Next question: I've been wondering this one for a while, but why is it that Wendar claims part of the Forest of Baamor? If it's so evil, why not fence it off behind their border, rather than including part of the forest within Wendar?

As it currently stands, about half of the forest lies on the northern side of the border.

One possible answer could be the settlement of centaurs, which leads to another question: how much are the centaurs part of Wendar? To what extent do they participate in the government? Do they show themselves outside their village or the forest? Are they known to the elves or do they remain another secret of the evil woods?

Another answer could come from the shrines of the Korrigans, and I believe DM has a plan here regarding the 10th Korrigan.

I just noticed a post by Marco on the second page of this thread that implies that Shadowmere should be placed in the Forest of Shadows. This seems to make sense, given the name, and the required territory (an area of forest jutting out into the Wendarian Range mountains) is also there. Additionally, the place seems to fit with the descriptions given in the Dragonlord Trilogy.

Do we want to keep the name "Foxwoods" too? Also, what is Shadowmere? In the books it was a community of dragon clerics, gold dragons I think, who worshipped the Great One. It was attacked by rogue red dragons at one stage, but it may have been rebuilt.

Hmm, it does seem interesting to have a shrine to the Great One populated by gold dragons, actually, regardless of using the Dragonlord books or not. Although unlike the books, I would argue that the dragons spend much of their time shapechanged into elves, to fit better with the surrounding communities.

Cant remember exactly where the Forest of Shadows is, but Shadowmere, IIRC was supposed to be a secluded valley in the south, nes pa? Shadowmere could be part of the Forest of Shadows, not the entire place. The Foxwoods similarly could be a smaller area.

The events of the DL trilogy occured about 1500 years ago so the damage caused by the renegade dragons could easily be rebuilt by now. I would suggest that most of the clerics of Shadowmere are Dragonworshipping elves, these days anyways, with as you suggest, Dragons in elf form working among them.

What is their relationship these days with the official religion of Wendar/Korrigan Worship? Perhaps it was harmonious at the time of the DL trilogy, but that it these days has become worse and that the Dragon Cult now is illegal? Could Sir George still (miraculously) be around, working alongside the Dragon Cultists?

Håvard

Marco's description of the roads leading into Wendar refers to two passes, Kevar Pass and the Elven Pass. Kevar Pass is an actual mountain pass, but the Elven Pass is in fact a path, passing between the end of the Wendarian Range and the edge of the Adri Varma Plateau. Is it okay to still call this a pass?

Havard, I agree with you about Shadowmere and the Foxwoods. But I was under the impression that the trilogy was set much closer to the modern era, more like 500 years ago...?

Marco, it seemed like you had some sort of secret in mind for these shrines. It seems to me that this could be an excellent opportunity to give some more depth to our gazetteer and insert some really cool secrets.

So far we know that the shrines combine with the Elvenstone to form a protective net around Wendar. Let's develop this idea a bit more, and tie it in to the history.

Presumably the Elvenstone was lost at some point after the Korrigans gained Immortality, so it seems likely that Wendar had some sort of "Golden Age" back when the Korrigans were still mortals. Their creation of the Shrines of the Nine and the Elvenstone surely have various effects on the surrounding lands.

One idea would be to give each shrine a set of effects, which are applied to the lands around each shrine, diminishing in effect the further away from the shrine you go. Alternatively each shrine could "project" these effects inward, because many shrines are located close to the borders.

These effects could be subtle, for example making those in the radius of effect more caring towards nature, or influencing them towards certain activites or beliefs. They could even have effects similar to the Elfstone, and gradually change all Wendar's inhabitants into elves!

What effect does the tenth shrine have? This could explain the situation in the Baamor Woods a little more, too.

All in all, I think these shrines together with the Elfstone could be the key to the whole region, around which everything can be built and moulded.

I considered posting this in a new thread, but since it's basically just an edited version of what already appears in this thread, I decided against it.

I'm looking for suggestions for ways to further integrate and tie everything together, as well as any new ideas anyone might have for additions. Also, places with [square brackets] generally mark areas that need further thought or development.

Wendar: A Mini Gazetteer
Original designs by Jesper Andersen, Traianus Decius Aureus, Marco Dalmonte, Gary, Geoff Gander, Lost Woodrake, Mortepierre Malepeste, Patrick Sullivan, Thorfinn Tait, Zendrolion
Edited and adapted by Thorfinn Tait
[If I forgot any names, or if you’d like to change the way your name is listed, please tell me.]

This gazetteer was created by the members of the Mystara Message Board, who contributed their ideas in order to flesh out a new 8 mile per hex map of Wendar. The result is far more than any of us could have hoped, providing us with a very promising mini-gazetteer for the country.

Overview

[This whole section needs to be further organised and split into multiple sections.]

The population is a fair mix of humans of Antalian stock (90%) and Dun stock (10%; the Duns are the Celtic-like stock found in Dundadale, the Hinterlands and Robrenn), and of Genalleth elves (similar to Alfheimers, some more like the Icevale elves, many of them rangers). Place names range between elvish, antalian and dunnish (minority).

Nestled among two plateaux and two mountain ranges, Wendar (or Genalleth, as the elven race calls it) is a secluded and ancient land that still holds many secrets and marvels even to its inhabitants. Thick evergreen forests blanket more than half of the region, their beauty and stateliness mirroring the Canolbarth Forest in its glory days. There are five major "reserves" (this is the best translation of the way the elves call them) in Wendar, as well as a number of smaller woods, all closely guarded and tended by Genalleth elves and their human forester allies.

The first and most important one, Korrigan Forest, lies in the western part of the nation. Two of Wendar’s most thriving cities are situated around the forest; Wendar City is enclosed by the western groves, while Sylvair lies on the western edge of the forest. The Korrigan Forest is renowned for the beauty of its sequoias and for the many shrines sacred to the Korrigans, the Nine Elven Protectors that watch upon Genalleth. The legend says that they drew their name from the mythical (and believed extinct) korrigan, a woodland animal that once lived here.

The Forest of Bounty lies in the western corner of the nation. Mighty and sturdy oaks grow here, protected by a small group of treants that the elves call "The Elders." Woodgate and Oakwall, two other towns, lie at the borders of this forest, and use its wood to boast their logging industries.

After the corruption of the Canolbarth Forest, the Forest of Bounty is inhabited by Alfheim refugees. In AC 1015, events cause the northern part of the forest to be renamed Forest of the Curse.

Right at the centre of the Genalleth Valley we find the Enchanted Forest, a mysterious patch of trees that the elves hold as sacred. According to the legends, here live the fairies with their sylvan friends, the centaurs and actaeons, and those who dare trespass against Nature in this place are bound to be abducted by actaeons and to serve the fairies for the rest of their life. Tales of missing wanderers abound in this region.

[Description needed!]
Forest of Shadows - The origin of the name of the Forest of Shadows is not yet clear, but it surely has something to do with necromancy.

The last important reserve lies at the northwestern border and is referred to as the Dark Woods of Baamor. The Wendarians tell frightening tales about this area, whose trees are strangely darker and more twisted than the common trees of the region, and whose fauna is made up of deformed and evil parodies of the common woodland animals. Elven sages blame this to a mysterious being (or race, this is not clearly defined) called Baamor, who tried to poison the entire continent in the ancient days to appease the Dark Immortals. However, the Korrigans rebelled against Baamor and ultimately defeated him, imprisoning the evil Baamor inside one of the blight trees of this forest. Therefore, in order to avoid freeing him, it is strictly prohibited to cut down any tree in this region. In fact, few people venture there, for it is said that Baamor tries to possess anyone who walks into his forest and use him to achieve freedom.

[Minor Forest Descriptions – need work.]
The Laughing Woods - an ominous name. It may be because the wind makes strange laughing noises when blowing through these trees, or because you can hear giggles and laughter at night.

