The Modwir

Accessed via the path to the west of the logging road in Kharam Dzu. Go Path, SW, Go trail, S

Rooms

Glade

Banyan trees and verdant flowering vines ring the cobbled flagstones of a small glade. Half obscured by foliage on the glade's far side stands a tall stone wall that frames an arched, vultite-banded door. The vultite is not the door's only guard. Perched on a stone outcrop above is a large, black-plumed hawk. His demeanor appears as menacing as his impressive size and talons, as he surveys the glade's perimeter with a predatory gaze. You also see a rent box.

Walled Garden

Heavily flowered bushes and vines ring the small courtyard in a breathtaking array of color and fragrance. Hibiscus blossoms as big as plates compete with snow-white camellias and flame-colored trumpet flowers. From the midst of the canopy, an enormous black modwir reaches to impossible heights. The tree is magnificent both in stature and symmetry. In its base, an arch, crowned with a frieze of carved runes, gives access into the heart of the giant pine. You also see an arched door leading through the garden's surrounding wall, a bowl and a low sandstone bench.

Obvious exits: none

Hearth Room

Curved walls of living wood frame a spacious room. A large oak-framed painting is centered over a stone hearth, which is nestled within the far wall, doing no apparent harm to the tree when lit. Round, hand-braided rugs create patterned islands here and there, and a handsome modwir table stands in the chamber's center. A staircase winds up one wall, looking more like it was grown from the wood itself rather than fashioned by mortal hands. You also see an arch leading out of the tree, a pine sideboard with some stuff on it, a woven twig basket, a vultite door and a curved wooden seat.

Obvious exits: none

Stairwell

The rich grain of the tree's heartwood encloses this small anteroom with its currents of polished pattern. Soft light shed by a hanging lantern illuminates a circular flight of gnarled stairs that grows from the roots of the modwir. This descends into a faint green glow that flickers and dances across the burnished wood. You also see a vultite door.

Obvious exits: down

Grotto

The stairs widen, opening into a surprisingly large chamber excavated within the embrace of the giant modwir's root system. The roots still stand here and there around the room, like huge, twisting columns that are shined to the same high luster elsewhere within the pine. Surrounded by the four largest of these, a pool of strangely luminescent water sends out a green glow. A massive stone worktable hulks behind the dancing reflections cast by the pool's rippling surface. You also see a large carved pine chest, an upturned banded trunk and a copper bucket.

Obvious exits: up

Branch Balcony

The crystal-paned doors have opened up on a natural balcony formed by an especially wide and level branch. A few neighboring limbs provide a manner of balustrade with conveniently spaced clusters of jasmine. At the aerie's furthest perimeter, the branch contorts, twisting into a comfortable bench. From there, the view of the expansive vista of the Stormbrow Mountains cloaked in volcanic mists is superb. You also see a small knothole nearly hidden in the foliage and a winding staircase leading down to lower levels of the colossal pine.

Obvious exits: None

Sleeping Chamber

The airy loft of a room offers a spectacular view of Teras Isle from floor to ceiling window casements draped with yards of ivory linen. A breeze plays over the curtains, making them billow in a graceful dance. Similar rugs to those gracing the lower levels are scattered across the floor. A stein-carved wooden bed is covered with a handmade quilt pieced from richly toned silks and velvets. A nightstand guards the bed's side. Toward the rear of the chamber, tall doors with crystal panes echo the window casements.

Obvious exits: None

Items in Rooms

(Nightstand) - On the pine nightstand you see a carved emerald lamp and a juicy peach.

