Ashen Cairn
A Ruin of Forgotten Majesty
Overview
The Ashen Cairn is an ancient, crumbling fortress nestled at the foot of the mountains on the Ravaged Coast. Once the seat of power for a vampiric sovereign, now known only as The Master, it now stands as a desolate ruin, its blackened walls a testament to the war that sundered it. Local legends speak of it in hushed whispers, warning that to enter its forsaken halls is to vanish into the night forever. Yet, something deeper lingers within its foundations—an unseen force that calls to those who listen too closely to the whispers of the dark.
History
The Ashen Cairn was once a bastion of dark nobility, a seat of sinister refinement where The Master ruled over a court of cursed aristocrats. Its spires loomed over the forests below, a monument to vampiric dominion. The halls, once adorned with grotesque splendor, echoed with the revelry of blood-soaked feasts and cruel entertainments. It was not merely a fortress but a kingdom in itself, where fear and loyalty were one and the same.
For centuries, The Master’s rule was marked by intrigue and shadowy diplomacy. He was a master manipulator, weaving alliances and betrayals like threads in a great web. Chief among his uneasy allies were the Von Schattenmeer dynasty, the vampiric rulers of the lands south of the Fellholds. They were bound by long-standing rivalries and clandestine accords, their courts exchanging lavish banquets laced with veiled threats. It is said that they played a game that neither side fully understood, a contest dictated by something older and more powerfull than them both.
This dark reign came to an end with the arrival of the Dawnbringer Crusades, warriors of Sigmar seeking to purge the land of its long-standing darkness. A great siege was laid upon the Cairn, its defenses worn down by holy fire and relentless assault. The Master, unwilling to perish, abandoned his throne and disappeared into exile, leaving his court to be slaughtered or scattered to the winds. It is said that, in his hour of need, the Von Schattenmeer did not come to his aid, whether by design or by the pull of unseen forces. The fortress, its very foundations cracked and scorched, was left to decay, a grim relic of a forgotten era.
Present State
Today, the Ashen Cairn is a place of death and silence, yet it is far from empty. The spirits of the Master’s lost court still linger, their wails carried by the wind. The crypt beneath the ruins pulses with forbidden power, a remnant of the dark sovereignty that once ruled here. Strange lights flicker within the shattered towers at night, and the land surrounding the ruin remains blighted, twisted by lingering sorcery. Some claim that the very stones hum with a resonance that unsettles the soul, as though something within longs to be whole once more.
Despite its desolation, the Ashen Cairn remains a place of interest to treasure-seekers, necromancers, and the desperate. The ruins are rumored to hold secrets long thought lost—forbidden tomes, cursed relics, and echoes of a power that refuses to fade. Yet none who have ventured deep within have returned unchanged—if they return at all.
Legends & Superstitions
The Wraithbound: It is said that those who perish within the Cairn rise again as tormented specters, forever bound to the will of the ruin.
The Master's Name: The Dawnbringers sought to erase his name from history, yet the old stones whisper it still, a name of hunger and shadow. Only one person, Baron Edgar von Schattenmeer remembers it faintly, and to speak it in The Master’s presence would unravel something long buried.
The Sunken Crypt: A hidden vault beneath the ruin is rumored to hold the last vestige of the Master’s true power. Some believe it to be an artifact, others an ancient curse that has yet to be broken. A few among the Von Schattenmeer claim to hear its call, though they know not why.