Scarlet Groves – These woods took their name from the thousands of soldiers who died in the forest defending Wendar from Denagothian invasions in the past. Their blood has somehow incarnadined parts of the trees and the grass.

Kevareth Woods – The forested hilly region south of Kevar, twisting around and among the mountains of the Wendarian Range, and bordering on the Forest of Shadows, is rich in natural resources, and has been the site of various mines. Currently there are only two working mines, but the southern areas of the forest remain largely unexplored; almost surrounded by mountains, they are difficult to access.

[This paragraph needs major revisions.] The rest of the region consists of rocky hills to the east and to the south, where the few herders raise their cattle (horses and sheep mostly). In the central plains and moors the humans raise their crops. The valleys and plains are usually safe and free of monsters, but the closer one gets to the mountain ranges, the more the trip becomes dangerous.

[Water – needs expanded.] Although few waterways and lakes are large enough to be marked on the map, Wendar has numerous small lakes, ponds, bogs and marshes amidst its forests and settlements.

The Wendarian Range to the south and the Mengul Mountains to the north are renowned for their snow-capped peaks and for the fierceness of their inhabitants. The Wendarian Range, whose peaks average 11,000 feet in height, is home to many tribes of yeti, sasquatches and even a few white dragons, not to mention the occasional monstrous results of Glantrian experiments.

The only two southern passes maintained and guarded actively by the Wendarians are the Elven Pass to the southeast, which leads through the gap between the Adri Varma Plateau and the end of the Wendarian Range, directly to Oakwall; and the Kevar Pass to the southwest, from which the Royal Way leads to the capital winding through the Korrigan Forest. There is a third pass leading northwards through the Mengul Mountains and up to Denagoth, but it has not been used since the last war with Essuria, about 80 years ago.

Wendar's long eastern border is constantly watched and garrisoned, because the worst problems come and have always come from Denagoth. Luckily, there are only a few passes that can be used by the Denagothians to effectively march inside Wendar without risking too many casualties on the trip, so these are well guarded. Two keeps, Surewatch Keep and Gylharen Keep, have been built near the border with Denagoth under the supervision of King Gylharen, and these standing garrisons have the sole purpose of stopping (or slowing) any possible invasion attempt from that land. However, since Denagoth has not given any significant trouble in the last decades, the soldiers stationed here have taken on the duty to harass and annihilate any humanoid band trying to cross the border and cause mayhem in Wendar; so far, they've been successful.

The Wendarians have had little troubles with the neighbouring Heldanners in the past two centuries, just a record of quick raids which are normal among the northmen. But the northmen have come to fear and respect the elves during the centuries, so only the hotheads dare try anything against Wendar, and this keeps problems to a minimum. The keep built in this region, the Hawksgate, is intended to oversee the region and halt any likely raid from humanoids and humans alike.

Unfortunately, with the Heldannic Knights overtaking Heldann in AC 957, the relationship has become more tense, and Gylharen must have reinforced the garrison in that region. The Knights are not to be taken lightly, even when they are polite.

The relationship between Glantri and Wendar has been peaceful, and trade has been abundant since the 9th century, when things in Glantri stabilized. The Elven Pass is the only direct route that connects the two nations. It is guarded by the Everway Tower, which together with the Hawksgate shares the duty of monitoring visitors to Wendar, as well as handling any possible raids by humanoid tribes living in the Wendarian Range. The biggest barrier against raids and invasion on the southern border is of course the Forest of Shadows.

The Baamor Woods and the Laughing Woods are a real barrier on the north-western border, and the Wendarians would never expect an invasion force marching through them to get inside Wendar. Likewise, since the malicious effects of the Baamor Woods are so feared, even settling next to it is not encouraged. For this reason there are only three towers in the north, used as observation points to keep the situation in the woods in check. Lerian's Tower is one of these, and indeed the most dangerous assignment for any soldier, which is why it is manned only by elves, who have better resistance to magic. The other towers are the Tower of Twilight, which guards Woodgate, and Aelythnar, a fortress manned by elves, which guards the entrance from the Adri Varma plateau as well as the lowland region between the Forest of Bounty and the Woods of Baamor, known as the Shunned Plains. Aelythnar’s position near the border, on a trail running from Woodgate to the Adri Varma Plateau, also puts it in a strategic position.

Although Wendar maintains fortresses and keeps on most of its important borders, the Elvenstar is the primary means of defense, making the country more or less invulnerable to large-scale assaults. For smaller raids and other problems, Wendar often relies more on adventurers than on soldiers. While Wendar does indeed have soldiers, they are insufficient to repel an assault from Denagoth without the protection of the Elvenstar. Wendar has at least a small spy network, with an active agent mentioned in X11. Wendar's armed forces are not significant enough to merit a mention in PWA1, though most other lands detailed have corresponding army entries.

Wendar is a country rather similar to the Freeholds (and likely its population was bolstered significantly by the Heldannic Knights' takeover). Gylharen is not the type of ruler to go for the high taxation necessary to maintain a large standing army. The people of Wendar are freedom-loving and they welcome adventurers. That having been said, there are significant dangers on Wendar's borders, and at the watchtowers around Wendar are well supplied and maintained, vigilant at all times against signs of trouble.

The face of the Adri Varma has numerous rockslides and cuttings, allowing relatively easy access to and from the plateau. [Add a watchtower or two on the border?] While relations with Glantri are cordial, no one could share such an extensive border with Morphail's subjects and not be somewhat cautious.

[Not sure if this idea should stand… Do they really need so many watchtowers?] There should be some sort of watchtower every twenty-five miles or so around the entire border. If this is the case, manning each tower with just twenty soldiers would mean that around a thousand soldiers are stationed in these watchtowers, and not one of these would be a strong enough garrison to really dissuade much of anything. I would tend to suggest, rather, that any such watchtowers be very simple structures, manned, more than likely, by only three or four individuals. Their job would be to defend themselves if necessary, and to signal in warning through some sort of relay. Wendar's frontiers are simply too extensive to guard by force without transforming it into some sort of military state.

Wendar’s Government

[Still very much under development.]
Suggestions include a system where the humans and elves are a little more closely knit. Segregating them is okay, but having them living together peacefully seems more interesting if you ask me.

Each full-fledged town has a headman/burgomeister who runs it in conjunction with a civic government (i.e., the town is actually incorporated, and had elves and humans in its governing council). The headman is usually a rich/influential local landowner or noble (in the plains), an elven lord (in the forests) or a loyal person chosen by the king (in critical areas). This system of municipal government extends to the villages. The leader of each town/village advises the king on matters relating directly to that settlement (i.e., crop yields, local diseases, banditry, etc.), but national matters are decided by the king, with the advice of his own officials.

The king holds a "parliament" of sorts (modelled on traditional elvish clan councils) a few times per year, during which the town and village leaders go to Wendar City to raise important matters with the king - who is obligated to provide a response before the session ends - and to pose questions about his policies and plans. In the interests of maintaining stability, the king could be open about anything not deemed a military secret, or anything related to Denagoth. It is during these meetings that the king's advisors develop budgets (based on what town and village heads are saying about taxes, the health of businesses, trade, etc.) and develop priorities for spending (e.g., if Oakwall's leader is having a problem with bandits, more money might be allocated to increase the garrison there, etc.).

The parliament could be imagined as a sort of late middle-age German/Eastern European "Dieta" or French "States-General", i.e. an assembly not too strictly divided by class, in which one could find representatives of the landowners, the townspeople, the forest communities and perhaps in smaller number the druids, the priests of the Korrigans, the demihuman (centaur and the like) population, etc.

Most of the land in Wendar belongs either to the crown or to the clans (the forests above all), while the remaining land is in the hands of the low nobility (elven and human alike).

Major Settlements

City of Wendar

Oakwall – A town in southwest Wendar, named for the groves of oak trees which surround the town.

Sylvair – The most elven of Wendar’s towns.

