Phlan

Phlan was a large frontier town on the Moonsea region of north Faerûn with a long and storied history. Founded nearly a millennium before the Era of Upheaval, endless cycles of the town's destruction and determined rebuilding saw it grow more resilient and formidable. This led to the Phlan being walled off into two halves, a destroyed, ruined Old Phlan and a rebuilt, shining Civilized Phlan. Like many settlements of the Moonsea North, the people of Phlan possessed an streak of individualism and sort of chaotic freedom that allowed them to survive the harsh life associated with their homeland in the Realms.

In addition to being a monument to the stubbornness of the Moonsea people, the city was famous as the home of one of the fables pools of radiance, the source of powerful for a legendary otherworldly spirit.

Description
Circa the 14 century DR, the city of Phlan was divided into two regions: Civilized Phlan, the area set within the city's great stone walls that was reclaimed by its citizens, and Old Phlan, the region of the city beyond, that was overrun by monstrous creatures.

Due to the evil forces that were hidden within the

Geography
Phlan was located on the northern shoreline of the Moonsea at the mouth of the Stojanow river.

Government
with a half-orc fighter named Kella Voskorm serving as its last noted High Councilor (before 1340 DR?)

As of the mid–14 century DR, Phlan was governed by a ruling body known as the Council of Ten, composed of judges that presided over the city's courts. An individual referred to as "Number One" served as the head of the council while also holding the officer of town mayor. The council had a high turnover rate, as no-confidence elections were held regularly for even the smallest of mishaps.

In the, Zhentarim Hatemaster Cvaal Daoran dissolved the council, declaring himself as Lord Protector of Phlan.

Military and Law enforcement
Circa the mid–14 century, Phlan was defended by a militia force just over a hundred strong, known as the Black Watch.{[fact}}

The Knights of the Black Fist were Phlan's military. Formerly a religious order of the Church of Bane. After Ector Brahms became Lord Regent, the Knights gained a reputation for corruption.

The Vilhon Mercenary Corps was also brought into Phlan ostensibly to combat the Knights of the Black Fist.

Circa the late 15 century DR, Red Plumes mercenary company from Hillsfar maintained a headquarters in phlan.

Law & Order
A thieves' guild called the Welcomers operated openly within the city during its reconstruction, the members of which cut off their left ear as a sign of loyalty. As most residents of the town were aware of the guild, the guild earned its name by preying on visitors to the city.

Trade
Phlan was known as a stopping point for caravans conducting overland trade across the trade routes and trails of the Moonsea North.

Paths which lead out of Phlan:
 * Iron Route headed west towards Zhentil Keep.
 * Phlan Path headed east towards Melvaunt.
 * Torath's March headed north along the eastern side of the Quivering Forest.
 * Stojanow Trail headed north along the western side of the Quivering Forest along the Stojanow River.

Defense
The city had a militia of about 120, though a local clan of dwarves pledged 100 troops as help to the city. However, the city's walled nature was its greatest defense against invaders.

Religion
A Banite cult that worshiped Iyachtu Xvim (but called him Bane) was the official religion of Phlan. The cult was known for being relatively moderate in comparison to the main Church of Bane based out of nearby Mulmaster.

The Most Solemn Order of the Silent Shroud was a group of worshipers of Kelemvor whom Cvaal Daoran gave the responsibility of the care of Valhingen Graveyard. They were allies of the Emerald Enclave.

History
Phlan was founded in the,  as a trading outpost between the elves of Myth Drannor and the dwarves of the Dragonspine Mountains.

Phlan was leveled for the first time in the, during the First Turnabout, a massive attack by the Dark Alliance of humanoids who swept down onto the Moonsea region to attack Northkeep.

After three centuries of laying in ruin, Milsor the Valjevo had the city rebuilt in the, and commissioned the construction of the magnificent Valjevo Castle, that was completed eighteen years later.\. After the abandonment of Hillsafar following the fall of Myth Drannor in the, refugees poured into Phlan and it grew to be the largest settlement on the north shore of the Moonsea.

In the, the Zhentilar made the first of many attempts to conquer their eastern neighbor, claiming that citizens of Phlan had raided their territory (though this claim was likely erroneous) but didn't count on Phlan's ally Melvaunt disrupting their siege. A four-year war resulted in Phlan becoming a reluctant signatory to the Treaty of the Ride in 906 DR, which saw Zhentarim influence over the city increase dramatically.

Along with the other powers of the Moonsea, Phlan sent a contingent of soldiers to rebuild and occupy the Citadel of the Raven fortress within the western Dragonspine Mountains in the.

