by Bev Vincent
TAUNTON (1, M)
A town in In-World. Hax is supposed to send poisoned meat there at the behest of John Farson. Gallows Hill is on the Taunton Road outside of Gilead.
TAVARES (4, 4.5)
A town forty wheels east of Tree Village and up the coast from Mejis. Nell Ross owns a rocking chair from Tavares. The constable of Tree has a woman here and often retreats to that town when the Covenant Man comes to collect taxes. Tim Ross joined a group of gunslingers on their way to Tavares to raise a posse. There was once a female bartender in Tavares, but she died of the pox.
TEJUAS (L, M)
An unincorporated township two hundred miles west of Eluria.
TEPACHI (4)
A town in the vicinity of Mejis.
THOUGHTFUL HOUSE (L, M)
A cave in the hillside near Eluria where the Little Sisters have to go to meditate when Big Sister decides one of them has been bad. Described as “a small black opening low on the scarp.”
THUNDERCLAP (4, 4.5, 5, 6, 7)
Located one hundred wheels east of the Devar-Tete Whye River from the Callas. Devar-Toi, the prison for the Breakers, is located here. Dubbed the Land of Darkness. The sun never shines, so artificial light is beamed in to simulate daylight. The night is absolute—no moon, no stars. The Crimson King supposedly caused the darkness. It is said to be a land of vampires, boggarts, and taheen, where clocks run backward and the graveyards vomit out their dead. The land is dead and the air was poisoned either by the Crimson King on a lark or by the leavings of the Great Old Ones. It causes skin conditions ranging from acne to cancer for anyone unfortunate enough to live here. Open wounds are easily infected and often fatal. Roland first hears about Thunderclap via the grapefruit. Its sigul is a cloud with a lightning bolt.
THUNDERCLAP STATION (7)
A major train depot in the heart of Thunderclap, approximately six miles from Algul Siento. The central terminal looks to be at least half a mile long. Tracks lead in every direction. The Wolves get here via a one-way door from the Fedic Dogan to launch their raids on the Callas. When they return, they take a train to Fedic Station.
TOOK’S GENERAL STORE (5, 6, 7)
The general store that takes up half the main street in Calla Bryn Sturgis, owned and operated by Eben Took. A wooden building so busy that it merits eight long hitching rails. Two dozen rocking chairs line the porch. The Wolves burned the store the year Red Molly killed one of them because the owner hid some of the town’s children in the storage bin out back. The Tooks intend to make sure that never happens again. Its twin is the store in Stoneham, Maine, though the latter is quite a bit smaller until Chip McAvoy rebuilds after his own fire.
TOOK’S OUTLAND MERCANTILE (4.5)
An abandoned store the ka-tet explores before reaching the Whye River.
TOWER KEYSTONE (7)
The version of Mid-World where the Dark Tower is itself, not some other representation.
TOWER ROAD (7)
The Great Road that descends out of the White Lands of Empathica along the Path of the Beam to the Dark Tower. It emerges from the snow in the town of Westring. Stuttering Bill keeps it plowed as far as Federal Outpost 19. It was once paved, but has fallen into disrepair and is little more than ruts in some places. Close to the Tower, a broken-down stone wall lines the road. Roses grow along the side of the road and among the stones. Dead trees spell out “nineteen” or “chassit” with their branches. Speaking Rings, obelisks and castle ruins appear in the fields, along with herds of buffalo. Closer still, the road is lined with statues of men with bloodred paint on their faces. Five miles from the Tower, there is what appears to be a pyramid-shaped cairn that is actually made of steel. The road splits and makes a circle around the Tower’s base, continuing on the far side. Though the Beam Roland follows ran southeast, by the time he reaches the Tower, directions have realigned, so it is actually true east. Another road runs at right angles to Tower Road, now in the north/south direction.
TOWN LOOKOUT (4)
A part of the Drop in Mejis that provides a fair view of Hambry, including the Delgado house.
TRAVELERS’ REST (5)
A combination inn and eating house in Calla Bryn Sturgis.
TRAVELLERS’ REST (4, 7, M)
The saloon and whorehouse on High Street in Hambry. It has rooms, but people come here mostly to eat, drink, listen to music, watch girls dance, consort with prostitutes and gamble. It is owned and operated by Coral Thorin, though her brother, Mayor Hart Thorin, has a major interest in it. Sheb, the piano player Roland encounters in Tull, plays the piano here, and Sheemie Ruiz works here.
