“We have
doomed the wolf not for what it is, but for what we deliberately and mistakenly
perceive it to be –the mythologized epitome of a savage ruthless killer – which
is, in reality, no more than a reflected image of ourself.”
― Never Cry Wolf: The
Amazing True Story of Life Among Arctic Wolves
 |
| Bastra |
A frigid
climate and brutal regime combine to make Stonehold one of the harshest lands
in all the Flanaess. […] [LGG – 108]
Do those who
bask in the southern sun even know that there are people there? I suppose they
might surmise as much, if they were to spare a moment to think on it. Should
they, though, they would conjure thoughts of men wrapped in furs trudging
through waist-deep, windblown snows. In that aspect they would be correct. They
would be surprised to learn that there are settlements up there. Indeed, towns.
The majority
of Stoneholders live a seminomadic existence, moving to the northern tundra in
summer and migrating south in the autumn. The remaining third or so of the
population dwell in permanent settlements, mostly west of the Frozen River.
[LGG – 108, 109]
Who, then, lives there? The Flan.
Most are pure Flan. There is a scattering of
Suel and Oeridian blood, but only a drop or two, here and there. Oeridian to
the west, where the Great Kingdom pretended for a time that this northern land
was part of their continental magnificence; and Suel to the east, where the
Cruski have raided since before the annuls of this forgotten stretch of the
Flanaess were thought to be penned to parchment.
The Duchy of
Tenh are pure Flan [.] [Dragon #55]
The people of
the Hold of Stone Fist […] are primarily hybrids, […] Flan/Suel [.] [Dragon
#55]
Hold of
Stonefist: chaotic evil; Flan, Suloise, [Aerdy], Cold Tongue [Dragon #52]
In high
summer [the Cruski] often find fighting by rounding the coasts of the Hold of
Stonefist, and the Cruskii have both hatred and respect for the dour
inhabitants of that land. [Folio – 11]
Indeed, one
wonders how much Oeridian or Suel blood there could possibly be in these people
who dwell far further north than the wall of pureblood Flan that exists in the
Duchy of Tenh and the Rovers of the Barrens. In this land further isolated by
the icy seas that surround it.
White Fanged Bay: The ice
formations common this body of water resemble the teeth of a predator, and the
bay is named for the great ice-coated rocks and bergs that menace vessels
attempting to land along its shores. In summer, vast numbers of walruses and
seals bask along these rocky coasts, while killer whales hunt in the waters of
the bay. Stonehold folk hunt and fish by the shores. [LGG – 150]
Icy Sea:
The Solnor sweeps northward around the Thillonrian Peninsula and ends in the
Icy Sea. [WoGA – 47]
These
northern waters, likely a part of the circumpolar Dramidj Ocean, remain frozen
except in high summer. [LGG – 148]
Even in
summer the Icy Sea can be dangerous due to thick fogs and floating mountains of
ice. [WoGA – 47]
Whales of all
sorts frequent these waters, said to be the domain of a mighty leviathan lord.
Ice Barbarians take their ships into these waters to hunt whales and collect
walrus ivory and seal furs on the surrounding coasts. [LGG – 148,149]
Buffeted by an unforgiving climate, the Flan
here have always been at the mercy of their environment in its most
unforgiving. They’d have worshipped its wrath, pled to it for clemency. And
they’d have sacrificed to it for leniency.
 |
| The Cruel North |
Arctic druid: WG:
Thillonrian Peninsula (on which lies the Griff, and Corusk Mountains).
Forest druid
(cold): WG: forests along Thillonrian Peninsula (Hraak). [Dragon
#209 – 13]
Mountain druid: WG:
Corusk-Griff-Rakers chain [Dragon #209 – 14]
It comes to no surprise, then, that they
understand cruelty. And worship it.
It also comes to no surprise that when they
were introduced to the Oeridians and Suel they adopted those deities of theirs
that best mirrored their understanding of the world, as they knew it.
