An Atlas of the Isle of Dawn

The Northern Isle of Dawn is dominated by the City of Helskir, independent from both empires in 1000 AC, then an Alphatian Kingdom in 1008, independent again in 1009, occupied by Heldannic Knights in 1015, and finally forming the Kingdom of Heldun by absorbing Dunadale in 1016 AC. During several periods of its recent history, Helskir also claimed the Demerian Moor, inhabited by reptilian creatures and dark fairies. The plains are mostly dotted with farms and towns of the local Antalians, the Helska, and also some wizards’ towers. The central woods are the rumored home of the Alfar, the northern fairies, and many hills are roamed by bands of humanoids, some of them hostile to other races. Mountain Rakasta are rumored to live in the southern Helskir hills near the Demerian Moor. The Pegasus Peaks are also inhabited by Pegataurs, Cloud Giants and other strange creatures.

Northern Dunadale is a wild land, with Dunael humans living only near the coast, and the interior inhabited by fairies, humanoids, giants, griffons and more. There are also rumors of a cabal of Nyx worshippers and undead in the interior. The Herdane Escarpment is rumored to be the domain of sidhe and other fairies, determined to protect their privacy and their fabled city of Findias from any intruder.

This area of the Isle is quite cold and subject to blizzards, strong winds and snowstorms in winter. Common animals are seals, lynxes, deer, elks, aurochs, wolves, bears, and beavers along with a huge variety of birds of prey and seabirds. The Bay of the Kraken, inhabited by seals and whales, is so called because of the monster which is supposed to lurk in its depths.

The idea that a strong cult of Nyx exists on the Isle comes from M5 Talons of Night, by Jennell Jaquays.

Many creatures and monsters included in the map were inspired by The Isle of Dawn Monstrous Atlas by Sheldon Morris here: http://pandius.com/ma_iod.html

The Swan Peninsula

This area is inhabited by Dunael humans, as is the rest of Dunadale. Local lore says the interior is dominated by swan creatures, but no one seems able to tell if they refer to fairies, pookas or werecreatures, or gyerians.

Some friendly Firbolg giants also live in the region. The sea of this area is also called the Weird Sea because superstitious sailors say fairies often take people away from the ship’s deck. It may also be because Water Weirds are quite common in this area.

The Northern Territories

The northern part of this area, the southern Demerian Moor, has been claimed by Helskir in the past and eventually became part of the Kingdom of Heldun in 1016 AC. No one has much control over these lands however, and the Lochnar swamp, as the southern moor is normally called, is really inhabited by reptilian creatures, frogfolk, dark fairies and hostile humanoids.

The Thyatian villages of Camulodunum, Agrigentum and Messambria were proverbial among legionaries as the most backward and isolated places a poor soldier could be sent to. Since the formation of Heldun the soldiers who guard this road are sent from Helskir or Dunadale, but they probably feel the same way. The Oppiand Hills which divide Westrourke from Dunadale are inhabited by Firbolgs and other giants, rocs, dragons and hippogriffs. The same goes for the Geittinden Mountains of northern Westrourke, where the famous Finnegar’s Watch lay, a sacred place dedicated to a mythical Dunael king who battled in the ancient past the evil Fomorian giants. The most important city of this area is however Nandua, on the western coast, a haven for pirates and unscrupulous merchants. Another mythical faerie city, Gorias, is according to local lore hidden in the hills around the Geittinden Mountains.

Nandua and nearby Denstehn keep are mentioned in AC10 Bestiary of Dragons and Giants, and in Threshold issue 9, page 101.

Central Dunadale

Inhabited by Dunael humans on the coast, Dunadale, which will become part of Heldun in 1016 AC, is a wild land in the interior, the domain of fairies, centaurs, drakes, humanoids and many other non human creatures. It is also a green land, full of plant life, woods and animals, such as deer, horses, wild goats and many others. It can be quite cold and foggy in autumn and winter but warm during the summer. The Dunadale bogs are quite dangerous, claimed by humanoids and dark fairies. The mountains of the Dunadale Wall are dominated by Firbolgs and other giants, rocs and giant eagles. Nixies and Sea Hags are supposed to dwell in the waters of Dunadale.

