Starwall Hollow

A circular, walled village built on raised causeways in a shallow fen where six towers punctuate the ring and radial roads form a star leading to a central keep; markets and stilted homes sit between reedbeds while peat barns and fish smoke hang in the mist, giving the place a close-knit, watchful feel for both strangers and residents.

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Village

Starwall Hollow

Six towers, one star, and a keep that keeps the reeds at bay.

TypeVillage

PopulationApproximately 320 souls including craftsmen, fishermen, tower-keepers, and priests.

WealthModest, with most wealth tied to craft trade and seasonal shipments.

GovernmentCouncil-keep governed by a Warden and tower representatives

ReadinessThe Ringguard patrols daily but supplies and training are only fair.

“Mist hangs low between leaning towers while frogs and distant bell-buoys mark the hours.”

Gallery

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Connections

Geography

RegionMurkmire Fen

ClimateDamp and mist-laden with mild summers and fog-laden winters.

TerrainSoggy peat, raised causeways, reed beds, and shallow channels.

Travel Links

A rutted causeway leads east to the market village of Reedhaven in two days by cart.A flatboat route carries goods south to the river port of Blackbarge in a single tide.A narrow, reed-hidden trail runs north to the Highroad and the distant trading hub.

Culture

Self-reliance tempered by strict reciprocity and a wary respect for the swamp's moods.

Races

HumanHalf-elfHalfling

Religions

Cult of the MarshmotherOld Road Saints

Arts & Entertainment

Story-singers perform on raised platforms while wicker sculptors craft curious offerings for the marsh.

History

Founded by flood-fleeing families who drove stakes into the fen, the village built a circular ringwall with six towers to control water and trade; over generations it grew into a tight-knit craft and fishing community ruled from a central keep, surviving peat fires, trade rivalries, and uneasy pacts with river merchants while preserving old marsh rites.

FoundingRinging of the First StakesSettlers raised the circular wall from packed peat and stone to hold back frequent floods.

The BogfireThe Year of SmolderA great peat fire burned the western flats and led to the creation of stricter fire laws.

The PactTreaty of the SixwaysA pact with Reedhaven merchants opened regular trade and established the six towers as toll points.

Government

LeaderWarden Mara Vex

Council-keep governed by a Warden and tower representatives

Key Laws

No open fires on peat without a permit from the Warden.All boats and tolls must be registered at the Causeway Gate.Tower-keepers must keep a week-long watch rotation or pay a substitution fine.

Problems

A structural failure in Tower Three endangers a primary road to the keep.

Tower Three suffers a sagging foundation that threatens the starroad and requires dangerous repairs.

Smuggling along the southern flats is eroding trade taxes and trust.

Smuggling rings use tide windows to move coin and contraband past tolls and undermine guild revenue.

Religious tension after a feared omen threatens market attendance.

The Marshmother's priestess claims an ill omen that discourages harvests and scares merchants.

Economy

Industries

Reedcraft and basket weavingFishing and smoke-curingPeatcutting and peat-baling

Scarcity

Fresh-cut timber is scarce and most heavy tools must be imported.

Wealth LevelModest, with most wealth tied to craft trade and seasonal shipments.

Exports

Wickerwares and reed basketsSmoked marsh fish and salted frogmeatCompressed peat-bales for distant hearths

Imports

Metal tools and nailsDried grain and hardtackMedicinal herbs and wood planks

Defenses

ReadinessThe Ringguard patrols daily but supplies and training are only fair.

Fortifications

A packed-peat and stone circular wall encircles the village and rises three courses high.Six guard towers sit equidistant on the wall and connect to the keep by star-shaped roads.The outer ditch fills at high tide to hide the base of the wall and slow attackers.

The Ringguard(Sixty trained men and women with an irregular roster of part-timers.)

A militia trained in patrols, watch rotations, and swamp fighting techniques.

