Graidmere Swamp

Graidmere Swamp lies to the north-east of Lake Prophyria, in the far north-eastern Ustalavic county of Sinaria. It is a large swamp covering nearly 400 square miles.

Description

The Graidmere Swamp is a rank, mosquito-infested place of strange magic, gnarled trees, monuments entwined in vines, and the outcast and solitary among intelligent creatures. It is a constant of strangeness for the people of Karcau and its surrounding county, and thus shunned by most in the surrounding civilized regions.

Inhabitants

It is home to a variety of misfits and swamp creatures:

• xenophobic human communities variously called 'swampers', 'leechfolk', or 'swampfolk'. They are generally a cross-breed of marsh-dwelling Kellids and Varisians
• criminals on the run
• followers of esoteric magic
• insane followers of the Old Cults, who see the Graidmere as a place where communication with their alien masters is made easier
• swamp creatures such as swamp pigs, sharp-eared vine cats, marsh snakes, giant bats, fungal crawlers, and gloomwings, who are also known to plague the surrounding farms.

The so-called ruler of the swamp is the great wyrm Serzilian, a black dragon who has lived there for over 800 years. Sleeping most of the time, she wakes only to demand sacrifice, but she also knows that something darker makes the swamp home, but has yet to find a method of summoning it in order to know exactly what.

Places of interest

In the heart of the Graidmere is an area of ground called Baallalota, where daughters of the swamp dance on the night of the vernal equinox.

References

For additional as-yet unincorporated sources about this subject, see the Meta page.