Woodgate

Bensarian’s Hermitage – Home to the famous sage of Wendar, Bensarian, who gifted the Elvenstar to Gylharen.

Minor Settlements

Aebhyrn Lwnn?– The settlement of a very reclusive, very militant and quite large centaur clan. It is located in the midst of the Dark Woods of Baamor, and unlike many centaur settlements, it has several stone "houses" ("stables"?) that the centaurs built for lodging. It is a well fortified community, led by the charismatic centauress Nawanne Shirvanawe. These are probably the only sentient creatures willing to live in this forest, although no-one understands why.

Ammalanleth – A village located deep in the Forest of Bounty, populated by elves of a more traditionalist bent.

Brethiliath – This village, located in the great deep forest south of Wendar City, is where a Tree of Life is located, closely guarded by Treekeepers. The elves who live here prefer to have little to do with the outside world, and have focused on spiritual matters. In doing so, Brethiliath has become known among Wendarian elves as a place to go to learn about, and meditate on, the relationship between their race and nature, and the grand scheme of life. As a result, Brethiliath sees a fair amount of visitors - mainly elves, but also a handful of human sages interested in such matters.

Bynflaare Hall – Located in the dense Laughing Woods of northeast Wendar, Bynflaare Hall is a haven for Mystics. Several monasteries and abbies are dispersed in between the high, thick foliage - as well as many caves, tree-houses and even "nests" for individual hermits.

Dalvarhøfn – A predominantly Heldanner village northwest of Bensarian’s Hermitage, southeast of Surewatch Keep, settled by Heldanners who fled the onslaught of the Heldannic Order in AC 950. The king gave them lands in the rich, rolling plains south of the Mengul Range, both to make those lands more productive, and to create a buffer zone in case Denagoth ever managed to invade - a consummate politician.

Dawnblossom-Qvar - In 862 AC [date needs checked with Glantri timeline] a group of halflings and dwarves escaped the towers and laboratories of Glantrian wizards, and crossed the mountains in a perilous journey towards freedom and safety in Wendar. Many died along the way, but some arrived at their destination and were allowed – although not without suspicion – to settle in the mountains of southwest Wendar. Thus the village of Dawnblossom-Qvar was established. They couldn't agree on one single name, so the first word is the hin name, the second the dwarven one. This town is populated by these immigrants' descendants - who try to fit into the Wendarian society as best they can. However, the cruel experiments had their effect also on generations to come, and the hills of Wendar are often plagued by some strange disease or a monstrous mutation, originating in this miserable community. For this reason, many Wendarians resent these "short people", and demand that they leave the kingdom.

Duncan's Keep is a tiny settlement on the edge of the Forest of Shadows, south of Wendar City and southeast of Sylvair. It is named after the founder, who many years ago was given a fief and instructed to build a small fortified tower to keep the area safe.
Today, Duncan's Keep is home to some 70 families, a mix of humans and elves. Their primary source of income is from woodcutting, timber export and manufacturing goods out of wood.
The local mayor is a human woman named Agnes Stellasdottir of Heldann descent. For a brief periode a few years ago, she was the lover of the proud Soderfjord warrior Emrode, when he and his companions were in town after slaying a nearby green dragon that was threatening the community.
From that relationship Agnes bore a son, who is now a little over a year old, named Axel Emrodeson. Agnes does not know where Emrode is today but hopes that he will return to Duncan's Keep one day.
Other notables in the tiny hamlet includes Baron Duncan III, grandson of the founder, whose wife died of sickness years ago before bearing him any children. The people of Duncan's Keep are loyal to their baron but realise that he is now too old to marry again and most people expect that either will the King bestow the barony upon another line or ask Baron Duncan to name one of the villagers his heir.
Most of the villagers hope that would be Agnes, but a few ambitious others are secretly working to improve their own standing with the baron. One of them is the gnome merchant Theodor Thunderburp who has made a small fortune exporting quality wooden goods to Glantri and the Heldann Freeholds. He is quite a comical figure, always making speeches at the tavern or on the village square about how "a person who has had success financially would be the best choice to secure prosperity to the entire village" and such slogans. Theodor has the odds against him, however, because for all his wealth most villagers still consider him a good-hearted clown.
The second contender is a daydreaming bard named Jonaleth Silverbrim from Darokin. He came to Duncan's Keep broke and soon learned about the local political situation. He hopes to become the next baron by woeing Agnes and marrying her, so that when she enherits the barony, he will become baron. Jonaleth is as much an amateur as Theodor but much more scheeming. He is not above sabotaging Theodor's speeches, adding to the poor gnome's ridiculous reputation.
The real threat to Duncan's Keep is from the third contender for the throne, a local elven priest of the Korrigan named Meetholan. He is the head of the local chuch and much more strict (LN) than most elves. He feels that the humans are violating nature around Duncan's Keep and because of their short lifespans and lack of inherent magic abilities inferior to elves. In short, he is a racist. If he inherits the barony, it will turn into a hagiarchy, an area ruled by holy men. And that is sure to put an end to the current prosperity and lessen the lives of humans to those of serfs.
Whatever will become of Duncan's Keep in the near future is up to the DM. Perhaps Emrode and his group will return. Perhaps another party of adventurers will come by and resolve the situation. If not, one of the three contenders will probably get the throne, and the changes will probably send ripples through Wendarian nobility all over the country,

Genalldhon – A village in forested hills south of the Mengul Range, well-known for its artisans, who produce exquisite carvings from nearby stands of birch and oak.

Hvollsvatn – Founded in AC 960 by refugees from the Heldanner town of Skolgrim (now Grauenberg). Although they initially settled in Kevar, frictions with the local humans forced them to petition King Gylharen for permission to settle elsewhere. The king granted them land near the forested hills south of the Royal Way, and gave them mining and limited forestry rights. The region was sparsely inhabited beforehand, and would, he reasoned, provide a stable population base to make the land productive, and from which armies could be raised should tensions with Heldann or Denagoth ever boil over. Today, many people in Hvollsvatn are miners and smelters, selling the iron ingots to merchants who will then transport them to Kevar, Wendar City, and occasionally Sylvair. Hvollsvatn is also known for its competent smiths.

Laurianta - Located in the Enchanted Forest, Laurianta is a properous elven village, made so by virtue of the fast-flowing Laure River (Golden River to the humans); the river is so named because of extensive deposits of iron pyrite (fools' gold) in the riverbed rocks, which catch the sun's rays and glow warmly in the water. The industrious villagers have built several water wheels to operate their mills, saws (the wood from Laurianta is recognised for its quality, and some of the finest furniture is made here), and other enterprises. In so doing, they manage to produce as much as many larger villages, while having plenty of time for leisure. Outsiders claim that Laurianta is so named because elves built a bridge of gold, but the village's name, in fact, stems from the fact that the Laure is a dangerous river to ford for the unwary - this place is one of the few safe places to cross it, and the village grew up around the sturdy bridge that was built there centuries ago.

Uumarne – This was a small fishing village, at the shores of Lake Phyrroe, a medium-sized lake at the southern side of the Forest of Bounty. Uumarne grew rapidly as many Alfheim refugees, as well as industrious Leprechauns from Alfheim, settled there - and turned the sleepy community into a thriving center of commerce and business.

Yngvarsvall - Located northeast of Woodgate, between the Enchanted Forest and the Baamor Woods. Yngvarsvall is a mixed settlement (with human majority of 70-80%), due to the number of elvish soldiers who pass through it to and from Lerian's Tower; some opt to settle down in the town. For those who allow half-elves in their campaigns, a fair percentage of the village's humans (perhaps up to 25%) could be reclassified as half-elves (again, due to the number of elvish soldiers who pass through...). Military wagons going between the town and the tower often use the village as a rest stop. As a result, a small, but moderately prosperous, group of craftsmen and burghers grew up here, trading their services for the soldiers' coin. Its proximity to the Baamor Woods makes Yngvarsvall a watchful town, somewhat suspicious of outsiders, but always welcoming to soldiers.

