Valkur's Roar: City in Cormyr
The Forest Kingdom of Cormyr has become more of an empire in recent editions. It's borders have expanded most of the way to the Sunset Vale and across all of the Dragon Coast (but for Westgate). And at the heart of all this expansion lies a city... Valkur's Roar.
First Appearance
Back in the early editions of Dungeons and Dragon, Cormyr was a much smaller nation. On the west, its borders ended at the Stormhorns. There was no direct road between Suzail and Proskur.
Valkur's Roar didn't exist in these editions.
In 4th edition, that changed. A road was addition to the official map of the realms in Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide (August 2008) and in a more detailed article about Cormyr called "Cormyr: A Backdrop" published in July 2008. Along that road a new location was added: Valkur's Roar.
In the context of Cormyr's massive expansion this new location makes a lot of sense, as I'll explain later.
A small bite of lore was added that in the late 1300s DR (the calendar for Faerun), the Regent Alusair Obarskyr had to fend of dragons and rogue nobles. The town was supposedly called Redmist at the time. After she cleared out the dragons (the nobles were no where to be found) she changed the name of Redmist to Valkur's Roar.
But as we've seen on these maps, Redmist didn't exist in previous editions. It's only in the late 1400s DR, the time frame of 4th edition, that we see any indication there should be a town there at all.
A Retroactive History
So how to explain its absence? It's time to look at the boarder history of Cormyr. But we can begin with the simple explanation that Valkur's Roar probably existed as a small town on a little-used trail originally. As it grew it size and importance, it got put on the map. For the sake of understanding, I'll be assuming it has always been called Valkur's Roar and the name change isn't official canon.
Throughout the 1300s DR, the little fishing village grew in size and importance. It had one notable structure: the monastery of Valkur. Who is Valkur? I'll let you know in a tick.
The Barony of Warmshores was created in the 1370s DR. House Ebonhawk was granted the title. This sparked an initial wave of building, known these days as "the Old Town". Among these buildings came a barracks for Purple Dragons (the army), a harbour for Blue Dragons (the navy), and a base for War Wizards (the arcane military).
The houses built in this era were copied the most fashionable styles of Suzail in this era.
While this was underway, the new Baron Ebonhawk comissioned a castle to be constructed on a nearby hill.
By the turn of the century, 1400 DR, all of the Tunlands had been conquered by Cormyr. Valkur Roar's became every more important, as cargo coming down the river stopped the town before being loaded onto seafaring ships. Trade into the Tunlands, likewise, often comes through Valkur's Roar.
While there are a few mountain passes through the Stormhorns, each highly fortified, most trade keeps to the easier (if less direct) lowlands. The abundance of trade has brought great prosperity to the city. Over the 15th century DR, as Cormyrian authority was further established in the Tunlands and more lands to the south were conquered, Valkur's Roar lost its "military camp" feel.
The New City sprawls across the land, encirling Ebonhawk Keep. These houses are built in a new style. Some are massive in size while others are tiny, cheap structures built in haste to accomodate the influx of new residents.
In recent years, even these new lands aren't enough. Some enterprising folk have started building houses on the river's farshore. This poses a risk to the residents, however, as not far away is Gritstone Moor. A monster infested swamp! House Ebonhawk is actively hiring adventurers to go into the moor and slay any monsters they can.
Map of Valkur's Roar | Cormyr | D&D City
Map of Valkur's Roar | Cormyr | D&D City
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Adventure around the city of Valkur's Roar in Cormyr.
🏳 Ready to start Forgotten Realms Adventure? 🏳
Are you a Game Master looking to run a campaign in Cormyr? Or buying a gift for a Dungeon Master? This printable map is sure to WOW the crowd.
The original art is fully hand-drawn and painted with watercolors to give it an authentic look.
This poster print would look fantastic on a wall or rolled out on your gaming table, ready for your players to explore what Valkur's Roar has to offer.
Here's what you get with the VALKUR'S ROAR MAP
✅ BLANK map. Have your player fill each location they visit as they wander through the city. Or fill in the key locations for your campaign prior to starting.
✅ ENGLISH LABELS: All key locations on the city filled in with tags. Simply hand it to your players and let the campaign begin!
✅ NUMBERED LABELS: All key locations marked with numbers + a reference sheet for you as the GM to use.
✅ HIDDEN TUNNELS: A map showing all the tunnel entrances and how they interconnect beneath the city.
