic of the bridge pinned the Dessarin in place: No matter how the river has snaked and changed its course, it always runs under the Stone Bridge at exactly the same point. The dwarves say the Stone Bridge has survived thousands of years of earthquakes, floods, and battles because it is sacred to Moradin. Regional History The story of the Sword Coast North is the story of the vanishing of old, nonhuman realms and the establishment of Waterdeep and the Northlander cities. (Waterdeep's story is discussed in detail in the next entry.) The first great realm to rise in this part of the world was Illefarn, a kingdom of elves and dwarves that existed thousands Of years ago. The first dungeons under Mount Waterdeep were delved by these folk. Illefarn was a contemporary of Netheril and survived its fall, lasting until its elven rulers abandoned Faerûn for Evermeet a few hundred years before the beginning of Dalereckoning. After the fall of the great realms, humans migrated into these lands and built freeholds, towns, and keeps along the river valleys and at the harbors. The first Northlander longships arrived in the region during the last centuries of the Illefarn empire. The Northlanders colonized the island of Ruathym and spread to all the islands in the northern seas. Others migrated north, past the Spine of the World, and became the founders of Icewind Dale. In the wake of Eaerlann's fall in the 9th century DR, elves, dwarves, Northlanders, and Netherese descendants from Ascalhorn formed Phalorm, the Realm of Three Crowns, which attempted to mirror the accomplishments of Myth Drannor to the east. It lasted only a century before orc hordes swept it away. Its successor, the Kingdom of Man, had an even briefer existence. Civilization lost its grip on these lands until Wateideep grew strong enough to drive the orcs back to the Spine of the World. The city of Luskan was founded on the wreckage of the orc realm of Illuskan, and the towns of the Dessarin valley - Trihoar, Longsaddle, Secomber, and others -were settled. With prosperity and civilization come new threats. No orc horde a can sweep away the well-established cities of this region, but powerful forces conspire to rule this land in other ways. Plots and Rumors Luskan's Arcane Brotherhood grows more and more aggressive each year, overtly threatening Mirabar and Neverwinter. Ten years ago, the Lords' Alliance threatened war to avert Luskan's conquest of Ruathym; but few of the leaders in this area wish to embark on a bloody and expensive crusade on behalf of the pirate chiefs of Ruathym. Fire Rescue: Something is killing the fire elementals that live beneath Mount Hotenow in Neverwinter Wood. Ordinarily, humans and elves don't care about the life and death of outsiders from the Elemental Plane of Fire, but Neverwinter relies on the supernatural warmth that flows out of the Neverwinter River as it bubbles up through the fire elementals' home beneath Mount Hotenow. If the fire elementals all leave, the river will freeze over, and winter will finally come to Neverwinter. The Kraken's Tentacles: Semmonemily (NE doppelganger Sor12) is busily subverting the city of Yartar by uniting two disparate organizations - the Hands of Yartar, the city's fractious thieves' guild, and a powerful wererat clan lead by Nalynaul the Shriveled, a cunning illithilich. Semmonemily plots to murder the Waterbaron Bellee the Kheldorna and assume her place, making the Hands the secret rulers of the town while the Kraken Society rules the Hands.