Odric Mountains
Situated at the northern edge of Southwest Galisea, the Odric Range, is a series of extraordinarily tall mountains, seperated into tree distinct portions by two mountain valleys. The sheltering nature of the mountains, and the two large Vales in their midst gave rise to at least two historically noteworthy civilizations. Its position also marks the bounds of the Aeillan Civilizations traditional cultural and geographic borders.
In spite of the relatively mountainous terrain, the Odric Mountains are fairly densely populated with a combined population of around six million. This population is highly ethnically diverse with Cyrenic dwarves, Grecci gnomes, Nimearans human and halfling alike being the largest ethnic groups in the region.
The Nimearan and Cyrenic civilizations have long held the positions of most powerful settled states in the region, though both have gone into decline over the past millenium. More recently, the Aeillans had established a series of forts in the southern spur of the mountains, which has since become a small independent state in its own right.
Geography
The Odric Mountains consist of a mountain range, and two major valleys. On its northern borders lies the Nabari Plateau, to its East the Steppes of Terruk-Mal. Its southern border is demarcated by the densely settled Aeillan Region. To the west lies Gallaca and Merida, which are also civilized regions, though not the same extent as Aeilla.
The Northern Odric Mountains are divded by the northern River Sparthari (the Ran Sparatus in the native tongue), and the Cyrenean Valley. The Cyrenean Valley is relatively fertile if somewhat rocky, and with some intensive reshaping of the lands has become one of the two breadbaskets of the region. To its north and south are the main spurs of the mountain range, which are home to some of the tallest mountains in southern Galisea. The division between the axial orientation of the mountains is Nimaera, which is the most fertile part of the Odric Mountains, and its other breadbasket region. The Southern Odric Mountains are lower than their northern counterparts, but are nonetheless difficult to transit, particularly in the more northerly sections of the mountains, which have Yerkvoryak Mayrer Pass as the sole passage that is navigable year round.
Most of the Odric Mountains are poorly suited to farming, possessing extremely rocky soil. However, rocky compounds available in the mountains tend to be quite rich when broken into tillable soil, particularly in the Nimearan and Cyrenean Valleys, and when exploited by advanced rock breaking technologies utilized by the Cyrenic peoples. The advancement of agricultural technologies and the two valleys have enabled the Odric Mountains to be more thoroughly settled than is the norm for the mountainous places of Getninia.
Ecosystem
The Odric Mountains possess a unique ecosystem thanks in large part to its wide geographic spread, and comparatively diverse set of unique biomes. The lowlands are reasonably lush thanks to the bodies of freshwater that crisscross the region. Aside from plantlife are hardy ruminant creatures, and a great diversity of winged beasts.
The Odric Mountains are of course dominated by the odricine biome, with a many tiered ecosystem structure with a warm temperate forested land or warm temperate grassland in the lower regions, moving up to boreal forest, cold scrubland, and eventually icy peaks.
The Odric Mountains for much of their history were not particularly densely settled, and the lands were largely unspoiled, with only relatively small agricultural communities that mostly isolated themselves in the mountain valleys. In Cyrenica especially this trend has steadily reversed, and now though the Odric Mountains are fairly sparsely settled by the standards of some other civilizations, they are one of the mostly densely settled mountainous regions in Getninia.
Ecosystem Cycles
The Odric Mountains possess a four season ecosystem cycle. At lower altitudes this takes the form of a wet, mild, spring; a hot, dry summer; a cool wet autumn; and lastly a cold wet winter. At higher altitutdes the relative length of the winter extends, though as a rule higher elevations see relatively less precipitation than the lower elevations.
Fauna & Flora
The Odric Mountains are remarkable diverse in flora and fauna thanks in large part to the unique odricine biome that dominates the region. Living trees, known as Treants are not native to the Odric Mountains, but can be found shepherding the forested lands of the region, keeping alive several unique species of oak and maple trees, as well as cleansing the forest of deadly and toxic plants and fungi.
