Emden

Emden
Emden is the starting point for the Skylands Campaign, and is an island of fairly average size. One of the Skylands' concave islands, the edges rise into towering mountain ranges and shelter the interior of the island from the skies. The low point of the island is filled by a large freshwater sea, and six river systems drain into it from the highlands.

The Six Cities
Each of the six rivers is crowned by a city, and these six cities are the primary political powers of Emden. Smaller settlements can be found everywhere in between, but the bulk of the land outside of the Six is wilderness. In order of increasing size:
 * 1) Concord - Positioned between the Firewisp Swamp and the highland forests, Concord is populated mostly by hunters and trackers, who roam the surrounding land to hunt the region's more dangerous beasts.
 * 2) Dhonas - Long under siege from the horrors of the Crumbling Wastes, Dhonas is filled with some of the toughest warriors of Emden. The city has been slowly weakening under the constant onslaught, leading to more and more innovative military tactics.
 * 3) Bréyor - The city of Bréyor is host to the only major arcane college on the island, the Institute of Ascension. Because of the relative danger of living close to dozens upon dozens of mages-in-training, the city is not quite as developed as the others, but the constant flow of rare materials to the Institute keeps trade thriving.
 * 4) Eldril - Tucked away in a relatively safe corner of Emden, Eldril is home to the most productive farmland on the island. It is a calm, tranquil place.
 * 5) Lightpeak - Home of the largest temple to Phol-Phoram on Emden, the aptly-named Lightpeak is built around the temple. The city attracts the most devout clerics and holy warriors to combat the evils that haunt the Crumbling Wastes, so luckily the city is well-defended.
 * 6) Quaré - Seated at the edge of the Glimmersky Lake, Quaré is the largest of the island's cities and the undisputed social center of the island. It is also the home of Emden's Council of the Six, the closest the cities ever come to truly cooperating.

Other Important Locations
Outside of the Six Cities, most of the important locations on Emden are either deserted, uninteresting to adventurers, incredibly dangerous, or some combination of those three.
 * The Crumbling Wastes - The northern edge of the island between Dhonas and Lightpeak has been slowly crumbling into the Roil for centuries. To make matters worse, it is swarming with evil of all types and size categories.
 * Murkheath - A town at the edge of the Firewisp Swamp, essentially the last bastion of civilization before one dives into the swamp.
 * Firewisp Swamp - Home to countless beasts that are better left undescribed, sunken ruins forgotten by time, and inexplicable tremors, the Firewisp Swamp has ended many an adventuring party.
 * The Silver Forest - An immense forest composed largely of silver-barked birch trees, this wilderness is a relatively tranquil area of the island where numerous rare magical plants can be found. There is usually at least one escaped experiment from the Institute of Ascension running around in the forest.