Overview of Grobb This trollish village sits on the edge of the Innothule Swamp and is home to the trolls of Norrath. Grobb is made almost entirely from mud, rock and rotting wood harvested from the swampland the village was built upon. Large, moss-covered walls are scattered throughout and line the murky waterways. Some small wood bridges can be found in the city, although most trolls are accustomed to swimming and typically do not expend the effort to build unnecessary pathways. All of the buildings in this city are uniform in design – ornaments and decoration, beyond severed animal heads and hides, are completely out of the question for these dull brutes of the swamp. Simple signs painted with reptilian blood in poor, broken common tongue detail the name of each shop and guildhall. At the center of town, near the bank, stands a gruesome sight - a mangled, dismembered dwarven corpse, suspended from meat hooks. The cannibalistic trolls often feast upon the flesh of other Norrathian races, finding dwarves to be the finest of delicacies. This display is not one of warding, or torture for the sheer delight of torture. Trolls are too submerged in instinct to develop the thought to torment another intentionally. Rather, this is a communal feeding trough for the strongest members of Grobb society who are able to survive the brutal fights over choice parts. A few years ago, Grobb was the midst of a battle involving the Grozmok Stone.
The Fall of Grobb (Lore from the Legacy of Ykesha)
Only days before, they had walked from the murky comfort of Innothule, bringing with them a message from their god. The elders waited for them in the glow of Guk's stony mouth, anxious yet unaware of the dramatic change they were about to discover. The firepots' aura met the first of Mithaniel's chosen as they stepped out of the water's dark grasp and made their way ashore. The elders were mesmerized. Their eyes were transfixed on the glory that their lord had bestowed upon their fellow citizens. Still, the fully transformed frogloks seemed natural, though the evidence of their blessings was far from subtle. They were, after all, merely an evolution; a reminder of the power that the heavens hold over the mortal realm. Within hours of their return to Guk, the chosen of Mithaniel moved frantically to prepare. Several days of prayer, fasting and planning allowed them to convey the urgency of their visions to the elders and citizens of Guk. They had emerged from the swamp with not only a new form, but also a plan for what would become a new age in the annals of froglok lore. They had been given a clear vision of conquest: Grobb would fall beneath them. Weakened by the loss of their relic and the disappearance of their greatest heroes, the citizens of Grobb sat unaware in the morning gloom. Their minds were on the ocean and the black waters that were swallowing their kin, a crucial distraction for the interlopers' plans. The trolls of Grobb were wading through the quicksand of despair, blind to the final blow that was gathering in the shadows just outside their city's gates. Not unlike the froglok elders, the Bashers were mesmerized when their eyes first caught sight of the faces that emerged from Innothule's waters. However, the enthralling sight was not glorious to them, but rather a horrific vision. The first thoughts that came to them were of their god. An epiphany occurred simultaneously among the small crowds of trolls. As they stood on the familiar shores of Innothule, each one began to understand... they must have somehow angered their god... and the assault that was coming towards them must be his final act of retribution. The battle lasted only hours. From the first call of alarm, to the moment the last of the terrified trolls scurried into the Feerott and the sands of Ro, the frogloks were clearly blessed. The trolls were reduced to an almost primal state. Those that stood and fought were quickly reduced to a smoldering and broken mass, evidence of the true power of what would be called the Guktan army. The Lance of Mithaniel could only triumph in their mission. Grobb stood decimated before them. Gukta, the outpost of Marr... The visions that awaited them in the waters of Innothule that first night were not wrong. As the first light of morning broke through the haze and smoke of battle, the frogloks worked quickly to erect proof of their victory. Before the noon sun reached its pinnacle, the city was transformed. Grobb was no more. The Return to Grobb
