Feywild
Geography
Astrazalian
– The City of Starlight is a two-faced realm. It spends spring and summer
floating on its emerald island of Ruislip and autumn and winter in the Feywild.
The crown jewel of all the Eladrin realms, where affluence, diversity, learning
and trade fill the streets. The Havens are but a faded image of the original.
Yet the noble houses hoard the power and courtesy and respect so engrained,
just balances the corrupting arrogant and deceit. The mortals leave seasonally,
for worldfall brings Astrazalian to be besieged by the Fomorians. The city is
lean and grim then.[i]
Bakemono –
Normally a term for a haunt, it has long been associated with the Hobgoblins of
the Feywild. Which threaten and terrorise much of eastern Nangia from their Plane.
The Great Gark of Nachtur commands his forces to destroy for his own pleasure
or pay. Bakemono is a series of nominally independent staging camps in the lush
forests where no axe or hoe will come to hew. The captains rule as independent
lords and balance the hoarding and tributing of plunder to the Great Gark. From
there, forces march to make worldfall in mortal woods.
Brokenstone
Vale – Where the Fey Vidya Mountains rise and the pass to Whitewall belongs to
the howling moon. By ancient compact, shapechangers are safe here and neither
can a creature enter without their permission. Yet likewise, all beyond are
forfeit to the eyes of the Archfey, the Maiden of the Moon. The lycanthropes
make useful if intimidating trading partners for Mithrendain.
Yet others are vicious, especially with the full moon. A sliver stripe or display
of wolfbane dissuades them. But one must compete with the hags and witches for
that and can mark one out as a target by the werebeasts.[ii]
Cendriane
– Tragedy is the mark of the ruins of Cendriane, for here was the greatest of
cities before the Kinstrife Wars that separated the Drow from the other
Seldarine. Repeatedly attacked and pushed back, the final battle between the drow
and Eldrain was forewarned by the appearance of the Far Realms-touched star
Zhudun. Great magic was used and within days every citizen had vanished. The
crystal city remains a beautifully preserved haunted ruin, guarded by nesting
creatures, outlying communities with strange melancholiac customs and picked
over by treasure hunters who seldom return. The lord himself, Kannoth remains
as a vampire.[iii]
Court of
Fallen Leaves – Once the lands south of the Scourge
Mountains resisted the Archfey, the Prince of Frost and his opportunistic
harnessing of the hateful winds. Now the remaining Eladrin lords bicker in a
ruined realm and the Fey of Tronskal have no authority, living wild as they
please. Or demanding much and offering only a little to the Earthly borderlands
between the Jotunheimen and the city walls. In turn the Fomorians of the
Feydark have made greats strides in securing their realms above and below. What
little earthly commerce they do is with the Frozen Coast.[iv]
Desert of
Winds – The desolate yet beautifully carved lands which mirror the western
reaches of Zakhara. Few Genies dwell in the Feywild and those which do have
embraced the narrative flow of the land. The tribes of Eldrain do not Differentiate
but pass from spire-top villages to wind-carried tent as they please. The few
cities are wind-scoured white and decorated, overgrown palaces of lords and
attached bazars. The animals and resources are few and magical, meaning the
fighting is for higher stakes. Numerous Sand Knives, a bandit people, have
crossed over in recent years, lured by their control of Earthly Kashtaph.[v]
Feydark – As
Earth has its depths, so does the Feywild. As the King that Crawls likewise
laughs at such boundaries as the Planes in his anguished wanderings. Here lie
the greatest dangers for the feydark is the realm of the Fomorians, and their cyclops.
