Location: Mount Roraima

I decided to do another location today from the "23 Unbelievable Places" set. I'll work through the whole thing...eventually. It's taking me a long time to go through all of those character images, and I've come up with stuff that I at least consider interesting! More of that to come.


Description: The mountaintop lies before you, rising above the clouds. It extends as far back as you can see, never dipping below the boundaries of the sky. The wind howls and blows all around you, and the landscape is barren of any shelter. The clouds stretch infinitely around you, well beneath the top of the mountain. The air here is surprisingly breathable despite being so high up, and the temperature fluctuates greatly during both day and night. You think you can make out some slight hints of civilization deeper into the center of the mountain, but it's difficult to tell from so far away.

Associated Knowledges:
Geography:

• This mountain range spans several hundred miles.
• The mountains are in a central area, and span many different climates.
• The weather at these altitudes is highly erratic.

History:

• The mountains have long been rich in mineral wealth.
• Expeditions into the mountain have mostly been into the depths, not up towards the surface.
• There have been vague references to powerful beings on the top of the mountains, but they are mostly considered the stuff of myth.

Nature:

• The mountaintops appear natural.
• You can see clear signs of life, though it is difficult to tell what.
• You can tell that things live not only on the mountaintop, but also underneath the crust, and possibly in nests along the sides of the mountain.

DM Info:
  Mount Roraima is actually a very long mountain range that emulates a sort of "overworld" above the clouds. This in particular is all so far up that there is no interaction between the surface world and the overworld. Weather at such a high altitude can be erratic, so feel free to go nuts with that. I can see a lot of potential for encounters involving just trying not to fall off the mountain being of particular interest, but that can wait until later. The mountain itself is not magical or attuned to any plane. It is a mountain like any other, but is obscenely tall and spans a very large area. Towards the base of the mountain, many different factions fight over the abundant mineral wealth inside the mountain range, but none of them have ever had too much interest in scaling it to the top. 
  On the top of the mountain, many creatures and factions have formed. The biggest potential I see with this would be entire nations of giants or Titans. These different groups fight each other just like anywhere else on the planet, warring over their own territory. An interesting twist I am leaning towards would be for the overworlders to actually fear what they consider the "underworld" below their home. The PCs would be seen as the harbingers of great doom, and may be targeted by everyone atop the great mountain. I imagine the faction breakdown being something similar to this:

• A group that resembles the Barbarians from the Diablo universe. The mountain range itself is holy, positioned so far above the clouds, and they will die to protect it. These would naturally be the primary antagonists to the PCs, who may be seen as trying to desecrate this place.
• A large group of factions that are all under different Giant jarls or Titans. They may be collectivized or resemble some sort of warlord political system, where they all fight each other but are otherwise similar. These groups would dominate most of the territory.
• A group of beings from below the mountain who scaled it just to see what was there. Some sort of Explorer's Guild, perhaps?

     Most of the points of conflict are going to be with the disconnect between the PCs and the denizens of the overworld. Either cultural misunderstandings, language barrier, or the belief that the PCs are there to destroy their way of life. Whether or not the PCs actually are there to destroy their way of life is, of course, going to be up to you. Creatures live both on the mountaintop, and in the crust beneath. It's far enough up that they won't have any interaction between the same creatures that plague miners down below.

  I should mention that this picture also reminds me of an entire campaign setting that I read of. The basic setting was that islands like this were surrounded by a sea of clouds, and they only got around by usage of airships. The lower world is composed of a dark and dangerous jungle, that nobody has ever come back from alive. I really liked the idea behind that setting, since it lent itself to a steampunk theme. More importantly, air pirates.

Adventure Hooks:

• The Explorer's Guild is leading an expedition to the top of their mountain home and want an escort in case they encounter anything dangerous.
• A powerful wizard has detected great magic coming from the top of the mountain, and wants the PCs to investigate. It turns out that an evil Titan is preparing a magical strike on the "underworld" and will attack soon.
• A local bard wants to write a ballad dedicated to his own adventures, and so wants to be the first to climb to the top of the mountain and "face" it's dangers. He is actually incompetent but will take all the credit.