Saturday, November 11, 2023

DA3: Geography of the South

The City of the Gods is located in the Valley of the Ancients, in the Lands South of Blackmoor.


The Lands South of Blackmoor (scale 12 miles per hex) from DA3 "City of the Gods".  Cartography by Dennis Kauth.


I've previously discussed the Lands South of Blackmoor in relation to the map of the Outdoor Survival board:


Southern part of the map of the Outdoor Survival board (top, label for the Valley of the Ancients is my own) in comparison to the Lands South of Blackmoor (bottom).


Note the similarities between the two maps, including the orientation of the mountain ranges to the south of the desert region, and the location of the northern forested areas.

(The name for the Valley of the Ancients likely originated from the name for area 3 "Valley of the Ancients" in the Wilderlands of High Fantasy setting, as discussed, here).


Geography of the South:

In DA3 "City of the Gods", the Fetch provides characters with a direct means of teleportation to Benbow's Hectare, south of Dragonia, and east of the Valley of the Ancients.

From there, the PCs can travel across the Eastern Hak to the Valley of the Ancients.  The module provides descriptions for each of the following regions:

The Eastern Hak*

The Valley of the Ancients

The High Hak*

*see also the "Riders of Hak" (2007) sourcebook, part of the Zeitgeist Games d20 series of Blackmoor supplements

The Thonian Rand**

**see also CBI 2 "The Thonian Rand: Edge of the Empire" (2019)

Detailed encounter tables are provided for each of the following areas:

Steppe (for the High Hak, the Eastern Hak, the Coombe, or the Hills of Clwydd)

Forest (for any forested area north of the Taff River)

  • including the Blasted Woods, the Ringwood, the Mumblewood, Buster's Wood/Botha's Wood and the Lynton Wood/the Bracken

Dragon Hills (for the Dragon Hills, the South Dragons, or the Spine of the Dragon)

Badlands (for the Badlands, the Ash Hills, or the Blue Hills)

Kerman Peaks

Valley (for the Valley of the Ancients)


The Valley of the Ancients:

"City of the Gods" (2007) by Harley Stroh contains multiple well-conceived and challenging encounters for the Valley of the Ancients.


"City of the Gods" (2007) by Harley Stroh.  Cover artwork by John Donahue.

Stroh states that his version "both contradicts and supports" module DA3.

The section detailing the Valley of the Ancients is 32 pages, representing a module in its own right, and is very much worth a look.

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