The Lithic Territories
by WingofCootSoutheast of Daedalia Planum and south of the barren, rocky hills and plateaus that form Mygalla's southern limit, a series of five sand-filled basins between rocky ridges are found. These are too small to see on the planetary (72 mile per hex) map; the individual basins are 10 to 30 miles in diameter. Each of these basins has an elemental vortex leading to the Plane of Earth in a cavern system hidden beneath the dunes. Each vortex is controlled by a powerful medusa noble, who has magic-user abilities in addition to her natural powers. A few dozen other medusae and several hundred to a few thousand rock men form the population of each basin, the medusa noble’s small dominion -- being already composed of stone, the Rock Men have no need to fear the medusas' petrification effect. (This is a very dangerous place for beings made of flesh!)
A number of other creatures common to the Plane of Earth and Material Plane - such as basilisks, cockatrices, and gorgons - are also found in this region. The gorgons are in fact kept as herd animals here. Living Statues of crystal and rock created by the ruling medusa nobles may also be encountered around the elemental vortices.
Few conventional biological life forms are found here, due to both the risk of petrification and the extreme aridity. Those which do exist are mostly very small and simple and of no particular importance to adventurers, such as lichens.
The mineral-organic life forms of Vaniae have a more important place. 'Land corals' grow on the rocky ridges between the sand basins, and herds of walking stones sometimes wander down from the western plateau to feed upon them. Pyramid crabs are often found here as well.
Population (total for all five basins): 200 medusas, 7500 Rock Men
Creatures
common:
Cockatrice
Gorgon
Medusa
Rock Men
Pyramid Crab
rare:
Basilisk
Desert Ghost
Living Statue, Crystal
Living Statue, Rock
Walking Stone*
*(Technically, these are a slightly different species than those found on high Tharsis, but the difference has no significance in game terms.)