These are some of the many locations of Bruid. There may be others that can be discovered, but these are available for anyone from Bruid, or with Five Realms Lore to travel to.<\/p>\n\n\n
Named for a former Iarla of Baol, Suarachan’s Shoal is a deceptively shallow inlet of the Endless Sea, and is full of silt and hidden reefs. Its name recalls one of the few times in Baolach history that lowlanders and highlanders worked in concert. The Iarla of Bruid had called for aid in facing a great horde of Gwyllt that had overcome many settlements in western Bruid, and indeed threatened to surge through the Green Marches into Baol. As the Iarla of Baol at the time, Suarachan marshalled the ingenuity of the lowlanders and the bravery of the highlanders to ferry huge numbers of warriors across the Shoal into Bruid, attacking the Gwyllt from behind. Despite this famed example of the benefits of collaboration, legend has it the Baolach forces went right back to fighting amongst themselves after the battle was won, and Suarachan’s Shoal has never been dredged.<\/p>\n\n\n
Named for the restless dead which plague it as well as the general sense of unease that those who pass through experience, the Ghostmoor was the old frontier with the Great Forest before Bagrach’s Line was established. The Order of Necromancers maintain a semi-permanent presence here, seeking out those unhappy souls who died fighting the Gwyllt here and putting an end to the abominations they have now become. There were once many towns in this area, but those who once lived here have abandoned them in favour of less unsettled lands closer to the Great Forest.<\/p>\n\n\n
The primeval Great Forest covers the whole of southern Bruid. They say it stretches the whole way east as the southern coast of the Shaper’s Sea until the Eastern Reaches, although no mortal can boast of having made the journey. Those who live in Bruid will swear that the trees themselves are alive, and that the sprouting trees grow faster than anyone can believe. It is home to countless hordes of Gwyllt, wild beasts, and the undead spectres of those who have tried their mettle against the Forest and failed.<\/p>\n\n\n
The Green Marches, the shared borderlands between Baol, Bruid and Dra\u00edod are a hotpoint for raiding and small-scale warfare. Most of the merchants travelling in this area hire mercenaries or even gall\u00f3glaigh bands to protect themselves when passing through.<\/p>\n\n\n
The Gulf is an enormous ragged hole in the earth deep within the Great Forest. The great chasm is a mile wide, and particularly in summer the Gwyllt boil out of it as if from a bubbling pot. The Gulf’s bottom – if it even has one – is shrouded in darkness. None have delved into its depths and returned to tell the tale.<\/p>\n\n\n
The Razing is an area in southern Bruid which most avoid at all cost. It remains as a symbol of the implacability of the Great Forest and the great sacrifices that must be made for victories against it. Many years ago, an Iarla of Bruid decided in an act of fury to set fire to the Great Forest and to have done with it forever. They succeeded in burning a small part of it, but the Forest had its revenge. Anyone who spends any amount of time in the Razing today finds that they are suffused with incredible pain, as if they are being burned alive.<\/p>\n\n\n
The borderlands between Bruid and Uasa is one of the most densely populated in all the Five Realms…but more with sheep than people. This close to the capital cities of Corroch and Uaircinn there is less danger from banditry and strife between neighbouring Ridings, but roving Gwyllt and undead still pose trouble. Tensions can arise between Riders as to who is responsible for dealing with these incursions, and there have been years where the porous border between the two Realms has shifted north or south as Riders of one Realm or another decide enough is enough and take charge to put an end to a looming threat.<\/p>\n\n\n
One of the oldest Ridings in Bruid, Balla Adhmaid harks back to the days of Misneach. Misneach was the first Iarla of Bruid, and foster sibling of the First R\u00e9ig themselves. The Riding is notable for the formidable fortification that surrounds the entire Riding, also making it one of the only Ridings in the entire Five Realms with a clear border between it and its neighbours. The wall was built in the days before Bagrach’s Line was established, and the Great Forest covered the entirety of Bruid. The walls are many centuries old now, but whatever craft or magic was used to build them has kept them firm. Those who visit find the black and craggy wood of Ball Adhmaid to be unnerving, and they tell stories afterwards that the walls seemed to groan and creak at night, perhaps calling out to their ancient kintrees in the Great Forest to return and lay low those who would dare to challenge the Forest’s rule over Bruid. The current Rider Br\u00edan O’Reilly is said to be in a dangerous mourning since the death of his husband Armando and son Alejandro.<\/p>\n\n\n
In the Spring 801 TR the Riding of Dun Hale was wiped out by the Smiling Gwyllt. New rider Cethern Mac Fintain aims to drive back the darkness of the Great Forest and turn Dun Hale into a thriving riding once more. Deeper in the forest, Cro\u00ed Allta leads a group of wildlings who shun the trappings of civilisation and immerse themselves in the Forests\u2019 vital rhythms of life and death. Through the intervention of Cumhacht na R\u00e9ige, the two have agreed to peaceful co-existence, but both the settlers and wilderness dwellers face an uncertain future, surrounded by danger on all sides.<\/p>\n\n\n
Dun Ilrin takes up most of the eastern peninsula of Ilrin, and the folk there hold themselves proudly (some would say entirely too proudly) distinct from the rest of Bruid. They tell all sorts of legends about themselves, how the first settlers there befriended the huge talking eagles that lived on the Cliffs of Faire and rode them all over the world. Those eagles died out years ago, of course, but the Ilrinigh still boast. The rider of Dun Ilrin was a famous bard in his youth, and is still known as Lorcan Silvertongue, though these days his way with words is mostly used in negotiations with his belligerent neighbours to the west, always hungry for the good land in the Ilrin peninsula.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Settlements: Rathnead<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n Overseen by the Leasiar Rider Gannclann, D\u00eddean is comprised of several settlements both small and large that serve as a refuge and fresh start for those who were unsuccessful in settling in the Great Forest. Rumours circulate that before they were Rider, even before they were Counsellor, Gall\u00f3glaigh or a Peacesworn, Gannclann was the sole survivor of an attempt to settle deeper into the Great Forest than ever before; others say they were a vicious bandit who preyed on travellers through the Forest. Whatever the truth, D\u00eddean is a welcome home to many unable to find a safe haven elsewhere in Bruid.<\/p>\n\n\n\nD\u00eddean<\/h3>\n\n\n