Stormlands
The Stormlands lie to the far southwest of Dain. They technically constitute one continent, but describing the Stormlands as such is terribly misleading. Great perpetual storms dominate this land, making the ground inhospitable. Above the dark gray of the clouds, life thrives however. Thousands of flittering, skittering birds fly in great swarms between layers of cloud, creating a meteorological ecosystem in endless change. Alongside these small scavengers fly great raptors, titanic flying monstrosities with wingspans the size of horses.
But the swirling airscape is not only populated by these beasts of the air, but also by grand civilizations. The heaven-fortresses of the cloud giants sit atop great mountains of wind and snow and the skycities of the sky elves move ceremonially through the clouds, trading with one another and outside civilizations.
But the swirling airscape is not only populated by these beasts of the air, but also by grand civilizations. The heaven-fortresses of the cloud giants sit atop great mountains of wind and snow and the skycities of the sky elves move ceremonially through the clouds, trading with one another and outside civilizations.
Geography
Underneath the impenetrable layer of clouds, the Stormlands are a wind-swept wasteland. Great plains of rock have eroded to nothing, with only the very hardiest of rock remaining. These plains resemble rolling hills of marble or granite, and nothing now lives there. Other places have been stuck in millenia-old lightningstorms, creating blastedand ruined wasteland where the smell of ozone pervades everything. The few remaining seas and rivers are the origins for perpetual skypumps, the water being locked in a perpetual struggle with gravity. These places resemble storms of water, where the forces of water moving at high speed and perpetual winds create drills that dig underground. In some parts of the stormlands, the rain moves so fast that the raindrops move nearly vertically, with speed so fast that they can instantly shoot through anyone moving on the ground.
The actual lands of the Stormlands are so inhospitable that nothing lives there.
The skies above the Stormlands are a very different matter however, they are as populated as any forrest of Sceya. The different layers of cloud create domains within the Stormlands, with the different domains serving different purposes in a grand ecosystem. Trying to organize all the wonderful phenomena of the Stormlands for an outsider would be impossible, so instead I will only try to describe a few of the more common ones as described to me by sky elf diplomats:
Warmwind canals
Warmwind canals are great openings through several layers of cloud where warm water streams upwards through the cold clouds. It is an easy mode of transportation for birds and skyships alike wishing to gain altitude, and so warmwind canals are some of the most ecologically diverse areas of the Stormlands. Strange, algae-like lifeforms grown along the edges of the warmwind canals, giving the clouds in the immediate area a green tint. These are in turn eaten by hundreds of species of smalle birds, which in turn are preyed upon by larger raptors. The warmwind canals move laterally between the layers and not all of them go all the way to the top. The biggest ones can last for centuries at a time without moving too much, and different skycities will often fight for them in contests of skill and bravery.
Cirrus caves
The very uppermost of the cloud are the most static, where the clouds have almost completely stopped moving to create caves of ice and steam. Most of the birds of the Stormlands nest in the Cirrus caves, with the smallest ones living in the cracks between the clouds and the greatest claiming entire caverns for themselves. The most insidious of predators hunt through the cirrus caves, hoping to kill the young ones of other birds.
Coldwind depths
The polar opposite of warmwind canals, coldwind depths move downwards. They are whirlwinds of incredible force, drawing in many most creatures with strong enough force to break bones and crush craniums. To those who know how to use them however, they represent a potent shortcut. Many of the most advanced skyships move along coldwind depths, using their force to slingshot between several points and gain incredible speed. Some potent hunters, such as coldhawks, also use the coldwind depths in a similar manner. These use the force of the winds to gain great speed, before slamming into their poor prey.
The Stormwall
The Stormwall marks the edges of the stormlands, and consist of hundreds of great pylons. They are describes to me as colossal constructions of iron, stone and strange black crystal that throb with power. They create a colossal magical wall that holds the storms of the Stormlands in place. The wall is under normal conditions invisible and allow creatures and ships to travel through, but as the pressure mounts from storms on the other side, two pylons absorb their elemental energy. This creates a barrier of actinic blue and white, like lightning held in stasis. Touching these activated walls is a bad idea, and many foolish young sky elf nobles have been lost to stupid attempts at just this. As the pressure mounts even more, the wall will break temporarily and allow a storm to pass through. These storms give rise to monsoons and hurricane sin other parts of the world, and allow the Stormwall to maintain an equilibrium between the Stormlands and the rest of the world.
This system of automated activation and inactivation shows a very advanced understanding of arcane matters and must have required colossal and exceedingly accurate mathematical equations. Sky elf diplomats claim that they were built by none other than the god of the fire giants, Surtr, but this seems exceedingly unlikely. Perhaps they were made as an experiment by the early predecessors of the high elven magelords?
The Everstorm
At the heart of the Stormlands lies the Everstorm. The Everstorm is the engine that drives the Stormlands around, and most cloud and storms within the Stormlands have their origin in it. Nothing lives within the Everstorm, and nothing can penetrate its wall. The winds are so fast that the lungs of any creature that gets even close to it instantly collapse withing their chest, while their bones break from the force, their eyes pop out and their inner organs are thrown out as the winds rip them apart body, mind and soul.
