The Main Continents
Xellos is divided up into 5 primary masses of land, 3 of which are continents and 2 special areas that are shrounded in mystery.
The Northwestern Continent, Hulderast
For those that participated in Campaign 1, this is the continent that the entire campaign took place on, and more specifically the northern part of the continent.
The Frostwild
The Frostwild is the northern part of the continent, extending from Coldridge Crevasse north, this area is a cold and very inhospitable part of the world, the blistering subzero winds sweep up from the western ocean, becoming trapped by the mountains that surround this entire area. Yet still several points of interest do exist here.
Nestled safely in the mountains to the east of the Frostwild is the village of Frostwind Vale, largely a mining town, its mayor was once a legendary hero who has since retired and with the help of a few fellow adventurers from hist time protects this cold but cozy mountain village from neighboring frost orc tribes as well as things far nastier.
Also in this area is the small trading outpost of Icespine Village. Icespine Village has in the past been ravaged by orc's giants and dragons but has since been rebuilt by a small band of mercenaries who were in part responsible for freeing this region of the icy cold grip of an ancient and malevolent white dragon named Valdraxxas.
Directly north of Icespine Village is a mysterious and terrifying forest that has been home to devils that have erected a prison housing all manner of demons. This area has come to be known as the Stygian Forest, the demon prison and ruins within have a name in the Infernal tongue but it is largely unknown to the majority of inhabitants of Xellos.
In the mountains north are two landmarks that are known to adventurers but largely avoided by the population. The first is the Lair of Valdraxxas. Valdraxxas was an ancient massive white dragon that was recently defeated by a band of heros and mercenaries, Though it is in theory now uninhabited the lair still has lingering traces of Valdraxxas's great evil. It has recently been made into a battle shrine to honor the Heroes of Hulderast, those responsable for felling Valdraxxas.
Directly to the east of Valdraxxas's lair is a tunnel high in the mountains that leads to a Ruined Temple. Though it is long since abandoned and its god forgotten by most the repressive evil it radiates still remains. Though few live that still worship the Chained Oblivion, Tharizdun, the ones that remain are ancient, evil and powerful.
The last few points of interest are to the south of mountains. One is directly south of Frostwind Vale, known simply as Frostwind Mine it is largely controlled by Frostwind Vale, but there is constantly a back and forth for the mine with local frost orc tribes. Deep within the mines are some traces of ancient lost civilization of dwarves that are rarely seen today, the Runegar. The miners take care to largely avoid these areas, in order to preserve what remains of their civilization.
Directly west of Frostwind Vale is a small ruin that has been coopted by a group of violent mercenaries known as The Ghostmen. This Ghostmen Hideout has been raided many times and now an uneasy truce exists between them and the militia of Frostwind Vale and Icespine Village.
The last point of interest in this zone is a ruined temple on the southeastern mountain range that borders the Eye of Valrain. This ruined temple was once a Temple of Cygnus that was patron to the runegar dwarves. Long since fallen to ruin and wear, it has been coopted by a large tribe of Yuan-Ti who call it home.
Coldridge Crevasse
This massive crevasse divides the glacier that makes up the bulk of the central part of the continent. This crevasse runs across the continent, rising high off the glaciar down into steep ice ravines home to incredible wildlife such as the mammoth sized rhino's known as Greater Frosthorn. as the border of this crevasse meets the southern mountain ridge of the Frostwild there is a massive cave complex that leads to the Ancient Runegar Ruins deep within. Some years after the Heroes of Hulderast cleared the Ruins of foul Bone Naga that had taken up residence there, many dwarves from all around hulderast, indeed all around xellos will come to learn about this society once thought dead, the legacy of the Runegar. Spearheading this operation is an overenthusiastic red bearded dwarf, resplendent in clockwork armor, a complicated runegar rifle on his back and his newly acquired pet Flail Snail at his side. In association with the Port Valrain tourism society. Gurin has become an ambassador for the Runegar dwarves and their society, using this newly refurbished caverns and library to teach people about his culture, once thought lost to time.
At the very edge of the crevasse where it runs deep into the ocean north of the Eye of Valrain is a Temple to Zeboim, a rarely worshipped diety known for her cruelty, capriciousness and command of storms and deadly seas. Freed from the dangerous cult that was controlling it, Glacierspire has made this an official temple, one of only 3 temples to the god in all of Xellos.
