Ruins of Tarn Gap
Once the sight of the largest monastery and temple dedicated to the god of war Astartes outside of the heartland of the Empire of Turelion, Tarn Gap is now a ruin that blights the slopes of the Dragons' Tears Mountains overlooking the verdant expanse of the nearby Wyld Woods.
The Monastery of Astartes
The origins of the town lie in a story which told of how Astartes, so long ago that it is regarded as an ancient legend by even the longer lived races, descended to the Material Plane to fight one of the first Giants, Størst, who challenged the Divine to a duel to see which of them was the mightier warrior. The two fought on the slopes of the Dragons' Tears Mountains for days, until eventually Astartes struck down his opponent, beheaded them and placed their skull on the side of one of the mountains, so that evidence of his victory could be seen from miles around. Størst’s head remained where Astartes left it and, not long after his victory, followers of the Divine travelled to the place and established a shrine to Astartes, undertaking a grim task to clean out and convert the inside of the skull into a temple. Over many hundreds of years, multiple phases of building took place first adding a monumental statue of Astartes to the temple, whose right foot sat upon Størst’s skull, then facilities for visiting pilgrims, then a monastery. As the site expanded a town grew up around the sacred site, which was named Tarn Gap after the small stream that wound its way down the mountainside nearby. The Monastery of Astartes became the base of a Knightly House, House Tarn who operated throughout the region, but who principally worked to defend the communities of the Dragons' Tears Mountains from any hardships caused by Giants. Over the years of its existence the site became a major hub for pilgrims and several times in its history it was graced with visits from Emperors and Empresses of the Empire of Turelion.Destruction
Tarn Gap’s ties to the Divine Astartes, and the presence of House Tarn, meant that following the outbreak of the Divine War, the town became a rallying point for support for Astartes and the Astartians in the west of the continent of Euristan. Initially little took place at Tarn Gap, other than much pontificating from the clerics of the monastery, but as the conflict began to spill over into the Material Plane, the sight became a mustering station for the Celestial forces of the Astartians. This made it a prime target for the Polephemites, who in 133DW descended in force and destroyed the town and its monastery, looting and desecrating the temple at its centre. Almost all of the members of House Tarn were killed in the defence of their home monastery, with the few who survived, predominantly through the fortune that they were away from Tarn Gap at the time, becoming members of the The Imperial Order of Knights in the Empire of Turelion. In a last show of disrespect, the Polephemites forces beheaded the monumental statue of Astartes and placed its head beside that of Størst in the ruins of the monastery.Defences
Originally, Tarn Gap had no fortified structures as its residents believed that they were protected by Astartes himself. This was further reinforced by the growth of House Tarn in the town, which on its own made the settlement a significant base of martial force. In the end however, regardless of how valiantly the Paladins of House Tarn fought, they were unable to halt the forces of Polephemon.
Geography
The ruins of Tarn Gap lie on the slopes of one of the Dragons' Tears Mountains, looking out over the tops of the Wyld Woods to the south east. The highest point of the town is where the ruins of its monastery lie, with the monumental statue of Astartes and the temple dedicated to him set right in the middle of the complex.
The ruins of the town sit above the Dragon Way, which still provides access, albeit via a very debris, boulder and scree strewn road.
RUINED SETTLEMENT
133DW
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