Tobol Mountains

Okay the Tobol Mountains didn't have a write up so I decided to write one, I asked Karbo and he said that he had some ideas so I post this here and with feedback I can easily change things to help fit with what others have in mind. Also did some flora and fauna to round it out some.


Tobol Mountains
Danger: Normal
Inhabitants:
A small but high chain of mountains, the Tobol Mountains rings around the Evernight Forest most of the way leavening about a third of it exposed. They are largely uninhabited, their vast mineral wealth only partially tapped. A few small mines from the time of Ur-Sagol can be found, often with dangerous lurkers to be found within. The only sizable settlements to inhabit the Tobol Mountains are some giant and non giant harpies as well as storm sprites. However within recent history some elves have set up mines in the northern part of the mountains.

The mineral wealth of the Tobol Mountains is different than that found in the Ascarlin Mountains, the mineral wealth there is known for its beryl's and emeralds of unusual size, clarity, and lacking in fractures. What really draws attention however is its one of the few known places to possess large quantities of Claret Stones and Xythium.

Fauna of the Tobol Mountains:
Haluza
Size: 8' long, 1' tall
Threat: Moderate
Long blind centipedes they have fast acting paralytic poisonous bites who hunt by detecting vibrations. They are usually very slow moving, but can make short bursts of extreme speed when they are about to attack.

Splinter Tooth (MrNobody13 came up with this one)
Size: 5' long 2' tall
Threat: Moderate - High in groups
It has spiked forearms in the manner of a whip scorpion, which it uses to grab prey and dig. Dangerous to humans, particularly when encountered in groups. Also present the danger of making mines unstable

Rainbow Minnows
Size: 1"
Threat: minimal
Glowing incandescent tiny cave fish, Rainbow minnows live in caves but maintain their eyes, using the light they generate to see. They move in small swarms and feed off small amounts of bacteria in the caves water systems. Rainbow Minnows are known to be extremely poisonous to felaryan insects but not to mammals.

Falcon Harpies:
Size: 120'
Threat: Very High
Falcon Harpies are aggressive and dangerous, not as social as their sister breeds they tend to be territorial and only associate with others when they wish to breed. The Falcon Harpy is notable for a few other traits, first their eyesight is sharp, far better than other Harpies, second they are fast, third they have strong claws. On the down side however they are not overly maneuverable, fight amongst themselves frequently, and become frustrated easily.

Raven Harpies:
Size: 6'
Threat: low
Human sized Harpies, the Raven Harpies are curious, and occasionally thieving harpies. They seem to be somewhat bipolar, usually brooding and observant, but can quickly turn silly and playful. Notable about these Harpies is that they are intelligent and talk much more like normal people do than other harpies, though they do tend to mimic people they talk to frequently. Raven Harpies like to collect things, particularly shiny things and are one of the few harpies that occasionally craft items.

Owl Harpies (Jasconius gave me the base idea)
Size: 120'
Threat: Hazardous
Owl Harpies live in small numbers all over, but many live in the Tobol mountains along the Evernight Forest, hunting the forest while nesting in the base of the mountain. They See well in the dark and hear exceptionally well, using this and their exceptional maneuverability they hunt the upper reaches of the Evernight forest. Often sought out for their wisdom and knowledge they can be approached by those who are brave enough to be risked being eaten, though they respond best if you bring them knowledge in return.


Flora of Tobol Mountains:

Potato
a starchy tuber harvested for food.

Hurtha Vines
long, strong vines that like to hang over rocks and grow red egg sized fruit that can be eaten, the nut inside can be cooked and eaten.

I think the location is pretty bland. It sounds like a typical mountain range. The fauna isn't much better. All in all, it sounds pretty bare-bones.

fair enough, I could spruce it up, that's true, its fairly bair bones, my hope is to get ideas from people and expand it a bit.

One of the things I was hoping to accomplish was to write up another mineral rich area like the Ascarlin Mountains, but only different minerals, much like in RL, one less tapped but people know is there.

Also not every place HAS to be super exotic, but feel free to add ideas so we can build this place up.

While I agree a bit with Sean with this being a somewhat bare bones (though you did mention in ventrilo that you were going to edit it), I don't see what's wrong with this being a typical mountain range. Not everywhere in Felarya has to be super unique and exotic.

I do like the creatures, but they could use a little more description.

And since you mentioned taking suggestions...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Erdgeist
Size: 12 to 24 feet long
Threat: Low

Erdgeists are earth elementals native to the Tobol Mountain region. Their bodies take on the appearance of rams, similarly to tanngiosts, and are formed from granite so detailed so as to make every single "hair" seem visible. Because of the relative abundance of emeralds in the mountains, most Erdgeist will use this precious mineral to form their horns and hooves. They are able to so heavily compact it so as to make it as strong, if not stronger, than diamond. Not very dangerous, often the only threatening display one may see are two individuals charging one another. The sound procuded by two clanging sets of horns is often compared to that of a giant gong being struck.

