Forest Watch

Located in central Sapience at the eastern edge of the Northern Ithmia, the fortress of Forest Watch is a frequent hunting ground for mid-level adventurers.

Geography

Remote and secluded, Forest Watch is built upon a hill in a cleared section of the forest and bordered by cliffs to the north and east.

Culture

Forest Watch is the unfriendly home of the buckawns, and is inhospitable to visitors with several aggressive denizens who will attack on sight any who enter. Fiercely loyal to one another, even the youth are trained to fight to the death. They are led by the Buckawn Lord, though the Buckawn Witchdoctor is arguably more powerful, with his powers to turn corpses into the walking dead.

History

Forest Watch was originally settled by a group of humans who tired of the politicking within Ceylon many years ago. Let by an unnamed brother of Imithia, the colonists gained permission to found a new colony and struck out into the forests, locating their new home at the western edge of the Northern Ithmia.

After several years the settlers found they were under close observation by the dryads, who hindered their efforts to venture into the forests to hunt, gather food, or even travel back to Ceylon. Fearing the "woodland devil women," the settlers found allies in the buckawns, who promised to help drive the dryads out of the forests and ensure peace.

Three months of battle led the settlers of Forest Watch and the buckawns to success; after slaying many dryads and burning their homes, the rest were driven out across the rivers to the south and west. Unwilling to allow the buckawns to live with them, however, the settlers shunned their allies in the wake of their triumph and sent them away from Forestwatch.

This boded ill for the humans. The buckawns they had trusted retaliated with ferocity, slaughtering the settlers and turning a number of them into undead zombies.

Inhabitants

The majority of denizens found within Forest Watch are buckawns. Among the undead they have enslaved are dryad zombies, a ghoul smith, several zombie nobles of human origin, and the Zombie Lord. The ghost of the wife of the Lord of Forest Watch also remains within the settlement. In a slimy cistern in the lower part of the fortress dwells the slugbeast, foe of many a newbie caught unawares by the perils of Forest Watch. Lingering outside the entrance can often be found the dryad Kalishah.