This is the start off point for my new Demon Wastes campaign. Please let me know what i can do to improve this please.
The Village of Blood Crescent
Blood Crescent sits on the southern coast of the Demon Wastes. Here explorers, adventurers and pioneers are trying to carve out an existence from the very source of evil itself – The Demon Wastes. There are no roads out and only one “safe” way into the village – the monthly merchant vessel from Yrlag in the Shadow Marches, and yet people still come.
The people of Blood Crescent are a hardy bunch. Predominantly members of House Tharashk the local populace is a mixture of mainly military types tasked with keeping Blood Crescent protected and those who would seek fame and fortune either on behalf of House Tharashk or simply for themselves..
Blood Crescent has to import everything it needs. The Demon Wastes have very little in the way of food and water and so far nothing has been found locally that can support the community. If it wasn’t for the lucrative dragon shard trade and exploration of the ancient ruins of the region it is hard to see how Blood Crescent would still be in existence.
Blood Crescent
A small fortified village built at the only safe mooring site on a long stretch of coastline in the southern Demon Wastes.
Population: Approx 200; The people of Blood Crescent are mostly human, orc and dwarven. There are no elves or eladrin as permanent residences but on occasion they do pass through.
Government: The village itself is under direct control of House Tharashk. As such the village is led by the head of the garrison put in place to defend it – a tough orc by the name of Baruk. Supporting Baruk are 2 advisors selected by the local populace; Salesh a female orc druid and Kordan a dwarven prospector.
Defence: The Blood Crescent Guard numbers 40 warriors (mainly orcs). Highly disciplined these professional guards were specifically selected by House Tharashk to guard this small village and help the House maintain its control of this region albeit tentatively. In addition to their normal military duties the Guard also double as village constables although the service is on particularly required.
Inns: There are no inn’s as such in the village. Travellers are normally assigned billets by the Guard on arrival at Blood Crescent.
Taverns: For a communal location the locals use the Mustering Hall in the centre of the village. At this point in Blood Crescents history there have been no taverns built.
Supplies: Halfmoon Traders; The Smithy
Temples: There is a small temple to the Sovereign Host located in the village but most of the services held there focus more on the teachings of Dol Dorn. The Druid Salesh also holds her own services and anyone is welcome to attend.
Blood Crescents Story
Blood Crescent didn’t exist at all until 988YK. The Demons Wastes were all but unknown to most of the people of Khorvaire and indeed still are. A small expeditionary group led by a House Tharashk prospector by the name of Dulon D’Tharashk happened upon a field of Dragon Shards whilst exploring an area to what is now the north of Blood Crescent. Realising the importance of his find Dulon set about establishing a small fortified settlement on the coast to enable this field to be stripped of its valuable harvest.
Unfortunately the early settlement met with numerous early setbacks. Failure to find clean drinking water, inability to grow their own food and multiple deaths due to attacks by the savage, local species. At the point of giving up Dulon returned to Yrlag and asked for help. House Tharashk was desperate to gain itself a good reputation amongst the warring nations of Khorvaire and for this it needed funds. Realising that the Demon Wastes potentially could give them their much needed funds the House assigned the hardened war veteran Baruk and his guardsmen to the defence of the settlement.
Within just a few short days of the Guards arrival at Blood Crescent the town had become properly fortified and a stronger defence was established. House Tharashk immediately set about trying to promote the activity and let it be known that the House had “conquered” the Demon Wastes and established a fully fledged community there. The effect was a number of small “prospecting” groups from a few of the other Houses and indeed Universities were despatched to the region.
For a few years the settlement grew and actually expanded beyond the defensive walls. Many groups went many miles into the Wastes and returned with stories of strange creatures, ancient ruins, fields of dragon shards and mysterious ruined towns and cities. Many simply did not return.
