The Old Pale Worm -- Adventure Awaits

 An old terror of the Guild of Miners and Prospectors, the Old Pale Worm is a semi-legendary serudla reported to dwell in the depths of the Weirding Caverns. It was he who was said to have devoured the old prospector Jukon Carnelian and his party, and to ward prospectors away from certain rich boles of weirdstone. He is said to be one of those serudla of exceptional size, perhaps 60 feet in length, and to have shining iridescent scales of white that scintillate with green in torch- or lantern-light.

Long have they spoken of him in the Herm & Stone, perhaps a hundred lunar years. Some stories are well accounted--like the devouring of Jukon Carnelian--while other tales are "ghost-stories" to spook fresh prospectors, or accounts by already-spooked prospectors having heard strange things in the depths of the Weirding Caves. Certain would-be Heroes have attempted to oust this Pale Worm--he wasn't always "Old"!--but he either successfully destroyed these failed-bogatyrs, or drove them off, or the serudla they reported slaying didn't end up being the Pale Worm, for his depredations continued thereafter.

Over a hundred years, the lair has not always remained the same. Expeditions against the Old Pale Worm have occasionally been successful in driving him away, but never has there been a trustworthy account of his death, and always he appears again in later stories. Well, there is a map that purportedly leads to the current lair of the Old Pale Worm now in possession of Arngeir of the Green Gleam, thanks to his purchase of it during the auction at the Ringing Anvil (where it was provided by the Heroic Company of Hrrl-Ra, item #13).

Now, Arngeir has not specifically put out a call to adventure in this yet (because the Scribes have been slow in furnishing the map for him to peruse), but the Scribes are now presuming that Arngeir will certainly hope for a company to join him in any expedition against this dreadful serudla in seek of its death, or its treasure-hoard, or both.

The Scribes also append here this section from the Almagest of Khushvant Sen regarding serudla and sro as "dragons".

Plans for the Iqta' al Saahil al Shamaliy

[designed by Jacob, player of Sesel, iqtadar of the very Iqta', presented as artwork following the surveying-expedition recently embarked upon by himself and certain dependents, and earning Sesel 100 xp per level]

The orientation of this map is top=south, bottom=north, left=east, right=west; unconventional, and yet it is natural for the surveyor, as he disembarks at the shore, and thus looks up to the southern headland toward the planned iqta'. Also natural in that the natural heights are correspondingly at the top of the plans, which descend to the sea-level bottom of the plans.

The provisional designation of the iqta'--Iqta' al Saahil al Shamaliy--denotes it as the "Fief of the North Shores", and though it is currently noted as such in the relevant legal literature, it is noted as merely provisional until Sesel's adoption of some preferred nomenclature (or perhaps he likes the current appellation?).

At this hour of game time, these structures are at least partially finished (the survey having happened just after the wedding of Sesel and Zaida al Rashid toward the end of August). The pales enclosing the grounds stand, ready for the herd of hma and hmela, a dock stands ready under the cliffs for the Silver Qaqtla, and the civilian buildings are mostly complete, all looked over by the scaffolded skeleton of the tower approved in negotiation with the Souffets.

In the (near?) future, there will be a further post describing the iqta' in fuller detail, but let this suffice for now.

Tsur al Qadim -- a Map

[Apologies for the formatting, the Scribes couldn't figure out how to include an image that 'embiggens' when selected]

The self-proclaimed Lords of the Crag Althis and Zet Frin have had interests in the ruins of Tsur al Qadim for some time now, ever since their clearing and securing of the fortress-crag adjacent to the formidable Tower Invincible. With a force of men-at-arms they hold the ancient fort that had once been a part of the citadel of Old Tsur, intimidating the bandits and beasts that roam the streets of the ruins like hungry dogs.

Long has it been overdue to provide them with a little more context for their holding, and to supply them with certain rumors promised of old--and to that end the Scribes (and referee) now produce a map of Old Tsurr, with the intent also to at last deliver the rumors to the lordly twain.