Southern Dunadale

The winters are milder here and the coast is supposedly inhabited by friendly fairies, but the interior is as dangerous as any wild land could be. Trolls, giant termites, dark fairies, wights, banshees, manticores, bugbears and other humanoids, gremlins, harpies, fungus creatures, lizardmen, frogfolk and other kinds of creatures live in this area, including some normal animals that could occasionally be dangerous, such as great bears, wolves, jackals and mountain lions. The Dust Reaches, in the west toward Westrourke, are also inhabited by humanoids and Fomorians. More than one group of Alphatian adventurers has explored the wilderlands searching for the mythical fairy city of Murias, but no one, to the extent of my knowledge, has ever returned.

Northern Westrourke

The area of the Isle nearest to Ostland is inhabited by similar Antalian people, who sometimes fight against Ostlander pirates and sometimes are allied with them. The internal woods of Svorkmo (or Svorkomo) are infested with goblins and similar creatures. The Fyresvatn Bogs are inhabited by lizardmen. More humanoids, and according to some unverified accounts, also lupins and rakasta, inhabit the Cougar hills and the Dust Reaches to the east.

Ancient and mysterious ruins are rumored to exist in the Reaches, but the high number of humanoids in the area has always been a serious obstacle to their full exploration.
Underwater, the Gulf is supposedly dominated by Sea Giants and Whales, and clans of Storm Giants also live among the small islands and the reefs of the western coast.

I placed Nithian ruins in several locations of the Isle taking inspiration from the description in Dawn of the Emperors and from the work done by LoZompatore here: http://pandius.com/nthxtnt2.html

Gulf of Newkirk

This gulf, often closed by high cliffs, is dominated by Westrourke’s capital, Newkirk. The regions north of the city, the Kauth Hills, Westrourke Bogs and southern Dust Reaches are not the domain of man, and anyone treading on them does so at his own great risk. The northern coast of Redstone and the inner part of the Gulf are instead dotted by fishing towns and keeps. The interior of Redstone is still quite a wild land, and the Sutherlands peninsula is mostly inhabited by centaurs, usually not hostile to travellers. The western coast however is also called the Pirates Coast, as it is dotted with pirate and buccaneer coves, and considered quite dangerous for passing ships. The sea in front of the Sutherlands is dominated by the intelligent Dendan Whales, who often attack ships because humans often attack them, as their bodies are supposed to contain a magical ingredient to produce water breathing potions, and precious oil and meat, just as all other whales.

About the Dendan Whales see Advices for Traders in the Sea of Dread by Michele “LoZompatore” C. in Threshold issue #4, page 49.

Northern Hillvale

This region is really fairy land, outside the main road and the coastal Dunael villages, it is quite easy to get lost in the woods and the fog, encountering sprites, pixies, satyrs or the more dangerous redcaps. Firbolgs too live numerous in the western hills. Another mythical fairy city, Falias, is rumored to lie somewhere in a remote vale. The rivers of this area and the coastal waters are often inhabited by water termites.

Redstone and West Portage

Since a thousand year the main fortress city of the Thyatian Empire in the central Isle of Dawn, Redstone became a County in 1010 AC, then an Exarchate in 1017 AC. The Dunael human natives of the area call themselves Ruagallans and have always cohabited peacefully with centaurs, faeries, lupins and Firbolg giants, quite common in the area, and have often fought against humanoids and Fomori giants. Many scholars think indeed that either the modern Newkirk or Redstone was in the remote past the capital of the great kingdom of the giants of Gandhar. Other giant kingdoms, later ruled by Firbolgs or Fomorians have risen and fallen in the following centuries. Other human people, such as Thothians, Milenians and Northmen, have also founded their cities in this region in the past centuries. Non human races still inhabit the interior of this land in relevant numbers. The area of the Fengallen marshes, Carryduff Hills and Killyleagh Curragh in particular is a huge territory dominated by bugbears and kobolds, and maybe other creatures too. Nemedia, an important town south of Newkirk, has a very ancient history as it once was a Thothian and Milenian² city.

