Bloodgates and Dor Morash

The territories that would become the SIlent Lands were once part of the Umber Reach, a part of the Plane of Shadow. At the time the gods broke apart these lands and stole them, they were ruled by the Pale King, the highest undead servant of the semi-divine Umber Lords. The Pale King was unwilling to give up his kingdom, so when his former lands became part of a new world he had magical portals built that connected his capital city, Dor Morash, to various locations in the Silent Lands.   For centuries the Pale King ruled from his extra-planar capital. Eventually, the Fomorian city of Akhetan and the Cyclopean city of Baikal revolted and marched their armies into Dor Morash. Although neither army returned, the forces of the Pale King were never heard from either. For decades the gates to Dor Morash remained closed as no-one dared to activate them to go and see what happened.   When finally the first brave explorers ventured to Dor Morash once more they found nothing but a dead city. No living or undead beings remained. There were signs of a massive battle, but no traces of fallen soldiers. Both giant armies as well as the undead forces of the Pale King seemingly vanished into thin air.   In the aftermath the two giant cities expanded and began their millenia long domination of the Silent Lands. Dor Morash was never reclaimed but the gates and the city became an easy way to cross the vast distances of the Silent Lands. Their use is not without danger however as many travelers who try to cut across Dor Morash are never heard from again. Staying for a prolonged time and spending a night in the cursed city is considered to be suicide.   After the fall of the giants' empires a lot of arcane knowledge and practice was lost and the use of the gates lessened. Only recently, with the rise of powerful city states such as Akek, Amon and Azul has their shortcut once again become more popular.   Not all the the Silent Lands are connected through the gates. The Yosh-Oni Shogunate in particular lacks access to a gate near their homeland. There are also no gates known the the south of the Emerald Steppes, so those lands remain mysterious and unknown to the inhabitants of the Silent Lands.   The gates that give access to Dor Morash are known as Bloodgates because of the ritual that opens them. Activating a gate recuires the sacrifice of a living creature. Once acitvated the gate remains open for 1 minute. Opening the gate counts as an incantation with the following statistics:   Open Bloodgate
Conjuration (Teleportation)
Effective Level: 9th
Skill Check: Knowledge (arcana) DC 25, 2 successes; Use Magic Device DC 25, 2 successes; Spellcraft DC 25, 2 successes, Knowledge (religion) DC 25, 2 successes
Components: V, S, M (living creature), SC (at least 2 participants)
Casting Time: 40 minutes (5 minutes/dice roll)
Range: Touch
Target or Targets: 1 Bloodgate
Duration: 1 minute
Saving Throw: none
Spell Resistance: no (harmless)