Serpent-motif Ruins

One doesn't have to travel far from Amaranth's outer walls to stumble across the least of these ruins. Chiseled from light or sandy coloured stone; the structures of this civilisation are commonly adorned or inscribed with stylised serpent heads.

Defences

Whilst many of these ruins and their contents are locked or barred, most of the trouble in accessing them comes from having to remove inhabitants who have since moved in; wild animals, bandits or tribes using them as shelter. Or having to excavate caved-in tunnels.
The few underground tunnels that have been explored are reportedly trapped or easily collapsed. (Though whether by design, or age, is up for debate.)

Assets

No written texts have been discovered at these ruins, but well-preserved troves hold two other treasures:
Firstly; glass-like crystal shards, seemingly-unrelated to Keystone crystals, that nevertheless can hold a prismatic arcane charge - and a profession of using these in weapon enchantment has sprung up in Amaranth, resulting in many of the nearby ruins being stripped clean of them by enterprising citizens.
Secondly; tools and weapons crafted of a golden metal, that has a ruddy glow in sunlight and is nicknamed Serpentite or Blood-gold, depending on who you ask. Though somewhat brittle, it doesn't share gold's softness, and holds a wicked edge - and with no modern analogue, even badly forged items fetch a good price for the metal.

Architecture

Larger buildings favour a step-sided pyramid shape, whilst smaller ones are usually low domes or long arches.
The internals of these ruins are oft inscribed with elaborate patterns; heavily featuring serpents as well, but also other animals, eyes & feathers. Many also feature tunnels that lead down into the earth, but these are usually collapsed or unstable with age.

Geography

You, and fellow Keyship explorers, have noted that these ruins always seem to sit on the sun-facing slopes of hills - making noon the easiest time of day to spot them (i.e. when the light stone buildings reflect the most sunlight).
Oddly, however, most of these ruins aren't built near rivers or streams - making the standard technique of following running water somewhat useless for finding these settlements.
In terms of distribution, ruins of this kind have been found all over the lands south of Amaranth, with some of the closest being only a few days walk from the city. (Although these seem to be tiny settlements by Amaranth standards - no more than 10-20 buildings.) Larger ruins have been spotted further south, several days from the city by Keyship.

RUINED SETTLEMENT
Age: Unknown

Alternative Name(s)

Snakeholes, Serpent Troves