Lower Mountains
Dense forests cover the lower slopes.
- Pine forests
- Rivers
- Wildlife
- Mountain villages
- Hunting trails
- Ancient ruins
🦉
✦ THE REGIONS OF AETHERIA ✦
THE MOUNTAIN
RANGES
✦ ───────── ✦
“Where the sky touches the earth,
and the old things still remember.”
↓ DESCEND INTO THE MOUNTAINS ↓
✦ THE MOUNTAIN RANGES ✦
Where the Sky Touches the Earth
✦
The Mountain Ranges are a vast region of towering peaks stretching through the heart of Aetheria.
Ancient mountains rise above the clouds, their highest summits permanently covered in snow. Deep valleys divide the range, while enormous cliffs, hidden caves, frozen rivers, and forgotten ruins disappear into the wilderness.
The mountains are beautiful.
They are also unforgiving.
Few outsiders understand how dangerous they truly are. A traveler can become lost within minutes.
A peaceful-looking trail can lead directly into the territory of a mountain beast.
And some peaks have never been successfully climbed.
✦ ANCIENT HISTORY ✦
THE OLDEST LAND
✦ ───────── ✦
The Mountain Ranges are believed to be among the oldest regions of Aetheria.
Long before modern kingdoms established borders, civilizations lived among these peaks.
Ⅰ
Temples
Ancient places of worship carved directly into the mountainsides.
Ⅱ
Fortresses
Forgotten strongholds swallowed by stone and snow.
Ⅲ
Unknown Ruins
Structures containing symbols no modern Aetherian scholar can translate.
“They simply don't believe humans were the first ones to live there.”
✦ THE CLIMATE ✦
Four Faces of the Mountain
High Mountains
Rocky cliffs, caves, narrow paths, and powerful winds dominate the landscape.
The Snowline
Above a certain elevation, snow never completely disappears.
The High Peaks
The highest mountains rise above the clouds. Some are sacred. Others are considered cursed.
✦ THE PEOPLE OF THE PEAKS ✦
THE MOUNTAIN PEOPLE
✦ ───────── ✦
🐐
Goat Demi-Humans
Strong climbers known for their endurance and ability to survive extreme elevations.
🦉
Owl Demi-Humans
Nocturnal hunters and scouts who inhabit cliffs and forests.
🐺
Wolf Demi-Humans
Often found in colder valleys and higher elevations.
🌲
Mountain Elves
An ancient race living in secluded settlements.
⛏️
Dwarven Clans
Famous for mining rare metals and magical minerals.
🐉
Dragons
Ancient dragons whose nests remain hidden among the highest peaks.
✦
✦ RARE RESOURCE ✦
STAR-IRON
Metal that fell from the heavens.
✦ ───── ✦
According to ancient stories, fragments of Star-Iron fell from the heavens thousands of years ago.
The metal is nearly impossible to destroy. Weapons forged from Star-Iron can hold magical enchantments exceptionally well.
⚠
Mining Star-Iron is extremely dangerous. Many miners never return.
The mountain clans consider the deepest deposits sacred.
✦ ABOVE THE CLOUDS ✦
THE DRAGON PEAKS
✦ ───── ✦
Ancient dragons are believed to have nested here long before humans arrived in Aetheria.
Some dragons still live within the mountains. Most avoid civilization.
There are stories of enormous dragons sleeping beneath glaciers.
🕯️
Mountain villagers leave offerings near certain caves to ensure the creatures remain undisturbed.
Nobody has ever confirmed whether the offerings
actually work.
Nobody is willing to stop making them.
👁️
✦ THE UNKNOWN ✦
THE WATCHERS
✦ ───── ✦
Enormous stone statues have been found on several mountain peaks.
They depict unknown humanoid figures with wings, horns, and strange weapons.
WHO BUILT THEM?
Unknown.
WHY DO THEY WATCH?
Unknown.
WHY DO THEY FACE ONE MOUNTAIN?
Unknown.
“They simply avoid the statues after sunset.”
✦ BENEATH THE STONE ✦
THE HOLLOW BELOW
✦
Deep beneath the Mountain Ranges lies a massive network of caverns known as The Hollow Below.
🌲
Underground Forests
Some explorers claim they found forests growing beneath the mountains.
🌊
Enormous Lakes
Others describe vast underground waters.
👁️
Something Breathing
A few claim they heard something breathing beneath the stone.
“The mountain has a bottom.
The Hollow does not.”
The Hollow does not.”
✦ A TRAGEDY REMEMBERED ✦
THE NIGHT OF
THE BROKEN PEAK
✦ ───── ✦
A kingdom attempted to seize a small mixed demi-human settlement after discovering Star-Iron beneath the mountain.
The settlement was home to Owl and Goat demi-human families.
The villagers refused.
The soldiers attacked.
The settlement was destroyed.
THE SURVIVOR
EIRWEN VALE
Only one young survivor became famous afterward.
🦉
✦ THE LIVING LEGEND ✦
EIRWEN VALE
THE IRON VALKYRIE
✦ ───── ✦
Eirwen returned to the mountain years later.
She became its guardian.
PROTECTOR
WARNING
LEGEND
Some villages leave food outside their homes during particularly harsh winters.
Not because they believe Eirwen needs it. Because they believe the gesture shows respect.
Some hunters claim she has saved them. Others swear she chased them away.
Children tell stories about seeing her flying above the clouds.
Adults insist they've never seen her.
Eirwen herself doesn't care what people call her.
She simply continues watching the mountains.
✦ ANCIENT POWER ✦
MAGIC OF THE MOUNTAINS
✦
The Mountain Ranges contain unusually concentrated ancient magic.
✦ Ancient Ruins
✦ Star-Iron Deposits
✦ Glacial Caves
✦ Sacred Peaks
✦ Dragon Nests
✦ Underground Springs
During certain nights, faint lights can sometimes be seen moving through the mountains.
Some say they're spirits. Some say they're magic. Others believe they're something much older.
The truth remains unknown.
✦ MOUNTAIN TRADITION ✦
THE LAW OF THE MOUNTAINS
✦ ───── ✦
01 — Never take more than you need.
02 — Never enter a sealed ruin.
03 — Never disturb a sleeping dragon.
04 — Never follow voices into a blizzard.
05 — Never steal from a mountain shrine.
ABOVE ALL
If the mountains tell you to leave,
leave.
🦉
Because in Aetheria…
The Mountain Ranges
aren't simply a place on the map.
✦ ───── ✦
They're one of the few places where the ancient world still feels alive.
And somewhere above the clouds, beneath the silver moonlight…
A pair of enormous owl-like eyes
watches everything below.
🦉 ✦ 🌙 ✦ ⛰️