Sessilbridge to Suthgardt
Most people go to Suthgardt by boat, but that misses the entire interior of the Helcynngae Peninsula. This land, once home to the savage Heldring who swarmed out of their own lands to lay conquest to southern Akados and whose longships raided the coasts for a thousand miles, is a rather peaceful place nominally part of the Kingdom of Foere. Trade travels south along the coast and through the interior on well laid roads through the Kingdom of Helcynn. The Heldring are farmers and fisherfolk, deeply religious in their faith to Eostre (the name they use for Muir) and Tyr. Suthgardt itself is the only town that trades with the dwarves of the Eorec Heights, again, much of this trade goes by sea from Suthgardt to other lands.
The northern and central parts of the peninsula lack in any worthy ports, thus much trade travels either north across the Helwall and over Sessilbridge or towards the southern ports. Heading south travelers first pass over Sessilbridge, and then through the mighty fortress line of the Heldwall built by the ancient Hyperboreans. Following the well maintained roads of the interior, the route passes through Burkeston, crosses the old battlefield of the Oescreheit Downs, winds along the great Byron Firth, crosses through the towns of Lymnester and Bournedon as well as Oxwain, over the old Wealdyke before ending at the edge of the Suxwych, a broad land of uninhabited pine forests and grasslands. Looping around the eastern end of the Eorec Heights brings travelers into Suthgardt, from there they can take a ship to nearly anywhere in Akados.
The northern and central parts of the peninsula lack in any worthy ports, thus much trade travels either north across the Helwall and over Sessilbridge or towards the southern ports. Heading south travelers first pass over Sessilbridge, and then through the mighty fortress line of the Heldwall built by the ancient Hyperboreans. Following the well maintained roads of the interior, the route passes through Burkeston, crosses the old battlefield of the Oescreheit Downs, winds along the great Byron Firth, crosses through the towns of Lymnester and Bournedon as well as Oxwain, over the old Wealdyke before ending at the edge of the Suxwych, a broad land of uninhabited pine forests and grasslands. Looping around the eastern end of the Eorec Heights brings travelers into Suthgardt, from there they can take a ship to nearly anywhere in Akados.
Points of Interest
Beside the above mentioned well known point of interest, characters traveling the roads and trackless forests between Sessilbridge and Suthgardt will pass by the following.-
This wide covered bridge spans the quiet Sess River and allows for easy travel between the Helcynngae Peninsula and the city of Trebes in the Cerediun Province of the Kingdom of Foere. This bridge dates back to the age of the ancient Hyperboreans and its construction shows their handiwork in its vaulted stone roof, triptych adorned lintels, and intricately carved colonnades. The bridge is wide enough for two legions to pass by, more than wide enough for the carts and wagons that now use it.
Despite having been built by master builders at the height of the Empire, Sessilbridge has not weathered the millennia in pristine condition. Time and erosion have done their work, and the stones show signs of wear and staining, especially in those areas difficult to reach without a ladder or scaffold. The interior was once lit by magical lanterns, but half of those have gone out and not all have been replaced by smoldering oil lamps (which in their turn further stain the stone roof). The constant rumble of wheeled vehicles and their plodding draft animals have pitted and grooved the flagstones, there is now one clear path going north and one south with no hope of a cart or wagon leaving its grooves once it begins the passage.
Toll booths (actually a pair of stone towers) stand at each end of the bridge. Travelers heading north must pay a toll to the Heldwalda of the Heldrings (1 sp per person, 2sp per animal, 5 sp per wheel for carts and wagons). Those heading south pay their tolls to the Lord Governor of Cerediun Province (2sp per person, 3 sp per animal, 1 sp per wheel for carts and wagons). Both toll booths are well guarded; during the height of the trading season a small fortune is held in their iron bound coffers.
Despite having been built by master builders at the height of the Empire, Sessilbridge has not weathered the millennia in pristine condition. Time and erosion have done their work, and the stones show signs of wear and staining, especially in those areas difficult to reach without a ladder or scaffold. The interior was once lit by magical lanterns, but half of those have gone out and not all have been replaced by smoldering oil lamps (which in their turn further stain the stone roof). The constant rumble of wheeled vehicles and their plodding draft animals have pitted and grooved the flagstones, there is now one clear path going north and one south with no hope of a cart or wagon leaving its grooves once it begins the passage.
