The Gray Vale

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Beneath the mysterious Star Mounts, at the southern edge of the ancient High Forest, the Gray Vale straddles the river Delimbiyr in the North. A prosperous region thanks to river traffic, merchant caravans from distant lands, and other travelers looking for treasure amid the wreckage of lost kingdoms, the Gray Vale is a land ripe for adventure.

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The vale stretches almost 500 miles east to west and averages about 100 miles north to south. Several mountain ranges and dense forests form the Vale's borders.

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Gray Vale has grown into a trade center in the North in large part due to the success of Loudwater. This small town has an advantageous location at the confluence of the Delimbiyr and Grayflow rivers. Rich and arable farmland enables the community to thrive. Most merchants in the vicinity use the river to transport goods, making Loudwater an ideal nexus for nearly all commerce in this part of the world.

 

Although Loudwater and other small settlements enjoy some prosperity, the threat of danger checks their growth. Displaced savages from beyond the High Forest are a constant peril. Goblins infest the Southwood, snatching cattle, supplies, and the occasional child before retreating to the dim shelter of their foreboding forest. Loudwater is a thriving trade community and the starting point of your adventures. It has seen its share of excitement over the years, most recently sixty years ago when it was the center point of a war.

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Sheltering the people of Gray Vale from the distant doom of Netheril is a range of old, rugged mountains known as the Graypeaks. Barren and capped in ice and snow, these mountains are said to be home to giants and vicious wild and unnatural creatures.

 

At the eastern edge of the Gray Vale, in the shadow of the Graypeaks and the end of the Delimbiyr Route is the city of Llorkh.  Llorkh, in conjunction with its fortress of Bordrin’s Watch, commands the only pass across the Graypeak Mountains and keeps the Vale safe from the occasional Orc incursion from the lawless lands on the border with Netheril.  Governed by a council of Dwarves, Llorkh is a base for trade and supply for the mining activities in the Graypeak Mountains.

 

Connecting Llorkh at the eastern edge of the Gray vale to Waterdeep on the Sword coast is the Delimbiyr Route.  This trail, which runs alongside the River Delimbiyr, passes through Loudwater, the ruined hamlet of Zelbross, the small town of Secomber finally arriving at Waterdeep.

 

To the northwest of Loudwater lies the Star Mounts.  This ancient range of mountains marks the southern boundary of the High Forest and takes its name from the strange lights that shine from its heights.

 

From the northern slopes of the Star Mounts and stretching for miles to the north is the High Forest, an ancient wood notoriously haunted by fey creatures, gnolls, and drow. Infrequently, wood elves of the forest trade with the people of Loudwater, but they are tight-lipped about what goes on in their sylvan homeland.