The alpine tundra of the Ashen Spires is milder than the Icetop Mountains to the northeast, despite the Ashen Spires being the taller mountain range. Trees gracefully transition to grasses and meadows from about 5500 to 6500 feet, depending on the mountain and which side of it one is on. The tallest mountain is Mount Tharzil, at just shy of 10,000 feet of elevation.
While the Ashen Spires have resources to exploit, they can be dangerous to travel through. Mundane animals such as saber-toothed tigers prowl the alpine forests and can become threats under duress or when modified by supernatural forces. Intelligent and monstrous predators like chimeras and perytons can also be found in the mountains and can prove long-term threats to nearby communities. The Ashen Spires are even home to a Fernia manifest zone that hosts a reclusive phoenix, a subject of many folk tales about cheating death.
Deep within the Ashen Spires lies a secretive force that could prove instrumental if war were to break out, either within or beyond Karrnath. Kech Hashraac, the Keepers of Thunder, are experts in artillery. Tunnels within the Ashen Spires lead to the demiplane of Arak Yor, an unnatural and abandoned city filled with constructs maintaining ancient structures. Here, the dar of Kech Hashraac have learned seemingly ancient secrets of bizarre alchemy, vital tools which they hope to bring to any conflict for the throne of Dhakaan.