Crystal blue waters sparkle in the perpetual sunshine that bathes the town and the lake. The lake is one of the largest aside from Phoenix Lake located on Juan’kij. Originally settled as a research outpost, Yenzu and the Lake are now used as tourist getaway. The lake’s year around warm waters is a delight to anything traveling east from the often times colder highlands of Xonthian.
Wiki Category: Geography
Xonthian is a diverse and historically rich world, characterized by a variety of landscapes and civilizations. The central hub, Xonthian City, is a bustling metropolis where humans thrive amidst fertile outskirts adorned with abundant crops and farms. To the southwest lies the secluded island of Juan’kij, home to reclusive elves who reside within the lush forests of Timilik.
Towards the north, the Dwarves peacefully inhabit the Shadow Mountains, crafting their lives in harmony with the rugged terrain. On the easternmost peninsula of Xecutran, the elusive Atticatten have found refuge, maintaining a hidden existence. The world is not without its shadows, as Orcs, Ogres, and other darker races inhabit long-forgotten jungles, mysterious swamps, and the remnants of lost civilizations, concealing their presence from the more populated regions.
Yenzu
Yenzu sits nestled between the plains of the west and the edge of the Sands of Time. It is a large town and is home to many scholars who study the Sands of Time and the magic that has scarred the land there. Travelers from all over the world visit the town and have become a tourist stop for anyone looking for adventure. The lake offers cool, refreshing entertainment and water, fed by a large underground aqueduct from the ocean. The down and surrounding area are dry with various bushes decorating the landscape. Mesquite trees and the occasional palm tree dot the landscape around it. The buildings are drab, and are built mostly of wood, bricks, and stucco.
Demographics
Human
Government
Mayor
Tourism
Tourism is Yenzu’s biggest export. The crystal clear waters of the Lake, along with its warm atmosphere and proximity to an exotic place like the Sands of Time, bring scholars, and researchers as well as sightseers from all over the world.
Xonthian Ruins
Xonthian Ruins
Xonthian Mountains
The second-largest mountain range in the world houses one of the most complex and uniquely mysterious cave systems. The caves, once thought to be the home of magical creatures never seen on the surface, have had their share of explorers go missing. During the First Age, before the world shattered, The Xonthian Mountain Range was part of what is now the Shadow Mountains. Its said that the flow of magic that kept the Dragons fed and happy, was severed and the magical energy was trapped deep under the mountains, causing mutated creatures to become imbued with magical energy no one has ever seen.
After the world was shattered, and fearing the legends might come true, one of the Kings of Xonthian, commissioned building a keep, located on the edge of the Dark Forest and the Xonthian Mountain range, to serve as the first contact with the creatures should they emerge. However, this never came to pass, and even after the keep was abandoned, no one has been able to prove such monsters existed.
Later, the cave became the tomb of… *redacted*
Wall of Ages
Built before the Hundred Year War during the early rise of the Xonthian Kingdom, the Wall of Ages is a symbol of the kingdom’s resolution to defense. Built from the bountiful limestone of Xonthian Mountain.
The Wall of Ages is several yards thick, with ramparts that stretch from the north Xonthian Mountains to the south mountains. The gate is made of several thick interlaced steel bands. On either side of the portcullis are thick wooden doors. The entire gate is 20 feet tall and just wide enough for two wagons to pass through abreast. The wall itself is more than 80 feet tall.
Temple and Sands of Time
The Sands of Time is hot, dry, and filled with white sandy dunes that roll in gritty waves across the landscape. Deep in its interior, is a temple, the only surviving structure in the center of a barren landscape. The sands, which have been tainted by powerful magics surround what is left of a settlement.
The Sands of Time get its name from the effects it has on anyone who ventures into the wasteland of a desert. Those who try to venture into the desert, find themselves grow older, the further in they go. As they age, they become brittle and eventually die from the process. As far as anyone observing the phenomenon can determine, there has never been a living creature or being to go into the Sands of Time, and come out again. Those who study the desert, have theorized that it might be possible to go over the sands of time, to not be affected by the time-altering effects of the sands. Though how far is anyone’s guess.
The Temple of Time, itself, is only talked about in books hidden away in the Archives in Yente. But no one has ever lived long enough to actually set foot in the Temple, so it is unclear if the structure itself still exists. If it does, however, per the texts that tell stories about the Temple, one would find a library of vast magical arcana, that predates the shattering of the world.
It is said that before the world shattered, dragons fought a massive battle with an unknown horde of creatures. During the battle, so much magic and destruction occurred, that it permanently scarred the world and turned the land into the Sands of Time.
South Kelsa
The sight of the last battle during the One Hundred Year War, South Kelsa has been built, destroyed, and rebuilt several times over the decades. Located on the very southwest portion of Xonthian, the city is one of the larger ones west of the Xonthian Mountains. Build from stone and wood harvested from nearby mountains and forests, the city has spread north more into the hills. A decent pier, installed by the Fire Isle Mages during their occupation, is now used by the Xonthian Navy and Merchants Guild to help spread food and equipment north along the Maelstrom Sea into Juan’kij and the Xecutran.
Government
Mayor
Defenses
Light wall fortifications
Industry & Trade
South Kelsa’s biggest export is wood and fish, along with some crops.
Xonthian Navy Yard
Home to the largest concentration of navy vessels under the command of his majesty, Xonthian Navy Yard is also home to one of the largest Dry Docks. Repairs and maintenance are conducted on aging vessels while the admiralty oversees the deployment of its massive fleet.
The Navy Yard consists of the Dry Dock, drill yard, barracks, and the navy academy and its support buildings.
The Waterfront
In the heart of Port Orlynns, the Waterfront is home to the world’s largest pier. Merchants from not only Xonthian but other islands, and even Xecutran, use Port Orlynns as a base of distribution around the world. Shops both foreign and domestic line the wooden pier as it curves around Half-Moon Bay. Fishermen, sell their daily catch and in general, the area is very busy. Exotic goods from around the world can be found here in shops and in the darker recesses of the docks.
The Broken Wheel
Like most Tavern’s, The Broken Wheel is usually the first thing travelers notice entering the busy port city. Located on the corner of the main street leading in and out, the Broken Wheel is a typical Tavern, housing a stable for wary horses beside the main building, with an inn, located on the second floor. The inn, decorated with moderate furnishing is not the best, or highest end place to stay, however, travelers who find themselves here, rarely care about the conditions, as it’s better than sleeping on the ground.
The downstairs common room is filled with benches and tables, and a fireplace in the corner. A bar with fully stocked spirits and a kitchen round out the establishment. Its known for serving the best, blackened fish on the southern coast.