Flowering Hill
Realm of Sheela Peryroyl
Location: Outlands / Ringlands / Flowering Hill
Sheela Peryroyl’s little corner of the Outlands, Flowering Hill is a snug little patch. In fact, it’s just the sort of place you’d expect a halfling power to set up shop. We’re talking about a single, sprawling orchard and a wide-open farm, nestled in rolling green hills that are more underfoot than overhead, if you catch my drift.
This spot, it’s small, yeah, but it’s got charm by the bagful. No towering spires or bustling towns here, just the earthy comfort of halfling homesteads, built sympathetically in harmony with the natural environment. And the bashers who call this place home, they’re all halflings, and spend their days toiling away in the orchard and the fields, and their nights enjoying the fruits of their labours. And when I say fruits, I really mean cider—the bub that these cutters produce is famous as far away as Sigil. The locals are a mix of open-hearted and peery, prime, planar and petitioner, and are generally friendly like, but they’ve got their peepers open for troublemakers. See, they’ve had their fair share of unwanted guests traipsing through, so they’re careful about who they let in close.
The digs here are quaint as you like—homes tucked away in the hills with round doors that’d make you think you’ve wandered into a storybook. It’s quite a sight, especially when you notice it’s all halflings bustling about, and the supposed mistress of this idyllic realm is none other than Sheela herself, the goddess of the green thumb.
There’s some talk, mind you, among the more peery cutters, that this whole goddess business might just be a clever ruse by the halflings. But if it’s a peel, it’s a good one, ’cause Flowering Hill’s weathered its share of scrapes and still stands tall – well, as tall as halflings stand, anyway. Visitors to this neck of the woods are well-advised to mind their manners, scarf down their greens, and watch their noggins for low ceilings.
The weather here’s always fair – spring, summer, or autumn – never a hint of winter’s chill or the Outlands‘ nastier seasons. And let me tell you again about the cider from Sheela’s orchard. There’s the soft kind for a light tipple and the hard stuff that’ll knock you on your keister. Me old cutter Marda over at Greengage in Sigil, she’s stingy with the hard cider, doling out just two tankards per customer. And for good reason – it’s strong enough to put a giant on his back! So, if you’re passing through Flowering Hill, be sure to have a sip straight from the source, but don’t overdo it, berk.
Now, there’s another reason a cutter might venture to Flowering Hills. The chant goes there’s a gate here, to a little know planelette called Avalon. It’s on an island in a lake on the border of Flowing Hill, in the direction of Tir na Og. The island is always clouded with mist and fog, so that you really can’t even find it until you run right into it. The halfling folk avoid this place like the plague: It all sounds far too much like an adventure for their tastes.
Canonical Sources:
- On Hallowed Ground [2e] p113,175 (description of Sheela)
- Planescape Campaign Setting: Sigil & Beyond [2e] p15-16,26,86
- Player’s Primer to the Outlands [2e] p13,31 (brief description)
Source: Jon Winter-Holt, mimir.net