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# Khorvaire Gazeteer - Distant Lands - Eberron: Rising from the Last War - Dungeons & Dragons - Sources - D&D Beyond

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CH. 2: KHORVAIRE GAZETTEER
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CH. 2: FAITHS OF KHORVAIRE
Chapter 2: Distant Lands

This section of the gazetteer provides a glimpse of the wonder and adventure found in the lands beyond Khorvaire’s horizon. Use these entries to inspire adventures that take place in these distant lands, and to introduce trinkets or relics from foreign realms into Khorvaire.

MAP 2.2: ISLANDS OF AERENAL
VIEW LARGE VERSION
Aerenal

In Aerenal, you might…

Consult an elven archmage who’s been dead for twenty thousand years.
Battle sinister forces that have crawled into Eberron from a realm of eternal night.
Learn secrets of magic unknown in Khorvaire.

The massive island of Aerenal is the ancient kingdom of the elves. Its jungles provide strange and valuable lumbers: soarwood used for the hulls of airships, tough bronzewood, and trees that remain alive after being felled.

The island’s proximity to the planes of Irian and Mabar (both described in chapter 4) allows the lines between life and death to become blurred. Dangerous, dark forces creep in from the plane known as the Endless Night, but that planar resonance also enables the elves to perform feats of necromancy unmatched elsewhere in Eberron. Among the Aereni elves, the honored dead walk among the living. Heroes who died in glorious battle return to serve the Sibling Kings. And in the depths of Shae Mordai, the deathless lords of the Undying Court study the shifting balance of the planes and the path of the Draconic Prophecy.

Necromancy is a pillar of Aereni society, distinct from the sinister power most adventurers encounter. Positive energy sustains the deathless undead of Aerenal—both the light of Irian and the devotion freely given by their descendants. The elves of Aerenal despise necromancy that draws on the negative energy of Mabar, and agents of the Undying Court embrace their mandate to seek out and destroy vampires, liches, and other such undead.

Aereni civilization is over twenty thousand years old. Secure in their island sanctuary, the elves watched nations of goblins and humans rise and fall. The Aereni possess secrets and powers the rest of Khorvaire has yet to discover, but they are more interested in perfecting their ancient traditions than in innovation and discovery. An Aereni wizard might spend a decade refining the pronunciation of a single spell’s incantation. For now, humanity can’t match the power of the elves. If that balance changes, will Aerenal take action?

SHAE MORDAI
Notable Locations

Aerenal taunts visitors with its ancient secrets and trackless jungles.

Pylas Talaear

The gateway to Aerenal, this port city is the primary point of contact between Aerenal and the outside world. In this city driven by commerce, almost all the dragonmarked houses have outposts here, and it includes vast markets, warehouses, and lumber yards.

Shae Cairdal

This city is the capital of Aerenal, the seat of the Sibling Kings, and the center for commerce and diplomacy between the elven families, who otherwise remain isolated in their own city-states. Foreigners are encouraged to conduct business in Pylas Talaear.

Shae Mordai

This ancient citadel houses the Undying Court, the deathless ancestors who shape the destiny of Aerenal. It is built atop a rift to the Plane of Irian and suffused with positive energy. Almost no commerce takes place here. This center for arcane study also serves as a memorial to all the heroes of the elves, both the deathless and those lost in the distant past. The Citadel of the Court is said to be far larger than it appears and to hold the greatest treasures of the elves.

The North

The northern steppes of Aerenal are the domain of the Tairnadal, the warrior elves who seized control of Valenar. Although much of their population now resides in Valenar, many Tairnadal noncombatants—children, artisans, and the druids who raise their remarkable beasts—remain in Aerenal.

Aerenal’s Influence in Khorvaire

In Khorvaire, you might…

THE
SHARN INQUISITIVE

NIGHTLIFE OF THE WALKING DEAD

The port city of Pylas Talaear is a place of wonders. Stand on the steps of the Grand Temple and look down upon the High Street and you’ll see fountains of light casting shadows across buildings that have stood for over ten thousand years. Brilliant motes dance through the air—spectral messengers carrying words across the city. But the most remarkable feature of Pylas Talaear is the dead. If you know anything about Aerenal, you’ve surely heard of the Undying Court, the deathless cabinet that guides the nation. Only the grandest members of society win elevation to the Undying Court, but there are many forms of preservation. Go to the Dalaen Forge and you’ll see the ghost of Old Dalaen advising his descendants as they work wood and steel. Visit the Eidolon Tavern and you’ll see poltergeists mixing drinks, and you can get advice from a spectral bartender with thousands of years of wisdom to share. Visit Maer Crossing at midnight and you’ll see the spirit of Lady Jhaelian dance with a grace unmatched by any living elf.

