Stonelands

The Stonelands was a rocky and hilly region of moorlands north and south of the Storm Horns mountain range, to the north of Cormyr.

Geography
The Stonelands consisted of dry, rocky moorlands split by valleys and hills, but it had a harsh beauty. It was marked by knife-edged ridges, deep ravines, caverns and overhangs. The term was broadly applied to the uninhabited lands of northern Cormyr and beyond, encompassing the wilderness north of Eveningstar and Arabel, the foothills of the Storm Horns, and the deadly wastelands bordering on the Anauroch desert.

The southern Stonelands started with the Stonecliff's limestone escarpment, forming a rough plateau of broken, treacherous ground north of the High Road, transitioning to the granite foothills of the Storm Horns.

The northern Stonelands were often considered the "true" Stonelands, as they were far more wild and inhospitable than those south of the Storm Horns. The eastern bounds were roughly delineated by the Moonsea Ride, though the wilderness was not really distinguished from the rolling plains of the upper Immerflow and the foothills of the Thunder Peaks. The northern edge passed into the true desert of the Anauroch, and the western edge mingled with the Goblin Marches and the High Moors, further regions of broken, stony ground.

Government
Although Cormyr claimed this land as part of its territory, it could not control it beyond where its soldiers marched. It was an inhospitable place for civilized humanoids and was home to orcs, goblinoids, and other creatures. Cormyr's monarchs long offered generous rewards for those who could establish and maintain settlements in the region.

History
Many legends told that the Stonelands were created circa when Asram and Anauria attacked a magical realm that existed above the clouds of the region, called the Cloudlands, in order to escape the encroachment of the ever-expanding Anauroch desert on their kingdoms. The castles built above the clouds crashed down to the earth from the sky, creating the Stonelands.

The bandit lord Jhassilm Onespear held a citadel in the Stonelands, before it was stormed by the mercenary Brandon some time before 1356 DR.

In the, Princess Alusair was operating in the Stonelands again, commanding a troop of twenty-four young noble knights pursuing a bold orc band that had raided a caravan east of Eveningstar. In six days of pursuit, they'd killed a hydra, a fire lizard, and three chimeras. North of Startop Peak, the knights impetuously pursued the orcs into an ambush, and a few were killed. Alusair rallied her forces to defeat the orcs, before deducing they served a dark naga and the Zhentarim, who had been charming and transporting monsters into the area. They defeated the naga and destroyed the gate before it could disgorge another monster. Alusair and the knights resolved to seek out and destroy the other gates.

Geographical Features

 * The Eastern Storm Horns were great mountains that rose out the center of the Stonelands, and provided a natural barrier against threats from the north. They roughly divided the Stonelands into northern and southern halves.
 * Startop Crag was a peak in the Stonelands just south of the High Meadows.
 * Gnoll Pass was the main northern passage of Cormyr that cut between the Eastern Storm Horns and the Gnoll Peaks.
 * The Helmlands were a dangerous and unstable region of tar pits, wild magic and dead magic zones, named after the god Helm.
 * The Starwater River descended from the Storm Horns across the Stonelands, cutting through Eveningstar Gorge in the Stonecliff, the steep limestone crags of the Stonelands' southern edge.

Notable Locations

 * Fortifications
 * Castle Crag, a great fortress of the Purple Dragons that guarded the Gnoll Pass.
 * Castle Kilgrave, a fortress that briefly served as home for the avatar of Bane.
 * Wyvernwatch Castle, a fortified tower that was controlled by Lord Vorik Aris.


 * Landmarks
 * Cavern of Death, a cave network inhabited by the lich Asbaron.
 * Caverns of the Claws, a notorious cave troll-hold in the Stonecliff.
 * Forgotten Keep, an ancient ruined Netherese watchtower.
 * Ironguard, an old, shallow tomb.
 * The Laughing Head, a mysterious stone marker.
 * Warrior's Crypt, a nigh-mythical place that drew countless treasure-hunters to the region.
 * Whisper's Crypt, a small underground Zhentarim base.


 * Roads
 * The Moonsea Ride, a major road that skirted around the eastern edge of the Stonelands as it passed from Arabel to the Dalelands and Moonsea.
 * The Stonebolt Trail, a trail that split from the Moonsea Ride in Gnoll Pass and ran parallel with it across the Stonelands, converging with the North Ride at Shadow Gap.


 * Settlements
 * Big Bone Deep, the fortress home of the fearsome Spleen Eaters tribe of orcs.
 * Griffon Hill, a tiny village along the Stonebolt Trail.
 * Halfhap, a fortified town that acted as a base for the Purple Dragons.
 * Redspring, a village south of the Storm Horns.
 * Tilverton, a major city that was annexed by Cormyr.


 * Ruins & Dungeons
 * Barrenstone, the home of the lich Adzerak.
 * Darkenshield, a village along the Stonebolt Trail destroyed by Gondegal's forces.
 * Rivior's Keep and the Haunted Halls, ruined fortifications of the warlord Rivior.
 * Slingdyke and the Slingdyke Arms, a former Purple Dragons hillfort and ruined inn.
 * The Tower of Ruin, a cursed heap of rubble.

Inhabitants
Folk of northern Cormyr feared the Stonelands as a place that all kinds of monsters poured out of to harry them, from wolves to orcs to trolls, and even evil wizards and dragons. Other dangerous creatures that were known to inhabit the Stonelands included chimeras, fire lizards, goblins, hill giants, hobgoblins, hydras, ogres, and wemics.

A few varieties of dinosaur lived deep within the Stonelands, though all were small ostrich-sized species. These included deinonychus, fleshrakers, swindlespitters, and velociraptors. All of these species hibernated in deep rifts near earth nodes and volcanic flows. They were never known to race along the heights of the Stonelands or ventured far from the region, as they feared being eaten by dragons, dark horrors, or Zhent foulwings.

Appearances

 * Adventures
 * ''Four from Cormyr
 * Novels:
 * Azure Bonds • Cormyr: A Novel • The Ring of Winter