The end of the War in Khorvaire brought about a rapid decline in the fortunes of Blood Crescent. House Tharashk could no longer afford to simply fund and support exploratory expeditions and for that matter neither could many of the other Houses or nations. As a result the village has declined back inside its original boundaries. Over recent months there have been an increase in the number of attacks on the village albeit not in any significant force and an increase in the number of adventuring groups not returning to the village.
Baruk, now the “leader” of the community still remains here at his post and is still driving to maintain Blood Crescent as a viable community. Reliant entirely on the merchant vessels from Yrlag for the basics of food and water his task is not made any easier. If it was not for the potential wealth that is known to be out there in the Demon Wastes the settlement would long since have been abandoned.
Key Locations
Blood Crescent is a small fortified village surrounded by the Demon Wastes on 3 sides and Crescent Bay on its 4th. The wooden defensive walls are 10’ high and are built atop 15’ earth ramparts. There are several small watch towers along the walls length. The two gates in and out are the first elements of the wall to be constructed from local stone although in the longer term the whole defensive wall will be replaced with stone. Outside the south gates is a small dock area designed to take either 1 larger merchant vessel or 2/3 smaller fishing boats.
Inside the walls the buildings are of a simple wooden build design with either wooden or clay pot tiles for roofs. The small “streets” throughout the village are unpaved and as such are prone to become muddy tracks during rainstorms.
Although there are still a few buildings outside the walls these are now either in some ruins or in a very derelict state. The population where possible always makes sure that before the gates are closed at night that they are “safely” within the walls. There is no wider community outside of the village currently being supported by Blood Crescent although Baruk does hope in the longer term this will change.
1. Docks
For House Tharashk to establish a foothold in the Demon Wastes the first thing they had to find was a safe harbour. This was easier said than done. Many vessels spent several months surveying the coast line until finally the most suitable location was found. A contingent of Tharashk guards ensured the area was kept clear of any predators and “troublesome locals” whilst the engineers constructed the first docks. Although not particularly large in scale the docks are the lifeline for Blood Crescent. Essential suppliers arrive via this route and dragon shards and other items leave via it. The docks are managed by Dock Master Hurst Green an experienced “docker” from Yrlag who was one of the first locals to sign up to the hard life that Blood Crescent offers.
Hurst Green is a middle aged human whose weathered and scarred features clearly tell others of the hard life he has had. Hurst himself when not at work on the docks or managing the village warehouses tends to keep himself to himself. Rumour abound as to why he chose to leave the relative comfort of Yrlag to come to Blood Crescent but Hurst himself doesn’t offer any insight into his reasons. Usually the first person travellers meet when arriving at Blood Crescent, Hurst is blunt, to the point and doesn’t suffer fools.
2. Warehouse
This large warehouse is the main stores for goods that are leaving the village. Although outside the main defences of the village itself House Cannith has provided some protection in the form of Wardogs. These constructs are akin to early warforged with no true sentience at all. The Wardogs are simply left to guard the premises at night and are under the direct control of Hurst Green and Baruk. Either of these two individuals have the power of command over the constructs. During the day the dogs simply stand by the doors of the warehouse as goods are moved in and indeed out of the building.
3. Billets/Barracks
Actually several buildings that have merged into one large complex. This two storey building is a maze of stairs, corridors, rooms and cellars dug into the rock beneath. Consisting of storage areas, bunk rooms and communal rooms approximately 80% of the villages population, including all the guards live here. The majority of people new in the village get billeted here for at least one night so its become a place with quite a transient population. The very mix of races, personalities, habits etc has created an atmosphere that would be hard to replicate anywhere else in Khorvaire.
The House Tharashk guards tend to keep themselves to themselves although occasionally some of them will mix with the other locals and visitors. Usually these mixes end in raucous drinking competitions or high stakes card games etc inevitably though they always finish with a fight as is the want of most frontier settlements.
4. Mustering Hall
The main “command post” of the guards based in the village, also the main community meeting place. During the day the building is an official centre for the guards activity and Baruk can often be found here. In the evening the tables are laid out differently and simple food and rationed ale is served up. It is easy to find games of cards as well as other pastime taking place with new challengers always being accepted for a price.
