Glacialis Continent
If a bleak desert was made of snow, this would be it.
Glacialis. The southern most continent in the word. Most any records from the Ancient Order are rare at best. The most accurate description comes from the journals of Captain Amaya Pneuma and her crew when they arrived in 1158AGC. These suggested a structure and perhaps native life but no depth to the reports.
Eight expeditions later, including one by the Archivist's Guild filled in few details. It did confirm an Ancient Ruin and some animals. Some of are as interesting as penguins, others are more lethal. But all are well suited to the environment.
However, this was enough for a small crew from the Windtracer Company to explore the icy land.
A Frozen Land of Surprises
The explorers, led by Windtracer Muildir Dolthor, made landfall near the original landing site of the previous expeditions. It was just a land of snow and ice, just as previously described. But two days of searching revealed a small set of metal beams rising out of the snow. It was a small set of ruins of the Ancient Order. The structure was primarily underground, with only two small floors of what once might have been a building.
The underground chambers were primarily of dwarven craftwork but blended with other architectural styles. While the ruins were not deep or complex, it contained cryptic markings. Those turned out to be a small fragment of a map.
This led the team to move farther west, toward the Patuig Strait. That was where they found the hidden secrets of the Glacialis Continent.
The howls came at night. Long, mournful sounds. We thought that we were done for. It wasn’t until we reached the strait that we understood what was really going on.
The Cliffs Of Glamour
At the Patuig Strait, where the Mөс Ocean meets the South Sinenen Ocean, stands a series of cliffs that rise from the frigid waters, gleaming like polished stones. This is also one source of the howling horns. Specifically, the who behind the sound who lived there.
Searching through a copy of Captain Pneuma's journals provided the answer in a short footnote. The Hascona Cliffs. She mentioned the name along with a brief encounter with a boat of dwarves and gnolls looking to trade skins and furs.
The two Windtracer expeditions braved winter and the persistent magical storms at the Patuiq Strait to locate those traders... the Qitanni.
Alternative Name(s)
The Land of Ice and Snow, Great Frost's Retreat
Type
Continent
Included Locations
Related Tradition (Primary)
Wyldlife
Plants
Magic Fields and other Hazards
Sound of a Thousand Mournful Souls
The first Windtracer expedition also encountered the howling at night, just like all the other few visitors to the frozen continent.
The sound rolls over the snow and ice, growing with intensity as the mournful howl is carried on the wind.
It starts as a howl. Then it turns into a chorus of howls that reach right to your bones.
As the night wore on, I swore I heard voices whispering… calling me out into the snow…
I tied myself to a rock to make sure I stayed put.
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