Caer Moray, also known as Moray-town[4] or simply Moray, was a coastal port town and the largest settlement on the island of Moray within the Moonshae Isles.[1][2][3] It was the royal seat of the island's Ffolk kingdom of Moray[4] until it was destroyed in the late 14th century DR.[7]
Description[]
The town was small, more akin to a village consisting of relatively few homes that all fit within a palisade wall.[8] To the north was a rocky beach beneath a low hill and a stone pinnacle, atop which was built the castle of Caer Moray. This keep lay in ruins as of the late 15th century DR[9] (and did not yet exist as of the mid–14th century DR[4]).
Caer Moray had a small harbor, large enough to host a handful of war ships. At the town's height, the docks could accommodate full-sized galleons.[4][10]
Geography[]
Caer Moray was located in northern Moray on the coast of the Sea of Moonshae where the Shannyth River met the sea.[3] The surrounding Shannyth River Valley was green and fertile.[4]
Government[]
Prior to the Spellplague, the town was the capital of the Ffolk kingdom that spanned the whole isle of Moray.[4][11] As of the late 15th century DR, the town was instead an outpost operated by loyalists of House Kendrick, the High Kings and Queens of Callidyrr.[6][12]
Defenses[]
Unlike other Ffolk island capitals, the town lacked a true castle until sometime after the mid–14th century DR. Instead, in times of attack, the inhabitants of Moray-town fled to three defensible towers standing atop prominent hills about 1 mile (1.6 kilometers) inland.[4] About a quarter of the town could muster as a militia if the need arose,[5] and they would be supported by a pack of the island's native moorhounds.[4]
By the late 15th century DR, the castle was in ruins with its walls toppled.[9] A sturdy but worn wooden palisade surrounded the town with several tall towers rising from it. All ground within 440 yards (400 meters) had been scorched to allow the defending archers a clear view of attackers.[6][8]
Trade[]
The port of Caer Moray under House Kendrick occupation.
Most of Caer Moray's trade was conducted through the Sea of Moonshae with Callidyrr. Prior to the Spellplague, the town imported armor and weapons while exporting coal and iron ore. They also conducted some trade with Calimshan, importing horses, parchment, silk, and spices in exchange for metals, furs, and timber.[13] During the Kendrick occupation in the late 15th century DR, the town was a critical hub for imported supplies and troops flowing south to the inland settlement of Dynnegall, as well as for the export of Dynnegall's valuable resources, notably peat and kryne.[6] It also continued to export some coal and other raw materials. Everything else, from food to equipment, had to be imported.[8]
History[]
The town had long contended with Northlander raids.[4]
Caer Moray was sacked by lycanthropes of the Black Blood tribe during the events of the Spellplague in the late 14th century DR. The castle was torn down and it was abandoned by the Ffolk for decades afterward.[7][14]
By the mid–15th century DR, the ruins fell into the domain of a group of Black Blood lycanthropes led by the matriarch Deucala.[15] In the late 1360s DR, Deucala rescued and adopted a young leShay princess from Sarifal named Amaranth. Although only a child, "Lady Anaranth" came to be much loved by the lycanthropes, and would become their leader. Over the following decade, she would rebuild Caer Moray into a bastion of safety for the surrounding villages, teaching her mostly female lycanthrope followers to reject the ways of the Black Blood, to embrace their humanity, to build and craft useful things, and to share their bounty with others in a so-called Feast of Stags.[7][14][15] This community came to an end one Spring in the late 1470s DR when an army of Black Blood lycanthropes, led by an embodiment of Malar, laid siege to it in the Battle of Caer Moray.[note 1] Lady Amaranth had taken in many refugees from the surrounding area, only to realize that the Black Blood was using her safe haven as a trap to bring all of their prey together. After a grueling night of battle, the Earthmother sent a tsunami that washed away the attackers.[9] However, it also toppled the walls that had kept the castle ruins defensible, thus forcing Lady Amaranth to abandon Caer Moray.[15]
