The Shire of Northwood

70000 2300 Weidany Shire Earpwald Ricbertson

Until very recently, the region was covered entirely in thick woods. The people of Weidany rarely dared to venture as far north, for rumours and legends told of Elder horrors which were best left alone. During the first and second century, the legendary hero of the Brytish people, Bryte, was the first recorded human to travel these lands.

He forged his way northwards, but did not stop until he had reached the less dangerous coasts of the north. During the next few centuries, a few people migrated here, though their names and lives go unremembered. What is known however, is that by the 8th and 9th centuries, a sizable number of 'barbarians' had made their homes here - mostly nomadic tribes. The occasional skirmish, or bit of trading, with Merrik and Perrin make up the majority of first hand accounts of these people.

Collectively, the region was known as Merkia, and the people the Merkians.

What the Neighbors Say

Bryteland

They raid our lands, stealing cattle and women. Other than that, they're a good sort, though somewhat stingy when it comes to paying ransoms. They are happy to accept ransom for our warriors though, then we get caught raiding their cattle and women.

Scarondy

They keep the barbarians in Bryteland under control.

Merkia

A lot of trade goes up there from the central shires in the Kingdom, and it all has to come through us, paying us tolls.

The Coming of the Prophet

Sometime during the 11th century, an event took place in the Cairn Hills which changed the shape of Merkia forever.

At a place now called Ashek's Tower, a prophet arose by the name of Delgir Hrorkson, who claimed to have heard the voice of the Mad God. Delgir was a powerful wizard, who already had a sizeable reputation amongst the barbarians.

A shrine was constructed at the place now known as Ashek's Tower.

Jihad began in 1034.

The Shires

When Merkia was subsumed into the Kingdom of Rorn, the country was split into two shires, to bring it in line with the other shires of the Kingdom. The northern most shire was named Northwood, whilst the southern shire kept the original name of Merkia.

Since that time, Northwood has grown considerably in population, though there are still large portions of it which are only lightly civilised. It also acts as a buffer against Bryteland, and its northern borders are the scene of sporadic warfare against the Kingdoms northern neighbours.

The three shires of Northwood, Merkia and Scarondy are probably amongst the least civilised in the Kingdom. They all have large tracts of heavily wooded countryside, little of which has been fully explored, let alone developed and made safe. The fact that the region was where the Elders made their last stand only helps in making the regions outside of civilisation wild and dangerous places, sometimes inhabited with things not quite human.

Geographical Features

Running from north to south through the middle parts of the shire is a belt of semi-cleared farmland where 80% of the population lives. This region is a mixture of light woodland, meadows and croplands. Much of this land runs across a north-south bulge, which rises up into the Tanwall hills once it gets as far north as Bryteland.

The shire's western border is the sea, though the thick woodlands which run along the coast means that the majority of the population has little or nothing to do with the sea. Except for a couple of routes into Tealmouth and Whitebay, there is no easy access to the coast.

Stories which have come down from the original Merkian barbarians tell that these woods were home to the Elder races, and were generally off limit to humans. Various parts of these woods are still considered to be haunted, though there has been little move to civilise the coast.

The Veilwood

Covering the highlands between Northwood, Scarondy and Bryteland are thickly wooded wild lands known as the Veilwood. It's name probably comes from the almost permanent fog which layers the central portions of the woods, making the entire place cold, damp and decidedly eerie. Another possible factor in the choice of name could be from the legends of the place, which mark it as being close to the otherlands, and heavy in magic, ghosts and elves.

The most famous site in the entire woods is the Green City, a huge ruin more than a league across. Most of it is hidden beneath the thick undergrowth, though what can be seen is of a style which marks it as being different from human architecture.

Stone buildings merge almost seamlessly into trees, and similar to Elder ruins, curves rather than corners predominate. However, the two styles are different, and the Green City was built for a more humanoid inhabitant.

The Troll Watch

Near the Teal Valley, straddling the border between Northwood and the shire of Merrik, is the Troll Watch. For the most part this is simply thick woodland, divided by many small rivers that feed the Teal.

The woods are so named though, because, it is said, you have to keep a good watch out for trolls if you go through the area. Either that, or the trolls are watching out for their next meal.

So far, no one has been able to clear the area of trolls, and it still boasts the highest troll population outside of Bryteland. The most common varieties to be found here are the hairy trolls, though a number of deep trolls have been seen, especially deeper into the woods.

The Cairn Hills

North of the Teal River, near the coast, is a region of hilly uplands known as the Haerwen Hills. On the southern slopes can be found dozens of stone cairns, ranging in size from a small one-body mound up to thirty metre long stone topped burrows. It is here that was buried the barbarian kings.

Many of the larger cairns are protected by magic, and in some, the king's huscarls still defend their lord. All these cairns are said to be haunted, though some are obviously more so than others. Strictly speaking, the 'Cairn Hills' only applies to the southern slopes, where the cairns can be found.

However, possibly due to the unnatural happenings witnessed in the whole region, the term is sometimes applied more generally. The single most notable feature of the region however is not found amongst the cairns, but instead is to the northwest. Known as Ashek's Tower, it is not known whether it is a natural formation. A steeply sloping tower of earth covered rock rises about 25 metres above the surrounding ground. At the top, is the entrance to a stone chimney which drops over a hundred metres straight down. Somewhere close to the bottom, a subterranean river empties out into a small lake.

The sides of the chimney are seemingly natural, with plenty of ledges, caves and handholds for anyone who wants to climb down. Branching off from the chimney though is a series of tunnels and catacombs which are definitely not natural.

Whether the chimney was built by the same people who built the tunnels is not known, though it is thought that the tunnels came much later. According to legend, it was here that the god Ashek first spoke to his followers. An old temple was built near the base of the tower long ago, though it has long since fallen into disuse - at least by those that still claim to be human. Madness and chaos seem to rule the creatures that now live there, which ranges from ghouls, men, ghosts and worse. It is said that Elder spirits infest the lower tunnels, giving some order to the seeming chaos.

Attercop Wood

The woods in the northwest of the shire are home to some of the rarest creatures in the Kingdom - giant spiders. Living in the trees, and catching prey by hunting rather than webs, these monstrosities can be up to 2m across.

Most are poisonous, and can paralyse a healthy man within a few seconds. Death takes much longer, since the creatures prefer their food fresh.

Ent Wood

The Ent Wood is home to a small band of giants. They are generally on peaceful terms with the human villages nearby, and engage in a small amount of trade. They are not currently considered to be part of the Kingdom, and the Shire-reeve does not try to extract tax from them.

Politics

The shire is governed by the shire-reeve Earpwald Ricbertson, a fifty something man known for his tight fisted, money grabbing methods of shire management.

Traditionally, the shire town has always been Erlwood, and Earpwald has not changed this.