The Lands of Warlderia

Night City of Rundarthang, (Bottomless Canyon)

Far to the east of the Dark Cleft lies the immense chasm known simply as the Bottomless Canyon. Stretching for many miles across the shattered landscape, the canyon appears as a great wound torn through the surface of Warlderia itself. Its cliffs plunge so deep into darkness that no light reaches its lowest reaches, giving rise to the ancient belief that the canyon has no end. The truth is perhaps even more unsettling. Far below the inhabited terraces, the canyon merges into an endless network of caverns and tunnels that descend into the Underdark. Few surface dwellers have ever ventured so far, and fewer still have returned. Orc legends speak of entire kingdoms swallowed by the darkness beneath the world, while travellers tell stories of Drow cities, Duergar strongholds and creatures older than memory lurking in the abyss.

Unlike the ordered cities of the Dark Cleft, the Bottomless Canyon is home to dozens of fiercely independent tribes. Hundreds of settlements cling to the canyon walls, each carved into the living rock and ruled by its own chieftain. Rope bridges, stone stairways and narrow tunnels connect neighbouring holds, while countless forgotten passages disappear into the darkness beyond. The upper two miles of the canyon are firmly under Orc control. Below that point, the balance of power begins to shift. Strange beasts emerge from the caverns, ancient monsters claim abandoned halls, and the influence of the Underdark grows steadily stronger. Only the boldest Orc warbands descend further, usually in search of treasure, slaves or forgotten relics.

Although the tribes constantly feud amongst themselves, none has ever possessed sufficient strength to dominate the others. Alliances are forged and broken with astonishing speed as ambitious chieftains seek temporary advantage over their rivals. Assassination, blood feuds and ritual duels are commonplace, yet full-scale war is remarkably rare. Every tribe understands that prolonged conflict would only invite invasion from the horrors lurking beneath the canyon. Among these competing tribes, only one has maintained its authority for centuries, the Stone Mace Tribe.

Rundarthang

Rundarthang (Large City): Alignment NE, Population 22,000 -80% Orcs, 10% Half-orcs, 10% others (slaves). Authority Figure: Prince Kadnak (male Orc fighter)

Perched upon the broadest terraces of the eastern canyon wall, Rundarthang is the largest and most magnificent settlement within the Bottomless Canyon. Once regarded as one of the greatest engineering achievements of the Kingdom of Gar'anash, the city is famed for its extraordinary network of Sky Bridges, colossal stone arches that leap across the vast chasm, connecting districts suspended hundreds of feet above the darkness below.

Constructed by the master stonemasons of ancient Gar'anash, these bridges remain one of the wonders of Orc civilisation. Their elegant arches are adorned with carvings celebrating great victories, legendary warlords and the gods of the Orcs. To outsiders they appear impossibly graceful, yet to Orcs they represent strength made eternal through stone. During the final years of the Higher Wars, Rundarthang suffered one of the greatest disasters in Orc history. A mighty host of Dragons and their servants descended upon the city in an assault that lasted two days and two nights. Much of the ancient city was consumed by fire, entire tribes were exterminated and many of the great Sky Bridges collapsed into the abyss below.

Although much has since been rebuilt, Rundarthang has never fully recovered. The surviving bridges stand beside newer, less elegant replacements, while entire districts remain abandoned, haunted by memories of the ancient catastrophe. The city is ruled by Prince Kandnak, leader of the Stone Mace Tribe and heir to one of the oldest noble bloodlines of Gar'anash. Unlike the ambitious Warlords of the Dark Cleft, Kandnak has abandoned dreams of restoring the Orc Kingdom. His authority extends little beyond Rundarthang itself, and most of his efforts are devoted to preserving the fragile balance between the canyon tribes while preventing the ever-present dangers of the Underdark from overwhelming the settlements above.

Despite its diminished power, Rundarthang remains a city of immense prestige. Orc engineers, stonemasons and warriors travel from across the north-east to admire its surviving bridges and towering halls, many believing that nowhere else better preserves the glory of the ancient Kingdom of Gar'anash.