The Obsidian Gardens

Where beasts of fire and rock are born

"The Gardens. How do you know about that?" "Your majesty, i was trained there. With molten rock poured through my heart, i honed my skills for the greater good of the Imperium" "Seems like Shahrokh let his secrets out at last" "His highness only lets it out to a few people. I was privileged to be amongst them. Dasatirians keep few secrets but when it comes to the safety of humanity, no one should know about the gardens unless they ought to" A conversation between Imperial Army Commander Shahpour Zahedan and emperor Hans

Dasatir is a land of many climes, from boiling hot salt deserts to cold, windswept tundras and alpine glaciers. The people here are hardy, strong and most of all, open to everything. They keep few secrets, as no knowledge is forbidden in their culture. As with all things however, there must be exceptions. Such is the case of the Obsidian gardens. A massive, labyrinthine complex located in a volcanically active part of the Damavand Massif, the obsidian gardens are home to perhaps the deadliest beast of war that man has harnessed. Though it only holds one, a manticore can not only stand its own ground against Argonite dragons but can even kill them if both rider and mount are sufficiently trained. The complex serves a wide range of purposes. Asides from being the residence and training grounds of the great manticore Arvand, the facility serves as a breeding ground for magma based creatures such as magma hounds, golems, constructs etc. It is also a research facility where the beasts of war are tuned to be ever efficient at their work. It is also a training facility for the Dasatirian military's elite regiments, including the famed Dahakan Immortals The complex has been rebuilt many a times over its existence. With each rebuilding, a special monument was left at a site to mark that the complex had arose out of destruction, symbolizing its immortality. Yet, with Damavand growing more and more unstable and strange phenomena happening, it is only a matter of time before the very lands underneath the gardens turn against its inhabitants

Purpose / Function

"It was and still is His Lordship's home. It may have become a place for many other purposes but the fact is that it is still a home for him" Zahedan, referring to the home of the great Imperial manticore Arzhang

Where beasts are born by rich35211

The gardens were built to serve as a home and training ground for Arzhang, a manticore that was tamed by the Dasatirian king millenia ago. Whilst he lived in the caves for the most part, he would often come out in the wide open spaces of the complex and train there, or just spend his time in lousing apart. Over the years, as the complex expanded and took on a wide range of other uses, the original purpose has not only been retained but has been improved, much to Arzhangs chagrin who considers it a waste of resources

Alterations

The magma vaults

The Magma Vaults by Jess Madhouse

One of the first and most significant alterations to the gardens were the inclusion of a chamber intended for creating creatures born of molten rock, such as magma hounds and golems. These would serve various purposes, such as cavalry, artillery, shock troops etc. Inside the chamber, breeders and beastmasters toil constantly to breed these beasts. The vaults have to be carefully maintained by its workers, as there is the constant risk of magma leaking or other harzardous occurences. The chamber consists of several vats, used for mixing the raw ingredients for making the magma constructs. Carefully monitored by the workers, the ingredients are then poured into the lava pools, where they mix in and coalesce together before forming the required entity. The entities are then lead through tunnels to other places where they are 'refined' or inducted for their combat service

The smithy

"Not just Men. Our beasts too get their weapons from there" "Sounds like your blacksmiths have some fine skills." "That is rather not true. Sometimes, the beasts make their own weapons A conversation between an Arvallian man and a Dasatirian

The obsidian forge by Izzual

The smithy is the place where the equipment of the Gardens inhabitants, be they human or beast, are forged. It is a cavernous room, decorated with baroque statues that invoke the sense of titanic demons standing guard. The Gardens are manned by over ten thousand people, and arming them with weapons is the duty of the smiths here. It is rather unique however, in that the blacksmiths consist not only of humans but also of sapient magma constructs, who have a natural advantage over their fleshed counterparts in shaping metal.

The Caves

"Your Majesty, did i ever tell you something?" "You've told me a lot of things. Not sure which one you will talk about now" "I wanted to say that... the caves Arzhang lives in? Never go there even by mistake. Unless you have a wish to be consumed by the foulest of things." Zahedan, talking to Hans Alexander Christiansen