Flamsterd (isle)

Flamsterd was an island settled by wizards and other magic-users. It lay to the west of Gwynneth.

Some time before 1367 DR, a wizard named Flamsted (who gave the island its name) emigrated to the island from Waterdeep, along with many of his apprentices to practice magic in privacy. He was regarded as being a relatively gentle man, and was accepted by the native Ffolk of the isle.

Flamsterd began taking on apprentices from local Ffolk settlements, and constructed a tower on the southern peninsula of the island. Flamsterd and his apprentices greatly improved the quality of life on the isle, now named for him. Crops flourished, livestock thrived, and storms would divert course from the island.

As Flamsterds apprentices grew in power, they began to compete with one another, and turn against their teacher. As their competition grew more violent, several young mages began to die, and dangerous creatures, such as owlbears and leucrotta, roamed, and the native Ffolk fled from the southern peninsula.

Through the actions of Flamsterd's apprentices, the island became a desolate wasteland. Flamsterd seemed to vanish from the island, and one night, his tower along with most of the southern peninsula, exploded, removing half of the land mass of the island. Flamsterd and his apprentices have not been seen in the public since. Elminster, a friend of Flamsterd remarked: "I make this entry with sadness, for Flamsterd and I have become fast friends in our decades together in Waterdeep. The mage was always a trifle, well, eccentric, but he was a true master of his craft. In fact, he was in many ways a pioneer in the development of the arcane arts. I find it hard to accept the fact that he is dead"

- Elminster Aumar

However, Flamsterd did not die in the chaos that erupted from the actions of his apprentices. In his frustration, and perhaps mercy, he turned the remainder of his students into toads and salamanders. He then sunk part of the island to the bottom of the sea. There he worked in peace in a tower surrounded by a bubble of air with new apprentices.