Religions:
Erythnul*, Syrul, Beltar, Beory, Obad-Hai [LGG – 108]
Erythnul, OC,
Hate, Envy, Malice, Panic CE(N) [WoGA – 63]
Syrul, S,
Deceit, False Promises, Lies NE [WoGA – 64]
Beltar, S,
Malice, Pits, Deep Caves CE(N) [WoGA – 63]
Theirs was a
cruel world. A heartless, unforgiving world. A world in which only the strong
were let to live.
This explains
Vlek Col Vlekzed, a scion of their fathers who not only understood this, but
was also too cruel for even them to tolerate. He was banished.
But he was to
return, with vengeance.
c. 430 CY
 |
| Vlek Col Vlekzed |
Stonefist,
then Vlek Col Vlekzed, founded his chiefdom in approximately 430 CY. Vlek was
cast out of the Rovers of the Barrens for banditry and lying, but a small
number of warriors and their families followed him as leader. For several years
he hung around the fringes of his homeland, raiding and stealing from everyone
without prejudice. These minor successes attracted a growing following of
fellow outcasts, bandits, criminals and like unsavory types. Yet with this
strange mixture of fighters, he mounted a highly successful raid into Tenh,
swung down into the Bandit Kingdoms and recruited more followers, and then
defeated a punitive expedition sent from Tenh. When threatened by a bandit
kinglet, Vlek replied by surprising his stronghold, sacking it, and carrying
away most of its population. [Folio – 16]
His homeland? I
think not.
Rovers of the
Barrens: chaotic neutral, neutral [Dragon #52]
Hold of
Stonefist: chaotic evil [Dragon #52]
Vlek might have
settled in the Bandit Kingdoms. He had the kinglet’s stronghold to raid from
into Tenh with impunity. And the Bandit’s method’s suited his own.
Bandit
Kingdoms: chaotic neutral, chaotic evil [Dragon #52]
But he didn’t.
Riding
unmolested through the lands of his former people, but not caring to test their
fighting ability, Vlek moved beyond White Fanged Bay and established a
fortified settlement as a permanent camp. [Folio – 16]
He rode north,
instead. Why? Because he had revenge in mind. Against his true and actual
homeland.
The
inhabitants of the area, the Coltens Feodality, were tricked into negotiation
with Vlek. These negotiators and their escorting force banish himwere
slaughtered, the remainder of the Coltens host routed by surprise and ferocity,
and Vlek settled down to rule over the whole territory. As Vlek's infamy
spread, malcontents from many nations came to his standard, despite his new
name of Stonefist (implying both a terrible foeman and an inflexible ruler).
[Folio – 16]
The Coltens
folk had no place in this hierarchy, and many fled to the Hraak Forest, or
beyond the Big Seal Bay and the northern thrust of the Corusks to dwell in the
Taival Tundra, in the land of the Ice Barbarians). [LGG
– 109]
576 – 582 CY
Vlek took the “best” of all of his
experience and remade his homeland in his own image. His people would raid like
Bandits, with the speed of the Rovers. Where only the strong survived.
The
descendants of Vlek (he had 219 wives and 351 male children who survived to
maturity) compete in a bi-annual "Rite of Battle Fitness." The winner
may challenge the Master, one of the Atamen of the three towns, or lead a
warband and become a chief. The surviving losers join the standing warbands
(the "Fists"), those who did best becoming chieftains, sub-chiefs,
and leaders of raiding bands. These savage war and raiding bands commonly raid
Fruztii, Tenh, and even the Rovers of the Barrens. [Folio – 16]
 |
| The Fists |
Cavalry is
not unknown on the western tundra, but few tundra-dwellers are Ice Barbarians,
most having Flan ancestry and being related to the Coltens of Stonehold. [LGG
– 54]
About 30% or
so of the population of the Hold dwell in permanent settlements, and from these
people are drawn the bulk of the footmen. Most of the balance of the population
are semi-nomadic, moving into the northern tundra in the summer, and migrating
south in the fall. From these people come the horsemen and light infantry of
the "Fists." [WoGG – 37]
The Fists
would become the terror of the North.
It was from
settlements like Bastro and Araman, of the Atamanship of Bastro, that those
footmen were drawn. These were not rank and file footmen like those of the
south, these footmen were fast; fleet of foot, sled, and ski; and as nimble as
the arctic fox upon the snows of the plains they scurried across.
