The Regions of Albedos, Vol. I: Delve and the Dramedo Penninsula

Haern

What is Delve and where is it?

Delve is a vast port city that overlooks the Maestral Shoals and the Maestral Barrier Reef which I am sure some of you are familiar with from the initial first steps you took into Delve following the defeat of the Dreikathi. Akin to London in its coldest months, Delve is a very damp city and snow is a regular occurrence. Situated on the northwestern tip of the Dramedo Penninsula, it is greatly protected by the twisting reef and the hard backs of the Dramedo Crags.

The city is currently broken into districts or quarters. The Academic Quarter houses Delve's learning and research centers and is overseen by the Delve Research Society. You may also find members of the Parxian Order (a rival group to the DRS) within the less lauded corners of the city or doing menial work. The Exchange is the heart of the city and is a hub for all tradesmen that travel to Delve. Likewise, there are the Military Yards that house Delve's small, yet standing army of footsoldiers and cavalry and the Docklands which have been in ill-repair for near twenty years now.

And, beneath the streets, it is rumored that the Underbelly of Delve seethes with a life all its own. Shanty towns line the sewers with gangs of refugees and roustabouts that had no place in the Docklands. More than just the dispossessed live in the underground tunnels of Delve. Dark things linger in the deepest dregs, but they might just be the tales of children. The Underbelly is Delve's shameful secret.

Finally, at the northern end of the city, lies the Pious Wards. Shrouded in mystery for some decades now, the people of Delve have been fiercely loyal and vigilant to their long silent gods. Protective of their ways and customs, the veil has begun to lift with the loyalty of Sapience's citizens to their causes. Thus, I am proud to announce the Celebration of the Stars!

The Celebration of the Stars, a festival to celebrate the coming decades and joy of their cultures, will begin in just a few short weeks. With the opening of the Wards to the people of Sapience, the Celebration of the Stars will be a year long celebration with food, entertainment, games, gambling, and sport! All of Delve will be caught in revelry in a way that rivals the excitement of the Arionic Tournaments or the Year 300 celebration!

Come and join Delve in the coming weeks with a celebration that will hopefully delight all of our players!

Yay, but--wait, gods? I thought the gods of Albedos were dead, but the people of Delve still worship them?

The less religious citizens of Delve will certainly consider the gods to have long faded from the realm, but the priests of the Wards maintain that the gods merely slumber. There are hundreds of cults throughout Albedos, and Delve is merely one facet.

Something has certainly happened to the gods of Albedos; perhaps fallen or sealed with great magic. A seal was shattered in recent times and now, it moves.

And what is this about the Dramedo Penninsula?

Many of our players have ventured upwards into the Dramedo Crags and visited the outpost of Helba, but there is more to the Dramedo Penninsula than the lofty crags. Burial tunnels known as the Ia'shal Barrows for the hallowed dead of Helba have been recently excavated, but the Golbans seem to be ill at ease with their findings in the depths.

To the southwest of Delve lies the Pharos at Delve, an ancient lighthouse that was abandonded in years past due to "movements in technology", but it remains to be seen how those "movements" have benefited the whole of Delve.

Players should keep an eye open for these developments following the Celebration of the Stars!