Howling Caves

This is the site of the Heroes of the Ridge's first mission (see "Scourge of the Howling Horde").  It takes about three hours to walk from Puckett's Ridge to these caverns.  The majority of the Puckett's Ridge Citizens avoid the Howling Caves because of the noises that fill the hillside; most believe that the area is haunted and the sounds remind them of ghostly moans.

The actual source of the "howling" which echoes throughout the caverns is caused by narrow cracks and fissures which honeycomb the surrounding hillside. When the wind blows through these openings, strange sounds are produced; on windy days the hillside even seems to moan and wail.

The Howling Horde tribe of goblins claimed the caverns over ten years ago, settling into existing rooms and corridors shaped by unknown masons from an ancient age.

1/3/1000 Update - The once-peaceful goblins were whipped into a frenzy by the Black Dragon, Noak.  She demanded that they fill her lair with treasure, for a Dragon's hoard reflects its prestige and power - Noak was determined to have a mighty hoard well before she even reached the age of very young.

Why did the goblins agree to help Noak?  A wyrmling might be young, but it's still a dragon, and no sane Goblin would ever try to oppose a dragon.  The greedy goblins saw an opportunity when Noak rived.  Darax, a Hobgoblin with a taste for power, saw Noak as a sign that his own reign was at hand.  He killed the former chief, took command of the tribe, and agreed to follow Noak.  Rutven, the tribe's shaman and a loyal supporter of the former chief, left in shame and anguish.  He planned to return after much meditation and soul-searching, hoping to win back his tribe.

2/1/1000 Update - Rutven returned to the Howling Caves to find Noak gone and the rest of the tribe slain.  He ventured to Puckett's Ridge to propose a truce in return for the Heroes taking down the fence of goblin-heads-on-pikes they had erected around the town.  The proposal was accepted and the goblins now once again co-exist peacefully with the Puckett's Ridge Citizens.