Spearhead Forest¶
Spearhead Forest is a large region in eastern Drehmal. The region's landscape is composed of spruce forest and grassland. Its name references the pointed, coniferous trees that heavily populate the area.
Geography¶
Spearhead Forest is located on and encompasses a large portion of the eastern coast of Drehmal. The region is bordered by the Nahynaga Mountains to the west, separating it from Purity Peaks and the North Heartwood, and the Verdant Mountains (including the Verdant Labyrinth) to the south, forming a boundary with the Black Jungle and Eye of Vir. It also borders Grand Pike Canyon to the northwest and Highfall Tundra to the northeast.
The western, inland section and majority of the region's land area is covered in forest with tall spruce and oak trees and partial-podzol floor. The areas near the northern and central shore are more open and grassy, and the trees here are thinly dispersed. A large lake filled with gigantic lilypads and flowers lies in the region's center. Two large islands, known as the Shattered Peninsula, lay a substantial distance away from the mainland in the ocean to the southeast. The region's terrain is mostly flat, with a few small cliffs (especially along the shoreline) and crags with gray, white and beige stone. Beaches of gravel, dirt and clay line the coast.
Environmental Sub-Regions:
- Spruce and oak coniferous forest in west
- Large lake/inland sea in the center of the region
- Sparsely wooded grassland along northeastern coast
- Shattered Peninsula (wooded islands in southeast)
Spearhead Forest is home to the coastal town of New Mossfield on a peninsula in the southeast and the small village of Helmshire in the western forest, below the Nahynaga mountains.
History¶
In the early and/or mid-Second Avihm, the entire region was ruled by the powerful, Virmari-led Empire of Vir, with power being consolidated in the northern city of Virsuhl. It is unknown if Virsuhl was the empire's official capital, although it is the most likely candidate. The empire declined and eventually collapsed due to poor management by its rulers.
Virsuhl continued to serve as a center of commerce, particularly for trading timber, and it most likely never fell under the rule of Avsohm. Avsohm appears to have stayed out of the rest of the region as well for its entire duration.
In the mid Third Avihm, the introduction of airships used for trading brought about the rapid growth of the port city of Mossfield. When the Order of Insohm was established, it was initially based here before Castle Hovadchear was constructed in the region's southwest and declared its headquarters. An independent state known as the "Insohmic Commonwealth" was also founded in Mossfield to preside over the Order of Insohm.
The Order was joined by many countries, including the Provinces of Vir, which had likely formed in the north of the region earlier in the Avihm. Both the Insohmic Commonwealth and Provinces of Vir fought against separatists to secure the Order's unity during the Insohmic Civil War, and emerged victorious. It is also probable that they acquired territory in the West during the Battle for Drehmal.
After the sudden disappearance of Master Vahid at the end of the Third Avihm, the Order of Insohm devolved into chaos, resulting in the destruction of Mossfield and the alliance's dissolution. Today, only the Insohmic Commonwealth in the smaller town of New Mossfield claims affiliation with the Order.
Virtuo's faith remains the region's dominant religion today.
Regional Map¶
Map of Spearhead Forest (sold by Adventuring Merchant in New Mossfield):
Terminus Tower¶
The Spearhead Forest tower.
Spearhead Forest's Terminus tower is located on the region's eastern coast, just north and across the water from New Mossfield. Its bottom half is enveloped by the hollow base of a tree trunk. There are no hostile entities present.
Coordinates: (X: 4125, Y: 174, Z: 1194)
Points of Interest¶
Castle Hovadchear Crater¶
Coordinates: (X: 3324, Y: 32, Z: 1815)
Castle Hovadchear was once the grand headquarters of the Order of Insohm and likely the home of Master Hovadchear himself. In the late Third Avihm, the entire building as well as the ground beneath it suddenly vanished, leaving only a large crater behind. Today, a small, stone building overlooking the crater contains a memorial to Hovadchear Myrik (who went missing alongside the castle), which is guarded by "The Mourner". This structure contains the Hovadchear's Greathammer legendary weapon.
Helmshire¶
Coordinates: (X: 2892, Y: 73, Z: 1284)
Helmshire is a small village within the forest of the region's west. Its buildings use various types of wood, as well as brick, stone and concrete. The village experienced a period of time in the late Third and early Fourth Avihm in which children were frequently abducted by a local Skeveraan for experimentation. Half of the population eventually abandoned the village.