Hulderast Glacier
Though this area makes up the bulk of the continent, there is very little of note here. This massive glacier is incredibly dangerous to traverse as the subzero winds blow across this area unchecked, sometimes at terrifying speeds. The one thing of note here is the port city of Port Valrain. A thriving city that is warmed by unique magical devices that both help ships move in and out of the harbor but also provide much needed warmth. The looming glacier provides a breaker wall, protecting the port from the fiercest winds.
Another place of note is a thriving Mercenary Keep and Outpost known as Valdraxxas's End, founded by a group of adventurers that sits in an alcove above the city, but far enough from the top of the glacier to still be protected from the harshest of elements. Almost a small city onto itself a retired group of adventurers now makes their living here, using their mercenary forces to keep the inhabitants of these cities, villages and towns free from the most dangerous creatures. "Val's End" as its called for short is currently run by the brother and sister offspring of Hero of Hulderast, Kael Tsarsis.
To the south of Port Valrain, A once destroyed Mage Tower has been rebuilt some 50 years in the future. Now a research facility for wizards and sorcerors studying nature magic, particularly the nature of storms. It has also become a central meeting spot for negotations for peace amongst the triton and sea elf tribes. While fragile, this nuetral ground seems to have enforced a stable peace between the once confrontational groups. The head of this tower is a blue robed gnome, with a small blue dragon familiar known both for his fast talking style and his love of zapping people who get on his bad side.
The Frozen Morass/Icemoss Glade
The Frozen Morass is one such example of a place nearly completely transformed, once an icy twisted swamp, free from the vile influence of the beholder, it has flourished. Now known as the Icemoss Glade, what was once a hellish swamp of ice and blight has become a flourishing place of cold submerged forests, icemoss and even small groups of once displaced tritons.
Finally to the West of Icemoss Glade is a pilgrimmage site known as The Great Dragonwood Tree a massive tree with knotted bone colored branches and deep purple leaves. More than anything. It has become a symbol of what the Heroes of Hulderast have done. Saving the continent from certain destruction at the hands of a ancient leviathan from the plane of water and from the clutches of an unkillable Death Knight.
Crystalpine Forest
One of the more engimatic places on Hulderast, not much is known about it aside from it being home to a very peculiar subrace of Elves. There are whispers that these elves are devoted to a long lost ancient diety, but most outsiders that venture inside never come out to to speak of it. The forest itself is impossibly beautiful with towering hundred foot ancient pines encased in glittering ice, kept alive and majestic by powerful magic. There are words of strange creatures in the surrounding area that seem to come from the forest. highly magical in nature. The forest is quite large and borders on the other point of interest in this area, the coastal area that drops off into deep see of frozen ocean, none know how deep the water is here but scholars from Glacierspire suggest it may rivals the depths of the central ocean. What none can explain is how it remains largely a sheet of icea stretching for miles before it reaches the strange souther continent of Antoras. Some have suggested it may be due to the presence of a powerful entity from the Plane of Ice, brought in by one of the Rifts common to Antoras. These rifts while rare on Hulderast and Ravarin, DO happen. Wether it is from some entity or another reason entirely, no ships sails these waters, ever. The ice will not melt, even with the aid of the special magical heat generators used by Valrainian ships. Occasionally in the dark of night, strange sounds and glowing lights can be seen from under the ice of this strange frozen ocean.
The Crystal Maw
The final area of the continent is both the most remote and at the same time the most populated area. Bordering along the southeast and southern tip of the continent, the area is so named because these massive mountains of shimmering ice seem to pierce the cloud tops like crystal teeth. The mountains are home to many rare and unusual species of wildlife as well as if legend serves, the capitol city of the Runegar dwarves. But the most interesting feature of the Crystal Maw is that as it moves along the coast and curls in to the west along the Eye of Valrain, it gives way to the capitol city of Glacierspire. The shimmering jewel of Hulderast is a technological marvel. maintained by some of the most powerful magic users in the world, it was here that the binding magic to reimprison Akvaloth was crafted, with the help of the same group of adventurers who now watch over the eye from their mercenary keep above Port Valrain. The mysterious enclave of mages that are attempting to control the rift situation in Antoras, the Shadow Council are based out of here, with some members calling neighboring Ravarin city, Blackcliff Hold their home. The massive three tiered walled city seems to be entirely carved out of ice. In reality it is a magical crystal compound that looks like ice. The upper city houses the mage tower, the middle city is the trade and residential district and the lower city spirals down to the ocean level giving way to a bustling port that serves as a neighbor to Port Valrain. Ships often sail the treacherous route from Valrain to Glacierspire by skirting the outside of the maelstrom that forever swirls at its center, simply because land trade routes are even more treacherous and difficult. Skilled captains are some of the richest people on this continent as a result.
