The Citadel of Many Arrows

This information is intended for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.

At a Glance

The Citadel of Many Arrows, known as Felbarr in the days when it was part of the dwarven kingdom of Delzoun, is now filled with orcs under the leadership of Obould.

Not to be confused with the Citadel of the Arrow.

The Xaeyruudh Campaign

The Campaign Setting describes Citadel Felbarr being retaken by dwarves in 1367 DR. Since this campaign begins in 1365, this event has not yet transpired.

The Orcs of Many-Arrows

Waterdeep and the North puts the orcish population of the Citadel at around 40,000. Here are some thoughts on how that number might break down. This is completely unofficial.

Total: 41,966 orcs. From the worldbuilding tables in the DMG (page 137 of the 3.5 DMG) roughly 40% are children.

25,184 adults. The adult population is 60% male, 40% female. There are a variety of reasons for the male dominance here. Some women are ordered/allowed to remain “at home” while others are taken out on patrols. Women who go on patrols have a much higher mortality rate than men, due to a combination of frequently being favored for the more hazardous tasks and the simple ugly truth of infidelity. Mates are not always assigned to the same patrols; they’re assigned according to the needs of the patrol. Or one could be on patrol while the other is in the Citadel. The ugly part: male orcs who philander with another warrior’s mate while on patrol find it very “logical” to kill the female rather than risk the drama that will result if she tells anyone about it. And orc males being the creatures they are, when a male emerges from a thicket without the female who accompanied him into it, the whole patrol knows what happened and any excuse will do, no matter how thin. The exception to this would be highly ranked females, whose death would enrage Obould or another highly placed male… but those females generally have the political clout to resist going into thickets with men who aren’t their mates.

16,782 children. The adolescent population is 40% male, 60% female. The reason for this disparity is that males are generally more apt to engage in self-destructive behavior, and often too stupid to bring responsible friends along to run for help when they need it. Young male orcs stage “mock” battles which can and do turn lethal at the first disparaging remark. Young females can be just as quick to anger, but they tend to simmer unless they’re being observed by males they want to impress.

Due to the cultural expectations of orcs, males and females do not gravitate toward the same classes.

male female class
01-30 01-20 barbarian
31-55 21-55 cleric
56-75 56-70 fighter
71-90 monk
76-90 ranger
91-00 rogue
91-00 sorcerer

There are outliers —many of the female clerics/sorcerers might be adepts, for instance— but these are the classes that the majority of these orcs belong to. Feel free to write up individual exceptions for your own use.

Finally, not all of these orcs are the level 1 warriors described in the Monster Manual. The FRCS gives Obould as CR 9 (which I personally think is too low) but it is reasonable that his highest level lieutenants would be level 8. A level distribution of the 25,184 adults would look something like this:

CR How many
1 22,833
2 1,928
3 300
4 74
5 26
6 12
7 7
8 4

Adolescents can be assumed to have 0 class levels, but all adults will have at least one level of something.

Slaves

They’re going to have slaves. Not a huge number, because they don’t want rebellions, and also because the Citadel is pretty packed as it is, with all these orcs. It’s also difficult to motivate orcs to hunt for extra food just to feed a bunch of slaves. However, Obould is plenty smart enough to kidnap smiths, leatherworkers, and other artisans from the settlements he raids. He also encourages raiding parties to bring still-living plunder back to the Citadel for purely recreational purposes. When the slaves die, there will be more to take their places; even in the unlikely event that they escape, they will either die in the wilderness or tell tales of orcish might that will make the pitiful humans cower behind their walls.

Slaves are a great incentive. Every orc in the citadel knows that demonstrating remarkable strength, endurance, and loyalty may earn Obould’s public recognition and praise, and perhaps a slave… with no strings attached. The orc so rewarded is free to do absolutely anything with the slave, including messily devour it in front of the other slaves just to make them scream.

However, due partly to this latter practice, most slaves don’t live long in the citadel. Consequently, there won’t ever be a large number of them. Each of the officers (CR 4 and up in the table above) will have been awarded at least one slave, which they will keep confined in their own quarters. In addition, there are up to 100 human and dwarven craftsfolk (possessors of any sort of expertise that Obould might find valuable) who are detained in an area which only Obould and his officers have access to. Finally, there’s a pool of a few hundred slaves of various races just waiting to be awarded to deserving orcs, or killed in horribly-mismatched gladiatorial “battles” which the orcs love to watch.

Sources

  • Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting [11836] page 172
  • Waterdeep and the North [FR1/9213] page 4
  • Original material— anything that’s not taken from the cited sources was made up for the Xaeyruudh campaign

Disclaimer

Wizards of the Coast, Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Forgotten Realms, and their logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast LLC in the United States and other countries. This blog is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC.

Citadel Adbar

This information is intended for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.


At a Glance

Citadel Adbar is a dwarf realm; the last remnant of Delzoun.  The kingdom fell in -100 DR, to menaces from the Underdark including phaerimm, but Adbar stubbornly persists… for now.


Culture and Society

Demographics
Population 14,360 dwarves

Politics

Who Rules

The Citadel is currently ruled by King Harbromm.


Sources

Primary Sources
  • Forgotten Realms [11836] (3e campaign setting) page 172
  • Volo’s Guide to the North [9393] pages 201-202
  • Dwarves Deep [FR11/9300] pages 55-56
  • The North: Guide to the Savage Frontier [1142] — Cities page 58
  • Forgotten Realms [1085] (2e campaign setting) — A Grand Tour of the Realms page 113
  • The Savage Frontier [FR5/9233] pages 28-29
  • Waterdeep and the North [FR1/9213] page 4
Passing Mention
  • The North: Guide to the Savage Frontier [1142] — The Wilderness pages 13, 14, 60; Cities pages 55, 56; Daggerford page 30
  • Volo’s Guide to the North [9393] pages 163, 171, 179, 212
  • Dwarves Deep [FR11/9300] pages 55, 61
  • The Savage Frontier [FR5/9233] pages 5, 9, 26, 27, 32, 33, 39, 42, 47
  • Waterdeep and the North [FR1/9213] pages 3, 4, 6, 10
  • Forgotten Realms [1031] (1e campaign setting) — Cyclopedia of the Realms page 60; DM’s Sourcebook of the Realms page 62
Maps
Other Resources

Disclaimer

Wizards of the Coast, Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Forgotten Realms, and their logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast LLC in the United States and other countries. This blog is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC.

Dragonspear Castle

This information is intended for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.


At a Glance

Dragonspear Castle is a ruined fortification on the Trade Way, on the southwest edge of the High Moor, between Daggerford and Soubar. The Misty Forest and Trollbark Forest are about 50 miles to the north and west respectively.

The castle brings more peril than protection. It seems every few winters it’s seized by humanoids or fiends, until adventurers clear them out, until it’s seized again a few years later. Rumors hint that a portal to the Lower Planes sits in one of the cellars, disgorging a steady stream of foes. There’s also reason to believe that there are tunnels leading up to those cellars from the Underdark.


Sources

  • Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting [11836] page 294
  • Hordes of Dragonspear [FRQ2/9369]
  • A Grand Tour of the Realms [1085a] page 91
  • Under Illefarn [N5/9212] inside cover map
  • Cyclopedia of the Realms [1031a] page 39
Maps

Disclaimer

Wizards of the Coast, Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Forgotten Realms, and their logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast LLC in the United States and other countries. This blog is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC.