Damara

Damara was a sparsely populated kingdom in the Cold Lands of Northeast Faerûn. In 1357 DR it was ruled by King Virdin. Later ruled by King Gareth Dragonsbane as of 1371 DR, and, with Vaasa, formed the Bloodstone Lands. In 1479 DR, it was under rule by King Yarin Frostmantle.

""Bloodstone and metals are common like in Vaasa, but the climate is just a shade warmer. It's enough to make herding work, and even farms in the warmest parts, but is still a harsh land. After all the troubles out of Vaasa, weary folk live here, and wary, too. Not a land I'd want to settle in -- winds so harsh that you can tell how they blow in any vale by the way all the trees lean. Rocks everywhere, too. A hard land."

- Anonymous Harper agent

Geography
Damara was located in the Cold Lands, and along with neighboring Vaasa, comprised the Bloodstone Lands. It was bordered to the west and northwest by the Galena Mountains, separating it from Vaasa and the Moonsea, and to the east by the Giantspire Mountains and the Rawlinswood (later called the Dunwood), separating it from Narfell. It's northern boundary stretched as far as the Great Glacier, and its southern boundary was marked by the "Sidewinder Rivers," a collective term for the Sidewinder and Lench rivers, separating it from Impiltur.

Forests
The Earthwood forest was a small forest known for its resilience, with trees growing back extremely quickly. Damaran begonias were valued as a decorative potted flower, popular as far as the city of Melvaunt, the Moonsea region.

Mountains
The Galena Mountains were a jagged range of icy mountains that were largely inhabited by goblinoids and giants, but were also home to dwarves who mined the bloodstone, iron and silver deposits. Bloodstone Pass was the only pass through the Galenas that was large enough for significant trade, linking Damara with neighboring Vaasa to the west.

Rivers
Several major rivers wound through Damara. Some, like the Goliad River and the Beaumaris River, were slow moving and calm enough to support trade, and were navigated using keelboats or barges. Others, like the Great Imphras River and the Sidewinder River, could be treacherous but were likewise important shipping routes and could be used as roadways when they froze over in the winters. Meanwhile, the Icelace River and the Galena Snake were seasonal and dangerously swift, with the former being fast enough to never freeze, but both nevertheless served as important routes through the north of the realm. Finally, the River Lench marked the southern boundary with Impiltur, and was dangerous enough that no army would risk attempting to cross it. River crossing in general could present a challenge for travel throughout the realm, with river fords being important sites. Dalen's Ford fell along the major trade road, but the most famous crossing was the Ford of Goliad, which confusingly crossed the Beaumaris River rather than the Goliad River.

Roads
Many of Damara's roads were old, and were often impassable during the winter months when the frozen rivers provided alternatives. The major exception was the King's Road, a well-maintained route that connected most of the major cities of the realm, and prior to the mid–14 century DR, had continued all the way to Bloodstone Pass. Meanwhile, travelers heading south to Impultur followed Merchant's Run between the Earthspur Mountains and the Rawlinswood, while those heading east to Narfell and beyond followed the Long Road through Tellerth and the Giant Gap in the Giantspires.

Climate
Winters were harsh. During the summer, the farming season was short.

Government
From its earliest days, Damara was divided into counties or provinces ruled by noble houses but united under the throne of Damara. These counties were divided into city provinces, with craftsmen and trade centers, and supply provinces, with farming and mining communities. These areas were:
 * City Provinces
 * Barony of Morov
 * Barony of Ostel
 * Barony of Polten
 * Supply Provinces
 * Duchy of Arcata
 * Barony of Bloodstone
 * Duchy of Brandiar
 * Duchy of Carmathan
 * Duchy of Soravia

Early History
Beginning in -2475 DR, Damara and the rest of the Cold Lands were locked beneath the Great Glacier until it began melting and retreating northward in 1038 DR.

Damara's capital, Heliogabalus, was founded by Feldrin Bloodfeathers, the first King of Damara, in 1075 DR. It had a long line of monarchs until the death of King Virdin in 1357 DR by Zhengyi. During this time, Damara thrived on foreign trade, particularly through caravans to Ilmwatch in Impiltur and to the settlements on the Moonsea, through the gap between Rawlinswood and the Earthspur Mountains known as Merchants Run. Shipments of bloodstone were made throughout Traders Bay, and in Sarshel. Trade was also made through the Bloodstone Pass in the Galena Mountains, through the sparsely populated Vaasa, and through Garumn's Climb and beyond.

The Witch-King
In just one night in 1347 DR, Castle Perilous was created on a crag in northern Vaasa by the lich Zhengyi, who claimed power in Vaasa, garnering the support of the goblins, giants and orcs, as well as creatures from other planes and the undead, and the Grandfather of Assassins.

In the same year, Wolf Winter struck Damara, in which the harvest was destroyed by early frosts, leading to widespread starvation, and dire wolves, some lycanthropes, spread into northern Damara. This coincided with an evil creature infesting the Bloodstone Mines, halting the mining operation that was responsible for almost half of Damara's bloodstone revenue and killing hundreds of miners.

In 1348 DR, the Vaasan War began in earnest when the armies of the Witch-King Zhengyi occupied Bloodstone Pass and swept into Damara, massacring many Damarans and plunging the nation, along with Vaasa, into a decade of war. Narfell and Impiltur offered no help with the conflict on the grounds that they had their own problems to deal with.

