Kzelter

Kzelter was a large garrison town, turned small agrarian Tethyrian town, in the Lands of Intrigue. In 1370 DR it was besieged and lost by Tethyr to the Banite controlled city-state of Mintar.
==Geography==
Kzelter was located in far south-eastern Tethyr, at the southernmost extent of the nation's borders, as part of County Alonmarch. It stood between the Forest of Mir and the Omlarandin Mountains, a picturesque rugged landscape. It was also approximately east of Skyships' Glade.
The town was connected to two roads, Darkhope's Road connecting it southeast to the city of Mintar in the Lake of Steam region, and the Pass Ride that connected it northwest to the town of Ithal Pass.
==Description==
The buildings of the town were constructed of timber, with thatch or slate roofs. Much of it burnt down during the Mintaran siege. Temples in particular were either burnt, desecrated, or both. In the place of those buildings a large tent city was erected. Surrounding the town were numerous exploratory holes, dug by local residents pressed into labor by the Banites, as part of an ongoing search for Kzelter's lost armory.
==Government==
Under Tethyrian rule the community was governed by a duke and two counts. Under Mintaran occupation Kzelter was turned over to Aramman Freebane, who was given the title Constable General. He answered to the Dark Tyrant of Mintar Teldorn Darkhope and the town's highest-ranking Banite cleric, Neth Arrovar. Alongside Aramman was Victor Arianus, who served as the lead magical advisor for the town and commanded its retinue of over a dozen wizards.
==Trade==
Under the long reign of House Tethyr, Kzelter was home to a variety of businesses, including armorers, fest-halls, and taverns. After the Fall of House Tethyr most of these businesses disappeared, save for a few equipment shops, and it became a farming community. The town grew a variety of fruits and vegetables, as well as reared cattle for beef, milk, and cheese. And the Ala-min tribe would annually come to the town to resupply.
Under Mintaran occupation the community's produce could no longer be exported, instead being confiscated as tithings by Tyrant's Hope Temple, the town's revivified temple of Bane. The Ala-min ceased to visit the town. And its equipment shops were largely emptied out by the occupiers, with all armor and metallic weaponry confiscated for the Banite war machine. In terms of imports, the town regularly received shipments of Mintaran products.
==Defenses==
Under House Tethyr, over 2,000 troops were stationed at the garrison. Under Mintaran occupation, Kzelter had around 5,000 Banite troops in 1370 DR, gradually amassing more as the weeks went on, as well as various mercenaries that swore allegiance to Teldorn Darkhope and his vision of conquest. These mercenaries were warriors and wizards that had been recruited by Mintar from all across south Faerûn and indoctrinated by Darkhope with a special ritual involving dark promise spells and other magics. Both troops and mercenaries alike lived in the large tent city that was erected at the community.
===Crime===
Prior to occupation, crime was virtually non-existent in the town. Though some degree of crimes emerged following occupation, they were only being committed by the Banites.
Occupying forces were ordered to round up any "adventurer types" that were spotted around Kzelter or within the town itself and detain them in holding pens until the Banites could determine their goals and identities. "Adventurer types" were broadly defined as any strangers wearing armor and carrying weaponry, though it was also applied to the town's local madman.
==History==
Kzelter was originally established for the purpose of guarding the pass between the Forest of Mir and the Snowflake Mountains. The troops stationed there also served to keeps the gnolls of the eastern highlands at bay and minimize their population growth. For much of its history Kzelter was a booming, prosperous garrison.
When House Tethyr finally fell apart in the , most of the troops that were stationed at the garrison looted it for whatever coin, food, weapons and armor they could get before deserting it. Some left to their homes elsewhere in Tethyr, whilst others traveled either eastward or to Calimshan to take up the life of an adventurer. In the wake of their desertion came rioting from the townsfolk, which left Kzelter fortress in a state of ruins. The fortress itself became a haven for the destitute, thieves, and rats.
Some of stationed troops, mostly those with families, chose to remain at Kzelter or the surrounding countryside. In the intervening years between then and 1370 DR, life in Kzelter remained largely in peaceful, with the most to rouse excitement being the frequent caravans of merchants that passed through on their way east to the Ithal Road.
On Uktar 20, 1369 DR, the powerful Banite tyrant Fzoul Chembryl was possessed by Iyachtu Xvim and given a vision urging him to head to the city of Mintar as part of a holy quest. By stonewalking to various Banite and Xvimlar holy sites, Fzoul managed to travel from Mulmaster to Mintar over a period of 17 days. On Nightal 7, Fzoul arrived with great fanfare from the populace, but quickly went about meeting with Teldorn in private. Alone, Fzoul scarred Teldorn with the mark of Xvim, flooding his mind with visions from Xvim. At that moment Tendor not only realized he had been receiving his powers and spells from the Baneson, but like Fzoul had received a vision of Kzelter's fabled lost armory, urging the two of them to seek it out as a holy quest.
In the month of Uktar, the counts of the Tethyrian counties Mirkazar and Surkazar sent intelligence reports that suggested a buildup of troops and army movements in Mintar. In response, Tethyr sent a small contingent of troops to Kzelter.
From Nightal 10 to Nightal 26, Teldorn and Fzoul managed to secretly ascertain the location of hidden armory beneath Kzelter and the nearby Plains of Pehrifaal. From the armory, Fzoul took eleven tyrant blades. With knowledge of the armory in their hands, the two went about planning the conquest of Kzelter in earnest, wanting to ensure their control over it. From relics taken from the armory, the two of them assembled the Scepter of the Tyrant's Eye as Xvim had commanded of them to do. By the end of 1369 DR, Mintar was mustering its forces for an invasion of Kzelter.
