Kadagard

Kadagard is the continent of the northwest and is the coldest of the continents, being furthest north. This landmass stands as the bastion of the north: snow is as blessed as the spring buds, the wind howls louder than the wolves, and the waters of the rivers as as cool and sparkling as the glacel ice.

Geography

Kadagard is mountainous and forested. Much of the lowland is covered in taiga and conifer forests, with massive trees that are said to kiss the clouds. These lowlands are more often than not massive plateaus that span for miles on end. In the farthest reaches, were it comes to caress the pole, it is flat and covered with snow. There the only rising features are the great glaciers that stand as beacons of nature’s power over the land. The rest of the continent is largely covered and great mountains, erratically dotted about due to the many happenings of the Crumbling . The greatest of these mountains are found in the Allfire Peaks , the great range that splits the north and south of the continent in half, and keeps Kiaglatch , a region in the east, isolated.

Fauna & Flora

All of the plants and animals of Kadagard are adapted to cold weather to some degree. The beasts that call the continent home are usually hairy, fat/blubbery, both, or have developed some sort of behavior to work around the frigid temperatures of winter. Grasses and shrubs become fewer the further north you go, with only the hardiest of plants even taking root in the permafrosted soil of the tundra. The animals that first come to mind for many when they think of Kadagard’s wildlife are wolves, bears, mammoths, and other large, cold weather animals. The common traits one thinks of when they imagine what beasts found in Kadagard are ferocious, savage and fierce, similar to how one might imagine the frigid landscape. Plants native to the continent are hardy and resilient to the cold. The grasses are short, but thick, so thick in some areas that one doesn’t need a bed roll at all. Bushes are mostly found around water sources and in forests and wildflowers are common on the open grassland. The forest are dominated by conifers to the north, with the broad-leafed deciduous trees not able to withstand the cold like the conifers, while the south has mostly coniferous evergreens, with a oak, beach, ash, birch, and other broad-leaf deciduous trees mixed in. In the northern forests past the Allfire, the dominant tree is the Skywood, with forest full of trees as old as 3 thousand years and easily reach into the hundreds for their height.

Natural Resources

The cold climate of Kadagard gives it the reputation of being a frigid wasteland, but is only among places that are either isolated or have a low education rate, as the average person may have heard of at least some of the continent’s resources, depending on locaton. Much of the trade between locals and of other continents is that of lumber or precious metals. Those who dare to live in the Allfire often live in massive mining colonies that strip the mountains of their rich deposits of minerals and ores, within their great caverns. Iron is a common export, but so too is Foch, a special type of stone-like mineral that is common to certain mountains in the Allfire. This material is also cold Snow Stone for its milky white color and is known for being stronger than normal stone making it a valuable material for building. When ground up it is the key component for Oracledust , a strong, intoxicating substance said to allow those who ingest it to allow one to do wonderous things. Such powers include lifting mountains, seeing the future and/or past, communicating with animals, spirits, and gods, and casting powerful spells. Some powers happily by and sell this substance, but others strictly outlaw and destroy it, seeing it as a hallucinogen that is highly addictive and makes people crazy. Shamans and spiritual leaders in some of the primitive or tribal parts of Kadagard use Oracledust to preform their miracles and ceremonies and some openly distribute it during such ceremonies, as when mixed with certain substances it can additionally create a great ecstasy and can even be used as a powerful aphrodisiac. Lumbar is a common export for the northern areas as trees come by easily in areas were trees are especially bountiful. A particularly common lumbar export is Skywood, a type of evergreen tree common to the northern regions of Kadagard named for its immense height: some are believed to be thousands of years old and can be 130 m tall. Even young trees produce incredibly tough, high quality wood, with the oldest trees producing wood that makes some of the strongest shields in the world.

Type

Continent

Included Locations