Lonelywood
onelywood was a town in Ten Towns within the cold region of Icewind Dale. The northernmost municipality in Ten-Towns is a remote community of loggers and fishers, humble folk engaged in hard, honest labor, scratching out a living at the edge of the world. It is also a den of unrepentant thieves, cold-hearted killers, and miserable derelicts. These two groups of people do not exist separately—they are one and the same, and a person’s vision of the town’s inhabitants says more about that individual than it does about the people of Lonelywood. Clinging to either of the extreme views often causes outsiders to misjudge the residents, sometimes with tragic consequences. The visitors who fare best in Lonelywood are those who have a more nuanced understanding of human nature, who know that good and evil do not stare at each other across the battlefield of the cosmos, but lie within every person’s heart in discomfiting embrace.
Geography
This northernmost town was surrounded by the Lonely Woods with Maer Dualdon on the west side and the Bryn Shander Trail on the east.
History
Before Drizzt Do'Urden journeyed to Icewind Dale, Regis was the "leader" of the town, but in 1351 DR after Wulfgar's people raided Ten Towns, Regis retired as council spokesman, although the city continued to use him to "market" the town. Even after his move to Mithral Hall, he maintained a home there for some time.
Muldoon became the next town spokesman in 1351 DR. He was originally from Waterdeep, but came to Lonelywood with his father when his father was kicked out of Waterdeep (although he later returned). Muldoon became a successful merchant and council spokesman.
Regis returned to Lonelywood in 1483 DR and once again purchased a house there, spending time "fishing" in Maer Dualdon. In the forest not far from his house, Catti-brie built a small garden shrine to Mielikki.
Haven for Miscreants
For as long as Ten-Towns has existed, Lonelywood has attracted the region’s shadiest element. The place is far enough from the other towns to be safe against idle intrusion, and its thick wood conceals the dark and sordid dealings that sometimes transpire there. Still, Lonelywood is not Luskan; people are not regularly murdered in the streets, and folk do not always plot against one another. The realities of survival this far north demand that the folk of Lonelywood live and work together, and so they do, quite peaceably—for the most part.
The fact of the matter is that almost every resident of Lonelywood has a secret past. It might be a crime for which that person has yet to face justice, a revelation too dangerous or shameful to divulge,or a loss too great to be overcome by mourning. Although a few people bring their past with them to Lonelywood, continuing their lives and identities as before in hopes that the remoteness of the location will keep whatever chases them at bay, most newcomers arrive in town intent on leaving their past behind. But such truths often have a way of catching up with people sooner or later.
Timber Industry
Only about half of Lonelywood’s able-bodied residents trawl the lake for knucklehead, while the other half spend their days in the surrounding forest felling and hewing the trees that are used to construct many of the boats and buildings in Ten-Towns. Most famously, Lonelywood’s firs were used to build the walls of Targos and Bryn Shander.
After it is cut, Lonelywood’s timber is taken by cart down the north road, where most of it is sold in Termalaine and Targos. Less frequently, Lonelywood’s timber drivers bring a load to market in Bryn Shander, where the wood generally fetches a higher price.
Lonelywood’s forest is the town’s greatest asset, not only for its material wealth but for the defense it provides against orcs and barbarians coming down Bremen’s Run. The woods slow oncoming pursuers, giving the townsfolk time to escape onto the safety of the lake. Most often, though, bands of raiders simply pass Lonelywood by, never realizing the town is there.
Defenses
In time of war, Lonelywood could muster a militia of 100 to 500 humans who were armed with dwarven weapons and light armor.
Goods and Services
- Ramshackle - Lonelywood’s aptly named inn. The original structure was hastily thrown up about a century ago to accommodate a surge of interest in the town following its branding as the “Home of the Halfling Hero” (so named for the town’s speaker, a halfling named Regis, who played a pivotal role in rebuffing the barbarian invasion led by King Heafstaag of the Tribe of the Elk). After a time, the influx of travelers to Lonelywood returned to its usual trickle, and the building was given over to storing timber. Over the years the residents periodically found occasion to reopen the inn, sometimes adding extra rooms as needed. No one ever imagined that the structure would see use for as long as it has, so all the construction has been of a haphazard nature and indifferent to quality. Several times, sections of the building have collapsed under the weight of the winter snows; inevitably, the repairs to these sections were undertaken with the same (minimal) amount of care that went into their original construction. Nowadays, the inn is kept open on a permanent basis, with a retired sawyer named DeGrootz looking after visitors. Only a handful of rooms are in service, with the rest still used for timber storage. Rumor has it that sometimes other things get stored in those rooms as well, hidden among the cords of wood, but DeGrootz keeps all the rooms under lock and key. That, and the heavy woodcutter’s axe he keeps close at hand, deters most visitors from poking around in rooms that aren’t theirs.
- The Lucky Liar - A favorite local tavern where fishers and woodcutters spend the evenings telling tall tales. Although the taverns in Bryn Shander might see a greater number of travelers, it is at the Lucky Liar Tavern that one can hear some of the most outrageous tales of adventure in the far-off corners of Faerûn. Of course, most of the stories are heavily embellished, and some are outright fabrications—fictional exploits invented by locals who are concerned about keeping the truth concealed. From time to time, though, patrons whose tongues have been loosened by drink let slip valuable or dangerous secrets—kernels of truth hastily covered over with a wash of lies, but always noted and filed away by Danae, the tavern’s astute barkeep. A slight, plainlooking woman notable for her raven-black hair, Danae takes advantage of her job at the tavern to hide in plain sight among the people of Lonelywood and goes about her serving work with a quiet circumspection. She rarely engages in extended conversations, and she makes small talk with patrons as a pretense to linger near an interesting conversation taking place at another table. In fact, Danae is a Thayan agent planted in Icewind Dale years ago to watch for enemies of Szass Tam who might seek refuge in the remote communities of Ten-Towns.
- Pavel’s Used Goods - The closest thing that Lonelywood has to a general store. Buyers can find a wide array of goods here, from the mundane to the extraordinary, and generally at lower prices than can be found in Bryn Shander’s market. But, like the people of Lonelywood, the goods sold here tend to have histories that aren’t readily acknowledged by the shop’s proprietor, a weaselly-looking fellow named Pavel. Travelers who purchase equipment might later find themselves in the uncomfortable situation of being accosted by the items’ previous owners (who were not compensated for their loss) or attacked by interested parties who have mistaken the travelers for said previous owners. On the other hand, adventurers who have rare or unusual objects to sell need look no further than Pavel’s shop. The sly merchant is willing to pay a very nearly fair price for just about anything—no questions asked.
- The Happy Scrimshander - A little shop near Lonelywood’s docks that sells the tools of the scrimshander’s trade: needles and knives in a dazzling array of shapes and sizes, inks in a rainbow of colors, and waxes used to seal an engraving when it’s done.
“Most folk in Lonelywood went there tryin’ to forget about somethin’ . . . or tryin’ to be forgotten. Folks there mind their own business, an’ they expect ye to do the same. Surest way to find trouble in that town is to start askin’ questions.”
Knucklehead Trout Scrimshaw
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