Sister Bryseis Neoski

Bry's history is as chaotic as her interests.

As a young child, her parents were constantly bombarded with questions about everything.  They tried to feed her desire to learn, but she changed topics so often, they couldn't keep up.  Her interests finally led her to the church of Avandra.  There, she felt at home.
The priests were all similar to her.  They embraced change, adventure and a sense of fun.  She studied under them and eventually became a priestess.
She was assigned to a small, dusty church in the middle of a small town.  Bored out of her mind after just a year, she left the temple and traveled west.  Her travels eventually brought her to the small town of Brindol.  Entering the local tavern, she sought a short rest before moving on toward larger areas.

While traveling or adventuring, Bry wears chain mail and carries a mace.  But when off duty, she enjoys relaxing and having fun.  She's sure the church will eventually call her to action for abandoning her post, but she reasons expecting someone like her to stay in one place too long was a bit foolhardy to begin with.

Time

The calender in-game is basically the Forgotten Realms Calender.

The Hours of the Day

The day is 24 hours long, broken up by the rising and setting sun. Most people break up the day into large slices - dawn, morning, highsun (noon), afternoon, dusk, sunset, evening, midnight, moondark (night's heart), and night's end. These are of neccessity not exact, and there is often confusion fro travelers in foreign lands.

In large cities, temple bells toll to mark the hours, and each hour is a "bell" - counting from the hour after midnight or noon and numbering 1-12. Noon and midnight are both referred to as "12 bells," though some of the temples most concerned with precise time (Gond and Lathander, for example), have gone to a 24-bell nomenclature, where noon is 12 bells and midnight is 24 bells.

The Faerunian Year

The Calendar defines the year for most of Faerun. It defines a 365-day year divided into 12 months of 30 days - or 3 tendays - each. Five special days fall between the months, and every four years a leap day, Shieldmeet, is added to the calendar immediately following Midsummer night.A tenday is also, though less commonly, called a ride, and consists of ten days. The days do not have names, but are instead referred to by number: first-day, second-day, and so on. Most people count using their thumbs as first-day; halflings, however, are famous for using their pinkies to count first-day, and thus the phrase "counting like a halfling" has come to mean someone is being different just to be difficult.
The months and holidays are listed below; the days of the solstices and equinoxes are:

• Winter Solstice: Nightal 20
• Spring Equinox: Ches 19
• Summer Solstice: Kythorn 20
• Autumn Equinox: Eleint 21

The Calendar

Month	Name	Common Name
1	Hammer	Deepwinter
Annual holiday: Midwinter
2	Alturiak	The Claw of Winter
3	Ches	The Claw of the Sunsets
4	Tarsakh	The Claw of the Storms
Annual holiday: Greengrass
5	Mirtul	The Melting
6	Kythorn	The Time of Flowers
7	Flamerule	Summertide
Annual holiday: Midsummer
8	Eleasis	Highsun
9	Eleint	The Fading
Annual holiday: Highharvestide
10	Marpenoth	Leaffall
11	Uktar	The Rotting
Annual holiday: The Feast of the Moon
12	Nightal	The Drawing Down

most of this information has been taken from here:  look at the expanded calender:

http://dnd.steinhour.net/Forgotten_Realms_campaign/Forgotten_Realms/DnD_FR_calendar.html

Timeline

The Red Hand cut a swath of destruction through the Vale two decades ago, and Stoughton was not spared. For the last two decades, the town of Stoughton has slowly rebuilt itself. But since the Red Hand's defeat, thankfully Stoughton has been quiet, much to the relief of its population. Unfortunately, it hasn't stayed that way.

During the last couple of weeks, orcs, goblins and hobgoblins bearing a symbol that many see as a variation of the Red Hand's has terrorized the townsfolk by raiding the Hall of Great Valor at night, stealing treasures and taking prisoners. This bold move has frightened many a person in town. They look to the council to solve the problem but, as of yet, the council has done nothing. Rumors of corruption swirl as the townsfolk wonder why the council is not doing more to protect them. Only one council member, Eoffram Troyas, has told the people of his idea; he wants to send adventurers to deal with the orcs and their kind. However, the rest of the council is hesitant, given the fickle nature of most adventurers.

