The Vitric Ward's origins trace back to Year 80 CR, emerging shortly after the Shadow War. It began as a humble shantytown clustered around the Shattered Spire, a defective Bukhara Spire Gateway that cracked during the initial invasion. This erratic portal leaked raw planar energy, transmuting the surrounding desert sand into vibrant, multi-colored Spire Glass. Attracted by the unique magical properties of this new material, artisans, alchemists, and outcasts flocked to the nascent settlement.
During the Civil War, which spanned from Year 75 CR to 575 CR, the Ward evolved significantly. It became a sanctuary for those who lacked martial prowess and sought refuge from the brutal conflict, distinct from the bone-clad tribes of Hasaldon proper. Here, soft-flesh citizens could survive, governed not by the harsh Code of the Cage but by a loose collective of Guildmasters. The district's purpose was to produce the valuable alchemical Spire Glass, a commodity highly coveted by Hasaldon's warlords for their phylacteries and weapons.
The year 104 CR brought defining magical scars to the Ward. When Meklen Armash battled dragons at the Iron Mountain, a powerful magical backlash rippled through the Shattered Spire. This surge caused the district's library books to animate, flapping through the streets like panicked birds, a phenomenon that persists in lore. To this day, all public tomes are chained to heavy iron pedestals to prevent them from flying away or attacking readers.
Simultaneously, the massive Silent Bells of the Grand Campanile were magically muted. Local lore claims that during the Fall of Whisperwind, the bells began to ring at a resonant frequency that threatened to shatter every building in the district. A mute sorcerer from the nascent Order of Sea and Stone cast a permanent silence spell on the belfry, saving the Ward from destruction. The bells still swing furiously every hour, but no sound is ever heard.
In the modern era, beginning in 1248 CR, The Vitric Ward has transformed into a desperate refugee camp. Following the Dragonbone Vanguard's destruction of the Herthe and Wigham Gateways in 1248 CR, and the recent Fall of Vespera in July 1249 CR, the district is now bursting at the seams. It houses those who could not pay the Marrow Toll to enter Hasaldon's inner sanctum, creating an overcrowded and volatile environment.
While the Triad of the Spine officially views the Ward with contempt, Madame Vosh, the scavenger baroness, secretly protects it. She uses the refugees as cheap labor to mine the unstable Spire Glass, exploiting their desperation. The Vitric Ward is currently a place of kaleidoscope light and profound poverty, where Githyanki deserters hide among Tiefling refugees. All residents pray the Shattered Spire doesn't finally explode, struggling to integrate a massive influx of refugees while containing localized wild magic surges and avoiding the wrath of Hasaldon’s warlords.
