The Lands of Warlderia

Mysterious Places

Across Warlderia lie countless ruins whose origins have long since passed from living memory. Some were once mighty fortresses guarding forgotten frontiers, others magnificent temples raised to gods whose worship has faded into history. Great cities, lonely watchtowers, abandoned monasteries and entire settlements now lie broken and overgrown, silent monuments to kingdoms that flourished long before the modern age. Many were destroyed during the Higher Wars, whilst others simply declined as trade routes shifted, rulers fell or their people abandoned them for more prosperous lands. In some cases, no one now remembers why they were built or why they were deserted. Only weathered stone, shattered walls and half-buried roads remain to hint at the lives once lived there.

Time has not left these places empty. Many have become the lairs of monsters, the strongholds of brigands or the refuge of desperate outcasts. Others are haunted by darker things. Restless spirits wander abandoned halls, forgotten enchantments continue to guard treasures whose owners died centuries ago, and strange lights are sometimes seen drifting through ruins where no living creature has dwelt for generations. Local folk often avoid such places entirely, leaving them to superstition and whispered tales. Yet it is these forgotten ruins that continue to draw explorers, scholars and adventurers from across the continent. Some seek the wealth left behind by vanished kingdoms. Others pursue ancient knowledge believed lost to history, whilst a few hope to recover powerful relics from the earliest days of civilisation. Every ruined city promises discovery, but every expedition carries equal measure of danger. Many return bearing treasure, forgotten lore and tales of strange things hidden beneath the earth. Many more are simply never seen again.

The Lands of the Restless Dead

Throughout Warlderia there are places where death has never truly claimed its victims. Ancient battlefields, cursed cities and forgotten kingdoms have become domains where the dead refuse to rest, animated by dark magic, ancient curses or powers older than recorded history. Some are haunted only by lonely spirits, whilst others are ruled by mighty necromancers, vampire lords or liches whose ambitions survived long after their mortal lives ended.

Many of these lands were scarred during the Higher Wars, whilst others have origins far older, their true histories buried beneath centuries of fear and superstition. Civilised kingdoms avoid them whenever possible, trade routes bend around their borders and local people speak of them only in hushed voices. Yet even these cursed realms attract explorers, scholars and adventurers. Forgotten treasures lie undisturbed beneath haunted ruins, powerful relics remain hidden within abandoned temples and many secrets of the ancient world can only be discovered by those willing to walk amongst the restless dead.

Few journeys in Warlderia are more dangerous. Few promise greater rewards.

The Enchanted Lands

Across Warlderia lie places where the fabric of the world has grown thin and the influence of the Fey still lingers. These enchanted lands take many forms, from ancient forests and secluded valleys to mist-covered islands and forgotten gardens reclaimed by nature. Some are places of breathtaking beauty where flowers bloom throughout the year and crystal streams seem to sing as they flow. Others possess a darker reputation, where travellers disappear without trace, time passes strangely and bargains made beneath the trees carry consequences long after they have been forgotten. Many of these places predate the arrival of the Higher Races and are believed to have been shaped by the Fey during the earliest ages of the world. Even where the Fey themselves have vanished, the enchantments they left behind continue to influence the land. Seasons may change without warning, paths lead travellers in impossible circles, and ancient stones still hum with magic whose purpose has long been forgotten.

The Enchanted Lands are as varied as the Fey themselves. Some are ruled by noble courts that occasionally welcome respectful visitors, whilst others have become wild domains where strange creatures roam freely and mortal laws hold little meaning. Beauty and danger exist side by side, and those who judge these places by appearances rarely survive long. Scholars, adventurers and treasure hunters are inevitably drawn to these forgotten realms. Ancient relics, powerful enchantments and lost knowledge are said to lie hidden within them, whilst many of the greatest legends of Warlderia began with someone wandering from the familiar path and crossing into an enchanted glade. Yet those who return often speak of impossible experiences—of companions who vanished from memory, of days that became years, or of feasts that proved to be nothing more than dreams.

There is an old saying repeated throughout Warlderia: "Enter the Enchanted Lands with an open mind, but never with an open promise."

For the Fey have long memories, and few bargains made within their realms are ever truly forgotten.

Cursed Places

Throughout Warlderia there are places where the past refuses to be forgotten. Ancient betrayals, failed enchantments, divine punishments and magical catastrophes have left scars upon the world that neither time nor nature has been able to heal. Some curses linger for centuries, affecting only a single ruined tower or forgotten tomb. Others have poisoned entire valleys, forests or mountains, transforming once prosperous lands into places feared by all who know their history. Many of these locations were created during the Higher Wars, when magic on a scale rarely seen before or since reshaped the face of the continent. Others are far older, their true origins obscured by myth and legend. Entire cities have vanished beneath unnatural ice, fertile kingdoms have become barren wastelands, and noble houses have disappeared beneath curses that still claim new victims long after their names have passed from memory.

The effects of these curses vary enormously. Some twist the land itself, causing crops to fail, rivers to change course or unnatural storms to gather overhead. Others prey upon the minds of those who enter, filling them with despair, madness or terrifying visions. In a few places, the dead refuse to rest, whilst elsewhere time itself seems to flow differently, trapping travellers in endless cycles or causing years to pass in the space of a single night. Most sensible folk avoid such places whenever possible. Roads are diverted around them, villages abandoned and warning stones erected to discourage the curious. Yet rumours of hidden treasure, forgotten knowledge and powerful relics continue to lure adventurers into these blighted lands. Some curses conceal ancient secrets that could change the course of history, whilst others guard horrors that were never meant to be disturbed.

There is an old saying amongst travellers: "Every curse was once somebody's solution."

Few who hear those words realise how often they are true.