The former
Hold of Stonefist is now divided into four Atamanships: Vlekstaad, Purmill,
Kelten, and Bastro. [Dragon #57 – 14]
Armaran is about as isolated a community as
you’ll find. Not so far from the glacial ice to the north, it peers out from
its hilltop perch upon the plains that stretch out on all sides, days journey
from both the sight of man and the sea. The wind howls there. The snow and ice
will strip the skin from your bones when it races to the sea. A man can lose
himself here with ease, should he venture too far from sight and the pernicious
winds rise out of the calm horizon and turn the world white.
The nearest
cities […] are Kelten and Bastro. [WGS2 – 44]
[…] to the
city of Armaran. The city is 270 miles away. [from Kelten] [WGS2
– 43]
[…] nine-day
journey to Araman [from Kelten] [WGS2 – 43]
 |
| Armaran |
523 CY
Long years pass. Little changes in Armaran,
if anything. Trappers trap. Fishers fish. Those who scratch at the oerth still
do so, and hope that what is tilled will bloom, and there will be a harvest to
reap before the snows return after too short a reprieve.
Masters come and go.
 |
| Storrich col Vlek, of Bastro |
[There’s no mention where Storrich hails
from. Armaran is its own Atatmanship on Anna Meyer's map, but not in any canonical text, where the whole of the north of Stonehold is part of Bastro's. Thus, the Atamanship of Bastro is as good a place as any.
To consider fleeing east, he must come from a place where he might consider
that route an option. To flee west by ship, he would have to have knowledge of
the sea.]
Bastro and Armaran would have suffered from
Storrich’s attempt at seizing the Hold, I would imagine.
578 CY
Masters come and go.
In CY 578,
shortly after Tenh had coronated its new Duke, the Master of the Hold became
Rhelt Seuvord I of Stonehold. [Dragon #57 – 14]
The Hold of Stonefist was also renamed. Now openly
calling itself Stonehold, this quasi-kingdom is composed of four Atamanships:
Vlekstaad (west), Pumull (south), Kelten (east), and Bastro (north). Four Great
Chieftains were named, each equal to an Ataman (Reindeer, White Bear, Walrus,
and Forest [Hraak] People). Stonehold has become a force that is greatly feared
by all in this region. [TAB – 23]
Several of his cousins took ill from a
mysterious flux shortly after the coronation, and about a dozen others were
reported fleeing into the Griff Mountains with a small band of loyal followers.
[Dragon #57 – 14]
Major Towns:
Bastro (pop. 1,700), Kelten (pop. 2,800), Purmill (pop, 1,900), Vlekstaad (pop.
2,200 […]) LGG – 108]
582 CY
Artifacts are scattered across the Oerth.
Some in unlikely places. Some more important than others.
It was into this far north that heroes
ventured for just such artifacts.
“They are
very, very ancient, the five Blades of Corusk. Barbarian magic, barbarian
weapons, great heroes of your people in the past. […] The five weapons are lost
and scattered, or at least they have been for quite some time. Not even a
diviner could find them, the stories say.
“The legends
say that if the five blades ire brought together again, greatness shall come
upon the barbarian people. The legends say that a great force is unleashed
which will beat down the enemies of the barbarians. The power of the weapons
themselves will be greatly magnified and expanded when the Five Become One and
a greater force will inspire the barbarian folk to glory and dominion. I speak
of a Power: The Great God of the North!”
 |
| ...in fact it's cold as hell! |
If the
characters do not escape or choose not to escape, they are taken to the city of
Armaran. Their captors shackle their ankles with chains, and sell them as
slaves. […] When a slave escapes and is caught, he is whipped […] and sent back
to his owner. Subsequent escape attempts are dealt with more harshly [.] [WGS2
– 44]
The far north is a cruel land. You’d imagine
that the people there would never lift a finger to help their mother if she
were in need. In that you’d be wrong.
If they make
it to a city, they can find someone who helps them. (Every city has its kind
folk.) [WGS2 – 44]
No place is wholly evil. There are good
people even in the most heartless places. There always are.