The area of the Barony of West Portage is inhabited by the Teihzel Dunaels, who also live further to the east, and it has its own share of fairies, and humanoids. Some unverified accounts say “one of the seven” fairy cities, Ardulla, lies in the area. If there are indeed seven fairy cities, I have identified only five of them so far, and therefore I don’t know where on the Isle the other two may lie.

About the giants of Gandhar see James Mishler’s Age of Blackmoor here: http://pandius.com/ageblack.html and my article on New Blackmoor in Threshold issue #2.

East Portage and Kendach

This region too is inhabited by the Teihzel Dunaels as the area of West Portage, later joined by Thothians, Thyatians and Alphatians. Most of the wilderlands are inhabited by Firbolgs and other non human races, including faeries, lupins, kobolds, orcs, ogres, cyclops, Fomorians, harpies and much more. The region is untamed and mostly unexplored just a few miles out of the main roads and the coasts. East Portage, once a city state of the Alphatian Empire, became the capital of the Kingdom of Hillvale in 1016 AC. The Bay of the Dragon Turtles is such named because the creatures have been spotted in the area, and often blamed for ships lost at sea.

The Kendach Escarpment has been claimed by Kendach since 1000 AC, but in truth is a land dominated by Fomorian giants, even if it seems it once hosted the capital of a Firbolg kingdom. A rumor I was unable to verify also says that the Archdruid of the Isle has his house on the Escarpment.

Bay of Ekto

The Peninsula of Rathen, east of East Portage is the start of the fastest sea lane to reach Alphatia, but also a wild and dangerous land inhabited by goblins, cyclops, harpies and Fomorians, and dotted with mysterious ruins from a forgotten past. The Bay of Ekto to the south is much more civilized near the city, but the hills and the mountains west of Ekto are the domain of orcs and Fomorians giants.

The mountains however are also extremely rich in minerals, and in fact they hosted in the past many Thothian outposts and are still the seat of the famous Great Mines of Ekto.

The land beyond the road south of Ekto is a wild land, inhabited by orcs, minotaurs, cyclops, medusa and other monsters and, some believe, dominated by followers of Nyx and undead.
The Bay of Ekto is supposedly inhabited by non hostile merrow and tritons, but the high sea towards Alphatia is infested by giant octopuses.

I assumed several Nithian outposts could exist in the area, inspired by the work done by LoZompatore here: http://pandius.com/nthxtnt2.html

I created the Great Mines of Ekto because mining is given as an important activity for the city in Dawn of the Emperors.

Septentriona

The area which the Thyatians now call Provincia Septentriona has in truth a very ancient history, inhabited in the past by giants, Thothians and Milenians. The area near to the city of Alasia is also the original homeland of the modern inhabitants of Ylaruam, and the nearby city of Ispanyola was for some centuries the home of the Thyatians that later colonized the Savage Coast, far to the west. Indeed the human cultures of this region are quite complicated, as there are also the Aseni and the Armeni, who could be related to ancient Alasiyan or to the Asieni of the Shadow Coast, and important Traldar and Milenian settlements, such as Laticea, were also founded in the western coast. The inhuman inhabitants of the area are even more different and interesting, if sometimes dangerous, including dragons, Fomorian giants, centaurs, gyerians, gnolls, sphinxes, hobgoblins, rakasta, lupins and other humanoids. Much more should be written of Septentriona to truly learn the secrets of this land.

Despite its name, the Seawolf Bay is not inhabited only by seals, but also by many dolphins, porpoises and sea giants.

Gaz2 mentions that the Alasiyans of Ylaruam did come from the Isle of Dawn, brought as slaves by the Nithians.

Lupins are mentioned in Ochalea here by Giampaolo Agosta: http://pandius.com/lupnhist.html, I decided independently they could have a presence in the Isle too.

