Shining Falls (village)

Shining Falls was a halfling village near the waterfall of the same name in the Delimbiyr Vale in the Savage Frontier in the late 13 and 14 centuries DR. It was preceded by many human and elf settlements on the same site.

History
Occupation of the site began with the Granite Tower, which the master dwarf builder Iirikos Stoneshoulder built for an Illuskan wizard named Silifrey the Spraystrider. He ignored the warnings of his elven friends, who'd heard Silifrey practiced dangerous dark magic, and quickly finished his task using summoned elementals. But he also installed magical wards that would activate and destroy any who worked evil magic within its walls. Silifrey was dead within a month after moving in.

Afterward, several settlements grew up around the Granite Tower over the centuries, with nearly half-a-dozen human communities and at least two elven ones. But, without fail, every one of them suffered the mysterious disappearance of nearly all its residents, with the reason for or connection between these disappearances unknown.

The latest known was that of the elven colony of Thelthin'dul. The elves sent caravans between Loudwater and Thelthin'dul, which were escorted by the Fengrath family of mercenaries. The last caravan, some time before 1272 DR, returned and discovered all of the citizens had vanished. The few remaining elves in the caravan refused to ever come near the place, so the fearless Fengraths moved into the Granite Tower and declared themselves rulers of the renamed town. No one contested their claim.

The new ruler, Gauntlet Walenburh Fengrath, invited other halflings to join them in the 1280s DR. They came and they flourished, heedless of stories of curses and ghosts.

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.

Description
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.

Rumors & Legends
By the late 14 century DR, folk feared that the Granite Tower was cursed or still haunted by the vengeful spirit of Silifrey the Spraystrider, and moreover that she sometimes went on rampages and was the cause of the disappearances. Legends added hidden tunnels beneath the tower and village that housed the undead skeletons of all those who'd vanished over the years. The halflings scoffed at such stories.

Appearances

 * Organized Play & Licensed Adventures
 * Extermination