The Thornwaste is a maze of broken hills, briar-choked ravines, and thistle-clogged fissures. Dry, dusty scrubland and badlands give way to larger and larger stretches of true desert as one goes farther south and west.
Wild elves are the least hostile inhabitants one is likely to meet here.
COMMON KNOWLEDGE
There is very little to attract people to this barren land. Whilst several tribal folk make their homes on the fringes of the land, few are friendly to strangers. Two famous inhabitants of the Thornwaste are 'The Ghostlord', a great ruler of undead that is said to haunt the nearby Elsir Vale, and the primordial Mual-Ta, 'The Thunder Serpent', that is supposedly chained in the center of the vast desert - a punishment it has endured since the gods bound it during the Dawn War.
Ruins of an ancient serpent-folk civilisation are found in the eastern parts of the wastes.
REGIONAL FEATURES
A maze of broken hills, briar-choked ravines, and dry, dusty scrubland, these badlands give way to larger and larger stretches of true desert as one goes farther south and west. Somewhere in the heart of this desert the land shows signs of elemental leakage as one nears the Land of Lightning where Mual-Ta is changed to the world.
Reckless Towers
These large, eroded land masses are not actual towers at all. The reckless Towers are found deep in the desert in the northeast area closest to the Elsir Vale. They are rock outcroppings that are left following a great battle of myth - many suggest Mual-Ta is respnsible. In time, what was left of these crags have been further shaped by wind and rain. Many seem to balance precariously, but until now, none have fallen.
The Kira-Saeli elves live under the canopies of the Reckless Towers.
Ghost Lord's Lion Lair
This imposing structure is shaped like a prone, giant lion, watching over the wastes from its seat atop a low, barren mesa. The Ghost Lord that dwells within is said to be a desert lich that drains the life for miles around.
- Red Hand Campaign. Rocc, Brahmus and Kwahu invaded the lair, sending the great behir, Varanthian, fleeing for its life. They then dealt with the whip wielding hobgoblin Wyrmlord Ulwai Stormcaller. Kwahu took the captured Ulwai and the Ghost Lord's phylactery into the lair to bargain. The Ghost Lord turned Ulwai into a ghost to serve him evermore and in exchange for its phylactery, taught Kwahu more about controlling spirits and gave him one of his spirit lions to serve Kwahu as a companion. Kwahu named the spirit lion Leonidas and the two have been inseparable since.
PEOPLE OF THE THORNWASTE
Elves are the main inhabitants of the Thornwaste. They live in kraals surrounded by high thorny hedgerows and are quite xenophobic, but do trade with the dark-skinned Xeph.
The xeph are an ancient, and psionic, offshoot of humans that live in isolated pockets throughout the land and boast they have lived this way since they were placed here as guardians over the trapped Mual-Ta and the leaking elemental energies of his prison.
Nomadic orc tribes live in the Thornwaste, mostly in the north. They ride giant boars and are constantly on the hunt. Although they are not inheritantly evil, they are regarded as enemies by the elves, as the orcs find elf-flesh a delicacy. Orcs will trade with other folk if approached in a civilised manner, but typically act as bandits along the few trade trails of the northern Thornwaste. Surprisingly (as no humans live in the wastes) many members of these orc tribes are treated as half-orcs for game purposes. It is said the orcs first learnt the nomadic life from humans that once dwelt to the north of the Thornwastes, but after conquering them, the orcs 'assimilated' the humans back into their tribes. In any case, there are no known native, full-blooded humans in the region.
Common along the borders with the Elsir Vale (in the northeast) are the lizardfolk known as firenewts (flamescales) and ssurran (sandscales) They wage war on all other inhabitants of the wastes and are particularly hostile to trespassers. They are said to serve a great brown dragon and primarily make their settlements in the serpentine ruins of the region.
ADVENTURERS
GROUPS & ORGANISATIONS
Kira-Saeli Elf Tribe
Roughly translates as the 'Reckless Tower Tribe', as these elves make their homes under the shelter of the Reckless Towers.
- Hobs Hill Heroes Campaign. Araidia Brightdreamer was an orphan that became a ranger with the tribe.
GAME MECHANICS
Class & Concept Options
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Name
Description
GAME MECHANICS
Class & Concept Options
- List any relevant classes/subclasses/kits/archetypes/feats/etc that suit the organisation.