Who is this for?
🎲 This a printable map for Game Masters running a campaign in Cormyr / the Tunlands
🗺️ D&D Dungeons Masters who want to track where their players are
🖍️ Useful for homebrew adventure AND pre-generated campaigns
🌟 PRODUCT INFORMATION🌟
This poster is recommended to be printed as A3 Sized document. Printing on A4 will likely make the text difficult to read. It is highly recommended this map be printed in colour.
📌 Please Note:
This is a digital download; no physical product will be shipped.
Since this is a digital file we cannot provide returns or exchanges on downloadable items.
Ready to roll some dice? Let's get started!
Who is Valkur?
Valkur is a lesser god in the lore of Dungeons & Dragons. Aptly, for a port town, he's a minor god of sailing. He is known as "the Captain of the Waves". His domains also include sailors and their ships, favorable winds, and naval combat. Thus, he has a large following in Valkur's Roar itself. Even outside of the monastery.
His symbol, a cloud with three lightning bolts, can be seen throughout the city. The monks at the local monastery train martials arts and learn sailing skills, as well as maintain the town's lighthouse
Valkur is known to protect ships against harsh weather, guide them to the nearest port, and send omens in the forms of birds or sea creatures.
Followers of Valkur are often risk takers, seeking to defy the odds in the name of adventure and glory - or simple thrill. The people of Valkur's Roar have inherited that general zeal and many have tried their hand at adventuring in their life.
Places of Interest
Some places of interest include:
- The Arena, where adventurers can prove their might for glory, coin, and the patronage of Baron Ebonhawk
- Ebonhawk Keep, a large fortress overlooking the New City
- War Wizard's Tower, from this tower a magical barrier protects the city from airborne assaults
- The Promenade, a long park atop a cliff, this beautiful greenspace is frequented by the well-to-do of Valkur's Roar
And more! Explore the city yourself with the downloadable map.
Rebellion in the Tunlands
This map has been made as part of a larger sourcebook. The map of Valkur's Roar (as well as others) is included in the sourcebook!
In this campaign, your adventuring party is a team of rebels seeking to infiltrate Valkur's Roar and take down the magical barrier protecting the city. Once that's down, the rebels can strike.
Why is this so important? As mentioned before, Valkur's Roar is a key stronghold between the Tunlands and Cormyr's heartlands. Capture Valkur's Roar and you effectively choke off the Tunlands from the rest of the realm. And that's exactly what the rebels want.
Learn more in my sourcebook.
Cormyr: Rebellion in the Tunlands (E-Book) | Forgotten Realms Setting Supplement
Cormyr: Rebellion in the Tunlands (E-Book) | Forgotten Realms Setting Supplement
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A band of rebels faces off the great empire of Cormyr!
For many editions, Cormyr has been the location for many Arthurian style campaign settings and novels. As a player and game master, however, I find the adventurers of nobility harder to implement and enjoy. However, the setting of Cormyr is full of potential for far more!
This supplement focuses on the often ignored region of Cormyr: the Tunlands.
The party is a group of adventurers from all over the Tunlands who have answered the call of rebellion. It's their job to get into Valkur's Roar and pave the way for the rest of the rebellion to take the fortress city. This could be accomplished quickly - perhaps with a heist-style mission in a one-shot; or it could be the basis of a long-term campaign.
Included in this setting supplement is:
- A game hook focused around Valkur's Roar, a location within Cormyr
- A history of Cormyr, focused especially on its expansion
- Details on each region of Cormyr, including (when relavent) important noble families, terrain descriptions, weather, and local histories.
- A detailed map of "the Tunlands"
- A local history of "the Tunlands"
- A map of the town of "Greatgaunt"
- Descriptions of different groups / locations within these regions:
- The Farsea Marsh
- The Tun Marsh
- The Tun River
- The Plains of Tun
- Helbryn
- The Stormhorns
- The Sunset Vale
- Discussion regarding local creatures and monsters
- List of the Tunlandic Deities and which groups worship them
- Ideas for backgrouns for different races, including:
- Humans
- Dwarves
- Elves
- Lizardfolk
- Halflings
- Half-Orcs
- and if your players wish to play something else "Foreign Agents"
- Information about relavent noble houses (on both sides of the conflict)
- An overview of the Purple Dragons & War Wizards
- A general breakdown on how much NPCs might earn in Cormyr, depending on their occupation.
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