Unapproachable East.pdf - The Forgotten Realms

potential to be the most fertile land in all the Unapproachable
East. Monstrous windstorms and cyclones (born of the
Red Wizards’ manipulation of the weather to moderate the climate
of the Plateau of Thay) roar through the region in all
seasons of the year, preventing all but the most foolhardy
from putting down stakes here.
Two towns frame the Ashanath, one to the north and another
to the south. In the north, Kront stands where the Great
Road meets the Cold Road. The people here make their living
by serving the needs of travelers who pass through. Destructive
storms hammer the town at least once or twice a year, but
every building features a cellar into which the place’s inhabitants
escape when an incoming tornado is spotted.
Life is much the same in Two Stars to the south. Built
where the Golden Way meets the Cold Road, Two Stars is literally
the crossroads of commerce in the East. The crossing
to Rashemen lies only twenty miles east of the town, and in
spring, when the River Mulsantir’s ice has not yet broken but
has grown too dangerous to attempt, eastbound caravans fill
the inns and hostels of the town to bursting.
For more information about the Ashanath, see the description
of this area in Chapter 10: Rashemen.
Dragonjaw Mountains
The Dragonjaw Mountains form Thesk’s southwestern
border. This range of tall, majestic peaks rises quickly from
the northern foothills and then tumbles down even faster
into the Sea of Dlurg to the south. The Dragonjaws stretch
from the Umber Marshes west into the Sea of Fallen Stars,
although the broad Tannath Gap divides the range near the
center. The tip of the western peninsula is known as Cape
Dragonfang, and it is a useful navigational point for sailors
on the Inner Sea. Creatures of all sorts call the Dragonjaw
Mountains home, but only one settlement of any serious size
exists there: the city of Milvarune. On the northern shore of
the Sea of Dlurg, right at the bottom of a steep and narrow
pass that cuts through one of the thinnest parts of the range,
Milvarune is bounded by mountains on three sides and by the
sea on the fourth.
Dozens of rock gnome clans live in high, hidden vales
throughout the range. The Dragonjaws are unusually rugged,
even as mountains go, so the gnomes have mastered the art
of cultivating narrow terraces that cling to the steep slopes.
They are also miners of great skill, and they trade precious
metals and gems through Milvarune to the south or Phent to
the north in exchange for goods they can’t fashion for themselves,
as well as foodstuffs that do not flourish in their mountain
homes. A few of the gnome mines scrape copper, iron, and
other metals from the ground, but the most successful ones
chip up diamonds, rubies, and emeralds from the Underdark.
The gnomes of the Dragonjaws are reclusive and avoid
humans (or other big folk) they don’t know. They usually hide
when strangers come along, coming out only once they have
established that the intruders mean no harm. The gnomes distrust
humans wearing any kind of red clothing. If the human
has a shaved head as well, they remain in their hiding holes
THESK
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until he goes away. If he is bald and tattooed, they are likely
to ambush him the first chance they get. The Dragonjaw
gnomes have no use for Red Wizards.
THE DRAGON’S TOOTH
A hundred miles out to sea, sailors can spot the purplish peak
of the Dragon’s Tooth, the westernmost mountain of Cape
Dragonfang. The mountain is home to an ever-growing family
of copper dragons who occasionally descend from the mountaintops
to rescue hapless ships from being plundered by pirates.
The dragons’ vigilance is another reason—besides the
Simbul’s famous edict declaring piracy in the waters of Aglarond
to be punishable by immediate death—that corsairs avoid
the Sea of Dlurg.
The patriarch of the dragon clan is named Filauxerimos
(CG male wyrm copper dragon Brd8) who is said to have called
celestial allies to build a great draconic castle near the peak
of Dragon’s Tooth. His clan includes two mature adults, a juvenile,
two young, and two very young copper dragons, although
the other adults (his daughters) live in mountaintop
lairs elsewhere in the range. These dragons have taken it upon
themselves to protect the region around their home. They
don’t care who rules Thesk, as long as the Dragonjaw Mountains
are left alone; more than one arrogant Red Wizard has
crawled home maimed by horrible acid burns. Filauxerimos
and his kin stay away from the southern half of the range, in
particular Mount Umbergoth, where Nartheling, the ancient
fang dragon, has his lair.
The copper dragons all take part in an annual festival in
Milvarune every spring. The central event of “Dragon Day,”
as this festival is known, is a riddle contest between the
gnomes and dragons. The dragons normally win handily, but
the occasional gnome victory always keeps the hope of the
little people alive.
THE OLD SWORDS
At the eastern end of the northern range, overlooking the
Tannath Gap, stands the distinctive peak known as the Old
Swords. Near its acme, the mountain splits into two great
rocky piers that jut a thousand feet into the sky, creating
a landmark known by all who pass this way. In the cleft between
the two pillars a tribe of evil dragonkin has made
their home, venturing out to raid the Nethentir track and
harry farmsteads in the valley below when the mood takes
them. The leader of the tribe is a hulking monster called
Daggerclaw (NE male dragonkin Ftr3/Clr7 of Tiamat), who
delights in capturing humans for sacrifice to his dark draconic
deity.
Filauxerimos and his clan haven’t been sufficiently provoked
to destroy the raiders’ stronghold, but they attack and
kill any dragonkin they come across. The dragonkin have
learned to hide at the first sign of a copper dragon. Daggerclaw
is plotting to secretly gather all his warriors and ambush
one of Filauxerimos’s younger and weaker kin, dreaming of a