Keeps and Fortresses

Surewatch Keep - Located on the western border with Denagoth, this Wendarian fortress is charged with watching the porous border regions near Geron. The garrison takes its duty very seriously - the keep has never fallen in its 500-odd year history.

Gylharen Keep – This keep on the Denagoth border was built to protect Wendar city from direct invasion from the Mengul Mountains.

The Hawksgate – One of the busiest of Wendar’s border fortifications, the Hawksgate guards the Kevar Pass leading to Heldann. All traffic through the pass is forced to go through the fortress, where Wendarian soldiers check trade goods and enforce border taxes. These soldiers are also of course responsible for the defence of the realm against any possible attack from Heldann. The fort is renowned for its expert falconers.

Aelythnar – The stronghold is a typical elven one, built partly upon the trees (remember the drawing in the Expert set?), on the outer fringes of the Forest of Bounty where it approaches the Baamor Woods.

Lerian's Tower – Located in the gap between the Baamor Woods and the Laughing Woods, this tower was built by a distant cousin of one of the first kings of Wendar to secure the northern marches. Much beloved by the king, the cousin was granted a great deal of autonomy, and ruled the northern frontier as his own domain. The details of his treachery are now lost (likely destroyed), but the cousin turned against the king, and a great civil war ensued, spilling much blood in the lands surrounding the tower (which was thereafter named the Gap of Tears). The king prevailed, and the cousin's name was struck from all the records. He would have demolished the tower, too, but for its strategic importance. The king's son, Lerian, offered to give up his right to the crown and guard the northern border - a duty he upheld until his death 330 years later. Thereafter, the tower was named after Lerian in his honour. Today, it is well garrisoned, with a scattering of human farms surrounding it.

Battle Sites

Wendar rose as a modern kingdom in AC 910 under Gylharen. However, the towns and villages have been members of defensive leagues in the past, so there could possibly have been many elvish (and maybe a few human) nobles or self-styled kings, each ruling a petty dominion. All this to say that there could very well have been many battles between the towns and various factions

Felzuumath's Fall (AC 452) – Located northeast of Woodgate, this is where Nione fought and killed Felzuumath, who had terrorised the towns of western Wendar for many years. The victorious elves of Woodgate piled their enemies into a mound and burned them. Since that time, grass has grown over the remains, and now a fair-sized grassy hill stands alone.

King's Sorrow (AC 103) – Located to the south of Lerian's Tower, this is where the elf king of Amoleth fought, and killed, his beloved cousin. Surviving accounts of the battle say that so much blood was spilled that day, that the plains had become a reddish swamp.

Other Points of Interest

Amoleth – The ruins of Amoleth lie along the southern fringes of the forest to the east of Lerian's Tower. In its heyday, it was the capital of the kingdom of Amoleth, an elvish realm that stretched across what is now northwestern Wendar. A strong ally of the other elvish realms, its soldiers fought numerous Denagothian hordes. The Battle of King's Sorrow broke the king's spirit, and the realm began to decline thereafter. During the chaotic period surrounding the bloody campaigns of Felzuumath, the giant's armies laid the town to siege. Unable to secure aid from its neighbours, and with the garrison of Lerian's Tower unable to reach the town in time, Amoleth fell in AC 433. Most of the population was slaughtered, but a handful managed to escape and bring word to other towns and villages. Elvish fury over the loss of Amoleth united them long enough to wage a successful campaign against their enemies, ultimately leading to the Battle of Felzuumath's Fall.

Moors of Chlyras – These dark moors, at the midst of the Baamor Woods, straddling Wendar’s northern border, are home to the hideous Aantkh-Nyr, a murderous and powerful nuckalavee who draws pleasure from killing the centaurs of Aebhyrn Lwnn. He tortured and killed Nawanne's beloved, the former leader of the centaurs, Cephae Wy'rnaav - and she is trying to get her revenge ever since.

Tower of Anorion – Located in the western corner of Wendar, on the edge of the Forest of Bounty. Anorion was an elf-mage of great power, who worked great wonders during the years following Felzuumath's defeat. It was his guidance that led to a period of rejuvenation of the land, which had suffered greatly during the previous decades of war and strife. Inspired to perform greater deeds, Anorion quested for artefacts of great power to increase his strength, and found a strange device in a dead city of strange black stone on the Adri Vamra Plateau. One night, there was a great flash of light that lit the sky for miles around his tower, and afterwards there was silence. Visitors found no evidence of habitation the next day, and the lands surrounding the tower seemed corrupted somehow - the vegetation grew sickly, brittle, and grey in colour, and Anorion's orchards ever after bore poisonous fruit. No animal will go near the tower today, and those who spend too much time there almost inevitably sicken and die from a strange wasting disease. It is said that a wealth of magical lore remains in the tower, but it is also said that many fiendish guardians and traps await the unwary, as well as the "curse"...

Mines

Mines of Kevar

Hvollsvatn Mines

Shrines

The Nine Shrines of the Korrigans – Nine shrines, each one dedicated to one of the Korrigans, placed around Wendar inside the forests (with the exception of the Baamor Woods). These shrines are part of Wendar’s greatest secret: what really keeps Wendar safe from Denagoth is the Elvenstar working in tandem with these 9 wells of power, which spin a protective magical web around Wendar. That's how the Korrigans enchanted their land in a unique way and completed their path to immortality.

Shrine of the Fiery Champion in the Scarlet Groves
Shrine of the Eternal Wanderer near the Everway Tower
Shrine of the Spring Maiden in the southern Forest of Bounty
Shrine of the Dreaming Seer in the Laughing Woods
Shrine of the Merciful Healer in the Enchanted Forest
Shrine of the Silent Hunter in the northern part of the Forest of Bounty
Shrine of the Silver Carver in the Korrigan Forest next to Bensarian's Hermitage
Shrine of the Rainbow Singer in the woods south of Kevar
Shrine of the Verdant Caretaker in the Forest of Shadows

Shrine of Nione – Located near Woodgate. Nione was an elven heroine of great renown centuries ago, whose deeds are still sung. During a great battle against a Denagothian horde, she slew Felzuumath, a fearsome mountain giant who commanded the evil army (which broke up soon afterwards in disarray), but died of her injuries soon afterwards. Her heroism allowed the crown prince, who was commanding the Wendarian armies, to escape to safety. Out of gratitude, the crown price built a beautiful shrine to honour the hero. Today, many Wendarians who dream of becoming heroes make a pilgrimage to the shrine to seek Nione's guidance, and to pay homage. Some even claim to have received visions while visiting.

The Northern Border

At various times in the past, the elves have claimed the northern wildlands for their own, some undertaking the perilous task of settling the dark forests and building strongholds. In times of prosperity, new realms were carved out of the wilderness, and the border crept northwards. In darker times, evil things swept down from the Mengul Mountains, and from the fearsome Adri Varma Plateau, and in their wake there was nothing but ruined fortresses and towns, and streams of refugees fleeing south, telling their brethren of the horrors that stalked them. Even during the worst times, the heartlands in the south remained free for the most part, made secure by a network of fortresses and towers, but always the wildlands beckoned, promising fantastic things to those with the strength and courage to find them.

Gylharen, wishing to usher in a new era of strength for Wendar, has called on the bravest souls - human and elven - to cross the frontier into the wildlands, and retake that which was lost many times before. This time, Gylharen has the Elvenstone, and the guidance of the Korrigans, to strengthen him. Legends abound of lost elven cities, hidden deep in forbidding ancient forests, filled with priceless lore and treasures: many-towered Soreth, Thalion, with its bridge of unsurpassing beauty, and silver-domed Nimbeth. All were built and held by the elves in times past, and, perhaps, they might be retaken by the men and elves of modern Wendar.

Nowadays, the area has many interesting sites, including bad/good magic points, ruins (probably including ruins of the legendary elven cities), as well as many monster lairs. Rumours also tell of a great (black?) dragon who keeps her lair in the area.