The Southern Continent, Antoras
Antoras is the setting for our second campaign. Set some 150 odd years in the future from the end of Campaign one. Akvaloth, The Dreamer in the Depths has been rebound and sleeps his deep and terrible sleep once again. But unfortunately that does not undo the damage that was already done several hundred years prior when he first appeared in this world. Almost 500 years before the start of campaign 2, Antoras was a wild and primal continent, teeming with powerful beasts, such as dinosaurs. The people who lived there embraced this aboriginal existence and were generally distrustful of outsiders from the two larger continents, Hulderast and Ravarin. But a young wizard appeared on the shores of what is now known as Scorching Sands. Claiming to be a researcher, the wizard was given leave to study. In reality the young man was attempting to find one of his fellow students, a young woman who he happened to be engaged to, the victim of a arcane gate spell gone awry. Pulled into some unknown plane she never returned. Most of the other students and her own teacher assumed her to be lost or dead. But tragically, young love leads people to do foolish things. The young wizard poured all he had in to his research. In his study he learned of "soft spots" places in the world where there was some sort of magical connection to other planes. This young wizard surmised if he could find such a spot he could tear open a bridge to the plane she went to, and bring her back and close the gate after his return.
What the young wizard failed to understand is that arcane gates use magic as a conduit, a sort of door that opens upon hundreds of possibilities, worse still he failed to understand the physical aspects of how the universe exists. Each plane, each world is like a sphere, a glass ball floating in a vast ocean. This ocean is made up of raw primal magic, this is known as wildspace. One of the most powerful forms of magic that exists, known as spellfire draws directly from wildspace but it is EXTREMELY dangerous and highly unstable. Beyond that terrifying and immensely powerful creatures dwell in wildspace. Some of these monsters of legend find ways to enter the prime material planes, creatures such as beholders and mindflayers. But far more dangerous entities dwell in the astral sea of wildspace. Failing to realize all of this, the young man attempted to pierce a hole directly to the plane where he thought his fiance had been sent. His grave misunderstandings lead to a cataclysmic event. The empowered arcane gate tore open a hole indeed, but it tore open a hole into which untold amounts of wildspace began to pour. This resulted in a massive explosion, disintegrating the unfortunate wizard and leaving a smoking crater nearly 100 miles wide north of the Scorching Sands. This explosion was so great it split Antoras in to two halfs, the bulk of the continent is what most people know of as Antoras today, the other smaller island, seperated only by a narrow ocean ravine is what is today known as Infernus. But the worst was still to come....
The immense amount of Wildspace continually pouring in to the arcane gate and the resulting explosion created hundeds of arcane gates, mostly on Antoras but some in other parts of the world as well. These gates, known today known as Rifts are constantly drawing on the energy from wildspace to stay open unless they are forcibly closed. The last sideffect of this explosion is that the immensely powerful wave of arcane energy magically fused the genetics elements of the native people of Antoras with various creatures native to the island, creating dozesn of new beast hybrid races. Creatures such as minotaurs, kyric, loxdon, dinotarons, Yuan Ti all were born out of this calamitous event. Some of these rifts opened to powerful planes such as the Plane of Water, where ancient and immensely powerful entities siezed the opportunity to take over a world that was ill prepared to deal with them. Akvaloth was one such creature. Over time Antoras begun to be terraformed by some of these most powerful rifts, leading to the major zones listed below. In order to control and eventually stop this madness the great cities of Blackcliff Hold and Glacierspire created a council of powerful magic users to fight this growing threat. From that alliance the Shadow Council was born. And not long after the Shadow Council, working in secret created a mercenary organization called The Rift Hunters to find and close these rifts before another problem like Akvaloth would happen again. This lead to the founding of "Camp Ant" as it is called.
