Blackstone Mountainrange

The Blackstone Mountainrange

The Blackstone Mountainrange lies to the west of arkion and creates a natural barrier between the Dutchy de Venture and The Baharuth Empire. The mountainrange got its name mainly because of the dark teint of the rocks, this strange color stems from the huge amount of Black Iron contained in the mountains.

Settlements

In contrast to the Wyvern Mountainrange there are lots of settlements throughout the mountains, in the valleys and even at heights up to about 1500 meters above sea level. These settlements all answer to the Dutchy de Venture even the ones situated in the eastern part of the mountains. Most of these settlements are of course near mines and surface the riches of the mountains, most of them mine for Black Iron but a fair amount also procure gold and jewels, the people living in these villages are mostly miners and craftsmen, through a lot of effort House Venture managed to establish a network of mountain passes, bridges and roads making the mountains accessible to the west, this network however does not extend all the way to the east so as not to allow save passage through the whole mountain range and thus make it impossible for invaders to cross.

History

During the times of The Final Empire the land to the west where the Dutchy de Venture lies today, was still under the control of the elves and it was not used for agriculture like today, the black iron also did not hold much significance back then, only after the fall of the empire did the lords, still mostly elves, start to cultivate the fertile lands for agricultural purposes. With the rise of House Venture the value of the local source of iron was also recognized and the population and expansion into the mountains began.

"The darkness of the rocks is truly remarkable, very deserving of the name the stark contrast to the wyvern mountain range in the proximity of a few kilometers is truly remarkable, an what a sight it is."
~ geologist of the society of sensation

~ Blackstone gentian

"And despite the dark look, the land in the valleys is still so rich in nutrients and fertile, the green patches give it a look full of vitality."
~ botanist of the society of sensation

Gleamshroom by Midjourney