Something needs to be done though. The people are tired and scared, the council is at its whits end, and no one wants a repeat of what happened twenty years ago. Will no one step forward?!

TIMELINE

20 Years Ago:

• The group known as The Lione's saves the South Shore at The Battle of Stoughton.
• Arch Wizard Beverly Stoughton using her ritual magic’s closes the portal of the invasion forces. Then systematically eliminates hordes of the Red Hand Troops, as
• Warlord "The Anvil" Arvizu “kills" the Demon Lord Abraxas. Putting an end to his invasion plans.
• With there commander dead, their leaders and hordes of fellow troops being blasted off the field, the invasion forces of the Red Hand are broken and either surrender or flee.

20-15 years ago:

• The Lione's clean up the South Shore, and establish Town of Brockton for former Red Hand troops that have decided to live peacefully in the Vale.
• Stoughton: The Town of Brindol was renamed Stoughton after the Arch Wizard Beverly Stoughton, when she saved the town against the Horde of the Red Hand.

15 years ago:

• The Lione's form The Lione's Guard: Guardians of Good in the Vale.

10 Years Ago:

• Minions of the Demon Lord finally avenge the death of Demon Lord Abraxas, by maiming "The Anvil" Arvizu and killing his wife Rianna Small-Arvizu.

05 Years Ago:

• Mayor Brock (formerly General “Elf Bane“ Brock of the Red Hand) is killed by assassins for leaving the Horde and joining Humanity 10 years ago.

Day 01:

• Your at a Tavern having a drink after a long day, waiting for Moon to show up so she can buy dinner.

Elsir Vale

The Story sets out in Elsir Vale, a thinly populated frontier of the empire.   The Vale is a thinly populated frontier that stretches almost 250 miles east to west and averages about 70 miles north to south. Several small mountain ranges and dense forests form the vale’s borders.  Major settlements in the valley are Dennovar, Brindol, and the Dwarven City Overlook.

Since the collapse of the empire, each community in Elsir Vale has acted relatively autonomous; several attempts to create a common government of the valley have failed.

The weather here is temperate. Winters are often bitterly cold while summers are hot and dry while thunderstorms and tornadoes are quite common. Large stretches of the area are quite arid and to the north and northwest of the vale lay vast savannahs populated by many marauding tribes of Orks. However, mostly thanks to the Dwarven Fortress of Boridin’s Watch, Elsir vale has not seen an Ork attack in several hundred years.

The scattered human towns and villages of the area grew up along the Dawn Way, an important east-west trade road linking the heavily settled lands that lie northwest across the Endless Plains with the exotic kingdoms and goods of the coastal lands lying to the southeast. Much of the Dawn Way was built by an ancient dwarf-kingdom that spanned the Wyrmsmoke and Giant's Shield Mountains more than a thousand years ago. While the dwarves are long gone, their roads, bridges, and cisterns remain in use to this day. After the dwarf-realm passed, the presence of various monsters and raiders kept traffic along the Dawn Way light for many years; few caravans dared the long and dangerous trek. Few humans lived in Elsir Vale during those years—only scattered settlements of druidic folk who left behind little more than grassy barrows and stone circles on the hilltops.

About five hundred years ago, the nearby city of Rhest came to control the vale and a large swath of land north of the Giant's Shield Mountains as well. Soldiers from Rhest secured the roads all the way to Dennovar and beyond, creating a safe passage for trade. More and more traders traveled the Dawn Way, and the kingdom of Rhestilor grew wealthy on the tariffs exacted from the passing merchants. Under the kingdom's shield, the towns along the Dawn Way—Stoughton, Talar, Terrelton, and the rest—grew up from tiny hamlets or lonely soldiers' posts to flourishing human settlements.

