Hogram's Keep

When the Empire made the decision to build the Wall, and abandon those lands to the north, it was imagined at the time there would still be an Imperial presence. Indeed, the lands Beyond the Wall were not immediately swallowed up by the wilderness and the creatures of the dark.
A system of forts were set up as way points for trade and to protect those settlements still out there. Really, they were a way for the Empire to still collect taxes. Soon, those tax collectors started wondering why they were sending the money south, and not just keeping it themselves.
One of these warlords was named Captain Hogram. He held Imperial Fort Number 457. It was one of the most inaccessible  fortresses in the land, situated atop a outcrop in the Stone Hills. Fort # 457, soon became known simply as Hogram's Keep, even though it is more properly a fort.
Once these petty warlords had cemented their place beyond the jurisdiction of the Empire, they started fighting each other. A combination of good location and cunning soon put Hogram at the top of the food chain. Two Imperial expeditions failed to dislodge Hogram. Both sieges ended in disaster for the Empire, and Hogram was left alone by the forces of Man. But not by other forces.
Kelval the Dark, leading what would later be called the First Great Incursion, stormed Hogram's Keep using a combination of magic and three Mountain Giants. Hogram and his bandits were wiped out, but his vast treasure was never found.
It is rumored that treasure still awaits would be adventurers. If they wish to find it, they'll need guts, luck, and a lot of rope.

Lake Merr

Lake Merr is located to the north and west of Wall. This expansive body of water is both uncharacteristically calm for a lake high in the mountains, and unfathomly deep. A thriving community once existed here, it's people prosperous from the bounty Merr provided, and protected by the surrounding mountains. The people of Lake Merr were envied by all the surrounding tribes. They built great temples with golden statues and market places full of the riches of the world.
All that remains now are the cold ruins of a lost people.
Long ago, it is said, Ul-Merr, great god of the sea fell in love with a simple daughter of a fisherman. She lived in a small hut on shores of the vast Western Ocean. Ul-Merr tried to woo her riches from the sea, treasure from shipwrecks, pearls and other secrets of the sea if she would love him. She spurned his advancements for she knew, like the sea, Ul-Merr was fickle god, and would leave her once he had his prize.
It was only when he promised that the offspring of their union would be a great and powerful being, that she relented.
Sure enough, Ul-Merr soon became tired of her and moved on to another conquest, and the girl gave birth to beautiful son. But, though handsome on the outside, the girl could tell something dark and powerful dwelled inside the child. She fled her village and ran east, deep into the wilderness, finally to rest high in the mountains by a lake.
There, the boy grew. His mother tried her best to raise a normal child, there, alone in the wilderness. But, the boy was powerful, vain and ill tempered, like his father. When a wandering tribe settled on the far bank of the lake, the girl, now an aging woman, tried to relocate to avoid contact with the world and her godlike son. He would have none of it, and in a fit of rage killed his mother.
Thus, the people of Lake Merr would come to know Him. He would make them into a great city, and in return they would worship him, sacrifice to him, and in the end, pay the terrible price.

The Tomb of Goroth

Goroth the Mighty, Slayer of Kings, son of the war god himself, lived centuries before the founding of the Empire. He was the Hand of Death for three separate Kelmorian kings. So feared was Goroth that neighboring monarchs often capitulated rather than face him in battle.
When he finally did meet his demise, it was not on the field of battle, but in the bedroom of his lover, slain by his own Shield Bearer out of jealousy.
A great tomb was built by his last lord, Belmorca. It was extravagant for it's time, carved in runes and etched in gold leaf. So loved was Goroth that twelve of his finest warriors agreed to be buried alive to guard him in the afterlife.
Goroth's tomb sat undisturbed for centuries and it is only recently that rumors have surfaced that some misguided adventurers unsealed his crypt. It seems Goroth has had a troubled sleep. He has awakened, they say, bent on recovering the lost kingdom he once so loyally served.

