Deepburrow

Located along the western frontier of Undermountain, this rock gnome town is not a true Undermountain community. Most of Deepburrow lies on the surface, but a deep ravine running through the center of town provides access to extensive caverns some 500 feet below. These natural caverns link to the Undermountain and provide the rock gnomes of Deepburrow with easy access to deep mines and subterranean trade goods.
Few rock gnomes have any great love of the lightless depths. In fact, Deepburrow exists only because its mines are among the finest in Doregul. The caverns for miles around it are rich in gemstones, gold, and copper. The industrious town inhabitants work these mines from dawn to dusk, but most return to surface homes at the end of the day, climbing back up the hundreds of wooden stairs that scale the side of the gorge in the middle of town. A few hundred of the town’s hardier souls (mostly dwarves and dragonborn) have made homes out of dry, secure caverns at the bottom of the gorge.
The caves below Deepburrow were originally carved by the cold, swift stream that runs through the gorge. The gnomes have excavated extensively beyond the start that nature gave them, linking Deepburrow with ever-deeper cave systems. Unlike the yawning caverns and meticulously worked architecture of other Undermountain communities, the gnomes prefer to create small, rounded rooms in rapid succession. Most of the walls in such excavations are covered with wood paneling or plaster. Wide, engine driven lifts ferry people and cargo to the surface, and a rail system runs on each level of the cave system to transport heavy loads.
While the caverns nearest to the gorge are relatively safe, Deepburrow’s subterranean neighborhoods are not free of danger. Giant spiders and deadly fungi are common problems below the city, and at least two ropers are known to exist within an hour’s walk from the bottom level.

Type

Large town

Location under

Undermountain