Wondrous as it is, as a human visitor, I found it more than a little unnerving. There’s no escaping the past in Aerenal; it lingers all around you, whispering advice or warning you to avoid transgression. You never know when you’ll feel the tingle of spectral fingers against your skin or hear the whisper of an elf who’s older than human civilization. There are many wonders in Aerenal… just don’t get buried in the past.

Team up with an agent of the Undying Court to bring down a powerful vampire.
Be summoned by a deathless sage who needs your help to fulfill an ancient prophecy.
Bargain with a merchant offering rare magic items.

Few Aereni elves are interested in the world beyond their island. The Aereni see Khorvaire as a primitive backwater, and humans as dangerously impulsive. Aereni who travel to Khorvaire have a concrete purpose for the journey, which could drive an adventure.

The magewrights and artificers of Aerenal are more advanced than those of Khorvaire. Aereni artisans fashion rods, staffs, and wands, and other rare or even legendary items may come from Aerenal. However, the nation is less industrialized than Khorvaire. Legendary items aren’t mass produced; some are personally crafted by members of the Undying Court.

Aereni goods make use of exotic plants and woods. Bronzewood has the density and even some of the properties of steel; an Aereni cleric might wear a bronzewood breastplate, while a paladin of the Undying Court could wear a suit of elaborated engraved bronzewood plate armor. Bronzewood leaves are remarkably tough, and the Aereni craft “leaf weave” armor functionally equivalent to leather, studded leather, or chain mail. Bronzewood can also be crafted into weapons, and Aereni warriors use spears or swords made from a single piece of bronzewood.

Trinkets from Aerenal
d8	Trinket
1	A bronzewood ring inscribed with the Elvish word for “hope”
2	A dried flower; if it’s placed in water, it blooms
3	An ebony locket; when it’s opened, an elven voice whispers “Always”
4	A tiny skull carved from dark wood
5	A finger bone inscribed with an unknown sigil
6	An ivory flute which produces no sound
7	A small journal made from preserved leaves
8	A book of poetry written by undead elves
Argonnessen

In Argonnessen, you could…

Clash with tribes of dragon-worshiping barbarians.
Explore an ancient city of dragons.
Discover mighty artifacts and long-lost spells.

Argonnessen is home to the oldest civilization on Eberron. The dragons wield ancient magic, and they have shielded their homeland against divination and teleportation. Tribes of barbarians roam the Seren Islands and the coastlines of Argonnessen; these include members of almost every humanoid race, perhaps collected by dragons in ages past. The Seren barbarians worship the dragons and protect the coasts from invaders. To date, no one from Khorvaire has ventured into the interior of the continent and returned to speak of it.

No one knows how many dragons live in Argonnessen, but stories tell of vast cavern complexes filled with the treasures of fallen civilizations, of prisons holding bound demons, of cities made from adamantine.

To those of Khorvaire, Argonnessen is a mystery space on the map. Only the most powerful characters might visit Argonnessen and return to tell the tale.

Argonnessen’s Influence in Khorvaire

In Khorvaire, you might…

Prevent a villain from acquiring a powerful artifact smuggled out of Argonnessen.
Encounter a dragonborn barbarian born on the Seren islands, who shares tales of mighty wyrms.
Battle a dragon who guards a hidden vault.

Some say the mysterious dragons of Argonnessen hide in plain sight, that shapechanged dragons scattered across Khorvaire pull the strings of civilization. According to some stories, the dragons seek to protect the younger races from vile fiends. In other tales, the dragons see the people of Khorvaire as fodder for arcane experiments. A dragon could be encountered as an ally or as a cruel enemy who casually crushes humanoids.

