Upperdark
The Upperdark extends from the surface to a depth of about 3
miles. Varied races inhabit this region, including chitines, drow,
dwarves, giants, all manner of goblinoids, orcs, svirfneblin, and wererats.Scouts from deeper races often venture into the Upperdark
in order to trade with (or prey on) the races native to this area.
The Upperdark’s main import from the surface is slaves.
Slavers from evil-aligned cities in the Upperdark make frequent
forays into the light to capture new slaves for use as either labor
or food. They also trade for textiles, grains, fruit, and weapons.
Their exports include raw ore, refined metals, gems, and native
Underdark plants.Travel in the Upperdark is relatively easy. Multiple paths to a
single point usually exist, thanks to millennia of natural processes,
volcanic activity, burrowing creatures, and various races cutting
trails through the rock. In most places the surrounding earth is
composed of rock, but near the surface, tunnels can be hewn out
of tightly packed dirt, allowing creatures with burrow speeds that
can’t cut through rock to blaze their own trails in a pinch.
Surviving in the Upperdark
Survival checks made to hunt, forage, and avoid natural hazards in
the Upperdark use the same DCs as normal surface conditions. Basic
amenities such as light, air, food, and water are less available in the
Upperdark than on the surface, but they are common enough.
Luminescent flora and faerzress provide occasional light,
though not consistently enough to allow a creature without darkvision
to travel without an independent light source. Vents from
the surface keep air fresh and moving in the passages, so air quality
is rarely an issue. Enormous underground lakes spread across
hundreds of miles in some regions, and water trickles down from
the surface in many others. Many water sources are guarded or
fouled, but quite a few are both clean and open for anyone to use.
Many different types of wild fungi are edible, and the Underdark
equivalent of small game (rats, dire rats, lizards, and giant
vermin) can easily be found in the tunnels. Domesticated
animals, such as deep rothé, can also be found near most major
population centers.
Denizens of the Upperdark
Most Upperdark inhabitants traffic with the surface world in
some way, either trading with or raiding their upstairs neighbors
for things they can’t get in their native habitat. They also trade
with (and raid) each other. No Underdark community is ever
really friendly with another, but Upperdark settlements often
observe wary truces with their neighbors.
Chitines Dwarves Goblins Quaggoths Minotaurs Orcs Svirfneblin Stone Giants Troglodytes