And indeed, other interests now seem to be burgeoning concerning the extensive ruins of the ancient city. A strange woman, cognomen Sylvaine, has taken rooms of the Gatehouse of the Kantor Kabljauhof and expressed to her fellow patrons there her great desire to brave the ruins in company of strong sword-arms and sorcerous minds ... no doubt details concerning her errand will be forthcoming soon!

click to 'embiggen'

Named Locations:

(From top left corner, working right and down)

the Pallbearers' Way
The east-west road leading from the Mourners' Gate of Cothon east to the Necropolis of the Tel, skirting the northern limits of Old Tsur's ruins; several processions can be seen on the road in the image above, including a chlen-drawn cart

Jebal Gutha
i.e. Mount Gutha, the source of a once-sacred spring whose waters ran through the center of the city. The spring was blocked up by Kzinti during the Man-Kzin Wars, and now water only flows during snowmelt, or during rainy weather

the Tower Invincible
Alone among all the ruins of Old Tsur, this tower stands still intact, protected even now by a magical barrier of force that prevents any attempt to approach the tower (or batter it with catapult-shot); it is from the dungeons beneath that the dreaded Elver Worms come forth once each generation to lay waste the countryside

Hastati Gate
The broken "Gate of Spearmen" is the most familiar landmark to the mourners who walk the Pallbearers' Way, other than Jebal Gutha looming over it. Though the gate is broken, the barbican remains in good order as an outpost of the Poor Brothers of the Dead

Crag Keep
The internal remnants of the old citadel has been cleared and occupied by Lords Althis and Zet Frin. Though a superstructure once topped the crag-top, it was razed during the Man-Kzin wars and never rebuilt

al Qanat Stepwell
Once the city's main public bath, great halls are said to be carved into the sides of the huge stepwell, decorated with wondrous mosaics, and of course rumored still to be filled with forgotten treasures. Unfortunately, the stairs have long been neglected, and the waters are said to be cursed and to give off evil vapors

the Virgin Spring
Site of an ancient and dreadful crime against a maiden, and a terrible vengeance thereafter, the spring here was then transformed into a place of worship for a demi-goddess of maidens and childbirth. Stories of a water-maiden granting a magic sword to an ancient king-governor of Tsur are probably interpolations from foreign traditions, but they cling to the place nevertheless, even as the willows and nenuphars continue to grow around the clear waters

Khidron Gate
The gate overlooking the once fertile Khidron Valley, the fields and orchards of which were salted by merciless Kzinti raiders

Gutha Streambed
As noted concerning Jebal Gutha, this stream, once a source of clean water for the central city, has since dried up almost entirely. Water flows along the streambed only during snowmelt after the long winter, or during especially rainy seasons, though there are sections of the stream that retain standing water throughout most or all of the year

Bashan's Gate
The eponymous noble of this gate was renowned in song for his extravagant wealth, as well as his bow-strong arms and kyni-keen sight. He was the most famous castellan of the barbican, and so his name remains attached to it, even in its current fallen state. Inevitably, tales of Bashan's wealth also inspire tales of ancient hoards lost within

Takfarn's Tower
One of the two towers remaining of the city's inner walls, bearing the name of an ancient warrior-prince. It is generally agreed that the tower bears his name because his flayed body was displayed from its heights after his failed rebellion

Beb al Khanduq
This "Barbican of the Moat" is the other of the two towers remaining of the city's inner fortifications. It stands guard over the crumbling main bridge which is no longer necessary to cross the dry streambed of the Gutha

Siddighine Arena
The great arena built by ancient king-governor Siddig Tahir for the great games organized by himself and his nephews. Subsequent rulers expanded the arena, and the fighter- and beast-pits beneath the structure are known to be extensive

Wahat al Qamari
The so-called "Pool of the Moon" is a smaller stepwell than al Qanat, said to be even more beautiful than those opulent baths; at this point, no shortage of rumors tell that the waters remain pure, a wondrous mirror to the Fortress Moon on certain nights, and to hold miraculous magic--of wondrous healing? of transport to the Moon? &c.