As of the Year of the Ageless One, 1479 DR,[note 2] the town had come under the occupation of Ffolk citizens and soldiers loyal to House Kendrick, and was little more than a military outpost. It was a frequent target of raids by orcs, ogres, ettins, and especially the Black Blood tribe, though their attacks seldom resulted in anything more than a few lycanthrope deaths.[6][8] The assistance of adventurers was welcome to protect the town and to help secure the route south to Dynnegall,[16] although such was the town's dire predicament that they required new visitors to prove they were not lycanthropes by cutting themselves with a steel knife before permitting them to enter the gate.[8] Despite their embattled position, these Kendrick loyalists still held the town as of the Year of the Warrior Princess, 1489 DR.[12] When the Black Blood tribe subsequently overran Dynnegall with the intent to sacrifice its inhabitants at the nearby moonwell to summon Kazgoroth, the captain of the Kendrick troops at Caer Moray refused to send reinforcements because he believed (correctly) that the lycanthropes had set a trap for them.[17]
Notable Locations[]
- Caer Moray, the eponymous castle that was constructed sometime between the 1330s DR[18] and the onset of the Spellplague in the 1380s DR.[7]
- The Silver Sword, a comfortable inn as of the mid–14th century DR.[4]
Inhabitants[]
Ffolk[]
For centuries prior to the Spellplague, Caer Moray was home to just over a thousand hardy Ffolk who were known to be gruffer than their cousins on the other Moonshae Isles.[4] They were also quite poor, and prone to uncleanliness, drunkenness, and debauchery.[11]
Notable inhabitants during this time included:
- King Adom Kimball, a ruler of Moray in the 12th century DR.[19]
- King Dagdar, the ruler of Moray[4] as of the Year of the Snow Winds, 1335 DR.[18]
- King Dynnegall, the successor to King Dagdar.[19]
Lycanthropes[]
The castle ruins were occupied by a pack of largely female lycanthropes during the mid-to-late 15th century DR. This included wereboars, wererats, and especially werewolves, who strove to live in peace with nearby human settlements and to conceal their bestial nature from them.[7][9] They were regarded as heretics by the Malar-worshiping lycanthropes of the Black Blood tribe,[14] although members of the two groups did covertly meet, often to mate.[9]
Notable inhabitants during this time included:
- Lady Amaranth, the young fey architect of this peaceful community.[7]
- Bay, a werewolf.[15]
- Coal, a werewolf with a distinctive black marking.[15]
- Deucala, the leader before Amaranth.[15]
- Esmerella, a lycanthrope midwife.[9]
- Lightfoot, a werewolf.[15]
- Poke, a wereboar and close ally of Lady Amaranth.[7]
House Kendrick[]
The town was inhabited by 1,500 Ffolk humans loyal to High King Derid Kendrick during the late 15th century DR. Many (but not all) were soldiers,[6] and some were on loan from ship captains or nobles rather than direct servants of the crown.[8] Their primary duty was to maintain the port and safeguard the road south to Dynnegall or else to the nearby coal mines.[6][8] This was not an easy task, and the troops were on constant guard.[12] Any new arrival of adventurers or supplies was sure to boost their dismal morale.[8]
Notable inhabitants during this time included:
- Ruary O'Bannon, a veteran Ffolk soldier and captain of the garrison as of 1479 DR.[8]
- Twaine Stone, a jackalwere who had infiltrated the garrison on behalf of the Black Blood tribe as of 1479 DR.[6]
- Vondal Greyhammer, a gruff dwarf in charge of overseeing a fortified coal mine in the Orcskull Mountains to the south.[20]
Appendix[]
Notes[]
- ↑ Canon material does not provide a year for the events described in The Rose of Sarifal, although the novel indicates that it takes place "more than a hundred years" after the return of High Lady Ordalf to Gwynneth in 1375 DR (ch. 1) and "nearly a hundred years" after the Spellplague in 1385 DR (ch. 3). While this fits the usual assumption that all 4th edition material is set in 1479 DR, the novel contradicts a number of other sources set during that year: at the start of the novel, Caer Moray is held by lycanthropes rather than by soldiers loyal to House Kendrick (as stated in Backdrop: Moonshae Isles), Citadel Umbra has been home to Prince Araithe for at least 12 years rather than being the base of his enemies (as stated in Backdrop: Moonshae Isles, the Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide, and Realmslore: Sarifal), and Malar is stated to be "dead" rather than an active exarch of Silvanus (as stated in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide). These contradictions are largely resolved by the end of the narrative, meaning that the novel is best assumed to be set prior to 1479 DR. Unless a canon source contradicts this assertion, this wiki will thus assume that the events of the novel take place after 1475 DR but before 1479 DR.