Toll booths (actually a pair of stone towers) stand at each end of the bridge. Travelers heading north must pay a toll to the Heldwalda of the Heldrings (1 sp per person, 2sp per animal, 5 sp per wheel for carts and wagons). Those heading south pay their tolls to the Lord Governor of Cerediun Province (2sp per person, 3 sp per animal, 1 sp per wheel for carts and wagons). Both toll booths are well guarded; during the height of the trading season a small fortune is held in their iron bound coffers.
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Saint Wigeswif the Martyr, beloved be her name, was one of the early converts to the faiths of Eostre (or Muir as the goddess is known in other lands) and Tyr. Her father attempted to force her to renounce her newfound faith and return to the worship of Hel, but Wigeswif refused. In a night of blood and slaughter she led the faithful of Tyr to rise up and destroy the temple of Hel in Oxwain. While they succeeded in setting fire to the vile fane, the revolutionaries were soon cut down by warriors loyal to Hel and Osberga’s father. The rapidly growing faith of Tyr quickly beatified Wigeswif.
Her first appeared as a saint was at a small farm just north of Oxwain. There a group of women fleeing a rampaging warrior of Hel sought refuge in the barn. Hel’s warrior soon found them, but before he could strike a blow or satiate his bloodlust the image of Saint Wigeswif flashed in the night, interposing itself between the warrior and the maidens. This inspired the women who savagely attacked the armored warrior, tearing him limb from limb.
The Shrine of Saint Wigeswif the Martyr is a favorite stopping place on the road between Oxwian and Bournedon. All who follow deities of good are welcome to come and pay their respects, any others had best keep their natures secret lest the resident witch-finder should happen upon them. The shrine and the cult of Saint Wigeswif the Martyr appeals mostly to women who seek protection or the strength to face a great hurdle in life. The shrine is tended by Elswitha of Lymnester. Terribly injured in her battle with the demon Helbæk a decade ago she has retired to the role of shrine tender, though this does not mean she can’t rouse herself onto her one good leg, strap an axe blade to the stump of her left arm, and drive evil back into the nether realms that spawned it. Mostly she sees to the needs of travelers and visitors, trains her nieces and nephews in the ways of Eostre and Tyr.
Her first appeared as a saint was at a small farm just north of Oxwain. There a group of women fleeing a rampaging warrior of Hel sought refuge in the barn. Hel’s warrior soon found them, but before he could strike a blow or satiate his bloodlust the image of Saint Wigeswif flashed in the night, interposing itself between the warrior and the maidens. This inspired the women who savagely attacked the armored warrior, tearing him limb from limb.
The Shrine of Saint Wigeswif the Martyr is a favorite stopping place on the road between Oxwian and Bournedon. All who follow deities of good are welcome to come and pay their respects, any others had best keep their natures secret lest the resident witch-finder should happen upon them. The shrine and the cult of Saint Wigeswif the Martyr appeals mostly to women who seek protection or the strength to face a great hurdle in life. The shrine is tended by Elswitha of Lymnester. Terribly injured in her battle with the demon Helbæk a decade ago she has retired to the role of shrine tender, though this does not mean she can’t rouse herself onto her one good leg, strap an axe blade to the stump of her left arm, and drive evil back into the nether realms that spawned it. Mostly she sees to the needs of travelers and visitors, trains her nieces and nephews in the ways of Eostre and Tyr.
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Woodlands of pines, spruces and other conifers are broken by large swaths of grassland, making this region neither truly plains nor forest. The ground is rolling, sloping gently upward towards the south and the Eorec Heights, cut regularly by deep gullies bearing cold waters (and some say gold as well) from the surrounding mountains. Navigating this trackless land is difficult, made even more so by the only reliable reference points being the peaks of the nearby mountains. These become more difficult, even impossible to, see the deeper into the Suxwych one gets.
It is because of this wild land near the southern tip of the Helcynngae Peninsula that few people try to reach Suthgardt from the north. Only a dozen or so make the trip every year, mostly adventurers looking to hunt and plunder the Suxwych on their way south. There is good hunting here, as well as logging, and both the far northern and southern extents of the region are home to seasonal camps. The area has seen much warfare in centuries past and there are lost battlefields, hidden cairns, and other places just begging for the light handed touch of wandering sellswords to carry away valuables.
