Page 85 - D&D - Player's Handbook

FIELDS OF THE DEAD After that event, Dragonspear's ruins were occu-
pied by hobgoblins and myriad bands of bandits, until
The expanse known as the Fields of the Dead has
Waterdeep and Baldur's Gate sent troops to root them
been the battleground for myriad wars and skirmishes
out. Discovering that the portal yet existed, but unable
over the centuries. It is said that the hills that dot the
to destroy it, they established the Hold of Battle Lions,
countryside here all hold the dead, and there is some
a fortified temple of Tempus, in an attempt to prevent
measure of truth to that- many of the hillocks are
anything from coming through. In time, though, devils
indeed barrows, raised to house the fallen dead of one broke through new portals inside the castle's walls and
faction or nation on either side of a war. I have seen
overran the defenders.
more than one such barrow, either broken open from
Then came the S econd Dragonspear War, more than
the outside by those seeking lost treasures, or somehow
a century ago, during which a strange cloak of mist
broken from within. settled over the castle, and the forces of Waterdeep
The Fields of the Dead is a vast, rolling plain of
and Baldur's Gate once more attacked. This time, they
windswept grasses that seems to go on to the hori- defeated the devils, leaving the castle ruined and still
zon in every direction. Regular travelers through the cloaked in mists. At least one other time since then,
area speak of the "whispers of the dead," the popular
the devils have punched back through, amassing other
term for the sound that results when a breeze rustles fell creatures to attack the nearby settlements (notably
the grass. The wind almost always blows here, and it Daggerford), but they have been fought off by adventur-
isn't uncommon to smell salt in the air even dozens of ers each time. The most recent stories tell of heroes
leagues inland. confronting Red Wizards of Thay and other devilry. I
Though this land is uncivilized, it isn't barren. Even if pray that this will be the last time such efforts are nec-
many monsters hide in the tall grass or build burrows essary, but somehow, I think not.
in the sides of the hills, the fields represent an opportu- Today, Dragonspear remains crumbled and mist-
nity for shepherds and free folk to claim a plot that no shrouded. Rumors say that the castle-seemingly
one else has yet occupied. Small, stout farmhouses and quiescent- has become home to undead horrors of some
even a few walled enclosures that contain several such sort, but no one seems terribly inclined to investigate
dwellings can occasionally be found a short distance such claims, so long as they don't threaten the folk who
away from the roads and rivers that run through or near live nearby. Some interested parties out of Baldur's Gate
the Fields.
offered me more than a fair amount of coin to investi-
The folk of this land are kind but wary, usually willing
gate the truth of these rumors, though I demurred. I
to share their wells or cisterns, and part with the goods don't fancy myself an investigator or a spy, and I know
they store away in return for goods in trade. I have met better than to seek out whatever foulness might have
a few who show greater hospitality, letting strangers taken hold in this place.
make camp within the shelter of the low stone walls that
surround their steadings. They are a good and honest TROLLCLAWS
people, by and large.
A tangled landscape of rough hills along the north-
Away from the vicinity of these settlements, there are
ern edge of the Fields of the Dead, the Trollclaws are
threats aplenty. Small bands of nomadic humanoids
home to a great many of the regenerating, bloodthirsty
traverse these grasslands, as do monsters from out of
beasts. Exactly what makes these hills such prime
the Wood of Sharp Teeth to the south, the Trollclaws to
the north, or the serpent kingdom of Najara to the east. ground for trolls is unknown (and a favorite topic of
conversation around many of the campfires I've sat at
Occasionally, one of the barrows bulges and vomits
while passing through or near this place), but there's
forth undead, wakened by some instinct known only to
no doubt that they dwell here in great numbers.
them, or a patch of terrain buckles and collapses in on
Those traveling south to Baldur's Gate or north out
itself, revealing a sinkhole to warrens beneath.
of the Fields of the Dead typically travel through the
DRAGONSPEAR CASTLE Trollclaws. The Trollclaw Ford, so named for obvious
reasons, is the only place for leagues that wagons can
Though the structure is crumbled and perpetually safely cross the Winding Water. Important as it is, the
shrouded in mist, more than one of the caravans I've site has been occupied by several forces over the years,
guided through these lands have seen Dragonspear as evidenced by the ruined remnants of forts and similar
Castle from afar and expressed a desire to seek shelter
buildings nearby. But those claimants have always fallen
there. As I tell them at such times, it is better to seek
eventually to prolonged assaults by trolls. My advice is to
shelter inside an opened tomb in these lands, and avoid the region entirely, but if you can't, keep a lit torch
crawl in to huddle among the warrior dead within, than handy at all times.
to seek anything like sanctuary from Dragonspear.
Built by an adventurer named Daeros after he found HARTS VALE
a wealth of gems in a sunken dwarven settlement, -------
I have been to Hartsvale only once, and found it sur-
Dragonspear Castle was erected above the very cav-
passingly beautiful each time. Its wonders are wild
erns where that settlement- fallen Kanaglym- was
and untamed, with even the so-called civilization of
interred. Two hundred years ago, sorcerous machina-
the place exuding a kind of primal beauty that is found
tions brought about the fall of Daeros and the opening
nowhere else that I know of.
of an infernal portal in the depths of the castle.
CHAPTER 2 I THE SWORD COAST AND THE NORTH