A stalemate was reached in 1357 DR when King Virdin's Damaran army was involved in a standoff with Zhengyi's forces across the Ford of Goliad. The stalemate lasted throughout the month of Kythorn until Virdin attempted to use a magic wand which he believed would allow his army to safely cross the river. However, the wand was a fake, and was believed to have been given to him by his chief lieutenant, Felix, who was secretly an assassin in service of Zhengyi. The Witch-King's army struck while much of Virdin's army was in the river, laying the decisive blow. Virdin, who was watching from a nearby hill, was assassinated by a dagger used by an unknown assassin, believed to have been Felix.

Due to their failure in the Battle of Goliad, Damara came under the power of the Kingdom of Vaasa. The northern provinces of Damara were deserted and the refugees fled to the south of the kingdom. During this time, the Kingdom of Damara was non-existent, as it became a land for a few dukes and barons independent from each other. These independent leaders, many of whom had risen to power after the war with Zhengyi’s help, were forced to pay tribute to Vaasa and acknowledge the power of their northern neighbor.

Damara Restored
Gareth Dragonsbane and a group of six of his adventuring companions eventually managed to break the Witch-King's rule after a number of adventures and a series of battles comprising the Bloodstone Wars, culminating in the defeat of Zhengyi himself in. In that same year, Gareth Dragonsbane was crowned King of Damara.

Under Gareth Dragonsbane’s rule, the fortunes of Damara would see their peak. Over the decades of his reign, King Dragonsbane focused on rebuilding Damara's economy and on mitigating potential threats from the stragglers of Zhengyi's forces. He and his allies founded the intelligence network Spysong to counter the Citadel of Assassins, and in the, they repelled an invasion by Sammaster and the Cult of the Dragon masquerading as a returned Witch-King.

From the beginning of his reign, Baron Tranth of Bloodstone had encouraged him to conquer Vaasa. To this end, Gareth lured adventurers to Vaasa with promises of land, mineral wealth, and exorbitant bounties on monsters and evil humanoids in order to pacify the region. By the end of his reign, he had successfully annexed Vaasa into his kingdom. This new unified kingdom of Damara and Vaasa was dubbed the Kingdom of Bloodstone, and the capital was moved from Heliogabalus to Bloodstone City.

The Fall of Bloodstone
Following the events of the Spellplague, a new evil organization known as the Warlock Knights arose in Vaasa and began accruing power. In 1459 DR, following political unrest caused by the assassination of Gareth's descendant, Queen Brianne Dragonsbane, the Warlock Knights marshaled an army of conscripts and evil humanoids to rebel against the Kingdom of Bloodstone. The war began in 1460 DR, and in 1469 DR they overran Bloodstone City, razed it, and garrisoned the ruins. The Warlock Knights' victories meant the end of the Bloodstone Kingdom, which fractured back into Vaasa (controlled by the Warlock Knights) and Damara. Damara's capital returned to Heliogabalus, now called Helgabal.

Damara at this time was in disarray both militarily and politically. The richest and most ambitious man in the kingdom, Yarin Frostmantle, had thrown the kingdom into chaos as he sought to ascend to the throne. He was suspected of being involved in the assassination of Queen Brianne, and it was an open secret that he was subsequently responsible for the assassination of King Murtil Dragonsbane, the last of Gareth's heirs. Following King Murtil's death, Yarin successfully usurped the throne sometime in the 1460s DR. As king, Yarin Frostmantle was considered by many to be a petty, incompetent, and oppressive tyrant. He maintained an army of foreign mercenaries specifically for eliminating vassals whom he thought questioned his legitimacy, and it was commonly feared that he might undercut any future defense against the Warlock Knights by killing his own military leaders out of spite. He was also known to have executed his fifth and sixth wives after they failed to provide him with an heir.

By 1479 DR, King Frostmantle's reign was characterized by increased threats to Damara's borders, including monsters from the Great Glacier to the north, demons from the Dunwood to the east, and raiders from Narfell to the northeast. Despite this, the only threat he seemed willing to address was the Warlock Knights to the west, who maintained their forces in Bloodstone Pass, and so he had the Damaran Gate at the south end of the Pass fully garrisoned and supplied for an invasion.

At some point during the 1480s DR, King Frostmantle's seventh wife, Concettina Delcasio, was abducted by Malcanthet, the Queen of the Succubi. This incident ended with Yarin Frostmantle being assassinated and Concettina succeeding him as Queen of Damara.

Notable locations

 * The Bloodstone Gates
 * Helgabal (formerly Heliogabalus)
 * Monastery of the Yellow Rose
 * Tree-Gem of Bloodstone

Inhabitants
The people of Damara were generally hardy. Although many Damarans in the mid-to-late 14 century DR were bitter about the loss of their former way of life before the rise and fall of Zhengyi, the worship of Ilmater gave them strength in the face of hardship and high hopes for the future. Paladins of Ilmater, particularly those from the Order of the Golden Cup, were a common sight, as were monks of Ilmater from the Monastery of the Yellow Rose.

Notable Inhabitants

 * Gareth Dragonsbane
 * Ellery Dragonsbane
 * Pavel Shemov
 * Athrogate

Appearances

 * Adventures
 * Bloodstone Pass • The Mines of Bloodstone • The Bloodstone Wars • The Throne of Bloodstone • The Bloodstone Lands Campaign
 * Novels
 * Promise of the Witch-King • Road of the Patriarch • The Rite • Hero
 * Short stories
 * That Curious Sword • Wickless in the Nether
 * Video games
 * Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone
 * Icewind Dale II &bull; Neverwinter Nights: Tyrants of the Moonsea
 * Icewind Dale II &bull; Neverwinter Nights: Tyrants of the Moonsea

Connections
Damara