It was destroyed in the Lost Battles when Istar turned against the Wizards of High Sorcery. Let’s learn more about the Tower of High Sorcery in Daltigoth. Buy Towers of High Sorcery: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/2940/towers-of-high-sorcery-3-5?affiliate_id=50797
Transcript
Cold Open
Let’s examine the history of this lost Tower of High Sorcery.
Intro
Welcome to another DragonLance Saga episode. My name is Adam and today I am going to talk about Daltigoth: The Crimson Keep, a Tower of High Sorcery. I would like to take a moment and thank the DLSaga members, and invite you to consider becoming a member by visiting the link in the description below. You can even pick up Dragonlance gaming materials using my affiliate links. I am referencing the Towers of High Sorcery sourcebook for this information. If I leave anything out or misspeak, please leave a comment below!
Discussion
The plans for the Tower of High Sorcery in Daltigoth was one with its origins in Tarsis. But the greedy merchant princes kept demanding more and more money for the land and the plans were scrapped. This would end in a curse on Tarsis which bore fruit after the Cataclysm. The next location was in Ergoth, then a fledgling empire. Harald Greytooth, a Red Robed wizard approached Emperor Pakin about purchasing the land, but as the new Empire was having growing pains of its own, the emperor refused the fee and instead asked if the wizards of high sorcery would help defend Ergoth for the land. Greytooth agreed, and when the Tarsian fleet invaded, they were overwhelmed by the magic of both the White and Red Robe Wizards defending Ergoth. This also inadvertently birthed the sea-mage tradition.
When it came time to build the tower, the Emperor demanded they use white stone rather than the red stone planned, and in frustration Greytooth stepped down from the planning, allowing the White Robe Yoralyn to raise the tower instead. What the Emperor never knew was that the raising of the white tower was nothing but an elaborate illusion and that night Greytooth cast the true spell. The next morning brought shock as the once brilliant white marble had turned blood red. Greytooth told the Emperor that the tower must not have wanted to outshine the glory of the empire and the emperor understood the deception and joke. Laughing he stated that the tower would stand as it is, as long as the great empire of Ergoth stood.
The presence of Wizards in Ergoth was unlike anywhere else on Krynn. They were accepted, and not only because they aided the empire in its defense. Wizardry was seen as an esteemed profession akin to the clergy. This created a reciprocal circle of appreciation and acceptance all around. But storms were on the horizon. As the ranks of the red robes swelled, a few points of note are worth mentioning. First, this is where Fistandantilus first made himself aware to Ansalon’s elite. And second was the Rose Rebellion. Emperor Emann Quisling requested the Towers aid against Vinas Solamnus’s uprising, and they refused, taking their neutrality seriously. In truth Vinas had powerful friends at the Tower, so the mage’s weren’t exactly inclined to betray him.
Shamed but unable to strike against the Tower, as many of the empire’s elite were members of the Orders, the Emperor demanded they aid in rebuilding the empire and the wizards agreed. As Ergoth began to be eclipsed by the nations of Solamnia, Istar and Kharolis, the Orders of High Sorcery paid less attention and memberships in the Red Robed began dwindling over the generations. There was a brief resurgence after the Third Dragon War, even though Ergoth refused to aid Solamnia for past misdeeds. The aid the Red Robes gave was essential during the war, as it was Orichan the Tower’s keeper that used his magic to discover the magical metal in Foghaven Vale to craft the Dragonlances. But again, dark clouds were forming on the horizon even after the Dark Queen’s defeat.
The Age of Might would be the doom of Ergoth and the Tower of Daltigoth. The empire itself grew more mad and corrupt, and the unity of the empire and the tower saw its cracks widen. As the Orders of High Sorcery began to debate the future of the Tower in Daltigoth, Ergoth received word of the war between Istar and the Orders of High Sorcery. The emperor Gwynned sent his advisor Duke Serl Kar-Thon to investigate and in two months the Duke returned in a rage. He was present when Andras Rannoch tried to assassinate Beldinas Pilofiro, and lost his two sons in the altercation. He convinced the emperor to censure the Orders with Istar. The Duke demanded that he be able to lead the first attack against Wizardry, and with the Emperor’s blessing, he gathered an army to assault the Tower.
Knowing that the world would find itself in even more danger if those without temperament or understanding came into control of the tower and its secrets, The Orders decided to bring the tower down themselves. The explosion leveled both the tower and surrounding Daltigoth. Thousands perished with the capital, and the Empire was not long from the same fate with the Cataclysm.
The Tower of Daltigoth is best described by the name it was given by the people of Ergoth: Rathfast, the Crimson Keep. The tower was uncharacteristically short and stout, keeping with the Ergothian style of the day. At just over two hundred feet tall, it was more than three times as broad as the Towers of Palanthas and Istar. It was built on a hill which made it appear to loom over the old city. It was also square in shape, and supported massive buttresses. Gargoyles and crenelated battlements topped it, making it appear more as a nobleman’s castle than a sanctuary for wizards. The walls were nearly blood red with mottled whorls of inky black. To those witnessing the tower it was as if storm clouds played across the stones surface. Crowning the keep were five parapets. The four exterior were white with its center wide and black, tipped with a sliver of electrum. Lights would play across the parapets.
Surrounding the tower was a stout wall of red stone with no gate. Instead it featured an opening leading to a wide lawn of emerald grass featuring a maze of white stone paths. The widest of which lead to the double black oak doors of the tower itself. The interior of the tower was forever shifting with spaces and rooms seeming to overlap if maps were attempted to be made. Notable spaces are the Heartroom, Halls of Shifting Shadows, and the Chamber of Eyes. In modern eras all that remains is a deep hole in the earth that everyone avoids out of fear. No one has descended into the chasm and returned.
Surrounding the Tower was the Kadothan Grove. As with all other towers this was meant as a defense against unwanted intruders, but the Kadothan Grove was decidedly less sinister. It was actually peaceful to behold, with tall trees swaying in the wind and very little undergrowth. The distance through the grove to the tower seemed only a simple walk, but therein lies the deception. As you began to move through it, the grove would seem to elongate exponentially, with greater distance as you proceeded. Tormenting you was the sight of the tower, ever directly in front of you, but wholly out of reach. In time, the smell of the pine and the chirping of the crickets would lul even the most resistant to magical effects into sleep. When you wake, you find yourself outside of the grove, completely rested. However you would soon realize a week has passed for every hour you walked through the Grove! A truly ingenious way of keeping intruders out.
Outro
But that is all the time I have to talk about Daltigoth: The Crimson Keep. Do you have a favorite Tower of High Sorcery? What do you think about the history of the tower at Daltigoth? And finally, have you ever used a destroyed Tower of High Sorcery in your games? Leave a comment below.
I would like to take a moment and remind you to subscribe to this YouTube channel, ring the bell to get notified about upcoming videos and click the like button. This all goes to help other Dragonlance fans learn about this channel and its content. Thank you for watching, this has been Adam with DragonLance Saga and until next time, remember:
Anger is energy spent foolishly.
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