Kryptan Mountains
The Kryptan Mountains form a mighty, active volcanic mountain range located far to the south of the Sholorna Wilds on the jungle planet of Eryn. Because of its treacherous, fiery landscape and remote location, it serves as the secretive stronghold for the ancient mage Cariel (operating under the persona Calarel) during the events of The Savage Wild.
Geography and Environment
As travelers journey south toward the Kryptan Mountains, the thick, sweltering jungle of Eryn begins to thin, giving way to a harsh, rising landscape of rocks and blackened stone. The mountains themselves are an active volcano system that frequently belches smoke and flame into the sky, creating an environment full of fire and ash.
Kryptan Fortress
To keep her operations hidden from prying eyes, Calarel constructed a massive, foreboding fortress directly into the volcanic mountains.
- The Outer Walls: The fortress is surrounded by imposing high walls built from black stone bricks, topped with ramparts that provide a perfect vantage point for archers and guards.
- The Inner City: Beyond the main gates, the fortress functions as a veritable city sprawling upward along the mountain. It features black stone towers, parapets, and bridges. It houses active forges where blacksmiths craft dark black metal armor for Calarel's rylak guards, alongside dormitories, a tavern, and kitchens filled with the scent of roasting cavek meat.
- The Summit: The fortress culminates near the top of the mountain in a wide, flat expanse of stone. This plateau is large enough to accommodate thousands of airborne and grounded dragons. At the center of the mountaintop sits a table holding the universe-altering device Xyclami, flanked by an obsidian platform where the device's Operators are kept bound and drugged.
Key Events
The Siege of Kryptan Fortress
After discovering Calarel's plot to take ultimate control of Xyclami and all of magic, the young rylak Jascyn, the human demisoul Lysa, and the dragon Aena lead a massive, allied army south to the Kryptan foothills. Jascyn initiates a coordinated siege on the fortress using his unprecedented army of jungle creatures. Kabul wildcats scale the black stone ramparts to eliminate the guards, while the massive cavek herd leader Varek batters the front gates. A massive flock of over eight hundred sakul birds provide aerial support while welak wolves swarm the ground.
The Battle of the Summit
The allied forces push their way up through the fortress city to the flat stone summit, where Calarel awaits them. By utilizing Aena as a conduit, Calarel employs amplified mindmaster magic to control thousands of dragons, turning the beasts against Jascyn's animal army. A brutal battle ensues on the mountaintop, resulting in the tragic deaths of many of Jascyn's closest animal companions. However, the tide turns when Aena manages to break Calarel's mindmaster hold. Freed from the magical compulsion, the thousands of dragons instantly land on the mountaintop and turn their wrath upon the dark mage.
The Fall of Calarel
Robbed of her dragon army and her magical advantage, Calarel attempts to fight back but is overpowered. Jascyn and Lysa coordinate their magic perfectly, allowing Jascyn to strike Calarel down with a devastating blast of darkprime elm. She slams into the ground and is killed, permanently ending her hundred-thousand-year reign of manipulation and terror. In the aftermath, Lysa rushes to the obsidian platform and successfully rescues her parents, the Operators Rylan and Elanil, awakening them from the drugged slumber Calarel had kept them in.