The terrain is not the only threat in the Suxwych. There are trolls, owlbears and other common monsters, but the two greatest threats are the scarlet headed vampire parrots and the Great Wyrm Thaxalonix.
The scarlet headed vampire parrot feeds on small animals, invertebrates, and other birds. It also gains nourishment from large mammals, tearing open their hides and lapping up the blood. The victim is kept sedated by the peculiar song of the scarlet headed vampire parrot, and the birds travel in flock so that while some sing their prey to sleep the rest can swoop in and feed. A flock of these hemovore parrots can exsanguinate a deer in thirty seconds or less.
The terrain is not the only threat in the Suxwych. There are trolls, owlbears and other common monsters, but the two greatest threats are the scarlet headed vampire parrots and the Great Wyrm Thaxalonix.
Scarlet Headed Vampire Parrot
The forests of the Suxwych are rainy and temperate, creating dense stands of tall trees filled with lush undergrowth. The nearby currents keep the winters from being too cold, allowing for a proliferation of life not often found in Akados. There are parrots, giant slugs, and a wide range of insect life. One of the endemic birds is a small parrot with a bright read head, black and white body, and blue colored wings. Its beak is highly evolved to be short, sharp, and study.The scarlet headed vampire parrot feeds on small animals, invertebrates, and other birds. It also gains nourishment from large mammals, tearing open their hides and lapping up the blood. The victim is kept sedated by the peculiar song of the scarlet headed vampire parrot, and the birds travel in flock so that while some sing their prey to sleep the rest can swoop in and feed. A flock of these hemovore parrots can exsanguinate a deer in thirty seconds or less.
People Along the Way
The following NPCs can be encountered along the route.-
The faith of Muir (or Eostre as the Heldring call her) is far more aggressive than that found in other lands. True, the temples of Muir produce valiant and vigilant paladins, but in the Helcynngae Peninsula the paladins and clerics of Eostre take a more proactive approach. The presence on the peninsula of the Hel worshipping cults in the city of Thunderhelde as well as secret cults scattered across the land requires the warrior-faithful to be ever ready. In times past the Helmeisters led the worship of the dark goddess and served as the warrior-priests and godly berserkers of the Heldring hordes. Today that same role, feared defenders of the land dedicated to a vengeful goddess, is held by the With-Finders, known in Helvaenic as hexenmartels, witch hammers.
Lead amongst their vaunted numbers is Osburga of Lymnester, a ninth-generation hexenmartel. Her distant ancestors were once Hel worshipers of great power, and the family has long served Eostre in some capacity in order to expunge this ancestral taint. Osberga, like the rest of her family, takes her work seriously, some say too much so. She wanders the interior of the peninsula rooting out cults dedicated to Hel and other dark gods, purging them with flame and blade. When the accused are brought before her for judgement she is quick to condemn and often dismisses even the most erudite defense. Simple association with a known cultist is enough to earn the stake, a special fate awaits those who have actually consorted with evil forces, a long slow and painful fate as what knowledge they have of other cultists is extracted over days or even weeks. Osberga is a tall women stout of build and broad of shoulder clad in heavy armor and bearing the long handled mace of her order. Her head is kept shaved and tattooed with runes said to allow her to see the evil in the hearts of others and even know a lie before it passes the lips.
Lead amongst their vaunted numbers is Osburga of Lymnester, a ninth-generation hexenmartel. Her distant ancestors were once Hel worshipers of great power, and the family has long served Eostre in some capacity in order to expunge this ancestral taint. Osberga, like the rest of her family, takes her work seriously, some say too much so. She wanders the interior of the peninsula rooting out cults dedicated to Hel and other dark gods, purging them with flame and blade. When the accused are brought before her for judgement she is quick to condemn and often dismisses even the most erudite defense. Simple association with a known cultist is enough to earn the stake, a special fate awaits those who have actually consorted with evil forces, a long slow and painful fate as what knowledge they have of other cultists is extracted over days or even weeks. Osberga is a tall women stout of build and broad of shoulder clad in heavy armor and bearing the long handled mace of her order. Her head is kept shaved and tattooed with runes said to allow her to see the evil in the hearts of others and even know a lie before it passes the lips.
