Antonica · EverQuest (original release)
Halas
The barbarians’ city in a secluded valley of the Everfrost Peaks, behind a frozen lake that only a barbarian would swim: small, snowbound, well armed and well supplied with bars.
Behind the lake
Halas lies in a secluded valley within the Everfrost Peaks, protected by a lake and by barbarian steel. Visitors wait for the raft, the Gwenavyne, to carry them across; barbarians swim the freezing water without a second thought. Frequent snowstorms keep the streets and rooftops white all year.
It is the city of the Northmen, whose rulers once governed from Dun Lir; their story is in Halas and the Northmen. The city is small but has everything a larger one does in half the space: brewery, forge, kiln, oven and pottery wheel, and guilds for warriors, rogues and shamans, with beastlords added later.
Sources: EQ Atlas (eqatlas.ca): Halas · Allakhazam: Halas (zone) · Project 1999 Wiki: Halas
Faith and fellowship
The religious house of Halas belongs to the Tribunal, the god of justice the barbarians follow. Barbarians fill the streets; a human or half-elf, or a visitor from warmer lands, is an occasional sight.
The people keep to themselves. Life in the north takes hard daily work, and the EQ Atlas calls the barbarians a simple people. That does not mean quiet: brawls in the streets, as young and old warriors show off, and drinking bouts that end with dozens of unconscious champions are common. The bars are many, to keep tundra dwellers warm, and the armouries are almost as busy.
Sources: EQ Atlas (eqatlas.ca): Halas · Allakhazam: Halas (zone) · Project 1999 Wiki: Halas
A dangerous neighbourhood
The country around the city is full of life that has adapted to the cold, and the narrow valleys of the peaks make the stronger beasts more dangerous because there is often nowhere to run. The guide suggests this is why the barbarians became one of the bravest races in Norrath.
To the south, the cavern home of the Blackburrow gnolls, the barbarians’ bitter enemies, is the only way to the lands beyond. To the east, adventurers from far away brave the wastes toward Permafrost, drawn by rumours of ancient ruins. Allakhazam’s record also notes the ice dragon Lady Vox, whose lair lies that way, as the great power of the region.
Sources: EQ Atlas (eqatlas.ca): Halas · Allakhazam: Halas (zone)
Getting there
There is only one road. To reach Halas you cross both Blackburrow and the Everfrost Peaks; through them lie the lands north of Qeynos and from there the rest of Norrath. For a new barbarian, the canyons outside the gate are the first hunting ground and among the richest on the continent.
The barbarians’ god and their old foe the ice dragon appear in the Tribunal and Nagafen and Vox.
Sources: EQ Atlas (eqatlas.ca): Halas · EQ Atlas (eqatlas.ca): Everfrost Peaks · Project 1999 Wiki: Halas
Lore tied to this zone
Sources: EQ Atlas (eqatlas.ca): Halas · Allakhazam: Halas (zone) · Project 1999 Wiki: Halas