Stoneheart Mountains
Known as The Spine of the World in many circles, the Stoneheart Mountains stretch from the frozen Northlands to the north to the outskirts of cosmopolitan Bard’s Gate to the south. Despite their impressive size, the mountain range is relatively new, having been magically raised atop the Keltine Barrier roughly 10,000 years ago. Most of the range’s formidable peaks reach heights of 14,000 feet and higher, though the summits of many mountains in the northern and central portions of the range climb into the proverbial death zone of 26,000 feet, with the highest exceeding 30,000 feet. At these dizzying heights, temperatures routinely dip far below the freezing point. Few creatures can withstand the low oxygen levels and frigid temperatures in these areas, leaving them sparsely inhabited. Dense glaciers, sometimes hundreds of feet thick, cover the slopes and summits of the tallest peaks. Below these heights, sheep, oryxes, llamas, and other animals adapted to life at elevation thrive in this rocky, arid environment.
Mountain dwarves are the most dominant military and political force in the Stoneheart Mountains, though the hobgoblins occupying the citadels along the eastern edge of the Stoneheart Mountains and the neighboring Starcrag Mountains also vie for supremacy. Several dwarven clans hold sway over this vast region, with Clan Craenog being generally recognized as the strongest and most influential of these, though the other clans would certainly disagree. Although none of the mountain dwarves hold humans and elves in high regard, several of these clans at least tolerate their former adversaries.
In the northern regions of the Stonehearts, the only vestiges of civilization are a handful of small mountain dwarf villages, hobgoblin enclaves, and goblin cave complexes. Ogres, trolls, yetis, and other monstrous denizens also inhabit these tall, frozen peaks. Clan Tusov wields nominal control over the northern section of the Stoneheart Mountains, though its influence wanes significantly outside the friendly confines of their capital city of Icarros.
The more hospitable portions of the central Stoneheart Mountains host numerous mountain dwarf villages and goblinoid settlements. The territories of four mountain dwarf clans overlap across this area. Clan Duhnbeyl rules over the Spine of Fire and portions of the Vingotha and Telegotha Plateaus. After centuries of civil disturbances and political machinations, this resurgent clan’s power is rapidly spreading from the epicenter of Halmarr, its political capital. Clan Koth wields its magical and technological might over the western Stoneheart Mountains. These dwarves seem content with their holdings, striving to maintain the status quo rather than confronting neighboring clans. Clan Craenog stands on the frontline against the hobgoblin citadels of Exor, Bonehollow, and Smashed Skull. From its strategic vantage point of Erod Flan, Clan Craenog boasts the largest and most experienced military force in the Stoneheart Mountains. They also claim the Feirgotha Plateau and most of the Eragotha Plateau for their own. After their expulsion from the Shengotha Plateau 500 years ago, Clan Krazzadak’s foothold in the central Stoneheart Mountains has substantially diminished. Other than its capital city of Abad Durhai, the clan tenuously clings to a few isolated towns and villages scattered throughout the region. Despite Clan Krazzadak’s decline in the central Stoneheart Mountains, this clan dominates the southern Stoneheart Mountains. Only the cities of Dun Eamon and Alesardin rival their power in this region. The former community on the western edge of the Stoneheart Mountains boasts a predominately human population while the latter city of Alesardin is almost exclusively inhabited by the svirfneblin.
Warfare is a near constant reality throughout much of the Stoneheart Mountains. Goblins and hobgoblins almost perpetually struggle against their mountain dwarf neighbors for supremacy. Although rival clans are apt to fight each other when an ideal opportunity presents itself, a loose alliance exists among the mountain dwarves. Secret “high-ways” carved into the highest elevations serve as clandestine networks to connect the cities and towns of opposing clans. So-called “low-ways” cut below the ground link the individual clans’ citadels together. However, goblins and hobgoblins are not the only creatures to menace the indigenous dwarves. Old myths and legends claim the Stoneheart Mountains themselves are not just inanimate earth and stone. The tales say the mountains are living entities with minds of their own. Other stories speak of long-forgotten deities waging a titanic struggle against an unspeakable evil on the land that eventually became the Stoneheart Mountains. In this version, the divine being’s dying essence coalesced into the rocks that form the chain. Not surprisingly, adventurers frequently scour the mountains searching for evidence to support one or more of these theories, though to date, no one has found anything to substantiate these accounts.
Region
Stoneheart Mountains
Type
Mountain Range
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