- ↑ Unless otherwise stated, all Forgotten Realms content released as part of 4th edition Dungeons & Dragons is assumed to take place in 1479 DR.
Appearances[]
Novels & Short Stories
Comics
Organized Play & Licensed Adventures
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Karen Wynn Fonstad (August 1990). The Forgotten Realms Atlas. (TSR, Inc), p. 29. ISBN 978-0880388573.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Douglas Niles (November 1987). Moonshae (Map). Edited by Mike Breault. (TSR, Inc.). ISBN 0-88038-494-8.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Shawn Merwin (November 2011). “Backdrop: Moonshae Isles”. In Steve Winter ed. Dungeon #196 (Wizards of the Coast) (196)., p. 6. Archived from the original on 2015-11-03.
- ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12 Douglas Niles (November 1987). Moonshae. Edited by Mike Breault. (TSR, Inc.), pp. 40–41. ISBN 0-88038-494-8.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Douglas Niles (November 1987). Moonshae. Edited by Mike Breault. (TSR, Inc.), p. 42. ISBN 0-88038-494-8.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 Shawn Merwin (November 2011). “Backdrop: Moonshae Isles”. In Steve Winter ed. Dungeon #196 (Wizards of the Coast) (196)., p. 9. Archived from the original on 2015-11-03.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 Paulina Claiborne (May 2012). The Rose of Sarifal (Kindle ed.). (Wizards of the Coast), chap. 7. ASIN B006NPFFHY.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 8.8 Jean-Philipe Chapleau (October 2008). The Sea Drake (MOON1-2). Living Forgotten Realms (RPGA), p. 21.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 Paulina Claiborne (May 2012). The Rose of Sarifal (Kindle ed.). (Wizards of the Coast), chap. 10. ASIN B006NPFFHY.
- ↑ Jean-Philipe Chapleau (April 2009). Black Blood (MOON1-4). Living Forgotten Realms (RPGA), p. 7.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Douglas Niles (November 1987). Moonshae. Edited by Mike Breault. (TSR, Inc.), p. 31. ISBN 0-88038-494-8.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Steve Kenson, et al. (November 2015). Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide. Edited by Kim Mohan. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 68. ISBN 978-0-7869-6580-9.
- ↑ Douglas Niles (November 1987). Moonshae. Edited by Mike Breault. (TSR, Inc.), p. 12. ISBN 0-88038-494-8.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Paulina Claiborne (May 2012). The Rose of Sarifal (Kindle ed.). (Wizards of the Coast), chap. 3. ASIN B006NPFFHY.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 15.5 15.6 Paulina Claiborne (May 2012). The Rose of Sarifal (Kindle ed.). (Wizards of the Coast), chap. 12. ASIN B006NPFFHY.
- ↑ Shawn Merwin (November 2011). “Backdrop: Moonshae Isles”. In Steve Winter ed. Dungeon #196 (Wizards of the Coast) (196)., p. 14. Archived from the original on 2015-11-03.
- ↑ B. Dave Walters (October 2019). “A Darkened Wish 3”. A Darkened Wish #3 (IDW Publishing) (3)., pp. 15–17.
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Douglas Niles (November 1987). Moonshae. Edited by Mike Breault. (TSR, Inc.), p. 35. ISBN 0-88038-494-8.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Brian R. James (December 2007). “Grand History of the Realms: The Moonshaes”. Dragon #362 (Wizards of the Coast). Archived from the original on 2009-06-01.
- ↑ Jean-Philipe Chapleau (April 2009). Black Blood (MOON1-4). Living Forgotten Realms (RPGA), p. 8.