Land of the Fomorians

It is worthwhile to describe separately the central area of the Isle between Kendach, Ekto and Laticea because it can be considered a land fully dominated by the Fomorian giants, who rule over the three minor Escarpments and the Fomorian Hills and Mountains to the south and the east of them. These giants are usually hostile to human encroachment, but in their territories there are other races and monsters too, including gorgons, cyclops, minotaurs, orcs and dragons, probably all allied with them. A notorious but unnamed red dragon rules the so called Red Domain in the mountains, probably in league with the Fomorians. The northern part of the Great Escarpment, south of Fomorian lands, is instead inhabited by centaurs, phanatons and gnomes, of whom I will write below.

The Trikelios Escarpment

The branch of the Great Escarpment which goes from Trikelios towards Thothia is often called in Alphatia the Trikelios Escarpment. It is also called the Spider Wood, as giant spiders are the most important inhabitants of the area, with some harpies, gremlins, dragons and phanatons. Fairies of various kinds also probably live in these woods. The area is largely unexplored and, according to some explorers, dotted with ancient ruins infested by giant spiders.

The Trikelios peninsula northeast of the city and the area toward Thothia is inhabited by the local humans, mostly descendants of the ancient Milenians and Alphatians, but it too has several wild regions, inhabited by stirges and other creatures or rumored to be dominated by followers of Nyx and the undead. Great animals of the region include seals, ostriches, wild goats and wild asses, deers and gazelles, wolves, jackals and leopards.

The sea of this region is notorious for the great tuna fish that can be caught here.

The land of Aran, ancient realms of the Aranea, is south of Trikelios in the module M5 Talons of Night, where also the cult of Nyx in the Isle is mentioned.

Thothia

The central region of Thothia contains the great city of Edairo but not just it, as there are also the ancient tombs of the pharaohs, great pyramids, the ruins of Ashura, the city of Shumar and much more. The local humans are mostly Thothians, with some Alphatians, but there are also a variety of non human races in the area, from the gnolls of the northern desert to the lupins of the east, several reptilian races both in the Thothian swamp and in the deserts, sphinxes, centaurs and more. The Hunakoi stone giants are also an important population of the area, as they once had a great kingdom here, with Ashura as their capital.

The Aurora river is famously full of the equally dangerous hippos and crocodiles.

The Hunakoi, stone giants with red skins, are mentioned in M5 Talons of Night, page 10 and in James Mishler’s History: http://pandius.com/dawnhist.html, as Ashura and Shumar.

Eastern Thothia

The Thothian Peninsula, also called Eastern Thothia, is a huge grassland inhabited by humans mostly along the coast. The interior, while still dotted with some Thothian villages, is mostly the domain of other creatures, such as the Fast Runners Rakasta, a huge variety of antelopes, goats and gazelles, centaurs, sphinxes, dragons, gnolls and thouls. Tigers, lions and leopards all hunt in this great plain. The seas around the peninsula are supposedly full of giant squid, sharks, manta rays and devilfish.

Mathanephet

The southern branch of the Great Escarpment, also called the Thothian Branch, is locally known as Mathanephet, from the name of a legendary dragon king who once had here a huge pyramid and ruled over a great domain. No one so far has ever been able to discern if there is some truth in this rumor. Thothian adventurers do not usually venture in this area, and the Alphatian adventurers who have done so did not return, recruited, willing or not, by Mathanephet, or so the story goes. The Thothian villages of the southern coast are actually quiet places, but some say they are all dominated by death cults.

Mathanephet is an undead dragon who was created by me in Threshold issue #9, page 101.

The Haunted Coast

The so called Haunted Coast is an unexplored area of the Isle, inhabited according to local rumors by dangerous creatures both under the sea and on the coast. The region is also dotted with mysterious and unexplored ruins, maybe Thothian, maybe much more ancient. The warm woods of the Escarpment above are dominated by Pardasta rakasta, and by other non human inhabitants, including treants and fairies. The few human settlements of the coast belong to the Asieri and Asuri cultures, but those who inhabit this area are said to be savage and xenophobic.

