The Surface Scars

The Surface Scars are not deep chasms carved by geological trauma, but shallow, sprawling fields of debris and toxic residue clinging to the high slopes of the Iron-Grip Mountains. They represent the ultimate failure of those who reject the deep stone: a collection of fractured, surface-built remnants, proving that true endurance is found only below. Geographically, these scars are extensive zones of shattered granite and warped metal shrapnel, where the thin air carries the acidic residue of volatile fuels. This region is the physical archive of the failed human settlements that clung to existence during the desolate Age of Lingering Echoes. Their desperate need for quick power led to the development of the dangerous, combustion-driven Pyric Engines. The Scars are what remain of these engines—ruptured boilers and scattered fragments fused by the chemical volatility of Magma Oil, a process of predictable decay that chroniclers refer to as Surface Entropy. The land here is forever poisoned, a monument to haste and ignorance. No creature of the deep resides here, though scavenging Shadow-Goblins occasionally pick through the toxic dust, drawn to the pervasive aura of technological collapse. The Crimson Cartographers refuse to map the Scars in detail, recording only their perimeter, lest the inherent instability taint their deep-stone charts. We must view these fields not as geography, but as a perpetual warning sign against relying on external, volatile power; the deepest truth is that any foundation built on the surface is destined to be scattered to the wind, leaving only these shallow, shameful marks upon the mountain’s enduring skin. Their most significant feature is the descent point into the treacherous coastal zones known as The Outer Shelf, marking the true edge of our stable world.