Hyratan (concept)
Biozone: Hyratan
Located among some of the tallest mountains in the world, the great valleys of Hyratan are dominated by dense pine forests only rarely broken up by montane meadows - most often either in places with human habitation or as one approaches the rocky heights upland. Owing to its relatively sparse population, exceptionally thick woodland and generally mystical reputation, the region has become imprinted in Kashiryan folk tales as a place of wondrous and terrible monsters. Sometimes, these creatures even turn out to be more than mere stories.
Accessing Hyratan is no easy task - most routes into the region are so treacherous so as to not even be worth trying to take, with only a select few gorges and valleys allowing for relatively safe passage. Once entered, though travel becomes somewhat easier, visibility and navigation conversely become serious problems, with all but the tallest of the neighboring peaks completely obscured by the dense pine canopy overhead.
A crisp mountain air greets us as we ascend into the area, and we follow a small river upstream until the surrounding meadows thin to nothingness and are entirely replaced by dense coniferous forests. It is time we plunge into Hyratan's darkness.