The Hollows
From City of Heroes/City of Villains Stratics
Contents |
Neighborhood Report
Security Level: 5-15
The Hazard Zone of the Hollows is a fierce battleground for the gangs of Paragon City. New heroes are often pulled into service to help the Paragon Police Troll Task Force. Heroes must reach Security Level 5 before being granted access, but as soon as they have proven themselves to be tough enough, they are always a welcome sight for the badly outnumbered police forces.
The Hollows is east of Atlas Park and northeast of Skyway City. As a Hazard zone, it has no monorail station. Similarly, there are no trainers or hospitals within. The borders of the neighborhood are blocked off by War Walls, and the only entrances are secured by the Paragon Police Department. The Hollows is roughly divided up into five neighborhoods.
Cherry Hills
The area closest to the Atlas Park Security Gate was named after the once-idyllic park, Cherry Hills. The Paragon Police Troll Task Force has established a fortified beachhead here, under the command of Lt. David Wincott.
Along the western-most border of the neighborhood are a series of residential apartments. Their original tenants have long since fled, but they remain in fairly stable shape, although now they are somewhat worse for wear due to their current gangbanger inhabitants.
The buildings that run between the police line and the park have been reduced to rubble, however, creating a rocky border. This ruined area is a hotly contested battleground between the police and the Outcasts, leading into the park. According to police reports, the gangs destroyed these buildings in their rampages to ensure the PPD could not use them as a vantage point into the park
The park itself is heavily overrun by the Outcasts and Trolls, who struggle ceaselessly. A water treatment facility that runs through park has been rendered unusable since the Hollowing.
VILLAIN GROUPS
The Outcasts and Trolls are the predominant villains in this neighborhood. However it is not uncommon to find a solitary member of the Hellions, Warriors, or Family trying to negotiate a deal with one side or the other.
CONTACTS
David Wincott is the head of the Troll Task Force in the Hollows. He will sell his contacts Inspirations and a small selection of Level 10 Enhancements.
Four Seasons
East of Cherry Hills is the largest neighborhood in the Hollows, and arguably the section it is best known for. Once one of the wealthiest districts in Paragon City, the Four Seasons luxury condominiums were at the epicenter of the Hollowing event.
The majority of the neighborhood is now one vast sea of geological destruction. The streets are shattered, buildings destroyed, and man-made debris lies everywhere. The area is riddled with tunnels leading to the underground warrens.
Four Seasons is bordered to the south by the Red River and Eastgate Heights, but it contains another neighborhood within it. At its very heart lies Grendel’s Gulch.
VILLAIN GROUPS
While Outcasts can be found skirmishing with Trolls at the boundaries of the Four Seasons, the Trolls truly dominate this neighborhood. They are seemingly ubiquitous, fighting amongst themselves in their endless “king of the mountain” contests. New members of the group are regularly initiated here, through violence and Superadine overdoses.
It’s not uncommon to find a solitary Family Man or Skull trying to make a deal with the Trolls for a Superadine connection.
As one gets closer to Grendel’s Gulch, one may encounter rocky pumicites apparently dozing on the surface. They are quick to wake, however, and attack anyone who gets too close.
An even greater danger is the pumicites’ cousins, the magmites who lurk near the surface. The only evidence of their presence are ever-smoldering flames that dot pockets of the canyons. Step too close and they burst to the surface, threatening to burn everyone around them.
CONTACTS
Although he wears gang colors, Flux is much more than a member of the Outcasts or a simple criminal informant. He is actually an undercover officer who helps David Wincott put heroes in the middle of the action. He will sell his contacts Inspirations and a small selection of Level 10 Enhancements.
Talshak the Mystic: Little is known about the man who calls himself Talshak the Mystic. The PPD has spotted him from a distance, but is uncertain if he has any affiliation with the Circle of Thorns or not. Reports indicate he works against the Trolls.
Grendel’s Gulch
At the center of the Four Seasons is a spot where the world seems to end. A large section of Paragon’s prime real estate has collapsed into a treacherous, godforsaken pit. The streets simply drop off into this canyon of skeletal buildings and twisted wreckage.
VILLAIN GROUPS
The Trolls dominate this region, although they steer clear of regions where the Igneous dwell. These Trolls tend to be the oldest and most dangerous in the area.
One can also find an occasional pack of Outcasts looking to put the hurt on the Trolls. Wincott’s bravest men scout the area, and have reported the rare sightings of a daring Skull or Warrior, or entrepreneurial Family lieutenant lurking about.
Red River
The Red River flows from Skyway City through the southern half of the Hollows. The northernmost point of the river in this area has been dammed off, at the intersection of Four Seasons, Eastgate Heights, and the Red River neighborhoods.
The Trolls have dammed this area using explosives, massive piles of dirt, sheets of corrugated metal, dumpsters, car bodies, and whatever else they could lay their meaty green paws on.
VILLAIN GROUPS
Trolls populate the northern stretch of the river, often carting explosives towards the dam. As per other districts in this zone, occasionally a member of the Family can be seen attempting to negotiate a business transaction with the Trolls. Similarly, groups of Outcasts occasionally foray this far south.
Possibly even more menacing than the Trolls, the Circle of Thorns lurks around the banks of the Red River, targeting anyone who appears vulnerable, whether Outcast, police officer, or hero. The Circle mages are often seen huddled around their power crystals, performing elaborate rituals. It is as if they are searching for someone … or something.