(Painting) - The overlaying of rich oil paints and the use of vibrant colors brings the scene to life. Rendered with painstaking detail, eyes are drawn to a wiry-haired armor-clad dwarf standing against a backdrop of heavily flowered bushes and vines that ring a courtyard. A majestic, broad-winged hawk rests upon her gauntleted left hand, tearing at a piece of meat. Her other hand grips a stein overflowing with ale. A silver plaque sits at the base of the frame. (Read plaque) In the Common language, it reads: ~ Bremerial God'thor ~ Current occupant of The Modwir 5114

(Seat) - Constructed from burnished oak, this single curved seat rests upon a series of outwardly turned wooden feet. The seat is upholstered using a webbing of strong woven cotton for the base and wads of cotton padding for the arms. Simple black fabric covers the seat, exposing a section of polished wood at the base and along the rim of the headrest. A number of plush quilted cushions, bearing the embroidered image of a hawk in flight, lay haphazardly on the seating.

(Sideboard) - On the pine sideboard you see a frosty mug of beer and a glass of iced pale ale.

(Table) - On the modwir table, you see a couple of handsome silver platters, one bearing a delicious-looking mound of cinnamon bearclaws and blueberry scones. On the other platter is a heaping pile of barbequed boar ribs and some roasted thrak sandwiches.

(Bench) - A single slab of sandstone forms a serpentine-shaped seat. The seat is raised from the ground by an intricate latticework of black metal with protruding twisted struts that provide support and stability to the bench. The base of each support is buried within foliage that wends its way from front to back.

(Door) - Solid vultite hinges mortared securely within the stone of the wall support an arched, mistwood door. The door is richly veined and carved with sigils that coil and intertwine across its surface in an intricate dance. The lock, also cast of vultite and expertly fashioned, is in the form of a hawk's head, the wickedly down-curved beak providing a door handle.

(Hawk) - Noticing you looking at it, the hawk stares back almost as if it senses your curiosity. Its eyes, a striking shade of gold, are large and gleam with an intelligent light. The plumage is an unusual shade: deep black at the feathers' ends that softens to a grey shade next to the bird's body. Undoubtedly, the sheer size of the hawk gives an overwhelming sense of majesty and suppressed power.

(Lizard) - The little green lizard poses a moment, hanging easily from the rough volcanic stone of the wall with its clawed feet. It has a long, proud tail that curves gracefully behind it, looking longer than the lizard's body. It bobs its head a couple of times, perhaps searching for an insect, then scampers nervously to another sunny perch.

(Flower) - The torrent of color is a magnet for a variety of nectar-seeking creatures. A constant drone of insects fills the courtyard. Over the cascade of flowers, a cloud of butterflies dance and bright, fluorescent-hued hummingbirds flash here and there, almost too quickly for the eye to follow.

(Black Modwir) - The tree is hauntingly beautiful, possessing long, warm green needles that slope gracefully from the fingers of its branches. It is an anomaly in this climate, not generally being found in tropical zones. In fact, its very size makes it a curiosity and gives it a strange sentient presence, as if it were an embodiment of magical forces at work.

Ambient Room Scripts

A striped lizard scrambles onto a rock half-covered with vines. Within a moment, the small reptile has changed its pattern and color, blending with the rough, mottled stone. It sits motionless, waiting for a tasty morsel to wander unsuspectingly close. Once you look away, it's difficult to find the lizard again, so well does it match the surrounding rock.

A large, spotted butterfly drifts lazily across the clearing, floating on a gentle breath of wind.

The hawk stares at you intently. For some reason, it makes you just a tiny bit nervous.

Something comes sailing down at you from the modwir's branches! After ducking instinctively, you glance back up just in time to catch a glimpse of a flying squirrel. It sails gracefully into some neighboring trees on the other side of the tall garden wall.

A tiny, silvery mouse suddenly leaps from beneath the bearskin rug and races headlong across the black tile. It quickly dives into the safety created by the group of massive terra-cotta urns.

A shimmering cloud of playful butterflies drifts across the courtyard, their wings an undulating pattern of orange, yellow, red and black.

Two squirrels suddenly leap out of the modwir! They chase each other around in frantic circles, then tear off into the flowers on a merry romp.

A large chameleon waddles into the courtyard. It glances around, its tongue flicking in and out, testing the air for subtle messages. After a few moments, it nonchalantly turns and retreats into the thick greenery.