The kingdom of Rhestilor eventually collapsed under civil strife, monstrous incursions, and magical blights. Almost two hundred years ago, the city of Rhest was burned by a savage horde of goblinoids. Although the warriors of Rhestilor killed many of the goblins and their kind, the city was abandoned and the already weakened kingdom broken. The locks and canals surrounding Rhest fell into disrepair, and the Blackfens swallowed the ruined city.

In the years since the kingdom's fall, the towns of Elsir Vale have come to look after themselves. Most of the local lords still hold titles derived from the old kingdom of Rhestilor. While everybody knows that the kings of Rhestilor are long dead, no new realm has arisen in the Vale.

Regional Features

Elsir Vale lies in the subtropical latitudes. Summers are hot and dry (although punctuated by the occasional intense thunderstorm), and winters are warm and rainy. Large stretches of the area are quite arid, and the vale is flanked by vast savannas stretching for mile after dusty mile. The forests of the vale's northern boundaries are stifling and swelteringly hot in the summertime, with not a breath of wind to relieve the oppressive heat.

Blackfens: Lake Rhestin's eastern shore is hard to define, because the lake gradually gives way to this vast wetland of reeds. Wet, grassy flats are home to many waterfowl and larger, isolated hummocks covered in dense brush and forest are where the wild elves known as the Tiri Kitor make their homes. Lizardfolk are known to dwell throughout the Blackfens.
Brindol (small city): One of the largest settlements in the vale, Brindol is a prosperous farming community and caravan stopover located along the Dawn Way on the south bank of the Elsir River. Orchards of apple and pear trees follow the river's winding shores, while broad grain fields and farmlands surround the town for miles in all directions. Brindol is the home of Lord Kerden Jarmaath, and his small keep and the city walls are the only fortification of note this side of Dennovar.
Dauth (hamlet): A sleepy little hamlet, home to about 200 people, between the Hammerfist Holds and Brindol.
Dennovar (small city): A trade city located on the shores of Lake Ern and the eastern gateway to the vale. It is the largest city in the vale and ruled by Lady Yisel Bristier, but the Merchant Council has the biggest say. The city is also noteworthy for its many temples.
Drellins Ferry (small town): The western gateway to the Vale where a dwarf bridge once stood, but is now replaced by a large, horse-drawn ferry.
Dwarfroad: A splitting of the Dawn Way that climbs through the Wyrmsmoke Mountains. Very rarely used due to large numbers of goblinoids in the mountains.
Elsir River: A broad but slow-moving river that cuts through the Vale. It is fed by several tributaries and averages 200-400 yards width. It can be forded at Elsricross, a wooden bridge spans it at Brindol and there are ferries at Talar and Drellin's Ferry. typically the river is known to be deep and its depths cannot be seen in the fast-flowing green water. Great eddies swirl in larger parts of the river and small islands often form only to disappear a week later.
Elsircross (small town): This town, located at a ford over the Elsir River, is known for woodcutting and papermaking. The self-styled (and none-too popular) 'Baron' Hargil Trask and his clan governs here.
Giantshield Mountains: Sheltering Elisir Vale from the harsh weather of the Endless Plains, the Giantshields are a low range of arid, well-weathered peaks. The northern slopes are barren, dry, and rocky; home to a variety of monsters. The southern slopes are a little more hospitable, covered in light pine forest and cut by the gorges of many small seasonal streams.
Hammerfist Holds (many small dwarf holds): In the foothills of the Wyvernwatch Mountains this community of dwarves eeks out a living mining iron and silver. They are rather insular but sometimes trade with the humans of the Vale, though halflings are more welcome.
Hillwatch (hamlet): Primarily populated by shepherds and cattleherds, few visit this dusty flyspeck in the northern Brown Hills.
Lake Rhestin: This shallow, marshy lake stretches almost 100 miles from north to south. Once its shores were dotted with the villages and manors of Rhestilor, but they now lie sunken and abandoned (except for the many lizardfolk that have taken up residence in them).
Marth Forest: Climbing the southern foothills of the Giantshield Mountains, Marth Forest is a rugged, wild woodland rarely trodden by human feet except in its southwestern fringes.
Marthton (small town): Located in the shadow of the Marth Forest, this town thrives on woodcutting and catering to travelers on the Dawn Way.
Nimon Gap (hamlet): This tiny settlement grew up around a large walled inn known as The Cross-eyed Beholder. The town has several orchards and goatherds keep their livestock in the nearby heights of the Nimon Hills.
Prosser (village): A quiet little place most noted as being the home to the retired adventuring band The Six Blades.
Red Rock (small town): Rich copper veins in the high foothills of the Giantshield Mountains gave rise to the rough-and-tumble mining town of Red Rock.
Rhest: Once a prosperous city and center of the kingdom of Rhestilor, Rhest is now a half-drowned ruin slowly sinking into the Blackfens.
Talar (small town): Governed by Lady Celiira Nestern noted for her high-spirited approach to life and leadership.
Terrelton (small town): A dusty town in the western part of the vale that gets by on livestock and leather trades.
Wiseman's Run (trail): A name given to the trail to The West, that passes between the Wyrmsmoke Mountains and the Thornwaste, following the Elsir River out of the Vale. It was named this because it has come to be known as the safer, but rougher, route due to the large amounts of goblinoid raiders along the Dwarfroad. The Elsir River protects caravans from the goblin raiders, but orc bandits from the Thornwastes sometimes cause problems - though most merchants have learnt to bring something to trade with the orcs.
Witchcross (large village): Located at the ford of the Witchstream, this settlement is governed by a council of elders (as several of the tribal folk settled here). They maintain close relations with the local druid circle.

People of Elsir Vale

Humans make up the majority of the population of the Vale. Most are pale-skinned with light eyes (blue, grey, brown and hazel) and light hair. Many, however show signs of the tribal Shentulka that once settled here (or remain in scattered tribes in the surrounding wilderness). The tribal folk have coppery skin tones, tall builds with straight, dark hair and dark eyes.

Dwarves live in numbers in the Giantshield and Wyvernwatch mountains where they work as miners and smiths. They trade with and travel regularly amongst the human settlements of Elsir. Many live in the larger towns and are mostly integrated into life in the Vale.

Elves dwell in the wilds of the Witchwood, the Blackfens and the Thornwaste. They consider themselves autonomous to the boundaries of the Vale's small realms but are not hostile to its people. The elves in this region are often referred to as 'wild elves' as they live solely off the land in much the same manner as the Shentulka that were once common throughout the area. As they have little contact with the humans of the Vale, half-elves are rare, but possible. The Shentulka are the most likely humans to mix with elves.

Halfling families pay tariffs to ply their trade upon the rivers of the Vale and beyond. The people of the Vale tolerate the halflings' mischievous ways for the entertainment and foreign goods they bring to the towns.

Once inhabitants of the wilds of the northeastern vale, nezumi (ratlings) have now become part of human society in the settlements around the Marth Forest where they once made their home. No one is sure why they left en-masse, around 100 years ago, but they have since found a niche in society, often performing menial tasks or serving as shepherds, scouts and hunters. The ratlings have mostly forgotten their old way of life and only a few tribal elders cling to the past. Most modern ratlings have fully assimilated.

Lizardfolk dwell in isolated pockets, and in numbers in the Blackfens. In most cases, arrangements have been made between the tribes and local authorities to keep the peace. In some places lizardfolk and the people of the Vale openly trade and offer each other assistance.

The most common enemies to the civilised people of the Vale are by far, the goblinoid races (goblins, hobgoblins and bugbears). Isolated tribes exist in most wilderness areas, even small woods close to towns. They are often the local bandits of an area. The Wyrmsmoke Mountains are however, the traditional homeland of these people, and given the lack of traffic on the western roads and numerous reports from the people of the west end of the Vale, the goblinoid numbers are again on the rise in these mountains. They have united in a grand army before and marched out of the Wyrmsmokes and fears are they are joining together to do so again.

