Firehammer Hold

Firehammer Hold was a temple-fortress dedicated to Haela Brightaxe, a dwarf hero-goddess purported to grant luck in battle, located in the Forlorn Hills of northwest Faerûn.

Location
The temple was found within a tunnel complex beneath the eastern end of the northernmost hills of the Forlorn Hills, known as the Watchers of the North.

History
Firehammer Hold suffered a long and gradual reduction in it's numbers of staff and residents to the point that the remaining dwarves there decided that they could no longer effectively defend themselves from threats. Shortly after the founding of Delimbiyran, rumors were deliberately spread that a deadly plague had befallen the fortress in the hope that fear of infection would ward off potential foes. Old tales of treasures left behind before the plague though, attracted adventurers. The dwarves dealt with these incursions by hiring the adventurers to recover relics and artifacts from dwarven holds that they knew had fallen to orcs. So successful was this practise, that Firehammer Hold became known more commonly as Torstultok, the Hall of Grand Hunts - a place where dwarves and glory-seeking adventurers of other races could go to find work delving in the ruins of fallen dwarven kingdoms. The clergy of Haela even created and surreptitiously spread maps that would lead the curious to Torstultok.

Although reduced in number over the years, Haela's faithful maintained control of the hold up until Thayan wizards planned to capture the region in the late 15 century DR. With Baazka the pit fiend as an intermediary, the Red Wizards of Thay made a pact with a duergar clan leader named Nalifarn and asked him to invade Firehammer Hold and seize its forges. The gray dwarves dug a passage from the Underdark into the lower levels of the hold and attacked, assisted by elemental creatures summoned by the Red Wizards. Taking Haela's followers by surprise, the battle was fierce but brief; none of the faithful survived. Once in charge of the fortress, allies of the duergar, especially hobgoblins, scoured the countryside for people to kidnap and enslave for work in the mines around the hold.

Notable Locations

 * Shrine to Haela Brightaxe
 * Shrine to Dumathoin
 * Cenotaph
 * Chapel of the Watcher