Northern Limestone Alps

High peaks jut out of the region surrounded by many lowland areas at the base and in some mountain passes, the Alps dominate everything. Wide sweeping valleys are dotted here & there that allow relatively safer journeys than the main mountain passes. The area is known to be rocky and much of the region is at higher elevations with lower atmospheric presssure. Some would struggle to survive in this to begin begin with. Most of the region has been carved out to another more insidous reason. The peaks are regularly buffeted by strong winds, and storms. Due to the elevation, the storms & wind are biting cold, with heavy driving ice, sleet, and snow common.

Only the most hardiest plants & creatures can survive at these altitudes. A rare few make here home, mainly short hardy grasses, Apline Firs, and aminals like the local goats have the fortitude to survive here along with the ability to feed on the tough plant material.. Hawks, wolves, worgs, and the odd cave bear / brown bear will feed on the goats. Old legends tell of Fey * other spirits associated with such harsh conditions can be found making use of the habitat. Quite a few mention that large humanoid creatures can be found feasting on all matter of animals are found toom all claws & sharp teeth with horns & a bad attitude. Further tales say Storm Giants & Cloud Giants have took up residence too, along with other Giant-kin, and the odd Air Elemental.   Once in a while these are disrupted by livestock such as sheep, and the odd oxen, as well as hunters & trappers during the summer months.   Saying this the ecosystem can be disrupted further by the odd avalanche caused by those not native to the area, allowing for parts of the land further down access to safer ground and water run-off from the snow & ice melting. Rock slides is another danger due to the weathering caused by the storms. This sometimes allows stone to be mined for use or rare seams of minerals to be mined. It also helps to remove potential dangers or create further safe havens for organisms to flourish.   In these cases, a rare happening is the odd earthquake. Not as severe as those found south in & around thhe Papal States it is a frightening time for those who call the place home.

Wintery conditions are regularly found here, with a mild spring, summer and autumn periods. As soon as it is warm enough most organisms will breed during this time taking advantage of liquid wate rrun-off from the snow & ice. It also helps when the storms & winds die down somewhat.

Besides the storms, avalanches, and landslides happen here, there is a rare instance of earthquakes. Why this can happen almost anywhere to a lesser degree, it seems to be much more common. Locals question whether is one of four things:  

• Magic is causing it, and many locals believe there is Storm Giant & Cloud Giant enclaves near the top of the mountains, and believe it is the magics caused by these causing the earthquakes.
• Elementals are causing it, and the locals are thought to cause some of the stormy weather, and it could well be more than one type of elemental in the area, and likely causing it.
• That it is narural. To the west is the saltmines & low grade oil & gas fields to the west. If these play up for any reason it may cause a ripple effect to this part of the Alps.
• And finally, a few think that below the mountain range is some type of ancient evil is stirring below the mountains. This ranges from a dragon to a Star Spawn / Great Old One / Ancient One. Nobody has dared to inverstigate below the mountain range yet.

  Even the storms seem horrendous at times compared to others. Quite a few point that with the rise in many evil cults in the Frankish Empire it may be causing something 'wrong' to awaken or be drawn to here. Again no proof has ever been found or sought.

Cold & wet conditions are common for most of the year. The temperature barely reaches 20degree Celsius at the height of summer at the higher levels if even half this temperature, and the wind chill drops it further. Snow, rain, and sleet are common with regular storms building up over the peaks.

Hardy plants such as grasses and some flowering plants are found growing here & there especially in lower sections. Trees, especially Alpine firs are found growing slightly higher. A few animals such as goats, bears (brown / cave), wolves & worgs and the odd rabbit is found throughout the Northern Limestone Alps.

A few resources can be found here. Limestone can be mined along with a few minerals including small salt deposits. Wood from the fir trees can be used and the fir of local animals can be hunted for. Water here is quite pure and the streams & rivers in the region supplies many settlements surrounding it. At the same time a few brave souls will seek out ice deposits to bring down blocks of it for those who want it.

The Alps are an ancient mountain range formed millions of years ago when the super continent of Pangeia split apart. It was originally an inland sea that over the ensuing millennia was pushed up by the effects of continental drift. Doing so many fossels were trapped in the mountain range, along with salt trapped in some of the mountains. Also there is the gas & oil field to the west of Salzburg created by the breakdown of saltwater organisms. The once volcanic region of the Massif Central lies to the west and to the south in the Italian Penninsula & the Mediterranean Sea tectonic plates shift. The after effects of these reverberate still to a degree in the Alps.   All the while when they were forming, life still existed with life tailored to land took rout (liiterally in some cases). Now settled with life of all kinds intelligent species was able to enter the region and leftt their mark. Buried under the ice shelves that mark the highest bounderies are the remains of many different lifeforms, and a scattered few remnants of civilisations that have long since vanished.   Now younger civilisations have took their place leaving their own mark here. The recent (in the geological timescale) is the Franks and their empire) They conquered the Germanic tribes in the region along with any remaining Roman & Celtic remnants to try to practise the old ways. Aceepted as part of the Empire, and if deference is shown to the Crown of Charlemagne then they are accepted. If not, then they are forcibly converted to his cause.   What many do not know, except for a select number of individuals, is that the Alps, like the Massif Central, holds many many ancient secrets of an ancient & terrible past.   Sometimes ferocious snowstorms, glaciers left over from ice ages, and the earthquakes though rare but frightening, are all possible side-effects to the stirrings of things best left buried, who took root in the mountains before the time of younger species. Dangerous entites lurk below from a time before the written word of any of these sentient species.   The Northern Limestone Alps is just one part of the overall Alps and situated to the north east of them. There they have stood for so long that the secrets buried below the limestone mountains, before the glaciers, even before it was an inland sea now stir looking to take back what was theirs.   Talk of Storm Giants, Cloud Giants and Air Elementals are one thing. At least they might explain some of the localised effects but surely when the earth & rock trembles it is potentially something else altogether. A myth told by many Svart Alves who live in the mountains & the Underdark of the Northern Limestone Alps whisper of horrific beings now being encountered below this mountain range. They talk of "gargantuan flying reptiles£ made of pure crystal, and warped & twisted creatures similar to the legendary Kraken & Aboleths stirring in dark corners of the Underdark seas, trapped there since the upper parts of the seas vanished all those millions of years ago, possibly even drained down to these depths   Also cities are whispered off. Massive effigies to forgottten "Gods" standing with otherworldy design, and an air & light that could only be likened to visions of the Far Realms. None of their kind brave, or foolish, enough to strike out to investigate these sites never returned, and the centrea of these places seem to be throbbing with unnatural power that is only getting stronger, and threatening to bring the limestone roofs of these caverns crashing down on all for miles around.