Mountains of Death is a mountainous area between The Great Open and nations to the westward; Gashtra and Noral. These mountains are unexplored, but are rumored to have a few small towns, undead, and Others located there. Of course, there are Others who look like anyone else… so they could be in a town or an Inn. While some don’t like being near those folks who now run things, some Others like to be around the new beings. Like humans. Which some Others resemble…

There are 2 sections to these mountains. North and South of Khzol Pass. The large areas near Kingdom of Ladtodquill are flatter than the rest of the mountanis. It isn’t obvious at this large scale.

The blue arrow is a cold current coming up from the south polar ice.

Fondfield area -> The Great Open area -> Lonesome Keep aka Forlorn Keep

Fondfield to 3rd ruins is about 950 miles. (Castle Zhestal) walking takes 48-50 days at 20 miles per day. riding horse: 24-26 days at 40 miles per day

Lonesome Keep to 3rd ruins is about 400 miles. ( Lonesome Keep aka Forlorn Keep ) walking takes 20-23 days at 20 miles per day. riding horse: 10-12 days at 40 miles per day.

Fondfield to Lonesome Keep is about 550 miles walking is 28 days riding horse is 14 days merchant wagon is 22 days at 25 miles per day

from the prairie up to the high plains in the mountains will take 4-7 days of that.

turn south and follow the Ditol River to a dry spring near Khzol Pass

Move southward past the Khzol Pass. Head into the Mountains of Death.

land types and wandering monsters encountered:

civilized area; forests, open areas, roads outside the borders; plains and hills

Green Messenger Guild, merchants, cavalry troop of 30, walking company of wood elves, Border Watch ( squad of 10 soldiers and 1 serjeant or 20 soldiers, 2 serjeants, and a Lt.)

hills, Invisible River, plains

merchants headed for Lonesome Keep, Invisible River, owls, wolves, plains snakes, small spiders, herd animals: antelope, coyotes, blink dog, troop of bugbears, buffalo, eagles, geese, toads, brown bear, quail, moles, falcons, grasshoppers and crickets, mockingbirds, robins, butterflies, millipedes.

plains, 3 rivers, hills, Lonesome Keep

Orcs, bugbears, merchants, a small patrol from the keep, wolves, plains snakes, small spiders, herd animals: antelope, coyotes, buffalo, eagles, geese, grasshoppers, toads, brown bear, quail, moles, falcons, grasshoppers and crickets, mockingbirds, robins, butterflies, millipedes.

Diltol River, plains, Mountains of Death

undead, orcs, wolves, buffalo, eagles, geese, toads, brown bear, quail, moles, falcons, grasshoppers and crickets, mockingbirds, robins, butterflies, millipedes.

plains, dry spring ( source of Diltol River), Khzol Pass, Mountains of Death, ruins

small groups of wandering people, undead, wolves, buffalo, eagles, geese, toads, brown bear, quail, moles, falcons, grasshoppers and crickets, mockingbirds, robins, butterflies, millipedes.

plains, ruins, Mountains of Death, snow

undead, wolves, buffalo, eagles, geese, toads, brown bear, quail, moles, falcons, grasshoppers and crickets, mockingbirds, robins, butterflies, millipedes.

plains, cliff, Mountains of Death, snow

undead, wolves, buffalo, eagles, geese, toads, brown bear, quail, moles, falcons, grasshoppers and crickets, mockingbirds, robins, butterflies, millipedes.

huge valley in Mountains of Death, mountain, snow

Undead, gargoyle, mountain goats, eagles, elk, troll, wasp, wolf, hill giants, storm giants, frost giants, yeti, wolverine.

2 ruins (Castle Chestella and Castle Zhestal), Mountains of Death

Undead, gargoyle, mountain goats, eagles, elk, troll, wasp, wolf, hill giants, storm giants, frost giants, yeti, wolverine.

Supplies at Fondfield and Lonesome Keep

Latitude is about 42 degrees South. This is the Southern hemisphere.

most adventurers meet and live at the Green Goose Inn and Stables.

There a number of shops nearby for supplies.

Blacthorn’s Bow and Arrow Shop

S16: Jara’s General Store
link

For NPCs a message board is outside the Green Goose Inn. During cold, windy, or rainy weather it is brought into the Inn.

Travel from Fondfield to the border is rather easy, mostly. There are patrols on foot and by cavalry. The closer any group gets to the border they will notice folks get less and less outgoing and friendly.

