Maribel Thistlebrook

The Hollow Marches is a medieval fantasy region filled with small farming villages, bustling cities, dense forests, mountains, and a long western coastline. Most people live ordinary lives as farmers, merchants, craftsmen, soldiers, and travelers. Magic exists, but it is not something every common person encounters regularly, and most people know little about its deeper workings. Monsters are similarly uncommon in civilized areas, though travelers and villagers know that dangerous creatures inhabit the wilderness. The heart of the region consists of peaceful farmland and small communities, including the village where our character was raised. Beyond the farmland lies the Blackroot Forest, a vast and ancient woodland filled with hunters, wildlife, forgotten ruins, and things that are less easily explained. Farther north stand the Greyspine Mountains, home to isolated settlements, old mines, ruined fortresses, and more dangerous places. To the west, the coastline is dotted with fishing villages and ports that connect the region to the wider world. Beneath the surface, however, lies another world. Hundreds of years before the current kingdoms existed, an ancient civilization known as the Vaelorians inhabited the region. They constructed enormous underground cities, temples, roads, mines, and other structures far more advanced than anything modern people can easily explain. Then, for reasons nobody fully understands, the Vaelorians disappeared. Their abandoned ruins remain scattered beneath the modern world, and adventurers occasionally venture into them searching for treasure, artifacts, and lost knowledge. Most ordinary people pay little attention to these ancient ruins. To them, they are simply old places best left alone. Adventurers and scholars, however, believe there is more to the story of the Vaelorians. Strange discoveries have begun appearing in recently explored ruins, suggesting that whatever happened to the ancient civilization may not be entirely forgotten. The surface world continues on as normal, largely unaware of what may still exist beneath it. The Hollow Marches is therefore a world of contrasts: peaceful farmland and dangerous wilderness, ordinary medieval life and powerful magic, bustling cities and forgotten ruins. For someone who has spent her entire life on a farm, the world beyond her village is already enormous. The ancient world beneath it is something she could never have imagined.

~800 Years Ago — The Age of the Vaelorians The Vaelorians were the oldest known civilization to inhabit the Hollow Marches. They were highly advanced in architecture, engineering, and magic, constructing enormous underground cities, roads, temples, mines, and fortresses. Much of what remains underground was built by them, though modern people no longer understand how many of their creations worked. ~750 Years Ago — The Disappearance The Vaelorians suddenly vanished. There was no known war, mass migration, or clear sign of what happened to them. Entire cities were simply abandoned, sometimes with belongings still inside. Whatever caused their disappearance remains one of the greatest mysteries of the region. ~600 Years Ago — The First Settlements Long after the Vaelorians disappeared, new peoples began settling the surface of the region. Small farming communities gradually developed into villages and towns. Over generations, people built their lives directly above forgotten Vaelorian ruins without realizing what was underneath them. ~400 Years Ago — The Founding of Greyhaven Greyhaven began as a small fortified settlement along an important trade route. Its position made it increasingly important to merchants, travelers, and soldiers. Eventually, it grew into one of the largest cities in the Hollow Marches. ~300 Years Ago — The Road Wars Several local kingdoms and noble families fought over control of the major roads and farmland. The conflicts eventually ended with the establishment of relatively stable borders. Some abandoned fortifications and battlefields from this period can still be found throughout the region. ~200 Years Ago — The Blackroot Incident A large expedition entered the deeper parts of Blackroot Forest and never returned. Search parties found abandoned equipment and strange markings carved into several ancient stones, but no survivors. The incident helped establish the belief that the deeper forest should be left alone. ~100 Years Ago — The Forgotten Mines Are Abandoned The mines beneath the countryside were once an important source of metal and valuable minerals. Miners eventually broke into older underground structures and began reporting strange noises, unusual markings, and unexplained occurrences. The mines were eventually abandoned. Most people now consider them dangerous but unimportant. ~40 Years Ago — The Last Major War The region experienced its most recent major conflict between neighboring powers. The war eventually ended, and the Hollow Marches entered a relatively peaceful period. Most people alive today remember it only through stories from their parents and grandparents. ~20 Years Ago — The Strange Discoveries Begin Scholars and adventurers began finding previously unknown Vaelorian ruins beneath the region. Several discoveries contradicted what historians believed about the ancient civilization. Interest in the ruins increased, although most ordinary people remained largely unaware of what was being uncovered. ~Recent Years — The Ruins Become More Active In the years immediately before the character's introduction, travelers and adventurers began reporting increasingly strange occurrences around ancient ruins. Symbols have appeared where they weren't seen before, previously sealed passages have been discovered open, and some explorers claim that portions of the underground structures seem to have changed. Most people dismiss these stories as exaggerations.