The battlefield was a mass of frenzied, frightened and determined combatants. The majority of those fighting on the side of the "evil" were the displaced Trolls. Their most immediate allies were the Dark Elves, though they were fewer in number than even the Trolls had expected. However, there were some that sent aid to the Trolls. There were Ogres on the battlefield, smashing any heads that they could reach. There were also some special reinforcements. The Gnomes of Ak'Anon sent a huge mechanical rat and a small army of baby rats to assist the Trolls. The Trolls had some help provided by adventurers sympathetic to their plight. Those adventurers, directed by Dark Elven or Trollish masterminds, sought out allies that they could force to assist them. One group went to the Plane of Fear and discovered the shriveled-but-living body of the ancient Nightterror, one of the first Amygdalan created, this beast feed off of fear in others. Here's a quote from a secret text: "The Nightterror was one of the ancient ones, one of the first of the Amygdala. It was unlike his brothers, who loved the making of fear. It desired the effects of terror. It had an unending hunger, the need to feed off of fear. The Nightterror stalked the darkness, seeking out those that were touched with fear. It learned to scent the power of Terris-Thule. It would seek out those in her grip and feed off of them. It was not long before it learned to manipulate sleeping mortals in order to feed its hunger. It would enter a town and waves of nightmares would sweep over everyone as they slept. The Nightterror would feed and grow stronger and the people would awaken weak, shaken and drained. It was not long before the Nightterror began to kill people in their sleep, leaving entire villages dead in its wake. This was when Terris-Thule came to notice the intrusion on her realm. She became furious and simply blocked the beast from those in her realm. The Nightterror was immediately weakened and eventually fell into an impenetrable slumber. Cazic-Thule placed the beast somewhere in his realm where its suffering would be felt by anyone that came near in the form of a non-specific hunger and sense of Terror. No one has been able to locate the beast in the Plane of Fear, though one day we shall find a way to revive this force and release it again upon the world." This beast was revived with captured nightmares and set upon the frogloks during the battle. The Dark Elves sent adventurers to trap a powerful Djinn, using his own love for the Phoenix against him. This Djinn lord was called Shanala the Storm. These adventurers captured several eggs from the Plane of Air and held them over the lava in Lavastorm. They then opened a portal to the Plane of Air and taunted Shanala. The impetuous Djinn came through to recover the eggs but was instead captured and forced to do a single service for the Dark Elves. His power was also unleashed on the frogloks. But the frogloks had their own allies. The Barbarians of Halas assaulted the forces from Neriak in a noble effort that failed. The Gnomes, a people of two minds about whether to conduct one's life for good or evil, sent a huge clockwork spider to assist the frogloks. But most heartening to the frogloks on the battle field was the return of one of their heroes. Glikigup was one of the ancient frogloks that had been taken by the curse so many years ago. He was betrayed by his best friend and used as a tool for that friends own goals. A band of adventurers located Glikigup and killed that one-time friend, freeing the hero from his eternal bonds of treachery. When the massive hero of Gukta stepped into the swamp wielding the sword known as Heartlight, which was reforged by adventurers, the hearts of the Guktans was lifted and they redoubled their efforts to defend their home. Even then the Frogloks might have prevailed, if it were not for the curse. The Dark Elves had discovered the essence of the curse laid upon the frogloks in a previous age. They distilled it and refined it for use on the battlefield. When they unleashed it upon the Guktans, brother turned on brother, father on son, and many of the frogloks that remained untouched by the curse were felled by the blades of their cousins. Now the battle is over. The frogloks, still calling themselves Guktans, have made a home in the Rathe Mountains. They are confused, devastated and angered at the betrayal suffered at the hands of their kin, but they also know that the change was forced on them. Those untouched by the curse have been put to a dilemma. Their brothers, sisters, children and other kin have been turned to the worship of Innoruuk by no choice of their own. They have killed many Mithaniel Marr worshippers and they would not choose to return to their old lives now even if it was in their power to do so. But these cursed frogloks have no homes either. The few that have sought refuge with the Trolls were killed outright. No Troll will ever trust a froglok, even if he claims to worship Innoruuk (and Innoruuk isn't Cazic-Thule, so such worship is stupid in the eyes of a Troll anyway). So the Guktans have allowed their cursed kin to remain with them. The two groups form an unsteady and unhappy alliance for their own safety in the mountains for Rathe. The Guktans seek a way to undo the curse while their cursed kin seek a way to find safety and freedom from their bond with the Guktans. |
