Dalskar

Dalskar has stood between forest and mountain for generations, its people living from hunting, small farms, stonework and the old quarry. The surrounding cliffs are treated with particular respect. Stone provides livelihoods, builds homes and marks graves, but villagers believe there are places in the mountains that should never be disturbed simply because something valuable might lie within.

Quarry workers traditionally leave unusual stones where they are found, particularly those bearing natural markings resembling circles or lines. Knocking heard from untouched rock is never answered, and workers avoid calling one another's names into deep cracks or openings. At the Hanging Pine, small offerings are occasionally left among the roots, though few villagers agree on whom—or what—they are intended for.

An old saying in Dalskar warns: “Take stone from the mountain, but never more than the mountain gives.”

Local Mystery — The Stones at the Door

Occasionally, someone in Dalskar wakes to find a small grey stone placed directly outside their front door.

There are no footprints and nobody admits leaving them. The stones themselves appear completely ordinary, though quarry workers sometimes insist they come from rock found much deeper inside the mountains.

Most people leave them untouched until sunset. By the following morning, they are usually gone.

Nobody remembers exactly when the custom began, but families in Dalskar agree on one thing:

If the same stone appears outside your door three mornings in a row, you should leave the village before nightfall.