In this series I will be looking at each of the individual nations of Faerûn in turn, in alphabetical order. This series is based around the status of each nation as of 1371-72 Dalereckoning (at the end of D&D 2nd Edition and the start of 3rd Edition). The maps are drawn from The Forgotten Realms Interactive Atlas CD-ROM and their respective 1st and 2nd Edition sources. They are not necessarily current for the 5th Edition of the setting (which is set c. 1496 DR).

A map of Luruar. Please click for a larger version.

Luruar (The Alliance of the Silver Marches)

  • Ruler: High Lady Alustriel Silverhand
  • Capital: Silverymoon (pop. 37,073)
  • Settlements: Auvandell (524), Blumberg, Citadel Adbar (19,962), Citadel Felbarr (6987), Deadsnows (830), Everlund (21,388), Hilltop (100), Jalanthar (226), Khelb, Lhuvenhead, Mithral Hall (4991), Newfort (138), Quaervaar (952), Rauvincross, Rivermoot, Sundabar (14,259), Winter’s Edge
  • Population: 1,090,800 (40% human, 20% dwarf, 20% elf, 10% half-elf, 5% halfling, 2% gnome, 2% half-orc, 1% misc.)
  • Population Density: 6.77 people per mile², 2.61 people per km²
  • Area: 161,206 miles² (417,521.623 km²)
  • Military: The Argent Legion, local militias
  • Languages: Common, Chondathan, Illuskan,
  • Religion: Corellon Larethian, Helm, Lathander, Lurue, Mielikki, Moradin, Mystra, Oghma, Selûne, Sune, Tymora
  • Exports: Elven craftwork, dwarven craftwork, furs, precious metals
  • Imports: Armour, books, manufactured goods, pottery, spices, wine
  • Sources: The North (slade, Ed Greenwood, Jeff Grubb, Julia Martin, Steven Schend, Jennell Jaquays, Steve Perrin, 1996), Silver Marches (Ed Greenwood, Jason Carl, 2002)

Overview

Luruar, also known as the Alliance of the Silver Marches, is the youngest of Faerûn’s nations at barely a year old. It is located in the north-eastern part of the greater region known as the North, or the Savage Frontier. Luruar’s borders extend south to the northern eaves of the High Forest, east to the edge of the Great Desert of Anauroch, west to the Evermoors and almost the banks of the Gaurlynlur River, and north to the Ice Mountains and the Spine of the World.

The nation is unusual in that it was brought together by several founding cities and settlements which had independently existed for centuries, but had found the gradually escalating series of threats in the region too great to be faced independently. Banding together to face these threats united seemed like a wise move. It is also unusual in that it is an alliance of townships and cities divided by still-hostile wilderness, meaning that within the borders of Luruar there are still a lot of wild monsters, autonomous tribes (human but also orc and goblin) and even isolated hamlets that are not technically part of the realm despite apparently lying within its domain.

The founding settlements of the Silver Marches are Silverymoon, Everlund, Sundabar, Deadsnows and Jalanthar, along with the dwarven fortress-cities of Citadel Adbar, Citadel Felbarr and Mithral Hall, plus all of their attendant villages and vassals. By unanimous agreement, the city of Silverymoon – the largest city north of Waterdeep – was adopted as the capital of the new realm. A plethora of smaller towns, villages and hamlets in the region have also joined the alliance, and various nearby settlements have, if not joined, indicated a friendliness towards the new nation. Unsurprisingly, the rise of the new nation has not particularly impressed the wandering tribes or nearby powers such as the Many-Arrows orcs or the drow of Menzoberranzan.

A map showing the location of Luruar on the continent of Faerûn.

History

The area today called the North was once the domain of the northern great elven empires: Illefarn and Aryvandaar. During the Crown Wars, Aryvandaar was destroyed by its own hubris, leading to a period when the region was shared between the elves of Eaerlann (a considerably less aggressive successor-state to Aryvandaar) and Illefarn on the surface, and the dwarves of Delzoun in the depths below.

In 3859 BDR (Before Dalereckoning) they were joined by a new, powerful kingdom. Nether’s Land, also known as the Seventon Alliance and finally Netheril, took shape along the shores of the Narrow Sea to the east of Delzoun. Not long after its founding, Netheril entered into an alliance with the elves of Eaerlann (3845 BDR) and the dwarves of Delzoun (3455 BDR). The dwarves established the port of Ascore on the Narrow Sea to trade with Netheril. Netheril also established tentative ties with Cormanthyr along their eastern border.

