Drie's Port

## Drie's Port, The King's Shipyard

The largest naval port in Polast, Drie's Port was a relatively small port town until Braehaea Isle came under the banner of Polastian rule. Under the Iris Crown, Drie's Port was rebuilt as a naval manufacturing city and is often the center of military-funded research and development. The largest city on the northern half of the Isle, there are three other settlements that conduct trade and support the larger city and the navy stationed there. Fin's Lake sits to the west, with the river hamlet of Bugglewylde to the south, and Laefield lies just twenty-five miles south of Drie's Port.

## History

### From the Feywild

Not much is known about the origins of many of the larger and older cities of Braehaea Isle. Many of the Fey Kingdoms were either destroyed or pushed deeper into hiding after the Dragon Army laid waste to much of the continent. From the few historical collaborations with the Elvenkind in Drie's Port, it can be estimated that the first known settlers of this land were in fact Elvenkind who had come from the Feywild around the turning of the 4th Age Before, sometime around the year 8,216 BFC. Other records of this era confirm the Age of Old Magic saw many of the Ancient Elven Kingdoms come into power over the Material Plane.

Professor Viessa Ravayarus, the Headmaster of the Claysquare University, posits that an ancient kingdom of High Elves known as the Auri had built monumental obelisks near present-day Drie's Port. She was the first to commission a multi-race expedition to the ruins known as The Auri Stones, a series of six, 100-foot tall stones with intricate carvings along the surface. Ravayarus suspects the carving tools were enchanted or perhaps the writing itself was done through old forms of magic, as the stones themselves date back nearly 12,000 years ago. None of the language has been deciphered, exhausting all manner of magic and science to no avail. Many of larger carvings appear to be forms of ideograms depicting a cataclysmic event with the Endemic Being Dhruk'Fa. It is hypothesized the Auri either withstood any attacks or possibly were never the target of Dhruk'Fa but instead acted as historians for other contemporary kingdoms.

### The 2nd Age Before

The history of Braehaea Isle during the Age of Blight is unknown, and it is suspected that the entire Isle had either returned to the Feywild or somehow created a magical barrier to shield themselves from the demonic presences that consumed the Material Plane. The Age of Ascendence is also a period of relative obscurity, as it was not until the Humans appeared on Braehaea Isle during the Age of Man that the Elven Kingdoms began interacting with Noros.

During this reintroduction to the world outside of Braehaea Isle, Drie's Port was discovered by the Humans of LaFainland. Baron Kharl de Ewan led an expeditionary force of 1,500 across the Heshwater Sea from Bosos, landing in the Spring of 2,270 BFC. The current inhabitants were remnants of the Uthwaea Kingdom, a mixing of High Elven and Wood Elven bloodlines. Though they were referred to as a kingdom, the last two decades of the Uthwaea seemed to be governed through a form of particracy that evolved in direct opposition to the last monarch of the nation. Seemingly the other side of the same coin, the particracy led to an ill-meaning people who flocked to the newcomers and readily joined a revolt to topple the last of the Uthwaea aristocracy. By the Summer of 2,269 BFC, Baron Ewan had control over Fort Arthan and the surrounding city. It wouldn't be until the following Spring when reinforcements would arrive that he could push further inland in search of more ancient Fey cities.

### A Militant History

Even before the arrival of the LaFainlanders, Drie's Port had always been closely tied to a nation's military presence. Named after the Elven King Drie Themnara, the port city was constructed to withstand any siege from land or sea. Old tales of King Drie's navy being the most advanced for its time have become a form of self-fulfilling prophecy for any who controlled the port.

After Drie's Port fell to Baron Ewan, the Elves retreated further into the Isle. Though he wanted to push further, Ewan never reached past modern-day Bugglewylde. Unaccustomed to the land, his soldiers faced hard winters and diseases that restrained further conquest. Ewan would settle for the lands around Drie's Port.

It would not be long until the Baron's greed would get the better of him as he rebelled against the dominion of LaFainland. During this period in history, LaFainland was considered to be at the height of its power, stretching from the west coast of Noros to the east. A brief coup attempt nearly thwarted Ewan's plan to consolidate power as a contingent of soldiers loyal to LaFainland almost assassinated him in his bed chambers during his 49th birthday.