The magic of Argonnessen is far more powerful than the forces wielded by the wizards of Khorvaire. Many of the greatest artifacts in history were made in Argonnessen. Dragons are infused with magic, and their creations are made from the bones and scales of their kind.

Trinkets from Argonnessen
d10	Trinket
1	A pierced dragon scale on a cord
2	A statuette of a dragon carved from black bone
3	A dragon’s tooth, engraved with an unknown sigil
4	A child’s doll of a dragon, woven from leather cords
5	A dagger carved from a dragon’s talon
6	A brass disk bearing the silhouette of a black dragon
7	A small egg-shaped piece of polished bone
8	A bone fragment with brass inlaid runes
9	A leather pouch filled with tiny draconic teeth
10	A single large seed that’s warm to the touch
Khyber

In Khyber, you could…

Fight mind flayers and armies of hideous aberrations.
Discover a wondrous realm lit by an inner sun.
Prevent a fiendish overlord from escaping its ancient prison.

The common creation myth contends that when the Progenitor Dragons fought, Eberron trapped Khyber in her coils and became the world, imprisoning her evil sibling in a living prison. Bound within the world, Khyber spawns demons and monsters to plague the children of Eberron. This might be myth and metaphor, but it’s also a description of fact: there are worlds within the world, realms inhabited by aberrations, fiends, and all manner of monsters.

Any time someone descends below the surface of the world, they enter Khyber. But the underworld takes two very different forms. First is the natural realm, networks of tunnels and caverns formed from stone and soil. These passages are dark and dangerous, but they’re exactly what you expect to find in an underground realm. Such passages might be home to carrion crawlers, giant beetles, or clans of kobolds. But ultimately these mundane caverns follow the laws of nature.

There’s another aspect to Khyber: go deep enough and you find a seemingly endless array of demiplanes, each stranger than the last. When descending into a chasm, you could find a labyrinth inhabited by demons or discover a realm consisting of the guts of a colossal living creature. Anything is possible in Khyber, and these “worlds within” are home to all manner of terrors.

The demiplanes of Khyber are not concretely tied to the world above. You could discover a passage in Breland that leads into a disturbing subterranean swamp filled with oozes and slimes. After traveling what seems to be a few miles, you might emerge from a different tunnel in Xen’drik, half a world away from where you began.

The Mror Holds demonstrate this mystery. Over the past century, the dwarves discovered a vast subterranean kingdom within the Ironroot Mountains. Most of these halls rest in the natural layers of Khyber. The halls connect to one another in logical cartographic order. But as the ancient dwarves dug deeper, they opened passages into the unnatural realms and unleashed the hordes of the daelkyr Dyrrn the Corruptor. Passages to Dyrrn’s realm also exist in the Shadow Marches, on the opposite side of Khorvaire. The Corruptor’s domain doesn’t necessarily stretch across the entire world; the portals to the worlds within defy natural law.

These connections impact the world in a number of ways. Dark forces can rise anywhere in the world, bursting out of a previously unknown portal to Khyber. This fact dictates the primary mission of the Church of the Silver Flame: to stand ready to defend the innocent from such unnatural threats. Because the demiplanes connect to the world at random, you never know what you might find when you venture into the depths. A newly opened chasm in the sewers could be an entirely mundane hole in the ground, or it could be a passage to the Abyssal Forests of Khar.

The many layers of Khyber share similarity only in their strangeness and deadliness. Eberron is the natural world; Khyber is the source of fiends and monstrosities and the domain of the alien daelkyr. Some cults of the Dragon Below believe that paradise awaits them in the Vale of the Inner Sun, but such cultists also consider gibbering mouthers and mind flayers to be creatures of beauty. Wondrous treasures might wait in the worlds below amid hordes of demons and aberrations.

Khyber’s Influence in Khorvaire

In Khorvaire, you might…

Find a way to close a passage to Khyber before a horde of horrors emerges from it.
Battle a mind flayer that has established a cult in the sewers.
Stop the spread of a deadly drug or strange disease flowing from a well tied to Khyber.