Law & Order

crime Level: Low to moderate, rising when outside barges arrive.
enforcement: A community watch led by tower-keepers and a small constabulary enforces local statutes.
typical Punishment: Fines, public labor on causeways or wall repairs, and short confinement in the keep cell.

Warden Mara Vex

NPC

Warden of Starwall Hollow

Stout and efficient leader who keeps records and calls the council.

Old Jorren

NPC

Boatwright and flatboat captain

A wiry halfling with oil-stained hands and an easy grin who knows every shallow channel.

Sister Elita

NPC

Priestess of the Marshmother

Soft-voiced and observant priestess who interprets omens from the reeds.

Talen Marr

NPC

Tower-keeper and ranger

A lean half-elf ranger who knows every reed channel and can read water by smell.

Mirek Hoss

NPC

Peatmaster and export merchant

A broad-shouldered trader who counts coins faster than he speaks and runs the peat yard.

Bogside Wicker

Shop

Craft stall

A low roofed stall where wickerwares and reed tools are sold and repaired by apprentices.

The Tinned Catch

Shop

General goods

A cramped shop piled with tins, ropes, nails, and jars of brine for curing fish and hides.

The Star's Rest

Tavern

Boat crews, tower-keepers, and the occasional wheeling merchant.

A low-ceilinged room warmed by peat smoke with benches on raised platforms above the water.

Towerwrights

Faction

Guild

Guild of master wickerwrights who maintain the causeways and control export quality.

Reedwardens

Faction

Stewardship

Stewards of the fen who claim traditional authority over water rights and rituals.

Black Bargemen

Faction

Merchant Ring

A loose network of flatboat captains who traffic goods and sometimes contraband downriver.

The Sixways Star

Point of Interest

Six radial roads converge at the keep forming a star pattern of cobbled causeways over the reedbeds.

The Sunken Bell

Point of Interest

A half-sunken bell that rings under certain tides and is said to mark the border with the old marsh spirits.

Glass Reed Fields

Point of Interest

A glassy reed field where certain reeds have translucent stems used by lantern-makers.

The Causeway Gate

Point of Interest

A tide-gated causeway entrance with a tollhouse and chained boom for controlling flatboats.

Calendar of Events

2026-02-14

Lantern Night

A night market of lanterns and reedcraft where locals trade goods and rumors.

A visiting reed-priest will attempt to bless the central well and reveal a hidden sigil.

2026-03-21

Reedmend

A communal repair day where villagers mend causeways and the ringwall together.

A sinkhole opens beneath Tower Three during repairs and reveals a sealed tunnel.

Secrets

A small shrine beneath a causeway hides a bound water-spirit kept to steady the village's tides.

LocalLook where the bell's shadow lingers at low tide.

Mirek Hoss owes a dangerous debt to river creditors and has promised future shipments as collateral.

RegionalAsk the peat-boy who smells of smoke at dawn and keeps odd coins.

A smuggled idol with a mild curse passed through the Black Bargemen and now unsettles livestock and reeds.

RegionalOld Jorren hums a tune that matches the sigils on a stowed crate.

Rumors

Some say the central bell tolls without explanation to ward off a thing beneath the peat.

A hidden culvert under Tower Three might lead to a forgotten shrine watched by a sea-spirit.

A bargeman offers coin for a sealed chest he will not open in public.

Plot Hooks

The Humming Vault

A sealed tunnel beneath Tower Three leads to a ruined shrine and a still-active ward that hums at night.

Dungeon CrawlTalen Marr150 gp or a favor from the Warden

Smokes and Secrets

Smugglers are moving a cursed idol through the causeway and the object is poisoning livestock and reeds.

InvestigationOld Jorren50 gp and smuggler contacts

Return the Reedheart

The Marshmother's visions predict a flood unless a lost sapling is returned to the sacred marsh grove.

Fetch QuestSister ElitaA blessing and healing salves

Tides of Trade

A foreign merchant offers a deal to buy the village's entire peat stock but a rival guild wants to sabotage the sale.

DiplomacyMirek Hoss200 gp or a future trade concession

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