Terasil
| Terasil | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Size | 1,278,911 Square Miles |
| Spirit | Varunel • Oras |
| Native Races | Orasians • Duranthi |
| Significance | The oldest physical realm • home to ancient societies and foundational spiritual influence. |
Terasil is a realm of enduring stone, fractured memory, and ancient presence—situated within the wider material plane of Orethil. While the primordial spirit Oras shaped the world itself, it is within Terasil that the principles of History, Memory, and conversely Stagnation have taken deepest root. Once shaped by the force of earth alone, Terasil has become a place where time is preserved in form, and where the past is not merely remembered—it is layered into the land.
At the core of Terasil stands the Citadel Mountains, an unyielding range that forms the last untouched expression of Oras’s intent. Within these mountains lies the Last Bastion of Oras, a region of elemental stillness. Surrounding this sanctuary, the broader realm of Terasil unfolds in dry valleys, weathered hills, savannah expanses, and deep-cut gorges—all imprinted with the slow erosion of change and the stratification of events.
Terasil is now mostly shaped by the influence of Varunelthe Ascendant Spirit of Memory. Unlike the silent permanence of Oras, Varunel’s domain is the record itself: events inscribed, truths preserved, and names carried forward through ritual and stone. Her presence is felt in memory caverns, inscribed ridgelines, petrified ruins, and in the daily practices of the realm’s mortal inhabitants—particularly the Duranthi, stone-skinned humans who serve as keepers of lineage and structured remembrance.
To live in Terasil is to walk upon a living record. The stones carry not only names and moments, but also the burden of unalterable memory. While the realm provides stability and clarity, it also resists transformation. Innovation is viewed with suspicion, and even necessary change is often filtered through layers of precedent, ritual, and ancestral permission.
Terasil’s cultural and spiritual structures reflect this duality. The realm is a bastion of memory, but also a mirror of spiritual inertia—a place where history both illuminates and weighs down the present.
Geography
Terasil is defined by its varied terrain—mountains, valleys, plains, and extensive subterranean networks. These features have cultural and economic importance for its inhabitants, especially the Duranthi and Minthari.
Mountain Ranges
- Citadel Mountains: Located at Terasil’s center, these mountains preserve the core of the primordial realm. Considered sacred by the Orasians, they create a natural rain shadow influencing the Zanarak Desert.
- Anvil Range: East of the Citadels, these mineral-rich peaks support vast Minthari mining operations. Generations of excavation have resulted in a complex underground infrastructure.
- Murazkar Range: A mist-covered western range shaped by lingering elemental forces. It supports an unusual blend of flora and fauna along the earth-water boundary.
Valleys and Plains
- Sanctuary Vale: The cultural heart of Orasian civilization; a semi-arid region marked by settlements and agricultural infrastructure.
- Emerald Valley: Once barren, now fertile through geological processes and Orasian cultivation—symbolizing Terasil’s adaptive potential.
- Yalta Expanse: A harsh, arid plain shaped by the Citadel’s rain shadow. Despite conditions, some Orasian communities endure here through deep spiritual and geological ties.
Underground Networks
- The Deep Roads: An ancient tunnel network built by the Minthari, used for trade and travel. These are also believed to house Earthbound Spirits linked to the realm's deeper energies.
- Caverns of Echoes: Noted for their unique acoustics, these caverns serve ritual and meditative purposes, especially among the Orasians, who view them as spiritual conduits.
Climate
Terasil exhibits a range of climates based on altitude and terrain. Mountains experience cold, arid conditions, while valleys maintain temperate climates with seasonal rainfall. Plains are generally arid with sharp temperature variation. Subterranean regions retain consistent, cool temperatures year-round.
Flora and fauna
The biodiversity of Terasil reflects its elemental alignment and geological age. Its ecosystems are home to resilient species adapted to rocky, mineral-rich environments. Life forms range from surface-dwelling herbivores to deep-dwelling predators, with many possessing unique traits influenced by the realm’s spiritual energies.