CONTACTS
From his vantage point on the Red River bridge, Julius the Troll is more observant than one might suspect. He will only deal with heroes once they’ve reached Security Level 10, but from that point on he is a dissenting voice among the Trolls’ angry grunts. He will sell his contacts Inspirations and a small selection of Level 10 Enhancements.
Karsis: Karsis is believed to be the name of one of the Circle of Thorns. Nothing else is known about him at this time.
Eastgate Heights
The southwestern corner of the Hollows is taken up by Eastgate Heights, a large, hilly park that has grown somewhat wild since the Hollowing. Eastgate Heights technically begins in the northeast corner of the city, a small sliver of apartment buildings and some commercial warehouses running as a border along the ruins of the Four Seasons.
The residences end where the park begins, demarcated by a high wall and staircase that leads up the hill of Eastgate. The greenery is thick with enemies, although large stretches are still almost peaceful. Nature is broken up by occasional pieces of ancient columns, and at the top of the heights lies a broadcast station that still occasionally flickers with lights, despite being covered with Troll tags and acting as home to many Troll raves.
VILLAIN GROUPS
Trolls hang in large groups throughout the heights, but the Circle of Thorns roams undaunted through the district, often surrounded by spectral warriors. And in certain spots the rocky cliff sides may conceal Igneous.
Eastgate Park
The southwest corner of the Hollows is known as Eastgate Park. A Security Gate leads to Skyway City, and although it is as guarded as the Atlas Park gate, this area feels more desolate, wild, and less of a war-zone. It is more like a wilderness frontier.
Eastgate Park runs up to the Red River, and is another greenbelt now lost to hazardous enemies. Once scenic picnic areas lie throughout the area, and few bridges cross the Red River leading to Eastgate Heights. The rocky heights themselves are riddled with secret caves.
Towards the center of Eastgate Park, things get strange. Weird, arcane monuments cover the hills, and seem to act as magnets for the Circle of Thorns. From Lookout Point, daring heroes can watch as the mages seem to constantly perform magical rituals, clustered around their mystical crystals. The environment itself seems to rebel in their wake. Rocks float in the air, and peculiar lights emanate from some of the ruins.
====VILLAIN GROUPS====The Circle of Thorns is dominant in Eastgate Park. Thorn Wielders and Guardians travel in mass, guarding the Life Mages, Energy Mages, Madness Mages, and Ruin Mages. The mages fall upon any hapless intruders, whether Outcast, Troll, police officer, or hero, and attempt to sacrifice them in their black rites.
History
East of Atlas Park and northeast of Skyway City lies the Hazard Zone of the Hollows. Originally, this city zone was known as Eastgate, and was one of Paragon’s wealthiest residential districts. Beautiful New England houses sat upon the hillside, with spectacular ocean views. At the turn of the new century, a large group of Trolls banded together and decided they would carve out a piece of Paragon for themselves, by whatever force necessary.
In late 2000, these Trolls planted a series of explosive charges throughout the sewers along a row of Eastgate condominiums. They planned to ruin the district, and then move into the rubble before city crews could properly respond. What the Trolls didn’t know was that an extensive series of underground caverns already riddled the area. The cataclysmic chain reaction, known as “the Hollowing,” devastated a huge section of the neighborhood, causing it to fall in upon itself.
When the dust settled, the Trolls were ecstatic. They had discovered a perfect region for their needs. They moved into the newly unearthed tunnels, and fought viciously to defend their new territory.
Paragon City officials could not react quickly enough to contain the threat, as the area was still geologically unstable. The tunnels were so extensive, however, that the Trolls simply didn’t have the numbers to control it all. Other criminal elements were quick to take advantage of this opportunity and moved in. A splinter of the Outcasts poured in, unwilling to let their long-time rivals have the region unchallenged. The gang battles raged among the disaster-stricken neighborhoods, but whenever a side was losing, they would melt back into their entrenched, underground warrens.
Despite heroes taking an active hand, the city was never able to successfully coordinate an effective response and reclaim the territory. A sort of trench warfare became the norm, where gangs battled furiously over a few hundred yards of tunnels that rapidly changed hands. The tunnels became fortified camps, havens for these criminals that neither heroes nor police could breach without serious jeopardy.
Meanwhile, other forces were slowly making their presence felt. The Circle of Thorns sent in covert teams to scout out the new geography, seemingly organized for some sinister purpose. And as the Trolls and Outcasts continue to battle underground, they seemed to have encountered a fearsome new threat from the depths of the earth!
Neighbourhoods
Phone Locations
- Eastgate Park
- -1599.3, 38.0, 2871.8
- Four Seasons
- -1694.9, 0.0, -3374.9
Adjoining Zones
Contacts
- Lt. David Wincott - 2396.7, 0.0, -3787.7
- Flux
- Julius the Troll
- Talshak The Mystic
External Links
| City of Heroes Zones |
| Abandoned Sewers | Atlas Park | Bloody Bay* | Boomtown | Brickstown | Cascade Archipelago | Crey's Folly | The Chantry | Croatoa | Dark Astoria | Eden | Faultline | Firebase Zulu | Founders' Falls | Galaxy City | The Hive | The Hollows | Independence Port | Kings' Row | Peregrine Island | Perez Park | Recluse's Victory | Rikti Crash Site | Sewers | Siren's Call* | Skyway City | Steel Canyon | The Storm Palace | Striga Isle | Talos Island | Terra Volta | Warburg* |
| *City of Villains PvP Zones |