Relations between the four empires were initially strong, heralding the so-called Arcane Age of Faerûn, but the elves became uneasy about the extent of Netheril’s magic. The rise of the first of the floating cities of Netheril in 2993 BDR both impressed and concerned the elves. Netheril then expanded west into the areas today known as the Savage Frontier and the Sword Coast North, establishing outposts and watering holes in the Dessarin and Delimbiyr River Valleys, careful not to infringe on the territories of Eaerlann (east of the Dessarin) and Illefarn (west of the river). The elves braced themselves for possible territorial disputes, but these never arose; the Netherese chose to remain mostly within their original borders and only resource-gathers were sent to the Frontier lands to the west. Relations between the great empires remained strong, but elements of strain did arise.

In 1200 BDR, the rogue Netherese arcanist Aldlas Sodhese unleashed three powerful nycaloths – the accursed Trio Nefarious famed in song and saga – against Cormanthyr. He believed (correctly, as it later emerged) that the Cormanthyrans had stolen the Nether Scrolls from Netheril and hidden them somewhere within their borders. The nycaloths unleashed a three-month reign of terror before they attacked the city of Cormanthor itself and were defeated, imprisoned in an invisible stasis cage high above the city. Sodhese was slain by the Grand Mage of Cormanthyr in a ferocious spell battle. Although accepting that Sodhese acted without official sanction, Cormanthyr and its allies wound down their alliance with Netheril, especially after Netheril’s ill-fated experiments with spelljamming in c. 1114-1014 BDR, which saw them clash several times with the Imperial Elven Navy.

In 339 BDR, Netheril was destroyed. The archarcanist Karsus attempted to supplant the power of the Goddess of Magic, Mystryl, and only succeded in killing both. All magic in Realmspace ceased to function, resulting in utter chaos until a new Goddess of Magic, Mystra, could arise and repair the damage. This was much too late for the floating cities of Netheril, which had crashed to the ground. Their great spells repelling the advance of the High Ice in the north failed, resulting in the monstrous glaciers surging south. The Netherese battles against the evil phaerimm now turned against them, and the phaerimm’s magic and life-draining spells saw all the territory of Netheril being consumed by the Great Desert of Anauroch. The Netherese colonies in the west were abandoned or broke away to become independent.

The Fall of Netheril did see some of the survivors flee into the Rauvin and Surbrin river valleys, at that time mostly contested between orc and goblin tribes, as well as isolated human tribal groups. This resulted in a 700-year period when human and monster tribes contested the region, with the human gradually becoming more numerous and building more permanent settlements. A notable event happened in 384 DR when a rope-and-wood bridge was built spanning the River Rauvin near the Silverwoods. By 403 traffic across the bridge had led to it being replaced by a stone bridge, blessed by priests of Mielikki and Lurue the Unicorn. In 447 the bridge was joined by the fortified Moonsilver Inn. Twelve years later a logging camp took shape around the inn, becoming known as Silver Village. Initially home to loggers, fishermen, trappers, and fur traders began to settle in the village as well. Its isolation also made it popular with hermits, recluses, and wizards. Tellshyll the Aged became the first wizard to settle nearby, raising a tower north of the town in 539. In 574, Bynan “Two-Axes” Oakfeller became the first elected Mayor of Silver Village, which he promptly renamed Silverymoon.

Silverymoon expanded into the first true city of the Savage Frontier. In 627 Ecamane Truesilver arrived with a dozen apprentices from far Myth Drannor. Truesilver founded the Silver Lady’s Library in Silverymoon in 629, making the city a popular destination for magical researchers from across Faerûn. In 637 Truesilver helped defeat the nearby Granitefang orc tribe and was elected High Mage of the city. In 659 fifty more wizards from Myth Drannor arrived to help grow the city further, and it entered into a productive alliance with Ascalhorn across the Nether Mountains. By 711 Silverymoon had become a sister-city of Myth Drannor in Cormanthyr, linked to it by a magical gate.

In 711 the Army of Darkness, led by the infamous Trio Nefarious, began its assault against Cormanthyr, commencing the Weeping War. Silverymoon despatched aid via its gate, but as the war raged on, it eventually became clear that the elves could not hold. Silverymoon instead used its gate to receive exiles and refugees. During a particularly brutal assault on Myth Drannor, the mezzoloth Colonel Cvor penetrated the Silversgate and nearly reached Silverymoon, but was delayed by the Archmage Elminster. Ecamane Truesilver led the mages of Silverymoon in killing Cvor and sealing the Silversgate, albeit at the cost of his own life.