In the month of Hammer, 1370 DR, the contingent of Tethyrian troops detected no activity from Mintar, their scouts and spies unable to even find the supposed amassed army. In response, the commander of the troops sent a request to Count Yuldar Llistiin for them to disband. Between Mirtul 8 and Mirtul 10, a second instance of Fzoul Chembryl's Tyrantfog manifested around Mintar and from there spread northwest to Saradush. Finding themselves invigorated with new-found strength by the fog, at a time when Kzelter's local duke and his two counts were away at the Tethyrian court in Darromar and the stationed army had their guards down, the Knights of the Black Gauntlet marched upon Kzelter.
The bulk of the troops surrounded the city under the cover of the Thornwood, the Forest of Mir, and the Qatarn Hills. Over the course of a three day siege the small garrison fell to Mintar, leaving the beleaguered Tethyrian troops to route and flee north, regrouping at Ithal Pass. Some farmers likewise chose to abandon their farms and managed to escape the wrath of the Banites, as did the villagers of nearby Eyesvale. The conflict would later be known as the Battle of Kzelter.
In the month of Kythorn, Xvimist refugees from Almraiven came to Kzelter and were welcomed by Teldorn's senior staff.
In the month of Eleint, the syl-pasha of Calimshan offered his aid to Tethyr and sent a token force to retake Kzelter. However, the syl-pasha was likewise interested in the legendary lost armory and ordered his troops that, should they free the Kzelter, to search for it before turning the town over to the Tethyrian authorities.
In the month of Eleasis, intelligence reports out of Kzelter told the Tethyrians that there was little activity coming out of Kzelter, save for the Banite troops refortifying the Kzelter Fortress.
Teldorn had desired to commit more military action that year, but was stymied back home by strikes, popular uprisings, and his ally Vaxall's reluctance to advance further.Sleep of Ages and Portals Under the Black Gauntlet state that (part of) the reason for the stall in military action was Teldorn having difficulty locating the lost armory. Page 154 of Empires of the Shining Sea agrees with these sources, in at least that it states Teldorn's forces were having no luck finding the armory. However, Cloak & Dagger had him and Fzoul "...secretly uncover the hidden armory..." a year prior. Hostilities between Kzelter and the amassed troops of Ithal Pass were few and far between, as the Tethyrians and Mintarans both focused on refortifying and planning for the future. The Tethyrian leadership had few plans to retake the town anytime soon, as they were far more focused on protecting their northern borders against the Sythillisian Empire and its loss had little effect on the nation's economy.
Some of the youth within the community, unwilling to submit to Banite rule, came together as an underground resistance. They fashioned wooden weaponry, melted down plowshares to forge crude spearheads or swords, and steal supplies or weaponry. Occasionlly they would harass patrols or set fire to a few of the troops' tents. Additionally, they managed to dig out some tunnels that were a few feet underground to enable greater ease of travel, as well as a series of well-hidden ambush and bolt holes.
By 1372 DR, Teldorn's Banites were still under the impression that the armory had not been found and were ongoing with their search. the resistance movement's efforts had become more deadly and competent, as a chance meeting with Ilindyl Fireblade allowed them to establish ties with the underground resistance of Mintar, sharing intel and resources with one another.
==Rumors & Legends==
Since its original desertion in 1347 DR, rumors persisted throughout the region of there being some kind of hidden-vault that was missed by the rioting townsfolk. According to legends this lost armory contained a cache of coins, magical weapons, magical armor, and other treasures. Some versions of the legend spoke of it not being in or beneath Kzelter itself, but somewhere near it. Every now and then former Tethyrian soldiers would come to Kzelter, convinced of knowing the lost armory's location. Most would leave empty-handed and frustrated, though some would never be seen again. In the case of the latter, most assumed that those who didn't come back had simply decided to leave the area instead of returning to admit defeat.
==Notable Locations==
* Kzelter Fortress, the central fort of the garrison.
* Tyrant's Hope Temple: A Banite temple built over the ruins of an old temple to Oghma, governed by Neth Arrovar.
* The ruins of a Chauntean temple could be found in the northern outskirts of town, and contained an active portal.
* Caverns deep beneath the town held a two-way portal to the Elemental Plane of Earth, established in by the reigning Ataman of Imir of the Great Dismal Delve.
==Inhabitants==
Under the reign of House Tethyr the garrison town had a population of up to 20,000 people living in it. Following the Fall of House Tethyr, much of the population deserted the town and it had dwindled down to 4,000 people by . In 1369 DR, the population of permanent residents numbered over 3,000, but following Banite occupation that number had dwindled even further down to 1,500, with most of the residents being humans.
==Notable Inhabitants==
* Elesor Smytheson, an old sage that was known to the locals as "the madman".
* Lantana Duskeyes, the leader of Kzelter's underground resistance.
* Neth Arrovar, chief priest of the Tyrant's Hope Temple.
==Appendix==
===Notes===
===Appearances===
===Gallery===
Lake of Steam 2e.jpg|2e Map
Pehrrifaal.JPG|Another 2e map.
===References===
Category:Towns
Category:Settlements
Category:Small towns
Category:Locations on Pass Ride
Category:Locations on Darkhope's Road
Category:Locations in Alonmarch
Category:Locations in Tethyr
Category:Locations in the Lands of Intrigue
Category:Locations in West Faerûn
Category:Locations in Faerûn
Category:Locations on Toril