Insohmic Coven of Potentia¶
The Coven of Potentia was a group of "Chosen", who were Drehmari selected by the Order of Insohm for having high perceived potentia (power of soul). They were confined and trained at a facility on the eastern shore of an island far to the east of the mainland Spearhead Forest, with the goal of unlocking power that could be harnessed by the Order. The Chosen were physically threatened in order to be kept under control. The building and the surrounding woods were burnt down when one powerful member went rogue, causing operations to cease. Rhalon, Maelihs's first Burnt General, set out on an expedition in the Fourth Avihm with several guards to explore the ruins of the Coven of Potentia, where they still dwell today.
Coordinates: (X: 5031, Y: 92, Z: 1523)
Insohmic Library Tower¶
The Insohmic Library Tower is a small, stone tower that stands on an island to the east of the ruins of Mossfield, connected by a bridge to the mainland peninsula. It was used as the headquarters of the Order of Insohm after the disappearance of Castle Hovadchear, and the old Insohmic Council members continue to reside here. The Peace Treaty legendary weapon is found here.
Coordinates: (X: 4547, Y: 98, Z: 1587)
Lily Meadows Inn¶
Lily Meadows Inn is a colorful inn in central Spearhead Forest, on a small island amidst a large lake with giant lilypads and flowers. It contains many rooms and a restaurant, along with several traders. The game's most popular food vendor among community members is found here.
Coordinates: (X: 3707, Y: 66, Z: 901)
New Mossfield¶
New Mossfield is a port town on Spearhead Forest's southeastern coast. Its buildings are built of spruce wood and stone, with moss-covered roofs. The town came into being after the older and larger city of Mossfield fell into ruin at the end of the Third Avihm.
Coordinates: (X: 4142, Y: 65, Z: 1725)
Ruins of (Old) Mossfield¶
Mossfield was originally built as a port for an unknown kingdom some time in the Second Avihm. It rose to prominence in the early Av3 500s, when the recreation of airship trade made it an optimal hub of commerce. It quickly grew in size, and became the capital of the Order of Insohm (shortly) and Insohmic Commonwealth. As the Order expanded, Mossfield developed into the largest city in Drehmari history and a center of industry, art and knowledge. It was mostly destroyed at the end of the Third Avihm by intense riots, as Insohm fractured following the departure of Master Vahid. The grand city's stone ruins lay just up the hill from the modern town of New Mossfield.
Coordinates: (X: 4333, Y: 102, Z: 1574)
Ruins of Sevick¶
Sevick was an isolated town on a small, solitary island in the eastern ocean. Its inhabitants were driven into a frenzied paranoia about a supposed deadly plague after a diseased Gozaki trader washed up on the shore. Three died from attempts to perform surgery on themselves, and the rest permanently evacuated the island. The remnants of the abandoned town still remain.
Coordinates: (X: 5030, Y: 86, Z: 1070)
Ruins of Virsuhl¶
Virsuhl was a large city in northern Spearhead Forest during the Second Avihm. It was a powerful part of the Empire of Vir until their collapse, and it continued to exist as a regional center of trade through the time of Avsohm. The city's faint, stone ruins can still be found in the midst of a forest, with the Alviran Signet Shield artifact.
Coordinates: (X: 3971, Y: 72, Z: -43)
Skeveraan's House¶
A large, lakeside house was home to a Skeveraan who was responsible for abducting many of the children in nearby Helmshire, unbeknownst to the villagers. The Skeveraan is a sect of Bionic Alchemists, and its practitioners are widely condemned by other alchemists. They stitch together features of different corpses into one entity, in order to fabricate creatures with the benefits of its constituent parts. The basement of this house was used as a secret laboratory, hidden under the pleasant-looking upper floors which supported its owner's friendly guise.
Coordinates: (X: 3130, Y: 30, Z: 1273)
Timberhearth Observatory & Museum¶
Timberhearth Observatory & Museum is a building positioned on a bluff in the region's northeastern grasslands, and is a reference to the game Outer Wilds.
A multitude of artifacts are set on display inside: a gravity-defying pillar from Avsohmic ruins, a set of alchemical supplies, a rehntite catalyst from Av'Sal, an ancient mosaic from the Black Jungle, a gemstone holding divine magic from Purity Peaks, some rubble from Rhaveloth, chunks of material from the Kiln of Virtuo, saplings from the North and South Heartwood and an Avsohmic holograph apparatus from Sal'Anyr. The upper floor functions as an observatory with a telescope dome and an orrery.
Coordinates: (X: 4138, Y: 127, Z: 288)