Dramatic Geography

Dramatic geography.

Dumnonni is not geographically stable. If it is important for the plot, it may be possible for someone to make the journey across Dumnonni and back again in one weekend. Other times it takes weeks.
Places do have directions (Maeve’s lands are East of Culhaven for example), but not proper distance. Just as stories are variable if never written down so the geography fits to the needs of drama. Some locations, particualry wyrd or otherland ones do not fit even this simple geography. The same place can be found in different direction and can sometimes be easier to find than others. Note that this is not the same as the place moving, though this is only a philospohical difference. Examples of such places are; the Black Marsh, home of among others the Matu and the Fen Picts, which can be found in almost any direction from Cuhaven, and, The bronze doors to the Moonlit City which have
been found in many place, most recently under Conuaght and outside Culhaven.
Travel is adventure. A hero who goes on a journey can expect to encounter challenges around every
corner.

Dumnonni is rooted in Ancient Ireland. It is roughly the shape and size of Ireland and the geography reflects Ireland in many respects. In fact some parts of Mythical Ireland have arrived in Dumnonni intact, for instance Conaught, Ynys Mon, Almu of the White Walls, Tory Island, the Hollow Hills and the Moonlit Cities of Donn. Indeed it is possible that the plains of Moytura are the same as those that
surround Culhaven.

However, the land does mirror the worlds of the newer arrivals as well. The North has Scotland-like mountains where the Picts live and its coast is cut by great fjords, where the Norse have settled.
The far northen sea is dotted with islands similar to the Orkneys and Shetlands. The south-east shore is the flat and ever moving home of the Saxons. There are great plains where until recently the Tribes of Albion held sway.

Many of the Mystic places, the Otherlands, that could once be found all around Ireland can now only be contacted from Dumnonni. The fae gates are the most common way of traving to these places, but they can also be found by sailing West, or searching into the mists.

Culhaven

Culhaven, originally called simply Haven, is the very centre of Dumnonni. It is the dramatic centre in that it is where important events take place. Heroes stumble upon it and wandering armies find their way to it with almost monotinous regularity.

It is the seat of the Ard Ri, and where the Druid’s Circle meets, therefore it is a political centre as well.

Finally it is also the mystic entre. The leylines of wyrd power criss-cross it, stones of power throb near it and it is of supreme important to the Fae who claim it is a sanctury.

The Mist

The Mists infuse and encircle Dumnonni. They are the borderlands between the worlds. Between Dumnonni and The Otherlands. They are not stable. This is the domain of the Fae. Time and space become completely flexible. A child might be stolen from its parents by the Fae and return a fully grown man days later, as happened to Bull’s son. Every sane man fears the mists for they are where
the nightmares live.

Although they normally manifest as a thick swirling mists, (hence the name), they can also be darkness, or even completely unseen until you have fallen into them and find yourself somewhere very different.

Only the Fae, Fir Bholg and great Wistmen can safely travel in it, as to be in The Mists is to be lost.

Normal folk often go mad there, and it is common for people to be taken blindfold by a guide if they must travel through the mists at all.

Power is of the greatest importance, as while in the mists a person strong in the wyrd can shape the world around them to some extent. Wyrd users, even those who are not used to The Mists create an armour like effect which protects them. Conversely; normal physical armour provides no barrier against the powers and weapons of the denizens of The Mists. Generally The Mists linger in isolated, Wyrd places away from settlements, but they do occasionally move to some other intent. When the Mists move of their own volition they can cause terrible distruction, literally unmaking places and people. What may cause The Mists to move can only be speculated upon, but their movements often
have a seeming deliberate purpose to them, as if guided by some unseen hand. Some of the Fae may know, but they are not telling.
—“Meeting a powerful creature in the mists is like being in their dreams”

Maps

When a story becomes written down, it is fixed. Maps are the equivalent of written stories in that, if they are made with enough wyrd, they fix the geography for the person owning it. This is very powerful as it defines and delineates direction and distance. A hero can get from A to B without having distracting adventures on the way.

Many of the fae are particularly upset by maps as they regard the ‘mundaning’ of the world, the same evil that has been done in the world outside the mists.