Ash'thana

Kalista tells you of ruins nearby. They are know to the residents of the cave as well as the Kindred. The residents avoid the gate, believing the area to be 'cursed'.

Several who have approached the gate never returned.

Ath'shana is an ruined city cushed by stones and rubble. The remains of the city are inhabited by undead.

The area around the city is awash with the energies of undeath. creature bodies left there will likely be turned into some sort of undead being.

For an unknown reason the plane of souls overlaps the material plane especially strongly in this region. Like all other locations of undead energy Shifting Gem will work here.

History and The Beast

The city of Ath'shana once sat above ground, a days travel from the port of Yuffdar.

One day a cloud of dust, filth, and putrid odor spread across the plains. With it came a terrible earthquake, like nothing anyone had ever witnessed. To the north the ridge of hills sprung up into he sky, like ice in the winter sea, only to come crashing down. One can only assume that Yuffdar was obliterated.

The quake continued and a massive crack in the earth opened up. The entire city was drawn into the earth. The city slid down into the dark, killing nearly everyone. A handful of us were able to survive. The temple of stone held strong and some of it's clergy were alive.

Those of us that lived, perhaps 50 out of a town of thousands upon thousands, found ourselves trapped here. With little to no food or water things looked grim.

Scouting parties were sent out but reported fierce beasts and deadly terrain. There was a rumor that the temple had some plan to save us, but by then I was too weak to walk.

When I awoke I was in this state, and the beast was here. I've never seen it, at least no directly. When it comes near us it feeds on us, we become weak and it's hard to see. It can be what seems like days before I'm even able lift a finger. Sometimes it whispers to us, telling us what to do. It likes us to play our parts. If we don't, it returns and after draining us, wracks our bodies with pain.

Beastiary

Darkmantle

Syranna "The 'lurker above' you refer to is almost certainly a Darkmantle. You were quite lucky to notice them before they attacked it's quite rare for people to see, let alone survive an attack. They are vicious predators, preying on anything and everything they can get their maws on."

Corrupt Wyrmlings

Syranna "That sounds like a dangerous creature indeed. I can't say I've heard of those before but given the acid it seems like it could be effected by the venom which flows through the realm or related to the core of acid, I can't say for sure"

Cave Geometry

There are areas of the caves that differ drastically from the rough terrain. The walls of these areas are perfectly spherical and smooth, as if an removed out by a giant ice cream scoop. The cause of these is yet unknown.

Corrupt Myconoid Colony

An offshoot of a larger colony deeper underground that was somehow twisted and corrupted by the environment. Syranna suspects it has something to do with the venom which persists in the area.

Cult of Air

Lead by a powerful mystic named Lira, they seek to harness the energies of the caves.

The group tends to be more interested in exploration, though they skirmish with the Kindred and attack their outposts. Of note, the Cult does not have any shroudlings among their ranks.

Lyra is a Mystic and seems to know everything that her followers know.

The requirements for joining the Cult are unclear.

The Heart of Night

A massive market located between the two warring factions, much can be found here if you can keep an eye on your purse and back.

Black robes

Robes with a trim of braided white fur.

Syranna "I've seen those before in the Heart of Night. There some religious group there that wears them during their holy days, but it's not a religion that I know anything about"

Kalista

The head of the Kindred outpost near the Myconid village.

The flamboyant dragon born has proven to be a natural leader. Those that serve under her command regard her as competent and reliable. She has a sharp mind and thinks well in advance.

Kindred of Hi'mat

Lead by the demonic Dasharth and his two hell hounds, members of this group seem to be able to move freely throughout the realm, ignoring many of the dangers.

The Kindred push out into the surrounding area much more than the Cult, setting up outposts and camps which are generally well defended.

The requirements to join the cult are unclear.

Kindred Outpost

Syranna "If your looking to head to the outpost I can point you in the general direction, but it's been a while. Go back out the tunnel here and take a left, walk for about 15 minutes and you'll see a tunnel to the right which has a perfectly round entrance, we see those from time to time, but there origin is unclear. From there take your first right, then a sharp left. If you gone the right way your should be standing in front a steep hill. That area is less remote than where we are so you'll start to see signs of creatures living there. The Outpost is a ways in, I remember taking a left at some point, but I can't remember when."

Led by the flamboyant Dragonborn Kalista, a small band of Kindred have carved out a base of operations.

For a reason that Kalista seems unwilling to share, the Kindred are under orders to avoid the city of Ath'shana.

Myconid Colony

A small colony of 15 myconids. Syranna and her 4 acolytes also live here as well. Winan Eltumal (half-elf), Aveletha Wernnala (half elf), Tulmak Warbreaker(dwarf), and Bran Brightwood(human).

Nest of Undead

There is an undead nest on the way to the Heart of Night. That path to the heart goes through a major junction. It's a hollowed out room, as if a perfect sphere of material simply winked out of existence. The area below fractured and filled with undead. The belief is that the first city of shroudlings was below that point, and that the undead are the remains of that city.

White Rooms

Syranna "I can't say for sure. I've never willingly chosen to fight the Ethros. We se the venom very rarely and only ever to cross the white rooms. It doesn't always work, it seems to have some relation to how much we've drank recently and how much it's worn off."

Shroudlings

Mutated humanoids adapted to living in the caves. Their bodies and minds altered.

Syranna

Priestess of a Niby'colisp, aspect of Night Plants. Lives with and assists a myconoid village.

The City

A massive open thoroughfare inhabited by a wide variety of creatures. A river of acid runs through the middle.

Undeath

The presense of undead spreads more like a disease in this realm. Areas of undeath tend to draw more undead and the residual energy can transform dead bodies into undead. If weaker creatures remain in areas with heavy undead energy they can turn into undead themselves.

Venom

A thick substance which generally green, purple, or black. If ingested in large doses it is poisonous, but in smaller doses can allow the imbiber to carefully pass through the white rooms without danger. The more that is consumed the shorter the protection until it drains from your system. Creatures that drink too much will turn into shroudlings.

Game Mechanics

If you character get's to 100 points of venom