Kyirnetana Ronikolic

Nikolic is a mountainous realm perched along the upper curve of the twilight zone, catching light at a low, slanted angle. The region is dominated by tall, craggy peaks and steep ridgelines, which rise from the misty uplands near Berthe and stretch toward the encroaching cold of the night side. Due to elevation and exposure, Nikolic exhibits a high alpine climate with stark vertical climate zones.

The mountains form a climatic wall—a barrier that splits weather systems. Cool, dry air spills from the night side across the upper ridges, clashing with moister, temperate air rising from the grasslands below. This tension creates orographic extremes, from fog-wrapped gorges to snow-streaked summits.

Temperature & Light

• Light is diffuse and angled—similar to Gefter and Berthe but filtered further by thin mountain air, casting a silver-blue hue over the landscape.
• Temperature drops rapidly with elevation. The foothills may remain cool and humid, but the peaks above are frigid year-round.
• Due to the stillness of the sun and the magical atmospheric moderation, true deep freezes are rare, but the upper altitudes do experience persistent cold, light snowpack, and frequent frost.
• Inversion layers trap warm air in sheltered valleys, creating microclimates where hidden civilizations could grow crops or maintain warmth even at high altitudes.

Wind & Airflow

• Nikolic is a wind-carved land. Powerful, unpredictable air currents descend from the night-facing side of the mountains.
• Katabatic winds (cold air flowing downhill) dominate at nightward slopes, while upslope winds carry moisture inland from the warmer twilight plains below.
• Mountain passes experience violent gusts funneled between cliffs, often strong enough to erode rock faces and shift snow and scree.
• The mountaintops are exposed to constant, high-altitude jet streams that whip across the barren ridges—windswept, thin-aired, and biting.

Moisture & Precipitation

• Precipitation is common, but varies by altitude. Rain and sleet fall in the lower reaches and inhabited valleys. Snow dominates the higher slopes, especially where moist air from Berthe is pushed upward.
• Clouds often cling to the mountain flanks, forming a grey “belt” of mist that rises and falls with atmospheric pressure.
• Dry snowfields and glaciers may form at the highest elevations, though not all are permanent—some melt seasonally or when warmed by the long moon’s influence.

Skyfall Rains

Sudden downpours or sleet storms that burst from low-hanging cloudbanks along ridges, often with no warning.

Moon Wakes

Turbulent high-altitude waves of cold air that roll through during long moon transitions, said to carry whispers or ancestral voices.

Stonefogs

Ground-level mists that pool in valleys and seem to “cling” to rock, slowing movement and confusing travellers.

Moon Influence

• When the long moon rises, gravitational pull can affect wind patterns, compressing cold air down into valleys and increasing turbulence near the peaks.
• The long moon may also thin clouds temporarily, allowing more direct twilight to reach otherwise shadowed areas, giving the peaks a momentary brilliance—a sacred time for mountaintop dwellers.