Of course, any attempts to expand the realm into the Northern Wildlands are undoubtedly hampered by the lack of protection from the Elvenstar; its protection stops at the current northern border.

The Elvenstar and the Shrines of the Nine

The Shrines of the Nine represent the borders of the magical web that protects Wendar. The centre of the web is the Elvenstar, in Wendar City.

The Elvenstar works in connection with the shrines of the Nine Korrigans and creates a web of protection all over Wendar. However, if you closely examine the locations of the shrines, you will notice that by connecting them one after the other to obtain the perimeter of the protective area, some areas remain unprotected. These places need keeps and guards to oversee the region.

Also, it is true that the Elvenstar can keep Wendar safe from invasions (exactly HOW it can is not yet clear), it seems doubtful that the Elvenstar can keep villages safe from wandering bands of monsters, dragons or raiders. That's the duty of the local garrison. For this reason, Wendar maintains a few keeps in strategic locations where people need them to cope with recurring threats from nearby mountains or woods.

Religion

[Needs development!]
Wendar doesn’t have a religious body or church as such. The Korrigans are worshipped broadly among elves and humans alike, but some human settlements also worship the old Antalian gods Wotan (Odin), Donar (Thor) and Frigg (Terra), especially the settlements in the eastern part of Wendar.

Wendar’s Trees

The majority of the forested area in Wendar is evergreen. There is, however, some deciduous forest around the town of Oakwall. The trees of Wendar include sequoias, oaks, and pines. The Wendarian range is clad in fir trees. In areas where springs and little lakes are plentiful, there are aspens in abundance.

Proposed Changes to the Map

- Add some oak hexes around Oakwall.
- Add Shadowmere and the Foxwoods in the southern Forest of Shadows.
- Add more water features – suggestions required!

Wow, that is a lot of updating for this map. My Avariel character is very hyped about this particular thread. Any chance of setting up some kind of tribal territories for Avariel in the Mengul Mountains or some other mountain ranges? Not sure on tribe names or anything but just thought I might like to throw that in the mix. My player who has the Avariel is very excited about Wendar and about playing an adventure there soon. I've been putting it off for the Saga of the Shadowlord, but making Wendar more flavored is awesome and will add all kinds of things for me to work with while my players are exploring this part of the world. Keep up the good work Thorf. And thanks to everyone for all the suggestions.

Now that the map is almost complete, we need to revise the names of the towns. With apologies to the original creators of each name, I believe we should do this with the aim of trying to make them fit together well, without worrying about stepping on each other’s toes.

Another point to remember is that the styles we should be using are Elven, Antalian and Dunnish, at a ratio of 5:4:1 or so.

Official Names
Wendar (country)
Genalleth (Elven variant)
City of Wendar (capital city)
Oakwall (town)
Sylvair (town)
Woodgate (town)
Bensarian’s Hermitage
Kevar (town)
Kevareth (Elven variant)
Mengul Mountains
Wendarian Range (mountains)
Royal Way
The Korrigans (Immortal)
Gylharen (king)
Elvenstar

Names to be Revised
Korrigan Forest
Enchanted Forest
Forest of Bounty
Forest of the Curse
Forest of Shadows
Baamor Woods
Laughing Woods
Scarlet Groves
Elven Pass
Kevar Pass
Surewatch Keep
Everway Keep
Gylharen Keep
Hawksgate (fortress)
Aelythnar (fortress)
Lerian’s Tower
Aebhyrn Lwnn (centaur village)
Ammalanleth (elven village)
Brethiliath (elven village)
Bynflaare Hall (mystic haven)
Dalvarhofn (Heldann village)
Dawnblossom-Qvar (dwarf & halfling village)
Duncan’s Keep (mixed village)
Genalldhon (mixed village)
Hvollsvatn (Heldann village)
Laurianta (elven village)
Uumarne (mixed village)
Yngvarsvall (human & elven village, 8:2)
Felzuumath’s Fall (battlefield)
King’s Sorrow (battlefield)
Amoleth (ruined elven town)
Moors of Chlyras
Tower of Anorion (ruined tower)
Mines of Kevar
Hvollsvatn Mines
Nine Shrines of the Korrigans
Shrine of Nione
Soreth (legendary ruined city)
Nimbeth (legendary ruined city)
Thalion (legendary ruined city)

Perhaps these could be the elven or mixed elven names once they have been translated into the common tongue. Have an elven word for 'forest' and then play with it by adding other elven sounding words or syllables to represent 'bounty', 'enchanted', etc.

Hi everyone folks!

After some interesting reading over the Italian Mystara Boards, I have come to the conclusion that we need to revise HEAVILY the history of Wendar as well as Idris's history the way I had written it. The problem is that elves (or anyone save Beastmen actually) couldn't be living in Wendar during the Blackmoor era beacuse since the Broken Lands-Glantri were the actual North Pole, the area of Wendar would have been in the Arctic Circle, and as such a totally unsuitable region for elves or humans to live in.

For this reason, I will assume that the Korrigans didn't achieve immortality in BC2900 (as previously thought) but shortly after the Glantrian Catastrophe.

I'm going to change Idris's history accordingly (tying her with the N'djatwa too) and to add the Korrigans's bio shortly afterwards in the Immortals' thread

We should also change what Shawn and I wrote about Wendar mostly, especially the naming thing (Wendar should indeed be some kind of elven or bastardized elven-antalian term for something like Unity) and the reason why Bensarian did have the Elvenstar in the first place.

I've also got a file where Geoff, Shawn and I had devised a short table of contents of a proposed Wendar gazetteer, so if either Shawn or Geoff still has it and wants to post it here before I do, we could also elaborate on that to add more meat to this interesting topic

PS: don't worry Thorf, your questions about the Tenth Korrigan and the Dark Woods of Baamor will also be answered in my revision of Idris's and the Korrigans's history.
And btw, the Wendarians consider the DWoB still part of their country because the border drawn by the mystical shrines cuts through it

PPS: I still am a bit unsure about the usefulness of a couple of villages that have been listed, but I believe this will become clearer once we write down another tentative history of the region.

IN PARTICULAR, could you please explain to me HOW we get a Tree of Life in Wendar BEFORE the coming of the Alfheimers? It is mentioned here:
Brethiliath – This village, located in the great deep forest south of Wendar City, is where a Tree of Life is located, closely guarded by Treekeepers. The elves who live here prefer to have little to do with the outside world, and have focused on spiritual matters. In doing so, Brethiliath has become known among Wendarian elves as a place to go to learn about, and meditate on, the relationship between their race and nature, and the grand scheme of life. As a result, Brethiliath sees a fair amount of visitors - mainly elves, but also a handful of human sages interested in such matters.

I dare say it is a mistake...right?

I guess this subject is too long for a Dragon article, but maybe a whole issue... Plus poster map as well.

Regards,
Gary

Maybe a small lake, or similar at Shadowmere, (the name certainly suggests some water), with a small river running back to the mountains.

Thorf,

If you want my surname for the credits it's Davies.

Regards,
Gary

I see what you mean. But what about the ice over Glantri? Doesn't GAZ3 say that Glantri is covered by ice until as late as 800 BC? Wendar's location would seem to imply that it too would be covered with ice until that time, wouldn't it? Then again, Wendar is a big plain among the mountains, while Glantri seems much more glacial, with many small valleys. Perhaps the ice over Wendar retreated much faster...?

I just checked out the new background for Idris - very nice. I'm interested in the N'djatwa link. Were you intending to link her to the present N'djatwa society too? I can't remember much about their beliefs, although I read their part of the Princess Ark again just a few months ago.

I'm not exactly sure what you're referring to... Are you talking about your history of Wendar? It does seem that it will need to be updated quite significantly given the recent developments with the Korrigans, Idris, the Elvenstar, etc.

