Orsholon Mine #3

Access to the past

Orsholon Mine #3 is comprised of a new set of tunnels and shafts dug to intersect the remains of Torgaro Mine #12 after the horrific events of the Cataclysm.

After the Cataclysm, it was unanimously decided that no one should re-enter Torgaro Mine #12 and that the mine should be preserved as a memorial and tomb to those lost both in the Cataclysm and in the The 30-Year Winter that followed. But no one wanted to leave behind the richest veins and deposits contained in that mine. It was decided that another set of tunnels and shafts would be dug to intersect the lower, more prolifically producing areas of the mine, as well as the vaults that contained the amassed wealth of the The Torgaro Family.

Orsholon Mine #3 was originally designated Torgaro Mine #17, but was never a high-production mine. It was therefore repurposed as an access point, given its lower elevation, proximity to Orsholon City, and ease of travel to and from the mine entrance. The mine entrance was expanded to accomodate security measures, such as large iron doors and a portcullis. The tinnels were also widened to allow better airflow. Due to the mine’s depth, and no easy means of providing ventilation, many shafts were dug through the hard Rinzeremel rock to provide additional airflow. These shafts drove nearly straight up throug the mountain, approximately 4 ft in width. The tops of the shafts were covered with iron grates, but these were more for safety than security, as entering a shaft was likely to lead to a deadly fall.

Orsholon Mine #3 began digging in late 3401 BTG. Then described as Torgaro Mine #17, it was hoped that this mine would be even more productive than Torgaro #12, which had been responsible for nearly 35% of all the wealth amassed by the Torgaros. While Torgaro #12 sat at about 4000′ in elevation at its entrance, the better deposits were found nearly 2000′ lower in the mountain. Torgaro #17’s entrance was at 2100′ and about 2 miles NE of Torgaro #12 in a canyon. Hopes were that if they mined straight into the mountain, they would intersect the Torgaro #12 deposits at a much more convenient level, making extraction and transportation much simpler. The result, however, was much less than anticipated. Due to what was eventually determined to be a calculation error by the lead drilling engineer, the main tunnel leading into the mountain was off by about 2 degrees. When they thought they should have intercepted Torgaro #12, they found nothing but rock. Once the error was discovered, they had already spent 4 years tunneling into the mountin, and had not come across even one productive vein. The error had been costly in time and fortune. The plan was to come up with another drilling program, but it woudl require removing and/or replacing all of the shoring used in the initial plan. Designs were still being appporved and modified when the Cataclysm hit. Becasuse of the wide mine entrance and no means of sealing it, as well as the mine’s eastward facing entrance, it bore the full brunt of the blast and ensuing winds. Not a single individual survived. In fact, when the mine was finally reentered after the 30-Year Winter, it looked as if it had been scoured completely. There remained very little to describe what had happened, save for some of the twisted, and in some cases, molten machinery. There is no record of who perished in the mine. No papers survived, any any records of who might have been there were lost in the ashes and rubble of Urshalin City. When the Orsholon Kingdom began to rebuild, they knew they need to regain access to the vast deposits under the mountain, while keeping the original #12 mine sealed as a memorial. They renamed the Torgaro #17 to Orsholon Mine #3, and began the ardous work of digging without the great machines of the past. Mine workers were plagued early on with rock falls and cave-ins that resulted from not having the proper safety equipment. Rens Torgaro, now King Rens Torgaro of Orsholon, pulled together the best engineers that remained in region to devise a safer plan of action. Rens had in his possession the maps of the Torgaro #12 mine, and the team soon realized the error of the #17 engineers: They were off by 200′ both north and in depth. The actual intersection point with Torgaro #12 was both higher and farther south. This would intercept the easternmost room of #12. The newest deposits had been found 500′ lower in the #12 complex. The choice had to be made – continue from the existing location of #17 and try to find the deposits again (which would make a much easier transfer of ore), or dig up to the existing #12 rooms and adapt the infrastructure there. The latter choice became the decision, as it was a more firm guarantee of finding the ore deposits again, and would allow them to seal up the remainder of #12. It took 6 years of using hand tools and beasts to dig out the rock and reach the #12 mine. Since that time, the tunnel to the lower section of #12 has been substantially widened. The lower levels of #12 are now considered part of Orsholon Mine #3 (Torgaro #17), and now lead even deeper into the mountain, at least 3000 ft below the #3 mine entrance. It is rumored, although not confirmed, that tunnels from the Torgaro #12 – lower sections also lead back to the palace complex in Orsholon City, and to the vault chambers below the palace grounds.

The original tunnels in the mine were contructed using Torgaro Family machines which made smooth walled corridors and shafts. Individual "rooms" had been likewise carved out with heavy machinery, and the tunnels and corridors are all sized to accomodate these machines. The newer tunnels (post-Cataclysm) have been carved out of the stone with hand and beast-powered tools, and are much rougher and smaller. There is no question where these are delineated as the surfaces of the walls have a distinct change from the machine excavation and the hand tool marks. Newer sections are supported by wooden beams as they are being dug, with these beams being repaced by iron beams as the tunnel lengthens. At points where these tunnels intersect areas of Torgaro #12, care has been taken to seal off the old mine with iron doors and massive locks to protect the sanctity of the mine-turned-tomb.