Isolated tribes/clans of ogres and giants also cause havoc from time to time around the vale, but these people are generally too small in number and refrain from drawing attention to themselves. They are not above raiding isolated camps and livestock however, and most humans would celebrate the destruction of an ogre or giant clan.

Antler and Thistle

The low drone of a small group of locals enjoying a local watering hole can be heard as you enter the establishment.  The Antler and Thistle is a decent looking tavern. Nothing great, but not a hell hole, either.

As you enter and look around, 8 locals are drinking in various places.    Cries from the back corner of "Lilly, get your lazy self over here and bring our drinks!" result in a young lass leaving the front bar with a loaded tray and heading back to a table of three men in the corner.

The place is lit, albeit dimly.  A large fireplace in the middle of the floor has a pot with some sort of stew cooking.  The bartender, a large man waves and calls out "Welcome to Brindol, strangers.  Grab a seat and Lilly will be with you soon!"

The Town of Brindol

Note:  A large amount of material used as background in this blog has been borrowed, stolen or otherwise shamelessly used by myself.   I will attempt to list all of them in my links/sources page.


BRINDOL
First visited in the 3rd edition adventure Red Hand of Doom, Brindol has a smaller population than it did before the events of that adventure. But the last decade has brought mild prosperity to the region, with only bandits (such as Sinruth and his ilk) disturbing the peace.

Population: 6,700; another 1,000 live within a five-mile radius of the town itself. The people of Brindol are mostly humans, half-elves, and dwarves. The town’s population swells by several hundred whenever some connected halfling clans known as “the river people” are in town.

Government: A town has a council, two-thirds of whom are hereditary landlords and the remainder of whom are guildmasters from the city’s important trade guilds. Lord Warden Harrik Orenna  is the public face of the council and commander of the city militia.

Defense: The city has 200 soldiers under arms at all times, with about one-quarter on duty at any given time. In times of crisis, the Lord Warden has access to another 200 well-equipped but poorly trained soldiers by calling up the militia.

Inns: Chatrenn and Sons; The Red Door; Avandrian

Hostel; The Silk and Spoon; Pantashi Inn.

Taverns: Ilya’s Cardhouse; The Marooned Schooner; Cleftie’s; Brindol Gentleman’s Club; the Blue
Parrot; the Antler and Thistle.

Major Guilds: Prospectors; Blacksmiths and Smelters;

Teamsters and Farriers; Weavers; River Bargemen (halfling controlled).

Supplies: Alchemy by Adronsius (currently closed); Gavriel Arms and Smithy; Staghunter Outfitters;
Alpenglow Trading House.

Temples: Temple of Erathis; College of Ioun; Shrine of the Sun (Pelor); Moondust Temple (Sehanine);
Shrine of Bahamut (no permanent clergy); Shrine of the Open Door (Avandra).

1. City Gates
2. The Blue Parrot (Tavern)
3. Axenhaft Security
4. Gavriel Arms and Smithy (Shop)
5. Brindol Market Place
6. The Marooned Schooner (Tavern)
7. Alchemy by Adronsius (Shop)
8. Shrine of the Open Door (Temple - Avandra)
9. Brindol Gentlemen's Club (Tavern)
10. Velorian's Playhouse
11. Brindol Academy
12. Antler and Thistle (Tavern)
13. Kaal Manor
14. Teskerwill Manor
15. Staghunter Outfitters (Shop)
16. Great Hall of Valor
17. Cathedral of Pelor (Shrine of the Sun)
18. Brindol Keep
19. Haskinar Mansion
20. Brindol Cemetery
21. Temple of Erathis
22. The Silk and Spoon (Inn)
23. Moondust Temple (Temple - Sehanine)
24. College of Ioun (Temple - Ioun)
25. Pantashi Inn (Inn)
26. Shrine of Bahamut (Temple - Bahamut)
27. Chatrenn and Sons (Inn)
28. Alpenglow Trading House (Shop)
29. Illya’s Card House (Tavern)
30. Avandrian Hostel (Inn)
31. The Red Door (Inn)
32. Cleftie’s (Tavern)