The ruins should belong to the ancient colony of New Thonia, invented by James Mishler in his History: http://pandius.com/dawnhist.html, from before the Great Rain of Fire. Same source for the Asieri and the Asuri cultures.

The Valley of the Dawn

This great valley is the heart of the Isle, once inhabited by Asuri humans and Hunakoi giants, then settled by the Thothians, who built here great temples and tombs. Soon after they fell under the domination of the Night Spider cult, and were liberated in 1002 AC by Ramenhotep XXIV. The valley is also the main base of the rebellious pharaoh Haptuthep II from 1016 AC.

Rumors in Edairo say the now banned religion of the mystic spiders still thrives in the villages of the Escarpment just south of the valley. Giant spiders, sphinxes and harpies are numerous in the area, as are many other kinds of dangerous monsters. It’s not clear if the Asuri humans who live in this area of the Escarpment are followers of the Night Spider or not.

The phanatons who live west of the Valley are certainly enemies of the Spider and of her servitors.

The Valley of the Dawn and the Night Spider are prominent in the module M5 Talons of Night.

For the timeline of the Valley, see also my article “20 Years of History in the Sea of Dawn” in this same issue.

The Central Escarpment North

This area of the Isle is inhabited by some mysterious cultures, such as the almost unknown Trueflower elves, who I have mentioned recently in my small treaty about the Elves of Mystara, lupins, phanatons, many kinds of fairies, centaurs, the stone folk and some isolated clans of gnomes and dwarves. I cannot say much about these people because I know almost nothing about them. The valley that divides this region of the escarpment is also inhabited by powerful goblin clans, while the plains to the south west are dominated by the Asieri humans and centaurs.

The Trueflower elves were mentioned in my article “The Elven Clans and their Migrations” in Threshold issue #10.

For the local dwarves and gnomes, the stone folks and the Asieri, see James Mishler’s History: http://pandius.com/dawnhist.html

The Shadow Coast

Part of the Thyatian province of Septentriona, the Shadow Coast, location of several Milenian cities such as Salicia, Mesonia and Rialtos, is considered a dangerous place for a variety of reasons: its woods are supposedly inhabited by werecreatures, harpies, humanoids and undead. In its waters some dangerous monsters have been spotted too, such as mesmers and aquatic beholders. The interior of this region is truly an unknown and wild land, but is still inhabited by some ancient cultures, like the Dunasi, the Ausar and the Albernians. These bronze skin humans are descendants of Thothians, Dunaels, Oltecs, Traldar, Milenians or, more probably, a bit of them all.

For Ausarnak, see James Mishler’s History: http://pandius.com/dawnhist.html. The Ausar should be the descendants of the Nithians who lived there.

Meridiona North

The region the Thyatians call Provincia Meridiona, or rather the northern part of it and the southern part of Septentriona, is also called the Gulf of the Beasts, as the interior lands are inhabited by werecreatures, humanoids, lupins and rakasta. Beside that, the sea is also inhabited by sea dragons. On the coast there are also many human villages, inhabited by Albernians and Thyatians. There are humans also in the interior lands, the Asieni, supposedly descendants of the ancient Oltecs who mixed with Milenians, Dunaels and Thyatians. They are often considered savages, and dedicated to entropic cults, by those living on the coasts. Another rumor I heard maintains there are elves living in the remote forests of the Shadow Coast. If such elves really exist, they are even more mysterious and reclusive than the Trueflower of the Great Escarpment.

About the Shadow Coast’s Elves, see another of Mishler’s articles here: http://pandius.com/ispan.html These elves probably were meant to be somehow related to the Belcadiz and the Elves of the Savage Coast in the West.

Central Meridiona

It’s interesting to focus a bit on the woods east of the Gulf of the Beasts in Meridiona. These woods are called the Lands of the Werebears, as they are inhabited by such creatures. South of these lands and just north of Caerdania (Caerdwicca and Furmenglaive) there are the lands inhabited by centaurs, lupins and the Aelann humans, some of them sedentary, particularly on the coast, and some of them nomadic. To the northeast, near more lands inhabited by dwarves and stone folk, there is also the Caesi culture, a mix up of Asieri and Caerdas.

