Hi everyone, and welcome back to the Finder’s Archives.
In this column, we take some of the lands from Magic: The Gathering and turn them into something you can use for your fantasy games.
The stats given in each entry assumes that you’re using Pathfinder or 5e for your games, but they can easily be converted over into any fantasy system. This week we grip our lance and steel our resolve at Castle Embereth.
Castle Embereth
Castle Embereth, the Home of Courage. It is one of the LEAST defensible fortifications on the continent, and it is entirely on purpose. The defenders here rely instead on their own strength of arms, their passion, and as their sergeant-at-arms would say, “No guts, no glory.” Because that defines anyone who comes to live at Castle Embereth.
Lay of the Land
Castle Embereth sits at the top of an active volcano, and spells keep it free of the falling debris from the occasional outburst of anger from the “God of Hellfire” as the knights have lovingly named the volcano. Roads lead here from all sides, and they’re kept clear of all obstacles, an open invitation to any invader to “come and get it.” It overlooks an important set of trade routes as it offers the easiest connector between the eastern and western parts of the continent, sitting like a sentinel astride the trade roads.
At the center of the castle lies a single boulder. The size of a small house, intense heat emanates from it, and only those who are brave and strong-willed enough to place their bare hands on it are allowed to join the defenders of castle Embereth. Of course, those that succeed are healed, but many carry their scars openly or have touched the stone multiple times to prove their worthiness. The smiths of Castle Embereth are the most scarred of all, as they use the boulder daily in their work to forge weapons and armor for the castle’s defenders. They simply jam in the pieces of metal that they’re about to work on, and then withdraw it a few seconds later, finding it to be red-hot. When doing so, sparks often fly, and these small sparks burn upon impact, giving many of the smiths a “cratered look.” One that they are proud of.
Dangers
Sitting atop an active volcano is dangerous enough for most, but to the knights and soldiers of the Castle, that doesn’t prove anything. Every day patrols range out from the Castle to eradicate goblins and orcs, deter wyverns, and occasionally drive off a red dragon or two. Their biggest issue is a clan of fire giants that lives within the active volcano itself, though they have an uneasy truce with them. The truce is mostly a matter of courtesy, in that knights and giants do not attack each other immediately on sight, but if their paths cross, combat is almost inevitable. Usually, neither side actively kills the other, unless truly offended; instead leaving the loser unconscious upon the side of the volcano for their fellows to recover. In effect, this has become the harshest and best training grounds that knights or giants could ask for, and most of them are far more capable combatants than their equivalents elsewhere in the world.
Of course, the knights do not tell newcomers that the giants will only leave them unconscious rather than dead (at least, not on purpose — accidents still happen after all), to test the new people’s mettle.
And that concludes Castle Embereth. Next week, we look at a slightly different fortification. Hope to see you there. 😊
Kim Frandsen
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