the Hasmoneon
The Palace-Acropolis of Old Tsur, where its king-governors and their servants ran the business of the city (and later, empire). Originally a major shrine, while the citadel on Mount Gutha served as the royal palace, at some point the king-governors expanded and took residence in the Hasmoneon; then, by the time of the later Man-Kzin Wars, the governors had relocated again to an even finer palace, though the Hasmoneon remained the center of the maioral administration

Jebal Hatori
Or "Hill of the Stony Horror" because of how a certain formation of rock resembles the fabled hatori of the desert. Though far outside the range of the hatori, the rocks are nevertheless known to hide fearsome dnelu, and the heights to sometimes hold nests of gerednya, lri, or giriku, either in natural caves, or the abandoned outbuildings of the Palace Hasmonean.
The palace-complex remains extensive, even in ruin, and legends maintain that certain sections were so well guarded by sorcery or ru'un that even the ravaging Kzinti could not loot them; consequently, there may be areas within the complex that are untouched by tomb-raiders even to this day ...

Burgh al 'Ahmaq
Called the "Tower of the Fool" it is uncertain just how the epithet arose. Fanciful stories abound--the Tower of the Fool is a common subject for folktales told by peasants making fun of their pretentious  "betters" by having the nobles in the tale engage in ever more ridiculous forms of folly while questing for (or in) the tower. Perhaps indeed that's all there is to the name, in the end?

Researches and Developments

Being a summary of a number of downtime activities undertaken by various characters:

1) The Demon-Klackon Cash-Strings
Bearer of All Things Gan ad-Din recently sought through the city of Cothon to find "the right buyer" for a hoard of Klackon cash-strings, which were recovered as part of the haul from a recent expedition into the Necropolis of the Tel, where it was rumored there had been some kind of demon- or ghost-Klackons awakened from their ancient tombs.

Having gotten only paltry offers from a number of pawnbrokers operating through the city, Gan was almost in despair of finding a buyer. Returning to the tavern Cothon-Under-Star to contemplate his next move, he happened to find the Klackon philosopher Li-Rey in attendance at the bar, and having been acquainted with him before, on a whim Gan showed him one of the strings of coins.

The dore-philosopher's antennae stood up in excitement as he looked upon the coinage. "That is very interesting!" he said drily, but made good his interest by offering to introduce Gan to a Klackon antiquarian in the western Klackon-districts of the city. They set out as soon as their drinks were finished, and thus did Gan earn the interest of a second Klackon patron (after Katax)--one Chiriq'tai, a dore who had served the former Philosopher-Queen of the Xholda-Klackons, and who now composes poetry amongst the gardens overlooking the Roads.

Chiriq'tai was indeed most interested in the coins, informing Gan that they were of the type once carried by the Doulii-Klackons, whose Immortal Columns had once threatened Tsur al Qadim, and similar to the custom of nomadic Free Klackons even now, who punch holes through coins to carry them more easily as they wander the lands.

Though the coming of the Doulii predates the coming of the Attines or Xholda, Chiriq'tai is nevertheless interested in any bit of Klackon history, as an antiquarian, and so offers to purchase the hoard of coinage at its full value of 6500 dinars (ea. of the 13,000 coins being roughly equivalent of a nufdinar). He notes that this is in part his way of funding future expeditions that might turn up such artefacts, and hopes that Gan, his employer, and their associates will continue investigating wherever the coins were found, and to offer him, Chiriq'tai, first refusal of whatever is discovered--and most especially, not to attempt to sell any such discoveries to the Free Klackons!

• 1000 dinars each to Bartholomew Pettibone, Heijo, Durham, Avin, Sesel, and Revna
  500 dinras to Gan ad-Din
• Chiriq'tai will buy future artefacts related to Klackon history at full value, without Gan having to roll for finding the right buyer

(perhaps Gan deserves a bit of a "seller's commission" from the company?)

