Harrowmarsh

The province of Waterfjord is home to the Hydra itself. It is deep in the Harrowmarsh and is comprised only of swamps. It is the furthermost province from dry land, and is situated right at the end of the Asarwe River on the coastline. To move into the province requires a boat or barge. Armies are unable to invade as they can not move in large enough numbers to be of any use. It is possible to move troops through the province but there is nowhere for them to land without sinking into the swamp.

The province is home mainly to the Hydrakin. There are thought to be hundreds of the monsters here, as well as large numbers of crocodiles and snakes. The province is also home to the Hydra at his tower in Waterfjord Tower. Although it mainly keeps to itself, any who visit are sure to make their way into the Hydra's stomach. Boats traveling down the river have also disappeared occasionally.

There are also a few small human settlements in the province, home to maybe 50-100 fishermen and pirates in each. These settlements are known as Althlone Island, Younghal Harbour, Drogheda Bay, and Westpoint. Each is comprised of huts sitting on stilts above the swamp, surrounding a central platform. Also each village has 5-10 fishing vessels or small rafts tied up to their houses.

The village of Westpoint is also thought to be home to a mage and alchemist known as Dwynaa the Bose. This ancient sorcerer is a friend of the lizard men and trades with them for the animals and plants he needs to make highly effective and fast acting poisons. He can be found anywhere from Rohrmarch to Binsada selling his wares.

Toree is the most northern of the four provinces, bordering the Brecht kingdom of Rohrmarch. Home to the Caracdir it is a place little visited by Humans. The main Caracdir village is a settlement known as Toree. It is built into a hill and the province is named after the village. Several hundred of the lizard men live there and Toree is walled and protected by a dozen warriors at all times ? with more rushing to the sound of the alarm within minutes. The province is still very swampy and small boats or rafts must be used to move around.

The Caracdir use these rafts, or they can swim or wade through the swamp. A favorite tactic of theirs is to hide beneath the swamp with only a nostril peaking above the surface of the water. This makes the lizard men almost invisible and they can easily ambush travelers. The Caracdir eat humans so travelers are advised to take the road north of the swamp, rather than end up in a Caracdir's cooking pot. Although Toree is the only widely known Caracdir village they are found throughout the Harrowmarsh and there are thought to be at least a thousand of the lizard-men scattered throughout the four provinces (some border patrol captains place the number of Caracdir far higher but this belief is generally discounted by the wise).

Once part of Binsada, Sodden Falls has long been abandoned by both Binsada and the Hydra. As the driest of all the four provinces, it is rarely used by the swamp creatures that inhabit the rest of the Harrowmarsh. Many islands of dry earth and rock dot the province so it is possible to invade and capture it, provided you had enough vessels to move your troops from one small island to another. The province is however home to a large number of bandits, who run the Hydra's Guild (also found in Binsada and Sendoure).

Some suggest that the guild is not owned by the Hydra itself, some reputable scholars argue that the awnshegh has little interest in lands or money being simply a mindless brute. Instead these scholars suggest that one of the bandits has set himself up as overlord of the Harrowmarsh. Baraek the Hydra, as this bandit is named, simply claims to be the true Hydra and dresses up in a crocodile skin costume to scare his followers into believing him. This Baraek is presumably a magician or wizard who modifies his appearance with illusionary magic. Some military commanders report however that patrols chasing these bandits are often attacked by the Hydra itself, and that Baraek is no mere bandit, but a Caracdir of unusual intelligence that worships the Hydra as a god.

Whether Baraek is merely a front for the Hydra, or the true guild leader, he has gathered a reasonable horde of 12 GB together and maintains a small army of 2-3 units of bandits which he uses to raid ships and caravans traveling down nearby roads. He also runs a protection racket among the citizens of the Harrowmarsh that brings in some money to his coffers. Baraek spends much of his time in Sodden Falls or in Sendoure, encouraging those who believe him to be a human bandit, for would the Hydra or a Caracdir not prefer the deeper swamps?

Settlements in Sodden Falls are much larger that the other three as the terrain is hillier and dry land thus more common most villages hold 200-400 people. Villages include Longfjord, Adelaide, Dundalk, Gweebarra, and Nenagh Birr.

Laughaure is the least populated of all of the Harrowmarsh's province. This isolated area of the marsh is also the most dangerous. Large numbers of Hydrakin and crocodiles roams the swamp eating anything that stands in their way. Anyone living in the marsh would find themselves open to constant attack from these monsters.

Despite this a few small human fishing villages exist on the coast. These are built in a similar style to the villages in Waterfjord province, but are smaller with only 30-40 fishermen in each. The villages include Blackwater Sound, Chalky Inlet, and Laoghaire Point.