Raids into border farms, and night attacks on keeps and castles, make many living here suspicious of strangers.

A patrol just at the border will warn the adventurers that there wont be any help between Trillolara and Lonesome Keep. The keep is about 550 miles from Fondfield.

wandering monster info

Inside Trillolara:

01-15 adventurers
16-40 farmers
41-60 merchants
61-75 travellers
76-85 Border Watch, cavalry
86-96 Border Watch, infantry
97-98 walking company, elves
99-00 walking company, dwarves

near the border:

01-35 adventurers
36-40 farmers
41-60 merchants headed to Lonesome Keep or to Fondfield
(roll again in winter)

61-85 Border Watch, cavalry
86-00 Border Watch, infantry

Less than a 1% chance of noticing any walking companies near the border.

The Great Open near Trillolara:

01-03 Green Messenger Guild
04-20 merchants
21-30 herd animals; antelope. Possibly coyotes and wolves nearby.
31-50 herd animals; buffalo. Possibly coyotes and wolves nearby.
51-98 animals; select from the list:
99-00 blink dogs, or brown bear

animals list: butterflies, eagles, falcons, geese, grasshoppers and crickets, millipedes, mockingbirds, moles, owls, plains snakes, quail, robins, small spiders, toads. ( Some results are seasonal)

Less than 1% chance of hunters being in The Great Open unless near the border.

The Great Open between Trillolara and Lonesome Keep:

01-02 Green Messenger Guild
03-15 merchants
16-30 herd animals; antelope. Possibly coyotes and wolves nearby.
31-45 herd animals; buffalo. Possibly coyotes and wolves nearby.
46-98 animals; select from the list:
99-00 blink dogs, or brown bear

animals list: butterflies, eagles, falcons, geese, grasshoppers and crickets, millipedes, mockingbirds, moles, owls, plains snakes, quail, robins, small spiders, toads. ( Some results are seasonal)

Lonesome Keep area:

01-02 Green Messenger Guild
03-15 merchants
16-30 group of 5 orcs
31-40 group of 5 orcs and 1 ogre
41-45 group of 3 bugbears
46-98 a small nervous patrol from the keep
99-00 wolves, or plains snakes, or small spiders

By ‘small nervous patrol’ I mean they are very likely, 75 perchent chance, to fire bows first, then ask who you are.

The Green Messenger Guild are basically a group of NPCs that travel anywhere to deliver a message. Base price is 1,000 gp, paid in advance. Such is their reputation that even intelligent evil monsters wont bother them. Ocean travel adds a base 1,000 gp to the total.

Between Lonesome Keep and the Mountains of Death:

01-02 undead: 2 skeletons
03-04 undead: 2 ghouls
05-15 nothing, but the wind
16-30 herd animals; antelope. Possibly coyotes and wolves nearby.
31-45 herd animals; buffalo. Possibly coyotes and wolves nearby.
46-98 animals; select from the list:
99-00 blink dogs, or brown bear

animals list: butterflies, eagles, falcons, geese, grasshoppers and crickets, millipedes, mockingbirds, moles, owls, plains snakes, quail, robins, small spiders, toads. ( Some results are seasonal)

Near the 3 keeps on The Great Open:

01-05 2 skeletons
06-80 animals; select from the list:
81-00 nothing, but the wind

animals list: butterflies, eagles, falcons, geese, grasshoppers and crickets, millipedes, mockingbirds, moles, owls, plains snakes, quail, robins, small spiders, toads. ( Some results are seasonal)

The Mountains of Death:

01-02 eagles
03-04 falcons
05-06 geese
07-08 ducks
09-10 2 skeletons
11-80 nothing but the wind
81-85 4 orcs
86-87 1 great owl
88-89 1 brown bear
90-00 nothing but the wind ( at night: ghostly noises)
( chains rattling, bones ratling through leaves or brush, etc)

near the ruins of Castle Zhestal:

working

near the ruins of Castle Chastella:

working

I used symbols from the Cosmographer overland style and the buildings from CC3 overland.

overland map legend:

So the player characters don’t get losted too much, maybe an old torn map scroll in one of the ruins out on the plains on the third map. If I do that, I can shorten the road.

The yellow hex on map 3 is for high mountain plains wasteland with undead in the ruins. Nothing major. Cleric at 6th level should be able to handle it. Probably 1-2 wights, the rest skeletons, zombies, and a few ghouls. This area will be the locaiton for Xastle Zhestal and Castle Chestella.