THE WOOD BETWEEN
As it is today, the Wood Between is seen as a boundary. A place where the link between this world and the Other is weak. Many times, human heroes chose to be buried in the depths of the Wood Between, following a tradition that ran back to the days of the Tuatha De Danaan. In this mystical place, it was believed the spirit traveled faster to the Otherworld and was guaranteed a bountiful existence there.
In the the Eyru of today, any sense of adventure regarding the Wood Between has been replaced by fear. The Otherworld itself is viewed with great superstition and thus any connections to it, dangerous. This, opposed to the tales of the past which refer to Otherworldly beings and powers as something more of a potential asset to those who would dare to control it. The people still venerate those ancestors who may have crossed over to that world, though it is done with a growing sense of reluctance. Anyone that seems to wield Otherworldly powers of their own accord, is subject to fear and terrible reprisals. Therefore, the woods have been untouched by humans since the exodus from the North after Clarabaan's Northern Army fell to the Giants nearly 500 years ago.
The enormous trees of the central woods block out the light of the sun making for world of perpetual darkness beneath the thick canopy of leaves. They are old, some say strangely even older than Eyru itself, planted in the Otherworld. Their size seems to defy imagination and their thick roots create their own landscape; some even tunneling into solid rock to anchor the massive trunks.
Further out from the center, the trees and vegetation grow at their peak. They are not the behemoths of the central forest, but the still grow well beyond the norm. The forest floor supports an amazing variety of vegetation, all in prime health as well.
Much the same as the Northern lands, what is known of this wood is in the form of legend and story. During the Golden Age, travel through the Wood via the High King's Road was common. Even then, legend reports that common travelers never wandered too far off the path. The woods were filled with untold dangers for sure, though mostly people wished to avoid contact with the faye. This was much less out of fear at the time and more out of a desire to avoid their pranks. Most of the woods inhabitants were believed to be benign, for the most part. Experiencing their pranks became a sort of rite of passage for the humans that did seek adventure in the Wood's depths.
Great heroes and adventurers in the Golden Age did often brave the woods and bring fabulous tales from its depths. Beyond the pranksters, the Woods were well deserving of fear. Dire beasts, often hunted by the giants themselves, were the end of many a brave (or foolhardy) hunting party. And more malicious creatures roamed the deeper woods. Encounters with horrific beasts and creatures of unsurpassed evil were common tales of the heroes that emerged from the darkest depths. Creatures who delighted in pain and death. Creatures even the Giant-kin sought to avoid.
In the the Eyru of today, any sense of adventure has been replaced by fear. The Otherworld itself is viewed with great superstition and thus any connections to it, dangerous. This, opposed to the tales of the past which refer to Otherworldly beings and powers as something more of a potential asset to those who would dare to control it. The people still venerate those ancestors who may have crossed over to that world, though it is done with a growing sense of reluctance. Anyone that seems to wield Otherworldly powers of their own accord, is subject to fear and terrible reprisals.
Recently, a brave band of adventures has delved into the Wood Between. Much information has been discovered about the true nature of the faye and even the Wood Between. If they return to the people of Eyru with these stories however, will anyone believe them?
Important Factions and Individuals
Leverham: Leverham is a fiddle playing faye that the party met in Session 5. He and his band of Grigg managed to treat the party to a wonderful game of "Marco Polo". After a relaxing midnight party cruise, the little faye apologized for playing tricks on the party and asked for help in reviving a fellow grigg named Gary. Leverham is a leader in the grigg community and fairly well connected throughout the Faye world.
Doriatha: A very angry nymph. She lost a friend to some marauding giants and has since turned into an instrument of vengeance, quite contrary to her normal nature. She at first took out her anger on the party and has recently decided to take it out on anyone(thing) who dares pass through her territory. She makes her home in a secluded glade somewhere between the High King's Road and the Eastern sea.
Maps
Along the Eastern Coast (from the tales of Session 6 and 7 of the official campaign.)
The Witch's Needle (Small island east of the woods)