Etceter Crag Mines

The Etceter Crag Mines date to the founding of Etceter.

Lore
""Long ago, when Etceter was nothing more than a collection of prospector shacks and tents hugging the coast of the Bay of Storms at the mouth of the Barren River, the Etceter Crag Mines were being dug deep into the nearby mountainous hills known as the Crags. At first the miners were sure their fortunes were made. The deeper they dug, the richer the veins of gold ore seemed to be. When they came upon the underground pool with its fresh mineral waterfall and the subterranean river to the sea, they saw this as an incomparable blessing! Now they could easily trade gold directly with the passing ships plying the ocean-routes back toward their home, without even bothering to leave their lucrative mines. But the stories say they became too greedy, and they braved the trembling depths of the world too deeply. Perhaps the view of distant volcanic islands should have warned them of the dangers they were about to unearth. After a horrifying tragedy the mine was abandoned, with terrible tales of holes opened up into Hell itself, and fiery demons emerging to slay all in their path. The lower levels of the mine were supposedly sealed in an enormous cave-in, with barely half the terrified miners emerging to tell the tale. These days, only bandits and brigands make use of the upper levels of the abandoned mines, and even they refuse to delve too deep. Those who have the guts to speak with them will hear tales of rumbling deep within the earth, whispering voices, and the hideous spectres of the dead haunting the deeper recesses of the dark tunnels. Of course, these may merely be stories they tell to insure that the curious stay clear. Perhaps there are still golden treasures to be found deep within the rocky bowels of the mountains.""