The, saw the second destruction of Phlan, as ogres completely overran the city that was unprepared for such an assault. Phlan was rapidly rebuilt by the stubborn survivors, just in time for the city to enter into the Moonsea War with their neighboring city-states three years later. While the cities of Hulbug and Sulasspryn were conquered by Mulmaster, Phlan joined into an alliance with Hillsfar, Melvaunt, Sembia, and even their former foes in Zhentil Keep to put down the Mulmastan forces.

Just as the war ended in the, Phlan was invaded by a great host of dragons and their armies from the lands of Thar known as the Dragon Run. As the Moonsea's other powers were recovering from the brief war that just flared up and ceased, Phlan received no help from neighboring city-states. For the third time in its history, and the second time in three years, Phlan was left to ruin – though this time, all of its citizens were slaughtered en masse.

The Coming of Tyranthraxus
While it is not known how much of a hand the spirit of the yugoloth-like extraplanar entity Tyranthraxus had in the Dragon Run, around the same time, it managed to trick the ancient bronze dragon Srossar into bathing in the pool of radiance, a portal to an unknown dark plane underneath the Valjevo Castle. When the dragon entered the pool, Tyranthraxus took possession of the dragon and commenced immediately to build an army of monsters for the subjugation of Faerûn.

By the year, Tyranthraxus had near complete control of Phlan with the exception of a small human settlement on its docks. Using the civilized docks as a base, a new City Council formed by children of the original merchants of Phlan and new speculators formed, and attempted to reclaim the city. Adventurers flocked to Phlan to help clear these monsters out in return for the generous bounty offered by the new Council.

Using the services of a trio of adventurers to clear out the occupied areas of the city, Councilman Porphyrys Cadorna quickly rose to the position of First Councilman. By this time, the adventurers had succeeded in retaking most of the city, though Tyranthraxus still remained under Valjevo Castle in control of the pool of radiance. After learning of the existence of the Pool, Cardona became obsessed with it, wishing to use its it power to expand his own. When the possessed dragon was finally defeated by the adventurers, Cadorna attempted to seize control of the pool, only to be possessed himself by Tyranthraxus and forced to its waters, teleporting him the fallen councilman to the plane Tyranthraxus called home.

Seizure by Bane
The saw a scheme by the god Bane to teleport Phlan and several other Moonsea cities teleported from their locations to serve as soul farms to the Lord of Darkness in Banehold. The Thayan Red Wizard Marcus and the pit fiend Tanetal were charged with taking Phlan,   but defied Bane's initial command of teleporting the city Bane's realm. Instead, the two moved Phlan into a cavern underneath the Red Wizard's tower southeast of Zhentil Keep. They planned to feed souls of the residents of Phlan to the pool of darkness to increase their own powers before handing it over to Bane.

Marshaling the defenses of the city was the wizard Shal Bal and the cleric of Tyr Tarl Desanea, two of the three Heroes of Phlan that freed the city from Tyranthraxus a decade earlier. With the two heroes leading the defense, Marcus and Tanetal were unable to take control of the city, despite numerous full assaults and the fact that the city was trapped directly under Marcus' tower.

Meanwhile, the third member of the legendary group, Ren o' the Blade, went in search of the city after it's disappearance. Aided by two druids under directions from Silvanus, an undead paladin of Tyr named Miltiades, and a wizard named Evaine, Ren managed to find the tower and joining with Tarl and Shal, was able to defeat the Red Wizard and send the pit fiend back to the Nine Hells. The defeat of Marcus and Tanetal broke the spell holding the city under the tower and the city was returned to its former location on the Moonsea.

After being annihilated three times in its history, and transported to another location in the Realms, Phlan was nearly entirely destroyed yet again during the Rage of Dragons that devastated the Eastern Heartlands in the. While the city lay in ruin for at least a year, reconstruction began slowly and continued for the better part of a decade, before being sped by the expertise of gnomes and dwarves. At the same time however, the nearby powers of Zhentil Keep and Hillsfar vied for influence and control of its citizens, who were merely trying to reclaim their former lives.

Zhent Occupation
By Tarsakh 3 of, Phlan had been fully conquered by the forces of Zhentil Keep. Within five years the government had been dissolved to be replaced by the tyranny of Cvaal Daoran when he dissolved the Council of Ten and name himself the Lord Protector of Phlan.

Daoran also handed custodianship of undead-infested Valhingen Graveyard over to the Order of the Silent Shroud, a sect of the church of Kelemvor. sect who defeated the evils within and, with the help of the Emerald Enclave, turned the Graveyard into a pristine garden. During the Shadowbane War of 1383 DR however, Cvaal forged an alliance with the dark fey of the Quivering Forest and managed to slay a shadovar prince, thereby ensuring that his city did not meet the same fate as Zhentil Keep. The hearts of his subjects softened thanks to his valiant defense of the city and they accepted his rule with little complaint, allowing his dynasty to claim rights as monarchs. In turn, the rule of Cvaal's government and that of the local Church of Bane also softened. The next several decades saw the Netherese and the elves of Myth Drannor quietly trying to exert their influence over the city, but neither of them could claim any real successes.

