Throal Mountains
The Throal Mountains, rising up through the clouds and extending across the heart of Barsaive, seem impossibly large. Indeed, as one approaches the Throal Mountains, thri image fills the sight. Maps of Barsaive fail to do justice to the sheer size of the peaks, for maps can show only the width of the mountains. In fact, if the surface area of the range could be laid out flat, it would cover one quarter of Barsaive.
The tremendous wasteland across the surface of the mountains provides a stark contrast to the orderly Kingdom of Throal, buried deep within the rocky slopes. The dwarves devote no time or forces to policing the upper reaches of their mountains, and so the surface remains untamed, much as it was following the Scourge.
Travellers who walk across the mountainous wastes are struck by the cold blue tint of the soil. Myriad small stones cover the ground underfoot, making the trek awkward and threatening one with a turned ankle or twisted knee at every step. Two-thirds of the way up the slopes, the air is so cold that exhaled breath turns to mist, and only thick furs will enable a visitor to survive the night. All manners of strange creatures roam the mountains. Many of them are solitary, like the feather serpents, which seek out food to bring back to their broods. Others, like the ice wolves, travel in packs. The numerous large boulders and tall outcroppings can hide any kind of ambusher. With food so scarce in the mountains, the few living predators and people must constantly struggle to kill for food or die of starvation.
An even greater danger for travellers are the savages that roam the slopes. Several primitive tribes of humans, orks, trolls, and even dwarves live on the surface of the mountains, survivors of the Scourge. No one knows how these people lived through the Horror's reign without the Rites of Protection and Passage. The most oft-told tales say that these tribes made deals with the Horrors, worshipping them as we worship the Passions. If true, some attacks on unwary travellers may be the work of questors of a Horror, but we cannot verify that these people consider themselves to be such.
The tremendous wasteland across the surface of the mountains provides a stark contrast to the orderly Kingdom of Throal, buried deep within the rocky slopes. The dwarves devote no time or forces to policing the upper reaches of their mountains, and so the surface remains untamed, much as it was following the Scourge.
Travellers who walk across the mountainous wastes are struck by the cold blue tint of the soil. Myriad small stones cover the ground underfoot, making the trek awkward and threatening one with a turned ankle or twisted knee at every step. Two-thirds of the way up the slopes, the air is so cold that exhaled breath turns to mist, and only thick furs will enable a visitor to survive the night. All manners of strange creatures roam the mountains. Many of them are solitary, like the feather serpents, which seek out food to bring back to their broods. Others, like the ice wolves, travel in packs. The numerous large boulders and tall outcroppings can hide any kind of ambusher. With food so scarce in the mountains, the few living predators and people must constantly struggle to kill for food or die of starvation.
An even greater danger for travellers are the savages that roam the slopes. Several primitive tribes of humans, orks, trolls, and even dwarves live on the surface of the mountains, survivors of the Scourge. No one knows how these people lived through the Horror's reign without the Rites of Protection and Passage. The most oft-told tales say that these tribes made deals with the Horrors, worshipping them as we worship the Passions. If true, some attacks on unwary travellers may be the work of questors of a Horror, but we cannot verify that these people consider themselves to be such.
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