Native Races
- Orasians: Ancient beings formed from conscious earthen matter. Initially colossal in form, many have diminished in size over time due to elemental exposure. Legends speak of remaining giants hidden deep within the mountains.
- Duranthi:
- Minthari: A younger population descended from spirits of greed. Though originally driven by acquisitiveness, their culture evolved to prioritize craftsmanship and community.
- Culture: Minthari life revolves around mobility, mining, and artisan traditions. While cautious of the deeper realm, they maintain a working relationship with the Orasians through trade and negotiation.
Native Spirits
Spiritual life in Terasil is shaped by a complex hierarchy of native spirits, each reflecting the elemental nature of the realm and its enduring connection to the primordial spirit Oras. These spirits range from minor, recently-formed presences to ancient entities embedded in the cultural memory of its inhabitants.
Nascent Spirits
Nascent spirits in Terasil are newly-formed entities of limited awareness and minimal influence. Typically emerging from minor geological or environmental features—such as shifting gravel, falling stones, or condensation on cavern walls—these spirits are highly responsive to external stimuli. Their presence is subtle, often sensed more than seen, and they are frequently drawn upon in basic ritual practices by initiates among the Orasians and Minthari.
Examples:
- Flickerlings – Spirits manifesting as faint glows within mineral veins.
- Dustforms – Ephemeral spirits shaped from disturbed soil or ash.
Mature Spirits
Mature spirits emerge from recurring experiences and collective recognition of localized phenomena. Though lesser in scope than ancestral spirits, they are semi-conscious and often associated with physical objects or places of symbolic significance. Unlike nascent spirits, mature spirits possess defined identities and are regularly invoked in cultural practices tied to memory, craftsmanship, or ritual grounding.
Ancestral Spirits
Ancestral spirits represent the oldest and most powerful entities within Terasil. Some are believed to predate the Great Erosion and embody collective memory or ancient identity. These spirits are often localized in singular sacred sites and rarely engage directly with mortals. Rituals involving ancestral spirits are restricted to elder practitioners and are performed to seek counsel, protection, or long-term omens.
Examples:
- Tharoz-Mir – Spirit of the Great Tunnels, Tharoz-Mir embodies the enduring memory of Terasil’s subterranean veins. Said to span the entirety of the Deep Roads, this vast ancestral spirit is less a single entity and more a presence felt in the stone itself—steady, resonant, and ancient. Orasians and Minthari alike revere it as a silent witness to all passage, trade, and migration beneath the earth.
- Orak-Thun – Revered in legend as the first sentient mountain, now a spiritual locus of Orasian lineage rites.
These spirits, together, form the spiritual ecology of Terasil—reflecting its role as the realm of endurance, continuity, and elemental consciousness.
Notable settlements
- Kar-Thal: An ancient Orasian city carved into a mountain. It houses governing elders and sacred spaces.
- Notable Features: The Great Hall of Oras and the Catacombs of Eternity, both central to Orasian ritual and governance.
- Minthal: A concealed Minthari city within the Anvil Range, renowned for its luminous crystals and artisanal output.
- Notable Features: The Crystal Market and the Hall of Ages, centers for commerce and cultural education.
Cultural significance
Terasil is regarded as the foundational material realm within the cosmology of Adaris. Its creation marked the transition from formless potential to structured existence. The presence of Oras imparts continuity and stability not only within Terasil but across Adaris.
To its inhabitants—especially the Orasians—Terasil is more than territory; it is a spiritual and existential anchor. Its natural features are seen as sentient entities or repositories of memory. Life in Terasil follows the rhythm of stone, echo, and deliberate transformation.
Outside Terasil, its geomantic influence persists. All realms intersect with stone in some form, affirming Terasil’s symbolic centrality. As such, Terasil is seen as both foundation and frame—unchanging in essence yet receptive to the forms layered upon it.