Early depiction of Goroth slaying King Delos III

The Wailing Tower

In a time shortly after the Wall was built, the great wizard Hurstis wandered out into wilderness. He had been a great man. He had been instrumental in the expansion of the Empire, and it's quick decline.
Hurstis had appeared when the Empire was at war on all its borders. He helped then Emperor Milleus hold one front, while another was assaulted, both through his use of battle magic and more subtle means. His duels against foes of the Empire are legendary. He strode as a god on the battlefield.
Soon, the new expanded borders were secure and peace reigned throughout the Empire. But, as in all things, it was not to last.
Hurstis saw this new, golden age quickly tarnish through corruption and decadence. He felt betrayed by the man he had helped, and not a little angry at the Emperor's ingratitude.
When a strong new leader emerged from the ranks of the Imperial Guard, Hurstis saw a chance to replace Milleus. With the help of the aging wizard, Kormac the Usurper took the Iron Throne.
I was a horrible mistake.
Where Milleus had been corrupt and lazy, Kormac was brutal and tyrannical. Rather than try to fix yet another mistake, Hurstis fled beyond the borders of the Empire, deep into the wilderness beyond the Wall. There he built a tower.
He raised it from the ancient rock, embued it with his power, and waited out his remaining years in meditation and study. But, alone, surrounded by monsters and wastelands, he went mad.
The lands around Hurstis's tower still bear the scars of his fury. Trees and rocks are twisted as if in horrible agony. The ground is cracked and scarred. The tower itself is  avoided by monster and freebooter alike. A faint cry echoes from its ancient confines. Is it the wind, or the terrible melancholy of a mad man?

Interlude: What's been explored....

A map showing what has been explored Beyond the Wall. Each hex represents a days walk, unhindered by weather.

Now, set within the larger context of the campaign world.

The Blighted Coast

Far to north and east, many leagues Beyond the Wall, lies the Blighted Coast. It is a windswept, somber place, with dark crags that rise like rotted dragon's teeth from beaches. The gray waves beat mercilessly upon deserted shores. Long ago, even before the founding of the Empire, a great city resided here. But, whether through fate or dark sorcery, a star fell from the heavens one fateful night, and blasted it to ruins, along with surrounding shoreline.
Now, not even the ghosts of those long dead people dare not walk the sands of the Blighted Coast. Black ships prowl the waters. Those foolish enough to brave the coast looking for treasures from past, find themselves at the mercy of these dark raiders.
The ships appear from nowhere, silent and sleek, their prows adorned withe terrible carvings of spiders and other fell beasts. They are slavers, it is said, come to take the unwary to their dark abode. Better to die, the old sailors say, than to be taken alive on the Blighted Coast.

The Gray Fenns

As the name suggests, the Gray Fenns is a vast colorless bog. The very pigment of things has been drained along with any form of life. No birds sing, frogs croak. Stunted, broken trees dot the landscape. A cloud of despair hangs over the Fenns, palatable to any who dare enter. Deep within heart of the Gray Fenns a faint glow resonates, a huge willow-the-wisp leading travellers to their doom. But, through it all, a great power fills the air. And where such places exist, so do the prospects for adventure and glory.
picture to follow

the Gallows Tree

For generations, the very worst criminals met their end at the Gallows Tree. It stands at the end of long road. Which road? Depends on who you ask. It never seems to be in the same spot these days, and it lays Beyond the Wall now.
Besides it's variable locale, the area around the tree seems to have its own rules. The air switches between a foul, almost unbreathable miasma and the perfume of flowers. Time is off. Hours may pass in the blink of an eye, or not pass at all.
Some people hear voices or hysterical laughter. Sometimes corpses hang from branches, dripping blood and offal, but most times not.
So, traveller, if your road leads you to a dark, leafless tree, step off the road and find another path.

