Since we've had a bit of a break, this is a catch-up post that will summarize the current state of the Southlands and the most recent events and plotlines.

The Colony - the Colony is in disarray after the destruction of Blawtro and the attacks by the Knights of the Shadow Fey.  They have withdrawn from the Ebonheart Vale and the Black River Valley, and Southfort has been reduced to a military outpost.  The status of Port Tanner is in question, although the town is currently still very busy.  Longspire appears to be increasingly independent, and the smaller settlements along the east shore of Lake Ebonheart and around Lake Whiteheart are definitely uneasy.

Colonial patrols, both overland and in ships, have effectively completely stopped south of Tatzlford, leaving Raven's Bay and Longspire as the only organized groups operating.  Colonial Guard continue to protect shipping leaving Southfort, but very little else.  There are also rumors of Transported uprisings in the plantations and huge grain farms around Crossroads, in the mining camps along the shores of the Saiqur Desert, and in the logging camps on the Pine Islands.

The Black River Valley - Bonebreaker has gotten Rowan and the southern fort organized, moved the villagers to the fort and is aggressively patrolling the southern end of the Black River settlements.  The Ashlanders seems to have been pushed back temporarily, although ongoing skirmishing continues between Bonebreakers lizardman patrols and small raiding parties.  Refugees from Ebonheart Vale are settling in along the valley, except for the Black Wyvern "Barony".

Sabel Guinte of Wrayford has been enlarging her militia and, along with some lizardmen on loan from Bonebreaker, has been keeping the Baron of Black Wyvern bottled up.  That area continues to be a potential problem, and Adholt and Meerfield mostly lack an organized militia.  Both are expanding very quickly from the refugees, though, and have plenty of people, albeit ones focussed mostly on building shelter and putting in crops.  

The priests of Chauntea have been extremely helpful in all the towns of the area, and worship of Chauntea seems to be expanding at about the same rate as the worship of the Morrigu – mostly among those more focussed on agriculture.  So far there haven't been reports of any trouble between the faiths, though.

Ebonheart Vale - Most of the settlers and transported seem to have fled the Ebonheart Vale, although there are still reports of wildcat loggers and miners working in the area.  Some of the small settlements south of Port Tanner, like Eastmere are still occupied, but there are rumors of strange creatures in the forest and missing people.  Fey power seems to be gaining strength in the Vale, and barring any change, it seems likely that it will be absorbed into the Fey Demesne of the Shadow Lord.

The Gnomes - Having agreed to a formal alliance, the Gnomes have been buying food from Meerfield and paying with metal.  They have also been sending their Wayfinders out to keep an eye on things in the Ebonheart Vale, and have been escorting stragglers to safer areas.  They have also been improving the underground tunnels between Glitterwarren and the hills near Southfort, and plan on scouting further tunnels southward.

Raven's Bay - Traven and Caladur have been managing the rapid growth and restoration of the town, expansion of the docks and reinforcement of the palisade.  Some of the refugees from Ebonheart have made their way to Raven's Bay, increasing the town's population.  The temple of Morrigu is being enlarged, and the fields around town are being expanded as well.  Tools and material remain in somewhat short supply, as does hard currency.

Sanctuary - Fewer refugees travelled to Sanctuary, but many of those that did are half-orcs or foresters or both, so the town has also grown.  A large dock, with a watchtower and a palisade have been constructed, and a fair bit of land has been cleared.  Negotiations with the local elves have resulted in a good supply of timber, and the assistance of the tritons has made fishing possible, although there have been attacks by creatures that the tritons say are attracted by the kraken.  Ershka has developed the militia into a very competent force, and every adult in the community has some weapons training.

The tritons report that they are still exploring the sunken city and skirmishing with creatures loyal to the kraken.  They haven't taken serious losses, but also haven't made much progress, mostly keeping an eye on the creature.

The Island - Decimar identified that there is a real possiblity of a catastrophic explosion from the Eld Engine on the island.  He believes that if the Engine could be reconnected to the Eld network by reactivating 5 or 6 of the obelisks in the area, it would be possible to release the energy in a controlled way, possibly allowing future collection to be harnessed and used.  Knows obelisks are on the island south of Raven's Bay, sunken underwater in the Eld city now controlled by the kraken, at the cliff of Black Glass, in the hills southwest of Southport.