Central Uplands
Geography
The Central Uplands is an expansive valley formed by the Dragon Spine mountains to the east and the Blue Spire mountains to the west. The Valley runs north/south and has a definite slope east to west. The boundaries are of course the mountains to the east and west. The north and south boundaries are defined by the ends of the Blue Spire mountain range. The Uplands connect to the Old Empire to the north and the Southern Marches to the south.
Landforms
"The Slot" is a gap in the Dragon Spines that is straight, steep sided and regular. The bottom of the passage has been paved by the numerous Dwarf clans inhabiting it. From the Uplands end of "The Slot" to the top of the paved portion the road rises almost 8000 feet. "The Slot" continues to rise several hundred feet before breaking into a draw on the east side of the Dragon Spine peaks. The dwarven crafted road in the lower part of "The Slot", is built over a river fed by countless tributaries exposed by whatever forces created the gash in the massive range. Those tributaries cascade out of the cleft in the mountain and plunge down to become the headwaters of the Ophion River.
The northern Uplands has scattered mountains and plateaus. In contrast the southern Uplands boast two distinct minor mountain ranges, the Copper Range and the Broke Leg Range.
The Shipstone Prominence is a large off shoot of the Dragon Spines. It's characterized by an abnormally dark stone making up the majority of it's bulk as well as the incredibly steep pitches of the upper slopes. What really makes the Prominence unique is that it's part of, but separate from, the Dragon Spines. It's possible to circumnavigate the Shipstone Prominence without any serious climbing. Waterways
The main waterway in the Uplands is the Ophion River, flowing from the Dragon Spine to the Blue Spires. The Ophion flows into the Corfu Lake before continuing under the Blue Spires.
The Dassant flows out of the Dragon Spines and joins the Ophion about 20 miles east of Corfu Lake.
The Hobthorn River flows down from the Dragon Spines, crosses the Uplands just north of the Shipstone Prominence and drains into Hob Lake at the foot of the Blue Spines.
The Red Snake River flows out of the Dragon Spines through Mouse Lake and disappears under the Blue Spines.
Roads
Roads in the Uplands are not as expansive or well maintained as in the Midlands. Each City State maintains its own network of roads connecting the settlements surrounding it. The exception to this being the trade road which follows the Ophion from the Blue Spires to the base of Ophion Falls. The trade road is used for tow animals bringing merchant barges up river as well as foot traffic. It's maintained by the merchant guilds operating on the Ophion.
The other roads available in the Uplands are the Waystone Pathways. Much like in the Old Empire, whoever laid out the Pathways did so before the current civilization arose. While the Pathways are easy to travel on they are often more than a full days travel from population centers.
Civilization
There are two predominant races in the Uplands, humans and dwarves. Humans populate the various cities and towns in the Uplands. Dwarves tend to live in their Clan Holds in the Spine Backs and to a lesser extent the Blue Spires. The greatest concentration of Dwarven Boroughs is in "The Slot". Cities
Among the human inhabitants in the Uplands, City States are the most common form of organization. Different City States have different forms of governance.
Ptarmigan appears to be an Isolationist Oligarchy which is odd given its location along a major trading route Commerce.
Gerrund and Heffen are Hereditary Monarchies.
Gerrund sits on a promontory above the joining of the Ophion and Dassant rivers. There are bridges over both rivers up stream from the city.
Heffen sits on the south bank of the Dassant River. Being the last large city before the wild lands of the southern Uplands it's a hub for trappers, explorers and adventurers.
The Dwarves in "The Slot" are ruled by clan elders in each of their respective boroughs. Each borough or Clan Hold can be thought of as a city comprised of a number of interrelated extended families.
Towns
While there are several small villages and towns surrounding the large City States the two that stand out most are Ger's Landing and Stoltzen. These two towns are large enough to be considered cities on their own but have sworn to the Gerrund monarchy and are now ruled by members of that house.
Ptarmigan is the one City State that has no satellite towns or villages, its entire population living inside the fortifications.
