The Gryphonhold was the first fort built by Aerel the Gryphon in the Summerset Archipelago. It was constructed where the Aranas made their landing in Calambar during the Invasion. It was later expanded into being a summer home for the Aranas, yet has largely fallen into disuse after the fall of House Arana in 2E 601.
Layout[]
The Gryphonhold began as a motte-and-bailey fort on the top of a hill on the eastern shores. This initial design was quickly replaced with a new log keep with walls fifty feet high and a cavernous longhall below it. Across from the bailey was a stone kitchen roofed in slate, and the growing castle also had stables and a granary. Its watchtower was doubled in height. As the Gryphonhold grew, it gained a barracks, an armoury, a chantry, and a drum tower within its palisade.
Throughout the reign of House Arana the castle was gradually expanded to being a palace and summer home for the family, diminishing many of its defensive elements in favour of luxurious ones centred around comfort.
History[]
Aerel's Invasion[]
In the aftermath of Aerel's Landing, construction began on a crude wood-and-earth castle on central Auridon's eastern shores. After defeating a dozen castles in the vicinity, Aerel I Arana commanded the defeated lords to attend him at the new Gryphonhold. These men laid their swords at the conqueror's feet, and the Gryphon confirmed them in their lands and titles. Aerel's knights unveiled the heraldic banner of House Arana for the first time, and his intention to claim the entire Summerset Archipelago was made known.
Later Years[]
The primitive fort was eventually expanded during the reigns of subsequent Arana monarchs, serving as a summer home for the family.