Eberron - Rising from the Last War

r24

The Shadow Marches aren't a nation. No one voice

speaks for the clans and tribes, and most of the tribes

have no interest in dealing with outsiders. House Tha­

rashk is the largest faction in the region, and their city of

Zarash'ak is the center for commerce.

House Tharashk is the main point of contact between

the Shadow Marches and the outside world. Tharashk

aside, the region remains a collection of tribes and cult­

ists following their ancient traditions in the shadows of

the swamps.

INTERESTING THINGS ABOUT THE

SHADOW MARCHES

• The untamed Shadow Marches are filled with mys­
  teries. Relics of the daelkyr rest undisturbed in the
  depths of the swamps, along with foul monsters and
  druidic shrines.
  The Marches are the birthplace of the druidic tradi­
  tion of the Gatekeepers. Long ago, this sect defeated
  the vile daelkyr; today, its last champions continue to
  protect Eberron from aberrations and other extrapla­
  nar threats.


• Even in defeat, the daelkyr sowed seeds of madness in
  the Marches. Followers of the Cults of the Dragon Be­
  low remain scattered across the region. Some of these
  cults work with mind flayers and other aberrations.
  Others have no evil intent but are driven by dangerous
  delusions.

MARCHER CHARACTERS

As you develop a Marcher character or NPC, consider

the following:

The Mark of Finding. An alliance of Marcher clans

formed House Tharashk, but not all those who car­

ried the mark chose to join this house. As a half-ore

with the Mark of Finding, you could be a child of the

Marches with a strong tie to the house, or you could

be a scion of a small tribe of hunters, proud of your in­

dependence and suspicious of the houses. Your ties to

the Marches might be distant because you were born

to a family that left years ago. Do you want to redis­

cover your ancestral roots?

Madness and Mysticism. Most Marchers have a mysti­

cal view of the world, beliefs shaped by the traditions

of the Gatekeepers and the madness of the daelkyr.

Marchers typically feel that the people of the treaty

nations are blinded by their civilized ways. You have

heard the truth in the voices of croaking frogs and

seen it in the shadows shifting on the water. Whether

you're loyal to the Gatekeepers, the Sovereign Host, or

the Dragon Below, superstitions inform your path.

Clan or Tribe? The people of the Shadow Marches are

split into two distinct cultures. The clans blend the tra­

ditions of human and ore, building towns and working

with steel. If you were raised in one of the clans, the

ways of civilization aren't that strange to you; you've

seen the city of Zarash'ak and worked with House

Tharashk. By contrast, the Marcher tribes main-

tain traditions that predate humanity. As nomadic

CHAPTER 2 I KHORVAIRE GAZETTEER

hunter-gatherers, they don't work metals; they make

their tools from stone, hide, wood, and bone. If your

character is from one of the Marcher tribes, you might

be the first of your people to leave the swamps. Why

have you left your people, and how are you adapting to

this new world?

CITIES AND SITES

The clans of the Shadow Marches primarily live in small

towns and villages, their huts raised above the swamps

on stilts. The Shadow Marches contain many manifest

zones tied to Xoriat and Kythri (see chapter 4 for de­

scriptions of both), the planes of madness and chaos.

Time moves strangely in places in the deep swamps,

which twists mundane beasts and plants into strange

shapes. Daelkyr ruins linger in these areas, remnants of

the ancient war against the goblins and ores that once

dominated Khorvaire.

DRAGONSHARD FIELDS

The Shadow Marches hold deposits of Eberron dragon­

shards, the source of House Tharashk's wealth. These

fields aren't as rich as those in Q'barra, but there's gold

to be made by those willing to hunt for shards in the

dangerous swamps.

VVARAAK'S CAVE

The green dragon Vvaraak is said to have taught the

secrets of druidic magic to the first Gatekeepers thou­

sands of years ago. Though Vvaraak is long dead, ru­

mors say that her hidden lair holds secrets tied to the

Draconic Prophecy and the mysteries of druidic magic.

ZARASH'AK

Because overland travel through Droaam or the Eldeen

Reaches can be extremely dangerous, most people who

need to do business in the Marches travel by ship to the

port city of Zarash'ak. Built on stilts and known for its

cuisine and music, Zarash'ak offers the rare exports of

the land without the difficulty of navigating the swamps.

House Tharashk oversees the City of Stilts, but Marcher

clans and tribes come here to sell crafts and other goods

or to celebrate religious rituals.

AFTERMATH OF THE LAST WAR

The Shadow Marches aren't a nation, and the region

wasn't recognized by the Treaty of Thronehold. Most

Marchers have little interest in the outside world.

Marcher tribes don't know the names or number of the

nations beyond the swamps, let alone that they were

at war. However, as House Tharashk gains power and

influence in the world beyond the swamps, it has in­

creased its presence in its homeland. The house has

expanded Zarash'ak dramatically over the last decade

and is working on transforming other towns into cities.

This has caused tension with a number of tribes. And

House Tharashk's mining operations and its urban

expansion always run the risk of disrupting Gatekeeper

seals and unleashing ancient evils bound beneath

the Marches.