The Great Stone Stairs

[Odin's son Fred]

One of the wonders of Historica is hidden away in Darlig Ulv-Stranden (in the Northeast corner of Kaliphlin), the Great Stone Stairway. It is a large tower like structure built of stone, that winds around itself as it goes up into the sky. Similar type stairs can be seen deep in Dwarvin mines built into the wall of their caverns but nowhere else has a free standing structure like this been seen before. No one knows exactly who made the stairs and they only first showed up in recorded history a couple of hundred years ago when the tales of Mitgardian adventurers, that had come to the area, were written down. The stairway is much older than two hundred years. Some theorize that the Elves or Drow built the stairway when they came to Historica while others think the druids that first lived in Historica built them. Regardless of who built the stairway, Master Katsumoto now has his men light large signal fires at the top of the stairs to act as a lighthouse for ships coming into Darlig Ulv-Stranden. The light guides ships to the port that Katsumoto controls but experience Captains know just how far to navigate off the light to get to ports where less than legal business can be done.

Darlig Ulv-Stranden (loosely translates to Bad Wolf Bay):

Originally founded by Northern Adventurers who were looking for new lands to explore and opportunities to increase their wealthy. Ships would come to the bay and unload Adventurers who would then go exploring their way back to their northern home over land. Eventually a port and docks were built and a few small trade shops as some Adventurers would bring back items they had found to sell and trade with other Adventurers or ship back home while they went back out to explore more. As the area became more developed fewer new Adventures would come thinking all the good finds in the area had been found already and the older Adventures had moved on as they found better riches on the other side of the mountains or land routes back to their homelands. Some of the Northerners did stay though preferring the warmer climate to their cold homeland. After a while though the small trading village became a haven for pirates, thieves and other criminals to conduct their lawless business, it's remote location proving ideal for this. A few years ago Samurai Master Katsumoto, and his clan, chased a group of bandits to the small village and felt that he was lead here to bring order to the chaos. Katsumoto and his clan of samurai and ninjas began to settle the area bringing their Oriental style of architecture to the already mish-mash of Northern and Southern styles present in the village. Katsumoto is trying to bring in more honest traders to the village, but he is not unaware that the economy there does thrive on a certain level of illegal activity. As long as you keep your less than legal business quite and it doesn't affect others in the village a blind eye is turn to your activities. However if your business gets out of hand, you will probably be visited by Katsumoto's ninjas and never heard from again. Slavery and murder are not tolerated and will get you a public execution. Darlig Ulv-Stranden is still a good place for independent traders of all kinds to find work, both legal and otherwise, and a good place for the careful shopper to find items and goods not available in markets anywhere else, but watch your step because Katsumoto's ninjas are everywhere and watching.

Edited February 6, 2012 by Odin's son Fred