Chimney

Source: Nephil's Gambit

Deep down in the lower caves, on the very rim of the slithzerikai homeland, the province of Chimney is largely unknown to the world. Its unique climate supports trade in metal and herbs amid squabbling city-states.

Climate and Geography

A textbook on cave geography describes the area as follows:

The lands of Chimney give an interesting lesson on meteorology. The human settlements are actually placed on a ledge high up on the wall of the slithzerikai homeland. These caves provide just the warm, damp environment that cold blooded lizards enjoy, considerably warmer than the caves of central Exile, high above.

At a point in the cave ceiling above the Chimney ledge, there is a wide opening. This tunnel connects to the caves above, forming a vertical chute, two thousand meters high. The warm air that rises from the slith jungles is sucked into the chute, causing a continuous breeze through the human lands. The draft functions like a pipe, thus giving Chimney its name. Moreover, when the damp airstream encounters the cold air of Exile, it often releases its watery content, producing a peculiar effect: Indoor rain. This makes the soil of Chimney very fertile.

At the north end of Chimney, the Howling Gap is a juncture between Chimney and Brattaskar, the long, narrow tunnel that leads to Northeastern Exile. There are also tunnels near the Howling Gap leading to nearby nephilim lands, and to the slithzerikai homeland below Chimney. Several rivers run through Chimney proper, and roughly divide it into four regions.

Myld Isle, also known as the Rainlands, is in the center of Chimney. It is not an island, but is so named for the river Myld which bounds it. The Rainlands are home to what is probably the largest forest in all of Exile; they are unruly lands. Myldres, capital of Chimney, is located on the west edge of the isle. The former capital, Lushwater Toll, is located at the north end, along the road that connects to the Howling Gap and Brattaskar.

To the east lie the lands of Milestone, rich in metals. Milestone is a heavy mining area, characterized by twisting tunnels and poor mining towns. It is also the location of the famous Milestone Casino.

To the west lie the lands of Whitstone, rich in marble. These lands have been abandoned since the destruction of the town of Whitstone. The town is located in the middle of what is now called the Marble Lake.

Finally, in the south lie the Shadowlands. The few southern settlements all cluster around Flickering Keep, which itself sits on the edge of the Dividing Wall that separates Chimney from the slith lands. Elsewhere along the wall, Fort Outlook sits at the top of the Long Stairs that provide a hazardous road between the two lands.

Economy

Chimney's economy consists of mining and selling metal to the the slithzerikai, in exchange for herbs from the lizard jungles. This sustains a modest trade with Formello, the nearest town in Exile. The main trade route stretches from the Long Stairs, and goes up rivers to the Milestone mines. It continues northwest, past Lushwater Toll and the Howling Gap, and along Brattaskar road, eventually reaching Exile proper.

History

Main article: History of Chimney

Chimney was originally claimed as a hideout by the bandit Harfloot. Years later, miners settled in Chimney, and Harfloot and his descendants moved from robbery to extortion to taxation and government. Different settlements sprang up with their own local lords, and shortly after the Empire-Avernum War a civil war erupted. The war was eventually squashed by the cunning nephil Groul. A decade later, Groul attempted to seize total control of Chimney in a complicated strategem that relied on provoking an uprising among the sliths. After stirring up turmoil throughout Chimney and the slithzerikai homeland, Groul failed, and the priestess Karolynna was installed as Chimney's ruler.

External links

• Maps - Chimney