North Maw Peninsula
The Highlands
The high-altitude and mountainous realm of the north. The main settlement resides on the edge of where the highlands drop straight into the lowlands as sheer cliffs of crumbling rock. Wyndgale is often viewed as two layers, despite no cliffs of the highlands attached to the lowlands, they often do it in separate and unearthly ways. Arches, towers sprouting from the ground, some flat for miles and miles and others capped in snowy spikes of rubble. It is a strange landscape higher up in the sky, but most Wyndgale folk love to call it home.
The Lowlands
The lower altitude prairies of rich green taiga that cover the expansive wilderness of the north. They are a beautiful sight, they stretch forever into the silhouettes of the highlands and slope around the feet of the towers to create an ever-wavering landscape that glistens in the sunlight.
Sage's Frozen Steps
It is said that in bouts of anger the Sage, Edenlline, would walk out into the North Ocean and shout flames at the sky until her claws became cold from all her heat being used up for the endless fire. She left behind footprints of ice across the waters until she returned to land. Sheets of ice split into stepping stones cover the waters north of Wyndgale. The sheets are large enough to settle fishing camps on, but no settlements have claimed the unstable ice. The sheets recede slighting during mid-year.
World's Maw
Said to be the mouth of the world due to its shape and location on the Ptitheros continent, the World's Maw is a geological marvel carved from erosion over millions of years from the harsh waves and wind of the northern ocean. The cliffs of the Maw rise high above the sea-level, overlook the vast distance, and often have a layer of clouds grazing the soft green grass of the landscape. Storms with strong wings and salty air are frequent, but it does nothing to push people away. Flight fishers, divers, and more dot the cliff sides each day, making the location popular with tourists, bringing money and population to the towns of Plumei Santos and Maw's Clutch.
Towards the middle of the Wyndgale territory is a long river that falls over the grand steep of the Stormwall. This glacial water tumbles down and rushes into the lowlands, flowing into a massive lake known as Sky-stream lake. This lake is said to be an ancient opening to the North Cardinal’s original underground palace; a place built even before Chaveri came to be. Folklore holds up, there are caverns beneath the lake that brings the water out into the ocean and into groundwater tables, however the presence of a lost god palace is undiscovered. The Stormwall
The stormwall is an extremely tall cliff that separates the Lowlands from the Highlands. The cliff stands so tall that only one road has been built to travel up it for Snapp Carriages, all other travel to get over it or to the Foe District city built into it requires flight. Skylight Valley
In the highlands, a crack dips deep into the hearth while the mountains still overlap and draw inwards. This creates a cavern with a split ceiling that shows the sky above. This valley cavern used to be a safety house for the people of Ichy Colo, as remnants of pottery and skeletons of caught prey can be found in the dark corners where the sky light does not reach. Pinceten Peak
One of the highest points in all of the Highlands, this mountain peak is rounded off from wind erosion and overlooks the highlands from so far above that it rests above the clouds. A sea of clouds can often be viewed, many fliers choose to stop at the peak for a quick drink from their canteen before continuing farther north to Deity Isle. Byhy Waterfall
On the west edge of the Lowlands not far from Aethe Edge is a waterfall that courses into a lake that filters into the underground. During sunrise, the cliffside gives itself to idling the waterfall at the perfect angle, casting a rainbow across the lake, making it one of the most beautiful places to watch the sunrise in the world. Whirlwind Rock
In the highlands there stands a butte with a massive emerald carved at the top. How the gem got there and why it sits there is unknown but it is speculated a Cardinal's Colossal brought it there to keep it safe. Strong winds pool around the rock in swirling, visible gusts, making it impossible to reach the rock via flight.
Settlements
CAPITAL CITY | Ichy Colo (Alpha Sentru)
The capital city of Wyndgale. Ichy Colo is named after one of the original clan founders known as Ichnae. It sits near the center of the Highlands and is built upon the fossilized remains of a Cardinal’s Colossal, its small homes round and ecological within the environment where prey wooden material is scarce. The city has a large inner market, a large population of gryphons, and directly north at the skull of the corpse is access to Alpha Sentru; home of the Alpha. The skull: a hollowed out skull, the head made into a home itself for the alpha and their family or whoever else he decides may live there. It is no fancy palace, no throne, but to own the home within the skull of a once ancient monster is by far more impressive to the people of Wyndgale than any silly highchair would be. Alpha Sentru is a contained little environment that received its own settlement name due to it originally being where the founders lived. Back then Ichy Colo was nothing but a small extension of Sentru. The tribal city itself is built inside a massive, upside down ribcage of one of those ancient beasts. Its fossilized ribs sprout high into the air and encase the city like an uneven cage, and its tail creates a natural bridge that slopes down the nearest cliff and towards the lowest of the cave den complex entrances. Dirt paths and tarps of animal skin create smaller trails into upper entrances, and eventually, the broken end of the tail rests at the bottom (lowlands) of the nested highlands. The main settlement itself is even more wondrous than the skeleton, for the buildings are a patchy but pleasing array of woods, soils, clays, and feathers. Honeycomb leaves are often used as windows due to their porous qualities since glass tends to break in the heat of a snowstorm, and doors are intricate slabs of wood with a curved handle that always resembles the talon of a gryphon. The residential homes are on the outskirts (still within the rib cage) and climb upwards onto the jutting bones. Small homes and nests perched precariously on the fossilized yet strong towers of bone. Along the spine is the singular line of market, vendors in tents or little stalls, sometimes even set up on rugs. Following the spine upwards the bones turn into the neck, where more homes are set up that are bigger and more boisterous in terms of material usage.
TOWN | Foes District
Down the trail, the tail of the skeleton passes by each entrance to the den complex that makes up the inner highland mountain that is near the main settlement. Some entrances are nestled into steep drops, some on gentle slopes. All connect once inside, into a massive web of tunnels that can diverge at any moment. Most of the Wyndgale population lives here, in the dens that line the walls of the residential sections. Fairy lights are strung on the ceiling all throughout and potted burners are in each intersection room. Most intersection rooms are called Brays, they often have small shops set up for food sale and other wares so those near that Bray don't have to travel into the market just to obtain simple necessities.
TOWN | Plumei Santos
Plumei is a quaint town in the northeast area of the Highlands of Wyndgale. The second smallest town of the kingdom, the place is home to Ptithians who prefer a life not focused on markets and hierarchy; their town has a contained ecosystem of craftspeople, artisans, farmers, and more that often don't export their goods, making the entire town a perfect example of the times before massive trade routes were established and kingdoms fought for materials. However, due to this cut-off lifestyle, the town is a hotspot for activity that prefers to go unmonitored, such as cultist activities and unwarranted spell usage.
TOWN | Maws Clutch
The Clutch is a town settlement found on the south edge of the World’s Maw. It lies a couple miles away from the sheer edge, making it a very sea-breeze ridden place that has a culture deeply influenced by the Maw itself. Life revolves around the edge, as glide fishing and farming wind-resistant crops is essential to the people there. Although the weather is tough, the people have the same calm and resistant attitude that is common in Galians of all kinds.
TOWN | Aethe Edge
Aethe Edge is a small town in the Lowlands of Wyndgale. Its architecture is a mix of Galian and Chaverian due to its proximity to the ancient kingdom; it is evident it was once a settlement that belonged to Chaveri before Wyndgale gained control over the territory. The people of Aethe Edge are diverse and live a life mostly detached from the bustle of the cities, only serving as a stop for travelers and traders heading to and from Ichy Colo. Aethe Edge is very close to Skystream Lake, which is its water and prominent food source.