Ice Towers of Nor Curndia
"Its like stepping into a dream, when you first see them in the distance. Jutting up from the ground, many miles high a realm of pure ice and crystal glass with hundreds of structures built into its side. One can only imagine why they are like that, and I can barely scarcely believe they are real. It's like a city made of magic." -Wildar Chieftain on Northern Ice Towers

Nor Curndia has two less loved neighbors; the zealous realm of the Shadowed Guardianship and the dark hordes of the Wendigo Marches. The Wildar, the hulking wolverine-bear men of the far north mountains and once rulers of the entire north still swear allegiance to their gods and forged a union underneath a powerful prophet. The Marches in turn have long sought to conquer the realm of Nor Curndia and add its people to its undead empire. What has protected the realm of Nor Curndia for a long time was its vast mountain ranges which guard against ice storms in the north, and are impassible for most. Neither entity which threatens their realm are very good at using ships, unlike the northmen who specialize in it.

Yet, dark powers of the Silent King, using the unholy power is said to chip away at the mountains with storms, flattening the land for the Marches to trickle over and into the sparse forests to pitch camp. Realistically however, and more terrifying, is that these armies use cavern systems and ancient ruins trapped in the mountains. To plug up the holes in their natural defense, the magic guilds of Nor Curndia went north to forge the Ice Towers, great magical fortresses of tall ice to scry for Wendigo armies and to use their magic to call down storms themselves to block off entrances. Each tower has its own arch wizard who works closely with others, their towers acting as mighty fortresses and safe zones for the entire north's population. So desperate are the wizards in stopping the tide of the Wendigo from pouring into their home, that many of the magically gifted slaves amongst their servants are conscripted into their ranks to aid in their practices. Many ice wizards rarely leave the north, but those who do are said to some of the best sorcerers in the entire north when it comes to evocation and summoning.

The Ice Towers themselves were a magical project founded by the legendary group of northern wizards who desired a truly safe and mighty fortress to reside in, lifting high above mountains themselves. Each fortress is build into, organized into lairs with a large defensive fortress In the middle of the ice tower for which the main garrison stays. Upper levels are dedicated to refugee quarters, miniature farmsteads, and laboratories with the highest levels reserved for the quarters of the mages, and those of their apprentices. Below the tower are the dark and gloomy slave pens and cells, where laborers and slaves owned by the various guilds toil to maintain the tower. The ice fortress is notoriously difficult to maintain, with some towers having huge jutting ice chains being used to keep the towers from tilting. Although considered impracticable, entrance into the tower is usually impossible, due to the hundreds of magic traps each tower tends to have.