The mountain that the dragon's fang is built on has been revered within various communities around Kairn since ancient times. The mountain is the largest in the region, towering well over four thousand meters at its highest. The mountain has many names within the various races; the orcs called it great tooth for its jagged shape, while the dwarves called it dark mane, due to the abundance of basalt on the backside and humans originally called it scarborne for its jarring portrusion in the landscape. The current name for the mountain, Dragon's Fang, is the elven name for it, as the mountain was originally host to a large gathering of dragons in the beforetimes. In those days, dragons were much more amiable and many elves travelled to the mountain to study under the wise beasts. Over time, they learned both the ways and weaknesses of dragonkind. When the dragons retreated to dragon island for unknown reasons, the elves established a council to maintain what they had learned.
This council was called on to handle malicious dragons as the only able group in Kairn, and over time the organisation morphed into more of a dragon deterrence program than the monastery of knowledge it once was. However, dragon deterrence proved to be a highly profitable venture, and the monastery prospered over centuries, employing both diplomacy and death to keep dragons from destroying the various societies around the world. The monastery became a booming beacon of knowledge, wealth and might, in addition to being a common reststop for those travelling between the various homes of civilization. When the humans arrived, they slowly took over the organisation, and as draconic relations worsened across Kairn, the monastery became ever more brutal and industrious. Eventually, the modern Dragon's Shadow was born.
The current Dragon's Fang monastery is located on the second tallest outcropping of Dragon's Fang, starting at 3000 meters above sea level. Although the path to the monastery is well maintained, as a constant stream of supplies is necessary for its continued survival, the climb is still a daunting task that leaves most travellers exhausted by its end. The monastery itself is a massive construction, created over many centuries and going deep into the rock of the mountain itself. It is designed to be highly resistant to all forms of attacks, and even ancient dragons would find it difficult to ruin its structural integrity. Carved out of stone, reinforced with titanium and scale, the building is designed to withstand a large dragonflight for upwards of 20 minutes, a duration long enough to level most metropolises in the world.
The monastery consists of 8 lower levels, carved downwards into the mountain itself. Although the tales from previous members vary, most imply that the first two layers are the only ones in daily use, with the remaining mostly being more specialized workshops or storage rooms. In addition to the lower levels, the monastery itself consists of 6 buildings: the sleeping barracks, the food & relaxation halls, the training halls, the instructors halls, the church and the seat of the Senior Council. All of these are interconnected at the lower levels, ensuring that no surface level strike effectively disables logistics, except for the church, which was a later attachment required by the central church authorities. It has no structural reinforcement.
The sleeping barracks consist of 3 floors, with the newer recruits sharing rooms at the higher floors and the higher ranked recruits having their own, spacious rooms at the ground floor. The food & relaxation halls are two large dining halls and eight smaller halls, for various recreational activities. Usually only one dining hall is in usage, with the second being reserved for special events, such as the council receiving guests. The training halls consists of 10 smaller rooms, with 10 attached rooms serving as the offices of the various instructors. Usually, the monastery only employs around 6 instructors at a time, although this has fluctuated. The instructor halls consists of 2 floors and is where the instructors rest, organise and administer medical aid. The church is functionally a wooden tower, erected to house representatives of the church, who dare not complain about their lackluster accomodation. Finally, the seat of the Senior Council is positioned at the edge of the cliffside, rising far above the rest of the buildings. At the top is the resident of the current Supreme, with the Senior Council taking up residence in the lower levels. It is uncertain what the exact layout or purpose of the building is, as no one outside of the senior council is permitted entrance, but it is presumed that much of the greater string pulling the Dragon's Shadow does is organised there.
The monastery has for decades been the target of many a tale spun by travelling bards. The nature of the mysterious organisation, as well as the low amount of people visiting it has let those of the creative trade to employ unadulterated fantasy where the facts were lacking. As such, depending on the land you find yourself in, the monastery might be built on top of an ancient dragon graveyard, a hideout for the cast down or actually a hideout for dragons who then play both sides of the game. Regardless of which variant you favor, one thing is in common between them: the hoard of dragon parts located in the monastery. As the exclusive dragon slayers in Kairn and the only ones with formal training in skinning the creatures, the Dragon's Shadow has over time built up a veritable mountain of dragon parts. Reviews by Windsor academics have estimated that only around 10% of the acquired materials ever make it out into the greater arcane reagent market, raising concerns over the artifical supply restriction and its purposes. It is rumored that the Dragon's Shadow has enough teeth stored to give every man, woman and child dragon tusks. These rumors have naturally inspired many a bandit faction, foolish adventurer or brave thief to attempt to raid the monastery, but so far no one has returned with dragon parts, or returned at all for that matter.
Current estimates places the total value of the materials at the Dragon's Fang at well over 40 million gold pieces, nearly half the combined wealth of the warring kingdoms. Market prices for dragon parts fluctuate wildly, due to the limited demand, but the market places a single dragon scale at around 400 gp, a dragon tooth at 800 gp, a dragon talon at 1000 gp, a vial of dragon blood at 1000 gp, a vial of dragon acid at 4000 gp, a dragon eye at 6000 gp and a dragon heart at 10 000 gp. A dragon egg is currently valued at around 50 000 gp. There is currently several 500 000 gp listings for a tamed dragon.