That would be great! Might help to reorganise some of the stuff we came up with in this thread, too. Please post it as soon as you can.

Okay, that's what I thought you'd say. Hmmm... Don't you want me to place a shrine, or the ruins of shrine in the Dark Woods of Baamor, then? Perhaps on the Moors of Chlyras... At least the remains of the shrine Idris' exploited should still be there, right? Perhaps she even has a temple there now, complete with evil Idris clerics and such.

Yes, I agree with you there. It's a side-effect of the somewhat random way in which we all just pitched in ideas. Some or all of them will probably need to be tweaked, or changed altogether, but the great thing is that even if things end up getting changed a lot, it's much easier to work with these as a base than to start from scratch.

And I don't think anyone is going to be annoyed if their ideas get changed a bit in order to fit in better. (Please correct me if I'm wrong here!)

I wondered about this too, but I'm surprised you didn't mention this ages ago Marco, when it was first posted. Anyway, what could it be replaced by? The elves of Wendar surely still need some sort of clan relic - or do the shrines fill that role too?

Gary, thanks for reminding me of your last name, I'll put it in the next update. By chance your name is in the right place alphabetically even without your last name.

Working on my still under construction maps for Heldann and Denagoth, I'm considering rethinking the borders in the area.

The problem is the mountains. The original source, X11, shows the borders quite clearly for the whole region. Glantri and Denagoth claim all the mountains, and Wendar and Heldann have none of them. This is bourne out by GAZ3's Glantri map, and repeated on other sources, so as far as I'm concerned the Wendarian Range is not up for debate - it belongs to Glantri.

The Menguls, on the other hand, have no such clear sources, and in fact X11 is almost the only source available for the area. The only others are Wrath of the Immortals and the Poor Wizard's Almanacs (which give line-art maps for Wendar and part of Heldann). Wrath of the Immortals gives both Wendar and Heldann portions of the Menguls, but it also gives Wendar part of the Wendarian Range. Moreover, that particular map has so many errors and inconsistencies in its borders that I am loath to trust it as a source for borders at all. Plus, the Almanacs loosely follow the X11 borders, ignoring Wrath of the Immortals.

The bottom line, though, is that there is no real problem with giving Wendar and Heldann parts of the Mengul Mountains. There are no sources to conflict with, and the maps require judgement calls anyway, so it is not a big deal. If we consider it better for them to claim the edges of the mountains, that's fine.

The only slight problem I can see is explaining why Wendar claims part of the Menguls but almost none of the Wendarian Range. Something to do with their relations with Glantri? Wendar has been around for much longer, though it only became a single nation recently. Is it conceivable that the Glantrians would be able to claim the whole range?

One possible explanation would be the shrines and the protection web - perhaps it doesn't cover any mountainous terrain?

I await your ideas. (Also apologies for my sudden deluge of posts in this thread of late! In case you missed some of them, they actually started at the bottom of the last page... )

Mountain ranges make for excellent barriers between nations, but were nation x actually turns into nation y can be very debatable. Glantri may claim the all of the Wendarian range, but Wendar may believe that it has claim to at least a portion of the range, and may have done things to try to legitimize that claim (border posts, patrols). You have a border that cannot be easily enforced, or easily defined. This still happens even today, in places such as Afghanistan and Pakistan- you have a line drawn on a map, but just try to actually identify that line on the ground, and even more importantly, try to enforce that line in mountainous terrain.

I would take the view that the mountain borders are ill-defined with each government officially claiming some or all of the mountains. But, no one really wants to fight over the mountains, so it stays a diplomatic argument and nothing more. Now maybe that changes if profittable mines are found, or the threats of monsters increase, forcing one or both sides to send soldiers to solidify the border and protect outlying settlements.

Good idea Traianus Decius Aureus. That makes good sense really.

I was wondering about Avariel (Winged Elves). Is there any chance there could be some tribes of them in the Mengul mountains?

While I agree that both countries claiming part of the mountains could be a good solution in theory, unfortunately it is a horrible solution for us cartographers! I'd much rather we came up with a plausible reason to explain the situation of Glantri claiming the whole Wendarian Range.

Actually, another solution might be simply to limit the mountains Wendar claims in the Menguls. It certainly seems from the official maps that Wendarians have little or no desire for mountainous terrain (similar to the Ethengarian apparent disdain of mountains, perhaps). Then the lack of claims in the Wendarian Range wouldn't seem so strange...

Regarding the avariel, I don't see why not. They like mountain terrain, right? Presumably we want them far from civilisation, so somewhere in the Mengul Mountains might be best - in the spur between Wendar and Heldann, for example. That area is nominally claimed by Denagoth, but that isn't really relevant given the likely impassability of the mountains at that point. Geoff's Heldann map even has some nice little valleys marked in.

Oh, I updated the map, by the way. I added in quite a bit more forest around the main towns, and expanded both the Dark Woods of Baamor and the Korrigan Forest to make them a little less fragmented. A few other changes too.

Just a suggestion, but maybe there should be some more bodies of water and/or rivers in Wendar?

From a cartography standpoint, perhaps on the 8m map show the Glantrian border as per the official maps, but add in a second line 2 to 3 hexes inside the indicating the extent of Wendar's claims (and limits of their patrols and watchtowers to guard the passes into Wendar) Larger maps just have the official border. But since i'm not the cartographer, I'll leave that call up to you

Hi everyone,

I'm on a very much overdue vacation right now (apologies to those who've been trying to contact me), but here are my thoughts on recent traffic:

The gazetteer is excellent, Thorf! This is the ideal time to put something like this together, and there's a good crop of people here to make it happen. I would be more than happy to send you the compilation of work Shawn, Marco and I had done a couple of years ago. Marco is right - we did have a table of contents that might help organise things. If you can wait until Monday, I'd be happy to send it along.

Map is beautiful, as always! Feel free to change names as necessary for consistency's sake.

On Marco's point on Brethiliath - yes, that was a mistake on my part. I had assumed that Wendarian clans had some sort of relic, and that's what I had put down. By all means change it - the idea was to have the village be a place where elvish religious relics *of some sort* were held, where sages would visit from time to time.

Geoff

PS - I haven't forgotten about the northern wildlands work. I *do* plan to get it done soon.

Well Thorf, you have to really pay attention to dates here.
I Know I will be going way off topic here, but it deserves, so bear with me.

BEFORE The GRoF, the area known as Ethengar was the NORTH POLE, that is canon. This means that they were completely frozen. Hollow World says:
"BC 3000 - 2500: Formerly artic areas of the Known World, including most of the land covered in the Gazetteer series, slowly become habitable as ice recedes from former polar regions... ...The Immortals create new, gigantic, fog -clad opening to the outside world and seal up the former (smaller) polar openings."

A Mystaran fan and great cartographer known as Lo Zompatore in our Italian MB created a whole thread of great maps to show how Mystara pre-Blackmoor was and how it rotated.
It's a bit difficult to explain in English because I lack the technical terminology, but basically he took all maps of Mystara presented in Master set, Hollow World set and WotI (type Eckert IV) and redraw it adjusting it a bit on the poles (the more stretched and deformed by this type of map) and hypothesizing the tropics at 23°N (and 23°S) and polar circles at 90°-23°=67°N (and 67°S).

That is the redrawn (sketchy) map of Mystara POST GRoF.


Then he rotated Mystara on its axis taking some facts as evidences:

- Ethengar was the north pole. PWAs make explicit reference to this fact:

Poor wizard's Almanac I, pages 29-30, Ethengar:

"Before the Great Rain of Fire, the catastrophe of 3000BC, which changed the very axes of the world, this region was the North Pole of the Known World. Once the catastrophe changed the planet's axial rotation this area gradually thawed, became overgrown with thick grass, and attracted a race of yellow - skinned hunter-gatherers."

page 37, Glantri (andl GAZ 3):

"In the most ancient times, Glantri was a frozen wasteland. After the ancient civilization of Blackmoor destroyed itself and changed the planetary axis, the region thawed a little..."