Using more traditional teleportation magic, Silverymoon continued providing aid to Myth Drannor and receiving refugees up until the city’s final fall in 714 DR.

Silverymoon grew larger and more powerful, which made it both a strong beacon of light in the otherwise fractious North and a target for those determined to destroy such signs of civilisation. The city survived the First Trollwar of 932, when hordes of trolls spilled out of the Evermoors to infest the entire North. Nimoar of Nimoar’s Hold allied with other forces, including some from Silverymoon, to burn out the troll threat. The Second Trollwar of 940-952 was more serious, but the trolls were eventually defeated. The powerful wizard Ahghairon of Silverymoon had worked with the forces of Nimoar’s Hold – now increasingly becoming known by its nickname, Waterdeep – to help defeat the trolls and was invited to become the first Archmage of that city. By 1010 Waterdeep already exceeded Silverymoon in size, its faster growth propelled by its formidable port, and the two cities established a long-lasting alliance, stretched as it was by the 550 miles between them.

In 1018 Silverymoon was attacked during the Rage of Dragons, but repulsed the onslaught with minimal losses.

An orc horde, a splinter of the vast “Black Horde” of orcs, besieged the city in 1235, also causing internal political chaos within the city, but the siege was relieved by the famed archmage Alustriel Silverhand, second-eldest of the Seven Sisters. Working with fellow agents of the group known as the Harpers, Alustriel stabilised the city and helped drive off the horde with her powerful magic. Alustriel was offered the role High Mage of the city, a position which she accepted.

Silverymoon’s rise has been mirrored by others. The city of Everlund to the south had started life in 515 as a colony of human settlers from Ascalhorn and grown into a strong city, almost a sister-city to Silverymoon further downriver. In 882 Ascalhorn was destroyed by balors (becoming the notorious Hellgate Keep), but one of the High Captains of the city managed to assemble a refugee column and made it to the dwarven stronghold of Sundbarr, a rare surface settlement of dwarves on the Rauvin some 116 miles east of Silverymoon. Sundbarr was a strong city, but nearly an empty one, centuries of repeated orc raids having encouraged the population to retreat to Citadel Adbar or other dwarf-holds. The arrival of the human settlers, with the dwarves’ permission, saw the city undergo a renaissance and become a powerful ally of both Silverymoon and Everlund, under the name Sundabar.

As well as the human cities, the dwarf-holds of the region experienced renewed fortunes. The empire of Delzoun had fallen in 100 BDR, but many of its outposts and satellites nearer the surface Realms survived, including Mithral Hall, Citadel Adbar and Citadel Felbarr. In the latter part of the 12th Century Mithral Hall, held by Clan Battlehammer, awoke the shadow dragon Shimmergloom in the mines and was promptly evacuated, the clan coming to rest in distant Icewind Dale.

In 1054, the dwarves abandoned Citadel Felbarr, lacking the strength to hold it against the surrounding orc tribes. Silverymoon took possession of the fortress with the dwarves’ permission and settled over 3,000 troops there. In 1104 the orcs of the Many-Arrows tribe captured the fortress in a pitched battle, driving the humans out and renaming it the Citadel of Many Arrows.

The loss of two of the three great dwarf-holds of the Frontier was a bitter blow to the fortunes of dwarfkind in the region, although the largest and most powerful, Citadel Adbar, held firm. But in 1356, the Companions of the Hall blazed a trail of adventure across the entirety of the North. Bruenor Battlehammer, heir to the lost throne of Mithral Hall, set out to reclaim the fortress with the aid of his four famed companions: Regis, the halfling thief; Wulfgar, the honourable barbarian warrior who had slain a dragon whilst still a teenager; Catti-Brie the archer; and Drizzt Do’Urden, the famed “renegade dark elf” of Menzoberranzan. The Companions of the Hall found Mithral Hall but only barely escaped from it with their lives, and Bruenor was believed dead for some time before he was found alive, having slain Shimmergloom in the process. After a side-trip to Calimport, the Companions reunited and, allied with the dwarves of Citadel Adbar, mercenaries from across the regions and the dwarves and barbarians of Icewind Dale, retook the hall from Shimmergloom’s duergar minions.

