Starspire Mountains

The Starspire Mountains were a range of low mountains in Tethyr.

Geography
The Starspires began gradually in the highlands of eastern Tethyr and ran from east to west. A spur of the Starspire Mountains extended into the Sea of Swords, forming the Starspire Peninsula.

The average height of the mountains in this range were only 4,500 feet above sea level. Four of the peaks were above 5,000 feet. The summit of the tallest was at 7,200 feet, making this range among the smallest of the Lands of Intrigue.

Hawkwing's Brook, a major tributary to the Sulduskoon River, flowed down from the eastern slopes.

Climate
The Starspires were very humid; they received a large amount of rain during the summer months and snow during the winter months. The snow could remain on the taller peaks even into the summer.

The peaks were nearly tree-covered, growing more dense in greenery as the slopes met the Forest of Tethir to the north or the waters of the Sulduskoon River to the south.

Fauna
Sheeps and goats belonging to local farmers of counties Starspur and Uluran dotted the foothills of the Starspires. For predators, displacer beasts and perytons hunted in the region.

Trails and Byways
Despite the lower altitude, the mountains contained many treacherous passes. The Trade Way passed through the mountains, but beyond that, there were few navigable trails.

Deep below the mountains, a network of dwarven highways connected to the Nemessor Tunnel, extended under the mountains.

Inhabitants
A tribe of dwarves, Clan Ghalmrin, lived under the eastern peaks of the Starspires and traded with the city of Zazesspur in the west.

In addition to the dwarves, other races made their homes in the mountains and hills, including svirfneblin, ogres, goblinoids, and werewolves.

Orcs used to live in the Starspires, but by the 1300s DR, they were extinct from the region.

The great red dragon Balagos kept a lair in the Starspires, and other dragons lived there as well, in the western mountains.

History
In the declining years of the dwarven Kingdom of Shanatar, a feud with the elves of the Forest of Tethir led to the extinction of Clan Gemcrypt, which used to reside in the western Starspires.

The first vizera of the Ithal Dynasty of Tethyr, Zahyra Ithal, was buried in the mountains. Sometime around 1370 DR, her tomb was discovered and her journals found. King Haedrak used her journals as sources for his historical opus Historia Tethyra.

In 1188 DR, the vizera of King Alemander II was discovered consorting with a lich in a cavern in the Starspire Mountains. She was executed for her crimes.

The orcs of the region were eliminated by 1242 DR, hunted to extinction by one general Haraqimn, who sought revenge on the murder of his fianceé on his wedding day by a tribe of orcs from the mountains.

Notable Locations

 * Argentwing Dell : This dell is strangely shaped like a butterfly, and may have been a holy site for some unknown religion.
 * The Grim Jaws : These were the four tallest peaks in the Starspire range and were located east of the Trade Way.
 * Mount Thargill : This easternmost peak in the range was a dead volcano and the location of the Wyrmwell.
 * Three Peaks Vale : This valley among the Grim Jaws was once the site of a monastery to Tyr.
 * Tomb of Zahyra : This crypt was the burial site of the First Vizera of Tethyr. It was under the protection of the royal court.
 * Tresper Hall : This castle was the official duchy seat of Lord Inselm Hhune.
 * The Wyrmwell : This was the second home of the dragon Balagos, within a lave tube of Mount Thargill.