Hulmaster Keep

Hulmaster Keep, also known as Daggergard, was a small keep located in Hulburg on the Moonsea. Prior to the construction of Griffonwatch Keep in the late 14 century DR, it served as the ancestral home of the Hulmaster family and the seat of Hulburg's ruler, the harmach.

Location
The keep was due west of Hulburg proper on the west side of the Winterspear River. After the construction of Griffonwatch on the east side of the river, the Burned Bridge was built to link the two fortifications. Daggergard was located on Keldon Way, a street that circled Hulburg and connected to the trading district by the harbor. It sat next to a field where the Hulburgians could muster their troops.

Structure
The keep was small and dismal-looking with a prominent watchtower. By the mid-to-late 14 century DR, it was old, had weathered multiple sieges, and was battered and run-down. As of the late 15 century DR, it was still in somewhat of a state of disrepair.

Interior
The inside of the keep was drafty, dusty, and generally depressing. It contained a great banquet hall, a barracks, and private chambers for the Hulmasters and their guests.

Defenses
Daggergard served as a barracks for Hulburg's forces. Despite its somewhat dilapidated state, it was one of the most fortified and thus defensible places in Hulburg, and would shelter townsfolk during an attack. In the mid-to-late 14 century DR, only a dozen soldiers manned the keep.

History
As the ancestral home of the Hulmaster family, the keep had seen and survived many sieges of Hulburg over the centuries. Following the near complete destruction of the city in the, by the forces of Zhentil Keep, it was the only building that showed any real signs of life in the ruins. It continued to be the home of the Hulmasters over the next few decades despite their flagging fortunes. By the, the master of the keep was Argyl Hulmaster, who would begrudgingly provide hospitality to travelers, but often with the ulterior motive of trying to pressure the most attractive or wealthiest of his guests into marrying one of his children.

By the, one of Argyl's sons, Angar Hulmaster, was lord of the keep. The family fortune had continued to wane and only a few servants remained in the keep. At this time, a contingent of the Red Plumes mercenaries from Hillsfar, led by captains Hekman Odelmor and Kindon Marstel, took over Hulburg, and dozens of their troops occupied the barracks and consumed the keep's supplies.

Angar would go on to build Griffonwatch, which would become the new home of the Hulmaster family. Hulmaster Keep came to be known exclusively by its alternative name, Daggergard, and was used only as a barracks and defensive structure as of the late 15 century DR.

Appearances

 * Novels
 * Swordmage &bull; Avenger
 * Corsair
 * Short Stories
 * "The King in Copper" in Realms of the Dead
 * "The King in Copper" in Realms of the Dead