Morass of Dorghulal
The Morass of Dorghulal is a vast and seemingly unending, swamp south of the town of Nedev. It was first discovered by the original settlers of Nedev as they followed the Kleab River and the Stuik River to their source in this swamp.
This expanse of wetlands, full of small islands, twisted trees and deadly creatures, is known more colloquelly as the the Murkdeth swamp. It was Notorin Swiftarrow who lead the early expeditions into the morass, and discovered many of its secrets, including the presense of a tribe of creatures that have been named the Mushroom Men, and the overall deadliness of everything that lives there.
On a later expedition, Notorin Swiftarrow, found the ruins of a half-sunken city, located deep within the swamp. He was able to recover a few artifacts from this location before being forced to leave the area under attack from the Mushroom Men. While leaving the area, he lost his most recent maps that he had made, and so lost the exact location of this ruined city, but the artifacts included the name of the city - Dorghulal, which has been translated as the City of the Dead.
While evidence of the Mushroom Men was plentiful in the early days of the exploration of the Murkdeth, many now believe that the Mushroom men have either entirely been eliminated, or have moved deeper into the swamps to avoid contact with the settlers of Nedev, who have pushed their farms to the edges of the wetlands, or perhaps they have fled form some other threat. Either way, the settlers near the swamp have not reported any sightings in many years.
But perhaps the biggest danger in the swamp comes not from the Mushroom Men, but from the numerous poison plants and animals that call the place home. Four species of poisonous snakes are known to live in the swamp, as well as several species of poisonous frogs and other amphibians. Some naturalists think that the abundance of poisonous animals comes from their adaptation to eating the flora that grows here.
The morass is known having many bright and colorful flowers and plants, but this beautiful foliage hides a deadly secret. Most of the plants are toxic, some more so than others. The most well known is the Pistachio Deadnettle. This green bush with orange fruit is almost entirely poisonous, but the seed of this bush is a small pistachio flavored nut, that can be eaten safely if properly prepared.
Type
Wetland / Swamp
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