The Border Road

The heart of the Western Frontier is the vast stretch of plains that lies between the Korlaac Rift to the west and the Whitehorn Woods in the east. In the south, the Graywall Mountains serve as a simple dividing line between Droaam and Breland, but there’s no clear natural boundary in the central plains. As a result, people have turned to an unnatural feature; the Orien trade road that runs between Ardev and Sylbaran. For centuries, this road has been a crucial channel for trade and supplies. During the Last War, Breland maintained forces at the Eldeen Ford, but the agreements with the Dragonmarked Houses kept Aundair from targeting the road. In the wake of the war, it has continued to serve as a crucial path for commerce between Breland, Aundair, and the Eldeen Reaches. As they are working to forge alliances with the dragonmarked houses, the Daughters of Sora Kell are reluctant to disrupt the trade road—and Breland is determined to hold it, recently assigning Argonth to patrol the edge of the road. While Breland has yet to acknowledge Droaam’s sovereignty, the common people recognize the trade road as the line between the two nations—and this idea was strengthened when House Sivis used the road to define the boundary between Droaam and Breland. While its official name is Orien Route 7, if you’ve spent any time on the Western Frontier, you know it as the Border Road.

The Border Road isn’t a hard line. There are kobolds camping in the more fertile lands east of the road and Brelish settlers seizing opportunities to the west. If a patrol of Westwind Riders is chasing brigands on the Brelish side, they won’t stop the instant the bandits cross the Border Road into Droaamish lands. However, the Border Road is a definite line of truce between the two nations. The Westwind Riders won’t cross the road unless they have reason to—and the Znir gnolls serving the Daughters of Sora Kell keep their patrols to the west of the road. If they’re on the western side of the Border Road, the minotaurs of Turakbar’s Fist are soldiers of Droaam defending their nation; if they’re encountered to the east of the road, they’re raiders seeking glory. Such raids often go both ways; the Brelish draw attention to these minotaur attacks, but prefer not to address the fact that the Black Crown brigands are just as brutal when they attack Droaamite settlements on the west side of the road. If you’re Brelish, you can consider yourself generally safer if you stay to the east, and Droaamites feel more secure west of the Border Road—but there’s no absolute security anywhere on the Western Frontier, unless you’re inside Argonth.

As an adventurer, your travels will likely lead you off the beaten trail, but the Border Road is at the center of the Western Frontier, and the focus of commerce and travel. The plains around the road are sparsely populated and filled with dangers: wandering monstrosities, brigands, sinkholes, and other unexpected hazards. You can easily blaze your own trail across the plains, but if you do, there’s a chance you could go a day or more without even seeing another humanoid, let alone an inn—and if you’re set upon by bandits, there’s little chance the Westwind Riders will show up to save you. The Border Road is paved and maintained. Brelish forces patrol the road. There are Gold Dragon Inns waiting for you at Sylbaran, Unicorn Point, Quickstone, and Ardev. There are a host of hamlets and farmsteads along the road; like a river, this channel of trade and travel provides a strong foundation for new communities to build on. These benefits come with a dark side though; because the Border Road is the safest, best maintained route for commerce, it’s also the prime target for brigands and highwaymen. Think of it like pirates on the sea, but instead of galleons there are Orien Thunder Coaches laden with goods. While there are many forces that work to counter banditry—the Westwind Riders, Argonth, the Blades of Orien—the road is long, and successful bandits move quickly.

The Shape of the Road

Orien Route 7 is a major trade road, constructed by House Orien and designed to support trade caravans. It is thirty-five feet across, designed to allow a steady stream of traffic in two directions. The road is paved with a mixture of tar and gravel, similar to asphalt. This mixture is infused with a dash of finely ground Siberys dragonshards, which facilitates the magical effects employed by Orien heirs; this causes the road to glitter faintly in Bright Light, and harmless sparks sometimes rise under the hooves or wheels of Orien-enhanced vehicles and mounts. There are no guardrails or barriers along most of the length of the road, but in regions where the terrain is particularly hazardous to vehicles—for example, a stretch in the north with swamplike terrain—there are two-foot railings along the edge of the road.

