Brisbyrg

The young hamlet of **Brisbyrg** is one of a series of small settlements that has sprouted in the area west of the Deepwing Mountains along the Pikemen's Folly trade route. Industrious and sturdy people have slowly carved out lives for themselves and their families farming the land, grazing herds of sheep and cattle, and sometimes working long-abandoned iron and silver mines in the nearby mountains. Sheltered by foothills from the howling winds of the Deepwings, some fifty souls diligently work out a living here, tending their flocks in the grassy fields.

The only stone structure in the hamlet sits in the middle of Brisbyrg, a point of local pride. It is used as a general meeting space as well as a temple of Chauntea, goddess of life and bounty, to whom most of the townsfolk pray for good harvests and safe flocks.

For years the settlement was haunted by Lord Alvernus Winterthorn and his Grim Harvest, until they were freed after adventurers struck him down. Brisbyrg now annually celebrates the Festival of the Fleet Scalemoon on the anniversary of Lord Winterthorn's defeat.

## History

The settlement was founded in 1459 DR.

1481 DR Lord Winterthorn came to Brisbyrg as the fall harvest began, declaring that they were to be taxed. He took a man and a woman as his own. The village had no weapons and no-one to protect them while Winterthorn had magic at his command.

In 1482 DR he came back, but this time he had with him a force of undead soldiers following his command, among them were Brisbyrg's lost son and daughter. Again he declared that they were to be taxed, and now by force he took two of their best to serve him. This horror repeated for itself at the beginning of each year for almost a decade.

In Marpenoth 1488 DR messages went out from Brisbyrg calling for adventurers to come to their settlement for unspecified work. The promised pay was meagre, but all the small community could afford.

In Hammer 1489 DR the time of the Grim Harvest was upon the hamlet and on the day the Grim Harvest was to be reaped three adventurers arrived - Kurk of the Lastfingers, Aeron Dunkrild, and Veil of a Mask. As the position was described to them Lord Winterthorn's emissary arrived to demand the tribute be paid. Aeron and Veil declared that no more tributes would be paid and Kurk was able to assassinate the emissary before he could respond, his contingent of undead also put down.

The adventurers elected to track down Winterthorn's lair and kill him to end his Grim Harvests and they were able to track it down within a couple of days. Once within, they were able to narrowly defeat him and his forces, ending his reign of terror. When they reported back to Brisbyrg to report his downfall the hamlet declared a celebration, dubbed by Aeron the *Celebration of the Fleet Scalemoon* in honour of their heroes.

## Notable people

### Lord Alvernus Winterthorn

Lord Winterthorn was a human of average height and build with striking noble features and short dark black hair. He wore a rough circlet fashioned from scrap metal scavenged by his undead servants and clothes which were once fine and of high quality, but showed the wear of passing years.

Alvernus was born to a wealthy family and raised to privilege, his callous cruelty masked from public eye by his family’s wealth. A position at a wizard’s school in Waterdeep was purchased for him, but a few years into his studies a series of calamities bankrupted his family and the school gladly kicked him out now that they were no longer paid to tolerate his clear disdain for others. Raging and determined to continue his necromantic studies, Alvernus made his way inland until he reached the scattered settlements in the shadow of the Deepwing Mountains. Intimidating the local settlements one by one yielded him his first batch of bodies to experiment on, allowing him to raise his own personal undead army. Styling himself as “Lord” of the region, Alvernus sought to gather more power to reclaim the life of privilege that he lost and to show his foolish teachers his true power.

Alvernus used an abandoned mineshaft in the Deepwing Mountains as his base of operations. He wielded the Spectral Serpent Scythe.

### Mother Olga Nackle

Olga Nackle came to Brisbyrg shortly after it was founded. In the decades since she has worked tirelessly, aiding farmers in bringing their harvests in, acting as the town doctor and veterinarian, and mediating disputes between neighbors in addition to her primary role as a priestess of Chauntea. It is primarily out of respect for her selfless spirit and labor that the town largely worships Chauntea and worked so hard to build the relatively lavish town center and temple several years before Winterthorn arrived in the area.

Olga wears simple robes and keeps her gray hair pulled back in a tight bun. Her face is weathered and her hands are calloused by years of work, but her voice and touch are still soft and gentle.

### Kithri Mossbinder

Kithri is a young human woman with sandy brown hair and a strong build, used to working the fields. She wears only black clothes and dark colors as she is in mourning for her husband Ferghus Mossbinder, who was one of the first sacrifices claimed by Winterthorn before they knew what he planned to do with them. She berates herself constantly for letting Ferghus go, and threw herself impulsively and wholeheartedly into defeating Winterthorn.

### Tordek Hammerstone

Tordek is a male dwarf and is the town blacksmith, although due to the small size of the town he also does carpentry, coopering, and wagon-making as necessary. As a young dwarf Tordek grew bored of life with his clan and decided to wander the world, eventually settling into Brisbyrg where his crafting skills (which were marginal by dwarven standards) quickly made him into an invaluable member of the community. He speaks slowly and thoughtfully, preferring to carefully plan everything out before acting.