TREE (4.5)
A village on the edge of the Endless Forest at the farthest edge of North’rd Barony. Cutting blossiewood and ironwood trees is a source of income for some, while others are farmers or work in the sawmill. The last town in the civilized country—which means it still paid taxes to Gilead. On or near the Beam of the Cat, Way of the Bird. Since Tim follows the Beam of the Lion, and Aslan lives in the far north, this implies that Tree and Gilead are north of the Dark Tower.
TREE SAWMILL (4.5)
The place where the blossiewood and ironwood were converted to lumber before being shipped to Gilead. Tim Ross is sent to work here after Bern Kells marries his mother. The starkblast blew it into Tree River. Nothing remained but the stone foundation.
TULL (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, M)
A small town southeast of Pricetown, near the edge of the Mohaine Desert. Roland kills everyone in the town after the man in black sets a trap for him here. Among its residents were Sheb, whom Roland knew from Mejis, Nort the Weedeater, whom the man in black raised from the dead, and Allie, Roland’s lover, briefly.
VI CASTIS MOUNTAINS (4)
Mountains four hundred miles west of Mejis. The town of Ritzy is located on the eastern slopes. There were once freehold gold, silver, diamond and copper mines in the mountains, but the Vi Castis Company now regulates them all. Roland, Alain and Cuthbert think that’s where Farson will refine the oil from Citgo.
WAY STATION (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, M)
An inn with horse stables on the old coach line across the Mohaine Desert. Jake Chambers ends up here after he dies in Manhattan. Roland finds the jawbone of one of the Great Old Ones in its basement. Father Callahan awakens here after he commits suicide in Detroit in time to see Roland and Jake in the distance. LaMerk Industries manufactured its atomic water pump.
WAYDON (5)
Lady Oriza’s castle on the River Send.
WAYPOINT NINE (4.5)
Daria’s designation for a location in Fagonard Swamp.
WEST’RD BARONIES (4, 4.5)
The section of Mid-World far west of New Canaan. Thousands of miles from Mejis, according to Susan Delgado. Said to be in flames.
WESTERN DROP (4, 7)
Also called the Drop. A long slope of land that runs from Mejis toward the sea, with Bad Grass and the desert to its west. It is approximately thirty wheels by five wheels. The land is used mostly for the Barony horses and cows. Hambry’s breeders own parcels of it. Pat Delgado’s house is on the edge of the Drop.
WESTERN SEA (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
Roland reaches the Western Sea after his palaver with Walter and proceeds up its coast, where he discovers a series of doorways that provide him with his ka-tet. Home to lobstrosities. Analogous to the Pacific Ocean in our world.
WESTRING (7)
The mostly abandoned town at the beginning of Tower Road where Joe Collins lives. Stuttering Bill keeps the road clear in the winter. It’s less than a three-week walk from the Dark Tower.
WHITE LANDS OF EMPATHICA (7)
See Empathica.
WHYE (4.5, 5, 6, 7)
A river in the Borderlands, also known as the Big River. The river splits northwest of Calla Bryn Sturgis. The west branch is near Mid-World—Roland and his ka-tet cross it on a raft before the starkblast hits. The east branch is called Devar-Tete Whye, the Little Whye. It runs for thousands of miles south of Call
a Bryn Sturgis to the South Seas. Since the river runs south, most of the trade seen by the Callas comes from the north. It had a tendency to flood every half dozen years.
WIND (4)
A mudpen of a town fifty miles from Ritzy, where the Big Coffin Hunters got their coffin tattoos.
XAY RIVER (7, M)
A river Roland, Alain and Cuthbert cross on the way back to Gilead from Hambry. After they’re across, Alain cuts the rope bridge to prevent anyone from following them.
THINGS
AFFILIATION OF BARONIES, THE (4, M)
A group of Baronies that are aligned with one another and pay homage to New Canaan. It has been “like mother’s milk and father’s sheltering hand” to the Baronies for many generations. However, it suffers from the same problems as any sprawling empire: people living the farthest from the center feel disenfranchised and grow resentful at having to contribute to its upkeep, especially since the railway no longer runs and communication is difficult. John Farson is the leader of the rebels who would see the Affiliation destroyed. The gunslingers of Steven Deschain’s time are too obsessed with the Dark Tower to pay much attention to either Farson or the fact that the Affiliation is rotting from the inside.
