Shining Falls (village)

Shining Falls is a beautiful 120 foot tall waterfall that forms part of the Delimbiyr and once marked the southernmost point of the elf realm of Eaerlann. For many years it was also surrounded by a village that shared its name.

History
The dwarf stonemason Iirikos Stoneshoulder built a tower of granite for an Illuskan wizard named Silifrey the Spraystrider against the wishes of his elven friends who claimed that she dabbled in dark magic. He ignored his friends & quickly finished his task with the aid of summoned elementals. Unknown to all, Iirikos warded the tower with magic that would give life to any evil spell cast within its walls which would then attack the caster. Silifrey was dead within a month after moving in.

Several villages popped up surrounding the Granite Tower over the years, but without fail, every one of them suffered from the mysterious disappearance of its residents.

Rumours abounded that the spirit of Silifrey Spraystrider appears occasionally and is the cause of the disappearances and that there are crypts hidden beneath the village which house the undead skeletons of all those who have vanished over the years. The last century has seen the village ruled by the Fengrath family, former mercenaries who escorted caravans between Loudwater & Thelthin’dul (the name of the town before it became Shining Falls). All of the citizens had vanished and the elven caravan drivers refused to ever come near the place. The Fengraths moved into the Granite Tower and declared themselves rulers of the place. No one argued with them.

Just over a decade later, a large group of Strongheart Halflings asked to move into the vacant buildings and the Gauntlet at the time agreed. The great-grandson of that Gauntlet ruled over the village in 1372 DR.

Long-standing rumours suggested that there was an entrance behind the waterfall to a secret, unexplored dwarven hall built by Iirikos just prior to his death. No such vault exists but the rumour was still believed by many. Other tales told of the Zhentarim having a base in the area. While this was never confirmed or denied, the Half-elf Renegades had hidden their main base of operations very close to the waterfall.

Leadership
Deogol Fengrath is a powerful wizard who has built himself a shield guardian bodyguard. He rules with a light hand, preferring to leave the day-to-day running of things to his sheriff so that he can concentrate on his magic in peace.

Layout
Shining Falls now shares many attributes with Loudwater. It is lush and small copses of various trees (birch, oak, ash & blueleaf) dot the place. Also like Loudwater, the village is bordered to the north by forest but it’s not the vegetation that draws the eye in Shining falls, it’s the breathtaking 120 foot high waterfall after which Shining Falls was named. The village’s buildings are built in concentric circles that spread out like waves around the Granite Tower. Roads also coming from the tower lead straight out, giving the village the appearance of a wagon wheel if viewed from above with the roads as its spokes. The buildings themselves are single story, stout houses for the most part, built to accommodate the predominantly halfling population. A few elven tree-houses remain, left behind after the disappearance of their last occupants but otherwise the rest of the buildings consist of grain silos and barns.

Just north of the village, within the forest boundary, was the Hearthcircle of Yondalla. While the building itself was only a cottage in a clearing, it served as the centre of worship for the entire village.