2) The Xentronium Halberd of the Qumqum
One of the items recovered by the party who accompanied Lars (then still "Fangripper") on his quest for the Ghar was a marvelous halberd, forged entirely of an alien black alloy, hard as adamant and with an edge that could almost bite steel. It had been wielded by an invisible demon in an ancient tomb-comnplex--the qumqum, or "thunderer--and yet, as none of the company had need of it, they granted it to fellow barbarian-adventurer Arngeir of the Green Gleam.

Curious as to the strange alloy's nature, Arngeir took the halberd to Durham of the Ringing Anvil, whose knowledge of metallurgy allowed him to craft weapons and armor out of another legendary alloy, the greenish zortrium--the very metal that Durham had worked into plate armor for Arngeir!

Looking it over and poring through his codices of metallurgy, Durham guessed that the halberd was forged of xentronium, an alloy even more rare--and more durable--than the incredibly scarce zortrium. But his codices had little to say about xentronium, other than to note that it was unworkable, even when heated in the hottest forge. Whatever form the alloy took, thus it would remain until the end of time--unless one could somehow win through to the workshops of the Demons in the Fortress Moon, or find a forgotten forge of Gods or Heroes.

Determined to learn more, Arngeir turned to the library of the Herm & Stone tavern, where he is a member, hoping that in their collection of works about minerals and alloys that something more could be learned of xentronium. There, he found reference to it in some of the oldest legends and epics of the Gods and Heroes, some tales from even before their battles against the Demons, e.g.:

... In those days, they resolved to return to Paradise. So they sent round their heralds with their echoing helms, did Shaddam, Sikander, and Arcturos, and gathered their hosts, and the lanterns of their ships outnumbered the stars in the sky. That was when the stars were fixed, and the Star of Paradise shone west.

But they found the Guardian they had set over the Gates of Paradise stood there still, and as they had commanded it to let none enter there, so it denied them entrance, faithful to the end. A giant it was, clad in black armor, and a lance of death was in each of its hundred hands so that even alone it was an army. That was a battle that shook heaven.

And when the Guardian was at last laid low, it was Shaddam's champion Parvenius who stripped off its black armor, and took its cuirass for himself. That was when Loxanar revealed himself, and because the Gods had forgotten much that they had left behind, he taught them again the crafting of xentronium, as the armor was called, and how to pierce the veil, and other secret things. He it was who warned them of the Demons, and some say he was an heir of the Gods, and others that he was a Demon leading them into a trap. ...

(excerpt from the Shahnakhtab by ibn Kheir, a "book of kings" tracing kings and prophets all the way back to the age of the Gods)

Other references to xentronium indicate that it was said to be found almost always in the possession of Demons, in their Fortress Moon, or held by those who have dealings with Demons, or those few who have defeated them and plundered their holdings. Dalan II., ancient king of Tsur al Qadim, was said to have armed his bodyguard with xentronium after his expedition against the Fortress Moon.

The alloy is always said to be indestructible, and impossible to work--save in the workshops of the Fortress Moon, where it can be shaped by forces incomprehensible to mortals. It resists even the hottest fires, and yet is said to be particularly suitable for certain deep enchantments.

3) The Map to the Glorious Cloak of Eyes
From amongst the plunder recovered from the Sixth House of the Attines, Durham of the Ringing Anvil claimed and was granted a woven Klackon text and tapestry seeming to indicate that it was a map to an artefact called the Glorious Cloak of Eyes. The work is of a combined nature: one part is a pictorial "map" artistically rendered; the other a companion periplus-account, a kind of literary-historical "map".

The finely woven tapestry depicts a Klackon heroine (identified as Qatax the Blind, sometimes called Qatax the Sage, contemporary of the warrior Tihirok of Do-Chitik) wearing a robe of eyes and leading an expedition of fellow Klackons and their Princess to colonize the caverns of what must surely be the Tel al Safina in the days when Tsur al Qadim still stood proudly to its south. Entering the caverns of the Tel, the Klackons fight back other inhabitants of the underworld while digging out their own place amongst the caverns; and yet an ominous presence seems to wait for them in the nearby strata ...

