Why did I call this place EllisIsland? It served as the chief immigration point into the city as refugees  and player characters came into the city. Since most of the players in the Helsport campaignhave been Americans, most people instantly recognized what the building was and what it was like. Most of us have never seen Ellis Island in real life, nor will we ever be able to experience it the way it was when it was still operating, but we all have an instant understanding of what it is. We mentally see new immigrants to America moving through incomprehensible lines, being poked and prodded, scared of doing something wrong, speaking foreign languages.That's the mental image I wanted to extend to the players.In this case it worked. The first few players through Ellis Island had collectively horrible experiences. It became a right of passage into the campaign. In fact for me to allow any player into the campaign without them having to go through EllisIsland became unimaginable.The players insisted that everyone had to go through the experience, both because it was so scary, and because successfully completing the immigration process was viewed as a player was actually entitled to play with his comrades that had gone before. I also know that it worked because later on the players dubbed another similar facility in the city "Little Ellis Island." So some buildings will be known by names that sound decidedly wrongfor a fantasy setting. By using such "modern" names I hope that you will beable to transpose the known into the fantastic. It also frees me from having to be so exact in description.

Another thing that is disconcerting to players at first is that the city is so adaptive. By this I mean that because it is such a large environment, players can be completely unaware of prominent activities in other parts of the city. For example the city is cordoned off into distinctive areas that are not accessible to everyone in equal ways. For example, in the second incarnation of this campaign no characters ever entered the citadel or botanical districts. Only one character even entered the Noble's district. So in their case fully half of the city remained a complete mystery.This gives me the advantage of being flexible when the players force me to be and also enables me to be creative because there are always new areas for me to introduce the characters to.

The Geography Of Helsport
So where are you? Firstly you are on the planet where the campaign of Greyhawk is situated. So that leaves open some fantastic possibilities. Besides it gives some continuity to the campaign since such spells as Bigby's hands, or the existence of Lum The Mad is accounted for. Eventually I will either find my maps or make new ones, but for now verbal descriptions are the best I can offer you as a player. First you are on a large tear drop shaped demi continent. It is bisected at the bulge of the tear drop by a set of high mountains. There is a single pass free for passage by traders year round. Otherwise these mountains are of interest to miners,dwarfs, and hermits. For a good touch stone to your imagination, picture these mountains as the American Rockies, in the campaign they are named the Northern Reach Mountains.

To the South of this range is ahill country that gradually settles into a coastal plain. The environment on the southern part of the continent is similar to the type found in Greece or Italy. In general the area lends itself to bountiful agriculture, forestry, fishing, and some mining of coal deposits.The northern half of the continent has asingle river.To the East is a large swampy basin that reaches up to the base of the mountain range. It travels for several days ride almost due west until it reaches the center of the continent where it becomes navigable by crafts larger than barges. It continues due west for several more days, becoming wider as it goes until it reaches the sea at which point its mouth has become nearly 15 miles wide.To the North of the river the land is slightly hilly and free of most large forest areas, but after a two day ride the forest develops to almost impenetrable density. The forest begins a gentle slope downwards until the forest begins to take on a more swamplike character.The swamp would best be described asa very large Okeefanokee swamp. It is an area of lush growth, but it also enjoys very cold winters. On the eastern coast the continent ends in a section of man- grove swamps. As aresult the land slowly gives way to the sea. Large hurricanes often hit this side ofthe continent and can drastically alter the outlines and limits of the continental mass. Through the center of the continent runs a spineof stone and rock that acts as a dam dividing the very wet eastern part of the continent fromthe more firm western half. On the western half of the continent there are areas of dry land separated by areas of swamp.There are areas of land where there are large outcropping of granite domes. Mostof them have the bulk of their mass below the surface but a few have large exposed faces. While these are natural defensive points,their usefulness to people is limited by the fact that the surrounding swamp makes them very remote.On the northern end ofthe continent the stone spine widens and rises until it reaches the tip of the continent as a series of dramatic cliffs up to 1000 feet high. Helsport is located on the western coast approximately halfway between the Northern terminus of the continent and the river to the South. It is located in a large natural bay on the top of a granite dome.