In our previous Revisited articles, we’ve explored some of the most memorable locations in the Riven Realms – their histories, atmosphere, and the music that brings them to life. But this revisit is a little different. When we announced our intention to complete the Valley of Sleepers’ storyline, we were deeply grateful for the feedback and enthusiasm you shared with us, and the Patreon pledges that went into the Vagrus jar. It was encouraging to see how many of you still remember this eerie corner of the Jagged Waste and how much you’d like to see its story reach a proper conclusion. So, while we’re working on this bit of content, let’s briefly revisit the Valley.

'They came at night - in the darkness that enveloped the valley, thick as ink. But then pale ghost light appeared and danced all over the carvings of the old tombs. The stink of terror was awful. And then I heard the screaming. Not that of the horrifying specters... but that of my comrades.'

- Excerpt from the account of Gaius Falco, the sole survivor of an expedition into the Valley of Sleepers

An eerie valley of tombs and crumbling temples carved into the very rock walls of this large region of canyons is seldom visited by treasure hunters, for the dead do not rest there. Before the Calamity, the Varotians – a strange and xenophobic people by all accounts – used the area to build sprawling crypts for their rich and powerful. The magical cataclysm spared the valley's structures for the most part, but ever since, the tombs vomit up a host of malevolent specters during the night who attack anyone bold or stupid enough to stay in the area. The burial chambers allegedly hold untold riches, but few dare delve into them, because the disturbed ghosts roam the corridors even during the day.

‘Ah, the Varotians. Few ethnic groups have ever adapted a more arrogant and isolationist sense of superiority in the long history of this continent. Even their language is pretentious – it was altered to be exceedingly difficult to learn for non-Varotians, incorporating nonsensical tenses, an overcomplicated vocabulary, two dozen cases, and meta-linguistic notions that obfuscate communication to everyone but the most initiated. And don’t get me started on their written form! All this was not merely committed on the command of fanatical leaders – no. All this is somehow derived from the Varotian soul itself. The irony that it is a dead language and a dead people does not escape me.

- Davris Paulus in casual conversation at the opening of a private museum of historical curios

We hope you have enjoyed this brief revisit of the Valley of Sleepers! We know that many of you, our players, have an intimate knowledge of the location, its risks, and its rewards. However, as many of you understand, something is still missing from the place’s in-game depiction. Maybe, just maybe, it won’t stay like that forever. That’s it for today, though. If you’d like to see similar shorts accompanied by moody music based on a Riven Realms location, which place would you revisit? Let us know!

Until then, stay safe, stay awesome, and conquer the wasteland!

– The Lost Pilgrims Team

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