Scorching Sands
Scorching Sands as it is known is home to Camp Ant, short for Antoras. Camp Ant is both a school and military base. Rift Hunters are trained here, and then set lose on the hundreds of small rifts in the surrounding area. Those that survive are given a medallion that is created by the Shadow Council. This medallion is able to close and seal rifts while absorbing a small amount of the rifts power for the wielder. Just north of the coastal desert of Scorched Sands is a barren wasteland teeming with arcane energy, wildspace magic and more powerful rifts.
The Crater
At the center of this wasteland north of the Scorched Sands and Camp Ant is The Crater few are brave enough to go there, as the very air is said to sizzle with wildspace magic and spellfire. In an effort to research the crater, the rift hunters have established a Crater Research Outpost on the border of the desert and the barren wasteland.
The Primal Beastlands
Not all entities that come from the rifts are evil or wish to conquer. Some are fleeing strife on their home plane or are seeking to spread what they see as the beauty of their world to our own. The Primal Beastlands is one such place. The Great Wilds Outpost was set up to research this terraformed area and they have learned that a huge rift opened up here from the Plane of Bytopia. Known for its beautiful manicured gardened but also its wild massive forests and untamed wilds. An extremely powerful entitiy (A huge winged unicorn the sized of a small house) claimed this area and began propegating the world with wonderous creatures such as Ki-Rin, Pegasi and Unicorns. But ultimately that rift must be closed, some rift hunters have already begun putting together a mission to meet with the entity in an attempt to convince it to go back from where it came and allow them to close the rift. How receptive it will be to this proposal is another matter, in addition large and powerful beasts, some very aggressive and dangerous also roams these forests. Journey through the area is considered treacherous at best.
The Frigid Expanse
The area known as the Frigid Expanse, once a flat pastoral grassland where huge dinosaur like creatures roamed, has since become a cold and frozen landscape of jagged ice mountains, frozen lakes and fjords. Those same dinosaurs still roam the lands, forever changed by a massive rift into Ysgard. smaller rifts to the plane of ice and plane of air are commonplace here. It is said the huge rift is guarded by a frozen keep of solid ice that is home to a massive Ice Titan and his pet Frost Crystal Drake. far to the west, these jagged mountains give way to floes of ice leading to a glittering sea of cloud cities.
The Glittering Expanse
The glittering sea beyond the west of The Frigid Expanse is known as the Glittering Expanse. The frozen shore gives way to a glittering sea with huge underwater caverns filled with glittering crustaceans that give this area its name, floating high above them are settlements, towns and cities riding the lightning filled clouds. At the center a huge cloud city guarding a giant rift into the Plane of Air, one of the Wind Dukes known as the Vaati is here, and the Rift Hunters have had a terse but for now cordial relationship with him. Though the Vaati are great forces for good on their home plane they have little respect for the affairs of men and less still any care about our wish for them to return to their home plane. Little is known about why they have chosen to take up a semi permanent residence here. Additionally it is quite difficult to get to the cloud city as the constant storms and wind are treacherous and few flying creatures used by the Rift Hunters are capable of reaching the city without magical aid. The Expeditionary Outpost on the eastern edge of the Frigid Expanse has been the primary launching point for most expeditions into the Glittering Expanse but that leaves the difficulty of crossing the treacherous Frigid Expanse, a dangerous proposition even traveling along the southern coast with its frozen fjords and razor sharp glaciers.
The Astral Wastes
There are many terrifying sites on Antoras as a result of the damage done when the rifts came, but perhaps none so terrifying as The Astral Wastes. This once lush mountain range in ancient times was flattened by the destructive wave of wildspace energy, now, nestled in the northwestern part of the continent, north of The Frigid Expanse and West of The Primal Beastlands the region is now a flat desert of bone white shimmering sand, but most terrifying are gaping holes in reality. That there is a large rift to the Astral plane here is of no doubt, but what came through that rift is something beyond what anyone has been able to comprehend. The Shadow Council have imagine that some ancient astral leviathan emerged through a rift and has begun eating away at the barrier that protects wildspace from the prime material plane, leaving these gaping holes of astral sea, like terrifying lakes of stars in the middle of a glistening white desert. This area is considered to be highly dangerous. The massive winged unicorn that has taken up residence in the Primal Beastlands assisted with the creation of a expeditionary base on the shores of the Astral Wastes. And of the 4 expeditions sent, only a single person of the 20+ who went inside has returned. But what came back was completely broken, his mind shattered. He has described a lobster like creature, the size of s small city, wether truth or fiction none can confirm. But exploration and the closing of the astral rifts in this area are top of mind with the shadow council as many creatures have come through the astral rifts over the years, a few such as the thrikreen, astral elves, giff and even some githyanki have been welcome additions to the world, others have been terrifying extraplanar creatures that delight in shattering and devouring the minds of anyone they can find.