Khyber is an ever-present threat. Any deep passage could connect to a realm of fiends or spew out an army of aberrations. Despite the magnitude of this threat, portals to Khyber are very rare, and they are stable once found. If you dig a hole in the ground, the odds that you’ll eventually reach the Vale of the Inner Sun are infinitesimal. And if a portal to Khyber existed in the sewers of Fairhaven, odds are good that it would already have been discovered. The risk arises when you’re exploring passages where no one has gone before. The sewers of Fairhaven might be safe today, but if an earthquake opens a new shaft or a group of cultists digs deeper, a previously unknown passage to Khyber could be uncovered. Wherever a passage to Khyber appears, monsters and dark powers can rise up to threaten the world above.

Cults of the Dragon Below often have ties to Khyber. Some serve aberrations or fight alongside dolgrims and dolgaunts (see chapter 6). Others can unintentionally threaten a community by releasing something from the underworld: an unnatural disease, a malevolent demon, or a strange and addictive drug. In dealing with such a cult, the question is not only how to stop their current machinations, but how to seal the passage or prevent it from posing an ongoing threat.

Treasures from Khyber can take many forms. The daelkyr create living tools, including symbionts (see chapter 5), but any magic item could be presented as an organic creation: a living cloak of the mountebank that teleports its wearer through the plane of madness; a dagger of venom made from chitin and muscle, similar to a scorpion’s barb; a crystal ball made by the daelkyr Belashyrra that looks like a giant eye, casting visions of distant places directly into the wielder’s mind. Items recovered from fiendish demiplanes might be constructed from standard materials but have a sinister aspect or appearance, such as a sword of life stealing from the Abyssal Forest of Khar made of jagged, blackened steel. Shadows trail the blade, and it issues a hungry moan any time it draws blood.

Trinkets from Khyber
d10	Trinket
1	A pressed flower with vivid green petals; when you smell it, you hear eerie music
2	A tiny ball of putty; if you set it down, it begins to slowly crawl around
3	A perpetually warm disk of dark iron
4	A small journal with leathery pages; any words you write in it slowly disappear
5	A four-sided die carved with strange markings
6	A cameo with the silhouette of an unknown species
7	A preserved finger with purple flesh and four joints
8	A perfectly preserved eye; if you set it down, it rotates to follow your movement
9	A small box; when opened, you alone hear screaming
10	A preserved insect; you’ve never seen another like it
North and South Poles
FROSTFELL

At the world’s poles—Everice to the south and the Frostfell to the north—you might…

Discover an ancient civilization hidden beneath the ice.
Search for the survivors of a lost expedition.
Find the source of a mysterious mystical signal.

It’s common knowledge that Everice is the domain of the Queen of Winter, an archfey who commands a host of winter wolves and knights carved from living ice. The queen lives in a glacial palace, and those who overcome her guards and the deadly weather to earn her favor can gain powerful boons.

It’s also common knowledge that Everice is the home of frost giants who escaped the destruction of Xen’drik. Now they hone their arctic magic and plot vengeance. However, a clan of white dragons battle the giants to keep them from growing too powerful. Woe betide the people of Khorvaire if dragon and giant ever set aside their ancient vendetta and join forces!

The Frostfell is thought to be the original homeland of the dwarves, and some believe that an ancient nation of dwarves still thrives under the ice. Others say that the Frostfell was once a verdant realm until the dwarves uncovered the prison of an archfiend, which buried their nation under endless ice. These scholars warn against disturbing this overlord, lest a new age of ice be unleashed across the entire world.

Mystery shrouds the poles of Eberron. A few expeditions have ventured to the Frostfell, but no one from Khorvaire has set foot in Everice in living memory and returned to speak of it.

The Frostfell’s and Everice’s Influence in Khorvaire

In Khorvaire, you might…

Clash with a cabal of winter warlocks serving a sinister power stirring in Everice.
Encounter a group of frost giants or Frostfell dwarves establishing a foothold in Khorvaire.
Discover a journal from a Frostfell expedition that reveals a horrifying threat.

The people of Khorvaire have no commerce with the arctic regions and no certainty about what lives there. If a threat comes from Everice, it might take time for people to identify its origin.

