Erebor

"The wind was on the withered heath, but in the forest stirred no leaf: there shadows lay be night or day, and dark things silent crept beneath. The wind came down from mountains cold, and like a tide it roared and rolled; the branches groaned, the forest moaned, and leaves were laid upon the mould."

- Thorin's Company

Erebor is a small biome situated around The Lonely Mountain, both of which were released in the Beta 23 update.

Erebor is a mountainous biome with a lot of pine and spruce trees, as well as boulders. It currently is void of settlers, although in the future it will be populated with Durin's Folk and the Bardings (people of Dale). It also currently has normal ore generation, however, this may change due to the fact Erebor was supposedly a great place for gold and jewels to be mined.

Currently, only Gundabad Orcs and farm animals spawn here, with the former appearing at night.

Upon entering this biome, the player earns the achievement "The Lonely Mountain."

History
Erebor was a Dwarven kingdom founded by Thrain I, a Dwarven Lord from the Grey Mountains. The kingdom flourished as the discovery of gold and gems throughout the mountain became widely known.

In the heart of Erebor, the Dwarves recovered the Arkenstone. Thrain named it the King's Jewel as a sign of his right to rule. The Dwarven king and his retinue, for reasons unknown, abandoned the mountain until his descendant Thror returned with a great host of Durin's folk to reclaim the Arkenstone. In the following years, their civilization prospered, bringing peace and trade to nearby lands, including Esgaroth, Dale, the Woodland Realm and Dorwinion.

However, darkness came as Thror became obsessed by his hoard of treasure, particularly the Arkenstone. On one windy day, the inhabitants of Erebor heard the pines creaking violently on the mountainside, as if in a hurricane. The dragon Smaug, chiefest and greatest of calamities, had arrived, attracted by the Dwarves' massive hoard of gold. He stormed Erebor, desecrating their sacred halls and amounting himself a pile of treasure. Thror and his son Thrain II escaped with singed beards, their great kingdom lost.

Eventually, the mountain was taken back by Thror's brave grandson Thorin II Oakenshield, who led a party of 13 Dwarves, along with the hobbit Bilbo as their burglar and a wizard named Gandalf. They braved many perils together and came upon the mountain. There, they teased and riddled Smaug, resulting in him destroying the nearby town of Esgaroth. In the midst of that chaos, Bard the Bowman and his son smote down the beast with a well-shot black arrow.

After the dragon's death, there was the Battle of Five Armies was fought between Elves, Men, Dwarves, Orcs, and Eagles, each one vying for either gold, territory, or vengeance. In the end, the Orcs were defeated by the coalition of the good armies, but Thorin was killed and buried deep within the mountain with Orcrist and the Arkenstone upon his breast. Dain II Ironfoot succeeded him and became the King Under the Mountain.

During the War of the Ring, the Lonely Mountain was besieged by the Easterlings at about the same time as Minas Tirith was attacked. During the battle, Dain Ironfoot was killed and the siege on the Mountain was ended by his son Thorin III Stonehelm.

Environment
This biome contains a large amount of evergreen trees (pine, spruce, and fir), as well as dead oak trees. Boulders frequent the mountainous landscape, and there often appear large patches of bare rock. One can tell that the environment used to be green and flourishing, before it became the desolation of Smaug.

Mobs
The only NPCs that spawn in this biome are Gundabad Orcs at night. Apart from that, the usual passive animals populate the landscape. These include birds, butterflies, boars, and rabbits.

Structures
The Lonely Mountain is the primary "structure" in this biome. Apart from the mountain, Gundabad Orc camps and ruined houses can be found scattered about the landscape.