Khundul

Khundul was a small hamlet in the Raurin. Impoverished after the destruction of Solon, trade in the zone began to flourish anew around the mid-to-late 15 century DR.

Description
The hamlet consisted of about seventy dugout homes and warehouses. However, only twenty were inhabited as of the mid–15 century DR, while twenty more had been caved in and filled with sand.

Geography
Khundul lay in some rolling hills at the foot of the Raurinshield Mountains. The local water table had a depth of about, being fed by aquifers from an underground lake beneath the mountain; the city itself functioned much as an oasis.

Government
After trade began to return to Khundul, at least one man commandeered a band of toughs and put on the title of Zaor. He was murdered by a rival, who was in turn murdered by another. The latest Zaor as of the late 1400s DR was Ulthort Eroun, from Zindalankh. He charged a copper piece for all major transactions, building permits, and wagon parking (which came with access to a latrine and a water pump).

Trade
There had once been iron and copper mines around Khundul, but the shallow digs had been abandoned by the mid–15 century DR. Around that time, locals and visitors began to prospect the mines again, but found more Underdark connections than anything else and encountered little of value, just lurking and hungry monsters.

Around 1460 DR, they traded in gems taken from the ashes of Solon and marble that they bought from the stone giants of Fuirjar. The hamlet traded with Zindalankh through a magical portal. The Zaor also purchased preserved foods from that city, which he sold for a copper above cost in town.

Defenses
The town watch was an all-female band of ruthless adventurers that had come into town with the latest known Zaor, Ulthort Eroun. They called themselves the Erbuyad, and were responsible for fighting off goblin raids, collecting taxes, and keeping order.

Nevertheless, the city was often raided at night by a local goblin tribe, the Raadvurr.

History
Khundul used to be a stop west of Solon for caravans headed for Midwinter Pass, but it spent about a century at subsistence level after the volcanic eruption that destroyed Solon in the. A century later, around the, the locals from Khundul began to discover gems scattered around the ashes of Solon, possibly scattered by the eruption. They began to trade with the stone giants of Fuirjar, and with Zindalankh through a magical portal.

Rumors & Legends
There were rumors that the warehouses in Khundul still held some gemstone cargoes. Other, more sinister rumors, spoke of undead "stalkers" hidden inside clay jars in these same warehouses, having risen from dead caravan escorts that were so buried. The zombies were said to hunt goblins, but be uninterested in the locals so long as they didn't touch the jars. There were also rumors of wizard tombs hidden around the zone, with fell curses, dread monsters, and (of course) riches awaiting within.

Notable Locations
One of the oldest, largest cavern-houses had a portal to Zindalankh that was discovered by the mid-to-late-15 century DR.

Inhabitants
The town had a hundred and some inhabitants.