Deep Below
Known by a variety of names, the Deep Below (or Underrealm, Netherworld, etc.) is a massive network of underground tunnels, caves, and water features. Unlike the surface, where invasion of Mundane humans drove back many magical areas, the Deep Below has remained mostly untouched. Although part of this is in the difficulty of accessing the Deep Below, as it is, well, deep underground, another part is the density of magic. Above ground, magic density varies, with areas with more magic being designated as magical hotspot. In the Deep Below, the overall magic level tends to be higher, making the entire area essentially a hotspot. Since high amounts of wild magic tends to repel Mundane humans, they never enter the Deep Below. On purpose, at least.
Because the Deep Below is inaccessible to Mundane people, and difficult to access even for those with magic, it is a major sanctuary for magical animals and plants. While on the surface many magical lifeforms have found their territory and lands shrinking, until they had only (relatively) small areas around hotspots left, retreating down into the Deep Below offered them a wealth of space, some of it similar enough to the surface to require little to no adaptation. Because of this, the magical world has set strict laws to keep the Deep Below safe, to prevent the extinction of magical animals and plants.
Geography
The Deep Below is a massive network of various subterranean structures. From caves to tunnels to underground rivers and lakes, the Deep Below has it all. Some caves are large enough to contain entire biomes, from dense forests to expansive plains, from roiling rivers to steep cliffs like a mountainside. Some parts of the Deep Below even meet the ocean, allowing salt-water biomes to exist, but most of the water in the system is fresh.
Ecosystem Cycles
Critically, the Deep Below functions on magic. Magic ensures a natural rhythm exists, mimicking above-ground biomes, or generating all-new biomes. Between magic and the shifting of the world around the Deep Below, many areas experience seasons of sorts, though they do not always perfectly match above-ground seasons, both in how they occur and when they occur.
Alternative Name(s)
Underrealm, Netherworld
Type
Underground / Subterranean
Included Locations
Related Professions
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