Brooder's Crossing

The town was the head of the feudal province Freevern, which was ruled by the High Kingdom of Beurum and later the Trebai Ascendancy.

In the Fourth Era, following the conclusion of the Imperial War, House Wolfram was a prominent Trebai family that occupied a powerful but non-governmental position in the neighboring town of Rovna. Seeking greater power, the family broke off to claim land of their own. Though initially regarded as a foolish move by House Rovna, House Wolfram's choice of location for what would become Brooder's Crossing proved extremely fruitful. Transformed from a desolate trading post into a functioning village, Brooder's Crossing possessed assets such as fertile soil, a location at a crossroads, and, most importantly, deposits of silver beneath the surface. The mine allowed the village to quickly overtake Rovna and become the seat of government in the region. The settlement also became famous for its orchards, where large amounts of apples were grown and turned into cider.   The village grew into a small town, and a fortress, Greywatch Keep, was built for House Wolfram. Near the end of the Fourth Era, however, the town's silver deposits began to run dry, and, despite its high amount of trade, the town started to enter into a decline.   The Twenty-Year War occurred not long after this. During the war, the town was the site of a battle between the First Spearhead army and the forces of the Trebai Ascendancy. A large portion of the town's populace was killed, and the area was briefly occupied by Makovai forces before they abandoned it. Brooder's Crossing was recaptured near the end of the war, and was repopulated by its remaining inhabitants. Mostly destroyed, the town resumed activities in a much weaker state. There were not enough funds present to prevent the town's outer reaches from becoming overgrown ruins, and Greywatch Keep, highly damaged, largely remained that way.   Furthering controversy in the town was the framing of Lord Mallan Wolfram by one of his knights, Gaius Bernard. The matter was solved by a group of heroes in 8077, and Wolfram was restored to power, while Bernard was exiled. Under Wolfram's rule, a large amount of the settlement's gold reserves were stolen, drawing a large amount of criticism towards Wolfram. In 8082, Wolfram was saved from an assassination attempt by his would-be fiance, Alda of Rovna, by a different group of heroes. In 8083, generally disliked by his subjects, Wolfram accompanied a group of heroes to find the druidess Blue Eagle, an old lover. Wolfram left to go live with this individual upon her rescue, leaving the town under the rule of Aristeo of Rovna, who he thought would be a better ruler.   Under Aristeo's Rule, the town enjoyed a revival. New building projects occurred, and the new lord used experimental tactics to take care of the region's bandit problem, which proved largely successful.

The town was home to a large amount of farmland, which was very fertile as a result of the nearby River Victory as well as the swamps around Green Marsh. In addition, the climate proved excellent for the growing of Trebai Apples, which the town became known for.   Of most importance to the town was a silver mine, though these deposits were largely exhausted by the start of the Fifth Era.