With this in mind, relics from Everice or the Frostfell could take any form. Are these treasures created by giants, fey, or dwarves? Are they carved from eternal ice, or are they forged from dwarven steel? If the civilization of the dwarves truly began in the Frostfell, did it fall into ruin, or are there progenitor dwarves who possess spells and weapons beyond anything known in Khorvaire? And how would these ancient dwarf lords react to their Mror descendants?

Trinkets from the Frostfell and Everice
d8	Trinket
1	A small prism carved from ice that doesn’t melt
2	A rusted iron coin, depicting a dwarf lord and the worlds “Five Rex Undra”
3	A pair of eight-sided dice carved from ice that doesn’t melt
4	A swatch of silvery fur that’s cold to the touch, possibly from a winter wolf
5	A snowball; it doesn’t melt and can’t be compressed into ice
6	A tiny white dragon sculpted from ice that doesn’t melt
7	A key carved from ice that doesn’t melt
8	A single scale from a white dragon
Sarlona

In Sarlona, you could…

Infiltrate an empire ruled by psychic overlords.
Defend an ancient mountain monastery.
Disable a monolith used to control the dreams of a city.

Tens of thousands of years ago, the vast continent of Sarlona was the cradle of human civilization. Three thousand years ago, the first human colonists left, setting in motion events shaping modern-day Khorvaire.

Sarlona was once home to over a dozen distinct kingdoms, but wars devastated the continent. From this chaos, a band of saviors rose up to forge a new world. Guided by celestial spirits and endowed with vast psionic powers, these champions became known as the Inspired. Today, the Inspired have united the broken nations into a single realm: the Empire of Riedra. Outsiders aren’t welcome in Riedra, and little is known of the nation. Merchants tell stories of massive monoliths that control the dreams of the people, and of secret police who use psionics to root out dissidents.

A single nation stands against the might of Riedra: the mountain refuge of Adar, homeland of the kalashtar (see chapter 1). The Adarans lack the numbers to challenge Riedra, yet they hold their fortress monasteries against endless waves of Riedran assaults. The Adarans possess remarkable psychic and martial disciplines.

Notable Locations

Like Khorvaire, Sarlona primarily occupies the northern hemisphere of Eberron, and it has all the climatic and topographic variety one would expect given its immensity. A few places in Sarlona known to Khorvairians are described below.

THE
SHARN INQUISITIVE

BENEATH THE BASALT TOWERS, PART 3

When I first spoke to the Morgrave board, I hid the details I share with you now. I did this not from malice, nor even from fear that I would be ridiculed, but rather because I could not bear to revisit the horrors I had seen beneath the merciless Menechtarun sands. I force myself to revisit them now only in the hopes that in so doing, I can prevent any fools from following in our footsteps and sharing the fate of my fallen friends.

We’d made camp in the upper floor of the tower, for thousands of years of shifting sand had left that as the easiest point of entry. We were surrounded by cyclopean bones, and I found myself facing the empty gaze of a skull taller than I was. Melanora questioned how these grim remnants could linger for so long, but I dismissed it as the remarkable effect of the exceptionally dry climate. If only I had given more thought to this matter, Melanora might still be with us today. Instead she lies lost beneath the basalt towers, trapped in hideous service to the ancient powers that dwell in the darkness.

For the full text of Professor Talbridge’s terrifying account, pick up the latest issue of the Sharn Inquisitive!

Dar Jin

This port city is the only legal point of entry for foreigners who wish to enter the Empire of Riedra. All travelers remain confined in the foreign quarter. Merchants from across Khorvaire trade for exotic Riedran goods, while envoys from many nations negotiate with the emissaries of the Inspired. To enter Riedra proper, travelers must obtain a transit visa from the Iron Gate, the office of foreign relations. The office grants few such visas; visitors must make a compelling case for entry or find a secret way to evade the watchful eyes of the Iron Gate.

Kasshta Keep

All but one of the monasteries of Adar lie concealed behind a blend of psychic and arcane techniques. Kasshta Keep refuses to hide from outsiders or the Inspired. It is the de facto capital of Adar and the abode of the Keeper of the Word, who guides the kalashtar people. High in the mountains, the monastery is reached by winches and lifts. Its inhabitants include wizards, monks, and mystics; if you want to play a monk from an exotic land, you could have learned your art in Kasshta Keep.