The Odric Mountains are home to several species of goat, including their larger and more powerful bretheren, the Giant Goats, which are often used war mounts by the Cyrenic Dwarves. Goats and Giant Goats are the most heavily husbanded animals by Cyrenicans, and are among the most husbanded animals for the Nimearans. Giant Eagles, and smaller birds alike from Aeilla, the Nabari Plateau, and other places further afield do make homes in the mountains.
Dire Wolves, though considered a dangerous pest, do still inhabit the less inhabited reaches of the mountains. Dire Bears used to be prevalent to the Odric Mountains, but have been nearly exterminated to the point where sightings of Dire Bears is extraordinarily rare. Small numbers of white dragons call the mountains home and represent the apex predators of the air where they do set up their lairs. Truly monstrous creatures, aside from those that can fly, such as Wyverns have largely been exterminated in the Odric Mountains, save some undead creatures and oozes lurking in long forgotten tombs.
Natural Resources
Though difficult to access, the Odric Mountains are some of the richest lands in Galisea. Organically, the region long suffered a lack of good soil thanks to the rockiness of the terrain, modern Dwarven technology, developed over the past four centuries has dramatically improved farming conditions in the land however, as the rocks have been broken spilling rich nutrients into more tillable soil. With ample supplies of groundwater, the territories of the Odric Mountains are sufficiently fertile to support most of the population of the region.
It is mineral wealth however where the Odric Mountains find their true bounty. The northern spur in particular is rich in iron, copper, tin, gold, silver, precious gemstones. Marble, granite, and coal can also be found in significant quantities. Most important and rarest of all are the Mithral deposits, the largest in the known world, that have provided a backbone for high end Cyrenic industries, and one of its most valuable mineral exports. the southern spur, and Nimeara, while not quite as bountiful in mineral resources, can still certainly be said to be richly endowed.
History
The Odric Mountains have long been home to civilization, with those would would become Nimearans settling the area at least three thousand years ago, mostly in small agricultural communities, though eventually unifying under the first Nimearan Kingdom for several centuries until being annexed by the Yulan-Tai. Dwarven settlers would be later settlers to the region, with the first fleeing the expansion of the Yulan-Tai afterward, and establishing themselves in the hills and valleys around the Ran Sparatus around two thousand years ago.
With the fall of the Yulan-Tai culture 1,500 years ago, the Cyrenicans of the mountains unified with their kin closer to the coast, and Nimeara, though fractured would restore its independence. The expansion of the Ilosi Republic in the later Forging Era pushed the Cyrenic peoples almost entirely into the Odric Mountains, and its successor the Aeillan Empire would seize significant amounts of territory from the Nimearan lords, establishing a series of forts on the eastern slopes of the southern spur and seizing control of most of the pass of Yerkvoryak Mayrer.
The Feloran Invasions would bring another upset to this dynamic, as the Nabari Aarakocra, and their Kenku servents, fleeing from the Feloran Invasion would fly to the mountaintops of the northern Odric Mountains. Conflict arose between the Aarakocra and the Dwarves, though it was resolved fairly quickly when the Cyrenic peoples settled the Aarakocra in their northern provinces on what would become the Nabari Plateau. The Feloran Invasions would continue into Aeilla, and the Odric Mountains would again throng with refugees, and with military production as the Cyrenicans assisted the Aeillans in wearing down, and eventually driving out the Felorans. Things would then become quiet, at least until the expansion of the Terruk-Mal would push the Aarumites into the Nabari Plateau, this resettlement dramatically weakened to Cyrenic state, and would expose the Nimearans, for the first time in centuries to the real threat of war. Eventually however, the Aarumite migrations came to an end a new, if somewhat more violent, status quo was established.
Alternative Name(s)
Nimaeran Mountains, Mountains of Cyrene
Type
Mountain Range
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