The Central Uplands is an expansive valley formed by the Dragon Spine mountains to the east and the Blue Spire mountains to the west. The Valley runs north/south and has a definite slope east to west. The boundaries are of course the mountains to the east and west. The north and south boundaries are defined by the ends of the Blue Spire mountain range. The Uplands connect to the Old Empire to the north and the Southern Marches to the south.
Landforms
"The Slot" is a gap in the Dragon Spines that is straight, steep sided and regular. The bottom of the passage has been paved by the numerous Dwarf clans inhabiting it. From the Uplands end of "The Slot" to the top of the paved portion the road rises almost 8000 feet. "The Slot" continues to rise several hundred feet before breaking into a draw on the east side of the Dragon Spine peaks. The dwarven crafted road in the lower part of "The Slot", is built over a river fed by countless tributaries exposed by whatever forces created the gash in the massive range. Those tributaries cascade out of the cleft in the mountain and plunge down to become the headwaters of the Ophion River.
The northern Uplands has scattered mountains and plateaus. In contrast the southern Uplands boast two distinct minor mountain ranges, the Copper Range and the Broke Leg Range.
The Shipstone Prominence is a large off shoot of the Dragon Spines. It's characterized by an abnormally dark stone making up the majority of it's bulk as well as the incredibly steep pitches of the upper slopes. What really makes the Prominence unique is that it's part of, but separate from, the Dragon Spines. It's possible to circumnavigate the Shipstone Prominence without any serious climbing. Waterways
The main waterway in the Uplands is the Ophion River, flowing from the Dragon Spine to the Blue Spires. The Ophion flows into the Corfu Lake before continuing under the Blue Spires.
The Dassant flows out of the Dragon Spines and joins the Ophion about 20 miles east of Corfu Lake.
The Hobthorn River flows down from the Dragon Spines, crosses the Uplands just north of the Shipstone Prominence and drains into Hob Lake at the foot of the Blue Spines.
The Red Snake River flows out of the Dragon Spines through Mouse Lake and disappears under the Blue Spines.
Roads
Roads in the Uplands are not as expansive or well maintained as in the Midlands. Each City State maintains its own network of roads connecting the settlements surrounding it. The exception to this being the trade road which follows the Ophion from the Blue Spires to the base of Ophion Falls. The trade road is used for tow animals bringing merchant barges up river as well as foot traffic. It's maintained by the merchant guilds operating on the Ophion.
The other roads available in the Uplands are the Waystone Pathways. Much like in the Old Empire, whoever laid out the Pathways did so before the current civilization arose. While the Pathways are easy to travel on they are often more than a full days travel from population centers.
Civilization
There are two predominant races in the Uplands, humans and dwarves. Humans populate the various cities and towns in the Uplands. Dwarves tend to live in their Clan Holds in the Spine Backs and to a lesser extent the Blue Spires. The greatest concentration of Dwarven Boroughs is in "The Slot". Cities
Among the human inhabitants in the Uplands, City States are the most common form of organization. Different City States have different forms of governance.
Ptarmigan appears to be an Isolationist Oligarchy which is odd given its location along a major trading route Commerce.
Gerrund and Heffen are Hereditary Monarchies.
Gerrund sits on a promontory above the joining of the Ophion and Dassant rivers. There are bridges over both rivers up stream from the city.
Heffen sits on the south bank of the Dassant River. Being the last large city before the wild lands of the southern Uplands it's a hub for trappers, explorers and adventurers.
The Dwarves in "The Slot" are ruled by clan elders in each of their respective boroughs. Each borough or Clan Hold can be thought of as a city comprised of a number of interrelated extended families.
Towns
While there are several small villages and towns surrounding the large City States the two that stand out most are Ger's Landing and Stoltzen. These two towns are large enough to be considered cities on their own but have sworn to the Gerrund monarchy and are now ruled by members of that house.
Ptarmigan is the one City State that has no satellite towns or villages, its entire population living inside the fortifications.
The central Uplands, home to humans, dwarves and others offer opportunities for trade, travel and adventure.
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