Terrain of the Borderlands VI
Meniri Mountains Pt.6
Welcome back, we’re continuing our series on the mineral deposits of the Meniri Mountains of the Auran Borderlands. Thanks to the people that pay for this and I hope the freeloaders enjoy it as well.
Here’s where Part 5 left off …
We’ve just got that small section to the east to finish so let’s get to the rolling. It’s six rolls to cover that smaller area with a 30% chance of finding deposits per twenty-four mile hex.
That gives us two successful rolls in the eastern section. One right out on the edge of the north hills and a second right on top of the highest peak area. Let’s start with the lowest one first, out there near the mountain’s edge.
That’s five homogenous deposits, let’s see what they’ll be.
First an Iron Deposit that is almost pure iron with no other elements mixed in, pretty unusual. That’s right on the edge of the mountain range so fairly accessible if it wasn’t for the fact that it’s about thirty miles into the wilderness on the wrong side of the river and border forts. This mine was likely an Auran exploration that found ore. The capacity isn’t great and the reserves aren’t great either. I’m going to say that they did some preliminary mining and abandoned the mine. The cost of operation in the wilderness would not be worth the value of the ore. However what tunnels would be there would make an excellent lair for a monster.
Iron deposit - Sustainable capacity of 200 work gangs and deposit reserves of 98,400 months.
Next we have a Silver-Lead mine that’s in the same area as the Iron mine, just right next door. Big roll on the Sustainable capacity, this is a reserve that is easy to access likely by being close to the surface and spread out on the surface instead of snaking down through the earth. It also has deep reserves. This to me feels like a surface pocket that isn’t down very deep at all so easy to access and the reserves rest close to the surface as well. This would be a good one to keep hidden right next to the Iron Ore mine, the Aurans that founded the Iron mine, must have missed it. Likely not exploring and focusing on what they’d found. If players were to investigate that Iron mine then in clearing lairs they’re very very likely to find that Silver-Lead deposit which would make was a nice surprise and hook them into establishing in the area.
Silver-Lead - Sustainable capacity of 1200 work gangs and deposit reserves of 828,000 months.
After that is a Stone deposit, Marble to be exact. We haven’t had many of those so that’s different at least and interesting. This one I’d say that based on it’s location hasn’t been discovered or more accurately mined. Leave this one stashed and keep it for when you need a treasure map or the Speak With Dead ravings of a skeletal miner.
Stone, Marble - Sustainable capacity of 300 work gangs and deposit reserves of 199,200 months.
Then we’ve got another Copper deposit. Also tracking along the edge of the mountains. This one is pretty close to #44 Turos Drav, just one hex across the border. That Legate would be an excellent sponsor of a mining operation just across the border. Likely hoping that it would stir up the Beastmen and give him something to war against. A good way to handle this would be to say that it’s a known deposit but unmined due to being across the border. The Legate would support the operation but without a lot of regard for the minerals and more concern towards getting a good fight out of it. That’s something that PC’s could do in the area or a GM could use for background flavor with supplies headed here or stories about a Legate pushing across the river.
Copper-Iron Deposit - Sustainable capacity of 300 work gangs and deposit reserves of 204,000 months.
Another Marble Deposit but this one is of prized color and has a low reserves. Due to it’s proximity to the border this mine was likely played out pulling out marble during the construction of the border forts. Prized constructions in #10 Cyfaraun and #34 Siadanos were likely created from this marble, a Calacatta type marble with pure white stone and black veins through out it. Of course GM’s know what a played out mine is good for … lairs … glorious monster lairs. It would be a large quarry right along a river, so the ruins of a town or at least a mining camp would be there. Something interesting there, maybe a flooded quarry with a Hydra? Undead Carp?
Stone, Marble (Prized) - Sustainable capacity of 200 work gangs and deposit reserves of 16,800 months.
Now we move down towards the bottom of the map. Right around that five thousand foot peak. Again a low number of Ore Deposits. Only six from a spread of four to sixteen. They’re Homogenous deposits and the dice say Iron Ore. That’s a large pocket of Iron in an isolated area. Let’s do the spread of them and see what we can make of it without going into a lot of detail on each one …
Iron-Copper Deposit - Sustainable capacity of 200 work gangs and deposit reserves of 168,000 months.
Iron Deposit - Sustainable capacity of 100 work gangs and deposit reserves of 31,200 months.
Iron Copper Deposit - Sustainable capacity of 200 work gangs and deposit reserves of 151,200 months.
Iron Deposit - Sustainable capacity of 300 work gangs and deposit reserves of 199,200 months.
Iron-Copper Deposit - Sustainable capacity of 100 work gangs and deposit reserves of 180,000 months.
Iron Deposit - Sustainable capacity of 100 work gangs and deposit reserves of 160,800 months.
So we’ve got a pocket of deposits that are hard to access from the lowlands and have excellent reserves but low gang capacity. There’s something interesting here. I’m going to get a coffee and think about it.
Frost Giants … it’s mountains, its high elevation and its isolated. I’d put a large Frost Giant lair, maybe even a domain, up there and have them mining the ore for weapons and armor. I’m liking the idea of a Frost Giant domain up there more and more. It’ll be interesting to figure out just how that would work.
So that’s it people. The ore deposits of the Meniri Mountains sorted.
Next article we’re going to tackle just who lives in the Meniri Mountains, where they prefer to live and where the domains are and who rules.