Geography of the Alven Marshes

Introduction

The Alven Marshes are one of the most treacherous, remote, and poorly understood regions of Alven. It sits right in the middle of the country and, as such, for many generations, has formed a natural barrier between east and west. Most of its Wilds, known as the Morgunt's Marshlands, have been left virgin by human interventions, and only a few, mainly impoverished and often isolated communities, live on its outskirts.

Recently, some wealthy bordering clans, such as Clan Deeryant, spurred by the advancements in Groundcience, have started sending adventurers and explorers to uncover the Morgunt Marshes' secrets, but little headway has been made to this day.

The Alven Marshes remain an unexplored enigma and a perilous watery labyrinth where only the Marshlands' clansmen who have been born and bred within the Green Hell know how to navigate.

Ruler and Owner

Most of the Alven Marshlands are owned by four different clans. Clan Wylfedd holds The Reivers' Marshes in the northeast while Clan Hawkspaar and Clan Ravensen, the south.

In the West, the powerful Clan Deeryant has a tenuous hold on the Morgunt Marshes - the mainly unexplored swamplands south of Loch Morgunt.

Geography

The Alven Marshes stretches for milethrows after milethrows south of Loch Morgunt. It is defined by two large, fast-flowing rivers that flow into the huge loch: River Aiker and River Carlwheen.

River Carlwheen and Clan Deeryant

To the east, there is the River Carlwheen, which sets a boundary to the Alven Marshes and is within Clan Deeryant's land. There is a stark contrast between the lands to the left and right of the river banks. To the west stretches the fertile plains of the Deeryant's, to the east, the near-impenetrable cold swamps of the Morgunt await the unwary traveller.

Despite Clan Deeryant's best efforts, no communities have been able to settle far off the Carlwheen's. People consider this part of the Morgunt Marshes cursed, and numerous strange weather and geological phenomena are reported to occur there.

Within the last fifty years, Clan Deeryant has been keen to settle the more favourable Morgunt coastline. There is now a small outpost of hardy clansmen who have built a small port west of Bleckmulh. The harbour is still tiny in comparison to its neighbour, Bleckmuhl. Clan Deeryant's Clanbearers would like to use the small port of Gallduff to explore and exploit the resources within the Morgunt wilderness. Clan Deeryant, in their ambition, would like to rename this part of the Marsh: the Deeryant's Marshes. However, until now, the wild swamps of the Morgunt have proven to be a perilous and challenging exploration.

The Aiker Moss(Clan Hawkspaar)

South of the River Aiker, clansmen from Clan Hawkspaar eke out a meagre life in the sodden Moss of the southern Marshes. The Aiker Moss is ensconced between the wilds of the Morgunt Marshes and the desert-like uplands of the Polak Fells.

The communities on the Aiker Moss include small towns such as Mossaiker, Stanaikpol , and Polaikside. Among the three main towns, Mossaiker is by far the wealthiest, having the enviable position of being situated on the navigable banks of the busy River Aiker and at the crossroads of routes to and from Hollyholm, and at the southern end of the Mossy Bridge. It is also the site of a well-known pilgrimage -the Moss King's Wayfare.

There is one of the Eastern Alven. The Sanctuary tolerates these ancient prayer sites because they generate good revenues for the order. Most of the Holy Oaks' pilgrimage sites have been repurposed to the cult of the goddess Brigand.

Many youngsters from the Moss are moving to Mossaiker or further afield to Hollyholm, as there are many more opportunities to make a living and even a fortune in these bustling cities these days than in the impoverished Mosslands.

The Crowlands

Further west, along the long, fertile plain at the foot of The Great Towers Range, lies the clanlands of Clan Ravensen. An ancient and until recently, quietly agricultural, wealthy clan. Traditionally, Ravensen clanbearers have kept away from Alven politics, more interested in maintaining their way of life in a rapidly changing country.

The clan rules over the Crowlands, a relatively safe part of the Morgunt Marshes. Communities in the Crowlands keep to the relatively safe banks of the Crow Waters and make a living from the river: fishing, moving goods.

The main towns in the Crowlands are Eastbleck and Cairnbleck to the east, and Blackseggy to the west.
There are three other less well-known villages or outposts situated much deeper in the Crowlands, that are more steeped in the Marshes: Pulleck and Beckstankhill or Stankhill for short (on the River Aiker).

Then, there is the oddity that is Bleckmuhl on the shore of Loch Morgunt on the estuary of the River Aiker. Bleckmuhl was the only harbour on that side of Loch Morgunt until Clan Deeryant sent clansmen to open up the Gallduff outpost. Bleckmuhl trades mainly on Loch Morgunt - there is no known safe passage between Bleckmuhl and Pulleck.

It is worth mentioning that the town of Eastbleck also benefits from the pilgrimage to another of the Seven Sacred Oaks: the Sky Giant. There is a heavy Sanctuary presence in Eastbleck because of it. The Sanctuary has recently built a new site for their order in Eastbleck: the Sky Sanctuary, at the foot of the Polak Fells. The site's particularity is that it straddles both Clan Ravensen and Clan Hawkspaar's clanlands, as both clans wanted the sanctuary building in their lands.#

The Reiver's Marshes

 

The Reivers' Marshes or Marsh is situated south of Wylfholm , the seat of Clan Wylfedd. The Reivers' Marsh is the populated portion of the Morgunt's Marshlands on the esat side.

The Morgunt Marshes are unpredictable and inhospitable. To this day, there are no settlements within what has been dubbed 'the Green Hell'. The Reivers' part of the Marshlands to the east has a few human settlements, but is still an extremely harsh environment.

The marshes are prone to sudden terrain changes and flooding, which makes their crossing life-threatening and impossible unless you know the secret paths that go through them.


The main settlement within the Reiver's Marshes is Mirkwode. This is where the former Reiver clanbearer still have their seat of power within Clan Wylffed. Mirkwode is surrounded by the very dangerous Mirkwode Bog.

Further east, towards the wilder part of the marshes, submerged forests trace unknowable patterns on the landscape. This part of the Marshlands is called the Sink. Only very few communities manage to eke out a living in the cold, drowned forests and glades.

Small villages such as Wylmire remain hidden within the swamps and are hard to reach if you do not know the safe paths through the bogs.

For more information, see The Reivers' Marshes