From 2,260-2,250 BFC, The Siege of Drie's Port plagued the countryside as Ewan fought to maintain control. With only 1,200 defenders, Ewan was able to last ten years within the city walls before finally succumbing to tuberculosis.

### The Sacking of Drie's Port

LaFainland reclaimed ownership of Drie's Port in 2,249 BFC. A renewed effort to conquer the remaining lands to the south brought more hardship and disease to the Humans on Braehaea Isle. Expeditions that began with vigor often ended before their time or disappeared altogether. The next decade saw a steady decline in population, prompting the surrounding towns and villages to retreat to within the walls of Drie's Port. The common folk began to tell stories of ghosts in the night that would come in to kill the elderly in their sleep. When an unnatural snowstorm fell upon the city during the middle of summer, it became clear a magical force was attempting to take the city.

The leaders suspected the Elves of Braehaea Isle, and though no conclusive evidence was presented, Human-Elvish tensions dominated the remainder of the century. With a weakened state, the people of Drie's Port fell victim to a series of pirate attacks that slowly picked off any remaining wealth.

In 2,198 BFC, Captain Bellarose Neerswant of the *Darkbrine* led three ships ashore to raid the town of Laefield. The local population was willing to submit to his new rule, but Neerswant kept very few prisoners, killing the vast majority of the common folk. It is suggested that Neerswant could potentially have worked as an agent of the Elves to the south, though this claim remains unsubstantiated. Neerswant pushed inland quickly, fearing a battle in the open fields against cavalry. Unfortunately for the people of Drie's Port, all but fifteen of the horses had been butchered to accommodate for the lack of food.

The Sacking of Drie's Port lasted two days. Neerswant commanded 150 pirates against the 400 defenders of Drie's Port, led by the ailing Commander Percival de Regoll. Command of the defense was described by a surviving member of the guard as lacking in information and was taken completely by surprise. The defenders attempted to cordon off the lower streets only to be caught in the middle of the operation by Neerswant. After Regoll pulled all remaining defenders back into Fort Arthan, those citizens left in the streets were brutally slaughtered or taken prisoner. Regoll attempted to persuade Neerswant to a ceasefire by sacrificing himself, but this offer was met by Neerswant beheading Regoll and taking the Fort for himself. Drie's Port was looted and burned to the ground, left as a pile of rubble and ash by Neerswant.

### Reconstruction

It would be another 1,500 years before the rubble of Drie's Port would begin to see any semblance of its former glory as a naval power. In 788 BFC, the land was reclaimed by an emerging Elven power known as the DeStraud Dynasty. It is unclear whether the DeStrauds were a family from Aeyafin to the south or they simply seized the opportunity to rebuild Drie's Port. In any case, the patriarch, Humberfulcrum DeStraud, allegedly purchased the land that was still considered to be a part of LaFainland by right of conquest. A shrewd businessman, DeStraud doubled the size of the port, offering LaFainland its own dock specifically for military vessels.

The success of the DeStraud's rise to prominence came from their expertise in forestry. Their lumber yards throughout the northeastern region of Braehaea Isle reportedly accounted for nearly 90% of all constructed buildings both in Drie's Port and Ragsport, as well as many of the coastal cities on the continent. Though the Dynasty was considered as such, Drie's Port ceased to adhere to a monarchy, remaining an oligarchal society independent of the Elven Kingdoms on Braehaea Isle and LaFainland.

### War With The Dragon Army

The Dragon Army focused much of their force against the continental armies, leaving many of the smaller islands to themselves. Drie's Port became a safe haven for many traders who sought harbor for fear of attacks at sea. In the year 299 BFC, Drie's Port supplied the Polastian Campaign with 200 ships armed with advanced ballista to protect transport vessels along the coast. This marked the first direct military action taken by Drie's Port in nearly 2,000 years. The DeStraud's would go on to pledge a quarter of their military to replenish much of the southern force of LaFainland's armies. This would create a friendship between Humberfulcrum DeStraud and General Welwert of Calhaven.