For hundreds of years, the residents of the northern shores of the Sea of Harne have been followers of the cult of Mareen. These simple seafaring people regularly sacrificed a portion of their catch to the brooding queen of the seas, in hopes of fair weather and bountiful waters.

As the Graun Empire’s influence spread over the land, the church of Aunul grew in power. Sailors spread word to the seaside communities that the emperor and his ever-present religious advisors did not view worship of the elder gods as acceptable.

Fearful that inquisitors would arrive one day and brand them as heretics, the residents of Hammondsport acted. A new chapel for the church of Aunul was constructed over the underground grotto that housed their shrine to Mareen. In a comical twist, the chapel was named after a St. Sigmund, a devout follower of Aunul who drowned while trying to spread the faith.

The community goes through the motions of having shifted to the faith of Aunul. However, it is largely a show for outsiders. On all of the old holy days, townsfolk don their robes and meet, well after dark. Slipping through the secret door located in the office, they make their way down into the grotto. There they gather at the altar and make their sacrifices to Mareen as they have for generations.

If you’d like to browse through all of my other maps with plot hooks, you can find them all collected here.