They are occasionally sought after as their horns and hooves are considered both very beautiful and highly valuable. Those that do, however, often find themselves either eluded by the erdgeist or on the receiving end of one of their famous charges.


Braelith
Size: 8 to 12 feet tall
Threat: Low to Normal

Braeliths are bipedal ape-like creatures native to the Tobol mountains. Instead of possessing fur as one would expect, they are covered in a layer of feathers. Their heads too are not very much like those of an ape, being instead like that of an owl, complete with beak. Their large reflective eyes allow them to see clearly at night, and are indeed a frightful sight to see should one be alone on the mountains in the already dangerous world of Felarya. One has nothing to fear from them, though, as they tend to ignore human-sized creatures and prefer smaller prey. If cornered, however, they can be quite vicious and can easily lift and throw a full-grown man.

Solitary and nocturnal, it is very rare for one to meet one. It is instead more common for one to hear one of the piercing screeches echo across the mountain range at night. They tend to nest in caves hidden within the Tobol mountains during the day, and go out at night to hunt, typically within the Evernight forest.

Possible flora and fauna.

Brittle vine - a type of ivy that grows in the mountains. They have very thin, shallow roots that grow into cracks in the rocks and on cliffs, and is easily uprooted. Though a hazard to inexperienced climbers that may grab them thinking the long tendrils will provide a handhold, the brittle vine's yellowish leaves can be plucked and mashed up for an edible (if somewhat bland) gruel.

Whittle vine - a cousin to the brittle vine, this ivy is not nearly so benign. The leaves are thick, stiff, and the undersides are full of very small but very nasty thorns. These thorns are slightly poisonous, with a type of numbing venom. Attempting to climb this look-alike will result in shredded fingers and numb hands, hence its name. A nasty hazard to anyone trying to climb up a cliff with this growing on it.

Brevakim - a type of predator that lives in the mountains, resembling a wolf-sized spider with only five legs, arranged around a thick body in a spoke pattern. Each jointed leg is tipped with multiple claws that allow this creature to climb along vertical cliffs with ease, and escaping one in rough terrain would be nearly impossible on foot. However, they are light-wieght, making them easy to throw off and kill. Unfortunately, they also hunt in packs of five to twelve members.

Idripsil - a type of odd bat-bird creature that lives in the mines and caves of the mountains. They look similar to a large bat with short, heavy wings, a thin, long tail, and a beak with small needle-sharp fangs. They have four legs in addition to their wings, and often can bee seen scurrying around in the dark of the mines. They group together, and are dangerous to most animals and people. They will mob anything in their territory, and tear the intruder apart to eat.

One question - there looks to be three sort of separate mountain groups north of Chordoni. Does the Tobol Mountains refer to the whole line going up next to the Elifga Valley?

as far as I know it wraps around the Evernight Forest, there would be two large valleys though.

Yes the Tobol mountains include the whole group of mountains.

Nice work on that descirption ! You phrased it well and the way I thought about it is more or less how you described it here : a small but high range of mountains with a big emphasis on verticality and vertical climbing. And also a part with a serie of small temples carved in the rock and harpies around.
And great job on those fauna and flora ideas too

I seem to be fascinated with potential areas for gorges in Felarya recently. Since there's a lot of vertical cliffs there, it makes for a ripe opportunity for a rather large gorge to be housed somewhere in the vicinity.

okay cool, I could add the temples to the description, do the harpies live in them?

also I added two mythical items

Claret Stones: a Dark Red stone with near black vains in them, its used to control chaotic magic like primordial magic or dimensional magic, alternately they can be used help penetrate magic resistance.

But Xythium is what you used for the gates of Negav, and that's as much as I know, I just figured it had to come from somewhere

And Bael, your right there would be, and are many deep gorges.

Quote :

But Xythium is what you used for the gates of Negav, and that's as much as I know, I just figured it had to come from somewhere

Yes dear god. There's been nothing on it lol. Now I don't have such a problem with Xythium. I don't care if the art of mining it has been lost, at least it's there lol. However if you do that, it's like Castle in the Sky and the "Etherium" that the Laputians only knew how to mine or something. Still. I want to make an entry about a gorge now XD.

On a side note, I wonder if there was some natural Xythium near where Negav is. I saw "was" because it could have all been used up. Conveniently, lol.

asaenvolk wrote:

okay cool, I could add the temples to the description, do the harpies live in them?

Mhh that's an interesting idea but I imagined the temple to be at human scale. Smaler harpies could definitely nest in some of them though.

Karbo wrote:

asaenvolk wrote:

okay cool, I could add the temples to the description, do the harpies live in them?

Mhh that's an interesting idea but I imagined the temple to be at human scale. Smaler harpies could definitely nest in some of them though.

Actually I just a slight boost in creative spark from imagining a Harpy temple. That would be something I'd be very interested in seeing!

