The Siltroots
Petrified trees stand clear of the ground, a tangled knot of extending roots submerged in the slurry of silt, sand and water that runs through the area. For those who pass through the area, grim reminders of the danger present occasionally surface: a dried-out corpse or sun-bleached skeleton strung through the branches above, or a rotten arm jutting from the silt, ragged fingers clasping onto exposed roots.
Geography
The Siltroots cover an area of desert and silt. The outer reaches of the petrified forest are rooted into the sand of the desert, while as one travels further into the petrified forests the sand becomes damp, giving way to a silty sludge that parts under any weight, then set like a stone when pulled against. Travelling across the roots is the safest way to cross the middle of the Siltwoods, but the closer to the centre the greater the risk for injury and loss.
Fauna & Flora
While no plants grow within the Siltwoods, it's long accepted that something resides in its depths. Travellers who are forced into the trees by storms, weather or attackers sometimes disappear. Occasionally, ragged remnants surface again as detritus strung on trees or sucked down by the silt. A natural, unfortunate end; but for the gouges in the bones and the parallel rips that have shredded clothing and armour, suggesting claws and teeth have worked over the body. Even with the searches that have taken place, no sign of animals or worse has been found.
Natural Resources
The petrified wood, though risky to gather, has been in demand by several settlements for its relatively light weight but durable and sharp edges when carved. Felling the trees is more akin to mining a rock face, but once down the real difficulty is transporting the material.
History
The Siltwoods were once a dense grove of trees which covered an area of rich soil; the river that flowed through used to be wide and shallow, constantly washing up fresh soil and silt. The roots of the trees would be exposed over time as the sediment was eroded, but when the Cataclysm struck, the trees were petrified and the riverbed cracked, shrinking to a thinner and murky flow of water. The narrowed passage caused the water to back up, leading to the silt-ridden morass that exists today.
Type
Forest
Location under
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