Western Escarpment

The region of the Western Escarpment is dominated to the north by the River of Skulls, that arrives to Rialtos on the Western Coast, and is inhabited by stone folk, giants, dwarves, gnomes, centaurs, gyerians, Asieri humans and the Nierash culture.

The Nierash are simply sedentary Asieri, heavily influenced by dwarves and gnomes, while the others are normally nomadic, and hunt the huge variety of gazelles, antelopes and bovids who roam the great western plain.

About the stone folk, gnomes, dwarves and Asieri, see James Mishler’s History: http://pandius.com/dawnhist.html, the Nierash were invented by me for this issue.

The Central Escarpment South

This region could possibly be the most mysterious and unknown of the whole Escarpment. It is supposedly inhabited by the Asuri humans, Oltec descendants who revered animal and ancestor spirits, but later became partially followers of Tarastia and allies of the Hunakoi giants. It is unknown what kind of society they may have and what immortals they may follow in modern times. There is also a mythical Realm of Araq hidden in this forest, according to unverified rumors. The realm was supposedly founded by Asuri who worshipped the immortal Korotiku, or maybe the Night Spider, as the accounts are not clear on this matter. An area of these woods is also called the Monkey forest, and may be inhabited by intelligent monkeys, or so the rumor goes.

About the Asuri, see James Mishler’s History: http://pandius.com/dawnhist.html, Araq and the Monkey forest were invented by me here.

Caerdwicca

The region of Caerdwicca is inhabited by the Caerda humans, who are quite infamous as pirates in the Alphatian regions. They stay well away from the Dark Coast to the north east, inhabited by the so-called Dark Asieni, who however are probably just followers of Nyx. The Escarpment just above Caerdwicca is inhabited by dwarves, centaurs, stone folk, gnomes and the human Asiur clans, probably Asuri who left the eastern woods centuries ago.

The region of Caerdwicca, as the whole southern Meridiona, is near to the tropic and therefore quite warm for all the year, among the common animals there are scorpions, snakes, lizards, frogs, parrots, deer, buffalo, goats, lynxes, jackals, leopards and lions, with a great variety of seals, dolphins and whales in the sea.

About the Asieni and the Asuri, see James Mishler’s History: http://pandius.com/dawnhist.html, but I invented here the particular groups described above.

Furmenglaive

The region of Furmenglaive goes beyond the borders of its namesake county and includes all the main regions of Caerdania, inhabited by the Caerda humans, who however have to share their land with several non human populations. These include humanoids, lupins, werecreatures, fairies, undead, gyerians and some dangerous monsters such as robber flies, seergars, yowlers and many others. While the human presence goes back centuries, maybe millennia, the region is still sparsely inhabited and a big part of it should be considered wilderlands. The sea north west of Furmenglaive is supposedly inhabited by some clans of aquatic elves.

The Straits of Barbarossa

The Straits are dangerous for natural, human and inhuman reasons. The natural reasons are whirlpools, storms and reefs. The human reasons are pirates, who have many bases in the area or come from Caerdwicca and Ne’er-do-well. The inhuman reasons are hostile sea creatures that sometimes attack ships. The sea here and towards Caerdwicca is also inhabited by shark-kin and knas, who however are not hostile unless provoked.

1This Atlas is based on all the available fanon and canon sources, mostly M5 Talons of Night, Dawn of Emperors Boxed Set and the Poor Wizard’s Almanacs I, II and III in canon and this page: http://pandius.com/dawnisle.html at the Vaults of Pandius and the Mystara Fan Almanacs in fanon: http://pandius.com/alm.html. The maps were populated by me, modifying the original maps by Mark Howard, which can be found here http://pandius.com/iodnorthmd2.png and here http://pandius.com/South_Isle_of_Dawn_8_mph.png at the Vaults of Pandius. The full size map of the Isle with my additions will be published at the Vaults at a later date.

2Part of the great Milenian colonizations and explorations of 500 - 100 BC, see the article “Lost Civilizations of Thyatis and Alphatia” in this same issue.