A somewhat crude representation of the tapestry-map

The accompanying periplus-history (not really a "periplus", which means "sailing around", but a description of a journey in the same vein) gives an account of the expedition's trials and travails, their descent into the caves, selection of a site to begin their colony, &c. That much can be gleaned by a casual question posed, for instance, to Tki'it the Klackon bartender at Cothon-Under-Star, or any other Klackon willing to look over the knotted khipu-strands making up the account.

As for getting the specific details that will help to actually locate the proper caverns, Durham will have to spend downtime to hire a Klackon interpreter to translate the relevant passages, or perhaps commission someone to magically read it (and maybe assist on an expedition to find the lost colony of Qatax!).

4) Help Wanted! Najm Seeks a First Mate
From about 28 August to 18 September, Najm ibn Marwan was gone from Cothon, travelling with his crew on his ship the Saint Iskameen to and from the north-eastern coastal town al Agadrein, from which Najm hails. There, he offered to help his uncles in their fishing-ventures with his new-won wealth, but was rebuffed by his family as one "putting-on-airs", and they squandered his money.

Despite the failure of this intent, the short jaunt along the coast proved useful for Najm in learning that he was in need of a strong second-in-command to aid operations on his ship--he needed a First Mate!

To that end, immediately he had disembarked once more into Cothon, he established himself at the harbor-tavern Fara's Hole-in-the-Wall, frequented by sailors, and put out a call via criers that he would be receiving as candidates anyone interested in taking on the responsibilities--and opportunities!--of being his second in command. He is looking in particular for a fighting-woman or -man who wields their sword with a sure hand, and knows something of command over the men-at-arms Najm has also hired to protect his interests. This character will be paid a share of profits from fishing ventures, a stipend directly from Najm, and will have the chance to participate in ventures into the Underworld to win their own share of riches!

Which is to say, anyone interested in writing up an NPC hireling, this is your chance to send them my way (i.e. send them to Cullen via Discord). Najm will hire one character out of whatever pool of candidates present themselves to him by 30 October. Any others who are not taken up will then join the general list of hirelings looking for work in the city, and thus be available for hire by other player-characters.

The Hamdi Codex in Full

(tagged as a "map" because as a periplus the Hamdi Codex is a kind of "literary map", an account of [literally] "a sailing around" which can be used by a navigator to successfully follow in the wake of the voyage described ...)

After much research, many callouses to pen-hands, and much candle-wax spilt, this codex, purportedly written by the legendary hero Hamdi the Voyager himself in some kind of cypher, has finally been translated in full by the antiquarian team of Razo the Researcher and Hry Haya Yehat (an Alkari).

A periplus following a western voyage from Cothon (? or another great harbor on the southern shore of Dirac's Sea?), the account includes many mildly interesting navigational details, broken up by quite interesting "adventures" had by Hamdi and/or his crew. There are six such "adventures", the first three of which have been previously translated:

1) the island Dar Breni and the hidden fortress Haut of the Bren Grewind. Grewind was purported to be a kind of sorceress pirate-queen with a device to hide her mind from the sorcerers who hunted her.

2) the island of the Sakkan Kukun (under the subtitle Razo), central island of a line of sea-kings (the Sakkans). This main island held the sacred mountain-temple Bey Kor, where the gods were said to dwell, alight with a weird orange glow. Great medicine-men would bathe in the to cleanse themselves, and die shortly afterward leading lives of strict asceticism ...

3) the island of the wizard-lord Morwe and his daughter Altayra and their qumqum servitor Imfawr (the Eye of Morwe). A tempest almost wrecked Hamdi's galley Zourqa' there, and much adventure followed, including a descent into "Forbidden Caverns" with strange ru'un (there is some, *ahem* disagreement by the translators as to how metaphorical this may be), followed by Altayra's escape from her tyrannical father by joining Hamdi on his subsequent Voyages ...

