Wall of Heaven

The Wall of Heaven, stretching from the Crown of the World in the north to Nagajor in the south.

For another meaning of "Wall of Heaven", please see Prime Vallation.

Update needed This article should be updated to reflect canon changes noted in Tian Xia World Guide. Please help improve it if you can; the talk page might contain suggestions.

The Wall of Heaven, known locally as the Qiang Tian, is the dominant mountain range on the continent of Tian Xia. The enormous range covers more land than many nations.

Geography

The Wall of Heaven mountains run along almost all of Tian Xia's western coast, and the range is the broadest on Golarion. They begin near the Crown of the World in the northern realm of Hongal and run down to the naga empire of Nagajor far to the south. They are generally steep and impassible with few navigable passes, causing most trade and travel to run parallel to them. The scarce mountain passes naturally become great centers of trade, and the greatest of these is the city of Goka, a cosmopolitan port on the mountains' western edge.

Himcho, meaning "Mother of the World", is both the range's and Golarion's largest mountain.

Inhabitants

Yetis claim the highest peaks of the Wall of Heaven mountains.

The Wall of Heaven is not an easy place to live. Extreme altitudes and vicious weather make life all but impossible for humans in its higher reaches, and travelling across the Wall of Heaven proves treacherous in all but the lowest passes. Nevertheless, the mountains are still home to numerous monks, oracles, hermits, and other religious folk. These religious communities often congregate in isolated monasteries, such as the Iroran Doan and Dap-Cha monasteries, but others live extremely isolated lives.

Yetis claim the highest peaks and are often called the "keepers" of the Wall of Heaven, for no one knows more of the mountain range's secrets. While the yetis are often violent and hostile towards careless travellers, they generally leave residents of the mountains in peace. The central reaches of the Wall of Heaven Mountains also share a link with the nightmare realm of Leng, with denizens of Leng living amongst the basalt ruins of the city now known as Menhu Leng.

Clans of ysoki known as Gokan Hoppers live across and are uniquely adapted to the Wall of Heaven and its neighbouring desert. These ratfolk have a unique gait, as their much larger feet allow them to hop like kangaroos across the mountain passes.

Religion

The Wall of Heaven has always attracted religious types to its isolated reaches. There are many monastic orders devoted to Irori, the god of self-perfection, including the Iroran Doan Monastery that hangs atop the 6,000-foot Wall of Lamjung cliff. Some of the monasteries scattered across the range are truly huge in size; the Dap-Cha Monastery is home to more than 2,000 people and is more akin to a large town than a secluded spiritual escape. Himcho's base includes many temples to a variety of deities.

Beyond Irori, other deities most widely worshipped across the Wall of Heaven include Desna, the goddess of the North Star; Lamashtu, Grandmother Nightmare; Tsukiyo, Prince of the Moon; and Yamatsumi, the Mountain Lord.

References

For additional as-yet unincorporated sources about this subject, see the Meta page.