But the Everstorm does have one very useful feature, as it is the biggest portal to the Elemental Plane of Air on the Material Plane. Skyships capable of withstanding the Everstorm's outer winds can ride it upwards into the Elemental Plane of Air, and the other way around, as the Everstorm rages through the Elemental Plane of Air as well and seems to be a parallel point between the two planes.
The Eye of the Storm
The Eye is a mythological place said to be at the heart of the Everstorm. Depending on who tells the tale the Eye is either the one place of perfect serenity within the Stormlands, or it is the origin of all the world's storms. Some claim that an ancient and powerful relic from before the First War hidden within the eye, while others say that part of an ancient elemental is bound within the eye. If this last groups is to be believed, the Stormwall was created to hold this relic or entity trapped.
The actual lands of the Stormlands are so inhospitable that nothing lives there.
The skies above the Stormlands are a very different matter however, they are as populated as any forrest of Sceya. The different layers of cloud create domains within the Stormlands, with the different domains serving different purposes in a grand ecosystem. Trying to organize all the wonderful phenomena of the Stormlands for an outsider would be impossible, so instead I will only try to describe a few of the more common ones as described to me by sky elf diplomats:
Warmwind canals
Warmwind canals are great openings through several layers of cloud where warm water streams upwards through the cold clouds. It is an easy mode of transportation for birds and skyships alike wishing to gain altitude, and so warmwind canals are some of the most ecologically diverse areas of the Stormlands. Strange, algae-like lifeforms grown along the edges of the warmwind canals, giving the clouds in the immediate area a green tint. These are in turn eaten by hundreds of species of smalle birds, which in turn are preyed upon by larger raptors. The warmwind canals move laterally between the layers and not all of them go all the way to the top. The biggest ones can last for centuries at a time without moving too much, and different skycities will often fight for them in contests of skill and bravery.
Cirrus caves
The very uppermost of the cloud are the most static, where the clouds have almost completely stopped moving to create caves of ice and steam. Most of the birds of the Stormlands nest in the Cirrus caves, with the smallest ones living in the cracks between the clouds and the greatest claiming entire caverns for themselves. The most insidious of predators hunt through the cirrus caves, hoping to kill the young ones of other birds.
Coldwind depths
The polar opposite of warmwind canals, coldwind depths move downwards. They are whirlwinds of incredible force, drawing in many most creatures with strong enough force to break bones and crush craniums. To those who know how to use them however, they represent a potent shortcut. Many of the most advanced skyships move along coldwind depths, using their force to slingshot between several points and gain incredible speed. Some potent hunters, such as coldhawks, also use the coldwind depths in a similar manner. These use the force of the winds to gain great speed, before slamming into their poor prey.
The Stormwall
The Stormwall marks the edges of the stormlands, and consist of hundreds of great pylons. They are describes to me as colossal constructions of iron, stone and strange black crystal that throb with power. They create a colossal magical wall that holds the storms of the Stormlands in place. The wall is under normal conditions invisible and allow creatures and ships to travel through, but as the pressure mounts from storms on the other side, two pylons absorb their elemental energy. This creates a barrier of actinic blue and white, like lightning held in stasis. Touching these activated walls is a bad idea, and many foolish young sky elf nobles have been lost to stupid attempts at just this. As the pressure mounts even more, the wall will break temporarily and allow a storm to pass through. These storms give rise to monsoons and hurricane sin other parts of the world, and allow the Stormwall to maintain an equilibrium between the Stormlands and the rest of the world.
This system of automated activation and inactivation shows a very advanced understanding of arcane matters and must have required colossal and exceedingly accurate mathematical equations. Sky elf diplomats claim that they were built by none other than the god of the fire giants, Surtr, but this seems exceedingly unlikely. Perhaps they were made as an experiment by the early predecessors of the high elven magelords?
The Everstorm
At the heart of the Stormlands lies the Everstorm. The Everstorm is the engine that drives the Stormlands around, and most cloud and storms within the Stormlands have their origin in it. Nothing lives within the Everstorm, and nothing can penetrate its wall. The winds are so fast that the lungs of any creature that gets even close to it instantly collapse withing their chest, while their bones break from the force, their eyes pop out and their inner organs are thrown out as the winds rip them apart body, mind and soul.
But the Everstorm does have one very useful feature, as it is the biggest portal to the Elemental Plane of Air on the Material Plane. Skyships capable of withstanding the Everstorm's outer winds can ride it upwards into the Elemental Plane of Air, and the other way around, as the Everstorm rages through the Elemental Plane of Air as well and seems to be a parallel point between the two planes.
The Eye of the Storm
The Eye is a mythological place said to be at the heart of the Everstorm. Depending on who tells the tale the Eye is either the one place of perfect serenity within the Stormlands, or it is the origin of all the world's storms. Some claim that an ancient and powerful relic from before the First War hidden within the eye, while others say that part of an ancient elemental is bound within the eye. If this last groups is to be believed, the Stormwall was created to hold this relic or entity trapped.
Type
Continent
Inhabiting Species
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