Shadrach's Folly

From Crossroads Wiki

Lordship of Shadrach's Folly

Economy and Geography

Shadrach's Folly is a verdant forest of green life, more deadly than it is beautiful.

Miles of forested bogs mark the region known as Shadrach's Folly. Here is one of the places on Mists that outlanders are not welcome; not for a lack of hospitality from the Guybrush family who has governed the region for six generations, but for the simple truth that the terrain itself is uninviting, and the citizens who call Shadrach's Folly home like it that way. Tall oak trees keep Shadrach's Folly in a near constant state of twilight, and far below the nearly one hundred foot tall treecover, the shallow valleys are constantly covered in a thin layer of slurry and peat-moss. Where the land rises above the thin waterline, Shadrach's Folly is green and fertile, with berries of all varieties.

It is these berries which attract the region's richest and rarest export. Tall cervids known as Bogwalkers call these lowlands home, and the people of Shadrach's Folly hunt them both for their meat, as well as their hides which makes an excellent waterproofing material. In addition to the Bogwalker trade, the people of Shadrach's Folly also gather their crop of berries and acorns and export these. They are also known to periodically export wood, but mostly they maintain the bog-oak for themselves, preferring to avoid over harvesting their main defense and construction materials. Nearly all other goods are imported or stolen from neighboring communities.

A bogwalker whose felt has not yet been shed.

Of more magical use, the numerous bogs of Shadrach's Folly are known to contain a high concentration of leeches, which create a natural anticoagulant in their saliva known as hirudin. Although it's exceptionally hard to get a large quantity of hirudin from the leaches, small amounts (enough to keep a pint of blood from congealing for an extended period of time) can be made available for the right price. Shadrach's Folly exports this for use in magical experiments which may require the blood of a virgin, or similar.

Citizens

Most of the citizens of Shadrach's Folly can trace their lineage back to a bandit somewhere; and many of them don't have to go more than a single step away or less. The people of Shadrach's Folly are known to be skilled in Transportation magic, and they are also known to rebel against strict government, and it's difficult to blame them. The unforgiving environment they call home provides an exceptional defense against attackers, but the constant battle against the environment itself has left the people of Shadrach's Folly bitter towards any additional burdens levied upon them by outsiders. Yet despite the isolationist attitude of the people of Shadrach's Folly, two major settlements have been marked on the maps found in Polaris Port: Eastwall, and Folly Hall.

Throughout the rest of Shadrach's Folly, people have built quays and docks above the surface of the perpetual bogs, creating small townships wherever they please. Some of these observe fealty to the Guybrush Family; others believe they are beholden to no man. Thus it is a constant battle to maintain the peace in Shadrach's Folly, but it is one the Guybrush Family have taken on with fervor, proving their loyalty to Barony, Duchy, and Empire countless times over the generations as they have put down small revolt after small banditry and maintained the fragile peace of Shadrach's Folly.

Eastwall

Eastwall is well named for its location on the eastern edge of the region. Easily reachable by a trade road that leads over relatively dry land through two miles of bog, Eastwall is built on one of the few areas of dry land large enough to support a trade town. Muddy streets and muddy people are the hallmark of Eastwall, but it is to here that the people of Shadrach's Folly migrate when they wish to trade with their neighboring regions. The oaks have been cleared away from the township, leaving plenty of clear skies to view the day, and plenty of wood to build wooden structures to hold up against the tests of time.

Folly Hall

Folly Hall

Nearly fifty miles west of Eastwall, a small foundation of bedrock and stone stands above the marshlands. On the maps of Mists, this is known as Grey Hawk Mountain, but the locals know it better as Knight's Hill. Here, the Lords of Shadrach's Folly have erected a small keep of earth and stone--half above the earth and half within the numerous caves that dot the mountain--and declared this the seat of their power. Over the years, a small collection of ramshackle huts and houses made of stone or wood have been erected in the shadow of Folly Hall, turning the small fortification into a township in its own right.