Friday, March 30, 2018

Adventures in Comalan: Greyview Cemetery

Up in Resta's northern foothills, to the north of Foldo and east of Ridge lies a terrible reminder of the bloody history that once ruled the ancient kingdom of Coronos. Once oppressed by the superior warriors of Pyris, the people of this unassuming land lived lives of constant desperation. As the occupying Brokamac tribe worked the natives to the bone on their fertile lands, the earliest heroes of the eastlands that would one day become Resta waged a bitter war to reassert the independence of Coronos. To this day, a massive cemetery lies on the spot of its deadliest battle, which claimed the lives of thousands of Restan ancestors as well as the entire Brokamac tribe. The graves are all unmarked so as to discourage desecration of the enemy Pyrisians' remains and between them lie the carefully preserved remains of the village that the combatants destroyed in the process.

To understand the carnage that marked one of the most important events in Resta and Heron's collective history, one need only visit the Royal Library of Resta's Gilded Keep, where countless books are devoted to remembrance of what would be known as the Greyview War. The event was named by historians for the pact made between various people devoted to Coronos' liberation. The first of these was Alan Whitetree, the elder of Whiteview, the northernmost village in the country-- which was among the first to fall under the Brokamac Tribe's control. The second was Karla Blackstone, a general from Necros who viewed the liberation of their northern sister country as a test from the Gods. These two friends would be joined by Hem Maloran, a man widely hailed throughout history as the first to uncover the secrets of magic. Together, these three leaders of Resta's past met on a hilltop near the Pyrisian border that would one day become the site of Fort Brokamul-- so named because the accord that was made in this spot would spell the death of the Brokamac tribe. This agreement was named the Greyview Accord for both the village of Whiteview and the historic kinship between the Whitetree and Blackstone families.

While the particulars of the war that followed aren't best described in an adventure guide, understanding this much of the history of the once proud village of Whiteview and the charge for freedom that began with its destruction is vital to grasping the significance of the Greyview Cemetery. It is a place of reverence for both templars and spellwarriors alike as their respective orders were founded by two of the Greyview Accord's signers. It is in this place alone that templars and spellwarriors, who typically share an otherwise antagonistic relationship, will greet each other as brethren. In addition, Heronite travelers will occasionally venture to this place to contemplate the last clan to be destroyed in the feudal lords' struggle for control of their country. This cemetery is also frequented by wildly curious adventurers drawn by rumors that the ghosts of those who died in the Greyview War still wander the surrounding ruins at midday. It is said there that they remain to act out the war's old hatreds-- the spirits of the freedom fighters appear to wish harm on Heronites while the Brokamac spirits are said to inflict their vengeance on Restan visitors.

Those who return from Greyview Cemetery all seem to return with haunting tales of the horrors of the war, but seem to flinch when asked anything that could confirm their stories. But despite the clear danger of trauma that faces those who seek out the ghosts, they have also come back with years of historical details that cling so vividly to their memories that they might have experienced the war themselves. Piecing together these details has helped to further the understanding of the violence that once took place on those grounds. Among these many mysterious recollections are secrets centered around the foundations of both the Hem and Blackstone orders and the fall of Pyris' fourth most powerful clan. Historical researchers pay handsomely for the information one can glean from an hour spent among the graves if they can confirm that you were there. So adventurers who can make the trek and brave the onslaught of hostile ghosts will do so, thinking that learning a little history is an easy way to make some money. But be warned: the vengeance of the deceased may not always be fatal, but it is never harmless.

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