It is common that visitors with a tale or two to tell will be encouraged to do so. If these storytellers are found to have talent then it is not uncommon for all the residents to attend.
5. Administration
This simple two story building is the House Tharashk centre of operations within the village. Issues such as land claims, valuable finds, transport etc are all managed from this facility. Anyone wishing to leave the village and head out into the Demon Wastes must first register the appropriate paperwork here at the office. Without the correct paperwork House Tharashk may refuse further support on the return of the individual to Blood Crescent. Such support can include billet, food and drink in the most extreme cases.
6. Temple to the Sovereign Host
One of the first buildings to be completed once the village had been established. This single story wooden building has got several wooden columns supporting its front porch give it an appearance of grandeur that appears completely out of place in Blood Crescent. The person responsible for maintaining this fine building and indeed leading the locals in worship is the village Priest, Kardelyn.
Kardelyn is a middle aged human who has devoted his life to worship of the Sovereign Host. He arrived in Blood Crescent within 6 month of its founding claiming it was his calling to establish a temple here. He has continued with fervour the work he commenced on that day and is well liked by the locals.
7. Stables
The stables are used to house the local kraal lizards that have been “domesticated” by House Vadalis in support of the operation at Blood Crescent. House Vadalis maintains a small presence in Blood Crescent and manages the stable on a “day to day” basis. The kraals can be purchased or rented by the day and House Vadalis is always happy to help those who needs assistance in such matters.
8. Animal Pens
Around the edges of the main village buildings are numerous small animal pens. These pens house many animals such as rabbits, chickens etc that are used to provide both meat, poultry and eggs for the village inhabitants. As they can be fed with dried feedstuff it enables the village to maintain them with little problem.
9. Lighthouse
Just outside the south-gate a 3 story tower has been built. Atop the tower is a lamp that is lit every night to aid any ships in the vicinity in locating Blood Crescent harbour. It also has a double use as those ship captains in the know are aware that steering to the right of it grants a safe passage through the rocks into the docks whereas those who don’t end up on the rocks.
Link to Map Below
The one area I think is missing is a description of the local geography. There is a coastline nearby, hemmed in on the other three sides by the "Demon Wastes".
Is the coastline choked with strange bones of unknown origin? A filmy black sludge? Does bloody water mysteriously rush in with the tide? Is the sea cast aglow with the purplish light of millions of dire jellyfish?
Why can they not fish for at least some food?
What is "Demon Wastes"? Is the garrison hemmed in by an impenetrable wall of black, jagged cliffs? Shifting dunes of black dust? Piles of blasted scree punctuated by withered, thorny tumblebriars?
If there is no drinkable water nearby, perhaps House Tharashk could invest 9000gp in a Decanter of Endless Water? I know that's far above the normal budget of a village that size, but the cost could be recouped with only 18 of the Narstones Blood Crescent is known for harvesting. The theft of the Decanter could also make a rather fun storyline.
In my version of Blood Crescent, House Tharashk also uses the settlement as a "proving ground" for Shadow March and Droaamite mercenaries that want contracts in the Five Nations. House recruiters sign them up in Yrlag, then ship them to Blood Crescent for a month or so of patrolling and guard duty. Those who survive go on to proper contracts in greater Khorvaire. Those who die or disappear... well, the half-orcs commissioned House Sivis to draft those recruiting contracts, so recruits can't legally say they weren't warned.
The net effect is that the PCs have a standing route to short-term adventures, and I have an excuse to toss any random monster/ally I want into town.
Also-- I second (or third) the fishing option. Maybe they aren't equipped for commercial volumes, but they should at least be able to supplement their diet with what they catch.
If you want to take a creepier approach to the water, try looking up the Blood Bayou that appears in Scarred Lands (aka Scarn), the 3rd ed setting that Swords & Sorcery put out way back when. (Before Eberron came out, that was my favorite setting.)