The remaining three "adventures" have been puzzled out by Razo and Hry Haya after much consternation; alas, some of the final pages are damaged, and the language toward the end grows more complex as it describes ever stranger things. It is clear, too, that it breaks off in the middle of things--surely there is another codex to be found? Perhaps somewhere near this first was discovered?

4) a strange pinnacle, standing like a spire out of the middle of an unquiet sea. Strange mists lay upon the water far out in the middle of the sea, "... but I feared to seek them, because they were far out of sight of any land but this strange pillar, and to sail so far thus is to invite Death into your crew."
Nevertheless, anchors were dropped near the pinnacle, and a preliminary exploration was made of it with the ship's boat. They were wary, as the place seemed perfect for sro, and yet something worse seemed to dwell within; for there were old caves wending down into the heart of the rock-pillar, but the air in them smelt of death; and though many gemstones gleamed in the dark glass walls, something else moved in those caves, and at least one crewmen was lost to the unknown creature's depredations. Many teeth of dindin (large carnivorous fish) were found throughout, and rumors of dindin-wraiths were fashionable for weeks after we weighed anchor from that place.

5) off the coast of ancient Viisymel, where the Sakkra once held sway, there is an island temple-fortress. Going quickly through those waters (because the threat of the Yrojen hunter-Sakkra still haunted then), Hamdi and his crew nevertheless sailed near the temple-fortress. From local humans they gathered tales of ritual-sacrifice--of tribes required to give up their seven healthiest youths and maidens every year to be sent to the island labyrinth, there to face either a terrible serudla-like dragon, or to face the Yrogen-hunters in their prime.
But the galley Zourqa' could not come near enough the edifice of this terrible island-temple, as its corners were mounted by dreadful ballistae that hurled thunderbolts at anything that approached too close upon the waves--or anything that moved upon the blasted black stones of the shore underneath the temple's blooded steps!
And so Hamdi moved on without investigating the stepped-temples that rose like mountains upon the island's heights ...

6) far out at the edge of old Viisymel, a temple-city stands in the tide, washed by the eternally turning waters of Ocean. Legends differ as to its construction--carved out of a solid headland? built by successive moles and piles? or did the Demons themselves pluck the stuff out of the Broken Moon above and place it directly into the sea??
Yet more interesting than the sea-washed temple-city is the moon that hangs above it--the "Broken Moon", a curious kind of "mountain in the sky" much unlike the Fortress Moon's great circular shape ... and too, the Broken Moon never wavers from its place above the Sunken City, as the place was sometimes called (even then), unlike the Fortress Moon which orbits regularly over the face of the world ...
Local legends recorded by Hamdi of course describe contradictory reports: the Demons dwell there, just as they do in the Fortress Moon, causing madness as they will; or the Giants (or reptilian Naga-Sakkra) who built the city, watching over it even now; or one of the great sri-Kaas of the Viis was raised there by his heroes to sleep without dying, ready to return when Viisymel fades (or, Viisymel being long faded, a Yrogen hunter-leader, with the same mythic import of a sleeping-king)

Given a fine ship, a good navigator, an accurately recorded account, and the will to seek, these "places of adventure" would all be accessible "adventures" for a player to take up. None are close to Cothon, of course, and so a great deal of time would be spent seeking them out; yet no doubt such locales are just the sort of high danger/high reward kind of places that barbarian-adventurers thrive in!

A Broader Map

 ... of the Balad 'Round Cothon

(created by Jacob based on a pencil sketch by me--worthy, according to the scribes, of 50 xp per level to one character; one may notice that the iqta' al Zaytun, recent battlefield between Kzin-raider the Red Cloud and the human defenders, is not on this map, but is located a fair way south and east)

Presenting more a sense of the country (balad) around the harbor-half of the Dual-Cities, great Cothon--and stretching north enough to show the first few of the long northwest-strung chain of the Denyan Islands--this map may not be properly to scale, and yet it gives proper place to various locales north and around the Cities.