But also, creatures they could contain but never kill. Unlike the Underdark, it
teems with life and magic, especially the lands of the myconids. With water and
food abounding, the numbers of threats rise as well.[vi]
Forest
Edge – There has never been barbarian Humans to hew the forests of the
Feywild’s Long Lakes. Allowing the abundant greenery to grow all the way to the
Lake of Dreams but remains no less vibrant. Yet the courteous of the Fey do not
dwell here for the lake edge is home to a Dragon. This green beast has
bewitched those who steaded here. Transforming the capricious realm into
something malevolent.[vii]
Islands of
the Uttermost South – South of the Crowded Sea is said to be a linear chain of
island stretching a thousand miles west and east. This is thought to be the
boundary of the world in Zakaharn folklore. Beyond is bare ocean or plunging
mists to the Astral Sea or Elemental Chaos. It is yet another mirage of the
Genie’s Wind. The islands lie in the Feywild, accessible through miss-aligned
ships and Arodia’s counterpart not being in place. Unexplored as of writing,
the only reported note is that the islands are forested.[viii]
Isle of
Dread, The – It is said to exist everywhere and anywhere, an island that time
forgot, ringed with treacherous reefs and storm-tossed seas. Black sand, black
mountains and black smoke mark an island that floats above the coral kingdoms
of the Sea Lord Archfey. The island is said to shift from the Feywild to Earth,
any earth and any time it is whispered. Tight-knit or short-lived bands of
survivors struggle and betray each other, for the island is home to powerful
magic, Dinosaurs, Yuan-ti and the dread Su-Monster. Psionic creations of
short-sighted and deceased wizard Halkith, which monitor and prey upon the
island.[ix]
Lake of
Dreams – Akin to Lake Lumlé in Adventia, this crystal-clear Feywild lake is rimmed
with forest and cliffs, as is its counterpart. To gaze into the lake is to have
one’s dreams perfectly interpreted in the reflection. To drink its waters is to
invite he most wonderful or nightmarish phantasms for the sleeper. It is most
known for its role in the savage enlightenment of Cerunnos, patron of the Wild
Hunt.[x]
Mithrendain – Beyond these autumn stormlands of the
Plains of Valdrennai is a magnificent city. Soaring autumn-colored towers and
graceful architecture, with neither wall nor grid seem to benefit the phrase
“Walls of the Fortress”. That citadel lies at its heart, built in the waning
days of the empire to guard something forgotten. Besides the Citadel Arcanum,
it is a place of tower clusters, gardens and rigorous privacy. A deep hum is
heard by visitors. Earthly difficulties include vague timekeeping, exacting
standards of beauty, the shady Old Battery neighborhood, secret police and that
imprisonment is replaced with harsher penalties. Frequent diplomacy occurs.[xi]
Murkendraw,
The – Stretching across the horizon is a pustule on the face of the Feywild.
Not the Fenreach but the entire Sea of Ships is a bleak and sodden landscape of
clotted mud and quicksand. Populated by crocodiles the size of the skiffs,
assassin vines and flies the sizes of dogs. Witches driven from civilisation
learn at the foot of hags and cold iron is buried under every door and window.
The Murkroot Trade Moot cannot be found unless one is shown by another who has.
An underground bazar of the cruel, illegal, illicit and the cures for what else
is sold.[xii]
Nachtur – North
and east from the territory of the Eladrin, the forest gives way to open
meadows and eventually to dry rocky ground. Beyond is grey and treacherous
badlands. The great Continental mountains reduced. This is the gateway to the
Goblin kingdom. The forces of the Great Gark are numerous and count Trolls and
Giants too. The Hobgoblin wizard seeks raiding against all. Snatching children
and good Fey. By rumour, the innocent are eaten and malicious transformed into
more goblins. Border towns line the
outskirts, home of witches, exiles and outcastes. Still, diplomats and
mercenaries stream forth to all civilised realms.[xiii]
Nypacian
Outlands – The echoes of the great jungles that swirl across the green coast of
Zakhara’s Fey twin. No khedive dares march on this verdant misery, even when
they know where the Planar portals are. For this land is one of snakes and
birds and elephants of legend. It is the Earth which is but a pale echo of
here. Worse still are those fey Giants who rule. The Fomorians have never
fallen nor devolved, and they and their kin rules shadow-dappled cities amid
the tower-high trees.[xiv]
Scourge Mountains – In the north, where the echoes of Jotunheimen
rise, stripped of a name. A terrible wind blows every twenty years across the
Feywild. A sentient and malevolent blast that seeks to freeze to death as many
lives as possible before it blows out. Such a curse came about when an infant
Eladrin princess of elder blood was slain in her crib. Such an act resonates despite
