The Sablecast Grounds are a region of the Fey Realm, part of the Unseelie territory.[1]
Description[]
Placed in the outskirts of the Sun's Shadow, the realm of the Unseelie Court, the Sablecast Grounds are a territory illuminated by a perpetual twilight,[2] with a landscape of bramble forest, with vegetation entangling and entwining everywhere, extending to the distant mountains. In certain sections of the brush there are lights that indicate the presence of some type of settlements; in certain sections signs of old fey rituals can be found, with ruins of cerulean and gray stone.[3] Above the forest rise several towers, like stone needle-like spiers rising from the ground, grayish purple in color, each topped by a polished white marble.[4]
The ground of the Sablecast Grounds is sentient to a certain degree, and sometimes demands the "iron tithe",[5] trying to devour people and taste their blood.[6] In a similar way, the plant life also reacts to whatever is happening around it, with vines growing over the fire to put it out, or vegetation deliberately moving out of the way of harmful presences.[7]
Points of interest[]
Towers[]
When something gets close enough to these spires, it is illuminated by a purple light that signals its presence for a few minutes; Because of the way the towers are located, it is possible to find paths between them without activating said effect.[8]
Portal[]
To the west, at the edge of the Sablecast Grounds where the brambles are thickest, forming a knot like a scar covering a wound, there is a gate to the world of Exandria in the Material Plane.[9] The portal itself is misty, and is located in the space formed by a tree that forks into two trunks with their respective roots. In the crown of this tree there is a nest of ropes and tattered materials where the guardian of the portal lives. The guardian, Terrosh the Lidless Slumber, speaks in rhymes and demands payment from anyone who wants to use the portal, which leads to a silent waterfall in the Taloned Highlands near Gelvaan.[10]
Shiver Keep[]
The Shiver Keep stands behind a barrier some 15 feet high made of tangled vines, thorns, and brambles that open and close passageways for those entering or leaving the fortress.[11] The Shiver Keep itself has many spires, windows and balconies, being a compact structure, taller than it is wide, with solid walls and gates, with corner towers, ballistae, and multiple guards that defend the place with the help of eremads.[12] On the land behind the walls there is still vegetation, and there in the courtyard the Malleus Key was built.[13]
Notable People[]
| Name | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Sorrowlord Zathuda | NPC | An influential fey captain. |
| Gloamglut | NPC | A fey dragon, and Zathuda's mount. |
| Terrosh | NPC | The one-eyed guardian of a portal to Exandria. |
| Festertree Blights | NPC | According to Morrigan, they have a "rusted sense of humor".[14] |
History[]
At some point before 837 PD members of the Unseelie Court spoke with Otohan Thull and Ludinus Da'leth, who informed them of their plans connected with Ruidus, Predathos, and the destruction of the gods, and came to an agreement whereby the Unseelie (helped by Ira Wendagoth for a time) would allow a Malleus Key to be built in the Shiver Keep.[15] When the machine was ready, it summoned an image of the Exandrian red moon,[16][17] alerting Ollie and Birdie Calloway, a fey couple who had seen said moon in the Material Plane when their daughter was born, and now were worried about its influence. However, the Calloways were ignored by the courts, and the strange moon over the Sablecast Grounds was hidden with magic.[18] However, by 837 PD, Ollie and Birdie followed an Unseelie agent to the Sun's Shadow realm, discovering Ruidus still floating in the fey sky[19] behind the illusion, and sabotaging the Malleus Key by stealing the source of its power, the Moontide Crown, before fleeing to Exandria with it.[20]
In 843 PD, Birdie and Ollie's daughter, Fearne Calloway, visited the Fey Realm with her friends with the mission of destroying the Malleus Key. After getting some guidance from Morrigan the Fatestitcher[21] the group traveled to the Sablecast Grounds, but not before having a brief encounter with centaurs that were trying to capture them to sell them to the Shadow Court.[22] When they finally reached the Sablecast Grounds, Bells Hells managed to reach the Shiver Keep while avoiding being detected by Unseelie guards, despite the attempt of the ground itself to catch them.[23] Inside the keep, the adventurers (with some trouble) managed to destroy the Malleus Key, banishing the image of Ruidus that floated over the Sablecast Grounds.[24] In the process, however, they alerted Sorrowlord Zathuda and his draconic mount,[25] and were pursued while trying to reach the nearest portal to Exandria, which they did (with a little help from the Fatestitcher, who attacked Zathuda and his dragon with her own dark bird). They paid proper toll to Terrosh, the Lidless Slumber, in order to use the portal he guarded.[26]
Trivia[]
- It is unknown how far the Sablecast Grounds are from the Shademurk Forest, a domain near Unseelie territory.
References[]
- ↑ See "Reunion & Revelation" (3x30) from 2:54:12 through 3:01:26.
- ↑ See "Reunion & Revelation" (3x30) from 2:54:12 through 3:01:26.
- ↑ See "An Exit Most Fraught" (3x48) at 0:33:45.
- ↑ See "The Fey Key" (3x47) from 0:13:58 through 0:14:32.
- ↑ See "Night at the Ligament Manor" (3x46) at 2:53:41.
- ↑ See "The Fey Key" (3x47) from 0:58:40 through 1:04:59.
- ↑ See "An Exit Most Fraught" (3x48) at 0:39:11.
- ↑ See "The Fey Key" (3x47) at 0:37:05.
- ↑ See "Night at the Ligament Manor" (3x46) at 2:52:53.
- ↑ See "An Exit Most Fraught" (3x48) from 0:56:04 through 1:11:37.
- ↑ See "The Fey Key" (3x47) at 0:49:43.
- ↑ See "The Fey Key" (3x47) at 1:09:40.
- ↑ See "The Fey Key" (3x47) at 1:32:28.
- ↑ See "Night at the Ligament Manor" (3x46) at 2:53:33.
- ↑ See "Dark Portents" (3x29) at 2:43:15.
- ↑ See "Dark Portents" (3x29) at 2:45:23.
- ↑ See "Reunion & Revelation" (3x30) from 2:54:12 through 3:02:13.
- ↑ See "Dark Portents" (3x29) at 2:41:07.
- ↑ See "Night at the Ligament Manor" (3x46) from 0:33:33 through 0:36:14.
- ↑ See "Reunion & Revelation" (3x30) at 2:52:21.
- ↑ See "Night at the Ligament Manor" (3x46) from 0:33:33 through 0:36:14.
- ↑ See "Night at the Ligament Manor" (3x46) at 4:13:54.
- ↑ See "The Fey Key" (3x47) from 0:58:40 through 1:04:59.
- ↑ See "The Fey Key" (3x47) at 3:35:20.
- ↑ See "The Fey Key" (3x47) at 3:58:40.
- ↑ See "An Exit Most Fraught" (3x48) from 0:07:24 through 1:07:47.
Art: