Time Frozen Wastes
A monument to the effort that must be used to right the gods' wrongs, a testament to mortal will, and a warning of the gods' capriciousness. The Time-Frozen Wastes are all these things, and more. The Wastes were first created as a response to the Wibovites, as a way to bide time to discover a more permanent solution. Located entirely within the Lindral Forest, this hemisphere of altered time took up over 364,645 square miles, and caused the relocation and dissolution of several Kingdoms that were a part of the Federation of Forested Kingdoms. Because of this, some descendants of the people of those kingdoms, and some of the old, long-lived inhabitants themselves, blame Harkinmont for the loss of those nations. These feelings of resentment simmer, and the kingdoms they now inhabit are more than willing to work with the soveriegn city for their magical exports.
When the Wibovites were first trapped here, the Wastes were not as they appear today. They were still the Lindral Forest, and on a clear day, with a good vantage above the trees, the structures of the abandoned kingdoms could still be seen. At this time, the area was instead called the Time-Locked Lindral. When the mages gathered to destroy the Wibovites by forcing time forward, and a glacier appeared within the perimeter due to the vastly accelerated time, its current name seemed more apt. Unfortunately, after the Wastes' purpose had been fulfilled, the mages failed to find a safe way to deconstruct the time distortion. One of the major fears is that dispelling the field may revert the area to its Wibovite infested past. Another is that it may unleash a glacier on the are. Without the confinement of the distortion, they are unsure of how the ice will act, and how dangerous it could be to the surrounding areas.
Few, if any, live here. It is a harsh environment, and the cost of living is high. If someone spends any significant amount of time in here they risk the world outside changing beyond recognition. Some come here to escape their lives, but unlike Harkinmont, if their foes or past figure out that this is where they chose to hide, they won't have had much time to prepare or live much of whatever wretched existance that they might have been able to eke out atop or within the glacier. While some people have put forth the idea of a prison within the Time-Frozen Wastes, it was largely agreed that such an undertaking would be unduly burdensome to the staff of the prison, to say nothing of the architects and builders of a massive building.
Geography
The ice of the gracier towers hundreds of feet above the surrounding forest, so accessing the glacier itself is facilitated by a series of towers and bridges that lead to exposed tunnels in the ice. On top of the glacier, there are strong arctic winds. There are also places where the and fractured upwards ice became compressed, leading to the creation of icy mountains. Some constructions can be seen and accessed from atop the ice, such as the tower used by the mad chronomancer Faelar in a failed attempt to reunite with his wife.
Ecosystem
The wastes are a harsh and unforgiving environment. Though there have been sightings of creatures here, their habits and diets are abysmally documented at best. There is very little known about the area, since few are willing to sacrifice so much for research. Of those who have gone in for research, only three have come out. It is unclear if the others are alive and continuing to research, or if they have been claimed by the ice and wind. In either case, none have stepped up to confirm their condition or act as a rescue party.
There haven't been any noted storms above the frozen surface. It is difficult to discern the reason however, be it the time distortion or a frozen drought in the era the area is experiencing. In either case, the kingdoms around the distortion thank their good fortune, as a storm may cause problems for the daylight their crops rely on.
Localized Phenomena
Many of the creatures that have been sighted by outside observers do not line up with anything presently recorded. It is unclear if they do presently exist in hiding in the Elven North, or if they are yet to be.
Due to the way time has been drawn out within the Wastes, the sky above them frequently affects the skies of the surrounding areas. Each day and night within the wastes lasts for just under a year. outside. Because of this, when it is daytime within the wastes, that light spills out around the nations surrounding it, making it difficult to sleep, though having positive effects upon vegetation. When it is nighttime within the distortion, it throws the surrounding areas into a strange sort of twilight. While similar effects happen around Harkinmont, they are much more pronounced here. Sunrises and sunsets are both beautiful here, as the wind-stirred ice and dirt within the wastes create beautiful colors for a couple tendays. These are truly the painter's dream, an the slow passage of time gives them the opportunity to accurately and eautifully recreate the vista before them.
Climate
Cold.
Natural Resources
Due to the conditions of the wastes, there have been no completed surveys of the natural resources that may or may not reside here. Some of the researchers that went in intended to complete such surveys, but they have not emerged from the wastes as of yet.
Tourism
There has never been anyone who has visited the Wastes for recreation. Each person that enters them does so with both their purpose and the cost well in mind. That said, there is a small tourism industry around going to see the feat of magic from afar. Largely controlled by the kingdoms around the Time-Frozen Wastes, it is a simple afair, given the limited ability of people to interact with the attraciton.
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