AMOCO (1, 3)
A gasoline company that existed in Mid-World. A man built a cult around one of its pumps.
APON
See Old Star.
ASIMOV ROBOTS (7)
The generic name for the sentient robots built by North Central Positronics. Andy the Messenger Robot, Nigel the Domestic and Stuttering Bill are examples. Logic faults are common in these robots. The Old People compensated for this by setting up a stringent quarantine system, treating the glitches like diseases.
ASLAN (4.5)
The Lion Guardian of the Beam. He lives in the far north, in the land of endless snows.
AUNT TALITHA’S CROSS (3, 5, 7)
A silver cross at the end of a fine-link silver chain. Talitha Unwin wore it constantly for more than a hundred years. She gives it to Roland in River Crossing and asks him to lay it at the foot of the Dark Tower. Roland gives it to John Cullum to convey a message to Moses Carver. It records a secret about Odetta that only Carver and Eddie know. When Roland visits Tet Corporation, Moses Carver returns it to Roland with a message from Cullum. Roland lays the cross, along with his remaining gun, at the door of the Dark Tower.
BARONY (1, 3, 4, 4.5, 5, 6, 7, M)
A geopolitical or feudal unit in Mid-World equal to a state or province. Gilead was the capital of the New Canaan Barony.
BARONY CLASS (3, 4)
The equivalent of first class. Describes the accommodations in Blaine the Mono.
BEAMQUAKE (6, 7, M)
Analogous to an earthquake, but caused when one of the Beams holding up the Dark Tower snaps. Anything within several hundred miles of the affected Beam is destroyed. According to Roland, birds near the Beam would fall from the sky in flames. The ka-tet feels the Beam of the Eagle and Lion break the day after they defeat the Wolves in Calla Bryn Sturgis, and Roland experienced one after Gilead fell but before the battle at Jericho Hill.
BEAMS (3, 4, 4.5, 5, 6, 7, M)
Lines of power that support the Dark Tower and hold together space, size and time. The original Beams that arose out of the Prim were made of magic. The Great Old Ones replaced them with technology, thereby guaranteeing they would someday fail, especially after the Great Old Ones vanished from the world. The Beams have been flowing along the same paths for so many thousands of years that they leave a clear sign of their presence in the shape of the clouds, the direction needles on trees grow and the pattern of shadows on the ground.
At times, the Beams seem like living entities—the Voice of the Beam is the Voice of Gan. The Voice is what tells Stephen King the story he is writing. It can force people to witness something important to its preservation (aven kal). The Beams also communicate in the dreams of sensitive people like Sheemie Ruiz, where they appear as young boys.
The Breakers are toiling on behalf of the Crimson King to disrupt, bend and ultimately break these Beams, leading to the fall of the Tower and the collapse of all universes. The Beams were originally smooth and polished, but now they are pitted, cracked, lumpy and eroded. There were twelve Beams, each with an animal Guardian. One Beam broke when Gilead fell. The Breakers successfully broke the Beam of the Eagle and the Lion, causing a devastating beamquake. Roland follows the Beam of the Bear, whose Guardian is Shardik. When this Beam reaches the Tower, it turns into the Beam of the Turtle, whose Guardian is Maturin. Tim Ross’s adventure takes him north along the Beam of the Lion, Aslan. (See Guardians of the Beam for a complete listing.)
The damage to the Beams isn’t irreversible if caught in time. If the Breakers are stopped, the Beams will heal themselves and perhaps even regenerate the broken ones. What has moved on might return again.
BENDS O’ THE RAINBOW
See Wizard’s Glass.
BILL OF CIRCULATION (4.5)
Notice to leave town after being caught doing something illegal.
BILLY-BUMBLER (THROUGHOUT)
Also known as a throcken. A small animal that looks like a cross between a woodchuck and a raccoon with dachshund thrown in. Some have the power to imitate human speech. They were good for amusing children, keeping the rat population down or herding sheep. A good bumbler is supposed to be good luck. At one time they were tame and used to roam the Baronies. Not quite as faithful as a dog, historically. The wild ones are scavengers. Some people swear they can add. A Mid-World saying asks, “Do bumblers learn to speak backward?” equivalent to asking if a leopard can change its spots. They are particularly sensitive to starkblasts. When one is approaching, they face the storm with their snouts raised and, when the storm gets closer, turn in tight circles, as if chasing their tails. In regions where they are scarce, seeing one is considered good luck. They consider Grandfather-fleas ancient enemies and seem bred to kill them.