584 CY
Did
Vatun rise from his captivity? He did not. It was all a rouse by Iuz. But
because of his false rising, the Flanaess descended into War as it had not seen
since the Suel Imperium clashed with the Bakluni.
The
War passed by the Tundra after Vatun’s “return.” The Fists waged theirs in the
Then and the Barrens. Until Iuz, distracted, delirious with the Death he had
unleashed, lost hold of the Stonefist.
 |
| Sevvord Redbeard |
War had returned to the Hold, if not
specifically to the Atamanship of Bastra.
Though untouched, its inhabitants were not
spared. They bleed in service of their nation’s “freedom,” as did all the
Atamanships.
Kelten and Purmill are more important in
the affairs of Stonehold, especially in light of the ongoing warfare with the
Suel barbarians. [LGG
– 110]
Revenge is widely sought against the
northern barbarians for the burning of Vlekstaad, but Iuz's forces are hated
even more. Conspiracies are suspected between Iuz and several war band leaders
to gain control of Stonehold. Murders of war band leaders (by their fellows)
are on the rise. [LGG – 110]
589 CY
Life grinds on in the wake of the War.
Trappers trap. Fishers fish. Farmers scratch at the oerth.
And the men of the Atamanship of Bastra
raid, as Fists are wont to do.
Bastro (pop. 1,700)
Armaran
(Pop. approx. 1,500)
Resources: Furs,
walrus ivory
Population:
55,000 [Stonehold]—Human 96% (FS), Orc 2%, Dwarf 1%, Other 1%
Languages: Flan dialects, [Aerdi], Cold
Tongue
Alignments: CE*, CN, N
Religions: Erythnul*, Syrul, Beltar,
Beory, Obad-Hai
[LGG
– 108, interpolated]
 |
| In Defense of their Home |
The Ice
Barbarians are unsteady allies of the other barbarians, raiding where and when
they please. [WGS2 – 6]
They raid
Stonehold when the opportunity presents itself. [LGG – 149]
The Ice
Barbarians have supported the Fruztii to some extent by making naval raids
along the northern coast of Stonefist. [WGS2 – 6]
Territorial
disputes with Stonehold that predated the wars were finally brought to a head […]
years ago, when a combined host of Cruski and Schnai entered the eastern hold.
They were unable to capture the town of Kelten, but the Cruski reinforced their
control of the Taival Tundra. [LGG – 55]
 |
| The True North, Strong and Free |
The Coltens
folk had no place in [the Stonefist] hierarchy, and many fled to the Hraak
Forest, or beyond the Big Seal Bay and the northern thrust of the Corusks to
dwell in the Taival Tundra, in the land of the Ice Barbarians). [LGG – 109]
Cavalry is
not unknown on the western tundra, but few tundra-dwellers are Ice Barbarians,
most having Flan ancestry and being related to the Coltens of Stonehold. They
do not serve as warriors for the Cruski, instead paying tribute to their Suel
overlords to be left alone. [LGG – 154]
“You never
know when the devil might come calling.”
―
One must always give credit where credit is due. This piece
is made possible primarily by the Imaginings of Gary Gygax and his Old Guard,
Lenard Lakofka among them, and the new old guards, Carl Sargant, James Ward,
Roger E. Moore. And Erik Mona, Gary Holian, Sean Reynolds, Frederick
Weining. The list is interminable.
Special
thanks to Jason Zavoda for his compiled index, “Greyhawkania,” an invaluable
research tool.
The Art:
Hold of Stonefist map detail, by Anna Meyer
The City of Armaran map, by Diesel, from WGS2 Howl from the North, 1991
Viking by chrisbjors
The Hold of Stonefist, by Ken Frank, from WGS2 Howl from the North, 1991
Sources:
1015 World of Greyhawk Boxed
Set, 1983
1064 From the Ashes Boxed
Set, 1992
2023 Greyhawk Adventures
Hardback, 1988
9025 World of Greyhawk
Folio, 1980
9317 WGS1 Five Shall Be One,
1991
9337 WGS2 Howl from the
North, 1991
11743 Living Greyhawk
Gazetteer, 2000
Dragon
Magazine, #52, 55, 209
Greyhawkania,
Jason Zavoda
The
map of Anna B. Meyer
