Fasingos

The former capital of Svartvelheim and home of the royal palace and tombs of the Lich King Gryllfagor, all that remains of this ancient jewel of a long lost empire is rubble in the snow and its partially intact catacombs. The city once houses numerous temples, houses, businesses, and its impressive palace concept built around the mountainside.
Fasingos was the political hub and centre of Svartvelheim, and was the first city ever built in Aedrinar, and likely one of the oldest cities in the world with only some in the Vale of Elves proving to be older. The city was destroyed during the Jotun landings of the Krowethic Golden Age (1781-2450, ma). The Battle of Fasingos is partially preserved by Jotun songs and goblin oral history, with claims the lich king had his head removed by Ymir, yet it still moved and cast vile spells, so it was trapped within the tombs to rot, and the body burnt by the holy fires of the war priests. Fasingos was then sundered and left to be buried by the snow. Local geological curiosities such as half of the nearby mountain Crastkjyen being missing and numerous craters and uneven terrain are attributed to this battle.
The tombs below the city have remained partially intact, but were submerged between an avalanche and for most of the third age, with most of the outlying tombs having been raided in the thousands of years below. Much of the central chambers remained intact, due to fears of them being cursed, or housing the haunted remains of the Lich King. Falia Rayes and Hilgot journeyed to the tombs to find the fabled Crown of Thorns and return it to the Goblin Museum of History. This proved futile, with Hilgot and his forces dying to the demilich form of Gryllfagor who had lied in wait here for millennia. The ruins are now completely abandoned.
The Ruins were also the only way to make it up Mount Vindstein to the Pillars of Air.

Catacombes

The catacombs explored by Falia and Hilgot revealed a few interesting aspects of ancient Svartvelheim culture. Falia had remarked how the prevalence of two styles of graves showed a clear class structure, with those not worthy of a full embalming cremated and stored into urns. Those mummified were given full sarcophagi and buried with art pieces, trinkets, spell scrolls, and weapons. This was likely to aid them in the goblin afterlife of Acheron. The embalming room also held a large fresco of Gryllfagor above it, with Falia making the following obersvation:

“This place was long cleared out by the time we got here, we found some artefacts and rubble indicating this was the mummification room, and if you look up – daddy lich king looking down your soul in death.”

The entrance held some tombs, and a dire warning engraved into a stone tablet reading,

“Fear ye who tread on unholy ground, In Fasingos lies the last of Svartvelheim and the Death Guard of Gryllfagor the Lich King, who is inturned within with his crown of thorns. Those who disturb the rest of the unholy dead shall be cursed to endless suffering and sorrow your souls forever lost. Go while ye still may.”

There was also a small chapel which appeared to be dedicated to Gryllfagor, Hilgot informed the party that by the end of his reign, known as the Late Svartvelheim period, the lich king had installed himself as God King and demanded worship in place of Maglubiyet. Goblin tradition states this caused the goblin gods to bring the giants to Svartvelheim and destroy their civilization as retribution.

Deeper Tombs

“Lie honoured the fellen.
Peace be with your soul
For it is taken now
Your will fight on”
Effigy to the fallen within the central chamber

The deeper tombs held more specialised rooms for the swordbarers, an elite band of guards who likely served as the royal guard for the Lich King. This portion of the tombs were sealed and largely untouched, probably down to the mix of traps and the sinister haunted reputation the tombs held.
Within one tucked away chamber, doomed 2 die discovered a Sphinx tomb, and on a second attempt unlocked the riddle to find some mithral armour, a nine lives stealer sword known as Nilnadhar, and a ring of shooting stars.

Central Burial

The main chamber housed the infamous lich king himself, only his head remaining and green arcane flames illuminating his prison, Gryllfagor had become a demilich and had only his phylactery, the crown of thorns, on his remarkably downsized body.

RUINED SETTLEMENT
Around 1780, ma

Type

Citadel

Population

0 (up to 10,000 at its height)

Inhabitant Demonym

Fasingian

Owner/Ruler

Lich King Gryllfagor