Southern Ergoth is a dangerous and unforgiving island filled with ogres and refugees, not to mention the secret to the good dragons and dragonlance! Let’s learn more about Southern Ergoth. Buy The Atlas of the Dragonlance World: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/182424/atlas-of-the-dragonlance-world-1e?affiliate_id=50797
Transcript
Cold Open
There is more than just elven refugees and Huma’s tomb in Southern Ergoth!
Intro
Welcome to another DragonLance Saga episode. My name is Adam and today we are going to talk about Southern Ergoth in the War of the Lance Era. 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 Atlas of the Dragonlance World, Tales of the Lance Boxed Set, and the War of the Lance sourcebook for this information. If I leave anything out or misspeak, please leave a comment below!
Discussion
The cataclysm broke Northern and Southern Ergoth from mainland Ansalon. The massive floods left the two islands separate with three lesser islands of Cristyne, Enstar, and Hostar. This also stood as a fitting conclusion to the once great Empire of Ergoth whose power over the land was slowly dwindling between its wars with Solamnia and Istar.
The northernmost area of Southern Ergoth is not much more than a large desolate plain. Its only inhabitants are dwindling goblin tribes. Just south of this lies Morgash Bay, also known as the bay of darkness. On its southern shore is the port city of Daltigoth, the once proud capital of the Empire of Ergoth, it has since fallen to ogres. To the west rising from the island are the spinelike mountains of Ergoth. And in its center lies Foghaven Vale, where Huma’s tomb lies. To the west and south of the mountains are open plains and deep forests which lead to the Sirrion Sea. This is where you will find the refugees from Silvanesti in Silvamori and nearly twenty miles away, the Qualinesti in Qualimori. The Thon-Tsalarian River, or River of the Dead separates them. These encampments disrupted the native Kagonesti elves, but the Silvanesti and Qualinesti don’t seem to care much about it, as they use them as slaves.
The weather in Southern Ergoth can be quite harsh and unpredictable. The Sirrion Sea pushes its storms from the west across the island. These spring cyclones come in Chistlemont and crash against the Ergothian mountains which make spring and summer west of the mountains very wet. These mountains prevent the moisture from advancing north or east causing their dry and desolate conditions. Summer lasts from Corij to Reorxmont remaining fairly mild, and by mid H’rarmont, winter brings blizzards to the west and biting winds to the north. With a population of over two hundred and twenty thousand, only thirty six percent of them are human. Thirty percent are ogres with over thirty percent being elves and other racess fill the remainder. The ogres originally enslaved humans in the age of dreams in the Foundation until the humans rebelled and claimed Daltigoth as the capital of what would be their mighty empire in twenty six-hundred prae cataclius, in the Time of Light. In bitter irony after the cataclysm, the ogres reclaimed their city and many tribes live east of the Last Gaard Mountains in their ancestral homeland.
There are a number of human settlements along the east coast, owing allegiance to the empire of Ergoth, but they are the last surviving remnants of the once mighty empire on the island. The barbarian humans to the north rival the wild ogre tribes they frequently war with in savagery. The forests to the west are a sylvan refuge to the more mystical beings in Ansalon and the Kagonesti. The hill giant Stormogre rules Daltigoth, and made a pact with the White Dragon Highlord Feal-Thas. He swore to bring the ogre clans together into a great army, and Feal-Thas would provide them with White Dragons. We know this never happens due to bitter ogre clan rivalries and the heroes of the Lance.
There are some noteworthy major settlements like Castle Eastwatch with over two hundred residents. This Solamnic Knights outpost acts as the main outpost of knights and oversees the territory preparing for conflict. Daltigoth boasts nearly fifteen thousand residents. This ancient home of the emperors of Ergoth for thousands of years has fallen to disrepair. Slavery is alive and well here as the ogres revel in their debauchery and gambling in old centers of art and music. Together, Silvamori and Qualimori boast over forty-five thousand residents. These lands were once granted to the Kagonesti by Kith-Kanan, now their eastern Silvanesti cousins reshaped the wild land to better suit their requirements and tastes. Qualimori is more recent and still in the planning stages. As Kagonesti built crude wooden structures for them, the Silvanesti have made it clear they want distance from their Qualinesti cousins..
The villages of Varvil and Dalevil are farming communities with just over four hundred residents. They are the primary sources of food for Zhea Harbor and Fairkeep. As the ogres overtook them in this era, their ogre slave masters are working them to the bone. Welmet is a hamlet of over three hundred residents. It is the largest Solamnic settlement on the west coast. The deep outlet allows galleys to port and is used primarily for voyages to Sancrist, Cristyne and the mainland. Zhea Harbor is a small city with under six thousand residents. It is located on the northeast side of the Bay of Darkness. This walled city was once a refuge after the Cataclysm to humans from the ogres, but in this era the ogres of Daltigoth have occupied the town.
There are some other important sites of notes in Southern Ergoth. The Blade is a tall tower of metal and iron overlooking the channel leading to Morgash. It served as an imperial garrison for Ergoth in ages past. It is now occupied by two white dragons, Blizzard and Bluster with a handful of Draconians who ambush unauthorized ships in the bay. Foghaven Vale is a magical place, hidden from mortals after the Cataclysm. It contains the tomb of Huma, in addition to Dragon Mountain which holds the secrets of the lost good dragons. Harkun or Thunder Bay has been claimed from the Kagonesti by the Silvanesti. It sits as a natural border between the more unfriendly nations. The Silvanesti reside on the western side, and the Qualinesti reside on the Eastern side.
The Last Gaard Mountains have been home to the ogre clans for thousands of years. They are riddled with caves and tunnels. There is even rumor of an ancient Irda city beneath them. Morgash Bay is vast, deep and rich with fishing. It is visited by dragon turtles for laying eggs in addition to white dragons above. There are supposedly tunnels in the west leading beneath the mountains. The Thon-Tsalarian River means river of the dead. The Kagonesti use it to carry out funeral rites. The river glitters silver in Solinari’s light, with legend saying it comes from Heart, the silver dragon who shed tears over the loss of her love Huma.
Southern Ergoth is an incredibly important location for the War of the Lance era. Not only is it the sole location where you will find the Dragonlance, but it’s the last refuge for the elves of Ansalon as the Dragonarmies decimated their ancient forests. But there is a prehistory buried beneath the mountains that is ripe for exploration. The ancient Irda who have fled to north eastern isles have left their echoes in the form of structures and who knows what else deep beneath the surface world. Not to mention Daltigoth whose libraries and areas of study have no doubt been decimated by its ogre occupiers, but what might remain for the brave and bold who go exploring there?
Outro
And that is all I have to say about Southern Ergoth in the War of the Lance Era. What do you think of the history of this island? Would you take an adventuring party into Daltigoth? And finally, what do you think is under the Last Gaard Mountains? 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:
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