Holding the Hall proved difficult, as its resettling and the presence of Drizzt provoked the ire of the drow city of Menzoberranzan. The drow assaulted the hall in the Battle of Keeper’s Dale in 1358 but were defeated.

Inspired by this victory, the dwarves under Emerus Warcrown began making plans to retake Citadel Felbarr. Lacking the numbers for a frontal assault, they cannily waited until the orc horde-leader Greneire of the Wall approached the fortress. Greneire led the largest orc horde in almost two centuries, over 150,000 orcs, and wished to ally with Obould’s 40,000 to scour the North. However, Obould had been told by a shaman he would lose his throne due to another orc. He sealed his gates and ordered Greneire to leave his lands. The resulting exchange of insults resulted in Greneire assaulting the Citadel. Greneire won the field engagement but lost the assault on the citadel walls, being slain by Obould. However, Obould was heavily wounded and tens of thousands of orcs on both sides had been slain during the battle. When Clan Warcrown and its allies launched their attack, the exhausted orcs had no choice but to flee. Obould spent the next few years regrouping before declaring the forming of the Kingdom of Many-Arrows along the foothills of the Spine of the World.

In 1369, two Harper agents and the enigmatic mage known as the Mistmaster successfully destroyed Hellgate Keep, obliterating its buildings. A follow-up adventuring party sealed off any lingering access between the fortress and the outer planes, and the ancient treant Turlang and the Druids of Tall Trees joined forces to purge the area and turn into a lush new woodland, nicknamed Hellgate Dell.

In 1370, this series of victories had led to a huge lessening of the evils of the North. Alustriel summoned the rulers of the region to a meeting and proposed that they capitalise on these successes by unifying the area into the Alliance of the Silver Marches, a mutual defence, cooperation, and trade coalition. Originally the plan was for a somewhat looser confederation, but the reception was so much better than expected that it was expanded into a more ambitious idea, a whole new country called Luruar, named for its patron deity Lurue. By unanimous proclamation, Alustriel Silverhand was named High Lady of the Realm. Taern “Thunderspell” Hornblade succeeded Alustriel as High Mage of Silverymoon.

The founding of Luruar has been greeted warmly by other civilised powers in the region, such as Waterdeep, Neverwinter and the elves of Evereska, but has been less warmly-received by orc tribes, drow cities in the Underdark and groups such as the Zhentarim.

Government

The individual cities and holds of Luruar mostly rule themselves autonomously. However, they are represented on the Council of the Marches, a governmental body headed by High Lady Alustriel Silverhand. The rulers (or their representatives) of Citadel Adbar, Citadel Felbarr, Mithral Hall, Sundabar, Everlund and Silverymoon sat on the council, sometimes with representatives from Jalanthar, Deadsnows and Quaervarr. The council also hosted the commander of the Ardent Legion, the Lady Protector and a rotating Member-at-Large appointed by the High Lady.

The governance of the Silver Marches is relatively light, with the High Lady mostly assuming command and issuing proclamations in times of emergency, such as moving troops quickly to deal with an orc incursion or a monster attack, and during the rest of the time dealing only with matters such as trade deals with foreign powers, as well as mediating internal disputes between members. As Luruar is such a younger power, the full framework for these issues is still being worked out.

Luruar has established a common army, the Argent Legion, headquartered in Rauvinwatch Keep with detachments in Citadel Adbar and Sundabar. The Legion still only numbers in the hundreds and is not yet strong enough to fight major actions without backup from the Alliance members’ own individual armies and militias. The Silver Marches have not yet formed their own intelligence network, so are reliant on allies like the Harpers for providing information of interest to the realm.

Luruar is also a member of the Lords’ Alliance, a broader coalition of powers in the North, Western Heartlands and along the Sword Coast, which gives the nation access to additional resources in the advent of danger.

Religion

The nation is named for Lurue the Unicorn, a notable nature goddess of the North and sometimes-steed of Mielikki, the Lady of the Forest. Lurue and Mielikki are, to some extent, the patrons of the new nation. Corellon Larethian and Moradin Soulforger are the most popular elven and dwarven gods in Luruar, whilst Helm, Lathander, Oghma, Selûne, Sune and Tymora are also popular.

Thank you for reading The Atlas of Ice and Fire. To help me provide better content, please consider contributing to my Patreon page and other funding methods, which will also get you exclusive content before it goes live on my blogs.