Earwich
History
Earwich was initially founded hundreds of years prior and existed as a large, sleepy town that predominantly served as the home of the defenders assigned to the twin fortresses known as the Eyes of Aebeald. Little of note happened in the community who even enjoyed protection from the frequent Freelander raids that plagued settlements further north due to the proximity of the Eyes of Aebeald.
All of that changed in the year 2673 of the Third Age when the army of the Free Lands which caused the Great Northern War descended with a fury on the settlement. The survivors of Earwich, the first to exist from the start of the conflict, were able to later report the carnage and confusion that followed the attack by the Free Peoples. At the time, Earwich was still thought to be a relatively safe city and was the destination picked by most refugees that fled the oncoming army. It was believed that, like most Free People raids before it, the Eyes of Aebeald would be sufficient deterrent to stop any further advancement. This, however, proved to be flawed thinking and after the sacking of the Eyes of Aebeald it was mere days before the Freelander army descended on the cowering population of Earwich. Due to the close proximity of the nearby forest, some people were able to escape the slaughter though the Freelanders pursued them into the forest and, if found, captured or killed any trying to flee.
The sacking of Earwich and the tale told by its survivors were the first thing to stir the larger Kingdom of Faladrion to act and sounded the warning to other nations about the massive scale of the Freelander attack. Additionally, folk tales now suggest that those murdered in the forest near Earwich can still be heard wailing against their fate which has given rise to the forest's new nickname the "Wailing Woods".
RUINED SETTLEMENT
2673