The Cerulean Trench
The Cerulean Trench was once an area of huge concern to the Shadow Council, but some 200 years ago the very best Rift Hunters ventured in and closed a massive water rift that had brought forth the creature now bound and sleeping in the Eye of Valrain, Akvaloth the Dreamer. A massive leviathan from the darkest depths of the Plane of Water, this primordial entity cared only to devour and build enough strength to return to its home plane and rule over the entire plane. The area now is far from secure, water rifts of various size and power dot the area. A expeditionary outpost was set up along the border of the Primal Beastlands and the Trench in order to monitor and react to the rift situation here. The Cerulean Trench is one of the largest areas under the influence of a single type of rift and stretches from the northern coasts of the Astral Wastes and Primal Beastlands all the way to the Crimson Caldera on the isle known as Infernus. The Trench stretches all the way to the souther shores of the continent of Hulderast, where Glaciarspire has built with the help of the sea elves, a massive coral wall to keep any denizens of the plane of water from invading their waters as Akvaloth did so long ago.
The Festering Scar
Bordering a long vertical stretch from The Primal Beastlands to the Crater and all the way south to the eastern edge of the Scorching Sands is a terrifying area known as The Festering Scar. Here the Abyss and demons hold sway, thankfully a deep chasm split the earth here, going hundreds of miles deep in dark festering caverns filled with blight, slime and horrible demons beyond imagining. But the massive depth has kept most of the demons from the surface though some definitely still emerge. There was once an outpost on the far eastern side of this chasm where a land bridge connects to the isle of Infernus, but no one has heard from it in over a decade and it has become known as The Cursed Outpost as it also borders an equally terrifying area of land called The Spiral of Madness. One of the last communications from the outpost said that an expedition deep into the chasm had found a massive rift being guarded by a demonic stronghold and an extremely powerful demon along with it. Reclaimation of this outpost is a high priority for the Shadow Council as it is strategically located for entry onto Infernus.
The Spiral of Madness
Along with the Astral Wastes, few areas of the continent can equal the terrifying sight of the Spiral of Madness. Spiraling thousands of miles into the air, all laws of gravity are non existant here because this area is controlled by a huge rift into the Pandemonium at its center, high atop this spiraling upside down staircase. Massive tunnels, howling winds, and inverted gravity have made this one of the most difficult areas to traverse so little is known about the area aside from the fact that horrible misshapen creatures roam the landscape, seeming to defy natural order. Beyond seeing the rift at the "top" from a great distance, little to nothing is known about what has caused such maddening distortion of reality. But transformations so extreme are usually powered by not only massive and powerful rifts but incredibly powerful entities.
The Glassmoss Glades
The final area of note on the main continent of Antoras is the massive swamp area of Glassmoss Glades. Powered by a huge fungal city housing a town sized rift into the Plane of Earth, this zone which was once a salt marsh has become a overgrown swamp with huge fungal forests, lakes filled with glassmoss and some downright terrifying creatures living within. Few expeditions get here except by boat because of having to cross The Spiral of Madness to get to it. The Outpost is on the south eastern corner of the glades, and while accessible by boat, is far from easy to get to. Little is known about any creatures that might be in charge at the heart of this fungal city. Exploring this area is of decently high proprity to the Shadow Council as it is once again, strategically located as just across the jagged shoals to the northeast of the Earth Expedition Outpost is the Fire Expedition Outpost on the southeastern tip of the Cinderash Flats.
