Notable Locations

## The Castle-Town of Vasté

Once a minor fortress protecting the western approach to the City of the Throne, the town of Vasté is now the eastern-most stronghold of the Rosarran Empire. It stands on the threshold of the Bone March, almost within sight of the great battlefield (and marsh) known as the Field of the Faithful. Built on a rocky hill, above a lake below, the Fortress is safe enough to serve as a base of operation for expeditions into the March itself.

The folk of Vasté are cautious but friendly, living as fishermen, farmers, and hunters in the woods west and south of the town. The Castellan is a stalwart (if unambitious) man - Ser Ander Elazar. He and his family have ruled Castle Vasté since the Fall, and he is not one to lose it.

## The City of the Throne (Throne)

   The center of a mighty empire, and birthplace of the Undying Emperor, the City of the Throne (or simply Throne) was a place of immense power and wealth before the Fall. A massive spire descended directly onto the Emperor's Palace, and the Warp that followed devastated the city. Only the furthest outskirts avoided outright ruin, and the walls of Throne to this day are a Holy Sight for those who adhere to the Undying Emperor.

A place of danger and wealth. It is said that the Library of the Raiser Council is still intact somewhere within (or below) the ruined city. Certainly the vault of Horus, First King of Men, has never been breached. What secrets and treasures lie within? But beware, say the locals, of the beastmen who roam the plain before it. And ever more deadly are those warped creatures that lie within, and beneath, the city itself...

## The Golden Halls (Dahgdurahl)

   A city-kingdom of dwarves which fell silent after the Fall. The great doors were sealed against those that poured out of the Thorns, and were never opened again. Many have sought a way in, if for no other reason than to find out what became of the dwarves who lived there, under King Obreghd IV. However, the vast wealth said to be in the hands of the Golden King is more than enough reason to tempt all manner of curious folk. That so few return who set out to find a door speaks to the possible dangers one might face, though the exact nature of those dangers seems strangely elusive...

## The Field of the Faithful

The site of one of the last, and greatest, battles against the Bone Lords. Broken spears, shattered machines, and the bones of the dead still cover the marshy landscape, set against the crumbling ruins of the old fortress which stood at the heart of the battle. Though the site has an evil reputation, much wealth of iron and raw materials can still be gathered. The ruined fortress itself holds a few secrets as well. Be wary - the old lumbering war machines that don't know the war is over are not the only dangers in this place...

## The Great Waste

To the north of the Tradeway, east of the Keening Mountains lies one of the largest of the Thornwastes, spiraling out from a massive, needle-like Thorn at the center. This Thorn was the source of much of the destruction that reigned over this part of the world, and though it now lies in restless quietude, the warp has never abated here. Those few travelers who take the Trade way to the east pass by as quickly as possible, and those who venture into it are rarely seen again. Strange calls and beastly cries echo from it, and though the Lord of the Spire was slain in battle, there are those that say his spirit still rests within, waiting. For what, they never do say...

## The Town of Iluvin

At the south side of the lake below Vasté is the small fishing community of Iluvin. Though it is without walls, the town has been kept safe from creatures beyond by the river which flows south out of the lake to the Shallow Sea, some miles away. Friendly and seemingly unconcerned with the dangers away to the east of them, the folk of the town are happy to host strangers in the town's one inn and tavern. A ruined chapel stands at the top of a nearby hill, which the Iluvins avoid. They say that it's haunted, and the crypts beneath it hold more than dead bones...

## The Keep at the Crossroads

*"If you takes the old road south of Iluvin for some miles, past the old wood there, you'll come to the crossroads, and that huge old keep. The Castellan keeps soldiers there, but it's not a very happy assignment. No comforts, no fun to be had at all. Course there are some locals - hunters and trappers mostly - that use the old keep as a home of sorts. But it's got an ill reputation - folk stationed there seem to go off a little.*

## The Warden's House

*"East of Vasté at the cross of the Tradeway and the Old Road, stands a giant-sized manor, atop a hill overlooking the cross. Within lives the Warden, a Dyranni of enormous proportions - his house, more of a massive estate, is surrounded by one of those infernal hedge-mazes. I'm not sure anyone's ever been inside the place. He comes to Vasté from time to time though, buying strange reagents and supplies. If you look out that way, you can see odd colored smoke hovering over the place sometimes. My guess is he's some sort of alchemist...how he handles those little vials in his mitts is beyond me!"*

## The Deepwood and Greenroost

An old, but well-traveled, path runs north of Warden's Cross to the edge of the Deepwood. There, built into huge Eld Trees, is a community called Greenroost. Those who live there make their living harvesting the mushrooms of the forest, many of which have strange properties, and hunting in the forest edge. Their platforms run some way into the forest, such that one doesn't have to touch down on the ground, which is dense with an underbrush of ferns and shrubs. It is said that it was originally made by an elven druid who still dwells in the woods, though none has seen her in an age.

Deepwood itself is a dense and tangled wood that runs through the valley between the Favored and the Keen Mountains. A Thorn fell on the eastern side of the valley, turning a portion of the wood into a choked and tangled mass of jungle; the rest of the wood maintains itself surprisingly well against the spread of the Waste. Locals in Greenroost warn outsiders not to enter the wood without good cause, or at least, to have a care not to do undue damage as they travel. There are things within the forest, not all natural, that take such things personally...