Who controls water, controls life. The few oases
scattered across the wastes were discovered long ago and
remain in the hands of those strong enough to keep them.
Prospectors mount forays into the wilderness, scouring the
land for new water sources, for any such find can make a
prince of a pauper. For a long time, travelers approaching
the Narrows east of Draj had heard running water, but
no one could track down the source – not until three
years ago, when dwarf prospectors set themselves the task
of finding it. They uncovered a small spring of cold, clean
water emerging from under the rock mantle.
The dwarves constructed a makeshift encampment and
set out to improve their well, believing they could sell the
water to caravans bound for Draj or Eldaarich in the far
north. It didn't take long for the dwarves to discover that
the water was in short supply, and that a single caravan
could drink it down to a trickle that would take a week
or more to recover. In fact, the water isn't even enough
to support the community that has grown up around it –
hence the name Bitter Well.