15 Century
In the, Cvaal's son Talaric Daoran decided to send loggers into the Quivering Forest, voiding his father's agreement with the fey. Talaric mysteriously disappeared that night, never to be seen again.

In 1480 DR, attacks by local barbarian tribes led to refugees swarming toward Phlan but it was eventually discovered that the barbarian attacks were caused by the coming of Maram and when adventurers made sure that Maram's return did not occur, Phlan was saved once more.

In 1488 DR, Talaric's son, Anivar Daoran died in an apparent accident while overseeing renovations on Valjevo Castle. Ector Brahms, the Knight Commander of Phlan's Banite military, the Knights of the Black Fist, was declared Lord Regent because Anivar had sired no heirs. Ector's grasp on power was weak and he quickly established martial law to enforce his will—a deeply unpopular move. There were riots, which involved the looting and destruction of the Lyceum of the Black Lord, the city's temple to Bane, and traders began avoiding the city.

With so little trade, the formerly prosperous city began to decline and the violence got worse too. The city's guilds, whose masters had been the power behind the throne during Anivar's reign, decided to concentrate on profiteering instead of cooperating with each other to stabilize the city. The many construction projects sponsored only scant months ago were left stagnating, with tools and materials piled in the streets. As people lost jobs and market prices rose, the Knights struggled to maintain a semblance of order and rival factions developed to forward their own interests. Even The Welcomers, Phlan's long-standing thieves guild, became politically active, initiating acts of violence against those they perceived to be threatening their city. Most trade in the city became illegal in nature, as the black market became the only reliable way to turn a profit and crime was at an all time high.

14 Century

 * Inns, Festhalls & Taverns:
 * Bitter Blade, a dockside inn that mostly caters to sailors.
 * Cracked Crown, the city's most expensive inn.
 * Laughing Goblin Inn, a high quality inn that was considered the best in town.
 * Madam Freona's Teakettle: A haven from the tumult of the city and a great place for adventurers to find work. Run by the mysterious halfling Madame Freona and her five daughters, Blaizette, Briez, Grelinda, Reece and Whittlee.
 * Nat Wyler's Bell : A dive bar in the poorer part of the old city.
 * Nobles' Quarter: Home to the wealthiest of the city, this section of town and its cobblestone streets was meticulously maintained.
 * Velvet Doublet: A festhall that caters to the wealthy. Known to satisfy those with exotic tastes.


 * Landmarks:
 * City Hall, the seat of power and meeting place of the Council of Ten.
 * Kuto's Well, a drinking well that concealed entrance to Phlan's underground catacombs.
 * Podol Plaza, Phlan's open-air market.
 * Scholar's Square, the central place of learning in Phlan, this area contained trade schools, wizard academies, sage houses, and most notably, Mantor's Library.
 * Valjevo Castle, the majestic castle of Phlan and home of the city's ruler.
 * Stojanow Gate: Protected the courtyard entrance to Valjevo Castle. Adorned with figures of heroes, dragons, and gods, the gate stood about 60 ft. tall, 100 ft. long, and was 30 ft. thick. The iron bound doors of the gate only closed in times of war.
 * Valhingen Graveyard, the city's graveyard sat against the far western side of the Stojanow River.
 * Sokol Keep, a once ruined temple to Tyr on Thorn Island, that was converted into a large mansion and lighthouse by House Sokol.


 * Residences
 * Denlor's Tower, an abandoned wizard's tower that was claimed by the secretive Red Wizards Rowena.


 * Shops:
 * Agin's shop
 * Alero's Smithy
 * All Questions Answered
 * Brice Vang's Armory
 * Cockburn's Grocery
 * Ernst's Livery
 * Fillistrom Wunderkundoodle's Apothecary
 * Jerome's of Melvaunt
 * Matteo's
 * Randolph Tzintin's clothes shop
 * Slum Market
 * Vondor Thond's carpentry shop


 * Temples:
 * The Waiting, the remaining in Phlan was dedicated to the God of Justice, Tyr.
 * Abandoned temple of Bane, a ruined holy house of the Black Lord located on the edge of town.

Notable Inhabitants

 * Martelle, a bronze dragon that took up residence in the ruins of Phlan for a time during the mid–14 century.

Trivia
The city of Phlan was the origin of the game of Old Men's Bones, which was played all over Faerûn.

Appearances

 * Adventures
 * Ruins of Adventure &bull; Defiance in Phlan
 * Novels
 * Pool of Radiance &bull; Pools of Darkness &bull; Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor
 * Video games
 * Pool of Radiance &bull; Pools of Darkness &bull; Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor
 * Card Games
 * Spellfire: Master the Magic