Cauldfell

Area

Cauldfell is one fo the three northern regions of Alven. It is situated north of Sutherlands to the west of the country. Cauldfell is more populated than the other two northern regions: Farden - General and Farside Region : General There are several reasons to this:

It benefits from the warm currents passing by its shores and as such, is sheltered from the worst bite of the icy Alven winters.

Cauldfell is closer to the capital Highfort, the political and business centre of Alven.

Four clans and the Sanctuary shares the territory among themselves:

Clan Bearwode - Norhelm - Cauldwell is the most northerly territory. The keep, Norhelm is situated on the western shores of the region. The clanlands stretch from The Shimmering Seas in the west to The Icy Sretch in the east.

South of Bearwode is Clan Renade - Mawhelm - Cauldwell. Renade's keep, Mauwhelm, is well hidden among the foothills of The Caudlfell Braes and overlooks the misty waters of Loch Fallin.

Clan Seelfield - Finholm - Cauldwell is one of the two central clans of Cauldfell. The ancestral keep, Finholm is found at the feet of the last big peak of the Braes, Ben Stirr. The clanlands extend for hundred of miles until they meet the Shimmering seas.

Clan Cobburn - Muirholm- Cauldwell is the most southerly of the clans. The keep, Muirholm is firmly entrenched at the top of a large bay on the shores of the Shimmering Seas. Cobburn's lands extend to the high plateaus and ravines of The Green Tips mountains in the south.

Habitat and Resources

- The Taiga Forest

In the north of Cauldfell, in the clanlands of Bearwode, an immense Taiga forest covers most of the land. It is a harsh place, icy in winter, roamed by all sorts of apex predators: bears, wolves etc.

As in the other taiga forests of Alven, the main sources of revenues come from three different resources: logging, trapping, and mining.

On the shores, fishing is also a going concern. Smoked and cured fish are a speciality of port such as Firthonor and Norinch.

The Cauldfell taiga contains rich veins of several minerals. The smiths of the clan are well known for their crafts in sword making. This has made the fortune of a town like Norwode.

The Malkin Tree

The most prized resource is the sap of The Malkin Tree. The Malkin tree is a species particular to Alven and Cauldfell. It does not grow in any other part of Alven, or anywhere else in the world.

The Malkin is a type of pine that exudes a lot of resin, so much so that it is also called the Weeping tree. The resin is collected and used to make all sort of products very popular throughout Alven: lamp fuel, antispectic salve, soaps, glue etc. There must me a dozen or so every day objects that use the Malkin resin as its base.

The centres of the Malkin trade are Norwode and Hillanor.
The resin brought to the negoces of Hillanor is carried to Noraber or Northaburgh (Harbour of Norhelm) to be then expedited by sea to the rest of Alven, and often beyond.

The Shore Downs

The western edge of the region of Cauldfell is a hilly ridge kown as The Shore Downs. The hills stretch from north to south all along the Cauldfell peninsula. In the south, it ends with the sudden elevations of the Green Tips mountains.

The Downs are made of low hills and large open valleys. Some of the valleys are wooded, but most of the hills are bare. This is the realm of moors, and other low growing shrubs and grasses.

The people's main sources of revenues are agricultural: sheep, cattle and logging. The Downs are a traditional and sleepy type of place, where not much is usually going on, except on the days of the local fairs.

The Cauldfell Lochs

There are two main lochs in Cauldfell: Loch Fallin in the north and Loch Cauldmor in the south. Loch Cauldmor is the biggest of the two.

On the shores of the lochs, fishing is the main source of revenue. Both Loch Cauldmor and Loch Fallin have species of fish and shellfish that are not to be seen anywhere else in Alven.

The Cauldtar is one such fish. It is a prized delicacy throughout Alven and graces the tables of the richest Alvenites.

The Cauld Braes

The Cauld Braes mountains are to be found in the north of Cauldfell. The snowy peaks of this ancient mountain range line the eastern shore of the peninsula.

The range peaks are some of the highest mountains in Alven. The Highest peak, Ben Stirr is to be found at the southern tip of the range and is white with ice and snow year round.

The Braes are well known for being rich in minerals although the mines are very difficult of access in general.

The main mining towns are Glenorr in the northern clanlands of Clan Bearwode and Highbriggs in the south (Clan Seefield).

The ecosystem of the Braes is very particular to the mountain range and Cauldfell. The Braes are home to fantastic creatures and plants.

The Yella Fells

In the south of Cauldfell, to the east, you will find The Yella Fells. The Fells are a range of flat-topped hills and plateaux stretching for miles in the south of the region.
They mark the boundaries of Cauldfell with the regions of Farden - General and Region: Sutherlands.

Most of The Fellands - as they are called - do not belong to any particular clans but are the property of the Sanctuary. The Sanctuary is the name of the hugely influential and powerful religious order that most seers in Alven belong to. The lands are well protected and what is and is not there is a mystery as not a lot of people are allowed to travel through them.

The Green Tips

The Green Tips are a 9 huge mountains on the southern shore of the region. The Green Tips seem like an anomaly in the landscape. They rise very steeply and are made of deep gorges and ravines for the most part What makes the Green Tips special is the emerald and gold veins found throughout the difficult terrain.

The mines has made the fortune of the capital, Highfort nestled at the feet of the high and strange mountains, and consequently gave rise to the ascendency of the Thanes from their southern power base.

The wealth of the powerful Clan Cobburn also comes from there. The jewellers of Clan Cobburn are famous throughout the land - their craftsmanship is second to none, so much so that many have wondered at the source of their craft and invoked magic as the artisans' secret ingredient.

The Green Tips have been fought over many times by the northern and southern clans of Alven and many battles have been fought along the valley of The Fellwheen.

The narrow vale is the only passable corridor between the two regions of Cauldfell and Sutherlands.
It is strewn with the remains of now empty ancient fortresses.
The old fortified fort and town of Moorgate still remind travellers of a more violent past in the region.