This way he calculated HOW MUCH the world's axis shifted.
Ethengar steppes are located more or less on these coordinates: 33N, 32W in reference to Sundsvall meridian.
Current North Pole is obviously 90N, 0W, so the axis rotation is:

Latitude: 90-33 = 57° towards new equator.

Once the old North Pole is known, the Old South Pole can be calculated as well by applying a minus to its latitude and rotating 180° the longitude. This way we find that:

Old South Pole: 33S, 148E in reference to Sundsvall meridian
(this is a point off the coasts of Cape Fire, in the easternmost region of modern days Vulcania)

Now the difficult part.
Eckert IV projection represents Mystara rotated 57° of latitude and 32° of longitude.
He took the 400 points he used to draw new Mystara map and put them in a program which automatically rotated its axis (he goes to great length to explain HOW he inserted the data in the program, but I'll skip ). The result was this (he added modern days name to various regions to make it all look clearer):



And here's the modified map according to canon sources in HW, showing where the land-bridges were and where earth masses were submerged in BC 4000.


Okay, that is what I was trying to point you out. As you can see, the region of Ethengar, Broken Lands, Glantri, Wendar, etc.. is a frozen area, the arctic region, before the GRoF. That is why it was covered by ice.

AFTER the GRoF, it shifts southwards, which makes it more habitable. However, with the Glantrian catastrophe (BC 1700), Glantri, the Broken Lands and part of Ethengar and even Wendar and I dare say the northern Darokin enter another dark era, because the nuclear cloud brings sickness, disease and a nuclear winter over them. That is why Glantri is being referred as covered in winter till the date you mention (BC800): it was the nuclear winter scenario that Shawn and I had already described in our Wendar-Denagoth timeline.
Mind you, the explosion blasted the Broken Lands, created the Land of Black Sand and probably blasted the Silver Sierras to to some extent. The cloud later covered wide areas of Glantri, west Ethengar and Wendar bringing with it rotting disease (radiations) and a nuclear winter which lasted 1000 years for Glantri and upper Broken Lands (Wendar did survive better thanks to the Elvenstar).

PS: if you are interested, there are more maps showing the exact location and colonies of Blackmoor's empire in Zompatore's thread. I'll link them somewhere else if you want (I will never cease applauding and promoting his marvelous job)

They LOOKED pretty civilized to Haldemar, but the fact that they are cannibals doesn't really sound well with me. Also they made him believe they were the result of ogre-elves interbreeding, but again, what kind of serious elf would let herself impregnate by an ogre (oh the pain!) And what kind of ogre would (could) be impregnated by an elf??? Seriously, this is the worst kind of crossbreed Bruce ever wrote. It is likely they lied to Haldemar to hide their true origins or simply they had forgotten the details and did just make up this story with the few memories they had.
IMHO the Altar of the Stars presented in that article is an Entropic device that melds races together. The n'djatwa were created mixing elves and original beastmen, and later evolved into this race. I believe they are strong followers of Idris and Hel (probably using other names).

Yes, definitely MAJOR updates. We had thought Wendar was a local hero who formed the Wendarian LEague, but now it seems more likely to be a word for Unity in elvish-antalian. We also need to change other stuff, but we'll get to that in due time.

Well, in fact yes, there is still the old shrine of the Black Wing (or is it better another name, like Ebon Eyes?) there, but Idris has not exploited it in all these centuries for a reason I had not mentioned previously..
I theorized that reason ceased to exist in AC1018, and that's why I had some events for Wendar detailing strange figures and chants spotted in the Woods of Baamor. Unfortunately I never went on detailing the future events...

They already HAVE a relic: The ELVENSTAR! And obviously the Nine Shrines, you are right! They never knew the ToL because they broke off Ilsundal's migration before he created it. They are in the same position of Meditor, Verdier and Sheyallia, so they need another relic. The Elvenstar and the Korrigans' shrines fill this niche.
Indeed, I noticed that too!

And here's what we (Shawn, Geoff and I) had in mind when we talked about a Wendar Gaz.

BTW, I still have the stuff Geoff wrote regarding new skills (Skiing) and rules (hypothermy) useful for Wendar, as well as other stuff about fighting orders and magic of Wendar posted by various people over the old Mystara NetMags


- Introduction (if any) - up to 1 page but no more
(Make this a sort of outline for Wendar - tells the DM what the setting's all about, etc.)

- History (Players and DM) - *Players' can be inserted into Players' Guide* Players' between 1-2, DM's Timeline is already done (we'll have to cut the events detailing Denagoth only though), about 6-7 pages *maybe we could add some explanations on difficult or obscure points*
(a player's guide can be full of misinformation (chance for us to have some fun)).

- Geography (Description of wendarian geographic features) - 1-3 pages
(a good place to put weird features, like magical pools, etc.)

- Climate (Description of wendarian seasons, possible climatic events and temperatures) 1-2 pages
(perhaps we should break Wendar into definable climate zones. Wendar would have a different climate (cool and damp, from the breezes from the sea), while westerb Wendar could be drier (sheltered by the Adri Varma Plateau from humid breezes to the southwest, etc.). Just a guess.)

- Flora and Fauna -- 2-3 pages

- Society (Elven & Human Customs/Way of Life, Interracial relationships) - big section, up to 10-15 pages
(This is where we get to play with half-elves. We need a history of the relationships, how they stand today. And information on the immortals too.
Also, in this section we'll have to deal with its customs, feasts, religion).
[Note for the Wendar gaz: we should insert a special yearly ceremony where elves and humans remember the old times when the elves helped the humans and vice versa and thus renew their common friendship]

- Politics & Laws (Burocracy in Wendar: what are the main politic roles and laws) - 2-3 pages

- Economy (Import-export, wendarian goods and economic system + coins) - 1-2 pages

- Military (army and divisions, maybe Warmachine stats) - 1-2 pages

- Settlements (describing the major towns presented in PWA map, plus other minor villages and elven strongholds) - lots of stuff here, say up to 7 pages (if we want we can make it shorter or longer, no problem)

- Wendar City (map and key of major locations) - say 2-3 pages + map

- Monsters of Wendar (humanoid communities and other monsters found here -new monsters entries if any) - up to 4 pages or more if we want to introduce new monsters

- Personalities of Wendar (NPC description in Alfheim GAZ style) - we should include all important townsleaders, plus the King, a few advisors and sages (Bensarian), some local heroes/villains, and common NPCs from various social layers, for a total of about 10 pages

According to my Wendar entry, these are the Major NPCs of Wendar to detail after WotI:

King Gylharen (male, Elf-Mage 11)
Bensarian of Kevar (human -or half-elf?-, male, M9*)
Doriath** (exiled Alfheim King, male, Elf Lord, At Rnk E)
Clanmaster Brendan Erendyl** (female Elf 8)
Clanmaster Durifern Widefarer** (male, Elf Lord, At Rnk D)
Clanmaster Beasthunter** (male, Elf Mage 13)
Starwatcher** (male, Elf Mage 20)
Hotspur Herethol*** (male, M12)

*he was M3 about 80 years ago (X11), i think he can be M9 or more powerful by now
** all these people will come to Wendar only in AC 1009 and we can use the old GAZ5 ref if we don't want to type new things (writing after the brief notes between parenthese: "See page XX of GAZ5 for stats")
*** this guy's from Book of Wondrous inventions and he's the inventor of the selecto staff. I'll make him an eccentric wizard-inventor who owns a shop in Wendar City..

Also we will have to detail the three human burgomeisters and the three elven townleaders of the major towns (that's how i planned the towns to be ruled..) and then some of the movers (leader of the Idris Church in disguise, leader of the Alfheim Avengers of Wendar, religious leaders of the elves and humans, for example) and heroes of Wendar.