The Crimson Caldera
The Crimson Caldera was once a semi dormant volcano known as Mount Carceri. The volcano is still there. But when the cataclysm happene this area was overtaken by massive fire rifts. The Fire Giants that once lived there have adapted but have been twisted by the influence of Efreeti and Azaar into warlike and beastial version of the gentle giants they once were. The area is extremely treacherous, and it is said a Half Fire Giant/Half Efreeti Lord has set up a grand flaming palace at the core of this semi active volcano, guarding a particularly huge rift to the Plane of Fire. There is a Volcano Research Outpost that was established shortly after the founding of the Rift Hunters, before the powerful fire rifts came. The outpost was since overun and all the researchers killed. The Shadow Council is looking to reestablish the outpost and launch an assault on this palace.
Cinderash Flats
The Eastern vertical stretch of land on the isle of Infernus is known as the Cinderash Flats and due to the highly volatile and treacherous ground, the outpost was established on the smoking water's edge at the southern tip. The ground here is layer after layer of smoking ash. The area is beset by large rifts to the Plane of Fire, the Quasi Elemental Plane of Ash and Quasi Elemental Plane of Smoke. There is reports of a titan sized Snake the size of a small town, its body made of smoldering ash covered scales roaming the large mountain at the center of the flats, the prevailing thought is that he is guarding a huge rift, but none have ever seen it.
Ashenfell Keep
Nestled in between the Crimson Caldera and the Cinderash Flats and extending to the northernmost tip of the continent is Ashenfell Keep. Believed to be the largest rift currently open on Xellos, this huge rift to the Nine Hells layer of Malborge. As such this are is a sea of fire with a massive black ash and stone bridge leading to a huge and foreboding city of black stone, ash, cinder and fire. Ashenfell Keep. Some on the Shadow Council believe it is now home to one of the former lords of hell, cast out by Asmodeus, he seeks to build an army here before launching his invasion on the nine hells. No one knows his name or has even seen him, but many have heard him and seen his spies, flaming eyes that can travel between open infernal rifts. Toppling Ashenfell Keep and the closing of the rift inside is the ultimate goal of the Shadow Council and the Rift Hunters in particular.
The Northeastern Continent, Ravarin
This continent was home to our prequel mini campaign that lead up to campaign 1, Guardians of the Flame. Ravarin is the smallest of the 3 continents but is by far the most densely populated. Much like Hulderast, occasional rifts can be found here, but they are uncommon, as the flood of wildspace magic that caused such anomalies was largely contained to Antoras. That being said, they do occasionally appear and are very quickly taken care of by Rift Hunters. Several Rift Hunter outposts exist on Ravarin, and the leaders of the organization call Blackcliff Hold, the central city and largest city on all of Xellos, home. Ravarin is also home to Blightscar, a ruined and blighted gaping wound on the land that leads into a series of caverns that eventually leads to the mysterious land called "The World Below". Ravarin's western port town of Tidebreak Cove is also the most common sailing point to reach the western continent of Hulderast. It is also the easiest access point to the final mysterious land mass, The Glittering Depths. Thousands of Miles Deep in the ocean there has for hundreds of years been rumors of an entire world far beneath the waves, civilizations of their own. Most ocean dwelling races are unwilling to talk about it with land dwellers, but its existence has been confirmed. The scope of the area and what actually lies down there is unknown. Both The World Below and the Glittering Depths are areas the Shadow Council wishes to explore once the Rift problem has been nuetralized or at least controlled
The Glacial Shelf
The Glacial Shelf is the only area on Ravarin save from some high mountains on the Teeth of the World and of course the top half of Mount Grisha, where ice can be found. Some of the northern areas of the Stonewood Forest can get very cold and snow happens regularly in various parts of Ravarin, particularly Blackcliff Hold which has a very defined winter season, but for true ice and things such as Tundra, glaciers and fjords? The Glacial Shelf is uniquely the only place this occurs. There is a few very small settlements here Iceborn Elves, Crystalkin Halflings and Fjordsmen Humans all call these areas home. The largest settlement on the Glacial Shelf called Icehollow is run by a council of Frost Goliaths. This area is the number one producer of Frigicite in Xellos, most of it mined by these massive goliaths who handle the difficult task of getting it to Hawksmount at the base of Mount Grisha where it can be distributed to Blackcliff Hold and other places. The Glacial Shelf itself is rather dangerous, which is why these goliaths hold such sway. They are often hired as protection for people venturing out into the treacherous landscape. Remorrhaz are common here, as are Ice Worms, Frost Giants and aggressive and dangerous tribes of Icetusks (a race of carniverous and violent walrus like creatures). It is a cold and inhospitable land, but to some, it is home.
