[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

making it easy to load cargo to or from more than one ship at a time. The lords of the city consistently
built and maintained warehouses along the waterfront rather than the taverns and houses of ill repute so
many other cities display next to their ports. This arrangement always has given the waterfront of
Kalaman an oddly deserted appearance. Sailors who don't know better sometimes feel their hearts sink
when they put into the port and see only rows of austere gray buildings, rather than the hustle and bustle
of welcoming inns they experience in other cities.
The only structures along the docks not intended to house trade goods and other cargo are the
Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
harbormaster's offices and the facilities of the single shipbuilder remaining in the city. Most of the
warehouses now stand empty and deserted, while a handful of others have been converted into living
space by people hoping to leave Kalaman on the next ship that puts into port.
In centuries past, the heart and soul of Kalaman's business district was the famous open-air market.
Once, the open-air market held virtually every kind of good from almost every part of Ansalon. In the
many stalls, one could find maps, exotic foods, livestock, and even curious artifacts from the ruins in
nearby mountain ranges. Now, the market stands like a deserted clearing in the crumbling city. Citizens
tend to avoid the area, and if forced to cross it, they rush as quickly as they can to get back to the safety
between the buildings. Almost all trade now occurs along the waterfront, as very little overland travel
reaches the city anymore.
At the center of the city stands Castle Kalaman. Despite the pall that drapes the land, the city's lords
have maintained the structure, which remains one of the most beautiful buildings in northern Ansalon.
Within the last century, the castle has been home to two women who had great impact upon the modern
history of Ansalon the Blue Lady, the infamous Highlord of the Blue Dragonarmy during the Solamnia
offensive; and Lauranalanthalasa, the Qualinesti princess known as the Golden General. Gilthanas also
kept quarters here during his tenure as governor. The castle now serves as home to Tierrel Rychner,
Lord of Kalaman; his family; and his trio of advisors and their families.
Adventure Seed
While sailing along the northern coast of Ansalon, a storm forces a group of heroes into port at
Kalaman. Gilthanas has returned to the city and is recruiting skilled warriors to investigate the strange
disappearances of ships that have been occurring along the Vingaard River. The heroes are to join the
crew ofMyrella's Heart, a vessel commanded by the river pirate half-elf twins Myrelana and Leana. The
journey is supposed to go from Kalaman to Jahsburg in the south.
The river pirates aren't exactly accepting of people from outside of their culture. It's an uneasy
journey unless the heroes impress the rough-and-tumble pirates, they spend the whole voyage subject
to abuse. There should be plenty of opportunities for adventure, though . . . there is not one reason, but
several, behind the disappearing vessels. First, the Dark Knights have established a base in the swamp at
the Knight's Spur delta, and they have been seizing vessels carrying cargo that spies in Kalaman tell them
is valuable. Second, a new breed of undead has started to appear along the river ... undead river pirates.
These creatures also have been seizing vessels. Unless the heroes discover the secret behind their origins,
over the next few years, the numbers of the undead will grow enought to block all travel along the
Vingaard. Such a tragedy would finally bring about the death of Kalaman as a city, not to mention ending
the thriving river pirate culture based in the city of Vingaard. (For more information on the Vingaard
River, the river pirates, and the Dark Knights at Knights' Spur, see theHeroes of Defiance game
supplement.)
Peak of Clouds and Mount Brego
The Peak of Clouds, the highest point in the Astivar Mountains, and its companion peak Mount Brego
have been a center of mystical and otherworldly activities since the Cataclysm. Few beings are aware of
Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
the area's significance, but those who are know that it is a place that is best avoided.
Lorrinar, a reclusive green dragon who claims the Astivar Mountains and the Forest of Lahue as his
realm, however, is very familiar with the mystical properties of the Peak of Clouds and is presently
working to find a way to take advantage of them.
A History of the Peak of Clouds and Mount Brego
The Astivar Mountains are a towering wall of stone that was pushed up from the depths of Krynn during
the Cataclysm. Their peaks range mostly from four thousand to ten thousand feet above sea level, but the
Peak of Clouds soars to fourteen thousand feet with Mount Brego reaching twelve thousand feet. While
the foothills are not particularly treacherous, the higher peaks of this young mountain range feature severe
slopes and near-vertical cliffs. The mountains have yet to be softened by the effects of wind and weather
and stand like a giant row of jagged teeth.
To the west of mountains sprawls a dense forest of wiry trees that has been home to the Tribe of Lahue
for as long as anyone can remember. Reputed cannibals, they found themselves the target of the legions
of Istar's failed attempt to commit genocide in the decades prior to the Cataclysm. Even the upheavals
that turned their peninsula into the border between Nordmaar and Estwilde and which threw the Astivar
Mountains skyward did not destroy them.
Presently, the Tribe of Lahue continues to live in scattered woodland villages while diligently defending
their ancestral lands from invaders. Although still fiercely independent, survival has forced them to
acknowledge Lorrinar (or "Fume" as they call him) as the lord of their forest. This is not an arrangement
that bothers them, however, as Lorrinar makes no demands of them other than to be left alone.
Small communities of ogres and dwarves dwell within valleys hidden within the Astivar range. They
acknowledge Lorrinar's power, but, as with the Lahutians, he mostly leaves them alone. The green
dragon only occasionally calls upon them to help with research into the properties of the reputedly
magical peaks.
Secrets of the Peak of Clouds and Mount Brego [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]