Page 91 - D&D - Player's Handbook

his subjects. A guard might swear "by Jarant's crown" and ambassadorship. From the talk at court, Dhosun
to emphasize an edict, and the yuan-ti who owned makes no secret of his desire to help his king build a
the keys to my shackles referred to Najara's laws as nation whose status equals or outmatches other realms
"Jarant's will." across the face of Faen1n. Jarant keeps him near, it is
No one knows why Jarant chose the time he did to said, because of all the king's courtiers, Dhosun is the
make public his kingdom's sovereignty, or what he hoped likeliest to attempt to steal away the Marlspire. Whether
to gain by such an act. The yuan-ti ambassadors he sent or not he is capable of such an act, I found the yuan-ti
forth made their king's wishes clear to the nations they naga to be honorable- it was he who secretly arranged
visited: leave Najaran prosperity alone, and discourage the opportunity I needed to escape, and I know he has
intruders (such as adventuring types) from violating done likewise for others in the past. I owe him a debt I
Najaran borders to steal the fortunes of the serpentfolk. intend to repay one day.
In return, the serpents promised that any caravans Another figure of note in the court is the cunning
and other legitimate travelers passing through Najara's green dragon Emikaiwufeg, often called the Emerald
dominion would be unharmed and unhindered- as long Daughter. She is young for a dragon and still small
as they don't stray from the main route. enough to fit in tunnels leading down to Jarant's audi-
Reaction among the places approached raged from ence chamber.Jarant is said to appreciate the twists
one extreme to the other. Darkhold reportedly feted and turns of her wit. Some courtiers believe that she is
the ambassadors well, and the serpentfolk left with not frequently kept to hand as a foil to Dhosun, as her slickly
only an agreement from the Zhentish lords, but also an vicious nature offsets the Dhosun's more honorable ten-
offer of a possible future military alliance. Not surpris- dencies. For my part, I believe she's biding her time. A
ingly, Elturgard refused the edict outright- and in the great many metallic dragons dwell in the Serpent Hills,
process of expressing that refusal, bloodshed erupted. and a clear rival for mates, wealth, and power- the
The paladins slew all but one of the ambassadors, and green dragon known as Ralionate- lives in the nearby
sent the survivor back to Jarant's court to communicate forest of Wyrms.
their answer. A variety of advisors and hangers-on can be found
The other responses to the Najaran ambassadors fell withinjarant's court, which is a dangerous place. A
somewhere in between. Acceptances and refusals to trio of yuan-ti warlocks, who claim to have tapped into
cooperate, usually polite, trickled in, but regardless of the vestiges of the ancient serpent deity once wor-
their substance,Jarant's goal had been accomplished: shiped at Ss'thar'tiss'ssun, leads the yuan-ti of Najara,
Najara's neighbors now saw the realm as a nation, no though at court they frequently lurk in the background,
matter whether they viewed it as a potential ally or foe. simply watching.
The economy ofNajara, such as it is, depends on
slaves to exist. Slavery is arguably the only actual trade SERPENT HILLS
conducted in Najara, with the ruins ofThlohtzin in the The Serpent Hills is a desolate region of red clay hills
Forest ofWyrms serving as a gathering place for those and deep, treacherous ravines, featuring stretches of
who would stoop so low as to sell slaves to the yuan-ti. rough, ridged land surrounding tall mesas. Only scrub
Different factions among the Najarans have agents can manage to grow here, tenaciously clinging to the
waiting near Thlohtzin, each hoping to strike a bargain dry clay. Beneath this perilous territory- filled with
with slavers before others arrive. Slaves with unusual serpents and poisonous creatures of all manner- lie the
abilities or specialized knowledge sometimes set off Serpent Ways, a series of intricate, well-guarded tunnels
bidding wars among the yuan-ti. I fear that such was the interspersed with caverns and chambers. The pas-
fate of that apprentice who accompanied me out of the sages serve as the main pathways for the folk of Najara
High Moor. through these lands; indeed, it was while resting within
To everyone of any influence who might read this, such a cavern that the half-elf apprentice and I were
heed my words: do not be misled. The serpents do captured by yuan-ti. I have since learned that in general,
not intend to coexist peacefully- they merely wish to the serpents don't care who tromps over the hills, so
use their strange diplomacy as a cloak and a shield, to long as they stay out of the places under them. The Naja-
protect them against the vigilance of others until they ran capital city, Ss'khanaja, is found in the northwest
are ready to put their plans, whatever they may be, of the Serpent Hills, but an even larger population of
into fruition. snakefolk live beneath the surface. It is common to find
settlements inside the large underground chambers
THE COURT OF THE SERPENT KING connected by the tunnels, excavations many centu-
I was imprisoned in Ss'khanaja, a mostly subterranean ries in age.
city on the Winding Water, where gathers the court of
Kingjarant. MARSH OF CHELIMBER
During my time in the custody of the Najarans, I I didn't have occasion to travel to Chelimber before my
learned much about- and from- Dhosun Silverscale. A "sojourn" with the Narajan court, but I did ask Dhosun
yuan-ti pureblood 'in Najara, Dhosun acts as a councilor about the place. It was through those questions that
to the king and often seeks to mitigatejarant's excesses. he divined my intention to escape, in fact, and offered
I believe that the sending out of the ambassadors was his aid. A vast marshland pocked with sulfurous pools
Dhosun's idea, for while I was imprisoned, he visited me that often gout their steaming contents high into the
several times, asking what I knew of the arts of embassy air, the marsh is inhospitable even to most serpents;