The even, well-maintained surface of the road helps travelers maintain a swift pace—while traveling exclusively on Orien trade roads, travelers gain a 10% bonus to their travel pace. A vehicle or mount carrying a passenger with the Dragonmark of Passage can add an additional 10% to its pace; the passive enchantments worked into the road are triggered by the Mark of Passage, enhancing the momentum of the Orien heir and their mount.

Breland maintains watchtowers that are spaced every 20 miles along the road. These are simple towers—often just a platform atop a pillar—where a handful of soldiers keep an eye out for trouble. The guards at these watchtowers aren’t sufficient to battle bandits or raiders alone; but if they spot trouble, they can trigger an Alarm that alerts Orcbone, while sending up a flare to summon any nearby Brelish forces. Aside from this, there are villages, hamlets, and farmsteads all along the road. Most of these are small communities without dragonmarked services; they rely on the constant stream of traffic for news and services. However, villages usually have some form of pub or inn that travelers can take Advantage of, even if services are somewhat limited. The primary stopoff for travelers is Unicorn Point, an Orien outpost halfway between the Graywall Mountains and the Eldeen border.

Traffic

The bulk of the traffic on the Border Road is commercial. Caravans carry Brelish and Droaamite goods north to Aundair and the Eldeen Reaches, returning with Aundairian wine and arcane wares, and crops and herbs from the Reaches. Most focus on the larger communities—Sylbaran, Shavalant, Unicorn Point, Graywall, and Ardev—but there are smaller caravans that service the villages and hamlets found along the road. Traffic is steady on the Border Road, but not overwhelming; it’s possible to travel an hour without encountering traffic in the opposite direction. On the other hand, travelers can sometimes find themselves stuck traveling behind a long convoy of vehicles; even aside from planned caravans, merchants and teamsters leaving Unicorn Point often choose to travel together to deter brigands and raiders.

Encounters on the Road

As a group of adventurers makes their way along the Border Road, what might they encounter along the way? This section provides a number of options for a DM looking for a quick hook.

Group Encounters

There are a number of powerful factions on the Western Frontier. If adventurers run into a group of Turakbar’s reavers, what does that actually look like? The encounters presented here are examples, not absolutes; a DM can always adjust these to match the level of a party or to better meet the needs of a story. Stat blocks for many of the creatures listed below can be found in chapter 6.

• Bandits (750 XP)
• The Company of the Black Crown (1400 XP)
• Stone Cultists (3600 XP)
• The Swords of Liberty (5300 XP)
• Turakbar’s Reavers (2250 XP)
• Westwind Riders (1500 XP)

Random Encounters

Encounters on the road can be a welcome distraction or trigger a story of their own. Here are just a few of the people you might encounter on the road:

• Orien coaches, caravans, and couriers. Orien stagecoaches carry passengers, while caravans focus on freight transport. The most impressive vehicles on the road are Orien Thunder Coaches, massive carriages pulled by tribex. Details on these can be found in chapter 5.
• Independent merchants from Droaam, Breland, or the Eldeen Reaches, often catering to the communities along the road.
• The forces of the law—Breland’s Westwind Riders, the King’s Assessors (who collect taxes for the Brelish crown), or Droaamite peacekeepers. When it comes to peacekeepers, the Znir gnolls are generally disciplined and reliable, but other Droaamite forces can potentially be just as dangerous as the bandits they’re supposed to deter.
• Entertainers—classic bards, bringing news and entertainment to the communities along the road—or missionaries, spreading the good word of the Silver Flame, the Sovereign Host, or even the Eldeen druidic sects along the frontier.
• Settlers making their way to a new home on the frontier; these could be Cyran refugees, Brelish veterans, or Droaamite goblins! It’s also not unusual to find Droaamite mercenaries—whether mercenary soldiers, laborers, or artisans—heading to work or returning from an assignment.

The Border Road Encounters table provides 37 specific ideas. The Strangers on the Road table generates a starting point for an encounter, but it’s up to the DM to flesh out the details.

Strangers on the Road

Border Road Encounters