Hmm... perhaps the mountain is riddled with underground rivers? They could feed into the Chordoni falls and the Canyon, as well as maybe flow all the way down to the Luminous Hallows.

While I have no doubt about there being underground rivers, but it was already written into the Chordoni falls wiki that their water seems to come from nowhere, supposedly they come from some kind of portal and from there another world.

ok I'm going to use your description if that's ok with you ?
I would also like to add the Braelith, the Brittle vine ,and Whittle vine for now from jasconius and Mr Nobody ^^
So please tell me if you agre with the disclaimer ?

I agree to the disclaimer.

Of course I agree.

alright, well for the vines I change their name and I kinda made the Brittle vine the opposite of what it was supposed to be.. I hope it's ok ^^;
I wanted to provide an hazardous but existing way to climb for foolhardy people.

I agree, and thanks.

Mind if i can add a temple to the mountians?

Temple of war heros
Danger: minimal to low
Inhabitants: 605th combat regiment, ghosts ( in the lower levels)

A temple carved straight out from the mountian rocks in pianstaking detail. The floor of the temple has mysterious Runes craved into it, the walls of the temple are adorned with murals showing of a Great warrior people, and their rise, progress and their Fall, along with murals that shows religious belifes and rights of passage.The celling of the Temple is around 23ft high hinting at the size of those who had inhabited the temple 10 milienia prior. There are statues of great war heros sculpted in photo reailstic detail in nearly every hallway along with statues of Monks and even those who had built the temple.

while the temple has been direalict for nearly 10,000 years its beutifuly carved statues and monuments have remain untouched by the passage of time. until recently when elements of the 605th combat regiment discovered and then estabished residence inside the temple have now made the temple into a outpost for the Tobol mountains region. Though upon exploration into the lower levels have reviled a monsulium of some of the warriors show in the Murals. Though shortly after that Reports of supernatural activity has risen dramticly.
( this is all i got for now, )

Idea for a temple, not sure what inhabitants, if any, it should have or what danger level it should be, so I'm open to suggestions:


The Temple of Q'Tada'x'silath
Danger: Low
Inhabitants: None

This ancient temple is located on the southernmost edge of the Tobol mountains, on one of the sheer cliffs overlooking the Evernight forest. One can readily recognize that they have found this temple by the fact that its entranceway resembles an abyssal tonorion's head so perfectly that one would swear that it must have been cut off from one that had been petrified. Like the rest of the temple within, it has faired quite well against the onset of time and the elements. Once inside, one finds an amazing "wealth" in statuary, with numerous carved tonorions of various sizes that seem to crawl along the walls of the temple as if they were alive, and above which carvings of these beasts cover the ceiling. It is statues and carvings like these that have earned the temple its secondary name "The Temple of the Tonorion". All of these stonework's pale, however, when compared to the greatest statue of all that sits in the far back of the temple. Resting above an altar said to have been used in bloody sacrifice in ages past lies the so-named "Head of the Queen", a statue carved in obsidian and set with flawless emerald eyes; it is said to be in a perfect likeness to Q'Tada'x'silath, the queen of the tonorions.

Despite this apparent wealth, the statue has not been robbed. Those who attempt to are said to be made sacrifices of the queen and are never seen again.

Why someone would worship tonorions, especially their queen, is unknown. Perhaps the builders of the temple sought to gain their protection by worshipping their likeness, or viewed them as gods. The little that is known of them comes from their runes and writings, somewhat akin to hieroglyphics, that cover the pillars and sections of walls within the temple. Though they have yet to be translated, it is believed that they hold a wealth of information about themselves and Felarya, as well as a secret or two about the tonorions themselves.

Looks fun, gonna throw a little tiny something in...

Sorrow's Peak

A nickname for the summit of Mount .... derived from a tragic legend of Déméchrelle's life that had somehow spread to many parts of the world. The legend claims that the sounds of sobbing occasionally heard by travelers near these mountains are actually that of Déméchrelle from many years ago, as a significant event replays itself again and again. According to the legend, it is also the location of a legendary artifact called the Sword of Knowledge that was crafted with a small piece of Philosopher's Stone in the hilt.

(WIP... still)

Going to contribute a few things then .o.

Latruffle

A small, light-brown fungus that grows on the most humid areas of the mountains, but specially those closer to the Evernight Forest. Specially sought after for it's addictive taste, reminiscent of chocolate.

Zopheta

3-feet tall creatures similar to jerboa, but completely hairless and with tapir-like prehensile trunks. Zophetas are timid scavengers that avoid conflict as much as possible, but they pack a nasty surprise for would-be predators. If cornered or otherwise threatened, a Zopheta will spray their attackers with a pitch-black gunk generated within their trunks that smells unbearably nauseating and persists for days or even weeks. As a result of this many of the mountain inhabitants give them a wide berth, and their numbers remain large throughout the years.

They absolutely love mushrooms, specially latruffles, and females are rarely seen without a youngling nestled within their pouch

oh I rather like the Latruffle!