Some Nearby Towns in the Badlands

Valley of Fire, Nevada [Wikimedia Commons]

Lormond, pop 21,000. Not so much a town as the largest major city in the Badlands. Lots of stuff to see and do, and plenty of trouble to get into. More later.

Scarletton, pop 2,500. Famous for its hospitality. Lots of great inns and restaurants, including—

·         The Barbarian’s Alehouse (14 g.p./night), famous for herb-encrusted goat shanks

·         The Screeching Carp (12 g.p./night), famous for its fish beer and bacon-wrapped-bacon

·         Newt’s Nest, a bawdy tavern where men of rank or privilege go slumming

·         Skull Market, where orc-tribes come to trade openly with the human population

Scarletton is centrally located between Lormond and several smaller communities, so it’s a natural trade center.

Hurstmouth, pop 5,800. Originally built to exploit easy access to a freshwater stream, Hurstmouth is now a gateway to the Underworld. Law enforcement hasn’t kept up with the influx of new faces, and Hurstmouth is a dangerous place where unwary people lose their fortunes and their lives with startling regularity.

·         Donna Portia’s Magick Emporium, selling high-priced treasures to Underworld expeditions and wealthy tourists from Nyctopolis*

·         A lawfully-inclined constable named Rossdell Post, leader of a recently-formed town militia, has begun imposing fatal punishments for a variety of poorly-defined crimes.

·         The Paladin’s Rest has a reputation for being the best whorehouse in the Badlands.

Central Bluff, pop 740. Built around the tower of the mysterious Crystal Maiden, this little community is largely isolated from the outside world. Its people are whispered to be “wild eyed” and unpredictable. Its major industries are mining and the harvesting, preparation, and sale of rare gems.

·         The Crystal Maiden is an unpredictable creature who wields magical authority over ice and snow. She appears in different guises to those who seek her, but most say there is something “insect-like” about her form. If she has a name besides the Crystal Maiden, none in Central Bluff will share it with outsiders.

Wild Nevada [S4:E1]

Verdant Grove, pop ?? (est. 80-120). Due to some long-held custom of belief, the people of Verdant Grove wear only green clothes. It’s otherwise an unremarkable backwater full of loggers, skinners, trappers, and leatherworkers, who [some say] practice odd religious rites under the full moon.

Vandarbarton, pop ?? (est. 80-100). Poor farmland, a misty forest full of scrawny predators, some ramshackle huts, and a medium-sized herd of cattle. Also, a bar: Barren Crossing, where you can buy whiskey or beer, and the locals throw in suspicious glares for free.

Slattenby, pop ?? (est. 20-60). A flooded, miserable little hovel of a village, built in the shadow of Deathfrost Mountain** amid the Howling Forest on the shores of Barnacle Lake.

Badlands at the Blue Gate, Utah [Wikimedia Commons]

*,**: Names borrowed from the works of Zak Sabbath, James Raggi, and/or Patrick Stuart.