Excerpt from ‘The history of Thanalan, from Belah’dia to Ul’dah’ by Archon Niniri Niri.
Cutters Cry is one of the most dangerous locations in Thanalan, if not all of Aldenard. A simple shaded cave to an inexperienced observer, the depths of the cave are both immense, labyrinthine and filled to the brim with extraordinarily dangerous wildlife. Not long before the Seventh Umbral Calamity struck the world a famed group of adventurers resolved to empty the Cry of its ferocious inhabitants. The legendary Gerbald the Red led the Darklight Raiders into the caves, and these veteran warriors made good progress through the Cry before coming to a terror forgotten by history, a chimera of ancient Allag. All but one raider was slain, the sole survivor being an individual named Sibold who stumbled from the Cry, scarred by his experience and with little memories of the fight. The Cry would remain a danger until another group of adventurers successfully purged it more recently, after the chimera began to draw dangerously close to the surface.
The Dry Sands
Upon arrival in the Cry one would first observe a wide chamber of stone carpeted with sand and opened to the dry with various holes in the ceiling. Disturbances in the sand within this chamber present a clear danger, as they are capable of causing deadly eruptions of sand that can slam into an incautious explorer as if they were a pillar of stone. It is unclear what caused these eruptions, but this researcher suspects that it is a concentration of wind crystals beneath the sand. Yellow fungus littered the room, and may have been cultivated by myrmidons in imitations of the lesser ants farming fungi in their colonies. To continue further within one has to sink through a film of quicksand. The deeper sections of the Dry Sands contained large sacks which contained the corpses of the myrmidon’s prey. The name of this chamber likely refers to the baking, dehydrating effects of the Thanalan sun that the room is exposed to, and may have been given it to it by locals that explored the upper ranges, or adventurers that braved the pit.
The Feeding Pit
At the deepest point of the Dry Sands was the Feeding Chamber of the myrmidon princess. It was also host to fungi, many of which was now bioluminescent, likely in response to the cave’s subterranean nature. This is almost certainly where the ants of the Cry brought food back to their princess, that she might eat while remaining safe.
The Wet Sands
After exiting the final area of the Dry Sands, one finds themselves in the Wet Sands, a series of subterranean oasis’ consisting of circular caverns centered around a pool of water fed by streams falling from the surface and home to a number of palm trees and cacti.
The Sunken Antechamber
This odd antechamber was of little interest in truth, merely being an area of the Cry with the loose sand required for a giant worm to reside in it.
The Blue Sands
The true, hidden wealth of the Cry was almost immediately apparent upon entering the area known as the Blue Sands by the Darklight survivor. This section of the caves was filled with ceruleum, casting a vibrant blue light upon the area and causing various gouts of flame to leap from the earth due to the fire-aspected nature of the liquid. Deeper within the caves a number of bright red fire-aspected crystals were found, which may have created the supplies of ceruleum here. Deeper still, a number of glowing red eggs were found, perhaps deposited here by the ants or worms encountered higher up, possibly to sustain themselves on the heat of the Blue Sands.
The Craver’s Den
The zenith of the Cry is a grim cavern littered with fire crystals and host to a small pool of water. The chamber is also filled with bones, presumably both from beasts and humanoids that fell prey to the foul creature within the den. Various arrow shafts and other forms of weaponry can also be found here, likely vestiges of the battle between Craver, the chimera of the Cry, and the Darklight Raiders.
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