- Secrets of Wendar (description of Elvenstar and powers as an artifact, Nine Shrines of the Korrigans, some Korrigan relics, new elven spells and some magical items unique for Wendar) - at least 4-5 pages or more
(shall we put here info on the most mysterious areas like Laughing Woods and Forest of Shadows??)

- Shadows of Wendar (secret cults/associations -Idris Church, Order of the Black Wing/Ebon Eyes, The Tenth Shrine, Human Rights Movement and Alfheim Avengers?- and other shady secrets not related or known to most of wendarians) - can be up to 7-8 pages

- Adventure Ideas (we should have a couple adventure plots for Basic, Expert and Companion levels, a Master one, and offer ideas for the hidden plots going on in Wendar) - 5-6 pages
(My suggestion: 2-3 basic adventures, 2-3 expert adventures, 1-2 companion, and 1 master level. In all, each adventure plot should be no more than 1/2-3/4 of a page, giving out stats as needed, but trying to tie in NPCs and so on. Make the DM use the book. And perhaps having ideas for existing Wendar characters and ones for ways to introduce non-Wendar characters to the area.)


- Player's Guide to Wendar -- up to 10 pages or more, it depends what we come up with
(We can include new skills (unique to Wendar?), Wendarian opinions of foreigners/other races, perhaps a few tidbits about Denagoth (IMO, we have to mention it at least) and What everyone Knows about Wendar. a brief introduction of Wendar's aspects by wendarians (maybe a human and an elf), what others think about Wendar and what Wendarians think about neighbours, and maybe typical wendarian tools and such..)
I was thinking about the secrets, spells and half-elves.. Some gaz have these things in the Player's Book (GAZ11, GAZ12, GAZ13), while others in the DM's book (GAZ5, GAZ6). What to do exactly? Is the Player's Guide designed for a Wendarian player or for any PC to read and understand better Wendar?
As for references to Denagoth, we'll have them in the Politics, History and probably society sections, some things can also be mentioned in Player's Handbook, but remember: Denagoth is a mystery to everyone until the Honor Crusade. Part of the mystery will be unveiled only by AC 1016, when Professor Dove himself will know the Puppetmaster..

Player's Book (to be done after the DM book has been completed)

- What everyone knows about Wendar: This is for non wendarians and should be written like the entries in GAZ5. Each one of us will take an outsider from a different nation and give his point of view on Wendar and wendarians.

- Player's History

- Wendar Society (introduction by an elf and a human)

- Wendarian Skills

- Half-Elf Class

- Guilds and Organizations
(Perhaps players' perceptions (ie untrue, partly true) of the groups in the DM's guide should go here. Also, when a PC joins a group, the material in the PC guide is what they will learn. Only if/when they reach the upper ranks would they learn the truth (what's in the DM's guide).)

- Secrets of Wendar: basically a rough version of the DM Secrets section (outsider description of magic places) and description of new spells or magic items should go here. Note: common magic items will go here, while rare or legendary items will go in the DM section.



- Map of Wendar (color)


City Description Format:

Name:
Population: (number and percentage of races)
Overview: (basic description)
Interesting Points: (specific locations to mention -no more than three for minor villages and five for major towns)
NPCs: (main NPCs of the settlement with a VERY brief description if they're not described in NPC section and stats in parentheses almanac style)
Secrets: (optional: you can list here the secret of the town or in the description and interesting points sections..)

Wow, pretty amazing stuff! I'd definitely like to see the link, although of course I won't be able to read much of the text if it's all in Italian. Thanks for giving us a summary of his findings here!

I'm going to have to have a good long look at those maps.

It seems to me that what you have there could be taken as the template for almost any gazetteer. It could be a big help to anyone trying to detail a previously sketchy area of Mystara, with the results being similar to the Gazetteer format that we all know and love.

One of the most interesting parts is the page limits. On the Internet we tend to work without any limits, thinking that we have the freedom to make things as long as we like. But I have come to the conclusion that actually limits can be a very good thing, because they force you to distill your work down into less space, trimming the less important parts and putting more emphasis on the central themes.

I think that the Mystaran Almanacs suffer from this lack of limits to the extreme, which unfortunately discourages me from keeping up to date with reading them; I'd like to read them, but I forgot what happened in the earlier ones and they are just too long to read through again.

Anyway, I applaud the idea of trying to keep things within a reasonable number of pages.

I'm not entirely sure how to continue with this project. There is obviously a lot of work to be done in order to bring it anywhere near completion, but I don't think I am really the right person to be leading it. Marco, you are clearly the godfather when it comes to Wendar, and I get the feeling that you have a strong concept in mind for Wendar - around which everything else should be built. But at the same time, you seem to have your hands pretty full with other major projects (and real life commitments) too.

I wonder, how should we proceed from here?

On Wender's climate i would think it less likely for it to be influenced greatly by sea breezes. Local winds from Western sea of Dawn would lose its moisture on the coastal side of the Mengul Mountains.
Westerly winds from the Wildlands plateau dropping rain due to meeting cooler winds from the north or from changes due to altitude climbing over the mountain ranges maybe more likely.

The Years of Infamy start in 802 AC (according to GAZ 3) but there's no real indication when they end (from what I could see). Alexander Glantri forms the country in AC 829, but whether the slaughter has finished I don't know. However 862 AC seems a little late, maybe we could move it to 822 AC(or thereabouts).

Whilst on the subject of Dawnblossom-Qvar, what do people think of my idea of having it as part of an underground railroad smuggling dwarves and hin out, and perhaps spies into Glantri.

Regards,
Gary

I believe the Years of Infamy should be counted starting from AC802 as already pointed out in GAZ3, and they should end by AC828 when the last dwarves are expelled out of Glantri.

That said, it is okay to have descendants of expatriated dwarves and hins in Dawnblossom-Qvar living side by side with elves, but I wonder if after 180 years (one generation for hins, nearly so for dwarves) there are still halflings and dwarves bent on revenge against Glantri. And what could they do exactly? I make you note that Wendar borders Boldavia in that area, so it's not an easy route through Glantri... I'm not that convinced of the likeliness of this scenario.

OTOH, avariels in Wendar? How come?
We have ee'aars in the Arm of the Immortals which are somehow explained , but what kind of origin could another identical race of winged elves in Wendar have? This is tricky at best... I'm open to suggestions though, but I find this idea difficult to adapt to the campaign as we know it.

On reflection, I have to agree with you Marco, but Dawnblossom-Qvar could have initially started out as such a place but as you say after 180 years it's now just a regular village.

Regards,
Gary

Yes you got it right. The prefer areas away form civilization and usually high mountain ranges are perfect. I like the Mengul mountains since the Avariel are related to elves in a distant way, and my not mind flying down to Wendar once ain a while, maybe even to see these religious relics you guys are working on. Thanks Thorf.

I've got an idea for winged elves....
In the beginning of times, we know Ordana created elves and placed them in Evergrun and Davania (and possibly Skothar as well). We also now that the original elves were divided between forest dwellers AND sea-dwellers (the Aquarendi originally are undersea elves, go read PC3). Now, that makes me think: what if Ordana created land elves, sea elves and even sky elves? The Sky elves would live in the Sky Kingdom together with cloud and storm giants and the faeries, so they'd be basically unknown to their land brethren.

Now, Savage Coast has the legend of the ee'aars, who split from Ilsundal's migration and settled in Arm of Immortals. One of them, an elfin named Aeryl, went to visit the realm of the faeries and came back with wings, and later she passed her gift onto her people.
My point is: what if this Aeryl merely discovered the existence of the winged elves and invited them to dwell in the Arm of Immortals (or maybe some of them were exiled because of some guilt and chose to follow Aeryl to her mountain realm)? What if marriage between land elves and sky elves created the ee'aar race, a mixed blood capable of flying? That could mean the sky elves exist everywhere you want, very high in the sky, and occasionally could come down wherever you want, but they prefer dwelling up there instead of staying in the realms of earthlings.