amends. Indeed, only specially trained song-singers can ameliorate the wind for
their foothill settlements. To do so, they take a sacred quest to wander,
promote peace and life so they may sing of it.[xv]
Senaliesse
– Titanic silver trees arise from the forests yet hold higher the living wood
palace of the Summer Queen Tiandra. The Archfey dwells in a realm of endless
summer and perpetually merriment among the roots. Yet such a realm was the work
of many, Oran, the Green Lord wove the palace for this is the Court of the
Stars and it’s Shiradi champions. Archfey, even those malign, travel here
regularly to meet and scheme and revel. The lesser all know a rhythm to avoid
the wrath of powerful visitors and courtiers, and petitioners bring constant
tales of woe.[xvi]
Shinaelestran
– The Fading City, City of Rangers. From sunrise to dusk, the Eldarin work the
vineyards around their forest-choked city. Producing feywine, fletching arrows
or trying stop the trees from consuming the manses. From dusk to midnight, the
Fomorian Queen Connomae of Vor Thormil tries to seize the city as a raiding
base, and Lord Calenon’s forces are put to the test. From midnight to sunrise,
the city arrives on Earth to contend with the feral and savage Humanoids of the
Deepwoods. Every night, from before to forever. Welcoming and valiant are they
to allies, and mightily do they revel.[xvii]
Spiral Tower, The – A site both actual and
metaphorical where the Fey races of the Seldarine studied the spell and the sword
to achieve a balance between them. While Corellon taught here and Nerull
studied here. The site is best known for being the final battle between the
Drow, the Eldrain and Elves. The demons and drow had seized the site after a
protracted battle. While the eldrain were fighting on multiple fronts, the
elven commander Ossandrya stepped up. Victorius, the spiral tower was reduced
to a blackened spindle and had to be rebuilt.[xviii]
Valdrennai, Plains of - Deep in the Feywild is the
reflection of the great plains cradled by the Vidya Mountains. The lands of the
Dyne, the Hill Cantons and the nomad-tinged marches of the Hundred Kingdoms.
Here the weather is eternally blustery, and the plants bedecked in autumn
colors of an eternal partial death. Beyond these autumn stormlands is the
bright twin of wolf and bat-haunted woods. Where color predominates yet the
danger can be just as great. This is the domain of the city of Mithrendain, which
more than some know the way to.[xix]
Zoramadria,
Tower of – Once the Eldrain warlock Zoramadria was banished from Astrazalian
for her meddling in the Planar boundaries between the Shadowfell and Feywild. Forewarned,
she teleported her tower and her students to a far corner of the shifting
lands. As her tower was being invaded during a ritual. Apparently, the magic
killed Zoramadria and render many of her students undead. Her promising student
Parthal now leads as a lich. He is said to be consumed by vengeance and
frequently in need of innocent or powerful souls.[xx]
Anthropology
Archfey – There
are more archfey than there are major Gods, demon princes, Primordials and even
Primal Spirits. They command the Fey courts, empower Exarchs and demand respect
even if not attending the Court of Stars. The mightiest are called Sidhe Lords
and many are still Eldrain. though others have arisen or are independent
wanderers. Mightiest is Tinandra the Summer Queen, who rules two courts. The
Prince of Frost and the Winter Witch, Siblings Elias and Siobhan Alastai, ruler
of the rivers and seas. Oran and Cerunnos, the Maiden of the Moon. Baba Yaga
and the greatest of the Formorian monarchs.[xxi]
Beast
Tamers – It is suggested by the divine records which stretch to the Dawn War,
that the callous Elven nobility would open Planar crossing to the Feywild to
let loose beasts in generational gladiatorial games with Human settlements.
Besides the historical inaccuracies, the Eldarin have sought to disprove their
ancestors committed such vile acts. Nevertheless, many folktales refer to Fey
beats and in turn to those who developed the art of taming them. These magical
bloodlines have been diminished by time, yet individuals still occur. Perhaps
the Whipmasters of Bael Turath were such, deceived rather than gifted by their
masters.[xxii]
Cerunnos –
A Firbolg, raised as the adopted son of Oran of the Green Court. Taunted by his
sisters, it was foretold that he would be the greatest hunter, and a dark
destiny awaited him at the Lake of Dreams. In hunting the silver hind to the
lake, Cerunnos embarked on a story of betrayal. His father, the Prince of Frost,
Tiandra, the Summer Queen and the hind herself, an aspect of the Moon. Now he
lurks among the Gloaming Fey. Cursed with horns, he hunts lovers, lycanthropes
and the strong if sporting. He brings madness by his passing.[xxiii]
Eldrain
– A Fey Demi-Human race which are the ancestors of all Elven peoples.
Supposedly made from the blood and tears of wounded Corellon, they continue to
live in disparate Feywild kingdoms centred on powerful beings called Archfey.
They possess slimer builds than their Earthier elven descendants and are more
fair than dark in complexion. Noticeably they have no pupils, only pearly and
opalescent orbs. Swords and spells are to them as a saw is to a carpenter, for
the Feywild is turbulent as it is magnificent.[xxiv]
Fey – The Feywild live on and through stories and all
narratives have sides. All native Humanoids and intelligent creatures serve one
of these. The Court of Stars is the grand conclave of the rest. The Court of
Coral encompasses the aquatic and island-dwelling fey. The Gloaming Fey are
associated with dreams and night. The Green Fey are forest-dwelling creatures.
The Summer Fey are the largest and most refined of the Eldrain. The Winter Fey
perceive themselves as not being a faction, though they follow leaders. The
Unseelie are not a true faction, being malicious outcaste creatures, frequently
tied to the Shadowfell.[xxv]
Fey
Crossing Hamlets – Far from the cities of the Earth stand quiet villages, where
the Planar boundaries with the Feywild grow thin. Here plagues and famines
never strike, and game is always plentiful. Mists rise in fantastic shapes and
the woods are filled with senses that ae beyond the humdrum. Yet to stray out
at night or beyond the path is to invite vanishment, and the few who return are
out of time or mind. Residents are prone to odd rituals, even by the loose
understanding of magic. Still, here is where fairy blood and skills may be
found.[xxvi]
Fey Pacts
of Ancient Days – A tome that records obscure Archfey once revered by primitive
Humans. Within are Neifion the Lord of Bats, Zebechial the Lord of Lightning,
and Morrisa the Lady of Swords. Zebechial is the most beseeched, but all that
can be known is that he dwells upon a floating demesne within the Feywild and
is most concern with directing the power of the storm. Their obscurement is
obvious. Neifion is of an aspect long shunned by day-dwelling man, Zebechial
was toppled by Kord in his Pagan glory. And Morrisa lost her chance when dead Turen
perished for usurpation, not lack of skill.[xxvii]
Fomorians
– As Giants and titans exist on Earth, their Fey equivalent reside. Masters of
the Feydark against the Seldarine. Which is why the Drow came to the earth,
though the Declaration of Eschatos preserves some equity. Emerging with a
sinister eye, that brought them nightmares, visions and imparted curses. They
shaped the Cyclops, reflection of Ogres but far more skilled into willing
servants. The discarded Verbeeg, reflections of the Indra. They enslaved the
Gnomes and made the Hengeyokai their servants. Hag-Ungotha may be destroyed, but
Harrowhame, Mag Tureah and Vor Thomil remain. Mag Tureah the largest, most
diplomatic and warlike.[xxviii]
Gnome – As
Dwarves emerged on Earth, the gnomes emerged in the Feywild. And likewise, they
were enslaved by the Fomorians, the Fey echoes of Giants. It is by stealth and
cunning and occasion rebellion that many did hide or slip away from the
Feydark. Illusions, inventiveness and unobtrusiveness are virtues to them, and
hidden are their root-drawn holes. On earth, some have become closer to
dwarves, loving gems and mechanisms, sometimes intermingling to grow beards.
Others hide in the Underdark, losing hair but retaining their black orb eyes.