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Sleeping out the eons under the southern peaks of the Cumorian Mountains, the Great Wyrm Thaxalonix is more of a threat than a reality to those traversing the Suxwych. It has been centuries since the great beast has ravaged the land and while many brave heroes have stood forth to confront it in its lair, none have returned. Legends say that the Great Wyrm Thaxalonix will awaken any year now and rampage across the peninsula starting with setting the Suxwych aflame. Past burn scare from the dragon’s rampages can be found across the kingdom from the walls of Burkeston to the Burned Range north of Suthgardt.
In truth the Great Wyrm Thaxalonix is not a threat to the Helcynngae Peninsula anymore and the brave warriors who have sworn to defeat it are not dead, just disappeared. Thaxalonix is a dragon of gold tinted scales, one dedicated to the cause of justice and order, compassion and mercy. He has not awakened in centuries because he has not needed to. In times past he ravaged the land from time to time to keep the cult of the goddess Hel in check, but with the mass conversion of the kingdom to Eostre and Tyr, his work is no longer needed. Instead he sleeps, studies, and guides his plots throughout the Helcynngae Peninsula. These include the mass conversion of the kingdom, the orders of holy warriors, and the employment of adventurers for various tasks.
As for the heroes who have come to slay him, he deals with them as Thaxalonix deals with everything, namely compassion mixed with overwhelming force. Those who accept the Great Wyrm is a good hearted manipulator behind the scenes are let go, though in another land so that they can take up new lives as the dragon’s agents. Those who cannot, or are of evil dispositions, have their minds wiped, new memories implanted by sorcerous means, and left somewhere far away where they cannot cause any more damage.
In truth the Great Wyrm Thaxalonix is not a threat to the Helcynngae Peninsula anymore and the brave warriors who have sworn to defeat it are not dead, just disappeared. Thaxalonix is a dragon of gold tinted scales, one dedicated to the cause of justice and order, compassion and mercy. He has not awakened in centuries because he has not needed to. In times past he ravaged the land from time to time to keep the cult of the goddess Hel in check, but with the mass conversion of the kingdom to Eostre and Tyr, his work is no longer needed. Instead he sleeps, studies, and guides his plots throughout the Helcynngae Peninsula. These include the mass conversion of the kingdom, the orders of holy warriors, and the employment of adventurers for various tasks.
As for the heroes who have come to slay him, he deals with them as Thaxalonix deals with everything, namely compassion mixed with overwhelming force. Those who accept the Great Wyrm is a good hearted manipulator behind the scenes are let go, though in another land so that they can take up new lives as the dragon’s agents. Those who cannot, or are of evil dispositions, have their minds wiped, new memories implanted by sorcerous means, and left somewhere far away where they cannot cause any more damage.
Adventure Hooks
The following seeds can be expanded and even linked together or with ones from nearby Journeys.-
The characters are traveling the Suxwych, possibly on their way to Suthgardt or just exploring the wilderness and haunted battlefields. While they can easily see off the usual dangers, trolls and ogres, owlbears and bandits, they are attacked over several days by swarms of scarlet headed vampire parrots. At first it is small swarms, but as the days pass the size of the swarms and frequency of the attacks increases. It seems the swarms are all coming from the southwest and heading northeast. Eventually the swarms begin to merge into massive clouds of flapping blue wings that seem intent on feeding on everything in their path. The characters have found themselves caught in a seasonal migration of vampire parrots on their way to their breeding grounds on the Sinnar Ocean!
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While it is good fun to have the characters manipulated by an ancient gold dragon in the cause of good there are several ways to twist the knife. First of all, keep in mind this should be used as a means to add drama to the good people doing quests. They can be unwitting pawns, and that is fine. The next turn of the blade has one of the characters being an agent of the Great Wyrm, steering the plot towards their patron’s ends. The last twist, and this can be really a lot of fun, one or more of the characters are unwitting agents who went to slay the dragon but woke up with false memories elsewhere. Combine the above two and you have a double blind agent and handler, plenty of intrigue and drama all in the name of a good cause.
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