The volcanic mesa, a mesa situated on the planet Makeb, was distinguished by a large magma chamber. This chamber was the location of Stronghold One, a highly protected installation housing the planetary treasury. This mesa also encompassed a widespread network of caves, with the Scorching Grotto located in the western part and the Sweltering Caverns in the east. On the mesa's northern flank, the people of Makeb built a landing platform. Within the mesa's interior, various native species existed; exoboars, underwalkers, and subteroths hunted one another inside the volcanic caverns, showing aggression to any intruders. During the Conquest of Makeb, Imperial troops used explosives throughout the cave system to mimic a groundquake, which compromised the security of Stronghold One. These detonations also inflicted damage upon the mesa, causing pieces to break away from its upper reaches.