In old Binsada there once was a wizard who built the Tower of Evening in Sodden Falls. Since that time, old Binsada has fallen and given rise to the current realm of Binsada. But Sodden Falls did share the same fate as the lands next to it. Sodden Falls would become home to the creature known by men as the Hydra and over the many years; Sodden Falls became known as the Harrowmarsh. The Tower of Evening still stands in the Harrowmarsh, near the Binsada border. Rumor holds that the Tower of Evening is haunted with all kinds of undead and a legendary specter known as Gillwort.
In the ancient lands of Cerilia the first human tribe to arrive was the Irboud people who would be the ancestors of the Basarji people. Some would say the arrival of the Masetian people into the region would be the start of the Khinasi tradition. But really it would take generations for these people to merge even after the devastation at Mount Deismaar. But even during the early days of man on the continent of Cerilia the Asarwe River marked the Eastern most border that the human nomads would normally travel.
During the Basarji period a kingdom rose up known today as old Binsada. The rulers of Binsada pushed the borders beyond what the current realm of Binsada controls; into areas like Sodden Falls, Sendoure, and the lands of the Sphinx. The current realm of Sendoure in it’s ancient past broke off from Binsada. Currently the realm of Sendoure has reunited under a wizard-king who is trying as much to gain control of the land as the magical sources and guild interest of the region; while the current realm of Binsada maintains the tradition of Khinasi nomad clans.
The Asarwe River not only marks the border between the realms of Sendoure and Binsada but it also serves as a border between the varying cultures. Along both sides of the river, settlers have begun popping up practicing fixed-placed agriculture (very different than the traditional nomad lifestyle normally practiced in the lands of the Khinasi people). Most of the settlers are Khinasis who have a low station and are seeking a new way to improve their economic condition. Farming can be cheaper to start up then herding pack animals around grazing.
But even more surprising than Khinasis giving up their nomad lifestyle is the increasing number of immigrants from other lands. One might be able to even find a Vos amongst the farmers along the Asawre Riverbanks. The Khinasi do not seem to mind the increasing number of Anuirians, Brecht, and others as long as the new arrivals do not try and establish a city.
To get around the Khinasi disposition on cities and in particular cities for the new emigrants, the Hydra Trading Company has built a virtual city: a barge city. Known simply as Barge Town, the Hydra Trading Company has fashioned hundreds of barges together and sails the rickety “city” up and down the Asawre. Farmers and Fisherman travel to Barge Town to trade goods and buy supplies. Some barges are dedicated to certain establishments like bars, inns, dance halls, gambling dens, and the like. The realms of Sendoure and Binsada hate the Barge Town but do not have the legal authority to deal with (not to mention the lack of military authority from either kingdom and the lack of cooperation between the two kingdoms). At anytime there could be 500 people on the Barge Town and the Barge Town can be found anywhere from Westport in the Harrowmarsh to Ambies-on-Hillsfair in the Burrows.
Speaking of the Asawre River, there is an odd section of petrified-woods along the Binsada side of the border. Known as the Petrified Forest, this once part of the Serir Regal forest is all that is left of those woods on the southern side of the Asawre River. At the very heart of the Petrified Forest one can find two figures locked in mortal combat. During the time of old Binsada, a human wizard named Ventinah Falas and an elf known only as the Woodworker fought a magical duel that ended up sealing them both and the forest forever in stone. Over the centuries adventures and huntsmen alike have taken preserved stone birds, animals, flowers, and plants from the Petrified Forest and sold them as trinkets and marvels.
Not bad, I might say dear reader. But how about I leave you with one more rumor? Maybe something someone could even buy in the port of Mhowe: Qetal Root. The Guilder Kort Bregeden of the Hydra Trading Company is said to always have a lump of Qetal Root in his mouth. Essentially dear reader, the Qetal Root is a narcotic that one chews. Presumably the root could probably be cured into snuff, smoke, or maybe even a drink depending on how toxic it is. But for simplicities sake, Kort is just selling the addictive root and bringing in good money for it. Dungeons, Dragons, and Drugs. Oh my dear reader, this is starting to sound like Shadowrun.
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