This dual focus gives them some unique advantages. Unlike many wizards, spellblades are taught to regard spells as just another weapon, and they restrict their magical studies to whatever can be useful in battle. Spellblades in training learn to cast cantrips alongside their basic weapons training. Many training schools exist, with the most famous one being the Circle of Danantar in the Principality of Masgarth. They study magic as well as physical combat, and are expected to excel in both areas. Those who choose this path, though, do not see it as one of compromise. Spellblades' detractors often argue about who makes a better Spellblade: a failed wizard whose physical strength can be put to good use, or a reluctant fighter who's a bit too smart to be a good soldier. While mountaineers do not fit the ideal of the elegant, noble warrior, they are impressively efficient killers of Badlands monsters. The greatest mountaineers can combine offensive actions into devastating chain attacks. Their extreme mobility lets them maneuver in ways that can surprise opponents and give them a considerable tactical advantage.
A mountaineer’s shield can wound or knock down an opponent, and given a wall on one side and a shield in the opposite hand, a skilled mountaineer can be almost invulnerable. They are masters of the shield, which is as much a weapon as a protection in their skilled hands.
Mountaineers are specially trained to fight and survive in rocky and vertical environments. Many of these creatures make their lairs in dark tunnels, narrow canyons, and cramped ruins.
For generations, the Marches and the mountains that stand between the Badlands and the more civilized nations have been infested by orcs and other monsters. Mountaineers, though, are born out of the ashes of the Cataclysm. Most of Solasta’s martial traditions have their roots in the elite army corps of the Manacalon Empire or the Tirmarian Inquisition.