Shorter than Halflings, they live like Eldarin, passing three hundred years,
but aging.[xxix]
Knights of
the Fey – The Aelavellin Seldarine, the Sword Knights of the Seldarine are
those knights who serve Corellon above all. Open to all, they are more
frequently are his patroned people; Eldarin, Elves and Half-Elves. They have a
Fey perspective on what could be called a personal code of chivalry. They do
not shun the bow, spell or ruses of war and learn techniques of moving in
armour. Beyond valour and martial skill, they are expected to show the eldarin
and elven virtues; exceptional patience, grace and compassion. Always welcome
in those communities, with the title of ruathar, star-friends.[xxx]
Turco-Fey
– Turco might mean strength, but some of Zakhara say it means robber. The Howling
Plains of Earth are wild enough, the Feywild equivalent, the Plains of Echoing
Thunder are where even the rivers, hillocks and mountains migrate to the rhythm
of the sky. Hordes of Centaurs and intelligent horses roam these lands warring
alongside Eldarin on storm-cloud shrines. There is never enough grass or water
for hardship is the tale. And the tale ends when a mighty city is conquered, to
be burned or settled. Only an earthly city has the legend-permeance and the
majesty for the tribes since Antiquity.[xxxi]
Tuathan – The most mysterious Westermen were those
which went through the Deepwoods to the Feywild and emerged again in ships to
settle the riverine lands of the old Elven Empire. Human in form, they subsumed
and interbred with the earlier westermen tribes and the Elves. Producing
challenge-seeking, animal-faced humans and Half-Elves with faerie magic. In
time, their empire crumbled before the advent of their death-metal kin and they
retreated beyond. Their legacy are shape changers, those Planar west-rovers
whose vows and bargains are binding, and a term for odd children in Fey Crossing Hamlets.[xxxii]
Wild Hunt,
The – Led by Cerunnos, the Horned Lord, the wild hunt sweeps forth in an
unhinged tide, hunting man and beast across the planes. They can cross Planes
at auspicious times, and otherwise wait in between. Those taken but not slain
can return years later with memories missing and unaged. Firbolgs, revere the
hunt and ape it, joining the Gloaming Fey in it with wild whooping. Warlocks
and undead bound by oaths must ride, the dead most common with the new moon.
Kannoth, vampire lord of Cendriane still holds loyalty to Cerunnos, though he
escaped.[xxxiii]
[i] See Heroes of the Feywild pp.9-10,
Manual of the Planes p.41, Dragon Magazine #395 pp.1-5
[ii] See Heroes
of the Feywild p.14
[iii] See Dragon Magazine #366, p.18;
Heroes of the Feywild pp.14-15, Wizard presents Worlds & Monsters p.22
[iv] Inspired by Revenge of the Giants
pp.84-87
[v] Inspired by Draconomicon: Metal
pp.202-203
[vi] See Heroes of the Feywild p.10
[vii] See Draconomicon: Chromatic
pp.110-117
[viii] See
Al-Qadim Land of Fate: Map Booklet
[ix] See Heroes of the Feywild pp.15-16
[x] See Dragon #428 pp.13-16
[xi] See Dragon Magazine #366, pp.5-16, Heroes of the
Feywild p.10, Manual of the Planes p.45
[xii] See Heroes of the Feywild
pp.17-18, p.154
[xiii] See Heroes of the Feywild
pp.18-19, 156-157, Maunal of the Planes p.46
[xiv] Inspired by the spell Nypacian
Serpents from Arcane Power p.78
[xv] See Arcane
Power p.23
[xvi] See Heroes of the Feywild
pp.12-13, p.121
[xvii] See (Martial Power 2 p.52, Heroes
of the Feywild pp.11-12, pp.149-150, Manual of the Planes pp.46-47, Dragon
Magazine #413 pp.29-35)
[xviii] See 4E
Players Handbook, p.171, Martial Power, p.128
[xix] Inspired by
Dragon Magazine #366, p.5
[xx] See Open Grave pp.104-111
[xxi] See Heroes of the Feywild p.12,
pp.108-109 and many Dragon and Dungeon Magazine articles and adventures
[xxii] See Heroes of the Feywild p.105
[xxiii] See Dragon #428 pp.13-16
[xxiv] See D&D Players Handbook 4th
edition p.38
[xxv] See Textbox
in Heroes of the Feywild p.12
[xxvi] See Heroes of the Feywild pp.9-10
[xxvii] See Arcane Power p.95
[xxviii] See Dragon Magazine #394, p.47, 4E
Monster Manual p.48, 4E Monster Manual 3 p.200. Heroes of the Feywild p.16,
pp.155-157
[xxix] See (4E Player's Handbook 2, p.10,
Into the Unknown: The Dungeon Survival Handbook p.46-48)
[xxx] See Divine Power p.95
[xxxi] Inspired by Hill Canton Compendium
II p.3, Heroes of the Feywild p.154
[xxxii] See Heroes of the Feywild
pp.110-113
[xxxiii] See Dragon #428 pp.13-16
