Pasocada Basin

The Pasocada Basin is a tough unyielding land in Maztica, north of the deserts where the Dog People reside. It is home to numerous human groups, most notably the Azuposi, and the Poscadar elves. The area is that which is drained by the Pasocada River and its tributaries, and is largely desert due to a lack of rainfall due to the surrounding mountains, but its altitude and distance north means it receives snow in the winter.

Terrain
The basin is scattered with mesas and buttes of rock protruding from the landscape. These have been carved by seasonal rains which have also deposited great banks of sand. The area is mostly covered with brush, consisting of hardy plants like cacti, grasses and yucca. The Azuposi have successfully transformed this brush into farmland, especially in the flood plains. Those areas that receive no rain whatsoever are devoid of plant life and are inhabited by monstrous creatures. Canyons such as Long Canyon run through the basin, through which rivers and streams flow.

The mountains surrounding the basin have much more rainfall and these areas are covered in forest of aspen, fir, pine and spruce. Higher in the mountains where the air is colder and trees cannot grow, the landscape is perpetually covered in snow. Only yeti and some aarakocra can live here.

The salt flats are areas of the desert where water has long since evaporated and left crystalline deposits behind. Life flourishes around the outside of the salt flats, but nothing lives or grows within. These areas might occasionally be visited by an elemental.

Wildlife
In the desert and brush, typical animals are antelope, bison, coyotes, lizards, mice and prairie dogs. In the mountain foothills, antelope, bears, deer and foxes are to be found.

Climate
The climate for the Pasocada Basin in general is very arid and dry, but temperate rather than hot. The basin receives very little rainfall because the surrounding mountains act as a rain shadow. The annual precipitation, on average, is just fifteen inches per year. These are consumed by the flash floods in the spring, causing the rivers to burst their banks and fill the flood plains, and enlarging the flow of water through the canyons. During the winter, snowfall is common and the temperature is cold.

Places of interest

 * Black Mesa : A huge mesa with high coal content south of Opallinoc.
 * Michaca : The City of Gold, and the centrepiece to the Azuposi civilization.