Ohr Kaluun

Riedra built its empire on the foundation of a dozen shattered nations. Scholars consider the loss of these nations to be a tragedy… except for Ohr Kaluun. The lords of this ancient kingdom were driven by deep paranoia and an all-consuming thirst for power. The sages of Ohr Kaluun studied the darkest paths of magic and bargained with fiends and other foul creatures. They warped their bodies through mystical rituals and pacts, creating the first changelings, skulks, and tiefling bloodlines. Ohr Kaluun was ultimately consumed by the feuds of its paranoid mage-lords and the crusading legions of its neighbors. Today, it is a shunned region, haunted and cursed. Dark secrets and great treasures remain in the vast war labyrinths of Ohr Kaluun, but fiends, wards, and far deadlier threats linger in this fallen kingdom.

Sarlona’s Influence in Khorvaire

In Khorvaire, you might…

Struggle to expose the schemes of an order of psychic assassins.
Steal a memory crystal from an Inspired ambassador.
Help an Adaran envoy deliver a vital message to a kalashtar elder.

Although outsiders aren’t welcome in Riedra, the empire is a powerful nation and a valuable trading partner. Riedra offered assistance to multiple nations during the Last War. Karrnath relied on Riedran aid to survive a wave of terrible famines, and Aundair also received support from Riedra. King Sebastes of Q’barra has used Riedran troops to maintain order in Newthrone.

Riedrans rarely appear on the streets of Khorvaire, but Inspired ambassadors attend every court. Although the Inspired present themselves as generous and kind, a darker force followed them across the sea. The Dreaming Dark is an enigmatic order of monks, assassins, warlocks, and mystics. Their ultimate agenda remains unknown, but they hunt the kalashtar and some believe they can control people by manipulating their dreams. While most people dismiss the Dreaming Dark as a foolish story, you might uncover the truth behind the tales.

Both the Inspired of Riedra and the kalashtar of Adar possess psychic powers, and treasures from Sarlona reflect this. A set of Sarlonan sending stones might take the form of crystals that allow telepathic communication. The rod of rulership, ring of mind shielding, ring of telekinesis, potion of mind reading, and the medallion of thoughts could represent psychic items from Sarlona.

In addition to psychic treasures, Sarlona is a source of a number of exotic plants and medicines. Dreamlily (described in chapter 4) is a useful Sarlonan narcotic, but over the course of the past few decades it has become a common recreational drug.

Trinkets from Sarlona
d8	Trinket
1	A polished crystal sphere; when you clutch it in your fist, a telepathic voice recites a story in your mind
2	A teardrop pendant made from polished shell; when you hold it, you see the image of a young Riedran man
3	A six-sided crystal die; when you roll it, you feel a surge of emotion for six seconds
4	A sealed vial filled with faintly luminescent blue mist
5	A crystal disk engraved with a labyrinthine pattern
6	A leather-bound collection of kalashtar poetry called Shards of the Light
7	A sphere of polished crystal; when you hold it in your palm, you feel that it knows you and understands you
8	A cup and ball toy; when you successfully catch the ball in the cup, you feel a momentary surge of joy
Xen’drik
MAP 2.3: CONTINENT OF XEN’DRIK
VIEW LARGE VERSION

In Xen’drik, you could…

Seek to destroy an ancient mystical weapon before it falls into the hands of villains.
Battle savage giants in the ruins of their ancient cities.
Match wits with cunning drow in the depths of a primordial jungle.

Any follower of the Sovereign Host knows this story about Xen’drik. In the dawn of time, the Sovereigns bound the fiendish overlords and freed the world from chaos. The mighty giants had fought alongside the Sovereigns, and in gratitude Aureon granted them dominion over the continent of Xen’drik. Aureon taught giants the secrets of wizardry, and they grew powerful. The giants built towers that touched the sky and seemingly endless cities.

The mightiest among the giants was the titan Cul’sir. His power was so great that he pulled the thirteenth moon from the sky and crushed it in a fit of anger. The giants ruled many lesser races, and eventually the elves rose up against them. Cul’sir unleashed plagues upon the rebellious elves. He made assassins of elven shadows and turned them back against their owners. Still the rebels persisted. In his anger, Cul’sir prepared to pull down the rest of the moons to hurl them at his enemies, even though he’d destroy the world in doing it. But the giants had gone too far, and Aureon set the dragons of Argonnessen upon them. The dragons destroyed the vast cities and leveled the towers. Cul’sir was slain and his people scattered.

