The Riftstone Gorge

Riftstone Gorge is a deep, broken canyon system cut into the arid northern slopes of the Chataan Mountains, beneath the towering bulk of Thundercrown. It consists of a wide central canyon, flanked by steep cliffs, with narrow slot canyons branching in all directions. Most of the year, this is a land of dust, with only the occasional sparse scrub and hardy trees clinging to shaded canyon bottoms. However, after a rain, the canyon floor comes alive with green and sudden wildflowers.

The Riftstone Gorge is mineral-rich with chalyte and silver, and strategically important for the Chardonian Empire. In the early DR 1700s, it was the site of a major Chardonian defeat, the Riftstone Gorge Disaster, which ultimately led to the end of the chalyte boom in the area, and the gorge became a byword for the dangers of the deep chalyte reserves in the Chataans. Since the defeat of Dhrukmir, the stone giant tyrant who claimed the northern Chataan Mountains for himself, the newly formed Imperial Chalyte Mining Company has begun to redevelop the rich chalyte veins in this area