Mountain Fortress

The Mountain Fortress is an ancient hilltop castle in the far south of the Valley of Mines, originally the seat of the castellan Bergmar of Westfeld, who once sold it along with the mines for 400 pounds of gold. The fortress comprises several floors housing a library, a secret alchemy laboratory behind a bookshelf, and a tower with a balcony offering sweeping views across the valley. During the time of the Barrier it fell into ruin, inhabited only by harpies, though it served as the site of one of the five focus stones that once created the Barrier. The former novice Lester explored the fortress together with the hero, found the old castellan's deed of ownership, and settled there to study the writings in the library. After the fall of the Barrier, the rock dragon Pedrakhan chose the fortress as his lair, carving a cave into the cliff above the castle. His magic transformed the surroundings into a barren wasteland of stone. Lizardmen and stone golems guarded the plateau before the entrance, making the approach a deadly challenge. The hero fought his way to the fortress alongside the Dragon Hunter Gorn, traversed it alone – past lizardmen and other creatures – and defeated Pedrakhan in single combat in his mountain lair. Using the Eye of Innos, he forced the dragon to speak and extracted its stone heart to recharge the weakened Eye.