The Well of Souls

Somewhere, Beyond the Wall, on a secluded, wind blown hilltop, lies the Well of Souls. There are no signs of the people who dug this well, or why it lies in its current location. Those who know of its location are few. Its only description is of a low stone circle atop a hill. The area surrounding it is cluttered with spikes and grappling hooks and bits of old rope. These are the only remains of those who tried to climb down into its depths.
If you listen carefully, it is said, you can hear their low mournful cries.

the Glory of the Empire

For most people who dwell in Wall, the Empire is a distant idea. Few give it much thought, other than when money is exchanged, and they glance at the Emperor's profile stamped on the coin.
Speaking of Emperors, the current Lord and Protector of the Empire is Theodotius III, a mere lad of eleven years. He came to power in a palace coup, involving his mother Ekaterina, the current regent and real power behind the  Iron Throne. The rumor is the Regent poisoned her brother, the former Emperor, to put her son in imperial purple. This was a double betrayal, as not only did Ekaterina kill her own brother, but the Captain of the Imperial Guard (also known as the Thurnian Guard) was involved. If true, this would be unprecedented. The Thurnian Guard are recruited from the Northern tribes, not only for their ingrained fierce loyalty, but also because it was hoped being foreigners, they would be free of palace intrigues.
Whatever the case, Theodotius sits upon the throne, however precariously.
The imperial standard still flies within its much reduced borders. The Empire is usually represented by three pillars representing the Emperor, the Great Council and the People. Sometimes, a sun, the symbol of Arnor the Greatfather, is shown alone or in concert with other symbols. Lastly, a three headed dragon is used to represent Kelus the first emperor, slayer of the legendary dragon Gorguth.

the Krag

When a vein of Mithril was was discovered in the mountainous Dragon's Teeth, dwarven miners quickly moved in. That small mining community quickly grew, and in time became a Karrak Un Kraggen, or simply the Krag because of the mountain's jagged appearance.

It survived much of the strife caused by the collapse of the Empire, but soon became more isolated by the building of the Wall. Communication became scattered, then suddenly ended after the First Great Incursion.

Several caravans and search parties have gone Beyond the Wall looking for the Krag. It's very location has become lost to Time. But none of the parties has ever returned. In fact, as recently as three months ago, a well armed dwarven caravan left Wall to look for their lost cousins. No word has surfaced of their condition.

In its time, the Krag was a wealthy Dwarfhold. Who knows what riches (or dangers) lie there still. Will adventurers find a still thriving Dwarven city, struggling to survive a hostile world, or a monster infested deathtrap waiting to engulf them?

the Sundered Hills

Three days march northeast of Wall, lie the Sundered Hills. The area got its name from the broken appearance of the landscape. It looks like great mountains were bashed to pieces by an immense hammer.
Legend has it, long ago Krolos, the Lord of Battle, went to Vaul, the Maker of Things. Krolos asked Vaul to make him a great war hammer that would be the envy of all who beheld it. Vaul agreed, and labored many days and nights to complete it. When the hammer was done, Krolos stared in wonder at its beauty and might. Vaul asked for payment. Still in awe, Krolos said he would pay anything for it. Vaul asked for the hand of Valena, goddess of love, and sister to Krolos.
Snapped from his trance by these words, Krolos laughed and refused Vaul his payment. The god of the Forge was enraged and snatched back the hammer. The two fought.
Their battle spilled into our world. They wasted the land in their struggle, and thus the Sundered Hills were born.
These days, the Sundered Hills lie Beyond the Wall, and are rumored to be firmly in the hands of the Blue Moon Hobgoblin tribe. The Blue Moons are well organized and disciplined. It is only a matter of time before they attempt a raid on Wall itself.

the Northern Wastes

The Northern Wastes. Once, the last outpost of the Empire. A testing ground for young heroes and a cold grave for old champions. An abode of giants and ice drakes.

A perpetual frozen wind blows across the Northern Wastes, down from the Dragon's Teeth. It is said the sun never shows his face in the Wastes, except to weep at its cold vastness. Indeed, the gods themselves seem to have forsaken such a place. Krolos, Lord of Battle and the cold places of the world, warred here against the Old Ones. It is their dying breath that still blows down from the mountains. After his fight, the wounded Krolos left, never to return. Where his blood dripped, pools of magma formed. These hot spots are the only source of warm in an otherwise frozen land.
For a time, people settled around these warm places, making their trade in furs and plunder from the sea. But they too, were consumed by the hungry cold. Their tombs are still heaped in treasure, it is said.
Brave, or foolish, is the adventurer who seeks fortune in the Wastes.