The Land: Mordent's western
shore borders the Sea of Sorrows. Sheer cliffs overlook the turbulent sea, though few exceed 150 feet in height. Beaches are
rocky; in most places, the waves break over boulders, erupting into spray. Behind the cliffs, the land stretches into great
expanses of forest, or rolls gently, becoming moor. A few small pockets of land lie below sea level.
The Arden River flows north through Mordent until it nears Mordentshire, the domain's
only major settlement. There, near the center of the coastline, the river turns abruptly and empties into the Arden Bay. The
town, located high on a chalky cliff, overlooks the quiet harbor. Mordentshire boasts a population of about 2,000 people.
Two noteworthy estates are located near Mordentshire: the House on Gryphon Hill,
and Heather House. Locals know the House on Gryphon Hill is haunted. It is an evil place filled with terrible creatures. Heather
House is the Weathermay family estate. This family owns most of the land directly southwest of town.
The Folk: Mordent's natives
represent every size and color, but all are human. Laborers in Mordentshire are mostly fishermen, taut and lean from their
work. The sea is their livelihood, and they reserve respect for those who also make their living from the sea. Peasants who
reside away from the village tend to be herders.
Nearly everyone in Morderntshire knows the House of Gryphon Hill is haunted. They
believe strongly in ghosts and other creatures from "the other side," and they're highly superstitious. But they do not think
such creatures could invade their own homes, or multiply beyond existing levels. As the local saying goes, "Don't vistit evil,
and it won't visit you."
Most folk are well mannered and friendly toward strangers. Yet the're always politely
reserved, and often secretive. Mordentish folk are masters of verbal evasion. They'll chat for hours about meaningless trivia,
but they'll rarely answer a personal question or one of substance. When a storyteller is pressed into action, he'll usually
share an old tale about an alchemist in Mordentshire, who invented an Apparatus in centuries past. Some say the Apparatus
could take the soul from any being and cast it into oblivion, or even implant it in another body. (Mordentish parents often
scare their children with this version or teasingly say, "You can't be my child. The Apparatus must have sent you.") Others
claim the Apparatus seperated the good and evil in a man, creating two seperate men. The Apparatus supposedly was destroyed,
but no one knows for sure. Most natives believe the entire tale is fiction. The culture level of Mordent is a pre-victorian
age.
The Lord: Mayor Bilstole of
Mordentshire oversee's things. He is supported by a police force of warriors who typically wear leather armor and carry footman's
maces.
Encounters:
*Encounters usually don't happen in or around Mordentshire. This does not include
the forests near the town, just the town itself and the nearby farmlands. In contrast the Gryphon Hill area is teeming with
horrid creatures--especially undead, excluding vampires and liches.
Common:
Rare:
Ghoul
Any undead
Haunt
Bats
Poltergeist
Hags
Shadow Imp
Lycanthropes
Sahuagin
Snakes Will
o'wisp
Spiders
Geist