Mount Grisha
Mount Grisha is by far the largest elevation in all of Xellos. Towering thousands of feet into the air and piercing cloud cover, the air is so cold and thin at its summit that barely anything lives there and few dare attempt to trek to its summit. It has been done of course, but its incredibly dangerous. At the base of Mount Grisha is Hawksmount, a Mountain Dweller human settlement known for housing some of the finest craftsmen in the world. Tradesmen come from all around Xellos both to learn and ply their trade here. And it is said that the finest ale, spirits and wine in all of Xellos is made by a family from this town. The area is also home to Rocktooth Halflings, Rock and Tinker Gnomes, Stone Goliaths and naturally a great many dwarves and humans. A melting pot that almost but not quite rivals the great city of Blackcliff Hold. Though Mount Grisha isn't often a dangerous area, some terrifying creatures call the mountain home, but most keep their distance from civilization. Dragons and Wyverns tend to be the most bold, but Hawksmount in particular is protected by two powerful beast entities, a massive and highly intelligent Roc, nearly half the size of the town who hundreds of years ago was gifted the ability to speak and communicate by a rather eccentric wizard, and a large whimsical copper dragon with a love of ale. As such, this region is one of the safer ones to call home and many for that reason tend to stay near the mount and avoid the much more wild and dangerous Great Stonewood Forest which encompasses the land surrounding Mount Grisha on all sides. There is however a trade route that passes from Hawksmount, through the edge of the Great Stonewood Forest on the west side, meeting up with the base of the mountain range known as The Teeth of the World, this road continues up into these mountains, eventually meeting at Blackcliff Hold. This road is HEAVILY patrolled by both Hawksmount guards and Blackcliff Hold militia.
The Great Stonewood Forest
This wild and heavily forested area is home to hundreds of thousands of massive Stonewood trees. Though the forest is dense, its not at all jungle like and is home two quite a few wilderness loving races. Aside from some of the beast races like Arakocra, Firbolg, Bugbear, Harengon, Satyr, Kenku, Tabaaxi, Owlin, Centaur etc. just to name a few. It is also home to large settlements of Stonewood Halflings, Wild Elves and Eladrin both, and Forest Gnomes. Most of these races have a shared love of this beautiful forest and protect it fiercely. They have a very tenuous relationship with Hawksmount to allow the trade route, but they view alot of that civilization with distrust and fear. Being a forest such as it is, it also has several dangerous creatures which call it homes, most notably the giant stonewood spinners which are massive and deadly spiders known to catch and eat unsuspecting travelers. And there are far more dangerous (but less common) creatures that lurk among those treees.
The Teeth of the World
The Teeth of the World would be a unremarkable and inhospitable massive range of mountains if not for one thing. It is home to the largest city in all of Xellos. Founded several thousand years ago by General Fernin Blackcliff, it has since become a hub of Xellosian civilization. The city itself is a layered city of 5 wings, each dedicated to an aspect of daily life. The city is also home to the Shadow Council, which also has half of their members in sister city, Glaciarspire. The Teeth of the World outside of that is home to several small settlements of Kyrie. One such settlement was destroyed almost 200 years ago by the white dragon Gallendal, in that place, at the base of mountain where the Teeth of the World empties in to the Ka'Lai Grasslands stands a lone monument with incredibly powerful divine protections on it. This is the final resting place and monument to Khilinim Dragonsbane, Hero of Hulderast. The stone monument shows the minotaur with their full armor, a ornate spear in one hand and a ornate gun in the other, standing with one foot on the head of a dead dragon. Minotaurs and Kyrie from all around Xellos make pilgrimmage's to the site every year, staying at nearby Blackcliff or Alo'Onai Village where they were born. Both sites being home to the first two locations (opened simulataneously) of Fish Horse Breads and Confections, a chain which Khilinim started after semi-retiring from dragon hunting.
