Fort Doom

Fort Doom
This town, once called Halag, was invaded and conquered by Baron Ludwig von Hendriks, Duke Stefan's power-mad cousin. (He didn't need to conquer it - he'd been granted this area as his baronial lands - but he wanted to conquer something.) It's a dreary, unhappy farming community held in tight repression by the army of Baron von Hendriks.

The Duke's Law is not obeyed; only the Baron's Law is followed. That law is: Obey the Baron or Die. Laws change from day to day, with his whims; it might be legal to commit murder on day, illegal to eat on the next. All crimes are punishable by death unless the Baron chooses to show leniency. This he does when he thinks the person will cause him more amusement if left alive.

The people of Fort Doom (formerly Halag) are mostly Traladaran fishermen. Each fishing family is required to leave a family member hostage with the guards; should a fisherman sail away, the hostage will be killed. The guardsmen are humans and some imported orcs; other nasty humanoids, particularly bugbearas, walk the streets at will and occasionally fight for the Baron. This is a haunted and ugly place, and, except for Baron Ludwig, Bargle the Infamous, and the numerous guards and mercenaries who live high off the sweat of others, everyone would love to flee Fort Doom. Because those who flee are hunted down, often caught, and always killed when caught, few people escape.

Ruler
Baron Ludwig von Hendriks.

Population
10,000.