The Sovereigns and Six each laid a curse upon the land. Aureon decreed that the creatures of Xen’drik would have no knowledge of law, and Boldrei proclaimed that no city would stand. The Traveler distorted the land so that no path followed twice. The Devourer unleashed fire and storm. And so Xen’drik remains a land of mystery, a realm that cannot be mapped, a place that holds secrets that could shatter the world.

This story bears at least some truth. The elves were once slaves of the ancient giants, and the dragons did eradicate the civilizations of Xen’drik. Great magic has warped the land. The environments of Xen’drik are extreme and unpredictable, and travelers might find a glacial expanse in the midst of a vast desert. Tens of thousands of years have passed, yet no civilization has risen to the heights of the fallen giants; some believe that Aureon’s and Boldrei’s curses ensure that any city that grows too large collapses into madness. The Traveler’s Curse twists space, and explorers might follow the same path twice only to end up in entirely different locations.

Xen’drik is a continent that defies control. Expeditions have unearthed artifacts of immense power, as well as fields of Siberys dragonshards (see chapter 5), but once you leave a site, you might never find it again.

Giants still roam Xen’drik, but these creatures have never regained the glory of their ancestors. Tribes of drow—said to be the shadow-assassins created by the Emperor Cul’sir—linger in the darkness. These represent just a few of the threats in this vast land.

Notable Locations

Many ports dot the coast of Xen’drik. In addition to the treasures of the giants, Xen’drik is a source of Siberys dragonshards and other exotic resources. Scholars and merchants come to Xen’drik on business, smugglers seek to make extra gold, and pirates prey on everyone. Ports come and go, falling prey to monsters or natural disasters. But two harbors have stood the test of time.

Dar Qat. The Inspired lords of Riedra are just as interested in the resources of Xen’drik as the people of Khorvaire. Dar Qat is a Riedran port, a fortress built from glittering crysteel (grown crystal as strong as steel) and dwarfed by a nearby monolith believed to serve as a psychic anchor for the city. Outsiders are rarely welcome within the walls of Dar Qat.

Stormreach. Once a haven for pirates and smugglers, Stormreach has become a thriving port that serves as the passage to the Xen’drik interior. All the dragonmarked houses have outposts in the city, and it is home to refugees, renegades, criminals, and others who have no place on the other continents. The city is ruled by the council of Storm Lords, who hold absolute power. As Stormreach is built on the foundations of an ancient giant city, ruins abound around and below the city. Some fear that if the city continues to expand, the growth will trigger an ancient curse. But for now, Stormreach is a prosperous community and a gateway to adventure.

Xen’drik’s Influence in Khorvaire

In Khorvaire, you might…

Befriend a drow making their way in the new world.
Stop the Emerald Claw from using a giant artifact to destroy a city.
Aid a scholar in deciphering a book of prophecy found in the heart of Xen’drik and brought to Stormreach.

The tremendous diversity of the people of Xen’drik means that no single trait defines objects and artifacts from this land. The primitive drow make armor comparable to studded leather using the chitin of giant scorpions. Rumors abound of more advanced drow civilizations in the layers of Khyber that lie beneath Xen’drik. The elves lived and fought in Xen’drik before the exodus that took them to Aerenal, and elven artifacts remain scattered across the region. And the grandest treasures include the work of the giants—which can often be difficult to use because of their size. The spellbook of a giant wizard might hold priceless secrets, but the bulky tome can be quite awkward for smaller folk.

Trinkets from Xen’drik
d8	Trinket
1	A punched ticket for a voyage from Sharn to Stormreach
2	A scorpion’s barb engraved with a single Elvish letter
3	A copper coin so big you could use it as a dinner plate
4	An image of an elf warrior engraved on a giant’s tooth
5	A single page from a giant wizard’s spellbook, bearing an incomplete spell
6	A scrap of parchment, part of a map of Stormreach
7	A small book titled Feersome Beests of Zendrik
8	A scrimshaw carving of a sahuagin

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