Ka'Lai Grasslands
This area is a beautiful stretch of rolling grasslands, prairie and pastoral rivers and streams. The southern edge which borders Black Prism Desert often sees massive storms rolling in from the desert, but beyond that this area is one of the most peaceful and beautiful in all of Xellos. Home to minotaurs, Kyrie (near the border of the Teeth of the World) and Plainsmen/Prairiefolk humans as well as the famous Ka'Lai halflings which invented the game of Pantheon, played the world over. There are three major towns and many smaller encampments in this area. The first is Skyseeker Village which is the largest settlement of Kyrie. This area is nestled at the base of the southern edge of the Teeth of the World. Many people seeking to journey from the grasslands to Blackcliff Hold will come here for guides to get through the treacherous mountain ascent up to the fortified city. The second is Alo'Onai Village, a pastoral minotaur town known for producing some of the best produce in the world and home to a rift hunter outpost. The minotaurs here are gentle people, fond of fishing, hunting and farming. Lastly is the port town of Tidebreak Cove. Tidebreak Cove is where most ships sailing to the western continent leave from, as it is more or less a straight shot to Port Valrain or Glaciarspire. This is also where a few exploratory expeditions to The Glittering Depths have come from. None have ever returned.
Black Prism Desert
Black Prism Desert Is a polar opposite to the grasslands, home to deadly lightning storms which have created the pools of black glass that dot this sand blasted landscape. Some parts of the desert are a rocky red clay and red stone while others are hard packed sand but throughout are huge ravines with hundreds of caves housing all manner of dangerous creatures. In these ravines are numerous pools of this obsidian created from these ravaging storms. Traveling along the surface while safer from the deadly creatures, exposes those traveling to the dangerous electrical storms. Traveling below leaves you a target for any number of creatures both humanoid and beast. This is also an area where numerous rifts have been sighted, probably because the area is so dangerous that it takes longer for Rift Hunters to close them. In this inhospitable area lie two points of interest. The first and most well known is Port Manareth, a port city with a Rift Hunter Outpost that takes in many ships bound to and from Antoras the southern continent. It is a bustling city that supplies not just the black prism desert area but the grasslands, the shoals area to the south and even has trade relations with some of the mysterious drow that live in The World Below, beneath the area known as Blightscar. The last area of note here is a mysterious and hidden Runegar encampment, said to be hidden in the rocky red clay mountains alongside one of the ravines, it is one of only a few areas left in Xellos with a decent concentration of Runegar. They do not allow outsiders, but if one finds their way in, they are allowed to move in and out freely. It is because of this policy that anyone is even aware of its existence. But most people who have gone are so taken with the lovely nature of the runegar that they are unwilling to expose its location or even its name to the public.
Blightscar
Of the areas of Ravarin, Blightscar is the most mysterious and deadly. It is a landscape of blighted marsh, cutting a swath into Black Prism Desert. Even the deadly storms of Black Prism Desert seem to fear it. The sky is perpetually grey filled with horrible clouds of poisonous gas. It is said that hundreds of thousands of years ago, a demon cursed this land before being cast back into the abyss, that act split open the land, causing a festering scar which will never heal. It is also the most accessible entry into The World Below. Drow, Duergar and Deep Gnomes often will traverse this deadly area to bring trade to Port Manareth. A deadly proposition because horrifying creatures lurk in these blighted marshes. One such creature is an ancient Catoblepas known by those in Black Prism as Deatheye, a creature so old and foul that even laying eyes on it spells death for most. But numerous hideous entities such as this roam this area.
Nebula Reef
Is the southernmost area of Ravarin. A beautiful area of shallow coral seas so colorful and so varied in its depths that when viewed from above it resembles a nebula in the astral sea. While mostly home to shallow water creatures some of the deeper sections are home to some terrifying water beasts. At the southern edge of the Nebula Reef lies a massive shell shaped city atop a bed of coral, Vistari Shoals. Named after legendary sea elf explorer, Windarthel Vistari, this beautiful city is shared by Sea Elfs, Tritons, Coraltoe Halflings, Sea Goliaths and even some daring Coastal Fisherfolk humans. The sea elves are some of the most open and accepting of elven races, but the placement of the city was no accident. Its relative inacessibility makes it hard for many humanoids to get to it. But anyone who does is welcome. In recent years the newly created Icthyadons from Antoras have taken to calling this city home. Along the outeredge of Nebula Reef along the shore is home to numerous Triton, Sea Goliath, Coraltoe halfling and Coastal Fisherfolk encampments, all making their living off the bounty of the sea.
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