BITSY (4.5)
One of Jack Ross’s female mules.
BLACK THIRTEEN (4, 5, 6, 7, M)
The most dangerous ball in the Wizard’s Rainbow, the one that represents the Dark Tower. The most evil and terrible object from the days of Eld still remaining on the face of the Earth and the clearest sign of the powerful forces working against Roland’s quest. Part of the Crimson King is trapped inside it forever, and insane. It is his ever-watching eye. Stephen King tells Roland it must be taken off the board and broken.
The box that holds it is made of the same ghostwood as the door at the base of the Tower. The bowling bag Jake finds in the vacant lot is made of a metallic material that provides some protection from its powers.
Steven Deschain’s father told him it wasn’t wise to talk about Thirteen because it might hear its name and roll your way. Walter gives it to Father Callahan in the Way Station, intending for it to be a trap for Roland in Calla Bryn Sturgis. Callahan stored it in his church, where it mostly slept and the simple faith of his parishioners soothed it. It sent Callahan todash twice, which is one of its powers—it may be a way to everywhere and everywhen. Like the rose, its hum conveys a sense of power, but it speaks of colossal emptiness and a malevolent emptiness.
Roland uses it to open the Unfound Door in the Doorway Cave. So long as the box is open, the door remains ajar. Someone needs to stand guard when anyone goes through the door because the box could close itself, trapping the person on the other side. However, this guard is susceptible to its malign powers as they wait. It works on both body (Roland’s arthritis, for example) and mind (it convinces Eddie to kill himself).
Mia steals Black Thirteen when she escapes from Calla Bryn Sturgis. She puts it in a safe in room 1919 at the Plaza-Park Hyatt. Jake and Eddie retrieve it before the low men can get it. Father Callahan stores it in a locker in the basement of the World Trade Center two years before 9-11, where it was presumably destroyed.
BLEEDING LION (7)
A creature that once stalked the north. Perhaps a reference to
Aslan, the Guardian of the northern Beam.
BOLT AND BAH (1, 4.5, 5)
Mid-world equivalent of a crossbow. Jamie DeCurry’s weapon of choice. Rarely accurate at a distance greater than twenty-five yards, and that only on a still day.
BOOK OF MANNI (5)
The Manni bible.
BRANNI (6)
A word associated with the largest of the plumb bobs used by the Manni to travel. The box it is stored in is called a Branni coff.
BUCKSKIN (4)
Alain Johns’s horse.
BUFFALO STAR (5)
A Mid-World deity. Roland was once forced to kill a preacher of the Buff.
CAN TAM (L)
The doctor bugs who operate in the Little Sisters of Eluria’s tent. They are associated with Type One vampires. Also known as Grandfather-fleas.
CAPRICHOSO “CAPI” OR “CAPPI” (4, 7, M)
The Travellers’ Rest’s pack mule, often used by Sheemie to deliver graf. Ill-tempered with a tendency to bite people—especially Sheemie.
CASA FUERTE (4)
Also known as Hotpatch. A two-man version of Watch Me.
CASSIOPEIA (3)
A star. According to the legend, she seduced Old Star (Apon, the North Star), causing a fight between him and Old Mother (Lydia, the South Star). The castoffs from their fight became the earth, the moon and the sun. The gods stepped in to save the universe and banished Cassiopeia to a rocking chair made of stars. Apon refused to reconcile, so stubborn Old Star and equally proud Old Mother pine for each other—and hate each other—from the opposite sides of the sky while Cassiopeia sits off to the side and laughs at them.
CASTLES (4, 5)
A game of strategy like chess. Red pieces are arranged at one end of the board and the white at the other. Hillocks stand between them, providing cover. The players creep toward each other, setting up screens without being able to see what the other player is doing. Ultimately, one player has to emerge from behind his Hillock. Unless he has properly established himself, this can leave him vulnerable, but staying in cover can be difficult, too. A clever player sometimes peeks around his Hillock and ducks back. The game takes its name from a move, castling, that can also leave a player vulnerable. One of the playing pieces is called a Squire. The game is a metaphor for the situation in Hambry between the Affiliation Brats and the Big Coffin Hunters. Though both sides are aware of what is going on, neither one wants to be the first to emerge from protective cover.