A Map of the Silver Vale and the Nentir Vale Surrounding it.
The Silver Vale
The Silver Vale is the River Valley of the Dragon, Winter and Silver Rivers that runs through the middle of Nentir Vale. The two towns of Lakeside to the north and Fallcrest to the south mark the northern and southern extents of the Silver Vale. This was once a civilized land of farms and cities, but that all changed with the ravages of war as one group or another attempted to control the rivers and the lands along them. This was by followed the invasion of hordes of monsters coming down from the north and west. The weakened civilization here was crushed! Eventually, there was very little left to pillage or control so the hordes of monsters returned from wince they came leaving little but ruins behind. The whole area went into a long dark age, but civilization is resilient and while even a few "points of light" remain it will grow again.
Today, Fallcrest, a small city on the Silver River, and Lakeside, a port town on the large Dragon Lake, have begun to recover. They have tamed the land immediately around themselves and opened up a trade route on the rivers between them. They have even reached out to few small towns that survive along old trade roads. The Merchant Guilds are working to tie the points of light back together through trade and by rooting out dangerous creatures and agents of chaos that still infest the area.
From the work of a few adventurers, here and there, areas can be made safe enough for small villages to spring up, but this is still a dangerous area. Only dots of light show up against the overall darkness.
To the west of the rivers monsters of all sort come down from the hills and mountains, from time to time, to raid and pillage. Tribes of monstrous creatures skulk about in ruins left behind through this area.
North of the rivers is the Dragon Lake where pirates, and worse, roam. There is a good reason it is called Dragon Lake, too! North of the lake is the dark and forbidding Winterbole Forest. Orcs and Hobgoblins vie with each other for control of this land.
East of the Silver Vale there are small communities of Humans, Hobbits and other demi-humans scratching out their survival in lonely, isolated, villages. Stories of weird beasts, undead, and foul magics are whispered about these lands.
Going further east you reach the Dwarven Forge Mountains where Dwarves mine and contend with Giants and other mountain beasts. There you can find Hammerfast, the Dwarven city embedded in the mountain. The metal goods of Hammerfast are well known throughout the Vales and so caravans regularly travel there to trade.
Near Hammerfast is the High Pass that takes you over the Dwarven Forge Mountains into the lands beyond. Few travelers come from and go to the outside world by this route as it is controlled by Giants, not to mention the 10 months of the year it is impassable.
If you travel south down the Silver River from Fallcrest you'll eventually enter the the Witchlight Fens. It is said that the curtain between this world and the world of the Fey is weak in the Witchlight Fens. Fairies dance in their circles, but don't be fooled, they are not friendly and they are not kind to the likes of us. Approach them at the risk of your life and your soul!
As you get deeper into the Fens the river is swallowed up by marshes and swamps. This is a land of Lizardmen, snakes, and giant crocodiles.
On the other side of the Fens is a broad marshy lake with twisting channels that eventually drains down into the Mojone River and then down to the coast where you will find the great City States of Rhone. It's a rare individual that makes it either all the way up or all the way down from the Vale to Rhone and survives the journey.