Composed mainly by the sailor-cartographer Bassil, but with the assistance of the land-walking adventurer Sesel (one Voice of the Survivors), it was perhaps meant for sale by the map-maker--and yet, an overlong session of collaboration over wine allowed sharp-eyed patrons Under-Star to make their own versions, thence easily made available to the public at large. Those in the city are well enough aware of the general features, of course, but more than a few barbarians, new-come to Cothon, may indeed benefit from the orientation provided by this map should they venture beyond the confines of Cothon and the Tel al Safina.

Certain locales' legends are difficult to read in the medium of these chronicles; therefore, the scribes supply a brief periplus, or "sailing 'round", starting from the harbor of Cothon:

Sailing west along the coast from the Cothon, the first great river mouth and its broad estuary is known as the Roads. If a storm should blow up suddenly, or if the winds should deaden, and a ship need wait in hospitable waters until a good wind blows, the broad waters of the Roads are where she waits.

The Roads of course, are only a part of the broader Gana Delta, the mouths of the Garden River that flow multiply into Dirac's Sea. Sailing west from the Roads, one will pass the many mouths of the Delta, like the infinitely dividing necks and heads of the great qaqtla upon which the demigod Bism reclined after his labors. The banks and islands of the Delta are thick with rich farms, and with deposits of sand and clay that the Lightermen carry on their barges to the kilns of the Brickmakers and Glassblowers. It is along this delta that the iqta' of Tolwan lies, disturbed by the presence of armored ghars, which Lars Fang-Ripper wishes to hunt in a kind of vision-quest.

A great headland rises west of the Delta, its high cliffs battered by the sea's waves, while on the landward side a road winds its serpentine way up the inland slopes. Alkari tribes dwell in caves overlooking the waters, said to worship sro and to find it taboo to set foot upon the deck of a ship, according to strange ancient religion.

As the headland falls away west and north, the walls of Ittiyqa rise on the coastal plain, the Sister-City of Cothon. She has no seaward harbor, but a great canal, cut through the earth and set with huge locks, connects sea to the freshwater lake. The great fortress al Tsakhrata stands in the midst of this lake upon an island-rock. The city's hinterlands fill the plains west and south.

North of Ittiyqa, Tel Akhar, the Other Mount, rises out of the sea. A great tower overlooks a natural harbor on its western shore, in which many a galley, sryganta, holc, and birling lay wait the changing of the office of the winds, or bringing on water from the pure stream beneath the tower. Though the Denyali islanders rarely make their way so far from their islands, still one may find haunted stone nuraghes such as dot their island homes. Furthermore, it is said that a coven of witches and sorceresses--possibly maeras, but most usually described in story as shape-changing kdaptists--make their lair in the mist-cloaked woods of the island, spinning weird dooms, singing sailors to their fates, and of course guarding a treasure worthy of any king.

If, rather than sailing west to Nous or other cities of the Ten Cities League, one chose to sail north and east, the lookout at the prow would call out at sight of the Denyan Islands. Just north of this map lies the Denyan Strait, through which flows most sea-traffic between Cothon and the eastern Cities and the Nomehs of Misr. It was there that the Denyan Akho was slain by certain heroes; and it is east and north of here that most of the Hanse's campaign against the Luwian Pirates is being prosecuted. The islands are inhabited by the dark-skinned Denyali, whose ancestors built (or at least venerated) the ancient stone structures found throughout the islands and known as nuraghes, most of which are purported to be both haunted, and filled with fabulous treasures.

Following the island chain back south and east, one sails up to the Horn, along the southern coast of which is a fine beach for anchoring and resting the arms of the oarsmen. South along the coast not far from there, the long valley of al Aghadrein, the "Two Towers", cuts into the headland, filled with fine farmland and overlooked by its eponymous castles. A rash of attacks by Sakkra have recently broken out against the people there, and the Souffets are offering a bounty of 50 gold dinars per head of any Sakkra killed in defense of al Aghadrein.

