Arrbi Betna
Marauder
Name: Ruug'la Vhekad Bral (Old/Ancient Sand Fortress)
Classification: Desert mesa/plateau
Location: In a desert located directly on Mandalore's equator and equidistant (more or less) between the north and south poles.
Size: ~600m long by 310m wide and the height varies from 100m to 420m depending on which area of the cliffs you are standing before.
Population: Insignificant
Demographics: Wildlife, the occasional Mandalorian explorer or archaeologist.
Points of Interest: Ruug'la Vhekad Bral is a natural rocky plateau seated in a vast desert. Atop the rock formation stands an ancient Mandalorian fort that has long since fallen to decay and disrepair. Nothing remains there outside of old, stone walls and structures. There is only one way up to the plateau at this time by foot which is dangerous, steep, and nearly impassable. There is enough space to land a ship at the top, however.
Description and History:
Formed by desert winds and sands eroding the rock around it, the plateau left was named Ruug'la Vhekad Bral, or Ancient Sand Fortress in Mando'a. The plateau overlooks the major trade road through the desert that is still in use today. Atop the plateau lies an ancient Mandalorian fortress of some kind, though it has yet to be determined if it was initially built by the Taung, though its purpose is obvious: guard the trade road.
The plateau is nearly inaccessible by foot, requiring those walking to scale a steep and dangerous ramp that snakes up the front of the fortress. Those doing so are completely open to attack from those atop the rocks as the path offers absolutely no cover of any kind. This is the only access by foot, though landing ships on the top of the plateau can be done, though this is discouraged by locals who consider it "cheating."
The fort was abandoned at some point before the Mandalorian wars but has been preserved by the desert to remain as it is today. Some discussion has gone into refortifying the plateau, but there is little need due to the presence of the Mandalorian Fleet in orbit.
The weather there is typically hot and parched in the daytime and frigid at night. Occasional sandstorms pass through, but do little to the massive stones there. There is no water source within a day's march in any direction, but the plateau itself does have a natural spring inside the rock itself, giving defenders plenty of water in the event of a siege.
Currently, no one lives atop the plateau, though it is visited relatively frequently by Mandalorian archaeologists and the occasional tourist.