Continuing south and west back toward Cothon, to complete the circle of the periplus, one would pass a number of sea-caves, some cut into the walls well above the waves, others cut out by the waves themselves. Those further north (and further up the cliff walls) are inhabited by the Gao tribe of Alkari, who gather chiefly around their fortress-monastery Kir Tsabbal, carved into the rock of the cliff-face itself. They too are under attack by Sakkra raiders. Inland from there rise a number of lesser Klackon spires overlooked by the great Attine-Spire, as well as various old human-ruins; and farther southwest along the headland, sea-level caves cut deep into the headland--the so-called Ocean's Throat.

From there, one sails south, past the Migdol of the Dyers and Fish-Fermenters, and then west to arrive again in the great harbor of Cothon ...

Maps for Sale

Given their recent trouble with the Barcidae and the anticipated resolution in Coreguyi Arena, the adventurer-barbarian band of the Heroic Companions of Hrrl-ra are currently offering to sell compiled maps of their delves into the Weirding Caverns and/or their (short) foray into the sea caves of Oceans's Throat. Proceeds from the sale of said maps will: 1) pay for the toll to the Barcidae and the ransom of Seeker-for-Relics' body if the Arena-trial goes poorly, or 2) go toward a reorganization of the Heroic Companions as a mercenary fighting-society, rather than an adventuring-band.

The maps offered for sale are:

1) for 2000 dinars (gp), a sketch of various upper passages in the Weirding Caverns, including the suspected location of the Old Pale Worm, a serudla supposed to be possessed of great treasure, as well as the way to the Zoq-Fot-Pik.

2) for 3500 dinars (gp), a more particular map of the Weirding Caverns; the details, of course, are kept secret, but the "hook" offered by the Companions for the sale of this map is that it presents a certain location with a zortrium lode defended by a strange ru'un ...

3) for only 800 dinars, the Heroic Companions are selling a map into the Ocean's Throat. Recognizing that others have often passed this way, the Companions are hoping that their seeking for the Sakkra will make their map "fresh" enough to warrant the asking-price ... Sold to Lars Ghar-Rider

A Map of the Tel al Safina

In hopes that this will help orient parties setting out from Cothon on expeditions to delve into the depths of the Tel:

 

It should be noted that there are a number of sea-caves riddling the headlands further north, beyond the Ocean's Throat; these are known haunts for clans of the Alkari and the Sakkra, and periodically home also to mighty sro, pale serudla, and dreaded haqel.

There is also a "lesser" spire north of the Great Spire of the Klackons; and doubtless there are other smaller entrances into the Tel, as the whole mound is riddled with caves and catacombs.

The Tower Invincible is the only completely intact remainder of the old city of Tsur; it is remembered that no missile hurled by catapult or trebuchet could wrack it, for it is surrounded by a field of power that deflects all such missiles; but that a man on foot might be able to find some secret way, or invisible gate, and thus gain entrance.

This Tower is also the source of the terrible Elver Worms that emerge once every generation or so to wreak their desolation. The last such to come forth was during the Office of Anno and Arrahmni as Soufets, and it was Lost Vrialta, then but a squire of the Knights Pylaean, who dealt that Worm its death-knell, and thus secured his reputation as "the greatest warrior of his age" before his Disapperance.

As to the rest of the Ruins of Tsur al Qadim, they have been picked over by generations seeking old artefacts or buried treasures; and yet, they are wide, and sometimes secrets are dis-covered even now. The crumbling towers and slumping walls also offer shelter or hiding places to various bands of highwaymen, or to wandering creatures inimical to Man, so that one should be wary when venturing along the broken thoroughfares. The safest path east from Cothon to the Tel is along the Pallbearers' Way, from the Gate of Mourners to the Necropolis in the Colossian Temenos. This road is regularly patrolled by the Poor Brothers of the Dead, a warrior-mourning society.